"Life in Lubbock, Texas, taught me two things: One is that God loves you and you're going to burn in hell. The other is that sex is the most awful, filthy thing on earth and you should save it for someone you love." - Butch Hancock, Musician, the Flatlanders
A friend called to talk about his daughter being caught in the middle of one of the kinds of controversies that only happen in Texas. His daughter's teacher had sent an email that her school was not going to show the president's national address to students in their school. My buddy Marcus is African-American and Native American, holds two degrees, and does not very well countenance stupidity and hypocrisy.
"It's not exactly a political speech," he said. "He's going to tell kids to work hard and stay in school and get a good education, and take personal responsibility for their actions."
"Of course not," I conceded, "But Obama is a democrat and African-American and this is Texas."
"Yeah, well, I'm going to get Mia from class and bring her home to watch the speech and then take her back. This is garbage."
Actually, it is more like intellectual pus, a kind of deadly ooze that keeps infecting our national discourse. We tell people not to mess with Texas but that's because we reserve the right to mess it up ourselves, which we are doing quite effectively. This latest hypocrisy, though, is almost beyond imagining, but is a logical next de-evolutionary step for progressive thinking under the Lone Star.
During the campaigns and administrations of both Presidents Bush and Ronald Reagan, speeches and public appearances were almost mandatory for students and the religion of those leaders was forced on the crowds gathered in the taxpayer built gymnasiums. I cannot count the times that I attended political rallies as a journalist during school hours where students were told to leave class and come provide a crowd for the Republican candidates. Invariably, at many of these, I was standing next to my friend, a Pulitzer-winning journalist who is Jewish, as a Christian prayer was offered and the name of Jesus was invoked. Nobody saw the contradictions and hypocrisies.
In Texas, we see this as a positive attribute, taking kids out of classes for candidate rallies and force feeding them the candidate's religion. Hell, we're doing even better than that in our school system. A number of boards of education have voted to begin teaching the bible in public schools. A statement from a school board in Central Texas indicated that the class will be optional and will teach the bible as "an historical document." Oddly enough, we aren't teaching about the Koran's historical impact and power and that might be a handy piece of knowledge in the future for our children. I think the constitution is as clear on this matter as it is on the right to keep and bear arms. Church and state are to be separated. No damned religion of any kind or any of its texts should be taught in public schools.
But this is Texas and the long, proud march backwards presses on; except we may soon begin dragging the nation with us into the 18th century. Because so many textbooks are published for our vast public school system, the curriculum standards adopted by the Texas State Board of Education have great influence beyond the Red and Sabine Rivers. Annually, while the rest of the world has acknowledged science, our textbook committee has to debate creationism and intelligent design and including religious faith in science books. When science rears its little head we have the bludgeons to whack it back into a hidey-hole, and when politics moves away from progressive, free-thinking, historical analysis, we teach the Rovian Revisionism of great events and personalities.
The newest effort by our school board is designed to make certain our students know that McCarthyism wasn't all that bad and that students need to be able to identify significant conservative organizations and leaders. This is coming out of the textbook committee's latest hearings and, even though board members want Texas children to learn about conservatives, whom they identify in their recommendations, they make no point to mention progressive groups or personalities. According to Talking Points Memo, one of the board members griped about "too much emphasis on multiculturalism" when it was noted that World War II led to greater female and minority employment. Another member, scribbling in the margin of a critique of the textbooks notes that, "...if McCarthyism is noted, then the Venona papers need to be explained that exonerates him." (Fabulous grammar from a Texas public school grad risen to political prominence.) There was also a note suggesting that Charlton Heston's speech on the culture war, which made conservative hearts pound with joy, was a good topic for a textbook's section on "effective leadership." The standards on Richard Nixon say that the text should "describe his role in the normalization of relations with China and the policy of détente." Maybe, just maybe, we can squeeze in a line about Watergate and resignation in disgrace and nearly destroying the constitution with corruption but be certain you cover China and détente.
So this is Texas, folks, created by god 10,000 years ago with all fossils and fossil fuels in place, where black presidents are not allowed to encourage our children, there are two sides to every story, even McCarthyism, Richard Nixon is the man that saved the world, and the bible is a text book, and Fox News is on every TV screen in every airport and public place in the land. I suppose I'm obligated to mention that our governor is aligned with a secessionist group and appears at rallies citing our constitutional right to secede and, oh, I forgot to tell you about how we voted three to one in 2005 to ban gay marriage.
Y'all come on down.
Also posted at www.moorethink.com
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Michael Zimmerman, Ph.D.: The Texas State Board of Education Embraces Islamophobia
Even one "conservative" burb north of Austin, long a refuge of those wanting to escape the "liberals" but still work in Austin, sent a competent latina Democrat into the State Legislature this last election.
So...Texas is in play!
Not all is ignorant and backward in Texas.
“On this first day of school the children will be quite excited to converse and socialize with their friends during this noontime period and to divert their attention or reschedule operations would obviously be difficult if not counterproductive.”
Shameful, absolutely shameful
As a long suffering Fort Worth resident, I can certify that Texas is filled with a unique blend of conservative ignorance and narrow-mindedness that manifests itself as xenophobia, homophobia, an enfantile fear of socialism (without any notion or education as to what actually constitutes socialism), racism, sexism and overarching stupidity. Nonetheless, I met and married the most wonderful, tolerant and compassionate woman that this backwater state has ever managed to produce.
Just because the majority of pasty white Texans are dirt clod dumb Republicans doesn't mean this state isn't full of wonderful, interesting people. Austin, the state capital, is a wonderful liberal oasis in the midst of conservative septic tank.
"I'm sorry. This critical thinking stuff is gobbledygook."~David Bradley, Vice-Chairman Texas SBOE
It's my current sig line for emails. :)
p.s. Take Alabama with you.
Let them eat condos!
Better still, perhaps, would be a broad survey course on history of religions. I had such a course available to me in my high school (San Jose, California in the 1970s), which covered all the major world religions as history. I remain grateful for that exposure. Among other things, I learned about the fundamentals of Islam (up to a point).
Separation of church and state can still be preserved. To interpret that fundamental principle as precluding the culturally foundational text of the Bible is throwing out the baby with the bathwater. Instead of protecting students from religious indoctrination, a full exclusion is a denial of historical and cultural reality. Besides, students who can get a different perspective than they get at home or church are greatly benefitted by it--and are empowered to think rationally about religion.
There was a high school teacher in Morgan Hill who was teaching religion as a proper humanities/history/philosophy course in the early 1980's. The text was _The_World_Bible_, edited by Robert O. Ballou., published in the 1960's when an exposure to non-Christian philosophy was less threatening to U.S. Christians.
Did you mean San Jose, literally? Or just the metropolitan area? Did we have the same teacher?
I am so sorry. I live in Texas too, and the tea-baggers think everyone is just like them!
I am so sorry. I live in Texas too, and the liberals think everyone is just like them!
If you come to Texas and do not like the way things are done here then find a place where things are done to your liking, I assure you that no one here will mind! If you do not like the attitudes and beliefs that are present here please just move on and leave us to our outdated selves.
There are interstate highways that will take you east, north, west, or even south if you prefer.
Concerning Obama's speech to the children, if it is a do your best, get a good education, and respect other people's opinions speech, then I am all for it.
Not all of us Texans are like you. I welcome the influx of others, including Hispanics, to help "integrate" some of the inbred thinking. And, I am a life long Texan.
I say WELCOME to any who would come. Not all of us are close-minded, and we welcome the company!
People are impatience with the President right now but don't you see why he doing so much because he knows their out to stop him.They don't want change.They wait to the system crash like the banks and then the step back and say I didn't have any thing to do with this and we the people will suffer.It is morally right to have health care fot all.Time for us to stand by and up for are president.
Kinky Friedman made a fair showing in the last gubernatorial elections.
This culture war isn't over yet.
I hate to be the one to tell you this, Mr. Moore, but this has already happened. Nobody else in the world shares the beliefs of Texans, and nobody has in several hundred years.
Enjoy your life in a backwards state where progress of any kind is viewed as "the enemy."
you comments make no sense whatso ever
To be fair, the major cities of Houston, Dallas and Austin seem to be aligned with the rest of the country and understand we need to make real changes in our country to remain a global power or world leader. However, much of Texas seems to be stuck in the past and afraid or unwilling to embrace the changes we need to make as a country. I think Texas is a prime example of how Fox news and Rush Limbaugh can have an adverse affect on a persons ability to think and apply critical thinking in their decision making process.
I look forward to more enlightened people from the west and northeast moving to Texas to help bring this state into the 21st Century.
I am long passed school, but I seem to remember what our founding fathers wrote in our Constitution, and if you read their individual thoughts on the different amendments, then it is pretty clear what they meant! A small Government is one thing they all agreed on, not the monstrosity that we have now, and the even bigger one that you Progressives want.
We the American people have let the extreme left wing people decide what is good for the rest of us for to long. You have almost totally changed the Christan principals that guided our forefathers in their desire to make our country the best.
I have a feeling that things will change in the elections from now on, out with all the good old boys, and in with politicians that really care about out country and not themselves or their party!
Tolerance is not defined by Progressive thought, only exploited by it!
I am a Texan, born and raised, and quite honestly I'm ashamed to the close minded hipocrits this state has produced .
Oh, only "Progressives" want big government, is that right? Huh, I guess it might seem like that, compared to how much paring George W. Bush did to shrink the government and it's budget, not to mention how efficiently he used our military to surgically remove Saddam Hussein from power and turn Iraq into the garden of democracy we see today. Please, no more flowers and candy, you grateful Iraqis, I'm getting diabetic just thinking about it!
I'm with you and I feel your pain.....even though I have always lived in Texas....and sad to say for about 40 years in Lubbock. I am now in Houston, and hope to move to the blue dot of Austin!
Thank you for staying.....we need more dots of blue!
Geez, if we didn't have property, jobs and lives in Texas, we'd be heading out about now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You Austinites come out here to California, and rebuild your fair city in our Central Valley. We even have rolling hills and live oak trees!
A significant fraction of California's current Central Valley residents are the descendants of Dust Bowl Texans. These are California's most conservative voters, and they hamper progress in this state every election cycle. They can take themselves, and their cultural values, back to Texas.