An elevated college fair — no college representation whatsoever, elevated right out of being a college fair. A career fair with no companies looking to hire, not a career fair. What was the programming that addressed what the students could do after high school? Telling girls not to be sluts isn’t helpful. Having boys do push ups isn’t providing guidance. Singling out a girl for public physical abuse won’t put food on anyone’s table.
Sue them all into oblivion. Harp on the fact that the students were told they would find next steps after high school and nothing even alluded to college or careers. Elevate these mutherfockers right to bankruptcy.
I couldn't agree with you more wholeheartedly. But I have to note that I'm incredibly skeptical that the courts in Louisiana, including federal courts, will rule in favor of the aggrieved students. After all, this IS Louisiana, the state where the courts have repeatedly given churches a pass for sexually assaulting minors (religious liberty, you know). I'd guess they'll rule that merely hijacking students for a day is no big deal. And after all, indoctrinating kids with christian rubbish really does prepare them for a future, in a weird, twisted, quite disgusting way. Not at all a healthy, useful or productive future, but it IS a future. Case closed.
I’m with you, see my comment to cdbunch. That district has some of the most corrupt judges, making the least constitutional decisions in the USA, outside of the current SCOTUS.
Could you imagine the outcry by Christian groups and parents had the district been in bed with a Muslim Mosque or Muslim non-profit? I certainly can!
And imagine if these poor kids had to sit for two hours, hearing about Mohammed and Allah. Never mind the misogyny and anti-LGBTQ commentary by these god fearing Christians. All hell would have broken loose.
And let’s not forget these people tell girls to forgive their rapists, but have no problem demonizing the LGBTQ community.
I remember another story here recently about a crowd of Christians attacking a peaceful artistic gathering because the artist's had the temerity to put up an "Om" sign. So if this had been a yoga day there probably would have been a Christian outcry.
Hemant has posted articles before about Christian parents in the Bible belt freaking out when their children were offered free yoga classes, and those classes were just to teach them the poses, not even the spiritual part of yoga.
Let's not miss in the general awfulness that there was a political candidate telling teenagers, if you want to eat, you need to register to vote. While I would be quite happy with a candidate throwing a pizza party and having a voter registration event in the same location, but making one dependent on the other is at best a shitty move, and if it isn't, it should be illegal.
I actually like that they registered these high schoolers to vote. The kids are way more likely to vote for the Democratic candidates after this fiasco.
Under legitimate circumstances, I think arranging a pizza party for seniors at a high school and including a voter registration event for those that choose to and are eligible is a great idea. I have a problem with the coercive element and the fact that they had kids who were not eligible to vote fill out the cards.
P.S. I'd also support an opportunity for filling out the Selective Service cards. As long as we're doing this bullshit, I don't want young men to miss deadlines simply because they didn't make a special trip.
I have a couple of quibbles with your second paragraph, however. If this had truly been a Job Fair, then the military probably would've been represented (but it wasn't, so they weren't). Also, military options are not just for young men.
At a job fair, yes the military would have been represented. But I was talking about a pizza party thrown by a civic organization. Selective Service is still only required of young men and there are a lot of federal benefits that are denied if a young man isn't registered. I was suggesting that along with voter registration, the appropriate personnel and paperwork could be presented to the young men to get this onerous duty out of the way.
What the actual fuck? I'm reading this with my morning coffee and getting more and more agitated. I actually yelled above phrase out loud. I would NOT be impressed if my kids were exposed to this garbage and watching their classmates be discrimimated against. Literally none of this prepares kids for the future. Unless you want to 'leave everything to god' and that seems spectacularily unwise.
There are times that I feel like banging my head against the wall when stuff like this happens. Fortunately, I have a thick skull as many of you can testify. Practicing deceit while pretending to be people of truth just stinks. And it goes beyond shame to call this a "Day of Hope" when you think about the LGBTQ students who had to be exposed to this.
Absconding with minors without parental consent (consent given for an event described under false pretenses) and refusing to let them leave or communicate with the outside world (holding them hostage), denying them use of a bathroom, coercing them to fill out paperwork with personal information, and conditioning their access to food, sounds like kidnapping and child abuse. I hope that point is made in court, because this wasn’t a small misunderstanding, nor a small transgression.
> "The speakers for the girls included a pastor who promoted virginity"
At a guess, I'd say they're closing the barn door after the horse bolted. I'm not in any way trying to slut-shame the girls: I simply think that most of them (if not actually all) have begun exploring their sexual natures in perfectly natural, perfectly healthy ways by the time they're seniors. As they should--and as nature intended. Telling kids to refrain from sex is like telling birds to stop eating seeds.
We know you're not slut-shaming, just pointing out the absurdity of it in any reasonable society.
Slut-shaming is christian leaders' primary MO for keeping young girls in line. Reason being, they think all those young girls should be saving their virginity for THEM. After all, they are owed virgin sex as righteous men o' gawd. Verily they shall have their reward, everybody else be damned.
I came to this conclusion after wondering for decades why virginity was always shoved in girls' faces and never in boys', and after reading countless stories on forum like this one of religious leaders helping themselves to the young girls and women within their reach.
"girls shouldn’t date around but just wait for God to bring them the perfect guy.."
What if that particular guy never comes? Or the perfect guy comes and he wasn't what he seems? Kids should know that there's no such thing as the perfect guy? And that God would never send you the perfect guy because he doesn't really exist?
"They talked about rape, forgiving the offender in life,.."
And let the offender escape punishment and get away with it while using forgiveness as a copout for their crimes against women and girls.
“I’ll give you $100 if you can get through me and to the stage”
I'd reject the offer if I was her. I bet this arsehole doesn't have the money and was only playing around with the girl's mind. Coward.
If your date is breaking into full Disney Show Tune to sing an obviously unserious song about the size of his own ego, (a) don't worry about the ego, (b) do worry about the breaking into full Disney Show Tune thing.
I prefer "Tom, Dick and Harry" from Cole Porter's Kiss Me Kate, especially the bit where the guys dance around the stage chanting "dick...dick...dick...dick" etc. The composer who gave us "If I'm the bottom, you're the top" never lost sight of his gay audience.
Do like Joe Pesci in "My Cousin Vinny" and ask to see the money first. Then, if the a-hole actually holds it out where you can reach it, punch him square in the face quickly and grab the cash.
Girl, don't fight fair. Act all scared and punch him in the throat. When he bends down drive your knee in his face. Then walk past him to the stage and demand your money. He threatened you. Be like the police who beat up unconscious people and say you were terrified.
Ordinarily, I'd wonder at how anyone still did crap like this in 2023, but then we ARE talking about Louisiana here. Still, separating sexes, goading the boys while treating the girls as though they're either treasure or targets ... WHEW. If I shook my head any more, I'd be afraid it would fall off.
I AM glad that several people were properly upset at the obfuscation and misdirection and are pursuing civil action against those who organized this load of horse manure. One can only hope that a lesson is learned on the parts of the defendants, though per usual, I remain dubious.
Yeah, yeah, I know, Len [and the /s wasn't necessary; we know you!].
Still, that bit at the end about challenging one of the girls to "get through [him] and to the stage" ... I can think of some very well trained girls that dip wouldn't want to pull that stunt with.
Do da term, "Wing Chung Kung Fu" strike a familiar note?
This is another of those situations where I don’t want the plaintiffs to sue for $1 to make a point. I want them to get as much money as possible — to make a point.
An elevated college fair — no college representation whatsoever, elevated right out of being a college fair. A career fair with no companies looking to hire, not a career fair. What was the programming that addressed what the students could do after high school? Telling girls not to be sluts isn’t helpful. Having boys do push ups isn’t providing guidance. Singling out a girl for public physical abuse won’t put food on anyone’s table.
Sue them all into oblivion. Harp on the fact that the students were told they would find next steps after high school and nothing even alluded to college or careers. Elevate these mutherfockers right to bankruptcy.
Well said, as usual, Val.
I couldn't agree with you more wholeheartedly. But I have to note that I'm incredibly skeptical that the courts in Louisiana, including federal courts, will rule in favor of the aggrieved students. After all, this IS Louisiana, the state where the courts have repeatedly given churches a pass for sexually assaulting minors (religious liberty, you know). I'd guess they'll rule that merely hijacking students for a day is no big deal. And after all, indoctrinating kids with christian rubbish really does prepare them for a future, in a weird, twisted, quite disgusting way. Not at all a healthy, useful or productive future, but it IS a future. Case closed.
I’m with you, see my comment to cdbunch. That district has some of the most corrupt judges, making the least constitutional decisions in the USA, outside of the current SCOTUS.
Is that even possible? It breaks my heart.
Excellent!...:)
Sue them into oblivion. Then sue 'em some more.
Unfortunately, it would be the students who wind up paying the price.
The students pay the price either way.
They either get coerced into attending an all day church service, or they have resources taken away when they fight the lawsuits.
You'd almost think the system was set up for the students to lose.
The creation of a permanent American under-class is the age old Republican dream. It begins with undermining education.
“The poor you will always have with you” is an order to NEVER STOP HELPING, not a promise of unlimited slave labour, you religious retards!!! *growls*
If this were a trick to sell used cars, it would probably fall under the "bait and switch" category of consumer fraud.
It is bait-and-switch at best, and kidnapping otherwise.
Could you imagine the outcry by Christian groups and parents had the district been in bed with a Muslim Mosque or Muslim non-profit? I certainly can!
And imagine if these poor kids had to sit for two hours, hearing about Mohammed and Allah. Never mind the misogyny and anti-LGBTQ commentary by these god fearing Christians. All hell would have broken loose.
And let’s not forget these people tell girls to forgive their rapists, but have no problem demonizing the LGBTQ community.
How quaint!....:)
I remember another story here recently about a crowd of Christians attacking a peaceful artistic gathering because the artist's had the temerity to put up an "Om" sign. So if this had been a yoga day there probably would have been a Christian outcry.
Imagine that; yoga is offensive too...:)
Hemant has posted articles before about Christian parents in the Bible belt freaking out when their children were offered free yoga classes, and those classes were just to teach them the poses, not even the spiritual part of yoga.
Ignorance is bliss...:)
I remember that one. DG was VERY passionate in his defense of those terrorists.
I love hot yoga, BTW...:)
Bear or Berra?
I do like quoting Yogi Berra sometimes. “It’s Deja Vu all over again”...:)
Let's not miss in the general awfulness that there was a political candidate telling teenagers, if you want to eat, you need to register to vote. While I would be quite happy with a candidate throwing a pizza party and having a voter registration event in the same location, but making one dependent on the other is at best a shitty move, and if it isn't, it should be illegal.
You’re going to need to provide more than crummy pizza to get me to sign my soul away.
I actually like that they registered these high schoolers to vote. The kids are way more likely to vote for the Democratic candidates after this fiasco.
Under legitimate circumstances, I think arranging a pizza party for seniors at a high school and including a voter registration event for those that choose to and are eligible is a great idea. I have a problem with the coercive element and the fact that they had kids who were not eligible to vote fill out the cards.
P.S. I'd also support an opportunity for filling out the Selective Service cards. As long as we're doing this bullshit, I don't want young men to miss deadlines simply because they didn't make a special trip.
I totally agree with your first paragraph.
I have a couple of quibbles with your second paragraph, however. If this had truly been a Job Fair, then the military probably would've been represented (but it wasn't, so they weren't). Also, military options are not just for young men.
At a job fair, yes the military would have been represented. But I was talking about a pizza party thrown by a civic organization. Selective Service is still only required of young men and there are a lot of federal benefits that are denied if a young man isn't registered. I was suggesting that along with voter registration, the appropriate personnel and paperwork could be presented to the young men to get this onerous duty out of the way.
What the actual fuck? I'm reading this with my morning coffee and getting more and more agitated. I actually yelled above phrase out loud. I would NOT be impressed if my kids were exposed to this garbage and watching their classmates be discrimimated against. Literally none of this prepares kids for the future. Unless you want to 'leave everything to god' and that seems spectacularily unwise.
Holy crap this is diabolical.
“I'm reading this with my morning coffee…”
Really!?! Those were my good face eyes.
There are times that I feel like banging my head against the wall when stuff like this happens. Fortunately, I have a thick skull as many of you can testify. Practicing deceit while pretending to be people of truth just stinks. And it goes beyond shame to call this a "Day of Hope" when you think about the LGBTQ students who had to be exposed to this.
Absconding with minors without parental consent (consent given for an event described under false pretenses) and refusing to let them leave or communicate with the outside world (holding them hostage), denying them use of a bathroom, coercing them to fill out paperwork with personal information, and conditioning their access to food, sounds like kidnapping and child abuse. I hope that point is made in court, because this wasn’t a small misunderstanding, nor a small transgression.
Wait, you mean kidnapping for Jesus isn't a sacrament?
This. Yes, yes, and YES!
> "The speakers for the girls included a pastor who promoted virginity"
At a guess, I'd say they're closing the barn door after the horse bolted. I'm not in any way trying to slut-shame the girls: I simply think that most of them (if not actually all) have begun exploring their sexual natures in perfectly natural, perfectly healthy ways by the time they're seniors. As they should--and as nature intended. Telling kids to refrain from sex is like telling birds to stop eating seeds.
We know you're not slut-shaming, just pointing out the absurdity of it in any reasonable society.
Slut-shaming is christian leaders' primary MO for keeping young girls in line. Reason being, they think all those young girls should be saving their virginity for THEM. After all, they are owed virgin sex as righteous men o' gawd. Verily they shall have their reward, everybody else be damned.
I came to this conclusion after wondering for decades why virginity was always shoved in girls' faces and never in boys', and after reading countless stories on forum like this one of religious leaders helping themselves to the young girls and women within their reach.
"There appeared to be an altar call at the end of the session for students who wanted to commit to Christ."
Translation: Jesus wants your lunch money.
And total control over your body and mind.
“Oh, but gohd gave all of us free will”
And forbade us to use it.
*coughcough*PHARAOH!
This despite being omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient.
"girls shouldn’t date around but just wait for God to bring them the perfect guy.."
What if that particular guy never comes? Or the perfect guy comes and he wasn't what he seems? Kids should know that there's no such thing as the perfect guy? And that God would never send you the perfect guy because he doesn't really exist?
"They talked about rape, forgiving the offender in life,.."
And let the offender escape punishment and get away with it while using forgiveness as a copout for their crimes against women and girls.
“I’ll give you $100 if you can get through me and to the stage”
I'd reject the offer if I was her. I bet this arsehole doesn't have the money and was only playing around with the girl's mind. Coward.
"no such thing as the perfect guy" You mean, Disney lied to me‽‽‽‽
No one's slick as Gaston
No one's quick as Gaston
No one's neck's as incredibly thick as Gaston
For there's no man in town half as manly
Perfect, a pure paragon
You can ask any Tom, Dick or Stanley
And they'll tell you whose team they prefer to be on
See a think neck is kind of a deal breaker anyway. And the perfect guy is very definitely not an anti-intellectual blatant misogynist.
If a guy's neck is larger than his head, you can tell by a quick glance there's nobody home there.
Even in my naive, oblivious days, I never found meatheads attractive.
If your date is breaking into full Disney Show Tune to sing an obviously unserious song about the size of his own ego, (a) don't worry about the ego, (b) do worry about the breaking into full Disney Show Tune thing.
A guy who can sing is sexy.
I can sing. I'm no Josh Groban or Seth MacFarlane but I can carry a tune. 🙂
I prefer "Tom, Dick and Harry" from Cole Porter's Kiss Me Kate, especially the bit where the guys dance around the stage chanting "dick...dick...dick...dick" etc. The composer who gave us "If I'm the bottom, you're the top" never lost sight of his gay audience.
As King Henry tells his young mistress in The Lion in Winter, "Nothing in life has any business being perfect."
https://youtu.be/uJbooOYyBCA
Well 'perfect' is subjective and so impossible, but most *sensible* guys are not going to marry someone without dating them first.
The 'no dating' thing makse sense in the context of buying property instead of finding a life partner. But that's part of their conext.
Do like Joe Pesci in "My Cousin Vinny" and ask to see the money first. Then, if the a-hole actually holds it out where you can reach it, punch him square in the face quickly and grab the cash.
"What if that particular guy never comes?"
They make a pill for that.
Yeah, but your head still needs to be in the right place.
What if that particular guy never comes?
According to religious logic, whoever god sends you must be perfect, if he's not, it's your fault, you're a woman after all.
Girl, don't fight fair. Act all scared and punch him in the throat. When he bends down drive your knee in his face. Then walk past him to the stage and demand your money. He threatened you. Be like the police who beat up unconscious people and say you were terrified.
It's funny how you have to trick, coerce, bribe, and lie to children in order to convince them of your "truth".
Those aren't the actions of good people who have a good message.
Those aren’t the actions of anyone within the same solar system as “good” or “honest” or “truthful”.
Ordinarily, I'd wonder at how anyone still did crap like this in 2023, but then we ARE talking about Louisiana here. Still, separating sexes, goading the boys while treating the girls as though they're either treasure or targets ... WHEW. If I shook my head any more, I'd be afraid it would fall off.
I AM glad that several people were properly upset at the obfuscation and misdirection and are pursuing civil action against those who organized this load of horse manure. One can only hope that a lesson is learned on the parts of the defendants, though per usual, I remain dubious.
But...but...but...Jesus!
/s, just in case
Yeah, yeah, I know, Len [and the /s wasn't necessary; we know you!].
Still, that bit at the end about challenging one of the girls to "get through [him] and to the stage" ... I can think of some very well trained girls that dip wouldn't want to pull that stunt with.
Do da term, "Wing Chung Kung Fu" strike a familiar note?
I was thinking I'd like to grab his shoulder, sweep his legs out from under him, and say (like Stewie Griffin), "Where's my money?"
See, I'm imagining a teenage Ms. Rousey given that challenge.
That would work.
https://youtu.be/z-sPXHQK8H0?t=35
The defendants have yet to demonstrate that they are even capable of learning.
Sadly far more than likely true.
I never trust the Christian to tell the truth. Most don't even know what truth is
They wouldn’t recognise or even acknowledge the truth if it fucked them up the ass.
This is another of those situations where I don’t want the plaintiffs to sue for $1 to make a point. I want them to get as much money as possible — to make a point.
Seven times their net worth.
That’s my minimum.
OT - An interesting read
𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐝: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐩𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐬’ 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞-𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐜 𝐟𝐚𝐬𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐦
https://www.alternet.org/revealed-the-magat-republicans-three-step-plan-for-classic-fascism/
Disturbing, to put it at its mildest.
And yet, I can’t feel any surprise at this.
I doubt any of US are surprised, but then, how many times have we been around and around with this crap? Answer: TOO MANY TIMES!
VERY disturbing.
Because they don't have any idea of how to govern. So they'll settle for iron-fisted rule.
I wonder if they even care about actual governance or serving the people. They're too busy serving themselves.
More sleepless nights ahead....