THE BATTLE IN TEXAS

I mentioned in my post The Revision of Pride that there is a battle brewing in Texas over classroom textbooks.  The battle is heating up, and, at least so far, the conservatives are winning.

Here's a little backstory for anyone who isn't up on the subject.  For the past few decades, the textbook publishers have been catering to the demands of California's board of education, because California bought the most textbooks of any state in the nation.  That certainly explains a lot about the liberal trend in the classroom, doesn't it?  Unfortunately for California, their budget woes have translated into fewer new textbook purchases.

However, what is unfortunate for California is quite fortunate for the rest of us.  Texas has since replaced California as the leading textbook purchaser for the nation.  This means the state of Texas can now make demands of the publishing companies, much as the state of California did, and those changes may well effect textbooks everywhere.  And demand, they are!

The Texas Board of Education is in the process of debating and voting on changes to curriculum, and the battle between liberal and conservative board members has been heated, but, so far, the conservatives are winning:

Conservative members had their way in the 11-4 vote, which came one day after several Democratic board members walked out, claiming the proposed standards dilute the contribution of minorities to American history and culture. The debate, which picked up again Friday morning, ended with only a single Democrat voting to support the new standards.

The fact that the liberals walked out should come as no surprise.  If we have learned anything from the past year+ of liberal rule it is that the only acceptable compromise is full capitulation to their demands.  Anything less is unacceptable.  The fact that there was one democrat who voted for the changes is cause for hope, though, and that democrat should be given credit for agreeing that learning about American exceptionalism is more important than the cultural significance of hip-hop music. 

The main liberal argument is that there isn't enough minority representation.  There were many minority contributions to the creation and preservation of this Union, but let's face it - back in the 1700's, whether in America or Europe, minorities didn't have much voice.  Happily, those wrongs were righted and became the freedom we enjoy today, but it doesn't take away from the basic facts of life.  This country was founded by a group of white men.  This is not a travesty - it just is what it is. 

Does that mean that our kids shouldn't learn about people like Frederick Douglass, Dolley Madison or Sojourner Truth?  Of course they should - they helped shape this country and should be remembered for their contributions.  But should our Founding Fathers be replaced by Famous Amos and Mary Kay?  I personally believe that the black community in America has contributed far more than just a cookie maker (wildly successful entrepreneur though he may be) and hip-hop, and it is a disservice to them to relegate their portion of history to those narrow confines.

As a woman, I feel that the suffrage movement should also be discussed, if not in depth, at least touched upon.   Susan B. Anthony, Sojourner Truth, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the many other thousands of women who risked life and limb in their nearly 100 year battle to win the priviledge of voting for all of us is something that has been lost to the girls of today.  Teaching our children about what they went through is important as a reminder that some sacrifices are worth it, and everyone deserves dignity and a voice.

This battle in Texas is so important, because the education we give our children dictates where we are headed as a country.  The California years, when they dictated the curricula, lead us down the path of collectivism and european socialism.  History lessons are based on feelings and impressions, not hard fact.  Our children are being taught to relate history into how they feel about an event, not the factual repercussions of it.    

The liberals swept themselves in to victory in 2008 because that election was enabled by the subtle decades-long indoctrination of our youth (who are now beginning to reject that flawed reality).  It's time to turn it around, and the Texas board of education has become the front line in the battle. 

The tide is turning, though, the tide is turning.  To keep it turning, we have to learn from the opposition.  The main tactic that has worked so well for them has been their role as the 'squeaky wheel'.  Their protests, lawsuits and generally irritating tactics have served them well.  We are learning their lessons, but we are only applying them to the federal realm.  As Tip O'Neill once said, "All politics is local".   Yes, we need to keep the pressure on the apparent federal socialist revolution that is taking place before our eyes, but we also need to apply that same pressure locally - most especially our school boards and PTA. 

Our children are literally our future, and we need to be as aware of that fact as the liberal/progressives have been.  We need to fight them tooth and nail for the hearts and minds of our children.  The Texas fight is just the beginning, but what a beginning it is!

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THE BATTLE IN TEXAS

THE REVISION OF PRIDE

North Carolina public schools are proposing a new lesson plan for American history.  They are not the first state to do this, and they unfortunately probably won't be the last.  Under the proposed plan, high school students would no longer be taught American history before 1877. 

No Declaration of Independence.  No Revolutionary War.  No Constitution.  No War of 1812.  No Civil War or Reconstruction.  No Founding Fathers, and no Abe Lincoln.

Why are they proposing this?  They feel that the things that happened in this country prior to 1877 are irrelevant to todays students.

According to Rebecca Garland, the chief academic officer for North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, the goal of this change is to teach what students will feel connected to, “where they see the big idea, where they are able to make connections and draw relationships between parts of our history and the present day.”

Wow.  So, apparently, an entirely new system of governance, a war to impliment it, a war to cement it and a war to make all men truly free in this country are not "big ideas".

According to The Heritage Foundation, the reason for this is simply a Progressive agenda to promote government as the answer:

The Progressives sought to remake America, so that the Declaration’s Founding Principles, the Constitution’s institutional structures, and the Civil War’s meaning as a victory for Founding principles would no longer ring true. The progressives argued that equal, natural rights were non-existent; government creates rights. They replaced representative government with the administrative, bureaucratic state.

I have another take on it. 

I'm not saying that the remaking of America by Progressives isn't the cause - it certainly is.  But I think there is more to it than that. 

I think that is it just not possible to learn about our history and not fall in love with this country.  Sure, there's the bad stuff, like slavery, but there is also the Civil War, which certain (Republican) factors fought in order to right that wrong.  It's no wonder Progressives don't want to teach the Civil War, since their Democrat brethren were most definitely on the wrong side of that one!  The decade after the Civil War, called the Reconstruction, ran from 1865 to, interestingly enough, 1877.  Why wouldn't the Progressives want to teach about that?  Well, the Reconstruction was marred by the creation of the KKK and the many attempts by southern white democrats to oppress the black (republican) community.   Suddenly that 1877 or earlier date makes a lot of sense, huh?

To learn about our country's Founding, from the Declaration of Independence, through the Revolutionary War and on to the creation of the Constitution is to learn what men of honor, integrity and moral standing were capable of.  Is it possible to learn those things and not foster a deep sense of pride that you are descended from that?  Is it possible to learn those things, those freedoms, those rights, without yearning to have them, nurture them and pass them on?

And therein lies the dilemma of the Progressives.  The objective for them is ultimately a nanny state that is subservient to a global community.  When there were attempts to add the U.K. to the European Union and have them forfeit their pound in favor the the euro, there was a hue and cry that was quite unexpected.  The British were proud of their long history and did not want to lose their national identity in the European collective.  One would imagine the other countries were not as concerned about the amalgamation of the European states into one union because they were used to the highly elastic boundaries of their countries throughout the centuries.  But the island nation of Great Britain has always stood apart, both literally and figuratively.

The United States is cut from the same cloth.  We are more of an amalgam of races and creeds than the EU,  but we have, in the peerless melting pot that is our country, created something new.  Something different.  Something special.  American exceptionalism is real.  Our love of freedom is ingrained in us from birth - it above all else, is our birthright.  It is that exceptionalism  and freedom that makes us a country, it is what binds the many different factions into We the People.  No where on Earth is like us, and, as long as we know our history, we will never give that up.

The Progressives know this.  They have revised their own history, but have found it difficult to revise ours, so instead have decided to ignore it.

The whole scheme has caused such an uproar that it is currently being "revisited" - for what that's worth.  Let's hope sanity (and concerned parents) prevails.

There is cause to hope, too, in Texas.  They are in the midst of battling textbook companies over the pronounced leftist tilt of the publications.  Texas is the largest consumer of textbooks in the country which means:

Textbook publishers will have to follow Texas guidelines if they wish to continue to sell textbooks in Texas.

In other words, as Texas goes, so goes the nation.  This battle could potentially affect all of our children's education across the country.  I don't know about you, but I'm damn glad this battle is being fought in Texas instead of California! 

The proposed changes will be voted on in May.

Considering the Battle of the Alamo occurred in 1836, I feel a tiny little spark of hope.....

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THE REVISION OF PRIDE