Behind the Scenes: School Kids Sing Praises to Obama
by Endre BaloghBy now many of you have seen the creepy video of the schoolchildren at the B. Bernice Young Elementary School in Burlington, NJ chanting praises to Barack Hussein Obama, complete with miniature Third Reich style arm salutes. The amusingly terse response (clearly delivered through clenched teeth) that the School District offered once they realized they had been caught red-handed indoctrinating children with Leftist ideology, only underscores the obvious fact that those people know full well that their programming methods cannot withstand scrutiny and must be kept well-hidden, lest their tactics become widely known.
Of course, we only got to see the culmination of what must have been a much longer lesson plan extolling the myriad shining virtues of Barack Hussein Obama. What happened just before the video starts?
**************************************
Teacher: Good morning, boys, girls, and those of you who haven’t decided yet. Today, I want to talk to you about the United States and what a great country we live in. Raise your hands and tell me why you think we live in a great country. Yes, Tyler?
Tyler: Because we have freedom?
Teacher: No, that’s not why. Brianna?
Brianna: Because we have justice for all?
Teacher: No. That’s not right, either. There isn’t justice for a lot of poor people and undocumented immigrants. Anyone else have an idea? Ryan?
Ryan: Because we are “One Nation Under God”?
Teacher: Oh, no, no, no! Don’t mention God in this classroom again or I’ll have to send you to the Principle’s office! Anyone else? Fatima?
Fatima: Because we have a new President?
Teacher: Yes, that’s right, Fatima! We are a great country now because we have a new President. His name is Barack Hussein Obama and he is our first African-American President. Can you all say Barack Hussein Obama?
Class: Baarrrak Hussayynn Obaaaama!!
Teacher: Yes! Barack Hussein Obama is our new President and the good people in this country elected him to bring us all change and hope. You have a question, Sydney?
Sydney: Yes teacher. Are there bad people in this country? People who didn’t vote for our new President? People who don’t like hope?
Teacher: Oh, yes, Sydney! There are lots of very bad people! They are called Republicans. Can you all say Republicans?
Class: Ree-pubbi-cunnns!
Heather: Teacher? Why would Republicans not want to vote for Barack Hussein Obama?
Teacher: Very good question, Heather. That’s something good people – Democrats – have a hard time with, but the real answer isn’t too difficult to understand. First, can you all say Democrats?
Class: Demo-cats!
Teacher: Yes, Barack Hussein Obama is a Democrat and that makes him good. Republicans are people who want the Earth to overheat so that poor people all over the world will be flooded out of their homes when the ice caps melt. Worse yet, they want all the polar bears to die. They don’t like trees, so they cut them down and put up cement parking garages. They like the air to be dirty so that people get lung diseases but when those people get sick, Republicans don’t want them to be able to go to the hospital. Instead, Republicans just want them to die. Republicans want children like you to go to bed hungry at night. They are racists and don’t like African-American children. In fact, Republicans really like war and so they think up all sorts of silly reasons to start wars so that lots and lots of innocent children all over the world can get killed.
(All the children start to cry.)
Addison: Why are Rebubicuns so mean?
Teacher: That’s a very good question, Addison. Does anyone know the answer?
Brandon: Maybe because their Mommies and Daddies were mean to them when they were little?
Teacher: That’s a good guess, Brandon. But, there is a better reason. Someone else? Kahlid?
Kahlid: I think Republians are mean because they want a lot of money.
Teacher: That’s right, Kahlid. You got it! Republicans are just downright greedy. They start wars so they can steal other people’s stuff and make a lot of money. They want the Earth to warm up because it will cost them too much money to get rid of all the carbon dioxide. They don’t like trees and flowers because they don’t bring in as much money as parking garages. And do you know who is the worst of all the Republicans? The greediest? Who knows? Hands?? Kayla?
Kayla: Adof Hitler?
Teacher: No, but you’re close. Hitler was pretty bad but this person was even worse. Abdul?
Abdul: Was it…ummm…George Bush?
Teacher: You’re right, Abdul! George W. Bush was the greediest Republican. He was the President before Barack Hussein Obama. He cheated in the election so he could get to be President. Then he lied to all the American people so he could start a war and steal all the oil from the people in Iraq. He killed millions of children so he and his Republican friends could get lots more money. He tried to poison the air and the water and wrecked our economy, all so he and his Republican friends could make still more money. He even…
(All the children start to cry much louder.)
Teacher: Oh, no! Children! Don’t cry! Everything is going to be fine now that we have our new President! The United States is a great country now because all the good Democrats were able to vote for Barack Hussein Obama and there were so many of them that the mean Republicans weren’t able to stop all of them from voting. So, Barack Hussein Obama is now the new President and he will fix all the bad things George W. Bush and the bad Republicans did.
Taylor: But how is he going to do that, Teacher?
Teacher: Well, Taylor, all the Democrats wanted hope and change, so the first thing Barack Hussein Obama did was make a law that gave a lot of money to all the good people. It was called a Stimulus Bill. Can you all say Stimulus Bill?
Children: Stimmuous Pill!
Teacher: Then, since George W. Bush ruined the economy, Barack Hussein Obama had to take over a big car company, which was good because now the car company will have to make cars that run on solar power so they won’t pollute any more. Barack Hussein Obama had to go to all the countries that George W. Bush hurt and apologize for stealing their stuff, so now all those countries like America again. Countries like Cuba and North Korea are our friends, now. He stopped the big war in Iraq and gave them back the oil that George W. Bush stole. Now, Barack Hussein Obama is trying to make sure that anyone who gets sick can go to a hospital and get well, and it won’t cost them anything. He’s going to make sure you all have food to eat, too, and I’ll bet he even wants to buy each one of you children an ice cream cone!
Jayden: Does Barack Hussein Obama have lots of money?
Teacher: No, Jayden, he is just a regular working person who spent his young life organizing poor people, but he wants to take away all the money from the bad and greedy Republicans so that he can give it to the people who really need it. He’s just like Robin Hood!
Children: Yaaaayy! Hooray for Barack Hussein Obama!
Aquanetta: I have an idea, Teacher! Why don’t we make up a song to sing about our President, Barack Hussein Obama, to tell him how much we love him and thank him for all the good he is doing for everyone?
Teacher: That’s excellent! How should it start? Does anyone have any ideas?
Jason: How about this? Mm, mm, mm! Barack Hussein Obama…
The rest you saw on the YouTube video.
If any of this has a ring of truth to it – like it might have really happened this way, (and probably has in countless schools across the country) then you might seriously consider homeschooling your children.
A young mind is a terrible thing to waste.
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107 Comments
and all these dittys sound better in the original German!
It's no creepier than the kids doing the same thing to that Dubya cardboard cutout in the movie "Jesus Camp." Indoctrination is indoctrination, whether it comes from the left or the right. Perhaps we could all agree that if we instead taught our kids critical thinking skills so that they could arrive at their own conclusions, we might have two very different (read: better) political parties than we have today, not to mention a better country.
The sad thing about the "why are Repubicans so mean" line is that I actually saw a comment on a Paul Krugman article saying exactly that. Some 'proud parent' was reporting that her son, 9 years old, came home and asked her "Why are Republicans so mean and evil?" And she was just so happy that her son could see the truth.
The comment got 512 up-votes.
At least the so-called indoctrination you refer to in "Jesus Camp" happened in private settings, where parents CHOSE to have their children attend. Comparing that to more sinister activity taking place in PUBLIC SCHOOLS, WITH KINDERGARTENERS, well, that's just ignorant.
hallelujah!
Couldn't agree more. However, this form of pagan idolatry far outweighs anything happening under 'W'.
We need to be vigilant in the face of this…
A fair point, but to think that the exact same thing didn't happen numerous times during the Bush presidency is naive. This kind of thing has been happening for as long as there have been presidents and public schools. I'm not saying it's right, I'm just saying before we get all up in arms about this particular incident, let's not lose focus of the fact that the *REAL* problems that our schoolchildren face have very little to do with what this paranoid columnist is scrawling about.
I must be terribly naive, then, because I don't recall any time during my school years that praises and adulation were lauded on a sitting president.
"A fair point, but to think that the exact same thing didn't happen numerous times during the Bush presidency is naive."
Actually, accepting a statement like that without supporting evidence would be naive.
So proof, please.
There is so much that we don't see,and thats a scary thought. The teachers union has morphed into a atheistic group. The rank and file teachers need to speak up before they start incurring the wrath of normal Americans. Teachers have to be more than silent. My respect for them is shrinking by the day.
If you enjoy the hero worship, cult of personality, and aura of zombie indoctrination………..just keep sending your children to these public schools. This type of indoctrination (cults) is most common in regimes with totalitarian systems of government bent on radically altering and transforming society.
What does this tell you about this current administration????
I'm fortunate and blessed………my youngest son is 25. If he were only 5……………I'd be scared shitless, and stocking up on home schooling materials.
That could be the next big "Growth Industry"………………………home school curricula.
Remember the little planted-phony girl at the Obama "town hall"?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOZuvQ-3uvY
The Democrats will stoop to anything. They are totally amoral and dishonest. Nothing they do shocks at this point.
Andrea2929 wrote:
"A fair point, but to think that the exact same thing didn't happen numerous times during the Bush presidency is naive. This kind of thing has been happening for as long as there have been presidents and public schools. "
Bullsh*t. Even in the days of JFK, there was never anything like the personality cult that's being built around Barry. Andrea's just blowing smoke with the "everybody has done it" line. I don't recall any public school video showing kids praising George Bush (or even Bill Clinton) to the skies. There is nothing "paranoid" about the above post– indeed it pretty much nails the situation on the head. The Obama White House is mobilizing every government and quasi-government agency, from ACORN to the NEA, to aggrandize our Great Leader and ram his agenda to transform the U.S. into a socialist state, and anyone or anything standing in the way of this juggernaut is given the Saul Alinsky treatment (or told, by the likes of Andrea, that "everybody's done it.") They've even redesigned the presidential seal. Nothing like it has been seen in this country before, although it will be familiar to any escapee from the Worker's Paradises of Eastern Europe and Cuba, or the tinpot dictatorships of Africa and Latin America. Just wait– we'll start seeing an Obama Youth movement soon enough, probably disguised as "Eco Rangers" or some such.
Big Union needs to be broken up. The Department of Education needs to go.
Control of Education belongs at the state and local level.
I'd love to hear the rest of your questions, Dan. The first was hilarious.
"Jesus Camp" was a documentary film about the evangelical movement as it pertains to American kids, not a fictional movie.
http://firedoglake.com/2009/09/25/flashback-stock...
This is an imperfect example, but I only have about 3 spare minutes right now, hence the cursory research. But yeah, it happens no matter who's president. The funny thing is how the out-of-power party always refers to it as "indoctrination" while the in-power party refers to it as "patriotism." I think a lot of people in this country need to buy a dictionary…. that includes Democrats AND Republicans.
Here is a site you can exchange home school material or any help you need for home schooling. http://www.asamom.com
While we're at it, let's dismantle our police and fire departments….. clearly a rotting stew of socialism just waiting to indoctrinate us while our houses are burning down. No to socialized rescue!!! Private corporations should take over and make disaster survival a for-profit industry!! Yes, I am being sarcastic.
Dan, it needs to be in the form of a question, as in…………
Why is it that I owe $38,000………………and all I own is a doll house?………………….LOL!!!
Question #2: Mr President………Were you really born in a manger…………………….in Kenya?
To bad the liberals who believe support the principle of the seperation of church and stat, don't want to seperate the church of Obama from the public schools
I went through grammar school 50 years ago…it was Catholic, and I can't remember anything resembling this Stalinesque/Mao worship of Obama. I do remember the nuns being in favor of Kennedy…but never did they ever get us in groups and stand us up to sing the praises of the Irish Catholic senator.
And while my own children were in school, never did they come home to tell me about singing the praises of either Reagan or Clinton. I have no idea if this happened while Dubya was president; but please, does anyone seriously believe that might have happened?
Can I help? How about:
1. Why did you lie about how much doctors get when they have to amputate a diabetic's foot?
2. Why wouldn't you appear on Fox News Sunday when you were on those other shows?
3. Since education is so important to you, don't you use a dictionary when you want to be precise about the meaning of a word, not when you are trying to stretch it?
That's right. Jesus Camp was a documentary, and ten times scarier than this. Add it to the footage of kids singing the praises of George and Laura Bush, shortly after the whole Katrina 'heckuva job, Brownie' SNAFU. Just as surreal. The parties of presidents have always sought to influence young people. I'll own the nutty principal in New Jersey who couldn't get over her own attendance at the inauguration – but the right should own the very same -
Everybody sing!
Obaaaaamaaa-baaamaaa über alles!
über alles in der Welt…
(after healthcare we want liebenstraum.)
First, neither Police nor Fire Departments are run at the Federal level, do you understand that?. They are run at the local level. Since that is the case, you are not being sarcastic, rather you are being ignorant. Not the same thing. The decline in education has co-incided with increased Federal involvement.
Secondly, if you were dependent on the Federal Government for fire protection, most likely the costs would increase 3 times the rate of inflation and more and more houses would burn down.
Thirdly, without a massive Federal bureaucracy, communities often had volunteer fire departments that worked very well. Somehow, people figure out how to organize and solve problems without massive federal government eating up all resources.
But Jesus Camp was about a PRIVATELY owned institution, not a public school. They may have been praising George and Laura Bush, but my money wasn't paying for it. I don't think that's a fair comparison at all. What that has to do with Hurricane Katrina I have no idea, but I do know that religious institutions, like the church that sponsored the Jesus Camp, are supposed to be free of government interference and control. The Bill of Rights, remember? Nobody's forcing anyone to send their kids to Jesus Camp, nor is that camp paid for by tax dollars. On the other hand, everyone who pays property taxes (including renters who also help pay their landlord's property taxes) pays for public schools. Let the school teachers campaign for the President on their own dime, thanks. Besides, given the high illiteracy and dropout rates in America, don't those teachers have anything better to do than act like camp counselors out of Jesus Camp?
A mind is a terrible thing to rape.
To be fair, the teachers union does do a lot of things without the consent of the teachers themselves. I remember talking to some friends in California during Prop 8 who were livid because their union was taking money out of their paychecks to pay for a donation to the No on Prop 8 Campaign. Those that were in favor of Prop 8 passing were just out of luck. Money they earned was being taken out of their paychecks without their consent in order to pay for a donation to a cause they didn't support, and there was nothing they could do about it. Complaints were ignored, there was no legal recourse, nothing.
You don't think that local fire or police departments are funded with federal dollars? They, like educational systems, are RUN at the local level, but funded with a mixture of local and federal dollars. And the "decline in education" (could you be a bit LESS specific, btw)? What does that even mean? Test scores? Literacy? Critical thinking skills? How about you read "Savage Inequalities" by Jonathan Kozol and get back to me on what is causing this "decline in education." He has a PhD, but that doesn't *necessarily* make him a communist.
Oh, and as far as the increased costs go? How well have our privatized health care firms done with keeping down costs, for example? Administrative costs running around 25%, FIVE TIMES the average of government-run systems?!? I understand that you have a negative reaction to the word government, but how do you feel about the word "corporation?"
And do yourself a favor and don't insult me by calling me ignorant. We have a difference of opinion. There's a difference. If you are willing to have a respectful discourse, I'm happy to talk this thing out until the cows come home. If all you can do is name-call, then there's really no point.
Something similar happened in one of the schools I taught in–teachers became livid with how they were being duped and were financing politics with which they strongly disagreed. It created such a mass exodus from the union that they sent a union rep to the school and called a special meeting with us to find out why we were leaving. In a condescending manner, the rep told us that the answer was not in leaving the union (and taking our money with us), but in staying and fighting. She told us that we should become active and effect change from the inside. We told her, collectively, that we would be happy to give the union our money when their priorities were back in order. Of course, we knew that wouldn't happen.
Maybe they can use all these teachers doing this at the CIA for torture purposes. It is torture to listen to these videos.Maybe the parents can sue for torturing their children. 2012 cannot come fast enough for me.
Agreed, the difference is public school liberals woking feverishly to indocrinate kids without parental knowledge,
and a private religious camp, where parents PAID to send their kids there knowing full well what they were buying.
But keep trying to equate the two,.. the whole moral equivilence thing as justification is wearing thin when you cannot find ONE public school where Bush or any republican was sang praises.
The give away, nd the part that should shame the left, is that the school didn't go, oh man, that was messed up, somebody really needs a vacation away from the Obama koolaid dispenser.. no, there answer was more like,.. WHO taped this? it wasn't supposed to get out where the idiot parents might ever see it.
I used to respect teachers,. long ago, they were still liberal, but at least were honest in saying make up your own mind,. but that's gone now.
and really,.. when did the primary excuse for dumb behavior fo the Hope n Change express become,..
"WELL,… some republican somewhere, kinda did something almost, or nearly like it,. or not but… BUSH DID IT FIRST!..
Is that the best anyone can do, that the guy who ran as the anti-Bush, the most open and honest president, and extra-smartiest one too,.. EVAH… can be less transparent, can lie more often, can screw things up through incompetence, but it's all good,..
because like,. um,.. Bush ya know….
the smartest most honest guy, (according to liberals) needs an excuse..
it doesn't bother you democrats at all,.
that he needs so many already?
excuses…
Maybe the NRA could start publishing a home-schooling curriculum?
Dang, another post of mine just went to the dead-letter office. I used the word "an@logy" again…
The "Intensedebate" admins are really a bunch of geniuses…
Agree that the honoring of Bush in a religous service was creepy in "Jesus Camp", but that wasn't a publicly funded institution. Parents had a choice about the camp they sent their children to, knowing what would be taught there. I wouldn't send my kids to such a camp. But it is worse if schools are doing indoctrination, sometimes without the parents' knowledge.
Well, Andrea, their intent was not to "vote down the public option"; they tried to push it through and found out we the people wouldn't take it. Much to their surprise. So your argument is more than a little disingenuous.
At least it wasn't "rape-rape". This looks more like statutory…
Multiple instances of children being "coerced" to sing in joyous worship to Odumbo and NAMING a scool after a president is TOTALLY different. Buldings are often named for people. You can't find or show any evidence of this happening when Bush was president. IF it had happened it would STILL be brought up and used as a club to defame any dtractors of Odumbo.
Same at any newspaper online, the leftwingnutz swamp them up so badly, you'd neve know a different view existed less you read nealy all of them. Nice they spend so much time on a dying media.
But Krugman is an intellectual thug, ugly mean and nasty without a shred of honesty or integrity, and this, from lefties who agree with his politics. A Nobel,.. doesn't mean noble, by any standard, Krugman is a bug. His colleagues are pretty universal about that.
and in blue enclaves, the koolaid is airborne, atomized and deeply inhaled. I've met folks like that, rendered nearly speechless by the notion they are speaking to an actual conservative,.. gee,.. like Indianna Jones meeting an actual heart ripping out high Aztec priest.
you're real,.. oh,.. I'm gonna be sick,.. how can you believe this stuff?
don't hurt me…..
Yeah, I've met a couple of them
The comparison is very telling of how democrats view schools. Democrats believe that schools are private institutions to indoctrinate as they see fit. That's really what your comparison is expressing. Do you see where your thinking has gone way off the tracks?
PKA classic!! Next they will change the words to Horst Wessel Lied to sing about Obama!
While I agree with the idea of teaching kids critical thinking skills, how can you possibly equate a scene in a fictional movie with an actual happening in real life?
Indoctrination portrayed in a movie is never the same as the actual Obama political indoctrination going on in some school systems.
If you enjoy the hero worship, cult of personality, and aura of zombie indoctrination………..just keep sending your children to these public schools. This type of indoctrination (cults) is most common in regimes with totalitarian systems of government bent on radically altering and transforming society.
What does this tell you about this current administration????
I'm fortunate and blessed………my youngest son is 25. If he were only 5……………I'd be scared shitless, and stocking up on home schooling materials. (as well as firearms and ammunition).
That could be the next big "Growth Industry"………………………home school curricula. The potential is there.
My twelve year old Niece was by the house today, she was talking about homework. Her assignment was to write ten questions she would ask Obama, should she have the chance. I offered to help her. I can't wait to get the teachers response! Ha!
Question #1: I owe $38,000 dollars and all I own is a doll house.
a
n
a
l
o
g
y
"…how do you feel about the word "corporation?""
I think of filthy, vile, evil capitalists producing goods and services and actually expecting to make a <shudder> profit from their efforts. Damn them all.
I think your request is completely fair, and judging by the content of your post you seem to be one of the "good ones".
There's kind of a convention here of thanking us military veterans for our service, which is something I've never asked for or been completely comfortable receiving. As a public school teacher you've pulled tougher duty than I ever saw, and contributed at least as much to the preservation of our Republic. So, thank you for your service.
I think your request is completely fair, and judging by the content of your post you seem to be one of the "good ones".
There's kind of a convention here of thanking us military veterans for our "service", which is something I've never asked for or been completely comfortable receiving. As a public school teacher you've pulled tougher duty than I ever saw, and contributed at least as much to the preservation of our Republic. So, thank you for your service.
When your wife farts, does it cause Tsunamis in Indonesia?
Jesus Camp, while pretty creepy in it's own right, was not a tax-payer funded, public school. Also, the video of the kiddies singing Obama's praises wasn't the first video of this type, and probably won't be the last. Public schools are for learning facts, history, etc., not for being indoctrinated into Liberal wet dream fantasies.
Not any of us with a bain. Andrea2929 is just using the usual Democrat play: when you are caught doing something obscene, just claim very loudly "Everyone does it!" End of argument!
My taxes didn't pay for "Jesus Camp." Therein lies the difference or can you really not see that? How about taking a critical thinking course and then join the debate–kay?
mmmmmmmmmm-hmmmmmmmm, Obama, it's scary.
I am one of those on the "inside". I am a dreaded high school teacher. I've taught many subjects throughout the years, and many of them dealt with politics on some level–law, government, civics… I never subjected students to my beliefs. I did, however, show them where to find facts–from a variety of sources–and challenged them to discern whether the sources were biased one way or the other. From those facts, they were able to form their own opinions. Bias is normal. We all have it. But blind-eyed bias is not healthy.
While serving as a teacher, I refused to join the union. My experience was that dissent was not allowed. By and large, most of the teachers with whom I taught also refused to join. Those who did, did so primarily because of the liability protection from unfounded attacks. It is a frightening thing when a union has a greater vested interest in their own power than in their purported mission. Unfortunately, that seems to be true of many unions in this country. And I agree that the DOE has lost their way. Education should be controlled at the state and local levels.
I would make one request to those reading this message board: please do not paint all educators with the same brush. I have had the blessing of working with many fair-minded teachers who are disgusted with the politics involved in education. There are some bad eggs who seek to indoctrinate and hinder free thought. But there are also many of us who teach without bias, encouraging students to seek truth rather than accept what they are told by the MSM and other sources of national indoctrination.
That is the creepiest photo. What is the little boy doing? Why is the little boy the center of attention of all the little girls (except for the one jumping, and even she may be jumping to get his attention). It's just kind of weird looking.
Uhh….. how is voting DOWN the public option on healthcare turning us into a "socialist state?" You are wayyyy too wound up there, buddy. This is America. We have spent 230 years making gradual, largely centrist changes in our government. 2009 is no different. You may disagree with what's happening, but that doesn't mean it's time to dig your bunker an hunker down with milk, bread, and ammo. Take a xanax. Relax. Y'all will be back in power in a few years and you can undo it all then. That's how this system works.
I didn't have an account when I commented the first time. I am "Anthony" from above. I'm happy that you concede my point and thrilled that you're so easy to converse with. That said, I understand your point too. I believe however, that this IS part and parcel with the "real problems" facing America's public school students. Additionally, while it may occur, I don't think, with the liberal grip on education in America, that the other side can point to it nearly as often, if at all. Still, I'm in agreement with you in that indocrination of our children shouldn't be occurring anywhere.
Typical of public education (governent schools), the poor kids' t-shirts got the spelling wrong. Instead h O p e, it should be h Y p e.
That is why I finally wised up and quit paying to support politicians and ideals that ran contrary to my personal beliefs. The sad thing is that I have several friends who oppose abortion and some of the other controversial issues who are very active in the local union. I don't think they understand what is going on in the larger picture. It frightens me.
"Relax. Y'all will be back in power in a few years and you can undo it all then. That's how this system works."
That's the sharpest, most honest thing I've heard in weeks (unfortunately…). And, andrea2929, if this is actually coming from a person on the liberal end of the continuum, then you have restored a few molecules of hope. I still disagree with most of what you've said in this and your other posts, but to read them from an apparently normal, seemingly reasonable person from the other side is the best news.
For several days I've had this sense that this country has become, like that old saw about Americans and the British, two groups separated by a common government. But maybe not.
I wish I could buy you a coffee or a beer…or maybe a free-range, re-oxygenated, forest-timber-runoff-reclaimed mineral water or something…(see? that was just a little joke.)
Cheers.
This is the key point of what's going on these days: competing orthodoxies.
People of faith in God, versus people of non-faith in God, but in faith of other people. And both sides too eager to point to the worst examples of the other to demonize everyone else. Separating the church from the state only counts when the church in question is the actual church; but to worhip at the secular altar is fine—because to that side, the state is the church, and man is god.
And that applies to a public school system that is recieving public tax dollars to teach kids to sing praises about a Democratic President how?? The school in the movie you are referencing was a private school so the comparisons are not the same.
It's amazing to me how my parents had time to learn the basics (you know the 3 R's) and still have time for home ec, PE, art and music classes… and now 30 years later (about the time the DoEd started) kids all of a sudden don't have time for it (or money) and now kids are fat, lazy and stupid… :/
Well I concede.. not all of them… but a good majority of them are.
Hmm… I don't see Police and Fire being ran by the federal government… :/ there are some social programs that are needed for the good of the people but when ran at the federal level they begin to fail… In my opinion "social" programs are better run at a local and state level and not a federal level…
Once again, how in your warped mind does naming a school after a person indoctrinate students into loving a president? While reciting verses praising one over, and over and over again is not seen as some how conditioning kids?
Misdirection, it always works for Dems.
Yeah, we can agree that both examples are really creepy. I don't have to worry about my grade-schoolers, though.
They were in the living room when the news announced Obama's desire to make the school year longer. He just lost the Pokemon demographic.
I don't know about that. Depending on which poll you believe, a pretty significant majority of voters are actually in favor of the public option. It's congress that is lagging behind. And the worst thing is that Obama pledged public option in his campaign, but is now refusing to fight for it….. something I figured that would happen, which is another reason why I didn't vote for him. If only the Democratic leadership had the courage of their convictions like the Republicans have had… but unfortunately, they haven't been worth a darn since they realized in the early 80's that they could get a lot more corporate money if they just *moderated* their voting records.
Hey Lex…. I'll pass on the free-range water and take a Jack Daniels instead. I may be a lefty, but I have standards!!
I like your statement about two groups separated by a common government, and I think that is true in many ways, although I think that perhaps it's that this perceived difference between the parties is really a manipulated rivalry that is designed to pit us against each other using things like emotional social issues, all in the hopes of making us forget that we have devolved into a system where we, more often than not, vote *against* the other guy (or gal). I stopped voting Democrat back in 1992 out of disgust for the way that they have totally abandoned any sort of progressive platform; I realize that many people on here think that this is untrue and that they are currently trying to turn us into red China, but that's another discussion for another time. I see them as having totally abandoned their historical support for worker's rights, working class families, and the poor out of deference to the corporations who now contribute just as much to their reelection campaigns as they do to Republicans. Anyway, that said, I enjoy it here because, while I may differ with virtually everyone in terms of political viewpoints, I find much of the same party dissatisfaction that I feel on my end. That leads to some very spirited discourse, and frankly, dissatisfaction is the most important precursor to change. Who knows, maybe someday we'll actually have 4 or 5 candidates in the presidential debates, which will force tweedledee/dum into actually dealing with the issues that really matter to us, rather than allowing them to prattle off about the lukewarm differences between them. Anyway, yeah, cheers for the words…
it took better than two years for Stockton to make that idiodic decision. How about this school that got renamed just two WEEKS after last years election?!?!
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/11/21/nationa...
my 14 yr old niece had a similar assignment. my brother laughed his ass off when he saw the first two items on his daughter's list were "Can we see your birth certificate?" & "Can we see your college entrance essays?"
I think your view of the two parties as sides of the same coin is true up to a point. The difference is in WHO they have respectively sold out to.
It's instructive to me that your complaint with the Dems is that they're too close to the center on things which are both historically and practically Socialist in nature. That is, worker's rights and the plight of the poor. That's a polite way of saying Big Labor and the welfare entitlement class.
Say what you will about corporations, they at least provide goods and services for the rest of us, and in that they contribute positively to our national character. Labor has become obstructionist and dictatorial to the point that it cripples productivity and destroys fair profit, and the welfare class is completely parasitic in that they just take and produce nothing of value in return.
Given a choice between Evil Haliburton and the Evil U.A.W., I'll go with the devil that's creating jobs and producing revenue.
http://prescriptions.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/25...
Again, I'm not saying that the NYT is the end all-be all of polls, but clearly there is some discrepancy depending on which one you read. Regardless of that, I think we can both agree that while you certainly disagree with the public option and I support it, the idea itself is not some sort of freaky, marginalized left-wing pipe dream… Even if only 40 percent support it, that's still a pretty significant portion of the population, and it makes the issue worth debating reasonably as it will clearly play a roll in all future health-care debates.
Regarding your last point. As long as we're talking about Democratic politicians, I actually agree with you, save for a few (Dennis Kucinich, etc.). For the most part, today's modern Democratic congressperson stands for nothing other than their re-election campaign fund, and whatever voting record it will take to increase it. Worse than that, the vast majority of Democratic VOTERS stand for nothing other than "anybody but the other guy." They have no fight in them at all, which is why I'm proud to say that I'm not a Democrat. Most of my "liberal" friends showed their true colors when they found out I voted for Nader in 2000. And 2004. And 2008. Let's just say that my dinner party invitations took a precipitous drop.
You are exactly who I am talking about. Teachers like you need to challenge the unions. If you don't do it who will. I have always respected teachers in general( my daughter is a teacher) and I hate that rampant indoctrination is blatant now. They are not even trying to be secretive which means they are fairly comfortable that it is acceptable. Speak up for your profession.
Hey, I have no problem with ethical companies making fair profits for their efforts, but when (for instance) we are talking about industries that are vital to the well-being of our democracy (read: health care), I get a little concerned about the fact that the stated purpose of the industry is subverted in the name of profit, to the detriment of millions of hard-working, tax-paying citizens. In these sorts of situations, a little more regulation is not necessarily a bad thing. Now, if we're talking about x-boxes or mariah carey cds, etc…. hey, go for the gold. Let the free market reign.
Warped mind? Easy there, tiger. I said it wasn't a perfect example, and if you read my previous posts, I stated that *all* "indoctrination" is bad, no matter what side of the aisle it comes from. I'd rather see our kids being taught to critically think for themselves, rather than memorizing and verbally barfing back abstract patriotic chants. Don't think I'm an Obama apologist, 'cos I'm most certainly not.
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2006/04/17/out-of-t...
This was a public-school funded trip. I found this after searching for about 30 seconds. If I had an hour to spare, I'm sure I could come up with more.
Interestingly enough, I actually agree with you to an extent, in that I think that the D.O.E. is wayyyy too top-heavy in administrative costs (almost as bad as the big privatized health care corps… ha ha…. had to sneak that in). I worked for the FL state Department of Education back in the early 90's, and the level of bureaucracy there was absolutely mind-blowing. Horribly wasteful and inefficient. That said, I think that comprehensive, free public education is vital to a healthy democracy, and all children deserve this developmental cornerstone to help equalize the playing field…. so that every kid has a chance, regardless of their parent's financial situation. Within such a system, there has to be SOME kind of centralized operations… you can't just do this thing on a strictly local level, otherwise there would still be parts of Mississippi and Alabama that would be locking out African-Americans, for example. Could this centralized agency be run more efficiently, in terms of cost and bureaucracy? You bet. Do any of the Dems or Repubs have a cogent plan to make this streamlining a reality? Not a chance. Clinton had 8 years and left the department 10 times worse than he found it. And Bush? Ah……. I won't even bother to go into that one.
All that said, I think we have at least a shred of agreement on this issue.
Ok, but the notion of checks and balances is just as valid in the corporate world as it is in the political world. Granted, the state of the modern union is wretched. Even the word itself has become riddled with negative connotations. Frankly, I think they only have themselves to blame as they have routinely endorsed anti-union candidates over the last 25 years, thus signing their own death warrant. HISTORICALLY, they have served a very important purpose in helping to self-regulate the "executive branch" of the corporate arm. I don't hear many conservatives complaining about the 40 hour/5 day work week, child labor laws, or worker-safety laws… all things brought about by the worker unions of the late 1800's.
And I don't know about corporations "contributing positively to our national character" across the board. That's a bit of a blanket statement. Clearly, many, many corporations have done phenomenal things that have made the U.S. a beacon to look up to… Microsoft, to give a modern example. But to argue that they are beyond reproach is, I think you'll agree, a bit myopic. Clearly there have been a litany of well-documented abuses over the years of corporate boards superseding the law in the name of profit, and at times like these, things like government regulation or strong unions (r.i.p.) are there to reign them in. Right now, where I live, Boeing is trying to pull another fast one by threatening to move their 787 facilities across the country if they don't get to operate tax-free for 10 years. They already snuck their way out of paying 3 billion dollars in local taxes, just for keeping their Everett plant here. Three billion dollars. And they certainly didn't create more jobs by doing so, or do much in creating a net economic improvement in the area. This is the kind of situation where I think we need strong unions and strong governmental regulation, to insist that these mega-corporations pay their fair share, don't get CORPORATE welfare, etc… Sorry if this is a bit tangential, but this has been a hot button issue here, and with them having such a long union history, I though I'd bring it into this discussion.
There is so much that we don't see,and thats a scary thought. The teachers union has morphed into a atheistic group. The rank and file teachers need to speak up before they start incurring the wrath of normal Americans. Teachers have to be more than silent. My respect for them is shrinking by the day simply because teachers will not speak up.
Simple: "Jesus Camp" (yes, a factual documentary) did not take place in a government school. Private organizations can worship anyone whom they please.
My 7 year old niece came home and was really upset about how the turtles were dying because there were too many people in their nesting areas. I asked what she thought we should do about it. She said "We should all kill ourselves at the same time."
7.
True Story.
Two points
1. Will you decide which industries are ok to "go for the gold?
2. The plan makes provisions to unionize doctors. This is currently illegal for the same reason you state- vital to the well being of the people, where striking would be too dangerous. If you are ready to force all doctors to become slaves of the state with their salaries and decisions made by the union then you will get the healthcare from truly demoralized workers, if they don't quit
Off-topic: how is Ohio? I'm thinking of possibly taking a job in Columbus.
I think we can agree that the majority of readers of the N.Y. Times support the public option. So, hey, that's a start.
I also agree that the idea of a public option is completely mainstream to the undergirding ideology of the Democratic Party. That reinforces my last point, above.
This may surprise you, but I wholeheartedly encourage you to continue supporting Ralph Nader or whatever other marginal third party candidate happens to come along. Stay true to what you believe. On a related subject, I went back up and gave you "thumbs up" on your other posts to this thread. Even though we probably wouldn't even agree on the color of today's sky, I appreciate the fact that you can advocate a position without lapsing into schoolgirl namecalling. You're certainly intellectually consistent in your beliefs, which is rare enough.
That 's a little closer than your first link, which stretches things to the point of breaking.
But even this song, though it does mention Bush by name, does not come close to the "in His sight" worship of one of the Obama songs. This song is thanking "Congress, Bush, and FEMA/ People across our land" for helping rebuild after Katrina… not glorifying Obama for, umm, making a speech.
I still think one of the songs from the Broadway musical "Barry O Superstar" is fitting…
O-bama, hey, 'bama
'Bama 'bama O-
Bama hey 'bama O-bama!
Hey Barry, Barry
Would you smile at me?
'Bama O-bama hey,
Superstar!
Actually, the Government (as of 2005) spends 47% of all Health Care dollars, and yet only covers 27% of the people. Doctors also cost-shift underpayments for Medicaid onto private insurers, causing increased private premiums because of governent. On top of that, all company-based insurance policies are laden with Federal mandates that force unneeded coverages onto individuals policies. Add the Democratic party fighting Tort reform, and walla…the entire Health care problem in this coutnry is manufactured by government.
Not my problem if you mistake "sarcasm" with "lack of knowledge". And if you are so deluded that you perceive the current Health care system as in anyway some kind of Free Market system, then youa re truly ignorant.
Actually, the Government (as of 2005) spends 47% of all Health Care dollars, and yet only covers 27% of the people. Doctors also cost-shift underpayments for Medicaid onto private insurers, causing increased private premiums because of goverment. On top of that, all company-based insurance policies are laden with Federal mandates that force unneeded coverages onto individuals policies. Add the Democratic party fighting Tort reform, and walla…the entire Health care problem in this coutnry is manufactured by government.
Not my problem if you mistake "sarcasm" with "lack of knowledge". And if you are so deluded that you perceive the current Health care system as in anyway some kind of Free Market system, then youa re truly ignorant.
I think that comprehensive, free public education is vital to a healthy democracy
More proof you are ignorant. Nothing is free.
And I too, appreciate the respectful discourse. Cheers. Agreed, that our brethren and sisteren(?) spend far too much time name-calling, and far too little time reading, researching, thinking, and conversing.
RE: Nader…. if more people voted their conscience instead of their fears, we would have a much different government. Historically, third parties have always played a very strong roll in the forcing the two major parties to deal with pertinent issues that were safely swept under the electoral-year rug. And since the debate commission is now run by two c.e.o.'s who were D and R party chairmen respectively, they've figured out a way to keep loudmouth third party voices out of the debates to ensure a continued duopoly. They'll never let another Perot into the mix, if they can help it, and that's a real shame.
First of all, I would never argue that big corporations are "beyond reproach". That's why I referred to them as a "devil" in my above post. I do think that, on balance, corporations contribute more to our "corporate" quality of life than labor unions ever have. Even Haliburton isn't altogether evil. On a related topic, Hitler was devoted to his mom.
As to the historical note, I absolutely agree that the past excesses and greed of Capital directly led to the emergence and evolution of Big Labor. I have a teaching degree in English; I've read Upton Sinclair. Likewise, all of the above things you mention (40 hour week, child labor, etc.) are necessary and deserved, in keeping with the biblical instruction that "the worker is worthy of his hire". It's also true that the early labor organizers were, by and large, running off of Karl Marx's playbook. So even that old boy wasn't all bad.
How's THAT for a shocking concession, coming from a "small government" political conservative?
(contd)
(contd)
But the grossly metastasized cancerous thing that modern unions have become, crossed a line a long time ago and they have lost all of my respect and support. As to Boeing, I'm kind of a half-hearted "ehhh" on that one. The three billion in local taxes is made up for at least in part by the jobs and income Boeing pours into the local economy. As to your assertion that Boeing didn't create any more jobs, keeping thousands of jobs in the area is worth something, compared to closing the plant and moving to Honduras.
Now, why did I have to cut my post in two, wheres in its original form it isn't as long as the post you put up for me to reply to? Boy, there's a hideously constructed sentence coming from an English major.
(contd)
But the grossly metastasized cancerous thing that modern unions have become, crossed a line a long time ago and they have lost all of my respect and support. As to Boeing, I'm kind of a half-hearted "ehhh" on that one. The three billion in local taxes is made up for at least in part by the jobs and income Boeing pours into the local economy. As to your assertion that Boeing didn't create any more jobs, keeping thousands of jobs in the area is worth something, compared to closing the plant and moving to Honduras.
Now, why did I have to cut my post in two, whereas in its original form it isn't as long as the post you put up for me to reply to? Boy, there's a hideously constructed sentence coming from an English major.
The first step is simple. Unions should exist on the state level, not the National Level. What the left wants is centralized control. Having a single national everything dealing with Federal whatever is how they control the world.
Thank you Old Tom. As to your military service, I do thank you for your commitment and dedication to the safety and security of our nation. My father was career military and I grew up in that environment. It is one for which I have great respect.
I don't know what polls you read, but Rasmussen currently shows approval of the "public option" at an all-time low of 41%. Even if they're a 10 point outlier, that would hardly represent a "significant majority".
<a href="http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/po…” target=”_blank”>http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/po…
As to Obama's refusal to fight for what amounts to socialized medicine, if I'd figured that would happen I might have considered voting for him. Well, not really.
Last point: if the majority of Americans actually knew what most modern Democrats believe, the Dems wouldn't hold on to a single seat in Congress.
Clarify, please read my post below. I'm not sure exactly what you expect of me. I HAVE challenged the state union. When they mocked us and told us to join up in order to fight, I refused. They knew (as did I), that they would take my money and silence me. I REFUSE to give them my financial support in order to try to effect change from the inside. One of the greatest ways to cripple an out of control union is to take away their funding (and I don't know if you've ever seen how high dues are, but they are not insignificant). Meanwhile, my students spend at least a portion of their day sans indoctrination. Do I try to indoctrinate with a conservative bias? No, I don't. I am very conservative, but to do so would violate one of the very principles on which conservatives stand. So, how do I challenge the unions? I have done so verbally, I have done so by deed (and non-deed), and I have done so by refusing to teach things that I know to be false. When dealing with matters of government, we look to founding fathers and political philosophers from the past and the great words of wisdom and caution that they gave us. We discuss the reasoning in these. It is amazing to watch them sort through these.
I used to work in banking. In security training, we were not taught how to recognize counterfeit money, but instead were taught how to recognize authentic currency. When we knew what "the real thing" looked like, it was easy to spot counterfeit. The same principle applies here.
True. Anybody who has read the constitution knows that control of education was intended to be at the state and local level.
Ha! A very thoughtful, well-stated point-of-view. I think that, at least on this particular issue, we probably agree more than we disagree. How's THAT for a shocking concession, coming from a loony-lefty-pinko-commie?!
Brilliant writing. Actually, I do not have to guess what is conversed between people around the country. I meet them every day, and they hold exactly the same opinion. One would think, how come people hate figures like bush many times more than they hate the people who torched 3000 americans alive and powderized both trade center buildings. Then again, do you know how many people (even ones I know for years and would never suspect) are dead sure that the it was an inside job of the bush government ? Some people are too naive to understand evil.
I think we can agree that the majority of readers of the N.Y. Times support the public option. So, hey, that's a start.
I also agree that the idea of a public option is completely mainstream to the undergirding ideology of the Democratic Party. That reinforces my last point, above.
This may surprise you, but I wholeheartedly encourage you to continue supporting Ralph Nader or whatever other marginal third party candidate happens to come along. Stay true to what you believe. On a related subject, I went back up and gave you "thumbs up" on your other posts to this thread. Even though we probably wouldn't even agree on the color of today's sky, I appreciate the fact that you can advocate a position without lapsing into schoolgirl namecalling. Many of my conservative brethren, and most of your liberal friends, could learn something from this discourse.
You're certainly intellectually consistent in your beliefs, which is rare enough.
Good to know. You're now officially my favorite commie.
Gingrich/Palin 2012
I appreciate your candor. This isn't personal to you as an ndividual but if each teacher can start influencing each other I'm sure there are many more of you than the corrupt leaders. It will take time but if we can fight them from within and without then we are doing all we can. God bless your efforts
Oh please, it's only 'scarier' because he's a Republican.
And by all these ridiculous comments you do agree that this idiotic song was inappropriate and should not be sung again. It does not matter if it was done in some stupid documentary by a bunch of Christians – in a private, non government funded religious camp, by the way. That stupid Obama song was sung in a school funded by the taxpayers, many of whom did not vote for Duh One.
Now that's just idiotic. Do note that he said that it belongs at the state and local level, just like our fire departments and police departments.
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