American History
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benjymous wrote: Yeah, it just bothers me that the average joe will be far more likely to watch the latest hollywood blockbuster, than sit and watch the documentary channels on TV (and so we'll end up with generations of people with an utterly unreal sense of history) Is history no longer taught in schools? I believe a person would pretty mindless to accept something on TV/Movie in preference to a history book. Hell, I love PBS and the history channel but I often find myself questioning even these sources. I can recall one PBS show where they were dead wrong. People need to be responsible for themselves. If they are simply too foolish to actually participate in their own education then they get what they deserve. Bunch of simpleton cry babies. If there wasn't a demand for the senseless crud that are most movies, the movie studios wouldn't produce them. Fill me with your knowledge, your wisdom, your coffee.
Well, at least here in the UK, History is taught as standard at highschool, but it's only an option for the last 2 years (so it doesn't have to be chosen). Primary school teachers are too busy making sure all the key skill national curriculum stuff is taught to be able to go into much historical stuff, so basically, unless they actively choose to study history, most kids will only get 3 years of history lessons max. My history teacher had the opinion that people don't really gain the ability of true independant thought until their mid teens, and so can't really comprehend history until they reach the point where many drop it. (When you consider that all history is, is just lots of mismatching opinions, which you need to sift yourself to truely understand, then this viewpoint makes quite a bit of sense) -- Help me! I'm turning into a grapefruit!
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Well, at least here in the UK, History is taught as standard at highschool, but it's only an option for the last 2 years (so it doesn't have to be chosen). Primary school teachers are too busy making sure all the key skill national curriculum stuff is taught to be able to go into much historical stuff, so basically, unless they actively choose to study history, most kids will only get 3 years of history lessons max. My history teacher had the opinion that people don't really gain the ability of true independant thought until their mid teens, and so can't really comprehend history until they reach the point where many drop it. (When you consider that all history is, is just lots of mismatching opinions, which you need to sift yourself to truely understand, then this viewpoint makes quite a bit of sense) -- Help me! I'm turning into a grapefruit!
benjymous wrote: ...so can't really comprehend history until they reach the point where many drop it.... Now that is a sad irony. Fill me with your knowledge, your wisdom, your coffee.
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Yeah, it just bothers me that the average joe will be far more likely to watch the latest hollywood blockbuster, than sit and watch the documentary channels on TV (and so we'll end up with generations of people with an utterly unreal sense of history) -- Help me! I'm turning into a grapefruit!
it just bothers me that the average joe will be far more likely to watch the latest hollywood blockbuster I hear this kind of talk from alot of different people. Who is this average joe? Why do so many people think they are far and away more educated and knowledgable than 99% of their population? I would tend to believe most people understand movies are just entertainment. People certainly have moments of stupidity, but the majority of their day isn't spent wallowing in it. BW "I'm coming with you! I got you fired, it's the least I can do. Well, the least I could do is absolutely nothing, but I'll go you one better and come along!" - Homer J. Simpson
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it just bothers me that the average joe will be far more likely to watch the latest hollywood blockbuster I hear this kind of talk from alot of different people. Who is this average joe? Why do so many people think they are far and away more educated and knowledgable than 99% of their population? I would tend to believe most people understand movies are just entertainment. People certainly have moments of stupidity, but the majority of their day isn't spent wallowing in it. BW "I'm coming with you! I got you fired, it's the least I can do. Well, the least I could do is absolutely nothing, but I'll go you one better and come along!" - Homer J. Simpson
Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that the average joe can't tell the difference between a movie and a factual documentary - I'm just saying when sitting down after a tiring day at work, most people I know (including myself) would much rather watch a movie than a couple of hours of documentaries. This is fine for the people who can understand the difference, but any children in the household may be too young and naive to be able to -- Help me! I'm turning into a grapefruit!
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Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that the average joe can't tell the difference between a movie and a factual documentary - I'm just saying when sitting down after a tiring day at work, most people I know (including myself) would much rather watch a movie than a couple of hours of documentaries. This is fine for the people who can understand the difference, but any children in the household may be too young and naive to be able to -- Help me! I'm turning into a grapefruit!
So, if I get you right... Your concern is that children aren't learning enough unbiased history, to even see when something is bogus or not. I've no doubt this happens, but isn't it the parents responsiblility to clear this up? I don't think we learn enough history for certain, but I was taught enough in school and home to get the general feel for the past. It was all from a very Euro-American perspective however, ignoring very much of Africa, Asia, and Australia. So I suppose there was a great chance then that I would have watched movies regarding these regions and ended with a warped sense of them, having nothing factual to compare to. BW "I'm coming with you! I got you fired, it's the least I can do. Well, the least I could do is absolutely nothing, but I'll go you one better and come along!" - Homer J. Simpson
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it just bothers me that the average joe will be far more likely to watch the latest hollywood blockbuster I hear this kind of talk from alot of different people. Who is this average joe? Why do so many people think they are far and away more educated and knowledgable than 99% of their population? I would tend to believe most people understand movies are just entertainment. People certainly have moments of stupidity, but the majority of their day isn't spent wallowing in it. BW "I'm coming with you! I got you fired, it's the least I can do. Well, the least I could do is absolutely nothing, but I'll go you one better and come along!" - Homer J. Simpson
Have you ever watch the Tonight Show when they ask people questions on the street? Or the show "Street Smarts"?
Jason Henderson
start page ; articles henderson is coming henderson is an opponent's worst nightmare * googlism * -
Jason Henderson wrote: The NY Times is a P.O.S. newspaper with biases heavily toward the left of the political spectrum. yes, and we all know how purely evil a bias is. ;P
A conclusion is simply the place where someone got tired of thinking.
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Have you ever watch the Tonight Show when they ask people questions on the street? Or the show "Street Smarts"?
Jason Henderson
start page ; articles henderson is coming henderson is an opponent's worst nightmare * googlism *I love those skits. :laugh: They're hilarious, although a bit embarrassing. How long does it take them to find the people for the show or skit? Do you always know the right answer to their questions immediately? I don't. I screw them up sometimes. I feel like a moron, but I do screw them sometimes. I can imagine if a TV crew and Jay Leno came up to ask me I'd might screw even more than normal. A better judge is the people you watch those shows with. Chances are they know the majority of the answers. Believe me you aren't the only person blessed with friends or family who have some intelligence. BW "I'm coming with you! I got you fired, it's the least I can do. Well, the least I could do is absolutely nothing, but I'll go you one better and come along!" - Homer J. Simpson
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Without you I would really desespair from Americans :rolleyes: :laugh:
A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral. Antoine de Saint-Exupery (1900-1944)
That figures! :-D "Any clod can have the facts, but having opinions is an art." Charles McCabe, San Francisco Chronicle
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That figures! :-D "Any clod can have the facts, but having opinions is an art." Charles McCabe, San Francisco Chronicle