Walton Co. School Board Meets about Blithe Spirit!!

[Jdarg]

Re: Have questions about "Blithe Spirit"

I am holding an 8 page "Citizen's Request for Reconsideration of Materials Challenge Form 1", which is the paperwork filed to challenge the play.

It was filed by "Concerned Walton County Parents".

Several people now have this paperwork, which is public record, and does have the names of the 2 people that make up this organization.;-)

The next step is for parents, students, and concerned citizens to organize in support of making sure these frivolous and time wasting challenges are handled in a much faster and more efficient manner.

We also are waiting to hear the date, time, and place for the district appeal meeting. I am not getting a warm fuzzy feeling that they want a bunch of people at this meeting, but we need to be there.

Any ideas on how to get information out to an enitre student body of students and parents is welcome since the school isn't exactly pitching in to help us.

We can be "Parents Concerned about Concerned Walton County Parents".

Please tell your friends, neighbors, and anyone that would care about this issue.

I will post e-mail addresses for the superintendent and school board members later tonight.

PMs with offers of help, ideas, and info are aprreciated too!

 

[Smiling JOe]

Re: Have questions about "Blithe Spirit"

I was in Seaside last night and saw a copy of the filed complaint. It is my opinion that some people's actions are funny.

 

[NoHall]

Re: Have questions about "Blithe Spirit"

If it is a PUBLIC school, using public funds, then absolutely not. Separation of church and state, so no Jesus play. If it is a private school, then it is a matter that is decided by the school and parents. If it is a non-religous private school, then it could get sticky if there is not a rule set up in advance about what is appropriate.

If parents feel that religous values should be taught at school, then their kids need to be in a religous school or home schooled.

And why would parents want to spend time on a play about Jesus at school? What is Sunday school for? I want my kids learning English, math, scinece, history, humanities, music, etc. when they are at school.

My problem with that is that in order to teach a well-rounded curriculum, religion WILL come into play. English literature will reflect someone's beliefs. History is lousy with it. I have to tell chorus classes all the time that most traditional western music is founded on church music. No religion=no Bach, Lizst, Handel, etc, etc, etc, ad nauseum. Even math and science will dabble in religion on occasion.

We can't avoid religion in education. Period. We can, however, avoid imposing beliefs on students. There is a huge difference. Do the baby Jesus play, do The Crucible (which is hardly a pro-Christian work,) and do Last Night at Ballyhoo, which is Jewish. Do Blithe Spirit. Don't run, educate...

I never said that the play would be pushing Christianity, just telling a story about a childs birth.

Why would a public school allow a play with material that some would be seen as atheist or wikken values but not allow values that some would view as Christian??

Where was the seperation of church and state written in the consitution anyway???

The constitution guarantees freedom of religion, not freedom from it. We were meant to be allowed to practice our own beliefs anywhere, anytime, as long as we don't violate the basic human rights of others.

That means that if a student objects to the content of Blithe Spirit, s/he should be allowed to bow out of it without penalty or condemnation. In the last 15-20 years, though, the ACLU has decided that having the offended party abstain is discriminatory. It's a no-win situation.

My problem with removing religion from schools is that atheism and agnosticism are as much core values and religions as evangelical Christianity. As an aspiring educator, I don't believe it is my right or my Christian duty to impose my beliefs on a student. My values will be incorporated into my teaching, but I doubt that anything on the Big Ten is going to conflict with anyone in a classroom. I'm all for my (imaginary) children learning about the other religions in the world, because I think it teaches them to understand and accept people. I'm even in favor of them understanding that some people don't believe in any sort of god. But I'll be dad-gummed if anyone will ever teach my child that there is no God. There is a huge difference there.

So before you say it JDarg, I'll save you the trouble: I'm still all about the privitization of education. Private schools, home schools, whatever. Not every kid who goes to a Christian school is a Christian, but they work it out. Power to the people. Work it out in the community, not in D.C.

IBD-For those of us too dense to understand Constitutional subtleties, here is how I think about it. It is an absolute no-no to display a swaddled plastic baby Jesus at a public school. However, it is a cause to celebrate when the little plastic baby Jesus is displayed in a jar of urine created by an artist who is funded courtesy of the taxpayer at an art show at said school. Got it? Good.

I'm still grumpy enough to put someone's HEAD in a jar of urine. Got it?

P.S. JDarg--don't think for a second that I'm criticizing your criticisms of these "Concerned Parents." They're hamstringing everyone's education with their protesting and bandstanding. No excuse for that. I may have a completely different angle on it than you do, but I'm behind you. If you need a religious freak's perspective on how to fight religious freaks, I'm here for you.

 

[scooterbug44]

Re: Have questions about "Blithe Spirit"

It's not a religion/lack of religion issue, it's a common sense/lack of common sense issue. You can't please everybody 100% of the time, and you can't teach in a vacuum. Religion is involved in EVERYTHING. If you doubt this, give me an example and I will connect it to religion in some way ala 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon.

I went to public schools, where we had no school prayers, but did have Halloween, Xmas, Kwanzaa, Hannukah decorations, holiday concerts, and studied Islam in social studies class. Didn't keep us from living our lives according to the beliefs we were raised with or cause a spiritual crisis.

I went to an uber religious college, where multiple theology classes were a graduation requirement, there was a crucifix in every classroom, and my dorm was an old convent. Didn't keep us from studying evolution in anthropology class or asking pointed questions in theology class.

 

[Smiling JOe]

Re: Have questions about "Blithe Spirit"

I saw a lady dressed as a pirate at the SoWal library this morning, and I am all for pirates and Halloween. I do, however, see it as crossing that subject of separation of church and state.

 

[scooterbug44]

Re: Have questions about "Blithe Spirit"

Why was she dressed as a pirate?

It's still a week before Halloween, so I'm assuming she did so to entertain small children - possibly because she was reading a pirate themed book to them, not because she was pushing a religion?

Unless she makes you dress up as a pirate, and tells you it's because of her religious beliefs, it's a non-issue IMO!

 

[Matt J]

Re: Have questions about "Blithe Spirit"

If these people that are complaining are such good upstanding christians, why aren't they "turning the other cheek" to this play?

 

[DuneAHH]

Re: Have questions about "Blithe Spirit"

If these people that are complaining are such good upstanding christians, why aren't they "turning the other cheek" to this play?

that's a million $$ question!

 

[NoHall]

Re: Have questions about "Blithe Spirit"

If these people that are complaining are such good upstanding christians, why aren't they "turning the other cheek" to this play?

I think that Jesus would say that the term "good, upstanding Christian" is an oxymoron. A good, upstanding person has no need for a god; he can do it by himself.

That's another thread, though.

 

[LightWorker]

Re: Have questions about "Blithe Spirit"

I think that Jesus would say that the term "good, upstanding Christian" is an oxymoron. A good, upstanding person has no need for a god; he can do it by himself.

That's another thread, though.

I think the devil made them do it...:roll:​