Comments | pan_alchemist: Are people really this stupid?

pan_alchemist

Are people really this stupid?

Jan 30, 2010 14:53

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So apparently the California School District actually banned the Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary because some kid stumbled upon the word 'oral sex'. You can read about it hereNow if it were a picture dictionary, I could see what all the hype was about. But honestly, the definition in the dictionary for said term is not decorated or ( Read more... )

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Comments 8

auntypsycho January 30 2010, 07:57:05 UTC

To me this seems like normal behaviour in a child . The first thing we always did when we got a new dictionary (either in the house or at school) was to look up all the naughty words (the pages were always well worn on words like sex and in the areas of swear words!) and that was from the age of about 8 onwards (we even did it as teenagers!!!) . To ban a dictionary because it has naughty words in it??? PPFFTT!! The Victorians will be cheering in their graves!!

pan_alchemist January 30 2010, 10:03:40 UTC

Yeah! I thought it was pretty normal too. When I was a kid, I used to use the dictionary to figure out what the other kids were talking about when it came to the naughtier things. (I came from a rather sheltered environment.) And I can't say it has done me any harm. If nothing else, it helped teach me the value of a reliable source for information...

LOL on the Victorians!

(Missed you in chat this morning!)

auntypsycho January 30 2010, 10:05:24 UTC

Sorry I wasn'ty in chat ... we had an emotional day yesterday ... I'm gonna make a post about it all soon ... it's just still very raw at the moment

pan_alchemist January 30 2010, 10:06:22 UTC

Sorry to hear that. It doesn't sound good. I hope everything is all right.

uk_sef January 30 2010, 09:10:58 UTC

I am afraid to say that no works of literature are safe.
Indeed, such places have long had a banned books list. The recent example which came up elsewhere was Anne Frank's Diary (eg a few links).

pan_alchemist January 30 2010, 10:05:50 UTC

Thanks for that. Now I am going to have to reread Anne Frank to make sure I read the uncensored version at school, because I wouldn't put anything past the old Apartheid government as far as banning books went. (They banned Black Beauty because of the title. They didn't even know it was about a horse!)

gowdie January 30 2010, 20:18:19 UTC

However, some families are supporting the schools, saying that it is up to the district to do everything it can to shield children from explicit language.

Oh ha ha ha! I suppose the only next logical step to achieve this will be to also ban the other 20-29 children in the class. Good luck with that, parents.

Personally, I think that the school, an institute that is supposed to understand children and the development process, should tell these concerned parents to get over themselves and realise that their children are growing up. They can't stay toddlers forever.I completely agree. Unfortunately, we live in a time when parents believe they own the school - and as a result, it isn't the case. And some parents are insane, wanting to keep their child in a complete bubble, and in the end all you can do is pity them, and what their life will be like when the kid is 16 ( ... )

pan_alchemist January 31 2010, 04:55:08 UTC

Oh ha ha ha! I suppose the only next logical step to achieve this will be to also ban the other 20-29 children in the class. Good luck with that, parents.Oh that is sooo true! Because kids learn most, if not all, their bad language from the other kids at school or from tv ( ... )