American History, and the lies we're taught

i recently picked up a great book, Lies My Teacher Told Me . when i started reading, i was appalled at the fallacies i was taught in highschool history. MOST of it is propaganda.

now, for discussion, should nations have a panel of respected historians review textbooks for accuracy and the inclusion of multiple theories on certain obscured events? should they also make sure the book presents history as a thing to be discussed, instead of a subject to be memorized and regurgatated (sp)

I think that is a good idea madness, except that I would add that the panel of historians should not solely be from one nation only. Imagine a WWII textbook written and reviewed solely by a panel of Americans, and another textbook written and reviewed solely by Germans. There are probably going to be some differences in the books; different biases, different events emphasized, and so on. A really good panel on the WWII textbook example would have historians of various backgrounds in order to more fully present a complete and unbiased picture.

Incidentally, I thought that history textbooks (and other textbooks, as well) were already reviewed by multiple experts in the field. Most/all of my textbooks have a page near the front where they list in credits all the experts who reviewed or otherwise contributed to the book. There are often a lot, sometimes dozens of them listed.

Some years back, an Australian High School that offered, American History, had one 'text' book to get, Bill Bryson's, Made in America.

I don't know how well his review of American History (yeah, we all know he's just a travel writer) is received in the U.S., but that book sure helped wash away the 50's propaganda T.V. view of America, as well as explain it. And it was a damn fun read.

Sometimes I think history is presented in such a dead, dry, dull way, to discourage as many as possible from understanding past mistakes, so they can, more easily, be led into making them again.

History, taught right, should be most people's favourite subject.

I love exploring history...in fact, genealogy and history go hand-in-hand.

My husband says that history is written by the winner.

George Orwell warned about people rewriting history!

It very hard to find something true in history.

Maybe everything seem to be real but it not and visa versa.

History in school is just another way to muniplate the truth and tell the people what the goverment what the people to belive. Like news station

That's why public schools are often referred to as "government indoctrination centers."

Tell you what, I graduated from high school 15 years ago, and I'm finding out that a lot of what I taught was watered down, twisted around, or simply not true.

Can anyone point out any of the propoganda you were taught in school in history? Seesm everyone is agreeing and not posting any facts. Schools generally did not get to far into modern history on a high school level.

I don't really think it was propoganda....just lies told by the winner.

Same in every country. I actually had a huge blog on if I would tell my kids what they learned was wrong....

I don't have any kids yet...

Example : Paul Revere rides through the streets screaming the british are coming! the british are coming!

Yeah....um...Paul was british. maybe the redcoats are coming or the regulars are coming....

Anyways he got arrested.lol
William Dawes continued his ride for the next mile or 2 and I believe he got grabbed as well and someone else finished it.

but heck, we all still think electrons go around in a circle of the nucleus of an atom as well...which is about as far false as anything I can think of.

still makes for fun stories...

in both of those, I see no "brainwashing" or "Propoganda" It's just wrong.

-DT

-DT

Heliocentricity is another big lie that 99% of people still believe--the myth that the earth goes around the sun and spins on its axis. The earth actually stands still.

Before you flame me, at least check out this site first. And no, I don't believe the earth is flat.

Originally posted by Amethyst
Heliocentricity is another big lie that 99% of people still believe--the myth that the earth goes around the sun and spins on its axis. The earth actually stands still.

Before you flame me, at least check out this site first. And no, I don't believe the earth is flat.

I won't flame you, but...



Do the other planets sit still as well? What about wobble, when astronomers use the effects planets have on the stars they orbit to find the star? (or something like that ) So, day and night occurs because the sun moves around the earth?

To be real, I only read that one page on your link. I'm sorry, but I started laughing too hard to read the rest. The stars were put here for us, how special we are! The bible is an authority on astronomy...I think they were looking for astrology there. IMO, that's just bogus, especially since the bible has a part in it where the stars fall out of the sky to the earth.

Originally posted by Amethyst
Heliocentricity is another big lie that 99% of people still believe--the myth that the earth goes around the sun and spins on its axis. The earth actually stands still.

Before you flame me, at least check out this site first. And no, I don't believe the earth is flat.

riiight.

So a religious theory that's sole idealogy is "It's because of this because it says so in the bible" makes it true?

Heliocentricity is a proven fact, theres no way around it, and you can see its effects whenever the sun goes down, or when the seasons change. Or, quite simply, just see the stars move in the night sky.

I will have to agree....the earth doesnt stand still....and thats crazy to think it does.....if the earth was still there would be a few places on earth with no light because of the axis we have...plus there would be no seasons either....put what do i know right? i thought 9th grade science was easy

Originally posted by esdad71
Can anyone point out any of the propoganda you were taught in school in history? Seesm everyone is agreeing and not posting any facts. Schools generally did not get to far into modern history on a high school level.

I agree! People, please state ONE FACT taught in American History books which has been totally disproved. Second, please prove it was in fact a lie, and not simply an error.

This reminds me of a story I heard on the radio recently concerning Vietnam, and how in Vietnamese schools, the kids are taught that North and South Vietnam never existed separately. They were always simply Vietnam.

Also, in the vast majority of Elementary schools in the Arab world, Geography teachers refuse to acknowledge the very existance of Israel. In their textbooks, this area is STILL regarded as Palestine! Maybe WE should have a crack at rewriting THEIR History books!

Originally posted by Amethyst
I love exploring history...in fact, genealogy and history go hand-in-hand.

My husband says that history is written by the winner.

George Orwell warned about people rewriting history!

This is so true. For example movies set in the Civil War era... the North is always the good guys, and the South is always the bad. I'm sure this would be reversed if the South had won.

Also, of interest regarding the Civil War, it's interesting how most schools will tell you it was about slavery, and that the south was bad because they had slaves... well the war wasn't about slavery AT ALL.

I agree that text books are very biased. My Texas history teacher said on the first day of school "if it wasn't for these worksheets iwould say leave those at home" In my textbooks my ancestors are always portrayed to be the bad guys, when the Native Americans would kill a couple white settlers it was called a massacre while when the white men would kill a whole bunch of my ancestors they would call it a battle. Columbus was always watered down instead of us learning that he enslaved the Taino, the inhabitants of Hispaniola, and forced to work int gold mines and sugar plantations. I agree that our history books are skewed, but they are getting better i'll give them that.

I read this book a few months back.

Might I suggest a few others you might find interesting...

A Peoples History of the United States
Jihad vs. McWorld
The World Is Flat

Each will broaden your perspective on history and the world.

I've enjoyed Howard Zimm's works for a few years now, and think you'd really like "Peoples History." Jihad vs. McWorld and The World Is Flat can offer some interesting perspectives on hwo the world around you is changing. You're not going to get this type of debate from the news.

-O

I agree! People, please state ONE FACT taught in American History books which has been totally disproved.

I don't think at issue are lies in textbooks, rather than half truths. The problem with the current primary historical education is the selective information presented to the students, and how that information is portrayed.

I will cite a specific example from Lies My Teacher Told me, pg 22-23,

"When I ask my college students to tell me what they recall about President Wilson, they respond with enthusiasm. They say that Wilson led out country reluctantly into World War I and after the war led the struggle nationally and internationally to establish the LEague of Nations. They associate Wilson with progressive causes like women's suffrage....

"...my students seldom know or speak about two anti democratic policies that Wilson carried out: his racial segregation of the federal government and his military interventions in forgien countries.

"Amoung the progressive-era reforms with which students often credit Woodrow Wilson is women's suffrage. Although women did receive the right to vote during Wilson's administration, the president was at first unsympathetic. He had suffragists arrested; his wife detested them. Public pressure, arounsed by hunger strikes and other actions of the movement, convinced Wilson that to oppose the women's suffrage movement was politically unwise. Textbooks typically fail to show the interrelationship between the hero and the people. By giving the credit to the hero, authors tell less than half the story.

pg 27,
"Woodrow Wilson's administration was openly hostile to black people. Wilson was an outspoken white supremecist who believed that black people were inferior. During his campaign for the presidency, Wilson promissed to press for civl rights. But once in office, he forgot his promises. Instead, Wilson ordered that white and black workers in federal government jobs be segregated from one another. This was the first time such segregation had existed since REconstruction! When black federal employees in Southern citiesw protested the order, Wilson had the protesters fired.

I challenge you to look up what is said about Wilson in high school history textbooks. Tell me what they say about Wilson. I'd bet none of what was said above is in there, and if it is, there is less than a paragraph about it.

-O

Right here in Hampton Rhodes, Virginia..took place the first recorded battle between Ironclad ships. The Ships were the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia. Yet when you read the history books the ships are named the Monitor and Merrimac. THe name on the Confederate ship is he CSS Virginia.
Ironically they built a tunnel here going across the river to the other city ..it is named the Monitor Merrimac tunnel. There are some of us around here who know the history ..for many they take what is in the history books at face value and never check up on it.

CSS Virginia


Thanks,
Orangetom

The CSS virginia was in its youth the screw frigate USS Merrimac, it was burned to the waterline by retreating federal forces when its homeport was overrun in the opening days of the Civil War. Later it was raised by the Confederates and armoured, and renamed the Virginia.

I guessing the story as it appeared in the history books were written and edited by them damned Yankee carpetbaggers. An example of, not lies but regional bias.

I have to agree with you about bias..it is often very close to or over the line of outright lies. Politics is a textbook example of this..for votes.
This type of distortion or deception is often done by outright lies or sometimes merely by omissions of facts.

Yes the name of the ship was originally Merrimack. Working in a large East Coast Shipyard I often see ships renamed. The go out under the new name and are known by the new name. The pedigree of a ship can be traced back by records....but the new name is posted on the fantail as well as both sides of the bow.

The Name of the ship was the CSS Virginia. Even this history is distorted for the body politic. It is incumbent on those intrested in history to know the "whole " story ..not just fragments....doled out at someone elses convenience. What this often means is that the thoughts or history in our heads are often someone elses thoughts or knowlege..not ours. This often with the predictable result in behaviors or reactions of a people who know little history. They dont often know what they dont know.
When I know what little history I know ..I am often able to see clearly where the History Channel distorts what happened in certain events...or the newspapers distort the truth for political reasons..both counting on the ignorance of their audience or readers and their abscence of any historical perspective..just the average stuff shoveled out to them in public schools.
By the way ..it is become obvious to many peoples that this type of distortion is become common in public schools and colleges for the purposes of the body politic..very obvious. This has become a sore issue in certain arenas concerning the quality of education our children are receiving. As ignorant as many people are about history they can sense that something is not right about what their children are being taught or not taught. In all arenas.
I believe the dogma here in ATS/BTS is " Deny Ignorance". This can be very telling when taken to some logical conclusions.
I speak here not just of the history of this ship or this conflict but many events occurring around us daily...or even historical events in times past.
For me it is very refreshing to see posters on ATS/BTS who know and have read history outside of what passes for standard education today among the bulk of peoples. It gives me hope and encouragement.


Thanks,
Orangetom