You Have To Be Carefully Taught (or some random political thoughts)
So everyday in Christmas Carol when the audience hears the line “I think we should take out our guns and kill all the liberals” there is always a reaction. Sometimes big, sometimes small but there is always a seemingly positive reaction. I expect it. This county went to Bush by a 30% margin. However what really upsets me is when we have school groups of elementary and middle school kids who cheer and applaud the line. The school matinees invariable have the biggest reaction to that line. I know I didn’t truly start to develop my political beliefs until high school. It scares me that, apparently, these kids are being taught to hate liberals. This is what is wrong with our political discourse. We should respectfully disagree with the other side but not hate them. Certainly we shouldn’t teach our children to hate them. Fear, yes. Resent, OK. Ridicule, absolutely but not hate.
Liberals, in general and Democrats, specifically have let the word “Liberal” become a dirty word. This country was founded by liberals. Hello, the American revolution? That was a pretty liberal endeavor. I feel like that was one way the Kerry campaign truly failed. They let the Republicans winnow the election down to supposedly moral issues. Who the hell cares about gay marriage when our government and our president lied to us? Gay marriage or non-existent WMDs? What is more important? Why did the whole gay marriage thing become so important that it overshadowed a war based on false pretenses? I am still amazed. I love reading how some Democrats are scared of Howard Dean becoming head of the DNC. Please explain to me how the Democratic Party could be in worse condition nationally?
Every time I hear crowds react to the line I feel just the tiniest bit scared to live in a Red state. I need to move to New England.
Liberals, in general and Democrats, specifically have let the word “Liberal” become a dirty word. This country was founded by liberals. Hello, the American revolution? That was a pretty liberal endeavor. I feel like that was one way the Kerry campaign truly failed. They let the Republicans winnow the election down to supposedly moral issues. Who the hell cares about gay marriage when our government and our president lied to us? Gay marriage or non-existent WMDs? What is more important? Why did the whole gay marriage thing become so important that it overshadowed a war based on false pretenses? I am still amazed. I love reading how some Democrats are scared of Howard Dean becoming head of the DNC. Please explain to me how the Democratic Party could be in worse condition nationally?
Every time I hear crowds react to the line I feel just the tiniest bit scared to live in a Red state. I need to move to New England.
posted by JohnXIV at 10:53 PM
1 Comments:
Backstage, I'm cringing every performance with the reaction that the audience gives to that line, especially on the days that it almost becomes a show stopper. With the reaction from the school performances, I try to believe that the children just haven't learned to think for themselves yet. And at the same time, I think of how horrible the schoolyard really is. I hope that each kid finds their own opinion instead of that of their guardians and friends and starts their own revolution...oh and the best thing about the views expressed in this monologue is what the audience doesn't see...hedges exiting SR and flipping them off (not always, but sometimes)
butrfli
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