You are an American high school student with a lot on your mind. Classes to pass, popularity to maintain and thousands of other things that matter to you now, but are insignificant to the adults that surround you. Because adults lack the ability to connect with you emotionally on these matters, and the fact that it’s their job to teach, not coddle; schools reach out to others to connect with on ‘your level’ about drugs, crime, safety and sex.
A talking dog tells you how dangerous marijuana is, and how to report a crime to police if you ever have to. Likewise, a talking bear tells you why it’s wrong to burn things. Groups of theatre people perform songs and skits to teach you about the dangers of sexually transmitted diseases. And sometimes a Christian rock band is invited to the auditorium to let you know you’re going to hell unless you accept Jesus Christ as your personal savior.
While my years of public service announcements received in school never approached the topic of hell, apparantly the US government feels it’s about time to add it to the list. $1500 per appearance is paid to the band (Junkyard Prophet) by the school, out of a pool of funds allocated to it by the Department of Education for ‘drug-free schools funding’. Since having a talking dog warn you that drugs will land you in jail hasn’t affected the amount of addicts in America, some have aparantly decided it’s time to up the ante.
The band hands out copies of their CD, and on the cover it reads, “the death sentence [is] on you due to your sins! The very evidence of your sin will be your death! It is appointed to you to die and after that you will be judged according to your ways! His judgment is so thorough every thought will be brought to the light. When all your sin against God is exposed, how will you escape the damnation of hell?”
Since the Supreme Court has ruled that public schools are not allowed to promote religion, you’d expect that since your family is atheist, attendance would be optional. Apparantly that wasn’t the case in some of the 220 appearances the band has made. Students were told they’d be suspended if they did not attend.
Speechless
I do not favor any religion being promoted in public schools.
When government gets in the religion business it never ends well.
Paul, this is the type of thing our government condones. It should have been shut down before the 220th appearance! Obviously the government doesn’t disapprove.
School districts have been caught off guard by this band, and many principals have stated that if they had known what this band was going to present to the students, they never would have had them there.
Now, if that principal sends the complaint up the chain…
The article I linked to about mandatory attendance, it points out that the Department of Education has cracked down on animated characters who talk about same-sex marriage…why not crack down on this?
Is the problem just with some free stuff that is being given out after the presentation, or is the problem with the group’s presentation itself. What does the group actually do at the schools? That is not clear to me just from reading a blurb that they have on their CD. And why wouldn’t a principle know ahead of time what a group would be presenting at their school?
The link at the bottom said that the literature mailed to them prior to booking had nothing about the actual content of their performance. Something to that effect. Also, some of them are probably stupid as hell.
Hell isn’t full of liberals, they don’t believe in hell. I figure if the liberals can flood the schools with their propaganda then why can’t these people do it to. Democrats don’t have an exclusive access to students (although you wouldn’t know it from talking to them) so why can’t community organizations present to students. This is the world we live in now, there is no going back.
Hell is full of Communists and Liberals who realized too late the error of their ways . 🙂
See Right, here’s a perfect example of something that DID happen. Now, FoxNews can turn a statement on FEMA’s website (something that is not taught to students…about milk, i think we hashed this out a while back) – and they can turn it into a 15 minute session w/ pro/con people…about something that doesn’t even happen!
Right, you can’t put together a list of ways liberals are slipping an agenda into our schools, but I can name two off the top of my head from conservatives:
1. This band, the evengelicals
2. Intelligent design, the evangelicals
“You’re going to hell”
“Evolution is a flimsy idea”
THAT does damage to kids, and it does damage to the country. Where are liberals doing things as damaging as either of these things?