it isn't about friggin' POLITICS and PARTIES and PARTISANSHIP, fercryinoutloud... it's about values and principles and beliefs... teaching a kid to be a democrat or a republican is total and complete bullshit... teach the kid how to be a decent human being, someone who sees others as dignified human beings, someone who can empathize, someone with compassion, someone who wants to learn, to grow, to love, to find real meaning in life, and then let the kid figure out where and how to build those things into his or her life... if there is a god out there (and, speaking for myself, i believe that there is), i am relatively certain he or she doesn't give a damn whether you're a republican or a democrat, whether you're a citizen of the united states or turkmenistan, whether you follow the koran, the torah, or the bible... what really matters is what you believe, the way you live your life, and how and in what direction you've continued to learn and grow...

visit my blog - http://www.takeitpersonally.blogspot.com/

Social programming begins in the early years.  Note the need for cross-cultural training for expats.

I have acquired and honed my talents for observing the Kafkaesque nation we have become.
There was a sci-fi movie called "They Live" in which authority wrests control of the population by subliminals in everyday media.
Could I get a job at cognitiveliberty?

Just this morning Boston's own channel seven featured a piece about a mother and son caught attempting to steal one of those donation containers for Mother Against Drunk Driving from a convienience store.  In true fascistic marketing techniques the "newscast" went on to explain how heinous a crime such a thing was.  How this mother could "loose" her son for encouraging such behavior and blah, blah, blah.  They even went so far as to "interview" a normal person spouting out the "how could anyone do that" meme.

Almost every morning now "Nazinews" ruins my morning coffee.

http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/
Thinking people actually have not only a word, but an organization for it.

it's part of instilling values.  I make sure my kid knows how i feel about injustice and unfairness. he's a little too young for partisan stuff yet, but soon enough.  he'll have the tools to make the right (or should I say "left") decision.

His mom's even more left than ME. She's an outright socialist.

John Mccain Called his wife WHAT??

I must admit that I've been educating the boran2 boy for some time as to the many sins of Bushco and creeping Republicanism.  

Oh, there you are, Perry. -Phineas -SLB-

I think kids see right through politics.

I, and virtually all of my third-grade classmates, thought Nixon was a total creep. We were McGovern supporters. I remember how mad I was when I found out that BOTH of my parents had voted for that mean, creepy guy, Nixon. I had BEGGED them to vote for McGovern.

Several years later, on the day Nixon resigned, my folks broke out the bubbly -- the first time I had tasted champagne -- and told me I had been right about him all along.

Kids are a lot smarter, and better judges of character, than we think they are.

"If Adolph Hitler flew in today, they'd send a limousine anyway" -- Joe Strummer

im still trying to figure out new math

if they really want to have an impact they should make partisan video games with lots of sex and violence.

I tend to agree with the Prof.  But, I couldn't help letting my politics influence my kid.  When she was in first grade, she was doing an art project in a circle of kids.  She blurted out in the middle of class, "All who hate Bush, raise your hand".  The teachers giggled and promptly told her that this was art class, not Poli Sci.

She's since learned that politics is a tough subject for common sociality, but that doesn't stop her from working for social justice.

I teach my kid that we all need to help one another and she sees that every day in her poor urban environment.

I've noticed that kids who are raised in a liberal environment are far less likely to rebel (eg, switch sides) than kids raised in an oppressive, conservative environment.  Since conservatives breed more, it will always be an uphill battle.

The temptation is understandable, but I find these books -- and there are plenty on both sides -- kind of repulsive. Childhood is the one time people have to explore their world, to be surprised by its mystery and beauty, to be a little free of the propaganda wars.

Books and video that try to mold kids into partisans are really making them into objects for their own purposes, seems to me. Let them be free for just a little while. The political wars will come to them soon enough. If they are prepared with deeper values and understanding they will recognize on their own which politics, if any, reflect the persons they are becoming.

FDR's response to progressive demands: "I agree. Now go out and make me do it."