14 Wacky "Facts" Kids Will Learn in Louisiana's Voucher Schools

[cali]

<snip>

1. Dinosaurs and humans probably hung out: "Bible-believing Christians cannot accept any evolutionary interpretation. Dinosaurs and humans were definitely on the earth at the same time and may have even lived side by side within the past few thousand years."—Life Science, 3rd ed., Bob Jones University Press, 2007

<snip>

3. "God used the Trail of Tears to bring many Indians to Christ."—America: Land That I Love, Teacher ed., A Beka Book, 1994

<snip>

5. Slave masters were nice guys: "A few slave holders were undeniably cruel. Examples of slaves beaten to death were not common, neither were they unknown. The majority of slave holders treated their slaves well."—United States History for Christian Schools, 2nd ed., Bob Jones University Press, 1991

6. The KKK was A-OK: "[The Ku Klux] Klan in some areas of the country tried to be a means of reform, fighting the decline in morality and using the symbol of the cross. Klan targets were bootleggers, wife-beaters, and immoral movies. In some communities it achieved a certain respectability as it worked with politicians."—United States History for Christian Schools, 3rd ed., Bob Jones University Press, 2001

more gems here:

http://www.motherjones.com/blue-marble/2012/07/photos-evangelical-curricula-louisiana-tax-dollars

[Curtland1015]

1. Yeesh! There is some scary sh*t going on down there!

My brother in law moved down there for a couple of years. When he moved back he was... different.

Listens to Dan Savage, makes racist jokes, joined the NRA.

I'm not blaming a state for that, I'm sure there are lots of great people in that area. But there's definitely something "in the air" down there...

[Bluenorthwest]

4. Don't you mean Michael Savage, the right wing hate jabberjaw as opposed to

the gay author of a sex advice column and liberal political activist Dan Savage?

[Curtland1015]

18. Ha ha! Oops! I totally do mean Michael Savage!

Talk about exact opposites!

[longship]

2. Astounding ignorance!

This is the looniest part of the Republican agenda. Poor Louisiana. Poor all of us if this spreads.

[JNelson6563]

3. Oh good, the south will produce more assholes

and increase their already high asshole to non-asshole ratio.

Julie

[RKP5637]

5. Now they can major in assholeism and get a degree. n/t

[WinkyDink]

6. #15: God so loved the wealthy that He wanted them to pay no taxes.

[CrispyQ]

7. It should be a crime to teach this shit to children.

[Ready4Change]

11. +1

.

[dotymed]

8. The "winners"

(in our case the wealthy fundamentalists) write "history." That is why, IMO, A Peoples History of the U.S., by Howard Zinn, should be a part of every history class.

[cali]

10. It was part of my son's sophmore year in hs U.S. History

It was great that they used it- and that was 10 years ago. But of course, it shouldn't be part of every history class or even every U.S. history class. I think more primary sources should be used in teaching kids history.

[jayschool]

16. I used selected chapters from Zinn

in a U.S. History class I taught to suburban Denver 10th graders. But that was back in the heady 1990s.

[snappyturtle]

9. OMG! eom. nt

[BlueinOhio]

12. Explains a lot

Seems like southern poverty is always linked to fundamental christians who are against learning (wanting to learn is from satan) and conservatism.

[Coyotl]

13. This is what they do after taking profits and advertising costs out of those public funds.

Meanwhile, we get to watch their lying advertising paid for with tax dollars.

[jwirr]

14. None of this is true and none of it will help anyone in the end. I wonder if students at the Bob

Jones University get Pel Grants? They should not. There should be a standard of excellence that would determine which universities get to participate in tax supported grants. After all we use something like that (student testing) to determine what public school districts get aid. As to #3 they used forced marches that ended in untold deaths and they say God did it? Greed did it and there is no question it was one of the greatest sins this nation committed in its early days.

[stlsaxman]

15. y'all ever check out the Texas Republicans Party Platform?

talk about scary shit...

[Mrdie]

17. This isn't wacky, it's reactionary

The KKK sought to "defend morality," unfortunately its main way of doing this was by promoting the lynching of blacks and to otherwise intimidate them from having any prominent public (much less political) role in anything. If we can rehabilitate the KKK because they stood for/did "good things" why not the mafia, drug cartels, and other forces which "help the poor" when they find it convenient for public image and/or loyalty from local population reasons?

I got an even better idea: how about the Black Panther Party, which certainly emboldened blacks (and contrary to public opinion was hardly racist against whites) and actually made giving out food and such fundamental aspects of its program? But wait, their leadership praised Mao Zedong and was basically communist, so that's a no-no.

Also if you guys want good histories of the early US, check out Herbert Aptheker's books The Colonial Era, The American Revolution: 1763-1783, and Early Years of the Republic.

[progressoid]

19. Good Gawd.