BruceSpeaks

posted by Bruce Porter on כ"ה סיון תש"ע כ"ג טבת תש"ל

After America , There is No Place to Go

 (Comment by Bruce Porter)
For several months, I’ve not written much into this blog site. With each passing day, I grow more appalled at the socialist/Marxist direction our country is taking. The Obama regime is, I’m convinced, on a course to transform our beloved Republic into a socialist nightmare.

It is now abundantly clear that Obama’s guiding star is Marxism, but sadly, few people today really appreciate what that means, having been educated by the public brainwashing system we call “Public Schools.” Some will dismiss, as they always do, such statements, preferring to live in denial. However, unless our people wake up and vote these power-hungry mavens of Marxism out of power this November, I fear we will slip into an era of darkness unparallel in human history. 

The article below was written by a woman who witnessed the takeover of her country in the 30s by Hitler. There are terrifying parallels to her story and what we are experiencing in the United States today. Can it happen here? Your life and the lives of your family may depend on how you answer that question. Read the article through and decide for yourself.

Truly is the Greatest Country in the World.
Don’t Let Freedom Slip Away

By: Kitty Werthmann

 What I am about to tell you is something you’ve probably never heard or will ever read in history books.

I believe that I am an eyewitness to history.  I cannot tell you that Hitler took Austria by tanks and guns; it would distort history.  We elected him by a landslide – 98% of the vote..  I’ve never read that in any American publications.  Everyone thinks that Hitler just rolled in with his tanks and took Austria by force.

In 1938, Austria was in deep Depression.  Nearly one-third of our workforce was unemployed.  We had 25% inflation and 25% bank loan interest rates.

Farmers and business people were declaring bankruptcy daily.  Young people were going from house to house begging for food.  Not that they didn’t want to work; there simply weren’t any jobs.  My mother was a Christian woman and believed in helping people in need.  Every day we cooked a big kettle of soup and baked bread to feed those poor, hungry people – about 30 daily.

The Communist Party and the National Socialist Party were fighting each other.  Blocks and blocks of cities like Vienna, Linz, and Graz were destroyed.  The people became desperate and petitioned the government to let them decide what kind of government they wanted.

We looked to our neighbor on the north, Germany, where Hitler had been in power since 1933.  We had been told that they didn’t have unemployment or crime, and they had a high standard of living.  Nothing was ever said about persecution of any group — Jewish or otherwise.  We were led to believe that everyone was happy.  We wanted the same way of life in Austria. We were promised that a vote for Hitler would mean the end of unemployment and help for the family.  Hitler also said that businesses would be assisted, and farmers would get their farms back. 

Ninety-eight percent of the population voted to annex Austria to Germany and have Hitler for our ruler.

We were overjoyed, and for three days we danced in the streets and had candlelight parades.  The new government opened up big field kitchens and everyone was fed.

After the election, German officials were appointed, and like a miracle, we suddenly had law and order.  Three or four weeks later, everyone was employed.  The government made sure that a lot of work was created through the Public Work Service.

Hitler decided we should have equal rights for women.  Before this, it was a custom that married Austrian women did not work outside the home.  An able-bodied husband would be looked down on if he couldn’t support his family.  Many women in the teaching profession were elated that they could retain the jobs they previously had been required to give up for marriage.

Hitler Targets Education -
Eliminates Religious Instruction for Children:

Our education was nationalized.  I attended a very good public school.  The population was predominantly Catholic, so we had religion in our schools. The day we elected Hitler (March 13, 1938), I walked into my schoolroom to find the crucifix replaced by Hitler’s picture hanging next to a Nazi flag. Our teacher, a very devout woman, stood up and told the class we wouldn’t pray or have religion anymore.  Instead, we sang “Deutschland, Deutschland, Uber Alles,” and had physical education.

Sunday became National Youth Day with compulsory attendance.  Parents were not pleased about the sudden change in curriculum.  They were told that if they did not send us, they would receive a stiff letter of warning the first time.  The second time they would be fined the equivalent of $300, and the third time they would be subject to jail.  The first two hours consisted of political indoctrination.  The rest of the day we had sports.  As time went along, we loved it.  Oh, we had so much fun and got our sports equipment free.  We would go home and gleefully tell our parents about the wonderful time we had. 

My mother was very unhappy. 

When the next term started, she took me out of public school and put me in a convent.  I told her she couldn’t do that and she told me that someday when I grew up, I would be grateful.  There was a very good curriculum, but hardly any fun – no sports, and no political indoctrination.  I hated it at first but felt I could tolerate it.  Every once in a while, on holidays, I went home.  I would go back to my old friends and ask what was going on and what they were doing.  Their loose lifestyle was very alarming to me.  They lived without religion.  By that time unwed mothers were glorified for having a baby for Hitler.  It seemed strange to me that our society changed so suddenly.  As time went along, I realized what a great deed my mother did so that I wasn’t exposed to that kind of humanistic philosophy.

Equal Rights Hits Home:

In 1939, the war started and a food bank was established.  All food was rationed and could only be purchased using food stamps.  At the same time, a full-employment law was passed which meant if you didn’t work, you didn’t get a ration card, and if you didn’t have a card, you starved to death. Women who stayed home to raise their families didn’t have any marketable skills and often had to take jobs more suited for men.

Soon after this, the draft was implemented.  It was compulsory for young people, male and female, to give one year to the labor corps.  During the day, the girls worked on the farms, and at night they returned to their barracks for military training just like the boys.  They were trained to be anti-aircraft gunners and participated in the signal corps.  After the labor corps, they were not discharged but were used in the front lines.  When I go back to Austria to visit my family and friends, most of these women are emotional cripples because they just were not equipped to handle the horrors of combat.  Three months before I turned 18, I was severely injured in an air raid attack.  I nearly had a leg amputated, so I was spared having to go into the labor corps and into military service.   

Hitler Restructured the Family Through Daycare: 

When the mothers had to go out into the work force, the government immediately established child care centers.  You could take your children ages 4 weeks to school age and leave them there around-the-clock, 7 days a week, under the total care of the government.  The state raised a whole generation of children..  There were no motherly women to take care of the children, just people highly trained in child psychology.  By this time, no one talked about equal rights.  We knew we had been had.  

Health Care and Small Business Suffer Under Government Controls:

Before Hitler, we had very good medical care.  Many American doctors trained at the University of Vienna.  After Hitler, health care was socialized, free for everyone.  Doctors were salaried by the government.  The problem was, since it was free, the people were going to the doctors for everything. When the good doctor arrived at his office at 8 a.m., 40 people were already waiting and, at the same time, the hospitals were full.  If you needed elective surgery, you had to wait a year or two for your turn.  There was no money for research as it was poured into socialized medicine.  Research at the medical schools literally stopped, so the best doctors left Austria and immigrated to other countries.

As for healthcare, our tax rates went up to 80% of our income.  Newlyweds immediately received a $1,000 loan from the government to establish a household.  We had big programs for families.  All day care and education were free.  High schools were taken over by the government and college tuition was subsidized.  Everyone was entitled to free handouts, such as food stamps, clothing, and housing. 

We had another agency designed to monitor business.  My brother-in-law owned a restaurant that had square tables.  Government officials told him he had to replace them with round tables because people might bump themselves on the corners.  Then they said he had to have additional bathroom facilities. It was just a small dairy business with a snack bar.  He couldn’t meet all the demands.  Soon, he went out of business.  If the government owned the large businesses and not many small ones existed, it could be in control.

We had consumer protection.  We were told how to shop and what to buy.  Free enterprise was essentially abolished.  We had a planning agency specially designed for farmers.  The agents would go to the farms, count the live-stock, then tell the farmers what to produce, and how to produce it.  

“Mercy Killing” Redefined:

In 1944, I was a student teacher in a small village in the Alps.  The villagers were surrounded by mountain passes which, in the winter, were closed off with snow, causing people to be isolated.  So people intermarried and offspring were sometimes retarded.  When I arrived, I was told there were 15 mentally retarded adults, but they were all useful and did good manual work.  I knew one, named Vincent, very well.  He was a janitor of the school.  One day I looked out the window and saw Vincent and others getting into a van.  I asked my superior where they were going.  She said to an institution where the State Health Department would teach them a trade, and to read and write.  The families were required to sign papers with a little clause that they could not visit for 6 months.  They were told visits would interfere with the program and might cause homesickness.  

As time passed, letters started to dribble back saying these people died a natural, merciful death.  The villagers were not fooled.  We suspected what was happening.  Those people left in excellent physical health and all died within 6 months.  We called this euthanasia.  

The Final Steps – Gun Laws: 

Next came gun registration.  People were getting injured by guns.  Hitler said that the real way to catch criminals (we still had a few) was by matching serial numbers on guns.  Most citizens were law abiding and dutifully marched to the police station to register their firearms.  Not long after-wards, the police said that it was best for everyone to turn in their guns.  The authorities already knew who had them, so it was futile not to comply voluntarily.

No more freedom of speech. 

Anyone who said something against the government was taken away.  We knew many people who were arrested, not only Jews, but also priests and ministers who spoke up.

Totalitarianism didn’t come quickly, it took 5 years from 1938 until 1943, to realize full dictatorship in Austria.  Had it happened overnight, my countrymen would have fought to the last breath.  Instead, we had creeping gradualism.  Now, our only weapons were broom handles.  The whole idea sounds almost unbelievable that the state, little by little eroded our freedom.

After World War II, Russian troops occupied Austria.  Women were raped, preteen to elderly.  The press never wrote about this either.  When the Soviets left in 1955, they took everything that they could, dismantling whole factories in the process.  They sawed down whole orchards of fruit, and what they couldn’t destroy, they burned.  We called it The Burned Earth. Most of the population barricaded themselves in their houses.  Women hid in their cellars for 6 weeks as the troops mobilized.  Those who couldn’t paid the price.  There is a monument in Vienna today, dedicated to those women who were massacred by the Russians.  This is an eye witness account.

“It’s true… those of us who sailed past the Statue of Liberty came to a country of unbelievable freedom and opportunity.

America Truly is the Greatest Country in the World. Don’t Let Freedom Slip Away

“After America, There is No Place to Go”

posted by Bruce Porter on כ"ח אלול תש"ע כ"ג טבת תש"ל

From Dr. Bruce Porter:

A friend sent the following article to me. I was understandably skeptical of its veracity and did some checking. According to Snopes.com, this is TRUE. I do not entirely trust snopes since the couple who run that site are liberals and often skew their “findings” to favor Barack Obama. Since this verification is coming from a hostile source, I am therefore inclined to believe it. If you care to, you can jump over to Pravda’s site and see for yourself. Click HERE view the original article.

I have been trying to warn people since last summer before the election that Barack Hussein Obama is a dangerous man. I knew he was a far-left ideologue, and even the drive-by media acknowledged it. As revelations began to come to light about his close associations with people like William Ayers, (an avowed Marxist-Leninist, famous for his Weather Underground activities and participation in terrorist bombings in the 60s) and the “Rev” Wright, a Marxist “Liberation Theology” proponent and racist, I knew that Obama’s fascination with Marxism was real.

An Eye-Opening Experience

In 2006, I was a guest speaker at Obama’s High School, an elite private school in Honolulu called Punahou School. Punahou was originally a Christian missionary school, built on land granted in 1829 by Queen Ka’ahumanu. The school opened in 1842 with 15 students. Children of missionaries soon caused the school to grow quickly. Punahou is now a huge campus, with students from all over the world. Their most famous alumni however, is Barack Hussein Obama.

When I began my series of lectures, which were to cover an entire week to students in the middle grades to High School, things seemed to go well. My subject matter was the virtues of using our education, wealth, and life advantages for the betterment of mankind, serving, and ultimately reaching the world with the love and good news of the Messiah Yeshua. Trouble began when I was told by the campus Chaplains that I was not to “preach” to the children, or speak of Yeshua too much. I thought this peculiar, since this was originally a believer’s school founded by missionaries. The Chaplain staff actually seemed to be walking in fear of “offending” any of the “diversity” in the student body, and I was told that the school welcomes Buddhists, Shintoists, Muslims, etc. etc. When I was given a tour of the campus and met some of the faculty, it quickly became clear that I was in the midst of the most politically-correct, left-leaning, enviromentally activist school I’ve ever encountered. It was difficult to discern anyone who would actually admit to being a true Judeo/Christian believer. I’m not exagerating.

Well, two days into my lecture series, in which I made efforts to not “offend” anyone, the hammer fell. I was suddenly informed that a “special meeting” was set up with the school president and his principal staffers. The Chaplain who invited me seemed to be near to panic. I asked him what was going on, and he told me in hushed tones that “an article” I had written on my website, which was critical of radical Islam, had come to the president’s attention and was causing an uproar. Members of the Islamic community had written a letter of complaint because of my “attitudes” and wanted me fired and put off the campus.

I won’t go into detail about my meeting that afternoon in the plush offices of Punahou’s president and the principals of the grade levels, but if you picture the “inquisition” debacle that took place at the confirmation hearings of Judge Clarence Thomas, or the roast that Lt.Col Ollie North endured, you’d have a pretty good idea. (Disclaimer: I in no way think of myself as equal to, or ‘on-par’ with, these great men. I’m only trying to give you a mental picture of what I was subjected to.) They were outraged, waving a print-out of the offending article, and decrying my “Islamophobia.” Although I tried to explain to them that my article was directed entirely toward “radical” Islamics, and at no time had I even mentioned the subject in my lectures to the students, to these men, my mere presence on campus as a guest lecturer was absolutely intolerable. (So much for the left’s “tolerance.”) It was clear that “my kind” was an unwelcome blot on Punahou’s reputation, and the LAST thing they wanted to do was “offend” the many Islamic parents whose children attended the school. As a result, in order to not offend the “Muslim Community,” I was summarily dismissed, all remaining lectures cancelled, and asked to leave the campus. Score one for Mohammed.

This painful incident gave me tremendous insights into their famous former student, Obama. If  this was the atmosphere he was nurtured in and indoctrinated with, then it wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest that he had embraced the most radical ideaologies. Suffice to say, I believe, based on this and many, many other evidences, that Barack Hussein Obama is a Marxist who cleverly ran a “stealth” campaign as a “moderate” in order to gain the most powerful office in our nation. I’m also convinced that he is moving at break-neck speed to destroy the United States as a Constitutional Republic and replace it with Communism.

There are yet those who will read this, continue to close their eyes and minds, and reject not only what I said, but also seek to marginalize me. So be it. I’m confident of my position, and well-aware that one day I may have to pay a dear price for my love of America and all she stands for. I shall take my place proudly at the side of brave men and women who fought, prayed, and died in the service of this wonderful nation, blessed by God. We’ve come a long way, and while it is true that many of us have lost our way and given place to greed, corruption, and evil, the dream is still alive. Maybe, just maybe we can find our way back to the greatness that once honored God and liberated untold millions from the cruel boot of oppression and slavery.

It must be said, that like the breaking of a great dam, the American descent into Marxism is happening with breath taking speed, against the back drop of a passive, hapless sheeple, excuse me dear reader, I meant people.
 
True, the situation has been well prepared on and off for the past century, especially the past twenty years.

The initial testing grounds was conducted upon our Holy Russia and a bloody test it was… But we Russians would not just roll over and give up our freedoms and our souls, no matter how much money Wall Street poured into the fists of the Marxists.
 
Those lessons were taken and used to properly prepare the American populace for the surrender of their freedoms and souls, to the whims of their elite’s and betters.
 
First, the population was dumbed down through a politicized and substandard education system based on pop culture, rather than the classics.

Americans know more about their favorite TV dramas then the drama in DC that directly affects their lives.

The leftist citizens of America care more for their “right” to choke down a McDonalds burger or a BurgerKing burger than for their constitutional rights. (Eat, drink & be merry)  Then these ignorant leftist turn around and lecture us about our rights and about our “democracy.”

Pride blinds the foolish.
 
Then their faith in God was destroyed, until their churches, all tens of thousands of different “branches and denominations” were for the most part little more then Sunday circuses and their televangelists and top protestant mega preachers were more than happy to sell out their souls and flocks to be on the “winning” side of one pseudo Marxist politician or another.  Their flocks may complain, but when explained that they would be on the “winning” side, their flocks were ever so quick to reject Christ in hopes for earthly power.

Even our Holy Orthodox churches are scandalously liberalized in America.
 
The final collapse has come with the election of Barack Obama.

His speed in the past three months has been truly impressive. His spending and money printing has been a record setting, not just in America’s short history but in the world!

If this keeps up for more then another year, and there is no sign that it will not,  America at best will resemble the Wiemar Republic and at worst Zimbabwe.
 
These past two weeks have been the most breath taking of all. First came the announcement of a planned redesign of the American Byzantine tax system, by the very thieves who used it to bankroll their thefts, loses and swindles of hundreds of billions of dollars.

These make our Russian oligarchs look little more then ordinary street thugs, in comparison.
 
These thieves, of course, are not an elected panel but made up of appointees picked from the very financial oligarchs and their henchmen who are now gorging themselves on trillions of American dollars, in one bailout after another.

They are also usurping the rights, duties and powers of the American congress (parliament). Again, congress has put up little more then a whimper to their masters.
 
Then came Barack Obama’s command that GM’s (General Motor) president step down from leadership of his company. That is correct, dear reader, in the land of “pure” free markets, this self-anointed American president now has the power, the self given power, to fire CEOs and other employees of private companies, at will. Come hither, go dither, the centurion commands his minions.
 
So it should be no surprise, that the American president has followed this up with a “bold” move of declaring that he and another group of unelected, chosen stooges will now redesign the entire automotive industry and will even be the guarantee of automobile policies. I am sure that if given the chance, Obama’s Czars would happily try and redesign the whole of the world, too.

Prime Minister Putin, less then two months ago, warned Obama and UK’s Blair, not to follow the path to Marxism, as it only leads to disaster.

Apparently, even though we suffered 70 years of this Western sponsored horror show, we know nothing as compared to these ‘foolish, drunken Russians’, so let our “wise” Anglo-Saxon fools find out the folly of their own pride.
 
Again, the American public has taken this with barely a whimper…but still a “freeman” whimper….so far.
 
So, should it be any surprise to discover that the Democratically controlled Congress of America is working on passing a new regulation that would give the American Treasury department the power to set “fair” maximum salaries, evaluate performance and control how private companies give out pay raises and bonuses?

Senator Barney Franks, a social pervert cavorting in his ‘Marxist enlightenment’, has led this effort. He bleats this only affects companies that receive government monies. However it is actually retroactive and thus would include any company or industry that has ever received a tax break or incentive…which basically includes ALL businesses.
 
The Russian owners of American companies and industries should carefully consider closing their facilities down and fleeing the land of Red America as fast as possible.
 In other words, divest while there is still value left.

Unjustifiability proud Americans will go down into their pit of slavery without a fight, beating their chest and proclaiming to the world, how free they really are. The world will only snicker at their stupidity.
 
Source: Stanislav Mishin-2009. PRAVDA RU

posted by Bruce Porter on כ"ח אלול תש"ע כ"ג טבת תש"ל

By Bruce Porter

The teacher is engaged not simply in the training of individuals,
but in the formation of the “proper” social life….
In this way, the teacher always is the prophet of the “true” God
and the usherer-in of the “true” Kingdom of God.

-Atheist John Dewey-
Socialist “Father” of Public Education
(With socialist ‘code words’ emphasized in quotes)

 I often hear well-meaning people say that it is important that children be properly “socialized.” Usually this comes up in conversations when I tell them my 13-year-old daughter is being home-schooled (as were my two older children).

I understand that most people who raise such concerns are speaking about the need for children to be able to get along with other children in a group setting. This is, of course, perfectly reasonable. A well-rounded education certainly does not consist of merely being able to regurgitate facts and perform math computations. As humans, we are intrinsically ‘wired’ to interrelate with people in a wholesome and mutually beneficial circumstances. Social skills like sharing, compassion, empathy, and a sense of responsibility for others (outside ourselves) well-being is indisputably an important part of a well-rounded personality.

I usually answer that my daughter is probably over-socialized, in that she regularly spends time in group settings like dance classes, our home-school co-op, and our House Church (click for info). At 13, she is comfortable in conversation with all ages, regularly shares her things with friends, and has a caring, compassionate attitude toward her world.

Not only this, but she tested-out last year (using the Iowa Skills Exam) several grades ahead of the national average in every subject, and is even doing college-level work in several subjects in spite of the fact that she was only in the 7th grade. This usually ends the discussion, since most public school children cannot make such boasts. It’s not that their children are less intelligent than my little girl. It is more a statement about the state of government education.

With regard to the “socialization” issue however, I must now restrain myself. If I really opened up and said what I think about the dismal state of  ”government education,” and the “Educrats” that run it, I would lose all sense of polite decorum and begin ranting and howling with blood squirting out of my eyes and ears (like the madman most liberals assume that I am). I will therefore withhold any such ranting, control my emotions, and try to calmly deal with this issue in a restrained tone worthy of a National Public Radio interview on “All Things Considered.”

I will only allow myself this one indulgence into the ‘rant zone:’ Children are not being “socialized” in public schools. They are being BRAINWASHED into MARXIST SOCIALISM! More than this, whatever “socializing” they are experiencing with regard to politeness, decorum, and ethical or moral behavior, well, I am a product of the public school system. I can confidently say that I decided early-on not to let this negative schooling life-experience get in the way of my subsequent education. (Apologies to Mark Twain) There, I got it off my chest!

The latest outrage is the increasing practice of exposing younger and younger children to “socialist” propaganda in films, assemblies, and anti-conservative rants by teachers who are following Dewey’s injunction to act as prophets ”…of the ‘true’ God and the usherer-in of the ‘true’ Kingdom of God.” Really folks, I didn’t make this up! ¹

A WHOLE NEW LEVEL OF INDOCTRINATION:

Recently, a 20-minute video surfaced called “The Story of Stuff,” narrated by Annie Leonard, and commissioned by the Tides Foundation. ² Tides is a non-profit 501 (c) (3) organization that provides funding for “progressive” groups. For those unfamiliar with the term “progressive,” this is a sanitized, politically-neutral word for “Marxist.”

Children across the nation are being shown this video, and thus far, little notice has been made of it since it’s a cutsie, cartoonish, cheerful, and disarmingly clever presentation of anti-capitalism under the cover of “saving the earth.” I have found some rebuttals to the video, and I urge you to take time to watch the videos below. Share this link with your friends, particularly those with children in public schools, and warn them of the danger.

posted by Bruce Porter on כ"ח אלול תש"ע כ"ג טבת תש"ל

One of my recent posts:

How the Radical Left Plan to Destroy the Republic
Through Our Children

posted on September 7, elicited the following email response from Amy Sterling Casil, one of the authors I referenced in the blog. 

Ordinarily, I would not re-post a private email, but this one was illuminating. Please understand I do not share this with any intention of showing disrespect. Amy is an accomplished author I sincerely respect and admire. I am honored that she even took the time to write me. The fact that I disagree with her position on public education, and John Dewey in particular, should not be construed as a lack of respect for her or her considerable scholarship. You may read her bio at the end of this post.

However, the issues she raises speaks volumes about the present state of academia (even among Christians) and a lack of awareness/discernment about the true nature of American public education and the hidden agenda of Socialism in our nation. Her excellent letter is shared here in its entirety, with my responses in block quotes.

—– Original Message —–

From: asterling@****.com
To: bruce@brucespeaks.com
Sent: Tuesday, September 15, 2009 3:48 PM

Subject: Please remove reference

Dear Bruce,

I am an author of a book that you used as a reference for a blog post about education and the Obama administration (http://www.brucespeaks.com/?p=536). I would appreciate as an authorial courtesy your removing this educational/school library book from a reference in this politically-charged commentary that isn’t really directed at children, schools or education.

 Your book reference has been removed per your request. You are correct that my article is not directed at children, (note the X-rated references elsewhere in the article about the sex education curricula promulgated in many public schools) nor is it directed at schools or educators.

It is primarily directed to parents, grandparents, and guardians of young children who are enrolled in government educational institutions and have virtually no knowledge of Dewey’s considerable influence and highly controversial political views/associations which you referenced in your book so well.

 I am actually relatively conservative, and also a Christian – as well as being a college teacher and author of over 20 books for children/young adults.  I understand the point you are trying to make, but this is really distortive of John Dewey’s work and the broad perspective of his role in education.  He certainly contributed to far, far more than you present in this article, and his political activities were not strongly correlated with his work in education, and extensive study and educational writings.

 Yes, he did sign the Humanist Manifesto, and was also one of the founders of the ACLU.  100 years ago, neither of these were all that unreasonable things to do.  I can provide you with an original source for his signing of the Humanist Manifesto, if your desire is to document what you have written.  It is true that he signed this document, and also true that he traveled to the former Soviet Union.  It is equally true that he advocated education and literacy for children in order for them to be able to act as informed citizens.

 I certainly wouldn’t question your faith in Christ Amy, but after reading your email, I harbor doubts as to your conservative credentials.

I am well-aware of Dewey’s extensive work in the field of education. However, it is his highly questionable political alliances and motivations that are alarming and virtually unknown to the general populace. We must not minimize the extensive ANTI-Christian/conservative worldviews espoused in the Humanist Manifesto, or Roger Nash Baldwin’s Marxist worldview and his involvement in the establishment of the ACLU. Dewey’s agreement/association with, and signing on to, such extremely controversial views should be more widely known.

My object was not to distort the historical record, but rather, to bring to light the EXISTING distortions of the record due to the virtual silence by most biographers of Dewey’s leftist political views.

With regard to your comment about Dewey’s advocacy of public education as a means of literacy: “in order for them to be able to act as informed citizens.” How can we possibly observe the progressive deterioration of the state of education in America during the 20th century as anything but a slow-motion train wreck? Prior to Dewey’s influence, illiteracy was rare among our citizens, and most 8th grade children in the late 1800s could easily put most modern college graduates to shame with their knowledge of geography, history, math, grammar, and virtually any other subject (except of course, modern electronics, aerospace, and computer technology).

The state of our public education system is a national disgrace, with many High School graduates unable to read their own diplomas. Prior to Dewey’s influence, political awareness of our founding documents by the majority of American children, and their sense of civic responsibility, was exemplary. Can we ignore this?

I do know how emotional people get about these things.  Most people think John Dewey invented the Dewey Decimal System.  My book didn’t focus on political aspects, but rather educational and philosophical aspects – Mr. Dewey’s philosophy of education was “students learn best by doing” and his philosophical writings were of the school of pragmatism – i.e. development of moral and individual compass through experience.

I think the historical record clearly shows that 19th-century America’s “moral and individual compass” was far superior to the one that resulted from the establishment of a “pragmatic” (and secular) government educational system. School violence, teen pregnancy, and juvenile delinquency were rare events before Dewey. They are nearly pandemic now. His systematic elimination of the Christian worldview has resulted in a moral, ethical, and societal meltdown.

The last words of his pedagogic manifesto are: “I believe that every teacher should realize the dignity of his calling; that he is a social servant set apart for the maintenance of proper social order and the securing of the right social growth. I believe that in this way the teacher always is the prophet of the true God and the usherer in of the true kingdom of God.” 

I learned as a much younger (and foolish) Socialist and Liberal Progressive that it is highly necessary to carefully couch the Progressive agenda in terms that will not alarm the populace or stimulate reactionary elements. Dewey, in my opinion, was a master of subterfuge, and his use of terms like: “…maintenance of *proper* social order and the securing of the *right* social growth” (emphasis added obviously) are Progressive code words that anyone in the Progressive movement would recognize.

Also, given his extensive written (and extremely critical) views regarding the Christian faith, it requires no conspiratorial “leap of faith” to see that his use of words like: “…prophet of the *true* God and the usherer in of the *true* kingdom of God” are transparently disingenuous references to the establishment of the Socialist State as an idyllic socialist “kingdom” on earth.

The “true” god and “kingdom” of the Humanist/Socialist is ultimately humanity and naturalistic scientific reason. As you know, the 5th plank of the Humanist Manifesto of 1933 (that Dewey signed-on to) states this clearly: “Humanism asserts that the nature of the universe depicted by modern science makes unacceptable any supernatural or cosmic guarantees of human values.” As a Christian, you no-doubt recognize immediately this as the very antithesis of biblical Judeo/Christian thought.

This is “social” in the sense of people getting along in SOCIETY – not “socialism.”  Society as in people getting along with each other – i.e. not stealing, committing crimes, or operating only with self-interest or in an anti-social manner.  Everyone who teaches knows that school is more about learning to get along with others in preparation for working or living successfully in society, not about forced memorization of facts – which indeed was the main emphasis of schools pre-Dewey.

Thank you for this courtesy.  The book is educational, not political in nature.  It would be false/poor education to ignore Mr. Dewey’s existence.

- Amy Sterling Casil

I couldn’t disagree more with your closing statement. Surely you’re not unaware that the “society” Dewey grew up in was one of the most literate, polite, productive, civil, and just societies in all the history of the world? Our founding documents and form of government were based almost entirely upon biblical precepts and sermons dating back to the 16th century. I can provide documentation for this if you wish.

Certainly, our nation had faults, some grievous, but our people constantly sought improvement through the Bill of Rights and amendments. We fought a bitter civil war to end the evil of slavery. Christians were on the forefront of the effort to stop this blight upon our nation. Thankfully, under our constitution and republican form of government, we possessed the political means and moral courage to correct those evils and will continue to make amends where needed.

I do find agreement with one statement you made. “It would be false/poor education to ignore Mr. Dewey’s existence.” I entirely agree, but would only add that it would be a disservice and disingenuous to not give people the entire story of Mr. Dewey’s educational agenda and political motives. Only by fully disclosing these facts can people be expected to make wise decisions regarding politics and society as a whole, and through our children, preserve our great nation as a free, moral, prosperous, and Constitutional Republic.

Forgive my forthrightness, but I couldn’t help responding to your points. It is manifestly clear that we have dramatically different interpretations of history and Dewey. In any case, I wish you well.

Yours sincerely,

Bruce Porter

Biographical Information on Amy Sterling Casil

Amy Sterling Casil  is a Southern California science fiction writer. Her writing has often included Southern California themes. Her mother, Sterling Sturtevant was an Academy Award-winning art director for animated films who worked for Playhouse Pictures, UPA and Charles Schulz.

A four-year National Merit Scholar, she graduated from Scripps College in Claremont, CA in 1983 with bachelor’s degrees in British/American Literature and Studio Art. She was the first female editor and publisher of the Claremont Colleges’ newsmagazine. She twice received the Crombie Allen Award for fiction writing at the Claremont Colleges. She attended the Clarion Science Fiction Writers Workshop at Michigan State University in 1984.

“Jonny Punkinhead,” which appeared in the July 1996 New Writers issue of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, was her first published genre story.

Casil was the director of Family Service Association in Redlands, California from 1987 to 1997. In 1999, she received her MFA in Creative Writing from Chapman University, Orange, CA with full honors, under committee chair James P. Blaylock. From 1998 to 2005, she taught English and creative writing at several Southern California colleges, including Chapman University and Saddleback College. Since 2005, she has been Director of Development for the noted Los Angeles-based nonprofit organization, Beyond Shelter.

For a complete bio, visit:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amy_Sterling_Casil#As_Editor

posted by Bruce Porter on כ"ג ניסן תש"ע כ"ג טבת תש"ל

For what is he they follow?
Truly, gentlemen, A bloody tyrant and a homicide;
One raised in blood and one in blood established;
One that made means to come by what he hath,
And slaughtered those that were the means to help him;
A base foul stone, made precious
by the foil Of England’s chair, where he is falsely set;
One that hath ever been God’s enemy.

William Shakespeare

The Tragedy of King Richard the Third (Richmond at V, iii)

I had a disturbing dream a few nights ago, and I’m compelled to share it.  

In the dream, I was riding in a very large bus filled with hundreds of people. Each seat had a steering wheel attached to the seatback in front of the passengers. They reminded me of the toy ones I played with as a child in my parent’s car. I observed that everyone in the bus was turning their plastic wheels back and forth, either left or right. From the serious expressions on their faces, they seemed fully convinced that they were each personally driving the bus, even though I could easily see that the wheels they grasped were attached to… nothing.

 

I then became aware that there were television monitors hanging from the ceiling, and various programs were playing. Some were tuned to soap-operas, or to entertainment shows like American Idol. Others were tuned to sports and news programs, home shopping or food channels. I had the impression that everything on the TV screens was utterly shallow, vain, and completely inconsequential. Everyone was staring numbly at the TVs, and carefully moving their steering wheels as if they were actually driving somewhere.

 

Glancing out the windows, I became aware that the windows were covered over on the outside with a metal mesh, like a chain-link fence, and the scenery passing by was rather dark and gloomy. It was difficult to see anything familiar, and the bus was moving very quickly through streets without traffic, turning neither left nor right, but straight on.

 

Suddenly, the dream changed and all the TV screens switch to a news bulletin. Words like; “It’s time to decide now!” the announcer said. “You must do your patriotic duty and make your voice heard. It’s time to vote!” Various faces appeared in rapid sequence on-screen, some giving speeches, others arguing and shouting at each other, and there were debates. Political arguments were being discussed, and the announcers repeated over and over again that; “It’s time for the people to decide which direction we will go!”

 

Some of the people on the bus began to argue and shout at each other, and some fights broke out. “We must turn left!” some shouted. “It’s time for change!” Others yelled, “No! We must all turn right!” I had the impression they were trying to decide the direction and destination of the bus, since we would all share equally in whatever fate awaited us at our final destination.

 

Some of the arguments got so heated that people began to beat each other, and I looked to the front of the bus for the driver to try to mediate and calm down the melee. It was then that I noticed that the passengers were separated from the driver and the front of the bus by a fence-like metal mesh, and the driver was completely ignoring what was happening back in the bus and did nothing to stop the fighting and bickering. I also noticed that sitting next to the driver was a man dressed in black—like a soldier or SWAT officer—wearing body armor and a battle helmet. He had a big gun, and was also ignoring what was happening behind him.

 

It suddenly occurred to me that we were all riding some sort of prison transport bus! We were all trapped inside by metal mesh on the windows and in the front. However, no one else seemed to notice or pay any attention to this, so busy were they arguing with each other, or being distracted by the TV monitors.

 

After a while, the fighting calmed down as the announcer on the TV said; “Now you must decide! Turn left or right and the majority will determine the direction of the bus and where we will all go! Vote NOW!”

 

In the dream, everyone quickly took their seats and turned their little plastic steering wheels either hard right, or hard left, which I assumed was the way they were voting. As I recall the dream now, there were also quite a few passengers who looked completely apathetic, and rather than voting, they just stared blankly up at the monitors or out the window. 

 

It seemed to me that the passengers were just about equally divided in their “steering” votes. After a moment, the announcer on the TV monitor said; “The lefts WIN! It’s time for a new direction! We now return you to our previous broadcast.” The monitors returned to the previous mind-numbing claptrap about unimportant scandals, or who got traded to whatever team, and sex enhancement drug commercials.

 

The majority of the people cheered, slapping each other on the back, while others mocked and jeered those who had turned their wheels right. For a little while, people were very excited. Until, that is, a few of them noticed that the bus hadn’t changed direction in the slightest. It was plunging headlong into the gathering gloom outside, as the driver steered straight-on as before, even picking up some speed. This began to upset some of the “left” voters, who continued to turn their plastic wheels further and further to the left without the slightest effect on the direction of the bus.

 

One of the passengers, clearly outraged, got up and stormed to the front of the bus. He shook the barrier separating him from the driver and the soldier. Screaming at the driver, he said; “Hey you! We won the election! We turned our wheels left, but you’re still steering straight ahead! What’s the matter with you? Why won’t you listen to us? And why is this barrier between us?” The driver seemed a bit annoyed at this, and turned around slightly with a wry grin on his face. “Don’t worry. Just take your seat. We have everything well in hand. We’ll get you where you need to be soon enough.”

 

Realizing he wasn’t being listened to, the irate passenger turned around and started shouting. “Everyone! Listen to me! This is a prison-bus! We’re all captives! Your steering-wheels aren’t connected to anything! We’ve been duped!”

 

At this, some of the people began to murmur, and a few began moving forward to confront the driver, and it looked like it would only take a few of them to push down the barrier and take control of the bus. The angry passenger began organizing the people and giving orders on how they were going to break into the driver’s cage.

 

The SWAT man suddenly stood up and turned around. Leveling his weapon, he fired a single shot at the back of the angry passenger’s head and splattered his brain all over the roof of the bus. The passenger was dead before his body hit the floor.

 

Everyone fell silent and stood still in utter shock, staring at the crumpled body of their leader. “Go back to your seats NOW, and BE QUIET!” The SWAT man growled. Without another word, the riders shuffled back to their seats, sat down, and began moving their little plastic wheels silently. The TVs resumed their normal monotonous programming, and they just stared up at them trying to ignore the splattered blood and brain-matter on the ceiling of the bus.

 

Glancing outside, I saw in the gloom that we were approaching what looked like a wall with barbed-wire spiraling on top. A gate came into view with a large sign over it. It read; “Arbeit Macht Frei.” (Work Makes Free) The driver, finally looking back at the body of the dead passenger and the catatonic stares of his passengers, began to smile. His face contorted into a demonic mask, and he began to laugh eerily.  

 

Welcome to the twilight zone America.

 

Interpretation? Here’s what I get so far…

 

I think the bus is our nation and the passengers are the citizens. The driver represents the political leadership, and most of them are being manipulated by the forces of darkness. The man-centered systems of politics has been corrupted to the point that there is very little any one of us can do to influence the course of the “bus” we are all collectively riding. We are being distracted by brain-numbing mass-media and popular entertainment in order to prevent us from noticing what is really going on around us.

 

The passenger steering wheels, once a powerful influential force on the politics of our nation, have become largely impotent. Our leaders (the bus driver) increasingly ignore our concerns and steer us toward enslavement. No matter how we individually turn the wheel, the bus is little affected.

 

The heavily-armed SWAT man in the cab with the driver represents the brute force of the government to force submission to the State. Whereas formerly they functioned as our agents of public safety and preservation of our liberties under our Constitution and Bill of Rights, they are increasingly morphing into organs of the government. It strikes me also that the passengers were entirely disarmed and unable to fight back. Whereas once we were a “government of the people, by the people, for the people,” we are rapidly becoming a socialist society where government is no longer accountable to the people, but rules over them as bureaucrats deem expedient.

 

The answer?

 

Not sure about this one, but I suspect that fear is the primary way that despotic tyrants hold their subjects into submission and bondage. In the dream, it was clear that even a small percentage of the people on the bus could have broken down the barrier to get at the “real” steering-wheel, but they were intimidated to attempt it because of the single guard and the blood of a single victim, and no means of defending themselves.

 

The other issue is that we have become far too trusting of manmade systems and allowed ourselves to be drawn into a stupor of entertainment and media distractions. We are too preoccupied with unimportant trivialities to notice the tightening chains of slavery around our necks! Only if we awaken to our peril in time and stand up in sufficient numbers can we hope to stop the meltdown of our republic!

 

Also, I believe we must turn our hearts back to our Creator and humble ourselves. We have relied far too much upon our human intellect and technology, become prideful and arrogant, and forgotten how utterly dependent we are on His Providence. Far too many Christian leaders have fallen into the trap of accommodating the prevailing ethos of our times, instead of confronting the steady drift toward moral corruption and social indifference. They teach sermons that comfort the compromised, reassure the rebellious, and preach prosperity to the already pampered. We have increasingly drifted away from our sense of duty and honor, and embraced a spiritualized narcissism that enables us to accept an inflated sense of self-importance.

 

Perhaps the most serious issue is that many of us feel condemned and unworthy to resist darkness at all, having failed to embrace the central point of Christ’s sacrifice—our total redemption and complete justification by the blood of Jesus—and therefore refuse to stand up and confront the lies around us. We fear being called hypocrites. (Just another form of self-pride)

 

I end with the words of the great American patriot and Christian, Patrick Henry:

 

…Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction? Shall we acquire the means of effectual resistance, by lying supinely on our backs, and hugging the delusive phantom of hope, until our enemies shall have bound us hand and foot?…

…Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!