Gore: creationism OK

Max B. Sawicky sawicky at epinet.org
Sun Aug 29 23:52:38 PDT 1999


1. Debs was popular in certain areas more than 75 years ago. 2. Creationist sentiment is strong in those same areas 3. Therefore, creationism is socialism or at least anti elitism by other means?

This seems quite dubious though I understand Lewontin, like many a student of cultural studies, may have been able to glean latent resistance in forms
>>>>>>>>

In fact the most economically radical Americans circa 1900 were also the most culturally conservative, hard though it may be to fathom today. These were sharecroppers, tenant farmers, and assorted small fry in the agriculutural economy, and their friends and relations in the fledgling labor movement. The heart of the movement was Texas. Cooperative economics was an important theme. This was not "latent" resistance.

Don't forget the leader of the creationist side in the Scopes monkey trial was led by William Jennings Bryan, the populist leader. Allied with the Peoples Party was the Womens Christian Temperance Union.

It makes perfect sense for creationism to correlate with socialist sentiment around the turn of the century. As others have noted, the socialist movement and its populist forebears were not without racial problems. But that was the package.

mbs



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