disapproving kitty

Sunday, April 16, 2017

Teaching the Fundamentals Doesn't Mean What You Think It Does

I keep seeing memes float about on Facebook about how the damn libruls have kicked God out of schools, or how the ACLU beats children for praying in school or most recently, how a conservative think tank is proposing to a very welcoming administration the idea the public funds should be going towards religious schools and "bringing God back into the classroom."
I usually post short responses to these statements, but I've grown tired of typing the same thing over and over. So I thought I'd write a blog post and just link to it instead. It'll save wear and tear on my fingers.
The real question isn't: Should God be allowed in school? 
It's: Should the government be allowed to force your child to worship the god(s) of its choice?
Because that's what we're talking about.
Stay with me a moment. If you are mad because some liberal kicked God out of your child's classroom, tell me, how did they do that? Does the teacher stand at the door and tell your kid "No believing in God in here!" or "If I catch you praying, you'll be sent to the office!"
Of course not. 
Every child with a belief in God brings that belief with her. As the joke goes, as long as there are tests, there will be prayer in school. 
Imagine for a moment that the State mandates prayer in school. Great, right? A win for conservatives! Except, they decide to mandate Buddhist prayer. Or Islamic prayer. Or Satanic prayer. Or Jewish prayer. Or Catholic prayer. Or Presbyterian prayer. Or an Atheist moment of silent reflection. And your child is none of those things. What then? 
Well, says the State, your child can just sit respectfully. Or leave the room. Or do something else that marks him as different from his peers.
Life's hard enough without the teacher being the one calling our your kid as the "weirdo," don't you think?
Prayer and belief in God has always been in public classrooms across America. Always will be. It just isn't lead by the government. It's there because your children bring it with them, not because the teacher forces it on them.
Think about it. Or pray on it. Or meditate or whatever else you choose to do, and not because the government told you to. If you are an American, that's one of your fundamental rights.
It's a right I want for my children, too.
Don't you?