Science is not a Democracy.

Governor Perry:

Science is not a democracy. My "economist" bias is that its more of a market place. People don't "vote" on the best product in a market place, they buy the one that works. Galileo was not "out-voted" on the fact that the Earth orbits the sun and not the other way around, he was imprisoned by the Inquisition and had his writings banned from the public. In fact Governor Perry, you could make a "big government" argument here about large, centralized institutions interfering in the optimal rational decisions of individual agents. For the record, the funeral wishes of Galileo's family were also denied by the Catholic church because of his "heresy." This was not out-voting, this was oppression by a tyrannical regime.

Why is evolutionary theory still around? Because it works: its grown better foods, its produced better vaccines, it is the only working model amongst the many that have tried and failed to gain traction. It was not up for a vote, it was tested in the marketplace of ideas and industry and it worked. Ideas such as "intelligent design" or traditions such as "creationism" have not produced any of the above. I'm not discounting faith or belief here, I am simply pointing out that the writings of Augustine and William Jennings Bryant contributed nothing to the vaccine for polio, or modern surgical techniques.

And for the record; think of "evolutionary theory" as if it were the "theory of gravity." It is a model that has proved extremely useful in explaining observations in nature and predicting/manipulating outcomes. I'm fairly certain that's not what you mean when you say something is "just a theory".

Why does climate change stick around? Because the models have worked to the point where 97% of scientists who specialize in it agree that it is the model that works; that human intervention does have consequences on climate.

And finally, it is not in the best interest of free markets or individual liberty to have a "vote" on scientific claims and theories. In fact it is incredibly socialist of you to surrender this competitive and productive market of ideas to the authority of a government, because that worked so well in the past. Why should scientists submit to a "vote"? They already submit to an extremely wrenching process of peer review, where their ideas, if not productive, are torn to shreds. It is more favorable towards individual liberty and capitalism to the let the market decide and the Invisible Hand does not vote- not in the sense that you mean.

Governor Perry your comment about Galileo was odious, ill-advised, anti-science, and in all honesty anti-liberty. Galileo was an inventive, entrepreneurial, and bold man, willing to take risks and entertain new ideas. He is exactly the kind of man we need in a new economy. To "out-vote" him would be a tragedy, an indecency, and a crime. Indeed, it was all of those three.

PS:
By the way, evolutionary theory was behind that HPV vaccine that you decided everyone should take. Just saying. For something you flippantly dismiss as "just a theory" you seem to have remarkable faith in its products.