# Sued teacher (who lost) speaks: Why I challenged creationism in class **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 11, 2009, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sued-teacher-who-lost-speaks-why-i-challenged-creationism-in-class/496074 "2009-05-11T19:23:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sued-teacher-who-lost-speaks-why-i-challenged-creationism-in-class/496074/1 "2009-05-11T19:23:03Z")
Interesting read [Teacher at Capistrano Valley High School. A federal judge ruled recently that Corbett violated the First Amendment’s establishment clause by disparaging Creationism.](http://open.salon.com/blog/corribean/2009/05/09/dr_james_jesus_glasses_corbett) ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sued-teacher-who-lost-speaks-why-i-challenged-creationism-in-class/496074/2 "2009-05-11T19:32:12Z")
Some context would be nice. Do you have a link to the court case? The particulars that prompted the trial? ---
**Author:** ![NurseCarmen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5daacb/32.png) [@NurseCarmen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NurseCarmen)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sued-teacher-who-lost-speaks-why-i-challenged-creationism-in-class/496074/3 "2009-05-11T19:38:30Z")
Why did he lose? ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sued-teacher-who-lost-speaks-why-i-challenged-creationism-in-class/496074/4 "2009-05-11T19:41:44Z")
> [@astro](#): > > Interesting read > > [Teacher at Capistrano Valley High School. A federal judge ruled recently that Corbett violated the First Amendment’s establishment clause by disparaging Creationism.](http://open.salon.com/blog/corribean/2009/05/09/dr_james_jesus_glasses_corbett) Actually, the court found for the defendant teacher on all but one of the allegations (amounting to a single comment which the court found violated the Establishment clause). Read it for yourself here: [http://www.ocregister.com/newsimages/2009/05/01/Student%20lawsuit%20-%20final%20ruling.pdf](http://www.ocregister.com/newsimages/2009/05/01/Student%20lawsuit%20-%20final%20ruling.pdf) ---
**Author:** ![Jelymag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d2c977/32.png) [@Jelymag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jelymag)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sued-teacher-who-lost-speaks-why-i-challenged-creationism-in-class/496074/5 "2009-05-11T19:42:09Z")
_What_ did he lose? Did he have to pay the family money? Lose his job? ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sued-teacher-who-lost-speaks-why-i-challenged-creationism-in-class/496074/6 "2009-05-11T19:42:13Z")
> [@NurseCarmen](#): > > Why did he lose? From one of the comments to the blog. > [@](#): > > Dr. Corbett, I read the court decision. They only said you were in violation of the establishment clause for the “Peloza” comment regarding creationism being “superstitious nonsense”. Every other comment which Mr. Farnan objected was deemed permissible by the court. While I completely agree with you, the court made it obvious the issue was not your critique of creationism, but the way you stated it. By disparaging the religious belief as opposed to the “logic” behind it the case had merit (albeit not much). This is why a little background would be nice. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sued-teacher-who-lost-speaks-why-i-challenged-creationism-in-class/496074/7 "2009-05-11T19:42:49Z")
[Link.](http://sitfu.blogspot.com/2009/05/james-corbett-high-school-teachers-anti.html) ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sued-teacher-who-lost-speaks-why-i-challenged-creationism-in-class/496074/8 "2009-05-11T19:48:42Z")
As far as I can see, the court’s decision only makes sense if creationism is a religion. The teacher, as a representative of the State of California, could not disparage a religion as “superstitious”. So, in the future, when teaching he should point out that a court has decided that creationism is religion and not science, and that bringing any creationist ideas into a science classroom is inappropriate. He may have lost to the religious nutjobs, but it’s a Phyrric victory for those religious nutjobs. ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sued-teacher-who-lost-speaks-why-i-challenged-creationism-in-class/496074/9 "2009-05-11T19:49:29Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > [Link.](http://sitfu.blogspot.com/2009/05/james-corbett-high-school-teachers-anti.html) Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sued-teacher-who-lost-speaks-why-i-challenged-creationism-in-class/496074/10 "2009-05-11T19:51:55Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#): > > This is why a little background would be nice. We cross-posted, see my link to the court’s opinion above. ---
**Author:** ![Jelymag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d2c977/32.png) [@Jelymag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jelymag)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sued-teacher-who-lost-speaks-why-i-challenged-creationism-in-class/496074/11 "2009-05-11T19:57:32Z")
All very interesting. But the thing that is sticking with me most right now is that I’m wondering what my students might be recording me say in class… ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sued-teacher-who-lost-speaks-why-i-challenged-creationism-in-class/496074/12 "2009-05-11T20:46:11Z")
> [@Jelymag](#): > > All very interesting. But the thing that is sticking with me most right now is that I’m wondering what my students might be recording me say in class… You, too? The way I spout off in class, I’m sure some day a recording is going to surface… ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sued-teacher-who-lost-speaks-why-i-challenged-creationism-in-class/496074/13 "2009-05-11T22:30:07Z")
God, I’m so lucky none of my students ever recorded me when I was a teacher. ---
**Author:** ![ToeJam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dfb087/32.png) [@ToeJam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ToeJam)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sued-teacher-who-lost-speaks-why-i-challenged-creationism-in-class/496074/14 "2009-05-11T23:30:55Z")
Heh, they probably did, but not w/ a recorder. I remember 10-12 years ago when we used to make lists in HS of “stupid or funny things Mr(s). X said” and we’d just keep passing around the golden ones. And then we discovered the Joy of the Internet and making Webpages designed to hold quotes and inside jokes and again more silly quotes from teachers… Myspace before MySpace came along I suppose…