In his op-ed column for The New York Times (August 15, 2006), Lawrence M. Krauss hailed the results of the August 1, 2006, primary election in Kansas, which he described as "a victory for public education [that] sends a message nationwide about the public's ability to see through efforts by groups like the Discovery Institute to misrepresent science in the schools." But, he warned, "for those of us who are interested in improving science education, any celebration should be muted" in recognition of the challenges that remain: political machinations, "plain old ignorance," and the sadly prevalent idea that knowledge is a threat to faith.
He concludes with the thought, "As we continue to work to improve the abysmal state of science education in our schools, we will continue to battle those who feel that knowledge is a threat to faith. But when we win minor skirmishes, as we did in Kansas, we must remember that the issue is far deeper than this. We must hold our elected school officials to certain basic standards of knowledge about the world. The battle is not against faith, but against ignorance." Krauss, a professor of physics and astronomy at Case Western Reserve University, is the author of several books, including, most recently, Hiding in the Mirror (Viking 2005).