I love a good protest.
My first was in Mrs. Grubb’s third grade class, after a substitute teacher gave us a ton of math homework. During recess we organized and delivered a written statement announcing a student strike against doing the math.
Believe it or not, the assignment was withdrawn, called an April Fools joke … but boy did we catch hell when Mrs. Grubb returned.
This week, with the school walkouts across the country to protest “gun violence” and demand “gun control,” some older kids finally got in the game. I may disagree with their public policy shibboleths and disdain their tone, but I would defend to the …
Well, you know.
The problem isn’t students or protests. It is the partisan government school system. The system’s taxpayer-paid agents — teachers, administrators — believe they can support student protest movements for changing laws they want changed, but block and punish protests on issues they do not favor.
And, especially, bring the hammer down on anyone who dares notice the double standard out loud.
Rocklin High School teacher, Julianne Benzel, “has been placed on paid administrative leave due to several complaints from parents and students involving the teacher’s communications regarding today’s student-led civic engagement activities,” the California school district said in a statement.
Benzel told CBS in Sacramento that she did not discourage her students from joining the protest — er, I mean, civic engagement activity. But in class, she did raise the issue of whether the school administration would similarly allow (much less facilitate, dare we say, encourage) student protests against abortion, instead of guns.
Let’s protest what we can actually change: public schools engaging in partisan political activity.
This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.
4 replies on “Civic Engagement Activities”
“This new Reich will give its youth to no one but will itself take over youth and give to youth its own education and its own upbringing.” — Adolph Hitler
Paul, clearly you do not see the differentiation.
Gun control is an ineffective but on the first blush attractive “safety” issue. It is a “good” idea and there must be universal support for it, at least by correctly thinking people. The desirability of strict gun control must be taught in and fully supported by our public schools, their teachers, and administrators, Civil engagement by the students, with the support of the administration and teachers, should be mandatory as it is necessary to counter those libertarian and conservative devils, some of which are even members of the NRA. This week’s civil engagements should be lauded as they are an indicia that the lesson is being taught and earned,
It is obvious the right to effective self-defense must be compromised for there is a possibility to save some of the 30 thousand human lives ended by firearms annually in the US, some of whom are children, the innocents, who are deserving of the utmost protection as they are the future of society. On this issue, the actual language of the Constitution must not be interpreted to mean what it says, and Supreme Court in holding the language means what it actually says s clearly an error. All possible means must be employed to correct such a travesty.
Abortion, on the other hand, is only a political issue and does not reach the safety of innocents. It is part of the unmentioned right to privacy, for who could even argue the right to choose to do as one wishes with their own body (except if one wants to use illegal substances). The Supreme Court was correct in finding this unstated and unmentioned right in the penumbra of the Constitution, it has so ruled and rulings of the Supreme Court cannot be legitimately challenged by any patriotic and respectful citizen, and must be taught as ruled in the school system for the common good and unification of the nation.
To chose abortion is a “constitutional right”, and like the other rights it has costs associated with the freedom and liberty which it guarantees. Ending the temporal existence of millions of unborn children per annum in the United States is a small and totally acceptable price to pay for the preservation of that Constitutional right. The Supreme Court was correct in finding this unmentioned right to choose an abortion in the penumbra of the Constitution, has so ruled and cannot be challenged. Any contrary position will not be permitted to be mentioned, or thought about, especially in the public schools which must be uniformly supportive of the Constitution and Supreme Court’s rulings.
Ms. Benziol clearly was properly placed on paid administrative leave and should remain so until her scheduled retirement as allowing her to return to her instructional duties carries an unacceptable risk of her promulgating not only the controversy she mentioned but potentially other deviations from the approved core curriculum.
What sophistry! What a politicization of the schools! We have found the thought police and they are “educating: our children.
Double standard is much too nice a term to apply to this duplicity. Now, more than ever, I respect and revere the principles upon which this country founded, even as I am saddened and agast of this incident which demonstrates the public education establishment clearly never learned them and therefore does not adhere to or teach them.
Weep for your children and your children’s children. They, not we, are going to pay the price.
Paul, clearly you do not see the differentiation.
Gun control is an ineffective but on the first blush attractive “safety” issue. It is a “good” idea and there must be universal support for it, at least by correctly thinking people. The desirability of strict gun control must be taught in and fully supported by our public schools, their teachers, and administrators, Civil engagement by the students, with the support of the administration and teachers, should be mandatory as it is necessary to counter those libertarian and conservative devils, some of which are even members of the NRA. This week’s civil engagements should be lauded as they are an indicia that the lesson is being taught and earned,
It is obvious the right to effective self-defense must be compromised for there is a possibility to save some of the 30 thousand human lives ended by firearms annually in the US, some of whom are children, the innocents, who are deserving of the utmost protection as they are the future of society. On this issue, the actual language of the Constitution must not be interpreted to mean what it says, and Supreme Court in holding the language means what it actually says s clearly an error. All possible means must be employed to correct such a travesty.
Abortion, on the other hand, is only a political issue and does not reach the safety of innocents. It is part of the unmentioned right to privacy, for who could even argue the right to choose to do as one wishes with their own body (except if one wants to use illegal substances). The Supreme Court was correct in finding this unstated and unmentioned right in the penumbra of the Constitution, it has so ruled and rulings of the Supreme Court cannot be legitimately challenged by any patriotic and respectful citizen, and must be taught as ruled in the school system for the common good and unification of the nation.
To choose abortion is a “constitutional right”, and like the other rights, has costs associated with the freedom and liberty which it guarantees. Ending the temporal existence of millions of unborn children per annum in the United States is a small and totally acceptable price to pay for the preservation of that Constitutional right. The Supreme Court was correct in finding this unmentioned right to choose an abortion in the penumbra of the Constitution, has so ruled and cannot be challenged. Any contrary position will not be permitted to be mentioned, or thought about, especially in the public schools which must be uniformly supportive of the Constitution and Supreme Court’s rulings.
Ms. Benziol clearly was properly placed on paid administrative leave and should remain so until her scheduled retirement as allowing her to return to her instructional duties carries an unacceptable risk of her promulgating not only the controversy she mentioned but potentially other deviations from the approved core curriculum.
What sophistry! What a politicization of the schools! We have found the thought police and they are “educating: our children.
Double standard is much too nice a term to apply to this duplicity. Now, more than ever, I respect and revere the principles upon which this country founded, even as I am saddened and agast of this incident which demonstrates the public education establishment clearly never learned them and therefore does not adhere to or teach them.
Weep for your children and your children’s children. They, not we, are going to pay the price.
It is Kalifornia, after all.
Unfortunately, their garbage is spreading.