Lucise:
Ditto -- as a fellow Albertan, Calgarian nutso, I also take offense at that appelation, Chanterais.
No indeed, Alberta hasn't cornered the market on nutsos. Ontarians have their own special brand of insanity. To wit: eight dead bikers in trunks. I'll say no more.
I'm with Ro on this. I think it's an interesting little blip on the American cultural landcape, but I don't think it's in any danger of becoming the dominant view. I think the vast majority of Americans, though they believe in God, also understand that there are appropriate venues for certain debates and beliefs. Just as most Americans agree that public schools are not the place for prayer, so they understand that that science class is not the place for exploring the idea of intelligent design.
I mean, I think the question about the presence and role of a higher being in the universe is incredibly important and worth examining (and I say that as a confirmed atheist), but school science classes are not the right forum for that discussion. Science, as a discipline, is based on a very specific method whereby theories must be able to be disproved. The existence of an intelligent creator simply cannot be disproved, and therefore it's not a legitimate scientific theory. Period. It's an important question, but it ain't science.
That said, I bet a great science teacher could really use the concept of intelligent design to help kids understand the scientific method, and to better realize how the acceptance of the Big Bang theory is based on educated consensus rather than solid, unimpeachable facts.
I will now get off my soapbox and go soak my head.