THIS is what offends me which is happening more and more often. WHO is doing this and what right do they have to do it? Leave the original alone, if audiences are offended by it, let them be able to make the decision nor to read it: Agatha Christie novels are being rewritten: Author's Poirot and Miss Marple mysteries have had original passages reworked or removed by publishers to avoid offending modern audiences.
I've written about this myself, Jim. I think that believing you have not only the right but the ability to rewrite classic texts is the epitome of hubris
I love it. Particularly the teacher's gift of a gun holster. How true to life is that? Your article reminded me of the story a parent sent me of a video of their daughter praying to Google Speak. Hum, has technology gone too far? Or have our parents lost their parental responsibility to "train up their children in the Lord?" Nothing like the smell of an old Bible.
Students’ computers in schools do indeed have limited search access. It is not true that they fo not. And those classic books you show being banned? It is not the teachers or school systems that are banning them but rather parents and the govt. in conservative states, ie. Ron DeSantis in Florida. Teachers do NOT want to ban books. This is also true of the limits being put on the teaching of history so that teachers in some place are even afraid to teach about slavery or to even state that slavery was bad! Additionally, teachers are not spending all this time that is being portrayed in the right wing media, talking about the issues that the math teacher in your cartoon, is supposedly discussing and then leaving no time for the actual subject of a class. First of all, teachers are under way too much pressure for their students to do well in standardized testing on the class subject matter, to spend time going off on these other subjects. In fact, there is not enough time to engage the children in conversations about their lives, which is what helps build bonds….Everything is rush, rush, rush. So these social subjects would only be discussed when and where appropriate…Perhaps in a sociology class for example or a psychology class or only when it might pertain to the subject matter at hand in other subject classes. And children should have the opportunity to learn about the world and engage in vigorous debate. And no, K teachers are not teaching about gender choices, etc. If a child has two dads or two moms, though, of course that child needs to be able to talk about them as he or she talks about family activities. In K, having circle time and sharing verbally is part of developing their language skills and getting to know each other. Of course children talk about the most important people in their lives. If a child asks why another child has two dads or two moms, a teacher will respond with something minimal such as, “Some people do…” without expounding much. However, in some places they are putting teachers in the hot seat and making them very very anxious about doing their jobs. This is not freedom of speech! And I believe it is your own State of Tennessee where the legislature has introduced a bill stating that girls can’t talk about their periods in school before 6th grade!!! What the heck??? Girls as young as 8 get their periods and many do before age 12 and 6th grade! So they are to be kept ignorant and frightened about their own bodies even though many get it for the first time while in school?…I did…At age 11…It was very embarrassing. A girl needs help…And they often have cramps and don’t feel well as you should know from having a wife and daughter. But they can’t talk about it with their little girlfriends? What is the point of this???
And what do you mean by, “The adults lording over children need to do more to keep them safe?” First of all schools are not, “lording it over students,” to begin with and second of all what do you propose that teachers can do? Or what can school systems beyond the security that most have put in place so that people must sign in and be let into locked buildings, classes practice lock down drills, some schools have bullet proof glass, security officers, metal detectors, etc. And teachers now have to become sharpshooters and carry weapons? Really? Don’t you think society at large has some responsibility? Such as better gun control? Most school shootings and mass shootings of any kind have occurred since assault weapon bans and regulations were weakened by the Republicans. Nobody needs an assault weapon. It is completely ridiculous and tragic that they are allowed.
Society always seems to want teachers to do everything and be responsible for everything. More and more and more is put on teachers’ shoulders all the time…It is emotionally and physically exhausting and all too often, thankless. Yet when parents actually spend time volunteering in classrooms, they very often will state that they could never be teachers themselves and tell the teachers that they don’t know how the teachers do it…This was mine and many of my colleagues’ experiences.
Knowledge is power. We need to give that to the students.
Try not to take the cartoons too seriously. They are after all, cartoons which are by nature hyperbole and exaggeration. This is the foundation of most humor.
I appreciate your views but am unclear you comprehend mine. At this Substack I try not to get political and/ or mention names but I do address societal evolution as I observe it. I also know for a fact there are certain agendas being pushed in liberal states and those trying to pull the reigns back in conservative ones. This is all part of a "check and balance" of our societal progress. With that said, I'll now interject my opinions.
I don't believe for a minute that the public school system is a place to "engage the children in conversations about their lives". That exercise should be accomplished primarily by the parents and supported by brick and mortar social networks like churches, social clubs, and local community. School used to be and should remain a place to prepare children to integrate into society, discover their intellectual gifts and prepare to enter the work force, as many do directly out of high school. This takes the form of basic education AND with full knowledge by the parents as to what their young ones are being taught NOT someone's potentially dubious social agenda. Point in fact, some schools are actually engaged in concealing students decision to change their identity. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/22/us/gender-identity-students-parents.html Now would the school tell the parents if they were doing drugs or trying to harm themselves out of respect for privacy? I wonder.
Fun fact: Home-schooled students perform much better than their counterparts in formal institutional schooling. Peer-reviewed studies indicate that 69% of home-schooled students succeed in college and adulthood. These are the facts. https://www.thinkimpact.com/homeschooling-statistics/
I agree with your last paragraph regarding teachers and have said so myself. Parents around the country need to collectively make this decision. You and I have little power to do anything individually. Perhaps a national campaign by the Department of Education would be a great start if they're not to busy with LBGTQXYZ issues.
As I've argued in past, guns are merely a tool used in the committing of a crime. When a gun is unavailable another implement will and has be used. The massive increase in suicides proves this. We can argue about gun control all we want but it's not the core problem. The human heart, proliferation of crap on the internet and the absence of proper parenting which are the main issues. It would be morally irresponsible to deny this.
Your comment is simply untrue, certain Kindergarten teachers in California ARE discussing gender identity to K-kids. Here is just one instance and there are many others: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4S9LLoSeag In response to your other comment, girls should NOT be talking about their periods in school. They should be talking to their parents and most certainly their doctor. I can't imagine that you talked to your teachers about your periods at our local school and not your parents?
A far as the political name dropping, I know you don't like Republicans but my decisions on policy are not binary to the political party. Some D's have ideas I agree with and many I do not. Vice versa for the R's. I believe as adults we need to evaluate each one with our OWN values rather than adopt the views of cable news punditry.
I think that covers it. Remember, life would be boring without a little humor once in awhile.
No offense. If I were a parent, I would have less concern about computer search limits than the one who has direct access to my children. If the US history is all about slavery and race; if sociology is all about circling around formulated social interactions; if privacy is not addressed; if parental authority is not recognized and respected; and if the one who is with my children most of the time throughout the day does not have any sense of self-defense and freedom... I'd rather keep my children at home. No offense. In my opinion, this kind of place sounds more like an indoctrinational camp than a school. "Knowledge is power", said most of the people. But the question is, what kind of knowledge and what kind of power it constitutes? Knowledge of perversion? Power of destruction? And again I say, no offense.
THIS is what offends me which is happening more and more often. WHO is doing this and what right do they have to do it? Leave the original alone, if audiences are offended by it, let them be able to make the decision nor to read it: Agatha Christie novels are being rewritten: Author's Poirot and Miss Marple mysteries have had original passages reworked or removed by publishers to avoid offending modern audiences.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11903609/Agatha-Christie-novels-rewritten-avoid-offending-modern-audiences.html
I've written about this myself, Jim. I think that believing you have not only the right but the ability to rewrite classic texts is the epitome of hubris
I love it. Particularly the teacher's gift of a gun holster. How true to life is that? Your article reminded me of the story a parent sent me of a video of their daughter praying to Google Speak. Hum, has technology gone too far? Or have our parents lost their parental responsibility to "train up their children in the Lord?" Nothing like the smell of an old Bible.
Thanks Stephen. Wow, I guess that’s one of those “unknown” gods. 😮
Jim,
Students’ computers in schools do indeed have limited search access. It is not true that they fo not. And those classic books you show being banned? It is not the teachers or school systems that are banning them but rather parents and the govt. in conservative states, ie. Ron DeSantis in Florida. Teachers do NOT want to ban books. This is also true of the limits being put on the teaching of history so that teachers in some place are even afraid to teach about slavery or to even state that slavery was bad! Additionally, teachers are not spending all this time that is being portrayed in the right wing media, talking about the issues that the math teacher in your cartoon, is supposedly discussing and then leaving no time for the actual subject of a class. First of all, teachers are under way too much pressure for their students to do well in standardized testing on the class subject matter, to spend time going off on these other subjects. In fact, there is not enough time to engage the children in conversations about their lives, which is what helps build bonds….Everything is rush, rush, rush. So these social subjects would only be discussed when and where appropriate…Perhaps in a sociology class for example or a psychology class or only when it might pertain to the subject matter at hand in other subject classes. And children should have the opportunity to learn about the world and engage in vigorous debate. And no, K teachers are not teaching about gender choices, etc. If a child has two dads or two moms, though, of course that child needs to be able to talk about them as he or she talks about family activities. In K, having circle time and sharing verbally is part of developing their language skills and getting to know each other. Of course children talk about the most important people in their lives. If a child asks why another child has two dads or two moms, a teacher will respond with something minimal such as, “Some people do…” without expounding much. However, in some places they are putting teachers in the hot seat and making them very very anxious about doing their jobs. This is not freedom of speech! And I believe it is your own State of Tennessee where the legislature has introduced a bill stating that girls can’t talk about their periods in school before 6th grade!!! What the heck??? Girls as young as 8 get their periods and many do before age 12 and 6th grade! So they are to be kept ignorant and frightened about their own bodies even though many get it for the first time while in school?…I did…At age 11…It was very embarrassing. A girl needs help…And they often have cramps and don’t feel well as you should know from having a wife and daughter. But they can’t talk about it with their little girlfriends? What is the point of this???
And what do you mean by, “The adults lording over children need to do more to keep them safe?” First of all schools are not, “lording it over students,” to begin with and second of all what do you propose that teachers can do? Or what can school systems beyond the security that most have put in place so that people must sign in and be let into locked buildings, classes practice lock down drills, some schools have bullet proof glass, security officers, metal detectors, etc. And teachers now have to become sharpshooters and carry weapons? Really? Don’t you think society at large has some responsibility? Such as better gun control? Most school shootings and mass shootings of any kind have occurred since assault weapon bans and regulations were weakened by the Republicans. Nobody needs an assault weapon. It is completely ridiculous and tragic that they are allowed.
Society always seems to want teachers to do everything and be responsible for everything. More and more and more is put on teachers’ shoulders all the time…It is emotionally and physically exhausting and all too often, thankless. Yet when parents actually spend time volunteering in classrooms, they very often will state that they could never be teachers themselves and tell the teachers that they don’t know how the teachers do it…This was mine and many of my colleagues’ experiences.
Knowledge is power. We need to give that to the students.
Marianne
Greetings Marianne!
Try not to take the cartoons too seriously. They are after all, cartoons which are by nature hyperbole and exaggeration. This is the foundation of most humor.
I appreciate your views but am unclear you comprehend mine. At this Substack I try not to get political and/ or mention names but I do address societal evolution as I observe it. I also know for a fact there are certain agendas being pushed in liberal states and those trying to pull the reigns back in conservative ones. This is all part of a "check and balance" of our societal progress. With that said, I'll now interject my opinions.
I don't believe for a minute that the public school system is a place to "engage the children in conversations about their lives". That exercise should be accomplished primarily by the parents and supported by brick and mortar social networks like churches, social clubs, and local community. School used to be and should remain a place to prepare children to integrate into society, discover their intellectual gifts and prepare to enter the work force, as many do directly out of high school. This takes the form of basic education AND with full knowledge by the parents as to what their young ones are being taught NOT someone's potentially dubious social agenda. Point in fact, some schools are actually engaged in concealing students decision to change their identity. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/22/us/gender-identity-students-parents.html Now would the school tell the parents if they were doing drugs or trying to harm themselves out of respect for privacy? I wonder.
Fun fact: Home-schooled students perform much better than their counterparts in formal institutional schooling. Peer-reviewed studies indicate that 69% of home-schooled students succeed in college and adulthood. These are the facts. https://www.thinkimpact.com/homeschooling-statistics/
I agree with your last paragraph regarding teachers and have said so myself. Parents around the country need to collectively make this decision. You and I have little power to do anything individually. Perhaps a national campaign by the Department of Education would be a great start if they're not to busy with LBGTQXYZ issues.
As I've argued in past, guns are merely a tool used in the committing of a crime. When a gun is unavailable another implement will and has be used. The massive increase in suicides proves this. We can argue about gun control all we want but it's not the core problem. The human heart, proliferation of crap on the internet and the absence of proper parenting which are the main issues. It would be morally irresponsible to deny this.
Your comment is simply untrue, certain Kindergarten teachers in California ARE discussing gender identity to K-kids. Here is just one instance and there are many others: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4S9LLoSeag In response to your other comment, girls should NOT be talking about their periods in school. They should be talking to their parents and most certainly their doctor. I can't imagine that you talked to your teachers about your periods at our local school and not your parents?
A far as the political name dropping, I know you don't like Republicans but my decisions on policy are not binary to the political party. Some D's have ideas I agree with and many I do not. Vice versa for the R's. I believe as adults we need to evaluate each one with our OWN values rather than adopt the views of cable news punditry.
I think that covers it. Remember, life would be boring without a little humor once in awhile.
Thank you Marianne.
Thanks for sharing your opinion Marianne.
No offense. If I were a parent, I would have less concern about computer search limits than the one who has direct access to my children. If the US history is all about slavery and race; if sociology is all about circling around formulated social interactions; if privacy is not addressed; if parental authority is not recognized and respected; and if the one who is with my children most of the time throughout the day does not have any sense of self-defense and freedom... I'd rather keep my children at home. No offense. In my opinion, this kind of place sounds more like an indoctrinational camp than a school. "Knowledge is power", said most of the people. But the question is, what kind of knowledge and what kind of power it constitutes? Knowledge of perversion? Power of destruction? And again I say, no offense.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts Linda.