Good news from the Panda's Thumb regarding the Cobb County evolution disclaimer appeal — the appeals court has denied the board's requested stay on removing the stickers pending the outcome of the appeal. Here's a brief timeline of the stall tactics that the Cobb County board has been using, from the Marietta Daily Journal:

The Cobb school board will apparently have until the end of the month to excise more than 34,000 evolution disclaimers inserted in science textbooks now that the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied its request to wait on removing the stickers until the appeals court hears the case.

On Jan. 13 Federal District Judge Clarence Cooper ruled that the school board's decision to post stickers that call evolution "a theory, not a fact" into school books violates the separation of church and state and had to be "immediately" removed.

After hearing a Cobb high school science supervisor complain that removing so many stickers would disrupt classroom instruction, Judge Cooper agreed to postpone the removal date to a week after school ends on May 20.

However, on Jan. 17 the school board voted 5-2, with board Chairwoman Kathie Johnstone and Laura Searcy dissenting, to appeal the case to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals on the proviso that the board's attorneys, the Marietta law firm Brock Clay, would represent them free of charge in the appeals process.

Moreover, Brock Clay filed a motion for stay on the sticker removal order until the court of appeals heard the case. That motion was denied Tuesday by Circuit Judges Joel Dubina, Frank Hull and Charles Wilson.

Marietta attorney Michael Manely, who, along with the American Civil Liberties Union, defended the plaintiffs in district court, said that to get a stay, it has to be proven that the case is likely to succeed on its own merits.

"This showed it's not likely to prevail," Manely said. "It's the first serious nail in the coffin from the Court of Appeals. They are expressing their preliminary thoughts on the subject. This is like a preview of what is certain to come. It tells the board that this corpse is beginning to smell really bad."

Of course, Cobb County is still proceeding with the appeal. We wonder how pissed off the rational taxpayers in Cobb County are over this ridiculous bullshit that they will be forced to foot the ever-growing bill for.

One more from the Marietta Daily Journal:

Asked what she plans to do now, [Board Vice Chair Dr. Teresa Plenge] said, "I guess we have to take them out. They're stuck, so it's going to be messing with the inside cover of the book."

No, Dr. Plenge. You are the ones who are "messing" with the books. The court is just ordering you to stop.