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Folks, Why do we have to somehow always blame the Creationists? Comments like the one below tend to lump all theists who believe that a deity was involved in origins (including myself) with the vocal group of Creationists who believe that Noah's flood accounts for most of the sedimentary record. Let me say as a neighbor, that the Nebraska Museum is a first class place. I have made good use of the staff for identifaction of some Pleistocene vertebrate fossils. I have heard no rumors that that there is a strong lay reaction to the evolutionary philosophy of the Museum. I suspect it is simply the easiest unit to cut with the most savings without affecting what the Chancellor sees as the central focus of the University. If you look at his letter, he is cutting elswhere too. James Mahaffy (mahaffy@dordt.edu) Phone: 712 722-6279 Biology Department FAX : 712 722-1198 Dordt College, Sioux Center IA 51250 >>> leigh@uchicago.edu 03/11/03 11:53AM >>> "Wherein I do not know, thereof I shall not speak." - Wittgenstein The Nebraska State Museum is one of the major museums in the country and is notably strong in later Cenozoic mammals. It has a strong curatorial staff, at least most of whom I am glad to see are tenured. This fact will probably eliminate much of the stated savings; if not, a serious confrontation with AAUP will occur, with the university unlikely to prevail. The problem is obviously one of priorities. I also know nothing of Nebraska's financial status. However, nonscientists, especially anti-evolutionists, can easily see as superfluous a unit which they don't understand and which they perceive as lacking political clout. The request is for outsiders to try to remedy these lacks. Leigh >Requests such as this are dreadfully sad, but also sadly >inappropriate. We know nothing of the context. Some Solomon >somewhere is obliged to cut babies in half and they like doing that >no more than we like having it done to us. > >There is a reality out there that relates to money. For whatever >reason(s) at the moment the economy is a secondary issue and we are >all involved in a deep recession. As a result we are in some rather >dreadful Darwinian times. At issue may be the survival of whole >university departments and programs. But why should we be immune >from this tragedy but not concern ourselves with the cuts applied >across the board to Buildings and Grounds staffs or to Housekeepers >in our dorms or to Joe down the road who just lost his job...? >Places that are important hardly need a writing campaign to justify >their continuation or future existence. > >You have my deepest sympathy but I don't know enough about your >state, your university, etc. to provide a meaningful letter. > >Chris Baldwin > >Michael Cuggy wrote: > >>I am forwarding this message sent to me from a friend in SVP. >>----------------------------------------------- >>Michael B. Cuggy >> >>>To SVP Members, >>> >>>At the University of Nebraska, we, like so many institutions, have been >>>undergoing severe budget cuts over the past several months. The University >>>of Nebraska State Museum had been left spared from these cuts - until >>>yesterday. We received news of the Chancellor's recommendations for a >>>portion of the third round of cuts, as quoted from the Chancellor's email
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