-Caveat Lector-
This assumes morality can not be divorced from religion, which is totally
incorrect...
It is wrong to kill people in all instances? In some instances?
God (the Christian one anyway) had a bunch of kids mauled for making fun of
a bald priest. So his morality should be questioned anyway. He also seemed
to have no problem with people killing the enemies of their nation in war.
I'm an agnostic, and I believe war is immoral. I do not believe an eye for
an eye is a moral law, therefore I am against the death penalty.
Why are these things wrong? Well, it sure ain't because God said so...if
anything it comes down to the categorical imperative, or the golden rule if
you will...
What would happen if everyone acted this way? Would you want people to
treat you this way?
My morals come from empathy. I know right from wrong, because I can put
myself in the other guys shoes. I know it is wrong to hurt people, well,
because it hurts when people hurt me...God doesn't have to tell me that, I
have a brain and can figure it out...
Maybe you need the fear of Hell to make you into a good person,
I do not,
and I resent the implication that I do.
(By the way, I was raised Methodist, it was years later, after doing some of
my own research that I decided even if God exists, he is completely
unknowable, and thus agnosticism is the only solution for a rational mind...
oh and to respond to part II while I am here, if you read a little
Descartes, a little Hume, and a few others, the idea of no absolute truth is
not only rational, but the only thing that really makes sense)
Mike Switzer
Rambler, Philosopher, Musician, and Crank...
www.hichouston.org
-----Original Message-----
From: Yardbird [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Wednesday, August 29, 2001 5:10 PM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: [CTRL] Public indoctrination , part 1 (fwd)
-Caveat Lector-
Pulling kids out of government schools, part 1
http://wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=24156
� 2001 WorldNetDaily.com
My last column concluded with this charge (in part):
"All parents who are married and have no extraordinary circumstances to
prevent them from doing so, should today remove their children from the
government school system."
I promised I would defend this "outrageous" statement - I'm going to
address only one of many reasons in this column today.
Parents should take their kids out of government school because government
education is not possible. "Government education" is an oxymoron. The
object of teaching is the transmission of truth, which is reality. A
synonym for the word "teach" is "indoctrinate." Another good term is to
"propagate" or "propagandize," which is the teaching of any system of
principles. You can see the problem I have with any government
indoctrinating or propagandizing children. It is inherently immoral and
un-American to charge the government with this responsibility.
Let's next answer the question, "Why do we send children to school?" The
correct answer is "to become educated." We will define education in a
minute, but first, let us examine incorrect answers to the question. If you
said: babysitting, socialization, behavior modification, or "a place to go
to until the child is an adult" your reasoning is wrong, but this perverted
reasoning is the natural outcome of resting the role of educator in the
hands of the government and it has replaced true education entirely today.
Now let's define education. The best definition is found in Webster's 1828
dictionary (available on CD Rom from ShopNetDaily):
EDUCATION, n [Latin educatio] The bringing up, as of a child; instruction;
formation of manners. Education comprehends [encompasses] all that series
of instruction and discipline which is intended to enlighten the
understanding, correct the temper, and form the manners and habits of
youth, and fit them for usefulness in their future stations. To give
children a good education in manners, arts and science, is important; to
give them a religious education is indispensable; and an immense
responsibility rests on parents and guardians who neglect these duties.
Is Noah Webster correct? Yes he is. It is not a matter of opinion; it is
the truth which is knowable. Before we go further, let's look at the
definition given by today's Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary Online:
Education
1 a: the action or process of educating or of being educated; also : a
stage of such a process b : the knowledge and development resulting from an
educational process [a man of little education]
2 : the field of study that deals mainly with methods of teaching and
learning in schools
That sound you hear is Noah Webster spinning in his grave. This is the
dictionary your government school children and teachers use. You see,
someone has to decide which books and reference materials are used in the
schools. They are selected by the state. The history books, philosophy
books, science books are all selected by the government! Even the
definition of words becomes a de facto function of government. This is most
appalling because education is a decidedly religious activity. Why? All
human endeavor is constrained, informed, defined and imprinted with the
worldview of the individual or institution. And worldview is a belief
system determined by religious belief. What is religious belief? It is
defined by the answers given to a few questions:
* What is the purpose of life?
* What happens when we die?
* How did life come into being?
Your answers to these questions determine how you approach every single
endeavor of your life. All institutions have a worldview too, and it
affects every single endeavor in which they engage.
Therefore, the simple act of defining the word "education" requires
judgment (read worldview). OK you say, just don't teach anything which
requires worldview judgments. That is impossible; let's see why. Take
history class as an example:
Student: Was Hitler right to kill Jews?
Teacher: No
Student: Why?
Teacher: Because it is wrong to kill innocent people.
Student: Why?
Teacher: Because everyone has the right to live!
Student: Why? [This is where it gets sticky. The answer is determined
solely by your worldview - read, "religion"]
Teacher: Because God says so. [Now this is the correct answer - but we
can't talk about the reality of God in government schools so. ]
Teacher: Because it is against the law!
Student: Why?
Teacher: Because the government says so!
Student: What if the government says it is OK?
Teacher: But the government wouldn't say that!
Student: The government of Germany did.
Conclusion: Because our system forbids government to teach morality, it
cannot teach about the Holocaust. To take the concept of immorality out of
the subject of the Holocaust is impossible without denying truth.
Education by definition requires the search for truth. Therefore government
must teach about immorality. Which the government can't do. Therefore, the
government can't teach.
Elizabeth Farah is co-founder of WorldNetDaily and serves as senior vice
president of marketing.
[Forwarded For Information Purposes Only - Not
Necessarily Endorsed By The Sender - A.K. Pritchard]
------------------------------
A.K. Pritchard
http://members.ll.net/chiliast/
To subscribe to "The Republican" email list - just ask!
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Public schools have removed God, and where
there is no God, there is no truth.
John 17:17
Dr. Ron Tottingham
Pastor, Empire Baptist Temple
Sioux Falls, SD
<A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A>
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DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER
==========
CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic
screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! These are
sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'�with its many half-truths, mis-
directions and outright frauds�is used politically by different groups with
major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought.
That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and
always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no
credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply.
Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector.
========================================================================
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