It starts off bad, then gets worse!

Professor Smooth · Post by **Professor Smooth** » Mon Jan 24, 2005 4:10 am

http://wireservice.wired.com/wired/stor ... yId=979619

SCHOOLYARD TAUNTS: "No Name-Calling Week" is a middle school program that takes aim at insults of all kinds _ whether based on a child's appearance, background or behavior.

ADULT TUSSLES: Some critics think the program is promoting homosexuality with its message that gay students shouldn't be teased. Supporters say the program supports all children _ but that gay students often face the most vicious harassment.

ALL TOGETHER NOW: Participation is up, with 5,100 educators signing up this year. The program has the backing of 40 national organizations, including the Girl Scouts and Amnesty International.

What's the train of thought that goes through some people's minds?
Bob: Hey Bill, you hear about this No-Name-Calling-Week?
Bill: No. What's up with that?
Bob: Well Bill, it's something the schools cooked up to prevent kids from calling each other mean names for a day.
Bill: Mean names, eh? You mean like dork and nerd and geekwad? That's pretty cool, it keeps the geeks, dorks, and nerds from getting teased for a day.
Bob: Yeah, and the gay kid won't get teased for a day either.
Bill: What? You mean my kid can't give the gay kid any crap?
Bob: Right. No name calling.
Bill: But...but...he's gay. That's like a sin! To the church!
Church: What? They're trying to keep children from mocking a suspected homosexual? THIS WILL NOT STAND!!!

Optimus Prime Rib · Post by **Optimus Prime Rib** » Mon Jan 24, 2005 4:37 am

why do you have to turn everything into some sort of persecution?

Professor Smooth · Post by **Professor Smooth** » Mon Jan 24, 2005 5:21 am

Optimus Prime Rib wrote:why do you have to turn everything into some sort of persecution?

Me personally?

Post by **Best First** » Mon Jan 24, 2005 9:19 am

promoting homosexuality with its message that gay students shouldn't be teased

Obfleur · Post by **Obfleur** » Mon Jan 24, 2005 10:20 am

*sigh*

Impactor returns 2.0 · Post by **Impactor returns 2.0** » Mon Jan 24, 2005 11:16 am

did u see 'gay day' - for schools in the UK?

Its odd because kids can surely only get any ideads about gay ppl being 'different' from thier parents?

If your a child, growing up, who knows nothing about 'relationships' then why would you ever think that being homosexual is wrong? - your a blank slate etc.. you could essentially be taught almost anything.

Personally I dont think you need special days for learning about homosexulaity at school. it should obviously be included in sex education, but hopefully since comming out was a very 1990's thing the next generations of kids wont have and issues with homosexuality.

this of course is ignoring religon being involved... of course.

Post by **Denyer** » Mon Jan 24, 2005 11:47 am

Optimus Prime Rib wrote:why do you have to turn everything into some sort of persecution?

Kev isn't the one doing that.

Post by **Kaylee** » Mon Jan 24, 2005 11:51 am

Optimus Prime Rib wrote:why do you have to turn everything into some sort of persecution?

I'm confused by this notion of 'turn into' persecution, it implies that what's being discussed should be entirely morally acceptable to everyone and it's just the light it's being shown in here being used to make it look bad.

I think you should know better.

Homosexuality is something that the West and particularly portions of America needs to get its head around, I believe, and furthermore I don't think that will happen if we are terrified of bringing it up because we believe that talking about the issue is inherently bad.

Metal Vendetta · Post by **Metal Vendetta** » Mon Jan 24, 2005 12:40 pm

Karl Lynch wrote:...the West and particularly portions of America...

Uh, homosexuality isn't exactly booming business in the Islamic world either...

Predabot · Post by **Predabot** » Mon Jan 24, 2005 1:16 pm

Neither in fascist & Communist countries such as China and White Russia either. Apparently according to their governments there doesn't even exist any homosexuals in their countries!

Post by **Denyer** » Mon Jan 24, 2005 8:40 pm

Impactor returns 2.0 wrote:Its odd because kids can surely only get any ideads about gay ppl being 'different' from thier parents?

The message is: different doesn't equal wrong.

Plus I can think of more than a few instances where one of a kid's biological parents lives with a same-sex partner.

Impactor returns 2.0 wrote:If your a child, growing up, who knows nothing about 'relationships' then why would you ever think that being homosexual is wrong? - your a blank slate etc.. you could essentially be taught almost anything.

And kids are. Unfortunately, usually that anything falling outside a narrow span of experience is wrong. And unfortunately, the blank slate doesn't last long—kids are inquisitive and ask questions from a very early age. If the only response they get to, say, talking about a pop star who's gay is "that's not nice, we don't talk about that" or a homophobic spiel, gay = wrong is very easily embedded at some level.

Especially when some of the school staff are bigoted cretins, as was the case with my secondary school and I suspect remains represented countrywide. Watching friends bullied and attitudes from staff was a real eye-opener at fifteen.

Impactor returns 2.0 wrote:Personally I dont think you need special days for learning about homosexulaity at school. it should obviously be included in sex education, but hopefully since comming out was a very 1990's thing the next generations of kids wont have and issues with homosexuality.

A bit too hopeful, I think. Our generation is on the whole more tolerant than those previous, but is still heavily influenced by its elders.

I don't think special days are a particularly good way of handling, but I disagree that it's only a matter for sex education. We learn some background about the personal lives of most people studied in history, for example, but the tendency is to gloss over the personal lives of, say, Oscar Wilde or Alan Turing.

The rationale is that the negative is constantly being emphasised and that a positive look at people who've improved or kept our world safe is warranted.

Metal Vendetta · Post by **Metal Vendetta** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 12:22 am

I think I was lucky, I had a great teacher who taught us all about Turing's personal life....after hearing someone call someone else gay, he pointed out that the second world war was won largely due to a homosexual and his code-breaking skills.

Optimus Prime Rib · Post by **Optimus Prime Rib** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 1:47 am

sorry sorry.. was sleepy when I read that and it came across as Smooth being pissy. Hell Im the last person to be able to speak out against pissyness.. so I apologize.

Beers all around?

Post by **Denyer** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 1:52 am

I'd say he was pretty pissy. Sometimes pissy is justified.

Beer sounds good...

Professor Smooth · Post by **Professor Smooth** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 3:06 am

Denyer wrote:I'd say he was pretty pissy. Sometimes pissy is justified.

Beer sounds good...

Definately pissy.

*cracks open Smoothweiser and passes the rest of the case around*