# What's wrong with indoctrinating our children? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [September 30, 2009, 7:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-indoctrinating-our-children/512085 "2009-09-30T07:25:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2009, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-indoctrinating-our-children/512085/21 "2009-09-30T19:20:06Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Assuming it was a public school, yes. > > Like I said, I get your point, and I think this was a dumb move. But as far as I can tell this was not illegal, and it’s comparable to the Justice Department situation only in the loosest possible way. Well, IANAL so I can’t go any farther with it. You get what I am saying. I do think it is actually illegal to support partisan politics in a public school setting. But maybe you’re right maybe because he actually IS the President it skirts by that legality. America generally is not comfortable with the personalization of politics. I wasn’t comfortable with it under Bush who I couldn’t stand, and I am not comfortable with it under Obama who I kind of like. I do not recall this kind of personalization occurring under Clinton or the first Bush, though it definitely happened under Reagan. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2009, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-indoctrinating-our-children/512085/22 "2009-09-30T19:43:13Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > I do think it is actually illegal to support partisan politics in a public school setting. I’m not a lawyer, so I can’t go further into detail than what I said before: some kinds of political activity aren’t allowed, but I don’t think this would count. > [@](#): > > America generally is not comfortable with the personalization of politics. That sounds like wishful thinking to me. But it’s probably a separate subject from the indoctrination issue. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2009, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-indoctrinating-our-children/512085/23 "2009-09-30T19:53:20Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > I’m not a lawyer, so I can’t go further into detail than what I said before: some kinds of political activity aren’t allowed, but I don’t think this would count. Fair enough. > [@](#): > > That sounds like wishful thinking to me. But it’s probably a separate subject from the indoctrination issue. Well there’s the ideal and there is the practice. So yes, any talk of an ideal is wishful thinking, people always pursue their own biases and self-interest when they act as agents of the government, but still, it’s a part of our civil culture and I do not think that the lack of being able to succeed at it is the same as it being irrelevant. ---
**Author:** ![CannyDan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cannydan/32/548_2.png) [@CannyDan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CannyDan)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2009, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-indoctrinating-our-children/512085/24 "2009-09-30T19:53:49Z")
Perhaps my explanation was invisible, so I’ll note again that there was nothing “partisan”, nothing “political”, and no indoctrination as perceived by the parents of the children involved. It was a skit about a black man’s accomplishments for Black History Month. Politicization has come entirely from the right wing spin machine. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2009, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-indoctrinating-our-children/512085/25 "2009-09-30T20:21:08Z")
> [@CannyDan](#): > > Perhaps my explanation was invisible, so I’ll note again that there was nothing “partisan”, nothing “political”, and no indoctrination as perceived by the parents of the children involved. > > It was a skit about a black man’s accomplishments for Black History Month. > > Politicization has come entirely from the right wing spin machine. That’s a fair argument. ---
**Author:** ![CannyDan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cannydan/32/548_2.png) [@CannyDan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CannyDan)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2009, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-indoctrinating-our-children/512085/26 "2009-09-30T20:32:55Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > That’s a fair argument. Thank you. It isn’t just a fair argument, it is the cold simple fact of this instance. I appreciate your acknowledgement that it should not be the substance of this debate. Now, can we all go about discussing the types of possible indoctrination of our children, and where/when these may be appropriate or not? (Well, when I say “we” I really mean “you”. I’ve got to go feed the horses. I’m late and they’re kicking the barn down. I’ll check back later.) ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2009, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-indoctrinating-our-children/512085/27 "2009-09-30T20:36:43Z")
Well I am not certain I am comfortable at all with the state system of indoctrination. I might not send my daughter to public school at all. So my threshold for indoctrination might be a lot lower than other people’s. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-wrong-with-indoctrinating-our-children/512085.md?page=1)