re: #434 haakondahl

Are you talking about President Reagan taking a moment in the Challenger speech to address children? Or about President Buch speaking briefly to kids in the wake of 9/11? If so, you’re drawing a pathetically false parallel.

We’re not talking about a field trip or a book-reading or a few moments carved off of some larger speech to the nation as a whole.

This is the modern technology of mass communications in the service of the state, bypassing parents to go straight to kids.

The moment you send kids off to school you are “bypassing parents.” As a society we do this because we trust the intentions of eduction professionals. While at school they are influenced by dozens of individuals each bypassing the parents for 5 days a week. The only other alternative would be home schooling to prevent outside influences.