8 Reasons Young Americans Don't Fight Back: How the US Crushed Youth Resistance

A bit more on how disgusting our educational system is now.

No teacher, but every textbook, left behind.

...an August 9 dispatch from the AP's Jennifer Coleman about a chain of private schools whose curriculum is so "riddled with errors" that outraged judges and attorneys general in four states have acted to close them down. .....the course's only teaching material was a slim volume filled, Ms. Coleman continues, with howlers such as:

1. The United States has 53 states but the "flag has not yet been updated to reflect the addition of the last three states" - Hawaii, Alaska and Puerto Rico.
2. World War II began in 1938 and ended in 1942.
3. There are two houses of Congress - the Senate and the House, and "one is for Democrats and the other is for the Republicans, respectively."

Mr. Gossai's textbook should have been called History As She is Wrote – it is no wonder the various state law enforcement officials are so exercised. Here are some more textbook stunners:

4. Napoleon won the Battle of Waterloo.
5. Jihad means merely "to struggle," to do one's best to resist temptation and overcome evil.
6. Women earn only 71 per cent of what men do. (The former head of the Congressional Budget Office, economist June O'Neill, said that for employees "similar in their experience and life situations" there is practically no difference between men's pay and women's.
7. Sherman's troops burned Atlanta. (In fact they burned only the public buildings; most of the destruction had already been accomplished by Hood's Confederates.)
8. In the 7th century, Cordoba, Spain was an Islamic city, the Grand Mosque was already built, and the Crusades were in progress – all incorrect by one to four centuries.
9. These are historical facts – the Archangel Gabriel revealed God's word to the Prophet Mohammed, Adam built the Kabaa in Mecca, and jinns are made from fire and can be either good or evil.
10. There had been a $40,000 bounty for the capture of Harriet Tubman. (There is no evidence of one higher than $100, placed after she herself escaped.)

Science is not spared its share of errors:

11. A map shows the equator running through Texas and Florida. (I suspect this is a result of global warming.)
12. A picture of a compass shows east and west reversed.
13. Six orders of birds are listed, all of them fictitious
14. Memorizing the value of pi is an example of deductive reasoning.
15. A photograph of Linda Ronstadt is captioned: "silicon crystal"; in an earlier version of the textbook the pop diva was a "vacuum triode."
16. The moon's mass is 1/6 of the Earth's. (It is 1/81.)
17. Periodic tables do not include new elements years after they have been added.

As well as outright errors, there are biases and dubious interpretations:

18. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were "a married couple who held radical views."
19. American perceptions of the Japanese militarists were shaped not by real events – such as the Rape of Nanking, the Bataan Death March, or other Japanese atrocities – but by American "propaganda."
20. All of the American Indians are lumped into one homogeneous culture, all of the Europeans into another, and all Africans into a third, and each of them contributed equally to the present American culture. (Expect a massive re-write, now that Hispanics outnumber blacks.)
21. American participation in World War II is given 20 pages, while there are 26 pages about the home front, emphasizing discrimination against women and racial minorities.
22. George Washington is allotted six lines of text, compared to six and a half pages for Marilyn Monroe.

Besides items that are tendentious or flatly wrong, there are what we shall kindly call irregularities:

23. A prominent scientist is advertised as having reviewed the textbook for accuracy. (The scientist says he has never seen it.)
24. Its publisher contributes heavily to the reelection campaign of California's superintendent of instruction.
25. Of the textbook's listed authors, none were actually involved in writing or reviewing it.
26. Successive versions of the textbook, sold as new editions, are virtually unchanged and include the same errors and anachronisms, such as the same age for tennis player Venus Williams, wrong by two years in even the first edition.
27. The text and graphics includes large-scale placement advertising of private products such as Levi jeans.
28. There are repeated references to the publisher's own website on something called the interNET [sic].

This is only a sample of the errors, dubious interpretations, biases, and irregularities. How can so many be associated with Daniel Gossai's one "slim volume"?

As it happens, we can blame him for only the first three. All the others are from textbooks that major publishers

like Prentice-Hall and Glencoe/McGraw-Hill have been selling by the tens of millions to public elementary, middle, and high schools throughout the United States. These examples, and dozens more, of how-not-to-write-a-textbook are readily available on the "interNET" at these and other sites... www.enterstageright.com...

reply to post by crimvelvet


WOW! That is just scary, CV.

That school system went with such a silly book system..

I remember when I was in school, finding small errors in my school books here and there, but that is completely silly at how much was in that particular setting.

I wonder how bad the rest of the books are these days.. Would be interesting to hear from the current school age kids.

Originally posted by Cygnis
Source Article blog

Orginal Alternet Article

1. Student-Loan Debt. Large debt—and the fear it creates—is a pacifying force.

2. Psychopathologizing and Medicating Noncompliance.

3. Schools That Educate for Compliance and Not for Democracy.

6. The Normalization of Surveillance.

These are just 4 of the 8 reasons, with semi-lengthy reasonsings as to why there will be no major protests or riots or other type events.

Please visit the link, and read the article. it's most enlightening.

The younger generations have been pressed upon in such a way, that to "question authority" or to "go outside the box" and "think creativly" are frowned upon.

The people at the top do not want free-thinkers, or those that question. They want people who will simply slave away.

The institutionalization of a majority of our systems has erroded the youths basic ability to see the forest for the trees. Standardised public education has robbed them of the ability to ask critical thinking questions, and creativity. Television has robbed them of creative thought, and self-entertainment (or discontent with the world around them).

Those that are outside the box get medicated. A friend of mine's son doesn't like to sit still, and pay rapt attention to the teacher at school. The school is telling her that she needs to have her son seen by a doctor and medicated.

It appears that fomr some time now that we have been being engineered for the worse.

edit on 6-8-2011 by Cygnis because: (no reason given)

edit on 6-8-2011 by Cygnis because: (no reason given)

edit on 6-8-2011 by Cygnis because: (no reason given)

Forgot the biggest reason: Apathy is the number one killer of civilizations. Also your ignoring the gendered dynamics. Look at the girl power movement of the 90's and how boy's since the 90's have been ignored/demonized by our society.

You have to understand that most teachers are also man-hating feminist bigots. The same "polite lady" that is teaching America's little boy's and girl's attended feminist hate rallies in college.

When you have bread and circuses why would you protest?

reply to post by Cygnis


I think a key point that has been missed is the degree to which you will be punished for any form of protesting these days.

While there is the usual run of the mill being ignored, it means a lot more in this day in age to be ignored than it ever did before. If your protest has no media presence what-so-ever you feel very small. With social media being what it is, no mention at all is unbelievably discouraging. It may sound outrageously silly, but it is true to a degree.

Far more important though is how protests are dealt with these days. If you live in the Toronto area, you know what I mean. Peaceful protests are destroyed via a police line. Kids in Queens Park were beaten and put in detention centers for ages. If you don't know much about what happened during G20 in Toronto, look it up and be astounded. Don't hate me for saying it, but in this day and age its far too dangerous to protest. You'll have a record, and never get a decent job. If you protest you could be reduced to little more than minimum wage for a long while. People want prosperity, and if protesting kills that option - you'll likely opt out. There is a lot I'd like to change, but if no one else is willing to sacrifice I don't want to be the one who suffers for it for trying.

Originally posted by 547000
When you have bread and circuses why would you protest?

Anyone who has read history should remember WHY they made sure there were bread and circuses.

Along the same lines that the saying "Let them eat cake" was uttered at the time as well.

History repeats itself. Forgetting history only enables it to repeat itself..

Are we truly doomed to always repeat the mistakes of the past?

Originally posted by JewelFlip
reply to post by Cygnis

 

I think a key point that has been missed is the degree to which you will be punished for any form of protesting these days.

While there is the usual run of the mill being ignored, it means a lot more in this day in age to be ignored than it ever did before. If your protest has no media presence what-so-ever you feel very small. With social media being what it is, no mention at all is unbelievably discouraging. It may sound outrageously silly, but it is true to a degree.

Far more important though is how protests are dealt with these days. If you live in the Toronto area, you know what I mean. Peaceful protests are destroyed via a police line. Kids in Queens Park were beaten and put in detention centers for ages. If you don't know much about what happened during G20 in Toronto, look it up and be astounded. Don't hate me for saying it, but in this day and age its far too dangerous to protest. You'll have a record, and never get a decent job. If you protest you could be reduced to little more than minimum wage for a long while. People want prosperity, and if protesting kills that option - you'll likely opt out. There is a lot I'd like to change, but if no one else is willing to sacrifice I don't want to be the one who suffers for it for trying.

Sadly, I would agree, but I also counter with:

How long do people think the "prosperity" will last?

Why must we be so reactive, instead of being proactive.

We might stand a better chance of getting things back to the way they should be, and enabling prosperity to continue as it should have. But the current course we are headed down will not make for a prosperous future.

As I said in the previous post, to a degree.. Must we always allow history to repeat itself? It's a ignorant cycle we keep perpetuating.

It needs not be so.

I am also aware of the G20 situation. A rather disgusting display by those in a place of trust and power.

Further more showing evidence of how truly corrupt the whole ball of wax is.

How can we continue to live within a system where things are so messed up. It's hard to ignore it once you see it. I know many have not seen it, as they choose to remain blind. But for those who have opened their eyes.

I do understand people fear being the initial martyr(s) of a cause.. No one likes to step out on a limb and risk it all. There will be a spark tho.. Sometime, somewhere, that will get the ball rolling. I just hope it's not too late to undo the absolute atrocity we have allowed to be created.

To live under the constraints and limits chaffs, does it not?

reply to post by Cygnis


Well I have to say that when you brought up the French Revolution, I had just been thinking about that and what would our catalyst be. I think that it (FR) was brought about via a reactive population and a few choice people who used it to their own advantage (i.e. Robespierre). Which is something that always makes me hesitate when I think of our possible future revolution, because a Robespierre is definitely something we want to avoid. The Red Terror was far more horrific than the White Terror (IMO).

I also have trouble with going back to "when things were good" because an honest to goodness analysis of our history would demonstrate that things were never ever truly good. So where does that take us? I don't want to derail your thread at all, but I feel that if we are discussing why this generation (my generation) doesn't rise up it leads us to a dichotomy: One side doesn't give a damn which is a given and happens every time, and the other side is wondering where it will lead us and if by acting history will repeat itself.

So where do we go with that? What are the flaws of current society? How did we get here? What CAN we do to actually change it? History is so damn long that while we're asking questions - those in power are trampling all over us. Our fore-bearers have given up so much power for the sake of their own comfort that we are left with very little beyond violent uprising. Shall we write to our politicians politely requesting change? If in 50 years we get that tiny concession, what else will have sprung up?

I don't think the population is as blind as ATSers believe, I think the task is so daunting they'd rather ignore it. And when a true catalyst emerges, news sources downplay it so the population can remain secure in the fact that everything is all right.

I appreciate your faith in that future spark, but when and how much will we have given up when that finally happens? Nothing will be devastating enough for the N.A. population to actually rise up. If you disagree, please give me an example of something that could motivate the population.

Sometimes I'm at the point where I don't think I can wait for the ball to get rolling anymore, I'd rather go back to sleep, accept my chip, accept my NWO, swear allegiance to the global sovereignty and enjoy the perks of being a sheep.

But sometimes I wish I had the balls to take down "those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers", know what I mean?

reply to post by Cygnis


Oh they didn't crush us, we just aren't pi$$ed enough yet. We will get there. If everyone defaults, then there wont be much of a stigma about it will there? We don't have to fight...we can always give the government the silent treatment. It would be fun.

Just read this article myself. It makes a lot of good/obvious points that I have pondered myself.

The next logical question is: how do we regain youth solidarity, resistance, and fire that is extremely resistant to forces (whether intentional or not) which effectively neutralize the young into apathy?

With that said... I see a lot of interest/sympathy amongst my own generation against the establishment and for resistance. The prairie is drought-stricken and ripe for a wildfire, all we need is a properly placed lightning strike for ignition, which is inevitable.

Perhaps the lightning has already struck?

reply to post by NoHierarchy


I think an excellent place to start would be placing a ton of Anons in Warcraft for advertisement. Whats wrong with even building a Anonymous guild in every server? I would even go so far as calling the guild name Anonymous. There are so many people playing wow these days and i would say probably 75 percent of them dont even know whats going on in the world today.

Sounds crazy I know, just a thought tho.

It's always the young that brings about social change.

Right now our youth has no future and they will soon realize it.

People advocating cutting programs that are keeping them afloat will only increase the speed at which it will happen....IMO.