Schools

Families are strengthened when parents are involved in their children's education and know what their children are learning. Parents must be willing to work at the local level to make sure that children are being taught appropriate lessons.

We must be very careful about what is being taught in our schools. Abraham Lincoln obviously understood this necessity when he made the following statement: "The things that are taught in our schools in this generation will be the policies of our government in the next generation."

Adolph Hitler apparently understood it for he said the same thing in different words, "He alone, who owns the youth, gains the future."

Barack Obama obviously also understands this principle. Whenever he has a presentation to make, he goes to a place where young people gather instead of making his statement to adults. I listened to an unknown socialist (I didn't catch his name.) who was speaking to other socialists. He stated that it was important to work with people younger than college age - high school and even middle school students. Do you want your teens and pre-teens being indoctrinated with socialist ideas?

Progressives, Marxists, Communists, and socialists understand the importance of teaching their ideas to the youth, and many of them have infiltrated our school systems. Teachers who are members of these various groups are attempting to indoctrinate the children in their beliefs and principles. They are teaching ideas such as the following to their students: America is evil. Democracy is outdated. Parents do not know what they are talking about. Big businesses and corporations are evil. All private property should become public property. Abortion is not as bad as it sounds. Mother Earth is more important than the United States.
One group of school children presented the following rap on a school program for Earth Day [www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1_KnvFZ5aw&feature]. This rap is quite simply indoctrination disguised as conservatism. Parents in this particular school took their concerns to the principle and got no where. They were told, "The song doesn't mean anything."

"The sky is high and the ocean is deep,
But we can't treat the planet like a garbage heap.
Don't wreck it, protect it, keep part of it wild [Like half the state of Alaska?]
And think about the future of your great-grandchild.
Recycle, bicycle, don't you drive by yourself."

I have no objection to the above words. We are stewards for the earth, and we do need to take care of it. We can accomplish much more by working together than we can by practicing class warfare. The following words are obviously against big businesses and corporations. Is this rap a prelude to riots?

"Don't buy those plastic products on the supermarket shelf. [We need containers of some sort!]
Boycott, petition, let the big business know [Those evil corporations!]
That if we mess it up here there's no where else we can go.
Don't shrug your shoulders, say what can I do.
Only one person can do it and that person is you."

Parents need to be certain that their children are being taught respect - respect for parents, respect for the nation, respect for our flag, etc. Children need to understand that corporations are not all bad. We must all remember that rich men provide jobs, and poor men don't. Many corporations do much to help society. For example, all the profits from the salad dressings known as Newman's Own are given to charities. They have donated more than $300 million to charities since 1982. The oil companies, banks, and other large corporations here in Alaska do many things to benefit our communities, such as sponsoring school activities and making donations for facilities.

In case you are thinking about pulling your children out of public school and putting them in private schools or home schooling them, think about the following statement made by a mother on the front lines of this problem. "Someone needs to be willing to stand up for the children." If all the good parents exit the school districts, what will happen to the other children?

A recent news item is that the National Education Association (NEA) has asked its members to support President Obama's bid to serve a second term as President of the United States. The NEA is the largest union in our nation with more than 3 million members. It appears that labor is preparing to support Democrats - their traditional ally - in the election of 2012.

The schools are different today than they were when I was a child or even when my children were in school. I know many good and wonderful teachers whom I would trust to teach my grandchildren. I know that there are teachers who have not gone over to the "dark side." While appreciating and supporting the good teachers, we must be vigilant and stand up to those teachers and administrators who are willing to "spin" their teachings in order to advance their political agendas. Parents must be aware and actively involved in the education of their children. They can strengthen their family by standing up for children and insisting that proper principles being taught in the schools.