Listening to the election chatter yesterday

[LWolf]

I don't have a pony in this race, so I present the following neutrally, taking no sides.

The conversation erupted yesterday in my 6th grade classroom. Sixth graders tend to parrot the politics they hear at home; few are developing independent political opinions. By 8th grade many are, but not in sixth grade. When I hear 6th graders discuss politics, I'm hearing their parents' voices behind them.

My students come from a rural christian red culture. Plenty of them still think Bush is one step away from God. A surprising number, though, are highly critical of the current resident. Demographically, the class is mostly caucasian, with about 1/4 hispanic, and a few native americans in the mix. There are no black students this year, although there have been some in previous years.

So we're studying ancient Egypt. That's 6th grade history: ancient civilizations. One student sighs and asks, "Why do we have to learn history? It's all over with anyway." I said something about repeating patterns and cycles, learning from the past, etc., and then said something about the U.S. being an infant nation, relatively speaking, at only 200+ years old.

One of my students laughed and said, "So our country still has to have its diaper changed?" Someone else said, "We're doing that this year." The rest of them looked confused, and the speaker reminded them: "the election."

That was like gasoline on a fire; political conversations erupted all over the room. I just listened for a few minutes. Here is some of what I heard.

From one person: "Obama rocks." Someone else responded, "Our country isn't ready for a black president." At which point, several cried "racist!" etc.. A few said, "I hope McCain wins. I hate Hillary and Obama." A large group started chanting "Go Hillary." A few more declared that any republican would be fine, as long as the democrats didn't win.

At this point, I restored order and we moved on, resuming the discussion the role of a regent, how Hatshepsut became a female pharoah, and what Thutmose III did to take the throne, so to speak, from his stepmother.

I never did point out to them that they'd compared their president to a dirty diaper. It would have been hard to stay neutral at that point.

[On the Road]

1. Well That is Great --

Thank you for sharing that.

Kids say the funniest things about politics. A long time ago, I was explaining to my daughter that the term "giant sucking sound" was coined by Ross Perot describing the effects of NAFTA. She asked: "Did he make a sound effect?"

That would have been truly memorable.

[LWolf]

2. Heh.

It certainly would have been.

:hi:

[babylonsister]

3. How astute of that student to recognize the diaper is being

changed this year. I'm impressed! Now, I'd like to hear from the 8th graders. :D

[LWolf]

4. I'll keep an ear open, lol.

:hi:

[babylonsister]

5. Thanks!

:hi:

[Peace Patriot]

6. Dirty diaper! Har-har! That kid is headed for higher office! I'd vote for him/her!

I'll bet it was a girl. Despite a hundred years of feminism (ten thousand years, if you really count every move forward), girls still get stuck with changing their younger siblings' dirty diapers. Guess it could've been a boy, though, cuz he remembers standing far away and going "e-e-ew!" while mom or big sis did the work.

Am I being sexist? Yeah, but that's how it was in my family - I'm the oldest sis. To whom would that analogy spring to mind?

But whatever the sex of this brilliant mind - I've never heard a more apt analogy for politics in our infant empire!

[LWolf]

7. It was a boy.

:hi: