I’m not forthing at the mouth, but I do think this deserves a mention, because – no matter which side it’s done from, it’s highly inappropriate.
This is footage from a Finnish TV documentary about Obama supporters.
When my school had a mock election for Bush Vs. Dukakis all the teachers told us to vote for Bush. I think I was the only one who didn’t. I doubt it scarred anyone, but it is definitely petty and childish.
Can’t really argue with you about this. Right is right and wrong is wrong and this is wrong.
No, I don’t foresee any long-term scarring – although it was really bad when she tells the girl who’s dad is in Iraq, “John McCain says he wants the war in Iraq to go a hundred years… so your dad could be there a hundred years.”
It’s just, as you say, petty and childish, and should not be permitted from teachers.
On the plus side, he would be a shoo-in for the World’s Oldest Man award.
Yeah, that’s not appropriate, any more than it would be (for instance) for preachers or popes to tell people to vote McCain. I’m not suggesting a tu quoque, here; it’s inappropriate for either side.
Well…
Maybe.
There’s a huge difference between adults voluntarily present at church and kids involuntarily present at school. In fact, there’s a huge difference between adults and kids, period.
Now, where the preachers and the popes run into trouble is the tax law: they’re free to say “Vote McCain” at the expense of giving up their tax-free status.
But they are legally free to say, “Vote Pro-Life!” without running afoul of that rule, and it’s perfectly appropriate for them to do so. (And, indeed, I heard at least one Obama supporter say he was pro-life but believed that Obama’s policies would lead to fewer abortions than McCains, so the message may not have been as nudge-nudge wink-wink as you might think).
With this sort of election trickery, someone should sue to get the results overturned.
That seems to be a Swedish documentary not Finnish.
Would that difference be that kids can’t vote?
At best, this woman’s behavior deserves a smirk and a shrug – and yeah, I’d say the same thing if she had encouraged her students to support McCain.
I took a college Rhetoric class with a professor who was so obsessed with Obama. I mean obsessed. She loved everything about him, and was about as radical a leftist as you can be without grabbing a gun to kill the oppressive capitalist pigdogs. Pretty much every class had a half-dozen mentions of how awesome Obama was.
Ironically, it was that class which convinced me that never, under any circumstances, would I vote for Obama. I would put in a vote for Satan, Hitler, or Stalin before I marked the Obama ticket.
yeah, that’ll show her!
:dubious:
smiling bandit doesn’t say it was that attitude which encouraged him, just that class. I’m not sure that a rhetoric class would provide much in the way of information on Obama one way or the other, and like sb says, the teacher did bring the guy up a lot which might concievably include his positions. I’d tend to be suspicious of such hyperbole when judging spite, but you can’t assume it in this case.
What’s wrong with a preacher or pope telling people who tovote for? (Other than tax issues)
I tend to disagree with the equivalency. I don’t know the legal ins and outs, but in general terms, a teacher is there to teach, not dictate political leanings or candidates. That’s an abuse of power and very much not what they’re there for. Whereas on the other hand a preacher or the Pope’s job *is *to set out the rightness of particular leanings, political or otherwise, with the specific requirement that they’re honestly reflecting the views of their God as they see it. There’s no inappropriateness, in my book, about a preacher distilling the general views on right and wrong as they see it into landing for better or worse on a campaign or the candidate thereof.
Yep. From Swedish Public Broadcasting. Also, the teacher wasn’t in Ashville, NC, but Fayetteville! Home of the military.
http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200881107028
I, in no way, advocate what it appears she did, if the video is complete and correct.
Believe me, we covered everything about the candidates during tne class (although to this day I can’t sort out what Obama’s stances on most issues actually are.)
If you’re interested, Here’s an interview with the producer of the film. I’ll let you read it and make of it what you will.
Surely, if it was a rhetoric class, the whole idea would be to look at the methods of communication rather than that which is being communicated?
It’s unfortunate that an opportunity to teach young citizens the importance of choosing a candidate after examining the issues turned into a dogmatic mess. I’d say there is a teacher out there who doesn’t understand his obligation to his students.