The story shouldn’t be about getting threats for expressing an opinion

In almost every case today, when you express an opinion that reaches the public ear, you can expect threats. No matter who you are.  Heck, on my own little blog, one of the first comments I banned was someone who made a thinly veiled threat against me.  In those early days, before I figured out how difficult it would be to see the threat through, it was pretty creepy.  Nonetheless, it made enough of an impact on me that I always refer to those in my family as ‘my second oldest’ or ‘my wife.’   Never by name.

Therefore, this story shouldn’t be about the obvious, but should be about the development of what conservatives and traditional minded Americans have long warned against.  The new, youthful president of the San Francisco Unified School District Board of Education has suggested, however flippantly, that the names of America’s Founding Fathers, like George Washington, could be eradicated from schools if that’s what people want.  Again, the lesson learned in today’s era of tolerance: Don’t like it?  Make it go away. We’ll just draw another division and charge forth.  This is your America after all, not our America.  Certainly not their America.

As a Christian, I should add I’m not stupid enough to think this is only aimed at some political, secularized version of American and Western history.  The idea that I could join in with endless condemnation of US and European civilization, while finding common cause with this emergent movement that will celebrate the real Christian elements I identify with, would be rather foolish on my part.

BTW, the award for most ludicrous statement of the month goes to the young fellow for this gem: “‘We don’t talk about slavery much in this country. We don’t think much about what it meant,’ Haney said.”

Are you kidding me?  What does he define as much?  I can’t go more than a couple days without seeing a magazine, news article, editorial, PBS special, news cast, political round table, television show, movie or stump speech mentioning slavery.  And that doesn’t count the focus in our classrooms, textbooks, and general emphasis in US history curriculum.  I’m OK with focusing on slavery, but let’s admit we’re focusing on slavery.