Would this fit in to the "Go Bush!!!1!!!" category?
This does cross a line for me, teach the kids the way things really happened without the politics. It is too bad that politics is almost a better money unit than the "In God We Trust" type.
Of course, we can always let the kids learn that communist China is a great place.....
I am trying to remember how we were steered 20-25 years ago in school. What fallacies were taught to me, other than there are nine planets in the solar system? I know that there are others I am just hoping I have become jaded eough to have unlearned them...
Posted by Mars Needs Women (Member # 1505) on :
What's the big deal? Many textbooks, especially history textbooks, are biased in one way or another. They either lean to the left or the right, depending on the area, what the school board chooses as the ciriculum, and who teaches it. Though if its any cosolation, I'm pretty sure many students won't care.
Posted by Shik (Member # 343) on :
But I WANT to study Chinese language & culture...
Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
Coincidence that the target auidence would be ready to vote in the next presidential election, I'm sure.
As to it's accuracy- Clinton's administration surely does bear some of the responsibility for both ignoring Bin laden as a threat and in not responding to the USS Cole attack. As is the (incoming) Bush administration.
But it's more impportant to remember that the onlt people responsible for the actual attacks were the terrorists themselves- anything else is armchair quarterbacking. It's also important to remember that Bush's stated aim after 9/11: to bring the terrorists responsible to justice and to eliminate Al Queda have not been followed up on very well.
Not when we have to fuck off in Iraq anyway... Posted by WizArtist II (Member # 1425) on :
quote:Originally posted by Shik: But I WANT to study Chinese language & culture...
Meaning.... you want to read the take-out menu and hook up with Zhang Ziyi?
Posted by Shik (Member # 343) on :
That, too.
Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
So...This has blown up nicely!
CNN's coverage of the ABC TV miniseries of this fantasy version of what happened is being disected at the top of each hour- some highlights:
Re-enactments of a CIA team being sent to eliminate Bin Laden after the embassay bombings (Clinton Administration) only to be recalled at the last minute by a Clinton official, just as the operatives literally have Bin Laden in their sights! Of course, that never happened in any way- no operation ever existed, it was only proposed. Another nuggett is a scene wherein Madylene Allbright warns the Pakistani PM about an incoming missile attack by the US- which gets to Bin laden somehow, allowing him to escape certain death. In reality, Allbright called the PM after the missiles were allready in the air- there's no way it could have tipped off Bin Laden.
It's also noteworthy that ABC used only one member of the 9/11 commision as an "unpaid source" while not even asking the other (read: Democrats) members of the comission for their assistance. Pretty shady. Why do I think the Republicans will be droppng a lot of money ABC's way? ...for ...er....advertizing, of course!
Sadly, only a token mention of the "scholastic" version of this "docudrama" was touched on. It seems that the "scholastic" version is based on the docudrama. That's a lot like teaching a WWII course based on events on the movie U-571. Close enough to realiry for some... Posted by Lee (Member # 393) on :
It's a win-win situation: it airs unchanged, then everyone ends up thinking the Demoncrats caused 9/11. It airs changed, or not at all, and it's proof positive that the Liberal Media Elite are keeping the Truth from the American public.
Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
What's a few Repubican-inserted lies here and there when they have Harvey Kietel starring!?!
If only they could have cast Johnny Depp, ABC could have made a scene with Clinton ordering the 9/11 attacks and taking a payoff from Bin Laden... Now that'd be entertainment!
Posted by Mars Needs Women (Member # 1505) on :
quote:Originally posted by Lee: It's a win-win situation: it airs unchanged, then everyone ends up thinking the Demoncrats caused 9/11. It airs changed, or not at all, and it's proof positive that the Liberal Media Elite are keeping the Truth from the American public.
I believe the correct term is kobayashi maru.
I still don't see what the big deal is. ABC pulled a similar stunt with the bird flu. They had this atrocious movie which made it seem like we were all gonna die of bird flu. They're just pulling a page from the Yellow Journalism book. People will see through the bullshit in this movie like they saw through the bullshit in the bird-flu movie. So just relax,it's a free(er)nation, and they can say what they want even if it's dribble.
And Scholastic...well I recall an article in Consumer Reports which criticized them for putting not so hidden commercial messages in their children's magazine. I think the commercials were for Parkay Margarine.
Posted by Cartman (Member # 256) on :
The big deal is that packaging political propaganda (not just slanted texts, but actual factual distortions, ie. LIES) as "educational material" and teaching it in any classroom in any free nation is a crime of falsifying history that should not ever be tolerated for any reason, and least of all because students "won't care" about not being told the truth.
Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
As to the Bird Flu movie, so many people called their doctors/bosses/hospitals after it aired that Fed-Ex printed a fact sheet on the "possible epidemic" for it's thousands of employees. I heard UPS did the same. I fondy recall when we were all going to die from SARS....ah, those were the good ol' days...
Remember, something like 30% of Americans are still under the notion that Iraq was (somehow) behind the 9/11 attacks.
The masses are asses and they believe whatever they're told by their favorite celebrities. (which explains how Arnold is running California)
Posted by Lee (Member # 393) on :
Saw the first part tonight. Enjoyed it. Good production values. Hasty disclaimer shoved in at the end. It'll probably con (-vince? -fuse?) a lot of people.
Posted by WizArtist II (Member # 1425) on :
With the lack of attention most students pay to their work at school, who will actually LEARN that anyway? Please, most kids today are Thermians.
Posted by Mars Needs Women (Member # 1505) on :
Exactly what I said before. Alot just won't care or what give a real thought.
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
Monday night, a kid came to the library where I work and used one of our computers to type a school paper about Iraq. It was three very short, very misspelled, very grammatically painful paragraphs. The first paragraph was just some poorly-worded information on the location of Iraq. The second paragraph, however, described how, on 9/11, the US was attacked by Iraq using three planes hijacked by three Iraqi pilots and sixteen other Iraqis. And that, because of this, George Bush had to invade Iraq.
Posted by Mikey T (Member # 144) on :
TSN... that is fucking scary. And on so many levels.
Posted by Mikey T (Member # 144) on :
Double Post... please erase
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
I should probably point out that we don't normally spy on everything people do on our computers. But this kid left his document open in Word on the computer when he left, so I saw it when I went to close it down.
Posted by Lee (Member # 393) on :
How old was this boy?
Posted by Mucus (Member # 24) on :
At least he (presumably) knew were Iraq was. Thats probably a step up from the average Posted by WizArtist II (Member # 1425) on :
Next he'll do a report on how the Evil Americans committed the heinous crime of dropping nuclear weapons on an innocent Japanese population in an attempt at genocide.
Posted by Mikey T (Member # 144) on :
One can only hope Mucus... it's funny that as a US Immigrant, I know more about the history of the US and the "crazy details" like a general overview of how the government "works" and domestic and international geography. Maybe because I'm Asian/Pacific Islander...
Posted by WizArtist II (Member # 1425) on :
Maybe because 85% of Americans wouldn't be able to pass a test to gain citizenship.
Posted by Mars Needs Women (Member # 1505) on :
If the horrible error in my last post is any indication, then yes.
Posted by Ritten (Member # 417) on :
Wiz, you think 15% could, I am doubtful about that. Maybe 10%.
Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
But we can still hop the fence so what's the diff?
Posted by Mars Needs Women (Member # 1505) on :
You know the other day on the news they showed "the wall" they were supposedly building along the border. Looks like it was made by the same people the government is trying to keep out, illegal immigrants.
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
"How old was this boy?"
I'm not sure. I was thinking early teens, but there's no way he could have turned in a paper like that for a high school class. So, I'm thinking twelve or thirteen, perhaps?
Posted by Peregrinus (Member # 504) on :
In a semi-related vein, I heard an article on NPR today about how studies show homework has a negligable positive effect at best on student performance, and causes far more domestic strife than it's worth. Educators are starting to look at alternative teaching methods.
--Jonah
Posted by Chris (Member # 71) on :
Nix, your statement is confusing at best. You said you thought early teens, but you say that's too young..? Then you estimate the age at twelve or thirteen, which is early teens. Technically, early teens would be thirteen-fourteen, as twelve is not a teen. Posted by B.J. (Member # 858) on :
quote:Originally posted by Mars Needs Women: You know the other day on the news they showed "the wall" they were supposedly building along the border. Looks like it was made by the same people the government is trying to keep out, illegal immigrants.
Sounds like they took some advice from Carlos Mencia!
Foreman: "Looks good on this side, how's it look on the other side?" Wetback: "Let me take a look. Hey! He locked the gate behind us!"
Posted by Ritten (Member # 417) on :
Chris, but 14 or 15 would toss him in to the 9th grade, or high school, which is still early teens, but a crappily written paper wouldn't be all that accpeted in high school, but may be in junior high.
This is barring getting held back in any other grade(s).
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
When I said "early teens" I meant fourteen or so. But that seemed too old for the paper, so I had to go with a younger estimate : 12-13.
However, in order to lay the matter to rest, I went ahead and looked up his library card in the system, and it turns out he's fifteen. So : wow.
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
Wrong, TSN; So WoW.
So WoW it hurts.
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
Curse you, video games, for corrupting the minds of our youth!
Posted by bX (Member # 419) on :
Leeroy Jenkins 2008.
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
Coming in to things late and rushing into battle without waiting for a plan? I thought he was already president?
Posted by Charles Capps (Member # 9) on :
No. Leeroy has redeeming qualities.
And he has chicken.
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
I would trust Jenkins further than I could throw him.
I'm glad Sweden has never had problems like this, regarding educational ethics (unless we go back to the fifties and our "Institute of racial biology"), we've never had that morning flag thingy either, but I do remember reading a social sciences book in 1993 (8th grade), where scientology was listed as a fullworthy branch of christianity, after catholicism and Eastern orthodoxism.
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