Remember:  It’s only “brainwashing the youth” if a Democrat and/or an African American does it.

Newt counts the amount of times he's been intellectually honest in the past decade. He's off by one.

From TALKING POINTS MEMO:

While Republicans are busy gnashing their teeth over President Obama’s imminent indoctrinationof the nation’s schoolchildren, there’s an education story bubbling up in Texas that could have considerably more far-reaching consequences.

The GOP-controlled State Board of Education is working on a new set of statewide textbook standards for, among other subjects, U.S. History Studies Since Reconstruction. And it turns out what the board decides may end up having implications far beyond the Lone Star State.

Approved textbooks, the standards say, must teach the Texan student to “identify significant conservative advocacy organizations and individuals, such as Newt Gingrich, Phyllis Schlafly, and the Moral Majority.” No analogous liberal figures or groups are required, promptingprotests from some legislators and committee members. (Read an excerpt here.)

The standards on Nixon: “describe Richard M. Nixon’s role in the normalization of relations with China and the policy of detente.”

On Reagan: “describe Ronald Reagan’s role in restoring national confidence, such as Reaganomics and Peace with Strength.” (That’s it.)

The Cold War section is rendered as “U.S. responses to Soviet aggression after World War II … ”

Next to a noncontroversial seeming item requiring students to “describe how McCarthyism, the arms race, and the space race increased Cold War tensions” is the note:

“MV[Multiple Views]: One member thinks that if McCarthyism is noted, then the Venona papers need to be explained that exonerates him.”

A bullet point on “women and minority employment” as an economic effect of World II caused “one member” to gripe “there is too much emphasis on multiculturalism.”

And “one member” deemed a section on “effective leadership” a perfect place to bring to students’ attention Charlton Heston’s celebrated (among right-wingers) culture war speech.

Here’s what makes this a national story: what happens in Texas doesn’t stay in Texas, says Diane Ravitch, professor of education at NYU. That’s because Texas is one of the two states with the largest student enrollments, along with California. “The publishers vie to get their books adopted for them, and the changes that are inserted to please Texas and California are then part of the textbooks made available to every other state,” says Ravitch, who wrote abook about the politics of textbooks.

So remember:  When Obama wants to talk to children and start a discussion, even about something as innocuous as staying in school and working hard, that’s propaganda.  But when propaganda is inserted (or deleted) in textbooks as fact, then forced down the throat of children state and nationwide, thats good ol’ fashioned learnin’.

Some books were made for burning.  But if you’re truly sneaky, you can just use a laser to zap out the parts you don’t like – like their attempts to ethnically cleanse the contributions of Ceasar Chavez or Thurgood Marshall.

Personally, I find this much more insidious – much more, dare I say it, socialist – to do this.  After all – which governments attempt to bury facts?  Or re-write history?  Or eliminate the suffrage of those they disagree with?   Anybody?  Beck?  Anybody?

I wonder how many of the people on that board were screaming “Socialist” over Obama’s speech to school children, while  practicing it in the privacy of their government offices?  Nice Politburo you have there, comrade BigHat McBootsFullacrap.

If you disagree with “indoctrinating the youth” on the left, you need to disagree with it here.  Right here.  In this instance.   Otherwise, I invite you to look up the word “Hypocrisy.”