Does Government Want to CONTROL Us?

1920s cartoon, showing man standing at microphone with his mouth wide open and the text "I'M A SMART GUY". (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

     Would you believe that a good many schools now are starting school before Labor Day?   Would you believe that some school districts have already been in session since the end of July?   How about some schools are going to a year round schedule or have at least tried this in some form or another?

       Whatever happened to summer vacation and all the fun kid things that went with that?   Sorry about that, kids.  Big brother has decided to screw you out of your childhood and prepare you for a bleak future world where everyone is the same.  Make believe and thinking differently is not allowed unless it's the kind of different sanctioned by the "brave new world" of groupthink.

      They claim they want our kids to get smart yet they really want to dumb us all down so we can conform to their every whim.  It's all about control.  Of course, government is in the business of control.  That's what laws and regulations are all about.   This makes sense to keep an orderly structure to society--to a degree.

       Do we need government telling us what we can eat or drink that is beyond the useful action of making sure consumables are safe for us and won't kill us because of contamination or something of that nature?   What we decide to ingest and consume should be a matter of personal choice should it not?  Same with schools.  Teachers should have more control of the classroom under the guidance of local directives, but it makes little sense for the federal government to have an across the board agenda to homogenize society.  Rural areas have different concerns that urban areas.   A concentration of one cultural group in one area of the country might be a good reason to adapt a school system to that group, but not a reason to impose those cultural needs on every school system.

       The old American dream has been corrupted.   We missed it by that much!  Now the question is can we get it back?   The freedom train has been derailed by politically correct elements of society that want to change the story of the United States and alter the meaning of words that tell our story now.  The old totalitarianism trick is being pulled on us and anyone who is out of step with what the powers-that-be want is getting the duct tape across the mouth treatment and ostracization by those who are allowed to shout them down.
   
        In my blog post from 2013 Do You Know What Your Children Are Learning in School? I discussed the matter of government control as related to the federal government's intrusion on schools with the Common Core curriculum.   This educational initiative will undoubtedly become a big issue in the 2016 presidential race.  Common Core certainly has its proponents, but it is also facing vigorous resistance from its opponents.   Hopefully, voters will take a closer look at Common Core before continuing to allow it to turn our children into submissive clones.  Common Core is more than an educational agenda, it's a political agenda.   Certain elements of the ruling forces in this world would like nothing better than to see a degradation of the United States by weakening what this nation represents.  Despite what we think about our democracy, we may not actually have as much control over government as we'd like to believe.

         There will be many loud voices on all sides of every argument in the year to come.  Let's hope the voices on the side of what will be best for this nation will stay strong and remain loud.  "You can't move mountains by whispering at them," said chanteuse Pink.    Floyd Lawson, the barber and purveyor of homespun observations from The Andy Griffith Show, might have interjected with "I thought Calvin Coolidge said that."  

       Uh, no Floyd, Pink is attributed to having made that particular statement.  However Calvin Coolidge is credited with the following:

"We do not need more intellectual power, we need more moral power. We do not need more knowledge, we need more character. We do not need more government, we need more culture. We do not need more law, we need more religion. We do not need more of the things that are seen, we need more of the things that are unseen.... If the foundation is firm, the superstructure will stand." -Calvin Coolidge

"If in a free republic a great government is the product of a great people, they will look to themselves rather than government for success..."  -- Calvin Coolidge

"Don't expect to build up the weak by pulling down the strong." -- Calvin Coolidge

“Patriotism is easy to understand in America; it means looking out for yourself by looking out for your country.” 
― Calvin Coolidge

     Though it wasn't Calvin Coolidge, there is some disagreement on who said the following, but I think it's worth mentioning:

“When government fears the people, there is liberty. When the people fear the government, there is tyranny.”---Thomas Jefferson (according to some sources)

     Battle of the Bands Coming!

            Reading through my above rant you might have gotten some hint of what my next Battle of the Bands song will be.   Actually I think I made it so obvious to anyone who knows the song that I'd be very surprised if no one gets it.  Let me know in the comments what you think my next song choice will be.  My next Battle of the Bands will be combined with my Insecure Writer's Support Group post and will appear on Tuesday September 1st.

          Do you think political correctness has gotten out of hand in the United States?   Is it important for school kids to have an old-fashioned summer vacation?    Did you recognize what classic television comedy show I was alluding to in my post (other than The Andy Griffith Show)?

Related articles

• Where Did Morality Go?
• Why Was Calvin Coolidge the Best President Ever?
• Carly Fiorina Bashes Common Core: 'Overly Influenced By Companies That Have Something to Gain'
• Mercedes Schneider: Jeb Bush Doesn't Remember What Common Core Is

The State of Edjucashun inn Amerika (w/ BOTB results)

Abandoned School (Photo credit: Atelier Teee)

        Recently I was on the internet making some motel reservations and while doing so I read through the reviews on the travel sites I visited.  I was amused by some of the grammar and spelling errors in these reviews.  After reading some of the funnier ones to my daughter, she wondered why some of these people didn't bother to read back over what they'd written to correct errors.  My suggestion was that it probably didn't matter because this was probably the way they wrote and they wouldn't even notice the writing errors they had made.

        I suppose that some of the poor writing could be attributed to people having written their reviews on their phones or whatever devices people use in lieu of actual typing on a keyboard.  I think that a lot of people actually have truly bad grammar and spelling skills and these reviews reflect that level of poor education.  Whatever the case, I wonder about the education of today's young people.  Do we fault the schools?  The parents?  The culture?  The kids?   And now Common Core is being instituted in schools throughout the United States.   I wonder if they'll include "Text speak" as part of the language program.

        At least teach kids how to spell...

Battle of the Bands Results:  The Banjo Song

        Speaking of spelling, there was some annoyance about the spelling out of the word "banjo" in the song used in my most recent Battle, "The Banjo Song".  The spelling out of words in songs is quite common so I was surprised that some of the voters did not like this song gimmick.  It's mostly a novelty idea from the standpoint of songwriting.   Spelling words in songs does not particularly annoy me though I'm not overly fond of ditties such as the folk song "Bingo" or the "Lollipop Song" that I used to hear my sister sing.  "Lollipop" was a reworking of the George M Cohan song "Harrigan".

          The bottom line is that not many of the voters in this contest even liked "The Banjo Song".  Not only did they not like the song, many did not like the artists whose versions were presented.  Tough contest.  Neil Young won by default I would say.  A few--myself included--are Neil Young fans.  I'm an avid Neil Young fan.  But I also enjoyed the version by The Big 3.  As many of you know, I like a wide spectrum of music and often go against the grain of the more common tastes of the majority of the population.  What can I say? There's no accounting for taste sometimes.

          My vote went to Neil Young.  Of course.  And even if I had voted otherwise, Neil Young would have won handily.

         The final tally:

    Neil Young and Crazy Horse 15 votes

     Big 3       4 votes

     My next Battle of the Bands pairing will take a real turn.  It's an incredibly beautiful tune first done by a jazz artist.   Be here on August 1st to vote on the next Battle.

      Do you think modern media has had an adverse effect on language?   Are many kids today coming out of the educational system knowing less than kids in the past?   Should we be concerned about Common Core?

Related articles

• How bad grammar may be damaging your brand
• Weird Al Yankovic "Blurred Lines" Parody "Word Crimes" Is Genius - WATCH HERE!
• Poor spelling and grammar on social websites harms job prospects
• Poor Grammar Is Bad Business

Do You Know What Your Children Are Learning in School?

teachers (Photo credit: Mouse)

 
      God bless our teachers!   But I am beginning to think that administrators and creators of curriculum are emissaries of evil.   They may think they are doing the right thing, but then again I wonder how thorough and rational that thinking is.  Or maybe it's just another part of a bigger conspiracy to control the world population.

        Schools are either now back in session or will be soon.  There is an increasing amount of buzz over a new curriculum being instituted in schools across the country.  Common Core is the bane of many teachers who are having to relearn how and what they teach.  Sure, there are some who come to the defense of Common Core, but I am hearing increasingly negative reports as more teachers are introduced to the program.

       When I initially heard about Common Core I had my usual suspicions, but didn't give it too much thought.  Then I began to hear some odd reports about the program.  I began doing some research on the internet.  What I found left me incredulous. If you're not familiar with Common Core do the research for yourself.  This is especially important if you have children or grandchildren in a school system where the program has been or is going to be added.

       I still don't know too much about Common Core so that's why this is my topic for today.  Maybe some of you can enlighten us about the Common Core program.  To me something smells fishy.   Now I'm tossing out the bait to see if anyone will bite.

      You can find many videos on YouTube about Common Core, pro and con.  The following excellent video was brought to my attention at the site Old Virginia Blog. I think the indoctrination they suggest sounds very suspicious and creepy.  This is the stuff of speculative or science fiction.  The video here concerns first and third grade.  What I've seen about middle school and high school text books is outrageous and highly disturbing.


.


          Do you keep up with what your kids learn in school?   Are you familiar with Common Core?    What do you think is the intent of the federal government regarding education?

Related articles

• Common Core--Being Reformy Means Never Having to Say You're Sorry
• Stop Common Core
• Obama's New Math Curriculum Gives Kids Points for Wrong Answers?!