More and more in the general culture, parents are becoming less and less involved in their children’s education – or so it seems or so we are led to believe. So therefore, we are to leave Government Legislation the Media Education to "the professionals". Nonsense – more and more I keep understanding why we need to keep the attitude of "hey, you work for us!" and not the other way around or to allow them to lead us by the nose. More and more, we are expected to take what they say as gospel and just allow them to do what we believe to be the right thing. However, it seems to be the case that every time I go to yet another site, there is another story of how our Educational system is not educating, but it is subverting the nation’s traditional value system. This line from Ann Marie’s post nailed it:
The outcome may require a student to alter their value system.
Anti-Patriotic:
A most blatant example is that the Pledge of Allegiance is seen as being offensive (to someone) and should not be said by students:
So they went to the school, PS29, to change that. After spirited meetings with parents, teachers, and an “educational unit for kids,” the principal agreed to have the Pledge broadcast over the school’s loud speaker “for the first time in years.”
But here‘s what’s interesting. In New York, reciting the Pledge daily in schools is the law. The principal, then, isn’t doing anything revolutionary — she‘s just complying with what’s been mandated since just after 9/11.
Others, however, aren’t. The Daily News called 10 New York-area schools asking if they recite the Pledge regularly. Only half do.
"Only half do." At the risk of being labeled jingoistic, I found the idea that not saying the Pledge is absolutely amazing (on the idea of befuddling): "I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of American, and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all". Foundational issues, foundational philosophy. Is it that much to ask that citizens support the country we live in? Is that YOUR value?
Extra:
Red Skeltonhas a great take on the Pledge that is a must read.
Anti-capitalistic and Pro-Marxist:
There is no way that Marxism and socialism is congruent with the Founders’ vision. Yet, more and more, the liberal socialism that is in the Ivory Towers of colleges and universities, pushed by the Boomer hippie generation, is migrating do the high, middle, and elementary school levels. How many of you parents understand that Johnny and Janie’s teachers hate the system that 1) pays YOUR salaries and 2) uses your taxpayer dollars to teach your children that hatred? Is that your value system? Did our veterans fight and give their all fighting totalitarian countries just so that we would end up being one anyways? What is it that your teachers are teaching your children – do you REALLY know or are you assuming?
More background here. And don’t forget this from the Unions:
“High school is too late” to educate students about unions and workers, says Shuler, the daughter of union parents in Oregon who joined the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers as an activist and organizer after college. “We need to get into the elementary schools.”
Collectivism – it isn’t just…
…for adults any more. While I expect that students should learn about the role of labor unions in our capitalistic society, trust me, this article (quoted from the Communist Party USA news site) goes far beyond that.
Anti-Parent – Food:
We all just KNOW that all you parents are just incapable of taking care of your kids – after all, you can’t even pack a lunch for your kids correctly:
Little Village Academy banned sack lunches six years ago in a supposed effort to improve the nutritional quality of the food its students consume.
According to the report, Chicago Public Schools permits its principals to use their discretion to decide whether their student population needs stringent rules about food choices. Several of the schools apparently have banned sack lunches, while others permit them but confiscate certain foods that administrators deem unhealthy (think Doritos, soda, candy).
Problem: The Little Village students hate much of the school’s cafeteria food. Lunches routinely are thrown away uneaten, leaving children hungry until they get home at the end of the day.
Bigger problem: It’s not the role of a public school principal to decree what her students may and may not eat. In fact, even the less-stringent policies convey a growing and disturbing trend among educators and others toward meddling in parents’ decisions.
Is it really the job, the role, of Government to tell parents that your choice of food for your childrent is of no consequence? What does that say about the attitudes of those that work for you in educating your child? The signal being sent, once again, is frankly "we don’t need your input – and frankly, we don’t want it either". And from the Federal Government, via Michelle Obama’s "Let’s Move" program, we see the FDA now telling your local school system what it can serve and what it can’t (and its expansion of providing breakfast, lunch and dinner ALL YEAR LONG). What kind of portions and in what kind of rotations that food can be served. Waste? Not a problem! Extra cost of fresh stuff (I’m betting that the locavore movement is going to absolutely hate this whole idea). You really think that chocolate mile is all that bad that the school systems have to micro-manage that? Yes they do!
Principal Elsa Carmona said her intention is to protect students from their own unhealthful food choices.
Problem is, this Progressive attitude of "I know better" isn’t stopping at the teachers’ desks. What she REALLY means is that "I have to protect MY students from Parents making unhealthful food choices for their children."
Chutzpah – and she should be fired.
Anti-Parent – preparing babies for school:
Let’s have the Feds step in between parents and their children again by spending another $500 million we will have to borrow to figure out why kids fidget – "kindergarten readiness". HHS Secretary Sebilius and Ed. Secretary Duncan (hey! TWO federal departments cooperating on this – it MUST be good!):
“A number of children were missing the social and developmental skills which would allow them to sit in a classroom or play with others or listen to a teacher for any period of time.”
I ran a daycare center – what chucklehead came up with that (and spent taxpayer dollars doing so). What they heck do they want from 2,3, and 4 year olds – getting up and running around IS WHAT THEY DO! And should do, as they learn motor skills and socialization. Now they want them to know to read and do math? Sure, we taught them colors, and names of stuff, and started in a letters and numbers, but c’mon folks, kids that age are ACTIVE!
But we’re about to see more Federal intrusion into local schools – as if the massive amounts of billions spent by the Feds have had such a measurable high degree of success so as to engender a higher level of trust from us?
Anti-religion:
While some of this stems (and where I started a bit of a FB discussion) from out side groups (like the Americans United for Separation of Church and State), it is often from inside the school that the largest push back on religion comes from (especially if you are of the Christian faith). Certainly, stories of student groups being denied school recognition abound, we also have outright bans on the freedom of expression, like this one where a student was suspended for simply bringing a Bible to school and speaking about his faith. After all, we have to be so inclusive of others, right? But why does it feel and look like Christianity is being excluded?
Yet, for many Christian parents where their faith is a central part of their lives, is this how you wish your taxpayer dollars spent – advocating against your values?
Pro-Sex:
Now, I’m pro-sex, just that it be between married individuals (and yes, to each other). Schools, it seem, are also pro-sex, but anti- the married kind in that they do not have problems encouraging sex for their under-aged charges. Think I’m kidding? They have health clinics on site, the pro-abortionists fight to keep parental notification from being law, distribute condoms in schools (11 years old – here you go!), and for those who can’t say no, on-premises daycare centers. So, if you disagree with my premise, how is any of that saying to kids "no, don’t do it" even as you provide the mechanisms TO do it (and mitigate the consequences from doing it)? And with increasingly gay friendly curricula and teaching (like promoting the gay friendly Day of Silence while suppresing the heterosexual friendly Day of Truth). And is it up to Elementary Schools to teach young children that homosexuality is just fine and acceptable? Or, even be the sex you want to be anytime you want? How’s THAT going to work out in the locker rooms in a typical middle or high school?
And lest I forget, Grokster Steve has a great post on Should Your Public school Be Teaching Sexual Intimacy?
here that is a must read.
In my mind, no, but obviously I am in the wrong if you are pushing that agenda which in that case, I just am one of those troglodyte clingers to my Bible (like the majority in this nation). Thus, there is starting a pushback on this indoctrination of our young, starting in TN – can’t you just leave the kids out of this?
So folks, is this really what you want your kids taught, even as you are telling them NO! at home?
Anti-Free Speech:
Even as they become more liberal on sex, what kids say has become less (at least, if they violate what teachers and administrators consider to be "correct speech". Even as I agree that bullying, for instance, is a problem (having been bullied in school which was stopped by an appropriate use of force), is it really worth the intrusion of the Federal government into this sphere? Is it the proper role of the Federal Government, specifically the Department of Education, to DEMAND that school systems (at the risk of lawsuits) to monitor students use of social media and phone chats?
People complain to me that politics has invaded too many areas of their lives – and I see this as one. Politics has done so because Government has inserted itself into everything, and in this area, is doing it again. WHY should schools have the power or the responsibility to do so just at the behest of special interests groups claiming "harassment speech" (like the gay advocacy groups, who I believe have used this as a tunnel issue simply to use to promote homosexuality) of every kind – including stuff you don’t even know about? Get ready for your "re-training" sessions! And if Democrat and US Rep. Jackie Speier gets her way, it will be a Federal crime:
“What I want to do is create an environment where there is zero tolerance."
Yeah, we’ve all seen the stupidity of zero tolerance policies (and politics) can wreak.
Pro-White Guilt:
Heck, you know that there’s a serious problem here when a Principal can call you and your homies racists (and suspend you all) simply for wearing white T-shirts All the ills of the nation and the globe are due to one thing: white people. And we send teachers to seminars to finally figure this out so that they can go teach your children politically correct stuff – like they are, a priori, bad people simply because of the color of their skin.
So much for character, eh?
*****
This really is the culmination of this post, as it does run into my favorite question "What is the proper role of government?" – and where is that boundary where it should stop and never enter? It seems that the answer, from Progressives and other assorted busybodies, is that there is no area free of government coercion and intrusion. Heck, let’s go there with enumerated powers: it seems like many of our Federal leaders, elected or appointed, can’t Constitutionally justify their existence (like Arne here).
After all, according to them, you don’t even know how to run your own life so why should they entrust you with the well being of your own children?
