Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Idiocracy: where we will be if.....
i saw the movie "idiocracy" last night with luke wilson and maya rudolph...it didnt seem like something i would like, but it turned out to be a sartical look at a world that we are quickly heading towards if people dont remember why its important to learn, to be outside, to read for enjoyment and knowledge (and not just for the "is your man cheating?" quizes in cosmo)
there is nothing wrong with knowing things, there is nothing wrong with thinking about things- truly, it givesz you power....and i really believe the wealthy and powerful are greatful that the lower classes are becoming mindless masses again....it creates a field where they are free to take and exploit
....just head over to havecoffeewillwrite and read jeff hess' continued coverage on the current walmart openeing in cleveland ohio....6000 people applying or three hundred low-skill, minimum wage jobs is a sign of both a lack of educated employees for higher skilled businesses and the desperation of a dying city (since even my family moved the business out to solon, making it difficult for inner-city clevelanders -as my grandfather always had in the warehouse-making it difficult for them to get to the shop...)
Song of the day: i will not obey- utah phillips
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
8 comments:
This has been going on for a while, but it seems worse now. My ten year old was supposed to write something for Veterans Day thanking the vets for their service. He started writing about homeless Vietnam vets and the guys returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with brain damage and missing limbs. Instead of using this opportunity to get him to check his facts and turn it into a positive message of thanks, she told him this wasn’t what she wanted and ripped it up and threw it in the trash can. At the parent teacher conference, I wanted to try to figure her out, but it was like, “Hi, thanks for coming, here’s his A’s, bye!” I got the feeling that she is very young and insecure and not wise enough to teach young people who are smarter than she is.
We seem to be enslaved by our stuff and ignorance. For example, as the value of people’s houses goes up, most people get all happy because they seem rich on paper, not realizing that they now have even more liabilities. Now they are happily indentured and have to work even more years for some semblance of freedom. Sometimes, I wonder if this whole system is a conspiracy by our rich rulers to enslave the “middle class” or it just evolved that way.
Larry, Hearing about your child's teacher is infuriating in and of itself. One thing about high school that didn't seem right is when a teacher can't learn a lesson themself. There's usually more then 1 way to look at a situation. Isn't THAT was school's supposed to be about - thinking - not rote recital of facts. I would have taken the tearing up of that paper very poorly. Maybe your child can learn a different type of lesson there. I don't know. Mine's only in kindergarten and his teacher seems very nice and involved. Let's hope that trend continues.
He’s only in 5th grade (though 9th grade reading). Because his writing teacher seemed intimidated by me (though I hardly even got to smile and say “hello”), I only heard his version of the story. He’s pretty honest with me though. Most of his teachers are fairly cool… for example, his reading teacher, whose real job is writing classroom materials for the “Success for All” program at night.
My son and I talked about the situation with the veterans. I told him that in life you have to sometimes do things to survive some situations. He wrote something that she thought was acceptable.
The bad thing is that he said his reading teacher is now his science teacher, too. You really should be learning to think in science.
We have a small really tight 98% Native American community. I told the story to the head of the school board and remarked, “I hope we’re not turning out nice Stepford Indians.”
i hope you guys actually see the movie....as you guys do have kids abnd can make a differnce in this upcoming generation....keep them in love with learning, and their priorities on bettering the world and not just their own wallets and there will be hope yet for the future
I'll try, Molly...
Larry, it looks like you're your son's best teacher!
molly, it looks interesting all right, I'll try to pick up the dvd when I get to town... or its on Amazon for less than $8. One of my friends made a documentary called "Affluenza" that sometimes gets airplay this time of year about the whole system of over consumption. It’s a lot different but has a similar theme about de-evolution of mankind.
robin, thanks for the praise. Maybe watching all those “Leave it to Beaver” episodes is paying off. Actually, as a consultant I've learned to be professional and do what I have to in order to please the client, however adverse the circumstances… and not take things personally. My son is a lot smarter than I am so I try to teach him these values while he is young. (I didn’t learn this stuff until after I’d been in the workforce for a while.) When the kids do exceptional work, I wish more teachers would get them to take more pride in their work and get them to polish it. The world is full of people who do “good enough” work, but those who really take pride in details of their work always stand out… I guess including those in the education system.
Shalom Molly,
See Cyril M. Kornbuluth's 1951 short story The Marching Morons.
B'shalom,
Jeff
thankls fort the referance
Post a Comment