# Fuck your conservative textbooks!
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745
**Category:** The BBQ Pit
**Created:** [December 2, 2004, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745 "2004-12-02T19:43:57Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2004, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/1 "2004-12-02T19:43:57Z")
I have a friend who works for a textbook company. A few months ago he was talking about some projects he was working on and he mentioned a “Texas textbook.” I didn’t know what he meant and the conversation moved on before I could ask him. Then I ran across a news bite that described what “Texas textbooks” are and my blood was angried up to an extent I did not think was possible.
A quote as description:
> [@](#):
>
> At the urging of Leo and several other members — who describe themselves as Christian conservatives — the board this month approved new health textbooks for high school and middle school students after publishers said they would tweak references to marriage and sexuality.
>
> …Conservatives’ efforts over the years to edit textbooks are legendary here. In a nod to those who believe God created the Earth 6,000 years ago, a sentence saying the ice age took place “millions of years ago” was changed to “in the distant past.” Descriptions of environmentalism have been attacked as antithetical to free-enterprise ideals; a passage describing the cruelty of slavery was derided as “overkill.”
>
> …Texas is the second-largest buyer of textbooks in the nation, after California. Books purchased here wind up in classrooms across the nation, because publishers are loath to create new editions for smaller states.
>
> As a result, five social conservatives on the 15-member Texas board, frequently joined by five more moderate Republicans, have enormous clout — and often control the content used to teach millions of children.
>
> Publishers have no choice but to heed many of the group’s wishes, said Don McLeroy, a dentist, Sunday school teacher and Texas Board of Education member.
>
> “They’ve got to sell books,” he said. “It’s business.”
from [here](http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/1122-08.htm)
What. The. Effing. FUCK.
Why can’t these people just fall off the face of the Earth? Can we please for the love of whatever gods you follow just ship these people to another planet where they can have their little narrow-minded bigotopia without bothering the rest of us?
---
### Author:  [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2004, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/2 "2004-12-02T20:42:21Z")
> [@SpazCat](#):
>
> I What. The. Effing. FUCK.
>
> Why can’t these people just fall off the face of the Earth? Can we please for the love of whatever gods you follow just ship these people to another planet where they can have their little narrow-minded bigotopia without bothering the rest of us?
When do YOU believe “the ice age” took place, **Spazcat**?
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### Author:  [@jk1245](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jk1245)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2004, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/3 "2004-12-02T20:43:38Z")
You want a face to focus your rage on?
[Meet the Gablers!](http://members.aol.com/TxtbkRevws/)
These two fossils (whoops. I meant “Jesus carvings”) are largely responsible for Texas’ “review” of textbooks. Check our their reviews of various texts on their site. Note that no high school science texts were rated higher than “fair” in the most recent reviews.
It’d be comical if if weren’t so pathetic.
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### Author:  [@Ilsa\_Lund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ilsa_Lund)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2004, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/4 "2004-12-02T20:47:17Z")
> [@Bricker](#):
>
> When do YOU believe “the ice age” took place, **Spazcat**?
Heh, heh. **"THE** ice age."
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### Author:  [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2004, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/5 "2004-12-02T20:52:52Z")
A teacher told me in high school how glad I’d be one day that I was educated in Maryland. He’s been proven right ever since my first undergrad semester in the south. Things like this keep on proving him right.
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### Author:  [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2004, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/6 "2004-12-02T21:07:40Z")
This thread may be of use here:
> **[Texas textbooks: another setback in the war on ignorance.](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=285332)**
>
> According to this Reuters story, And this little gem: (bolding mine) In the fucking teacher’s edition??!! All I can figure is that this is a disguised Republican breeding program. :rolleyes:
Covers the same topic, same subject, just two weeks earlier.
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### Author:  [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2004, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/7 "2004-12-02T21:29:51Z")
> [@](#):
>
> Why can’t these people just fall off the face of the Earth? Can we please for the love of whatever gods you follow just ship these people to another planet where they can have their little narrow-minded bigotopia without bothering the rest of us?
While you might be a little bit over-excited about it, this has been going on for years. Most texts are religion or non-religion friendly, bland-ified, stripped of content, and multicut-ed (stuffed full of “multicultual” elements, even where extremely non-appropriate and really pointless) to meet the needs of california and texas markets - and no where else. Everyone else gets taking along with the ride.
> [@](#):
>
> A teacher told me in high school how glad I’d be one day that I was educated in Maryland. He’s been proven right ever since my first undergrad semester in the south. Things like this keep on proving him right.
Don’t be so smug - they sell these same things all over the country.
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### Author:  [@Ghanima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ghanima)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2004, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/8 "2004-12-02T22:15:12Z")
Can’t we just make Texas it’s own country and be rid of it once and for all?
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### Author:  [@Ca3799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ca3799)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2004, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/9 "2004-12-02T22:47:33Z")
I’m trying to do my part. When the health textbook review was announced, I made my application to be on the review board. First they gave me the wrong application. Oddly, they didn’t have any current applications for the health books even thought it was published that applications were being accepted. I returned later only to fill out the same year- old application, which of course wan’t accepted because it was …and old application.
I will try again. Leo and cronies have to go.
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### Author:  [@MrTuffPaws](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrTuffPaws)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2004, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/10 "2004-12-02T22:57:32Z")
What is funny is that they are both wrong. That last ice age ended around 10,000 years ago. Though I suppose that ice ages did happen farther back.
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### Author:  [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2004, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/11 "2004-12-02T23:08:29Z")
> [@Ghanima](#):
>
> Can’t we just make Texas it’s own country and be rid of it once and for all?
Better idea: let’s make California its own country.
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### Author:  [@MrTuffPaws](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrTuffPaws)
#### Post date: [December 3, 2004, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/12 "2004-12-03T00:49:02Z")
> [@Miller](#):
>
> Better idea: let’s make California its own country.
Fine by me, though the rest of the US won’t be so hot after losing the 5th largest economy in the world.
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### Author:  [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)
#### Post date: [December 3, 2004, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/13 "2004-12-03T00:53:22Z")
Exactly.
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### Author:  [@Scylla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scylla)
#### Post date: [December 3, 2004, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/14 "2004-12-03T00:57:57Z")
I object to a textbook saying “The Ice age took place millions of years ago.” Probably for a different reason then the Texas conservatives though.
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### Author:  [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)
#### Post date: [December 3, 2004, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/15 "2004-12-03T01:06:16Z")
I read the story when it appeared in the _L.A. Times_. When I came to the bit about the Ice Age, I had to wonder how much actual research the reporter had done.
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### Author:  [@Elysian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elysian)
#### Post date: [December 3, 2004, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/16 "2004-12-03T01:18:45Z")
This is really no cause for panic.
Think about it: when you were a kid, did you actually read your textbooks? Or did you just do the problems? Did you know anyone who read the textbooks, and actually believed them? I didn’t.
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### Author:  [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)
#### Post date: [December 3, 2004, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/17 "2004-12-03T01:30:18Z")
Guess what? Textbooks ARE politicized, and both sides do it. I remember a liberal group pressuring a textbook manufacturer into adding some declaration from a women’s conference into their section on ‘great historical documents’. So it goes.
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### Author:  [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)
#### Post date: [December 3, 2004, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/18 "2004-12-03T01:35:19Z")
> [@Sam Stone](#):
>
> Guess what? Textbooks ARE politicized, and both sides do it. I remember a liberal group pressuring a textbook manufacturer into adding some declaration from a women’s conference into their section on ‘great historical documents’. So it goes.
Cite?
Not that I’m doubting you, but you know the rules around here, **Sam**. 😉
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### Author:  [@laigle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/laigle)
#### Post date: [December 3, 2004, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/19 "2004-12-03T01:36:43Z")
> [@Miller](#):
>
> Better idea: let’s make California its own country.
Only if we can figure out a way to team up them up with New England while somehow avoiding territorial logjames with the red states. My suggestion would be to get Oregon and Washington in on the act, and join the lot up with Canada. That way we’d have a nice contiguous bloc of everywhere any thinking human would want to live.
And Canada would be in there too, of course, but if they’re nice enough to loan us a few highways it’s the least we can do.
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### Author:  [@laigle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/laigle)
#### Post date: [December 3, 2004, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-your-conservative-textbooks/277745/20 "2004-12-03T01:42:38Z")
> [@laigle](#):
>
> Only if we can figure out a way to team up them up with New England while somehow avoiding territorial logjames
Logjames… I think I’ll use that one if I ever start working in porn.
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