Mr. Taft Wrote:
Donn wants to "educate" or change people's minds to objectivism...I never said I want to force Christianity down people's throats. If they won't listen to me, fine.
I chose the teaching profession, and I did so against the wishes of my father. I have been teaching successfully for 21 years and have never regretted my decision. I have always taught for the public school system, where no one is turned away. I have had every possible “kind of student” in my class: gifted and intellectually challenged; black and white, red, yellow, and brown; rich and poor and homeless; Jews, Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Taoists...you name it! You talk about making education available to everyone. I actually live it!
You, Mr. Taft, sat in my AP Government class for five months. You know what I do; yet when you refer to me in your correspondence with Emptying Guilt, you cynically place the word educate in quotes. I suppose if I had stood before the class spouting the bromides of the faithful, my teaching would have met your approval and you would dignify me by calling me an “educator.”
Of course I want everyone I encounter to know about Objectivism. It saved my life after 32 years of devout Christianity, unquestioned faith, irrationality, guilt, and self-destructive behavior. But, I require no followers, no disciples, and people who disagree with me in my class are never punished. I do not require your approval or acceptance. As you have every right to tell people about Jesus, I have a right to tell people about Ayn Rand. Of course, I think Rand’s thinking is better than Jesus.’ It is my right [and yours] to make judgments about what is good and what is evil.
Through my blog and in my classroom I explain what it means to be a free man. A free man owns his life, owns his thinking, owns his success or failure. I teach people to take care of themselves and to do no harm to others. I teach people that they have no duty to make sacrifices for others and no right to demand others make sacrifices to them.
I teach only what IS. Nothing I teach requires anyone to make a leap of faith. It is not a religion or static doctrine of any kind. I teach individualism, science, human thinking, reason, rationality... secular ideas, and I do it in a most appropriate setting: a public school. Mr. Taft... Why is it that you and your congregation, those who claim to love humanity so much, hate man’s mind, human thinking?
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3 comments:
Hey, Mr. Sierra. Reading through this, I feel like something I had written may be taken the wrong way or offended you. When I put the word "educate" in parentheses, I wasn't attacking your way of teaching or implying that what you were doing actually isn't educating. I put the word in parentheses because I wanted to point out something to Chris. He stated "How in the hell can you say you are a huge proponent of free will, when you want to "educate" or change someones mind to your views?". I was trying to point out that everyone tries to persuade others, or show their own points of view. You are an educator. I had offered education earlier as a solution (I know you didn't agree with it, but I had thrown it out there), so I was just pointing out that in your teaching you presented you philosophy, defended it, and did your best to discredit other philosophies and other ways of thinking. It's quite obvious that you are a proponent of free will, but that doesn't keep you from persuading. That was the only point I was trying to make. I'm sorry if I may have offended you.
Don't be silly, Eric. Of course I'm not offended. One who assaults the sensibilities of others as often as I do must be able to take a punch. You have every right to express your views, however much I disagree. That’s what I do. What else would I be posting right now?
Just finished a heated exchange with the Yellow Dog a few days ago. He tracked me down on Face Book to pick another fight. He finally found his arguments on my blog and gave me a rash of shet, accusing me of “stealing his intellectual property.” What a joke. I’ll let all of my readers in on his stupidity as soon as we’re through.
So, no more apologies.Throw your best punches, Eric. And please call me Donn.
And, by the way, I do agree education is the solution. Where we disagree is on what curriculum to teach. Altruism got us here one sacrificial lamb at a time; only egoism can get us out. Why do you refuse to be persuaded to reason? Why do you persist in your efforts to find the appropriate tree from which to let them hang you?
"Why do you persist in your efforts to find the appropriate tree from which to let them hang you?"
I guess I'm just a sucker for nature.
Haha- just kidding, Donn. It's only a few weeks before AP scores come back. I've got to tell you- I'm really excited about it. I'll let you know as soon as I get them.
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