School accused of teaching that Obama is "scary"

America's schools have a record of indoctrinating children with right-wing propaganda, but a public elementary school in Ocean View, Delaware, takes it to extremes.

A 5th grade teacher has reportedly proclaimed that Barack Obama is Muslim and that he doesn't swear on the Bible and refuses to recite the Pledge of Allegiance. The instructor also reportedly declared that Obama "believes in different things and is scary."

These are commonly known as lies. Another word for it is bullshit. Obama has said, "My grandfather taught me how to say the Pledge of Allegiance when I was 2. During the Pledge of Allegiance you put your hand over your heart. During the national anthem you sing." Also, Barack Obama isn't Muslim.

Barack Obama isn't Muslim, but a student in that 5th grade classroom is. The student was deeply offended by the teacher's bigotry and scaremongering.

Who's surprised by a school teaching falsehoods about a presidential candidate? It's an outrage, but not a surprise, because the schools I attended used similar brainwashing techniques.

The school in this story is part of the sprawling Indian River School District, which itself has a history of intolerance. Although it's a public school system, school bored members have publicly stated that it's a "Christian district." The school system promotes conservative Christianity so aggressively that a Jewish family was forced out of the area. Their daughter's graduation was ruined when a pastor who was invited by the school included these words in his invocation: "I also pray for one specific student, that You be with her and guide her in the path that You have for her."

In another incident, a local talk-shit radio show incited a right-wing mob to taunt the family's son at a school board meeting.

Among other things, school employees also insisted that students attend Bible club meetings.

This ain't exactly a pro-people school district. Then again, it seems like most school districts these days aren't.

(Source: http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/2/24/0157/07083/827/462935;
http://www.capegazette.com/pages/editletters.html;
http://www.jewsonfirst.org/06b/indianriver.html)