General apology and explanation.
Aug. 17th, 2006 09:04 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
velvetpageI realize I've raised a lot of hackles with that last post. I'm not taking it down or changing it in any way; it is what it is and it's staying. That said, I feel I need to explain it just a little.
I do not agree with the worldview I explained in one quote. If this type of school were available to me, I would not teach in it or send my kids to it. It's not what I want for my family or myself.
I proposed an idea. I didn't feel all that strongly about it myself; if something similar were proposed in my region, where it would affect me, I would consider it and judge it at that time. I don't want to dismiss it, however, because I'm a bit of an idealist. I want people to get along. I want people to make democracy work in such a way as to maximize the number of people who feel represented in it. I don't like "us and them" polarizations, and I feel that most of the time, they're not necessary unless and until one side makes them necessary. That has happened with the Christian Right in the States. It has not happened to anywhere near the same extent in Canada, which makes this suggestion potentially viable for where I live. I don't see the point of spending billions on an education system, only to have a huge segment of the population feel it is not meeting their needs; as a teacher, my job is to do my utmost to meet the needs to my students, and I feel the need to attempt that politically, as well.
I'm sorry if I upset anyone. I do hope, though, that if I upset you, you'll be able to separate the ideas from the person. This was a debate. It was about ideas. It was not, ever, about any individual, not even myself.
I do not agree with the worldview I explained in one quote. If this type of school were available to me, I would not teach in it or send my kids to it. It's not what I want for my family or myself.
I proposed an idea. I didn't feel all that strongly about it myself; if something similar were proposed in my region, where it would affect me, I would consider it and judge it at that time. I don't want to dismiss it, however, because I'm a bit of an idealist. I want people to get along. I want people to make democracy work in such a way as to maximize the number of people who feel represented in it. I don't like "us and them" polarizations, and I feel that most of the time, they're not necessary unless and until one side makes them necessary. That has happened with the Christian Right in the States. It has not happened to anywhere near the same extent in Canada, which makes this suggestion potentially viable for where I live. I don't see the point of spending billions on an education system, only to have a huge segment of the population feel it is not meeting their needs; as a teacher, my job is to do my utmost to meet the needs to my students, and I feel the need to attempt that politically, as well.
I'm sorry if I upset anyone. I do hope, though, that if I upset you, you'll be able to separate the ideas from the person. This was a debate. It was about ideas. It was not, ever, about any individual, not even myself.
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Date: 2006-08-18 01:17 pm (UTC)That said, I'm gald "separation of church and state" is not quite as solidly enshrined in our constitution as it is in yours. It gives us more options to seek creative solutions in a few areas. Whether we will or not is still an open question. (Our laws do enshrine freedom of religion, but the courts tend to interpret that as meaning, "As long as there's an equal, non-religious option, some support for a religious one is not discrimination."