Dumbing of American Education by the Texas Board of “Hillbillies”

Eight people in Texas control what your child anywhere in America will see or not see in his or her school textbook – and it is leading to the dumbing of America.

A 15-member Board of Education in Texas determines what school children see in their textbooks – or don’t see. Because Texas is a huge market, what they pick goes into texts used by schools nationwide. The 15 members are politicians, not teachers. And the majority of eight has shown a remarkable ignorance about history and a racial and religious bias that goes against what America is all about. These eight people will determine if your kid is dumber than dirt, or an educated 21^st century citizen.

An example: “Mavis Knight, D-Dallas, was unable to attract any Republican support for her motion to teach students that government is not supposed to favor any religion. Knight's proposed amendment: “Examine the reasons the Founding Fathers protected religious freedom in America by barring government from protecting or disfavoring any particular religion over all others,” was defeated.

If the eight had their way, your children would learn only about one religion and about white people only. Minority success stories are routinely cut out even as minorities are becoming the majority in Texas and America. Political censorship is applied – no socialists are to be mentioned! As a result of this small group, Texas textbooks are becoming more partisan and narrow when all textbooks should be nonpartisan and broad to give students greater perspective, as in “education”.

One member of the board, a lawyer who teaches law, fails to understand that when our founding fathers established America, they were sick of the English system that favored only the state religion. Religious wars in Europe pushed the Founding Fathers to guarantee religious liberty to ensure a strong and united country. They wanted religious freedom for all, not just the “chosen.”

Yet board member Cynthia Dunbar, from a small Texas town, missed that part in law school and history class. She wants schools to become churches and only educate students about the Christian religion, instead of exposing them to ALL the religions that exist in America -- Judaism, Hinduism, Christianity, how Islam recognizes Jesus and Mary in their texts, etc.

Instead, Ms. Dunbar insisted that our founding father, Thomas Jefferson, be dropped from the history book entirely! Why? "Because he supported separation of church and state" she said. That shows how little these people know about our founders and their vision.

If you don’t know that, it is because Texas hillbillies are dumbing down America’s education – at a time when our kids need a GLOBAL education to even have a chance at staying competitive in the high tech 21^st century. In a recent poll 40% of Americans who were asked could NOT identify a "fossil fuel" (as in oil, gas. "Ethanol" is not a fossil fuel). Fifty one percent (51%) could NOT name a renewable fuel (as in "solar" or "wind"). Does that sound like an educated public?

We have to get a lot smarter not dumber, to stay in the game. How does America lead a world when its students and future leaders learn nothing about it -- because of eight extremists on the Texas School Board? How many of our leaders went into the Iraq war not knowing the difference between Muslim Shiites and Sunnis – and how they really don’t like each other? That was an expensive lesson.

It’s past time to abolish the Texas School Board authority to dictate the education levels of United States students. Write your State leaders and representatives. Texas’ Board of Education is gutting our national education when other countries are improving theirs.

We can’t compete or win with our own version of the Taliban in charge of education.