The one thing, and there are many, that really bothers me about the current batch of republicans is just the pure unadulterated hypocrisy they show with absolutely no shame. Here is a glaring example. Lets start out with a story from a few months ago.
A John Muir Elementary School teacher was reprimanded after the school district administrator learned the teacher had allowed a group of fourth-graders to sing a politically altered version of a folk song in the Wisconsin State Capitol in September.
However, Portage School District Administrator Charles Poches said that there was no political intent on the part of the teacher and that once chaperones realized the song had been altered to include political statements, the students were ushered out.
The students were on a field trip Sept. 27 and were waiting for tour guides in the Rotunda when a man unaffiliated with the district invited them to sing “This Land is Your Land.”
A class from Portage elementary was in the Capitol during the Solidarity sing and some students joined in. THE HORROR! This was such a big story, That Fox 6 in Milwaukee had an "investigative report" and the racist hate group MediatracKKKers wrote this(emphasis mine):
The shocking story elicited outrage from many, and raised serious questions about the judgement of the teacher involved and the conduct of the superintendent who was uninterested in seeing the video.
Some parents and taxpayers in the Portage Community School District upset with the handling of this situation might be interested to know that Superintendent Charles Poches earned $135,221 in salary with $39,581 in fringe benefits as of 2010.
Yes this was such an important issue it deserved an investigative report AND the right wing hate talkers called for serious punishment for not only the teacher involved but the administration.
Fast forward to this past weekend. H/T WCMCOOP:
The students, parents and supporters of Lutheran High School in Sheboygan, were all in town to participate in the WIAA Boy’s High School Basketball Tournament and arrived at the Capitol for a celebratory rally and to have their photo taken with their legislators. A small group of singers was located on the ground floor of the rotunda for their weekly Thursday afternoon song circle which was quickly drowned out by the thunderous cheers of the LHS group. Shouts of “LHS” and “Stand with Walker” thundered through the rotunda and was met with wide approval from the LHS supporters. One student entered the circle to mock and taunt the singers with dance moves. The extremely loud and boisterous encounter could be heard in the Assembly chambers, where legislative business was still being conducted.
The Wisconsin republicans must have been pissed that they raised so much noise right? After all if they had their way this would be illegal, no matter who does it!
Later on, several visitors from the LHS group were given a standing ovation by some legislators in the Assembly when they were introduced by their legislators.
I wonder if there were any teachers in the crowd? Will they be reprimanded? These thugs do not like free speech? I wonder how many millions of dollars of damage they did to the Capitol with this rowdy display? What exactly was the lesson from the Bible that this school was teaching here? Has Glenn Grothman enrolled his kids in Sheboygan Lutheran yet? Maybe someone should look into their “non political” tax free status.
By the way, they can thank the Solidarity Singers for openly defying the ridiculous order from the DOA, thus allowing them to actually do what they did.
PS: I am fine with what they did, I am all for anyone protesting at the Capitol, anytime they want. Its just the hypocrisy that is so thick that amazes me.
Glenn Grothman has kids? I don’t think he’s ever been married.
He still lives with his mother, right?
Glenn Grothman the defender of kids and “traditional” marriage – doesn’t have either? how can that be?
What will the Walker Youth do when their pissant Dear Leader is making license plates?
Come on Jeff… If you can’t get a life….at least get a grip !!!!!!!!!!!!
@ Smokey
What about this post suggests that Jeff doesn’t have “a life”? Or “a grip”?
What’s the matter, big boy? Nothing meaningful to contribute other than irrational wingnut-flavored outburst?
Sorry Zuma, didn’t mean to wake you up……
(*laughing*)
Ahhh, Smokey. You could add fifty points to your IQ, and you’d still be mentally challenged.
But, thanks for proving my point, big boy.
Twit.
WAY TO GO SHEBOYGAN LUTHERAN! Nice to see the sickening lefties get some back.
Ahhh, yes, the ever-clueless and intellectually challenged wingnut mind. . .
Two words, Mikey Mike, not that I’m optimistic you’ll understand them.
Hypocrisy and irony.
Buh bye, Mike. Shoulda stayed in school, fool.
But, that said, there is abundant enough evidence as to why you didn’t.
It’s the type of response I would expect from the radical left, Zuma Zoom. Anyone that doesn’t side with your view must be stupid. Well I “SHOULDA” stayed in school so I could be as bright and intellectual as you…Oh wait I DID!
@ Mike
[Mike wrote]: “Anyone that doesn’t side with your view must be stupid.”
[Zuma]: Well, Mike, you completely missed the point of Jeff’s post because you were so wrapped up in manic glee that “the sickening lefties”, as you put it, got a taste of their own medicine.
If you had actually dealt with what Jeff had actually said, I wouldn’t have said what I said. But, given what you did, and more importantly, didn’t say, my comments were entirely appropriate and justified.
Hey, maybe you aren’t actually intellectually challenged. But, here’s a head’s up. Your sophomoric, grammar- and syntax-challenged writing style, your apparent reading comprehension problems and your not-infrequent and oddly placed manic outbursts suggest that you are.
I love to debate a conservative/wingnut who doesn’t exhibit these qualities, one who simply and articulately presents a cogent point. Unless and until you step up and do better, and as long as you continue to act as though you are intellectually challenged, I’ll continue to make mention of it. I look forward to the day that I don’t have to.
If you’re interested in improving, take a look at the way Locke, a clearly intelligent and well-spoken commenter and one of the resident conservatives here, constructs and presents an argument. Compare it to the drivel you contribute. Once you’ve done that, you may find it a little easier to understand the labels which are applied to you.
[Mike] wrote: I “SHOULDA” stayed in school so I could be as bright and intellectual as you…Oh wait I DID!”
[Zuma]: I’m both glad and troubled to hear you say that. Glad that you did “[stay] in school”. Troubled that you still write the way that you do, given that fact.
Exactly how far in school did you get?
[Zuma] Full disclosure: I did my undergraduate work in the Political Economy of Industrial Societies, and law school (Boalt Hall), at the University of California at Berkeley.
@ Mike
Just wanted to to take a minute and talk about the “radical left” label which you mindlessly applied to me without knowing much about me:
I voted in 2000 and in 2004, much to my ongoing embarrassment these days, for George W. Bush.
After President Bush drug us over the edge of and into the financial abyss with two unfunded wars, an unfunded tax cut for the wealthy, an unfunded expansion of Medicare Part B, and an unregulated financial services industry, I woke up, Mike, realized the error of my ways, abandoned conservatism, which I had finally recognized for the failed and moribund political and governing philosophy that it is, embraced liberalism, a political philosophy which seemed to be better tied to reality and to my value system, and voted for Barack Obama. That President Obama brought us back from the brink over which President Bush had led us only served to validate my decision in this regard.
“Radical Left”, Mikey? Not so much. Just realistic. . .AND liberal. And NOT one of the “sickening liberals” you seem to fixate on.
We can have a more meaningful debate in the future, Mike, if you just make an effort to deal with the facts, and set aside, for the moment, the impulse to react on an irrational, emotional level to the things that you read here.
First of all, Sheboygan LHS is a private school. So, what’s the problem? No one is required to attend their school and if the parents have a problem with situations like this, they can easily vote with their feet and send their kids to a different school. That’s a huge difference from John Muir Elementary which is a taxpayer funded public school.
Second, high school students are more politically self-aware and much more capable of understanding what they are becoming involved in than 4th graders are.
Third, the Capitol protests resulted in constant noise and disruption, where were was the condemnation of that noise? The left also held a massive counter-rallies last year against right leaning groups. These counter-rallies had the expressed intent to intimidate and drown out the free speech of those they didn’t agree with. Those who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.
T. Obviously reading comprehension is not a strong suit of yours. Are lhs calumniate by chance. I didn’t condemn this I. Laughed at the blatant hypocrisy. Thank you to yourself and mike for further proving my point.
Ah yes, the typical liberal response… a personal attack. Condemnation or not, your accusation of hypocrisy is laughable because of the facts already mentioned. More specifically because Sheboygan LHS is a private school and because the age of the students involved. If this were a class from a Sheboygan public school doing this during class time under the encouragement of their teacher I and many other conservatives would have just as much of a problem with it. It’s not a teachers job to push their political sensibilities on their students whether or not their views match up with their student’s parents.
Now, if some Young Democrats from a Sheboygan public high school want to go down and join in with the solidarity sing-along… or Young Republicans want to be involved in a Pro-Walker rally, I see no problem with either as long as it’s done outside of class time. Maybe it’s too much to expect that liberals be able to understand the differences between those situations and why a parent might object to one and not the other.
T-Man wrote, in pertinent part: “Ah yes, the typical liberal response… a personal attack.”
So, by your logic, T-Man, Smokey and Mike are liberals, huh?
(*laughing*)
Take the wingnut blinders off, dude.
@ T-Man
Jeff is right. Reading comprehension isn’t your strong suit.
There is no hypocrisy. John Muir is a PUBLIC school paid for by the TAXPAYERS–some of whom like Walker and some who don’t. Lutheran High School is a PRIVATE school paid for by the PARENTS and donations.
Not to mention the parents of these kids ALSO paid for public schools with THEIR taxes. You pay, you get to PLAY!
What would have been a bigger travesty is if these folk would not have been able to have their say when others(breaking rules, laws and and destroying OUR property) did.
Wow you guys are coming from everywhere. Outstanding. The problem is though, no one read the post they just come in screaming.
Jenster you do understand that the solidarity singers have broke no rules, law or destroyed any property. I hope you also realize that if the assembly republicans had their way this would be illegal and if it was the actions of the solidarity singers that made the actions of these people possible.
I’m pretty speechless at the universal lack of understanding demonstrated here.
Your post wasn’t THAT complicated.
Oh, well. Ya gotta wonder, don’t ya?
To paraphrase what Chandler Bing asked about Joey Tribbiani in more than one episode of ‘Friends’:
“HOW [do they] NOT fall down more often?”
Welcome to the world of today’s conservative logic, these people are so unbelievably BRAINWASHED it almost impossible to communicate with them. With psycho racist like limbaugh to a multibillion dollar tv empire like fux news, these republicans are simply zombies repeating the bald face lies they get from these sources! I destroy republicans with historical facts and critical thinking and their usually response is to personally attack the messager! I had several republicans get so upset they started personally attacking my mother!! by the way my mother is dead!
As with any movement, there are benign/sweet components that a movement prefers to be the public face of. OF course often the other part destroys, cripples other’s right to speak so only the loudest is heard. Those are the actual ones that stretched the rules.
Anarchy is kewl. Just don’t complain when those that you actually WANT to obey the law don’t either. Or pay taxes.
Thanks for making it possible.
Jen not sure what you posted there but I need an interpreter.
Im just curious at what age is it ok then for kids to actually get involved in politics? Is it different for republicans v democrats?
My son last year in 2nd grade called a meeting with his friends and told them how bad that ACT 10 was last year when Walker dropped the bomb.
would you have been ok if the kids in this school, skipped a day of school, came to madison and then joined in the Solidarity Sing along? or do you think the right wing blogosphere and hate talkers would be calling for an IRS review of their school and the “indoctrination” of the students?
We both know the answer to that.
Actually I think it is ok if you encourage your kid to follow your credo or his hearts desires as long as he/you is willing to pay the minor consequences. If you want your kid to follow want to wear a burkha, fine. if he wants to pretend he is an amish and wear a fake beard, fine. If he wants to go around quacking like a duck, well, that’s fine too.
Just dont expect me to think it is fine that a public school(that *I* pay for) teacher takes him on a field trip to go protest sohe/she can retire at 55 at full pay. At my expense.
Minor Consequences?
No one took anyone on a field trip to go protest…so I think you might be commenting on the wrong blog.
Wow your son, presumably all on his own understands the full implications of Act 10, and again all on his own was so motivated to political action that he calls a meeting will all of his friends to educate them… you’re either a real crappy liar Jeff, or your son will be ready for college in another two years.
As for when a kid is ready for politics? When they are capable of understanding long term cause and effect. When their critical thinking skills have developed enough to understand how a seemingly altruistic (or seemingly self-beneficial) position can still be flawed, outright wrong, or counterproductive. When they can understand that there are two sides to every debate. That they need to look into both sides of that debate and make an informed decision instead of just going along with what some authority figure (like a teacher) thinks. When I was in 8th grade I wanted to be a Democrat because my Civics teacher (and the text book) put such a positive spin on that party and such a negative spin on the Republican party. In 9th grade, I was pro-choice because it was popular. But, by 10th grade I started to “wake up” and understand that those weren’t good reasons to support a political position. I started to ask questions, look into the claims by both sides, and realized that “because we care about people and the other side doesn’t” was no longer a sufficient explanation for taking up a position.
Sorry to disappoint you, but a second grader has not developed those skills sufficiently to be able to act autonomously in the political realm. They are simply acting as an extension of your will for your approval. The same would be true of the interaction between a teacher and a student at that age.
Of course my son didn’t come up with it on his own, we educated him. He also didn’t come up with his math or spelling on his own, but in the end 8*5=40 no matter how it gets there.
I would also say that for most issues in the political realm, there are numerous sides far beyond two. I would also say that my son has mastered the critical thinking skills because he said on one of our trips to the Capitol, if I was scott walker and this many people were against the bill I would say ok no bill.
While appropriate for his age, I think your son’s response shows that he has *not* mastered critical thinking skills or at least is not able to understand that political situations like the one presented are not always as they seem. He was presented with a scene involving a large group of very motivated people. He then jumps to the immediate conclusion that the majority of the population of the state must share his (your) point of view. That’s not critical thinking, that’s accepting what he sees at face value.
Way to go Zuma,
You really outdid yourself coming up with that witty retort. If that’s the best you can do, go back to sleep.
(*laughing*)
Good to see that you’ve mastered the “intricacy” of the Reply function, Einstein.
Question for you. Was the whole “Go back to sleep” insult your ‘go to’ insult back in elementary school. And, for the record, in saying, “back in elementary school”, by the way, I’m assuming you’re out of elementary school by now. (Hope. . .I’m. . . typing. . .slowly. . .enough. . .for. . .you.)
If you’re not, and, based upon the tenor, maturity and “depth” of your comments so far, I can see that that IS a possibility, please let me apologize for making that assumption.
After all, I wouldn’t want to hurt your wingnut feelings or anything.
THANK YOU for posting this! We’ve been all over this on Common Cents…
http://www.commoncts.blogspot.com
Let’s see if we can get you on track to defend your argument. I’ll clear up your sloppy logic for you as to why this isn’t hypocritical or ironic:
1. Public vs. private school
2. Teacher led field trip vs. a bunch of people going over to the Capitol
3. Weekday during school vs. weekend
4. Finally, it’s either legal or illegal to occupy the rotunda and shout. Since it’s legal, go ahead and make your voice heard. We’re not going to tie our hands behind our back and let you do it unanswered. There is no hypocrisy in wanting the behavior illegal, but showing you what it’s like to be on the receiving end as long as it’s legal. I want the tax code overhauled to eliminate all sorts of deductions, but I will take every single deduction that I am legally entitled to as long as the system is set up the way it is.
But then again, all you read was “school” in the story so you quit thinking and started to spout off without actually understanding how there could possibly be any differences. Next time try reading for comprehension as well as speed.
Awaiting your one line insult eagerly!!
Dan:
1. So this “religious” school gets to pay no taxes because they are a “non-political” place of worship. Not seeing much non political in the video.
2. Are you telling me in that crowd there is NOT a teacher, aide, administrator in the bunch?
3. Umm this was on a weekday, of which the kids skipped school to be in Madison(sound familiar)?
4. “there is no hypocrisy in wanting the behavior illegal” – agreed there is no hypocrisy in that. There is however complete idiocy and blatant lack of understanding of the Constitution of the United States.
There you go, 4 lines, no insults.
1. So you’re saying that every private school needs to be completely political? But the public schools can ram a left agenda down throats at will? That doesn’t seem right. I might have to quote the Constitution back at you on that one (as you did)
2. I have no idea if there was or not. Odds are, yes. But I don’t know.
3. Fair enough. I read “Fast forward to this past weekend” and assumed it was the weekend. I now followed the link and see it was a Thursday. So you can see why I would think otherwise, but that is now off the table.
4. Free speech has limits. You can’t yell fire, slander, or even engage in hate speech without consequence. It’s reasonable to expect that a place of work be free from disruption. Do you think it reasonable to be able to walk in to a park ranger’s office and start shouting and carrying on in the middle of the day? A court room is in a public building. Why don’t they go chant, yell, and sing loudly there?
1. I am saying that by law religious institutions need to be non-political. Had this same school went and done the same thing but joined in the sing along ,you know as well as I do, that the right wing hate talkers and the koch funded maciver would be there going over their tax records by 8 am this morning.
2. Free Speech has limits absolutely but if you check the first amendment, and yes there are things you can not say/do , etc…but the first is quite clear:
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
Congress – ie govt shall make NO law. No matter how badly huebsch and nass, etc… want to send everyone who disagrees with them home, it is constitutionally impossible.
1. I am saying that by law religious institutions need to be non-political.
The school is non-political. This was not a field trip to the Capitol to engage in a political demonstration. This was a field trip to tour the State capital prior to playing in a State basketball championship game later on. It happened that as they were touring the capitol that the students spontaneously joined in with a political demonstration for a few minutes that a different group conducted when they got there.
Had the teachers both led the students to the capital and then taken them to the Capitol for the express and sole purpose of conducting a political demonstration then you might have a point. But that’s not what happened here. Which, along with the fact that this is a private school, is why there is no hypocrisy here.
The problem you guys have is the republican politicians cant keep their mouths shut. As jim points out earlier in this post, we know thats not true.
Funny that I completely agree with your reading of the First Amendment. You emphasize the speech part, but gloss over the religion part. Do religions not have free speech rights, too? This is a school, not a church. Yes, it’s obviously affiliated with the church, but they are different things.
Hahahahahaha this made my day and seeing all you lefties soo upset about this makes it even better. Hey lefties how does it taste getting some of your own medicine?? Hahaha
Mike, I TOLD you to be sure to take your meds every day. NO skipping, mister. You know what happens when you get hyper like this.
ADD and whatever else you suffer from, apart from low IQ, are no laughing matter, young man.
And, while I’m at it, NO desert tonight for you.
In any event, Mikey Mike, the comment that I directed to you above is STILL applicable:
“Ahhh, yes, the ever-clueless and intellectually challenged wingnut mind. . .
Two words, Mikey Mike, not that I’m optimistic you’ll understand them.
Hypocrisy and irony.
Buh bye, Mike. Shoulda stayed in school, fool.
But, that said, there is abundant enough evidence as to why you didn’t.”
Are you ever going to grow up, and participate in the political discourse like an adult? Given that I haven’t seen any indications EVER that that is likely, I’m going to have to assume that the answer to that question is a great big, fat, “No”.
Oh, well. I could say something like, “A brain is a terrible thing to waste”, but, in your case. . .
Good night, Gracie. And, no, I don’t expect you to get that reference.
Hilarious to see weak-minded right-wingnuts shoot their mouths off on this subject. Can you imagine the fit these dopes would be having if a public school teacher brought the kids over to the Capitol during March Madness and had the kids join in? Oh wait, they already DID do that earlier when a school group visited and joined in with the Singers. So it’s either all wrong, or it’s all right, eh, wingnuts?
Spare me, you’re the definition of p*ssies who love to dish it out but sure can’t take it. And by the way, if it wasn’t for the Solidarity Singers defying Walker’s unconstitutional DOA rule against group assemblies in the Capitol, those Sheb Lutheran kids couldn’t have done the bidding of their parents and legislators by shouting out last week. Ironic, don’t you think?
A lot of those kids are going to get a very rude awakening once they get out of their self-selected 140-person high school, especially when they figure out they were used by Sen. Leibham’s office as political tools last week at the Capitol.
Well said, Jake. But, I can already see what you had to say sailing RIGHT over the heads of Mike, Smokey, T-Man and Dan.
What Jeff had to say in his post was clear enough, but. . .
Even the most obvious sh*t just doesn’t sink in, ya know?
The wingnuts here just started hyperventilating over the fact that high schoolers were engaging in what was surely parent-inspired wingnut mimicry, without admitting the obvious inspiration for it, and for no better reason than they saw it as a a form of mockery of a movement which they despise.
Facts have never mattered to the irrational, emotion-driven wingnut, have they? Why should they start mattering now? And concepts like hypocrisy and irony haven’t fared much better.
I liked your observation about the rude awakening in store for these kids. That said, I think that their parents are in for a couple of them, as well, one to come in May or June, and another which will coincide with the one in store for their kids.
I remember mimicking my parents’ political beliefs back in junior high school. My school binder had an AuH2O bumper sticker plastered on it. By the time I was in high school, I was doing stuff like attending 100,000-strong anti-Vietnam War rallies in Golden Gate Park.
Whether these kids are in for a RUDE awakening remains to be seen. Maybe they are. As there was for me, there will certainly be some kind of an awakening, and I think that that reality is what wingnut parents fear, just as social conservative parents fear that their kids will start “doing it”, and try to defer that particular eventuality with fear-driven misinformation, if not outright hectoring.
But, as surely as the sun will rise in the east and set in the west each day, the children of social conservatives will get laid, and the children of wingnuts will wake up, regardless of their parents’ best efforts.
And just as surely, the wingnut will go the way of the dodo, the next generation having evolved beyond their limited, misguided vision for this country. Whether wingnuts can see it now or not, the reality is that conservatism is moribund, and the progressive cause is ascendant.
First Zumba what are you talking about haha?? Now to Jake this is a private school they can do it as they please the other school was a public school. You know there is a difference right typical stupid liberal I’m so sorry for you jake:(
Mike wrote: “First Zumba what are you talking about haha??”
Like I said, Mike, take your meds.
And take a remedial English course RIGHT away.