' [ According to Kennedy, however, the substitute teacher was not aware of the student’s right and will no longer be allowed to work at any of the district’s schools. He added that school officials will look at improving training for substitute teachers. ] '
Is there any " intellectual freedom " for teachers here NOT to lead the class in the traditional Pledge of Allegiance ? I can see both sensitive and intelligent teachers and pupils saying it and singing the Star Spangled Banner with mental reservations : " liberty and justice for all " ? Hail " bombs bursting in air " ( like over Hiroshima and Nagasaki ? ) ?
Of course it is foolish to disrespect " sacred " patriotic and religious symbols and rituals anywhere at any time.
I just read that some jerks want to make it AGAINST THE LAW for public school teachers to introduce ANY political or religious controversy into the class room. How can kids learn anything that matters then ? What about the school textbooks ? No political or religious views presented there ?
A student might read an American history textbook praising the IDEALISM of President Woodrow Wilson . But what did the Russian Bolsheviks think about him ? I recall that even the famous psychiatrist Sigmund Freud wrote about Wilson as a bloody mental case.
Excerpt from a book review of " Thomas Woodrow Wilson - a Psychological Study "
' [ Freud writes in his introduction that he did not begin this study with an objective view of Wilson, but rather held an unsympathetic view of him. But he goes on to say that while reading through materials about Wilson, his strong emotions underwent a thorough subjugation. He describes Wilson as a person for whom mere facts held no significance; he esteemed highly nothing but human motives and opinions. As a result, writes Freud, it was natural for him in his thinking to ignore the facts of the real outer world, even to deny they existed if they conflicted with his hopes and wishes. This habit of thought is visible in his contacts with others. Freud also notes that there was an intimate connection between Wilson's alienation from the world of reality and his religious convictions.] '
It must be awfully tough to be a public school teacher in the USA today. Oh say can't you see ?
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