Ironic Indoctrination

It is a strange axiom in American politics that all things are, eventually, the same. To wit, a certain degree of corruption and dishonesty is expected of politicians, but does the fact that "all politicians lie" insofar as campaign promises are rarely fulfilled really justify escalation? That is, if one advocates unflinchingly a false assertion of fact in the face of evidence to the contrary, is it really the same as a failed campaign promise?

This, of course, is very general, but our history is littered with examples.

Is pointing out that a politician says one thing and does another really an equally offensive act as character assassination? That is, would someone pointing out the inconsistencies of Mitt Romney discussing Massachusetts' credit rating during his tenure as governor compared to the fact that he advocated that improved rating with higher taxes really the same as what Karl Rove and the Republicans did to Max Cleeland in 2002? After all, it seems only logical doesn't it? A guy who gave three limbs to the Vietnam war, who then opposes the blind and irresponsible war-cry after 9/11 must necessarily be a traitor, right? That's the only explanation. If only we could understand that, we would also recognize that the Republicans weren't really being sleazy, they were just being honest.

But it goes on, over and over again. Sometimes it's a bit subtle. Or maybe not. Three items worth considering:

1. Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), a presidential candidate, apparently explained in 2002 that public education will lead to genocide. "It's already here," Bachmann warned, "and it's something that we have to deal with."
2. Former Senator Rick Santorum (R-PA) argued recently that public education wants to twist children's minds according to some sinister plot: "Of course, the government wants their hands on your children as fast as they can .... They want your children from the womb so they can indoctrinate your children as to what they want them to be."
3. Rep. Peter King (R-NY) has demanded an investigation into whether the Obama administration cooperated with director Kathryn Bigelow and writer Mark Boal, both acclaimed for their work in the Oscar-winning The Hurt Locker in the scripting of a film about the assassination of Osama bin Laden. "The movie is scheduled for release by Sony Pictures Entertainment in October 2012," explains Larry Margasak, "which also has caused conservative media outlets to claim the film is being timed to help Mr. Obama's re-election bid."
4. Really Big Coloring Books, Inc. has published a coloring book for children, about 9/11 and the assassination of Osama bin laden. "In a world of constant motion and instant media," the company explains, "this coloring book will focus an individual, no matter the age, directly onto the events of September 11th, 2001, also known as 9/11, depicting, lest we never forget, the facts of that day and beyond, including the basics of freedom." A page transcript is included below.

Being the elusive character that he was, and after hiding out with his terrorist buddies in Pakistan and Afghanistan, American soldiers finally locate the terrorist leader Osama Bin Laden. Many people had helped secure his safety for nearly 10 years.

Dubbed code name Neptune Spear, the operation lasted 88 minutes, included some 23 Navy SEALs and a dog named "Cairo", no one wanted detainees. Once athe American military confirmed and identified Bin Laden, President Barack H. Obama had previously issued a kill order to SEAL Team Six to shoot him. In Bin Laden's house in Afghanistan, Osama used his wives and children as shields as he tried to get away from the American Military. But the coward Bin Laden could not escape. He was killed hiding behind the dress tail of a young woman. On May 1, 2011, Bin Laden was shot dead, and the American Military wrapped him in a white blanket and buried him at sea by throwing his body overboard. Throwing his body into the sea showed him more respect than he showed to the people who died on 9/11.

Children, the truth is, these terrorist acts were done by freedom-hating radical Islamic Muslim extremists. These crazy people hate the American way of life because we are FREE and our society is FREE. We must be prepared to know and understand the truth. America is FREE. Ask your mother and father, your teacher, your preacher, what this really means. What does it mean to be FREE? Why are we a FREE people?

We are free to think, free to be honest, free to write, free to live as we wish. We are America. America does not hate other people in the world, but we love the world in which we live and will defend our way of life. On the remaining pages of this book we talk about our freedoms and our way of life.

While Michele Bachmann worries about the politics of mathematics, it seems few if any on the right wing are distressed at the prospect of indoctrinating children into conservative political history.

Some call this irony. Others might use harder words, like hypocrisy. In the end, though, all one really needs to say is that it is, after all, Republicans.