Time for a Change: Liberal to the Core
Time for a Change: Liberal to the Core
by Rebecca Burgoyne, CFC Research Analyst
May 26, 2010
And before Texas had completed their study and recognized that revisionist history must be corrected, California State Senator Leland Yee (D-San Mateo) was protesting. Yee didn’t mince any words, insisting (in the California Chronicle), “The alterations and fallacies made by those extremist conservatives are offensive to our communities and inaccurate of our nation’s diverse history. Our kids should be provided an education based on facts and that embraces our multicultural nation.” The Senate Education Committee analysis, discussing the need for the bill, (quoting Yee) described the Texas revisions, as “a sharp departure from widely accepted historical teachings that are driven by an inappropriate ideological desire to influence academic content standards for children in public schools.”
“Essentially, Senator Yee, by referring to the Texas decision-makers as 'extremist conservatives,' is resorting to name-calling to protect so-called history from facing the test of accuracy,” said Ron Prentice, CFC’s executive officer. “Based on Yee’s response to the Texas studies, the promotion of specific ideologies and the downgrading of religion’s importance in our country’s founding must take precedence over objective truth.”
Our children must learn about our heritage – and the great men and women who have marked our history, but, in recent years, parents lament that the tried-and-true lessons of history are being replaced with politically correct, rewritten history. Ask any teacher: Scarce school minutes are being stretched until there is no room to give. Children cannot learn about the heroes of every special interest and ethnicity in society, yet that seems to be the aim of an expanding multiculturalism. For example, the recent May 22 Harvey Milk Day, on which schools were encouraged to recognize the pro-homosexual icon and his contribution to the Golden State, are gaining in number. And unfortunately, it is the lessons of the historic past that are neglected.
Schools are in session about 180 days a year. In that amount of time, teachers must teach and students must master an ever-expanding list of subjects. Time for reading, writing and arithmetic has given way to sex education, “tolerance” and safety, environmentalism, and a host of other elitist special interests.
Textbook Conundrum
The new Texas standards are of interest nationwide, because, as one of the largest purchasers of textbooks, publishers often consider standards in Texas – along with California and Florida – when writing their new textbooks. California’s decidedly liberal bias means Texas is even more important. With California falling far to the left of mainstream, many other smaller states, given a choice, opt for Texas’ book editions instead. However, with the advance of digital technologies, the large states of Texas, California, and Florida are losing their clout, as publishers can easily tailor different editions for diverse customers.
“Ironically, many California legislators – supporting the Girl Scouts for their ‘tolerance,’ yet disdaining the Boy Scouts for their honoring of God and his precepts – cannot see the hypocrisy,” said Prentice. “This Legislature, which promotes all manner of politically-correct lessons, cannot see that it has – in its arrogance – rejected the values and beliefs of most California families.”
Daniel Webster once said, “If religious books are not widely circulated among the masses in this country, I do not know what is going to become of us as a nation. If truth be not diffused, error will.” Error is indeed being diffused in our nation. As Americans across the heartland have stood up to vote their values once again, pray that Californians, too, will tune in to the failure of their elected representatives to speak on their behalf, and, in November, choose men and women of integrity to serve in their stead.
by Rebecca Burgoyne, CFC Research Analyst
May 26, 2010
Victory in Texas
Fed up with efforts to remove or diminish references to America’s religious heritage in Texas textbooks, last week – after a long, drawn-out struggle – the Texas State Board of Education voted 9-5 to approve state social-studies standards promoting religious freedoms and protecting our Christian heritage. Attacked in mainstream press as the work of “right-wing extremists,” the controversy surrounded the impact and role of religion in America (including Christmas), the Founding Fathers, the greatness of America and the exclusion or inclusion of certain significant persons in U.S. history. (Read more on Focus on the Family and Liberty Institute.)California responds
While Texas was still considering its new standards, Senator Yee proposed legislation (SB 1451) to protect California from the “extreme” standards in Texas. Through the gut-and-amend process (much like the cut-and-paste function in a computer program), he revised a spot bill relating to the regulation of osteopathic surgeons into one that requires the California State Board of Education to review proposed textbooks for content deemed to result from Texas’ recent action – and to insure that the materials satisfy guidelines in current California law. The bill, currently on the Senate floor, would also require the board to keep the Secretary of Education, and the chairmen of both the Senate and Assembly education policy committees informed of this information.“Essentially, Senator Yee, by referring to the Texas decision-makers as 'extremist conservatives,' is resorting to name-calling to protect so-called history from facing the test of accuracy,” said Ron Prentice, CFC’s executive officer. “Based on Yee’s response to the Texas studies, the promotion of specific ideologies and the downgrading of religion’s importance in our country’s founding must take precedence over objective truth.”
Our children must learn about our heritage – and the great men and women who have marked our history, but, in recent years, parents lament that the tried-and-true lessons of history are being replaced with politically correct, rewritten history. Ask any teacher: Scarce school minutes are being stretched until there is no room to give. Children cannot learn about the heroes of every special interest and ethnicity in society, yet that seems to be the aim of an expanding multiculturalism. For example, the recent May 22 Harvey Milk Day, on which schools were encouraged to recognize the pro-homosexual icon and his contribution to the Golden State, are gaining in number. And unfortunately, it is the lessons of the historic past that are neglected.
Schools are in session about 180 days a year. In that amount of time, teachers must teach and students must master an ever-expanding list of subjects. Time for reading, writing and arithmetic has given way to sex education, “tolerance” and safety, environmentalism, and a host of other elitist special interests.
Textbook Conundrum
The new Texas standards are of interest nationwide, because, as one of the largest purchasers of textbooks, publishers often consider standards in Texas – along with California and Florida – when writing their new textbooks. California’s decidedly liberal bias means Texas is even more important. With California falling far to the left of mainstream, many other smaller states, given a choice, opt for Texas’ book editions instead. However, with the advance of digital technologies, the large states of Texas, California, and Florida are losing their clout, as publishers can easily tailor different editions for diverse customers.
“Ironically, many California legislators – supporting the Girl Scouts for their ‘tolerance,’ yet disdaining the Boy Scouts for their honoring of God and his precepts – cannot see the hypocrisy,” said Prentice. “This Legislature, which promotes all manner of politically-correct lessons, cannot see that it has – in its arrogance – rejected the values and beliefs of most California families.”
Daniel Webster once said, “If religious books are not widely circulated among the masses in this country, I do not know what is going to become of us as a nation. If truth be not diffused, error will.” Error is indeed being diffused in our nation. As Americans across the heartland have stood up to vote their values once again, pray that Californians, too, will tune in to the failure of their elected representatives to speak on their behalf, and, in November, choose men and women of integrity to serve in their stead.
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