Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Indoctrination

    

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Most Americans have been so subtly indoctrinated by their parents and then by kindergarten morality and subsequent schooling that personal conclusions based on logical thought are almost impossible to attain. Not every student is so affected, of course. But the great majority.

I have more to say about this, but I'd rather wait and expand my thoughts on the subject within the confines of future fiction.

If I can.
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The old "they/them/their" in reference to a singular, indefinite someone controversy has been revisited. I heartily agree with the conclusion.

Details HERE

I do not believe that I have ever written anything so ludicrous as, "It was apparent that the lone perpetrator did not drag their feet while making their escape."

In fact, I know I haven't.

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On this day in 1969, Sirhan Sirhan was sentenced to death after being convicted in the assassination of politician Robert F. Kennedy. In 1972, Sirhan's sentence was commuted to life in prison after California abolished the death penalty.

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WORD FOR TODAY

Indoctrinate
verb
1. To instruct in a body of doctrine or principles.
2. To imbue with a partisan or ideological point of view.

Indoctrination is the process of inculcating ideas, attitudes, cognitive strategies or a professional methodology (see doctrine) which is often distinguished from education by the fact that the indoctrinated person is expected not to question or critically examine the doctrine they have learned. As such the term may be used pejoratively, often in the context of education, political opinions, theology or religious dogma. The term is closely linked to socialization; in common discourse, indoctrination is often associated with negative connotations, while socialization refers to cultural or educational learning.

Religious indoctrination, the original sense of indoctrination, refers to a process of imparting doctrine in an authoritative way, as in catechism. Most religious groups among the revealed religions instruct new members in the principles of the religion; this is now not usually referred to as indoctrination by the religions themselves, in part because of the negative connotations the word has acquired.

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CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS


Shirley Temple Black
(born April 23, 1928)
Shirley Temple is an American film and television actress, singer, dancer, and former U.S. ambassador to Ghana and Czechoslovakia. She began her film career in 1932 at the age of three, and in 1934, found international fame in Bright Eyes, a feature film designed specifically for her talents. She received a special Juvenile Academy Award in February 1935, and film hits such as Curly Top and Heidi.  A succession of films followed: The Little Colonel, Our Little Girl, Curly Top (with the signature song "Animal Crackers in My Soup"), and The Littlest Rebel in 1935. Curly Top and The Littlest Rebel were named to Variety's list of top box office draws for 1935. In 1936, Captain January, Poor Little Rich Girl, Dimples, and Stowaway were released.




Michael Francis Moore
(born April 23, 1954)
Michael Moore is an American filmmaker, author, social critic, and political activist. He is the director and producer of Fahrenheit 9/11, which is the highest-grossing documentary of all time and winner of the Palme d'Or. His films Bowling for Columbine (2002) and Sicko (2007) also placed in the top ten highest-grossing documentaries, and the former won the Academy Award for Documentary Feature. In September 2008, he released his first free movie on the Internet, Slacker Uprising, which documented his personal quest to encourage more Americans to vote in presidential elections. He has also written and starred in the TV shows TV Nation and The Awful Truth.




Sandra Dee
(April 23, 1942 – February 20, 2005)
Sandra Dee was an American actress. She became known for her wholesome ingenue roles in such films as The Reluctant Debutante, Gidget, Imitation of Life, and A Summer Place. She later played "Tammy" in two Universal sequels to Tammy and the Bachelor, in the role created by Debbie Reynolds. Her highly publicized marriage to Bobby Darin (1960–1967) ended in divorce.




Valerie Anne Bertinelli
(born April 23, 1960)
Valerie Bertinelli is an American actress, best known for her roles as Barbara Cooper Royer on the television series One Day at a Time (1975–1984), Gloria on the television series Touched by an Angel (2001–2003) and Melanie Moretti on the sitcom Hot in Cleveland (2010–present).

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“Is there any point in public debate in a society where hardly anyone has been taught how to think, while millions have been taught what to think?”
--Peter Hitchens

"All you have to do to educate a child is leave him alone and teach him to read. The rest is brainwashing."
--Ellen Gilchrist


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