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nun
lolz.

I can't believe I restarted this thread in the wrong forum.

The previous education thread was deleted because apparently my re-titling it since it was no longer about Obama's speech to children was too affrontive.

So here is a new, kinder, gentler thread that everyone can participate in without fear of losing it.

Enjoy.

nun
Here's a start that's not about indoctrination.

QUOTE
SARATOGA SPRINGS -- Seventh-grader Adam Marino is getting a firsthand lesson in civil disobedience.


The 12-year-old and his mother, Janette Kaddo Marino, are defying Saratoga Springs school policy by biking to Maple Avenue Middle School on Route 9. The Jackson Street residents pedal more than four miles together each way to the middle school on nice days despite being told not to by school officials and police.

"I guess you can say that we continue to do what we feel is our right," Kaddo Marino said recently. "We feel strongly we have a right to get to school by a mode of transportation we deem appropriate."

Their methods may be unconventional, but the Marinos are part of a growing number of Americans challenging the sedentary habits of today's youths and what they view as overanxious "helicopter" parenting. As fewer children walk and bike to school nationwide, parents have started groups like the "Walking School Bus," which promotes physical activity and fitness in youth by having them walk to school with adults.

Parents and teachers at Niskayuna's Hillside Elementary School implemented the state's first Walking School Bus program. Separately, this week marks the end of the first "Children and Nature: Saratoga -- Come Out and Play," a week of outdoor events in Saratoga Springs coordinated by the local chapter of a national organization that seeks to "reconnect" children and their families to the outdoors.

Riding his 21-speed Giant mountain bike to school benefits Adam Marino's health and the environment, his mother says, and Adam believes it makes him a better student. "It would be really nice if it got changed," he said of the school policy.

The youngster may get his way.

Read more: http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story...0#ixzz0SbwbVyJn


I rode my bike to school 4th - 6th grade. It's a little concerning that walking to school is specifically disallowed.
WD_40
Here's to non-bunched panties!

thmbup.gif
Wombat
I guess they missed the whole part about the exercise. No need to worry about kids getting fat if the ride 4 miles a day.
nun
Or perhaps it was to diminish liability for the school .... or perhaps they get a certain subsidy from the state per bus rider (my guess).
Ad Astra
Hear hear!

I walked or biked to school from K-8th grade. In fact, I never rode a school bus EVER (as part of a daily commute) during my schooling.

Bully to the kid and the kid's mom for fighting for his right to exercise! You'll notice that the article states that he only rides his bike "on nice days" so it's not like he doesn't ride the bus when it's crappy or cold outside.
nun
QUOTE(Ad Astra @ Sep 30 2009, 12:37 PM) *
Bully to the kid and the kid's mom for fighting for his right to exercise!


I'm sorry, we can't allow that. I know this because my daughter is currently involved in an Anti-Bullying art project contest. smile.gif
shirizaki
Well.....


Everyone demands reports on how children are "doing well" in schools. The only way you do that is with fact memorization and regurgitation. Fuck LEARNING anything, learn this test. I remember 4th, 6th, and 8th grades being nothing but test memorization for 2 months. I could have been learning something. That's when we found out our tests were being shipped out of state and being read by geriatrics.

Then they want more time to give kids papers and false tests, so they shorten recess and gym. Obviously they don;t need to learn what soccer is in order to learn what 2*4-7 is. Then they take away right brained activity that isn't related to english. Then they outlaw recess activities that promote competition. Like there isn't something else that can be learned, like pushing limits, teamwork, unity, or being a good person.

There's many things wrong with the school system, and it isn't with the public. My private high school took the first 3 MONTHS out of the school year to educate about the test. Luckily, I got to take it the year before and passed all but 1 section (creative english essay) so I pretty much got a week of no teaching whatsoever while everyone took the test.

What happened was parents demanding a sheet that said their child's school was doing fine instead of talking to their kids. A sheet is easier to read, frame, and file instead of doing something else that will take away from making money. Also every taxpayer wanted proof as well, as right they should since it's gotten in everyone's heads that school grades = property values.

And it gets worse when they fund schools via property taxes.
WD_40
As Federal spending skyrockets, results stagnate:



One thing that many people don't understand about our failing government "education" system is the fact that increases in spending don't translate to more, better-paid teachers. A case in point is a school district on the west side of Salt Lake County (run by Democrats). They were growing like crazy due to illegal immigrant kids, and the children of legal residents were paying the price of the unnatural growth. The school badly needed three teachers, whose starting salaries would have been about $40,000 for nine months of work, per teacher, or about $120,000/year of spending in base salary (plus the extensive, lavish benefits).

Instead of hiring three new teachers, when the Utah legislature increased funding by a record amount for fiscal 2008 (they increased spending by about 25%), they hired two additional administrators, despite the fact that they already had a principal and two vice principals, at well over $120,000/nine months, EACH.

It seems like almost anywhere the government is spending money, there is high waste, corruption and a poor return on investment. I am baffled that there are people who are okay with government taking more of their hard earned money and squandering it in such a fashion.
rick
That graph doesn't say much, given that we don't know the inverse (had spending not increased, perhaps achievement would've took a shit-slide?).

Also, the scale is retarded.
WD_40
QUOTE(rick @ Oct 1 2009, 10:11 AM) *
That graph doesn't say much, given that we don't know the inverse (had spending not increased, perhaps achievement would've took a shit-slide?).



I'm confused... Above is a graph showing actual data. How are you supposed to graph events that never took place and how do hypothetical situations render reality invalid?
rick
The graph is fine (ignoring scale, obvi) as far as graphs go... but drawing any conclusions from that graph other than "once upon a time, spending increased significantly and some definition of achievement did not immediately reciprocate - ignoring any other impactors" is pseudo-science at best, and really just politics. My personal opinion, graphs have no place in politics. But I also think religion has no place in politics, so take it w/a grain of salt, I s'pose.
WD_40
Ah okay, that makes sense now.

It is interesting though that there was a drop in spending in the early 80s and results remained about the same. Spending has gone through the roof since then with the results still remaining stagnant. I'm sure the money is benefiting someone, but it sure ain't the kids.
nun
I guess this is the same tack required to rationalize away the $2T spend this year yet with increasing unemployment and loss of national GDP. "But how do we know it wouldn't have REALLY been bad had we not spent it?!?!?"

Personally, I don't buy it.
rick
And the same logic is used to support the "war of the moment"... how do we know the American way of life won't grind to a halt within a fort-night if we're not bombing someone back into the stone-age and threatening the next half-dozen targets at the cost of reams of coinage day after day, month after month, year after bloody year.?!?!?

Personally, I don't buy it.
nun
Sing and dance for The Man, children. Sing and dance!

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/200...set_of_cnn.html

WD_40
QUOTE
Big Hollywood has already posted a couple disturbing videos of young school children singing/speaking praises to President Obama, but when eleven more dropped in our email box it came as quite a shock. What seemed like an aberration now appears to be a troubling pattern.

Maybe “epidemic” is a better word.

Each one of the videos below is creepier than the last because the further down you go, the younger the children — brace yourself for kindergartners – except for the last and most disturbing video, which you have to see to believe.


Link

Can you even comprehend the uproar that would take place if kids were being forced to sing praises to Bush? Eleven videos now, and those are just the ones that have surfaced. So much for the argument of 'isolated incidences'.

The similarity to videos of North Korean school kids singing the praises of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il are uncanny and scary.



On a related note: Recent progress reports on the development an antidote to left-wing Kool-aid are very positive. Researchers are optimistic after recent tests in New Jersey and Virginia. smile.gif
sheepdog
the gall of children latching on to inspiring messages, historic moments, and believing that they can be part of change and "Yes we can".

For the most part, these aren't exactly hymns, some of them make no mention of the president at all, they're just inspirational.

And I don't know if you think this song somehow is corrupting the youth, but I think it's hilarious:
QUOTE
O’Leary, O’Reilly, O’Hare and O’Hara
There’s no one as Irish as Barack O’Bama

You don’t believe me, I hear you say
But Barack’s as Irish, as was JFK
His granddaddy’s daddy came from Moneygall
A small Irish village, well known to you all

He’s in the white house, He took a chance
Now let’s see Barack do Riverdance
Toor a loo, toor a loo, toor a loo, toor a lama
There’s no one as Irish As Barack O’Bama

He’s as Irish as bacon and cabbage and stew
He’s Hawaiian he’s Kenyan American too
He’s in the white house, He took his chance
Now let’s see Barack do Riverdance

Toor a loo, toor a lay, toor a loo, toor a lama
There’s no one as Irish As Barack O’Bama

From Kerry and cork to old Donegal
Let’s hear it for Barack from old moneygall
From the lakes if Killarney to old Connemara
There’s no one as Irish as Barack O’Bama
rick
QUOTE(WD_40 @ Nov 5 2009, 12:57 PM) *
Can you even comprehend the uproar that would take place if kids were being forced to sing praises to Bush? Eleven videos now, and those are just the ones that have surfaced. So much for the argument of 'isolated incidences'.

The similarity to videos of North Korean school kids singing the praises of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il are uncanny and scary.


I guess the edited out the part where the forcing happened.

I agree with the uncanny inference... but I don't think you actually would!!


And for someone who dislikes others usage of the so-called "Bush card", you seem quite willing to run to it for your own wonts...
nun
Is there a George W Bush elementary school out there somewhere with cardboard standup figures of him lining the hallways?
sheepdog
QUOTE(nun @ Nov 5 2009, 02:12 PM) *
Is there a George W Bush elementary school out there somewhere with cardboard standup figures of him lining the hallways?


Google is a wonderful thing...

Sorry though, I can confirm for sure that they have a cardboard cutout



edit--
guess rick beat me.
btw, i like the implication that even you think Bush doesn't deserve to have an elementary school named after him. I'd venture that there are enough schools named after presidents that they're pretty much all covered.
nun
Another thing Obama has in common with Bush (O'same-a?) smile.gif

For the record, I'm against both. You just shouldn't name a school after a sitting President.
rick
Yeah, but you only put the effort out to denounce it of your own account in the case of the former.
nun
I didn't know about the latter. Hence my question in the first place. And come to think of it .. I didn't denouce the Obama school until I denounced them both at the same time anyway.
bringthedoo
QUOTE(WD_40 @ Nov 5 2009, 11:57 AM) *
Can you even comprehend the uproar that would take place if kids were being forced to sing praises to Bush?


Doesn't that basically happen every sunday at, like, church? laugh.gif
nun
Well ... I guess it's kind of related to school safety:

QUOTE
Fistgate II: High School Students Given ‘Fisting Kits’ At Kevin Jennings’ 2001 GLSEN Conference
by Jim Hoft

In March 2000 the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) organization of Massachusetts held its 10 Year Anniversary GLSEN/Boston conference at Tufts University. This conference was fully supported by the Massachusetts Department of Education, the Safe Schools Program, the Governor’s Commission on Gay and Lesbian Youth, and some of the presenters even received federal money. During the 2000 conference, workshop leaders led a “youth only, ages 14-21″ session that offered lessons in “fisting” a dangerous sexual practice. During another workshop an activist asked 14 year-old students, “Spit or swallow?… Is it rude?” The unbelievable audio clip is posted here. Barack Obama’s “Safe Schools Czar” Kevin Jennings is the founder of GLSEN. He was paid $273,573.96 as its executive director in 2007. Jennings was the keynote speaker at the 2000 GLSEN conference.
fistgate

Photo: This kit for fisting was distributed by Planned Parenthood at Fistgate II. (Mass News)

Unfortunately for GLSEN, undercover journalists with Mass Resistance recorded these outrageous sessions. The audio was later leaked to a local radio station. This created such an uproar that GLSEN leaders were forced to apologize for their disgusting behavior.

Thanks to Soros-linked Media Matters we now know that GLSEN director, and current Obama Safe Schools Czar, Kevin Jennings was confronted on the vile content discussed at the children’s conference.

“Like the Parents Rights Coalition and the Department of Education, GLSEN is also troubled by some of the content that came up during this workshop,” said Kevin Jennings, national executive director of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network.

He said people who run workshops in the future will get clearer guidelines, though Jennings said the network’s annual conference at Tufts University should not be judged on the 30-student seminar “What They Didn’t Tell You About Queer Sex and Sexuality in Health Class.”

“We need to make our expectations and guidelines to outside facilitators much more clear,” said Jennings. “Because we are surprised and troubled by some of the accounts we’ve heard.”

But despite Media Matters’ claims, Kevin Jennings and his GLSEN organization did nothing to clean up their act. In fact in 2001 activists handed out “fisting kits” to the children and teachers who attended the GLSEN conference.

That’s correct. Fisting kits.

glsen-logo-gay-lesbian-straight-education-network-teen-boy-alone-high-school-hallway-lockers-girls-legs-tight-blue-jeans-hips-walk-past-him-studying-american-photo-image

At Kevin Jennings’ 2001 GLSEN Conference an estimated 400 student attendees were given their own “fisting kit.”
Mass News reported on the 2001 conference:

Fistgate II was held on Saturday in the same building at Tufts University as last year with the same message about how to practice homosexual sex.

More students attended this year. Out of approximately 650 attendees, about 400 of those were students.

Kits of plastic gloves intended for “fisting” or oral sex were distributed at Planned Parenthood’s table in the lobby.

Public funds were used for the event with at least two school buses being used to transport students, from Methuen High School and Marblehead Public Schools. Adam Glick, Conference Coordinator, said he did not know how the buses were paid for. Other children were transported by public school teachers in private cars.

The private homosexual sponsor, GLSEN, is given state funds for many purposes and does not publicly report on how the money is spent.

There was a heightened sense of security with many Tufts campus police being highly visible in order to stop parents from seeing what occurred at the conference.

Although Tufts University was able to claim ignorance about the event last year, they obviously became complicit this year when they welcomed the conference back and provided the security muscle to keep the strategy sessions and indoctrination of the children running smoothly.

Founding Bloggers has a photo of one of the school buses that brought students to the conference.

Mass News had another article that described the contents of the “fisting kits” given to the students.

Planned Parenthood of Massachusetts distributed kits for fisting and oral sex. They contained a single plastic glove, a package of K-Y lubricant and instructions on how to make a “dental dam” out of the material.

The instructions explained how to cut up the glove with scissors until all that remains is a rubber rectangle with the “thumb” portion protruding from the middle. “Use the thumb space for your tongue,” say the directions.

The label on the ziplocked package says, “protects against STD’s,” and bears the Planned Parenthood logo and phone number.

GLSEN (Gay Lesbian and Straight Education Network) got into trouble last year for hosting a workshop that gave young teens explicit how-to instructions on homosexual sex practices such as “fisting.” The ensuing scandal was subsequently dubbed “Fistgate.”

Regarding “dental dams,” Dr. John Diggs, a specialist in internal medicine who lectures about STDs, said that the kits create a false sense of security. “I’ve written a brochure about this whole thing,” he said. “The way I describe it is, I ask ‘How many people want to take a bite of a sandwich without taking the wrapper off?’ ‘How many people want to suck on balloons?’ Nobody does.”

Again, Barack Obama’s Safe Schools Czar organized and sponsored this conference as executive director of GLSEN. His organization later pushed filthy books on America’s children.
Today he’s running the Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools in the US Department of Education.
Do you feel safe now?

There’s more to come.


http://biggovernment.com/2009/12/08/fistga...sen-conference/


Regarding “dental dams,” Dr. John Diggs, a specialist in internal medicine who lectures about STDs, said that the kits create a false sense of security. “I’ve written a brochure about this whole thing,” he said. “The way I describe it is, I ask ‘How many people want to take a bite of a sandwich without taking the wrapper off?’ ‘How many people want to suck on balloons?’ Nobody does.”

I like this guy's style.
rick
Perverts.

Also, "Straight" is such a hate-filled term. It is used to define heterosexuals as conformists. Much like the often bandy-hued term "breeder". Faggots and Dykes are haters too.

nun
Woooow. Check out this "Little Black Book" that was given out to middle school students and discussed by the GLSEN.

http://www.massresistance.org/docs/issues/...ook_inside.html






Nice graphic design there...
rick
I like the caution on the website: "extremely gross and disgusting."


I'd have laughed my freaking ass off if I'd seen this in middle school.
bringthedoo
I find this hard to believe. Not only is the source completely loaded with homophobic bigotry but the content of the "little black book" is written in a very childish and demeaning way.

Any chance we can get this confirmed before we go any further?



edit: by the way, I just read up on your little source there, nun. MassResistance is nothing more than a ignorance-fueled gay-haters advocacy group.

The fact that you would post something from them as legitimate is abhorrent. That you act surprised when the entire country pigeon-holes the right as ignorant gay-haters and racists is practically laughable.

Bring it up a notch, for your own sake. I want to take you seriously on here and shit like this is just repulsive.

EDIT#2: By The way AGAIN... The little black book "fiasco" happened in 2005 and wasn't sanctioned by the GLSEN as mentioned... Way to churn the shit with recent and accurate *cough* news.

http://mediamatters.org/print/research/200912090020

nun
QUOTE(bringthedoo @ Dec 11 2009, 01:04 PM) *
I find this hard to believe. Not only is the source completely loaded with homophobic bigotry but the content of the "little black book" is written in a very childish and demeaning way.

Any chance we can get this confirmed before we go any further?



edit: by the way, I just read up on your little source there, nun. MassResistance is nothing more than a ignorance-fueled gay-haters advocacy group.

The fact that you would post something from them as legitimate is abhorrent. That you act surprised when the entire country pigeon-holes the right as ignorant gay-haters and racists is practically laughable.

Bring it up a notch, for your own sake. I want to take you seriously on here and shit like this is just repulsive.

EDIT#2: By The way AGAIN... The little black book "fiasco" happened in 2005 and wasn't sanctioned by the GLSEN as mentioned... Way to churn the shit with recent and accurate *cough* news.

http://mediamatters.org/print/research/200912090020


That website just happened to be at the end of the rabbit trail to find good images from the booklet. The fact that it happened in 2005 was to show that it happened under the watch of our CURRENT "Safe Schools Czar". Honestly, I can't decide if I trust the "homophobe" website any more or less than Media Matters. Both are probably just as biased.

Washington Times:

QUOTE
The Obama administration is stonewalling serious inquiries about sexual filth propagated by a senior presidential appointee who is responsible for promoting and implementing federal education policy. Democrats clearly are terrified of ruffling the feathers of their activist homosexual supporters, who are an influential part of the Democratic party's base. This scandal, however, is not merely about homosexual behavior; it is about promoting sex between children and adults - and it's time for President Obama to make clear that abetting such illegal perversion has no place in his administration.

It is curious why White House officials and Education Secretary Arne Duncan believe it's worth it politically to continue taking arrows for defending Kevin Jennings, who is Mr. Obama's controversial "safe schools czar." The evidence suggesting he is unfit to serve as a senior presidential appointee is startling and plentiful. It was revealed this week that Mr. Jennings was involved in promoting a reading list for children 13 years old or older that made the most explicit sex between children and adults seem normal and acceptable. This brought up anew Mr. Jennings' past controversies, such as his seeming encouragement of sex between one of his high school students and a much older man as well as his praise for Harry Hay, a notorious supporter of the North American Man Boy Love Association.

But there is more. There are shocking new revelations this week of tape recordings from a youth conference involving 14-year-old students. The conference, billed as a forum to encourage tolerance of homosexuality, was sponsored by Mr. Jennings' organization and was held at Tufts University in March 2000. Mr. Jennings was executive director of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) from its founding in 1995 until August 2008. The conference sessions appear to have had less to do with promoting tolerance and more to do with teaching children how to engage in sex.

Andrew Breitbart's Biggovernment.com provides tapes of some of the sessions. Describing the subject matter as smut would be putting it lightly. The conference discussions were very graphic and cannot be relayed in full detail in a family newspaper. A few examples are sufficient to describe the depravity of the subject matter. During one session about oral sex, a presenter asked the 14-year-old students: "Spit or swallow? Is it rude?" In another session, the 14-year-olds are taught about a gross practice called "fisting," in which "the man leading the discussion position[ed]his hand and show[ed] 14-year-olds how to insert their entire hand into the rectum of their sex partner."

Teaching children sexual techniques is simply not appropriate. Unfortunately, it is part of a consistent pattern by some homosexual activists to promote underage homosexuality while pretending that their mission is simply to promote tolerance for so-called alternative lifestyles. It is outrageous that someone involved in this scandal is being paid by the taxpayers to serve in a high-powered position at the Education Department, of all places. At some point, Mr. Duncan, Mr. Jennings, Obama administration spokesmen and the president himself are going to have to start answering questions about all this. Refusing to do so won't make the issue go away.


http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/d...=home_top5_read

Booklets or only SOME booklets that got out by mistake or even no booklets at all, there's still a problem here.
bringthedoo
QUOTE(nun @ Dec 13 2009, 11:51 AM) *
That website just happened to be at the end of the rabbit trail to find good images from the booklet. The fact that it happened in 2005 was to show that it happened under the watch of our CURRENT "Safe Schools Czar".


oh oh oh I see, so it's just a smear campaign.

Can you show me where you and this inflammatory WP editorial extract "Safe School Czar" from any of Kevin Jenning's credentials? I guess I'm missing it.



nun
Erm ... his official title is "Assistant Deputy Secretary for the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools".

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