The Philosophy of Hitler...

The Philosophy of Hitler...

Is Bush following it?

If we were to generalize about Hitler's overall philosophy, would it not be that it's "us versus them"? Would it not be that others need to be like us or be destroyed?

Does not a day go by where Bush isn't making some kind of comment about how other parts of the world are evil? Where some other part of the world needs "fixing".

Bush today advocated more "democracy" in the middle east.

Hmmmm, sounds like the kind of thing Hitler would say, doesn't it? Can any country be on the right path if all they do is criticize other countries and FORCE other countries to choose sides?

At some point, doesn't President Bush have to
talk tough to his own people? At some point, doesn't President Bush have to acknowledge that there are many flaws in the country he presides over?

At some point, Doesn't the U.S. have as much to correct as any other country on the planet?

Is it wise to re-elect a president who can only pontificate on what's wrong everywhere else in the world but not the United States?

[ August 28, 2004 05:12 AM: Message edited by: Alex ]

Wouldn't the philosophy of Hitler basicly be an agressive form of globalisation? He wanted to turn the world into one state through invasion, and, I assume, create different levels of humanity- the Aryans as the overlords, say, and the Poles as the working class. Everyone else would be in the middle, and the Jews wouldn't exist. I think that the Jews were persecuted mainly because Hitler needed someone to hate, and it was such a minority group that he could kill them all. If he had decided that the French were abominations, he couldn't have destroyed them all, mainly because there were so many of them that it would take forever, and then _no one_ would want to join his great big state.

War in Iraq.

In my opinion, the war in Iraq was a good thing, and not following the glorious tradition set forth by Hitler. While there were no Weapons of Mass Destruction, something still needed to be done. It doesn't do to have insane dictators sitting on little pockets of Hate.

Matrin Luther King said something, once, and I can't remember exactly what it was ( I have enough trouble trying to remember when WW2 started). But essentially what he said was that where one man isn't free, the freedom of all men is threatened. The people of Iraq were not free (although it is dubious as to whether they are really free at the moment, given the collapse of their society) and the Bush administration went in there to free them. They were being the International policemen, and no one in the world likes the policemen. Without them, there would be anarchy, but we all hate them while they protect us.

You could possibly say that the reason why we think that the old regime in Iraq was evil is because it is different to us. However, I don't mind forcing them to conform to our Western standards if it means that there is one less insane person sitting on a throne.

I don't think Saddam can be judged by our moral values. It's quite possible that a kinder, fairer Saddam would have resulted in a depose Saddam, perhaps even his own death, many years ago. Although I don't know Iraqi culture at all, is it possible that Governmental kindness may be confused with weakness?

If Saddam performed at the only level that would keep him in power, then his actions are no different than what it takes for George Bush to stay in power.

If you condemn one, then so should the other be also condemned. I'm not convinced that Saddam could have retained his power and been a "nicer" leader.

[ June 13, 2004 10:35 PM: Message edited by: Alex ]

[ June 20, 2004 12:37 AM: Message edited by: Alex ]

Well, this is one giant barral of monkeys, so this is going to be a frikkin huge post.
Ok, start off with Fascism. It is a mistake to say Bush this and Bush that. The American government has been becoming more fascistic every year for at least that last 24 years. Though it seems to have come to a peak in the last 4.
The basics of Fascism:
1. People are stupid, stupid sheep, with few exceptions
2. It is those people's privilage and duty to rule the others.
3. Everything is done, not for individuals, but the glory of the group(generally the nation-state)
4. Nazi
And from these come the main methods of control,
*Use Heroes and Villains. EG Axis of Evil
*Find a scapegoat to get the people riled up, EG Afganistan and especially Iraq.
And I would go on, but I really have to go, so I will have to come back later ^ ^;;
--Susano

Quote:

Originally posted by Susano:
Well, this is one giant barral of monkeys, so this is going to be a frikkin huge post.
Ok, start off with Fascism. It is a mistake to say Bush this and Bush that. The American government has been becoming more fascistic every year for at least that last 24 years. Though it seems to have come to a peak in the last 4.
The basics of Fascism:
1. People are stupid, stupid sheep, with few exceptions
2. It is those people's privilage and duty to rule the others.
3. Everything is done, not for individuals, but the glory of the group(generally the nation-state)
4. Nazi
And from these come the main methods of control,
*Use Heroes and Villains. EG Axis of Evil
*Find a scapegoat to get the people riled up, EG Afganistan and especially Iraq.
And I would go on, but I really have to go, so I will have to come back later ^ ^;;
--Susano

I'm assuming in number 2 you meant it is the elite's right and privilege to rule the masses.

The rest of it sounds an awful lot like the Republican Politicians who tried to impeach the president for getting ahead.

Quote:

Originally posted by Alex:
I don't think Saddam can be judged by our moral values. It's quite possible that a kinder, fairer Saddam would have resulted in a deposed Saddam, perhaps even his own death, many years ago. Although I don't know Iraqi culture at all, is it possible that Governmental kindness may be confused with weakness?

If Saddam performed at the only level that would keep him in power, then his actions are no different than what it takes for George Bush to stay in power.

If you condemn one, then so should the other be also condemned. I'm not convinced that Saddam could have retained his power and been a "nicer" leader.

If my memory is correct, those "edited by" notices were for grammatical errors and not content based. (and I still missed one!)

Overheard on Bill Mahrer March 11, 2006, paraphrasing here, "It really looks like it takes someone as tough as Saddam to rule Iraq."

That's what my premise was 2 3/4 years ago!

And, a teacher in Coloardo is in hot water for recently equating George Bush to Hitler while speaking to his students. Glad I'm not a teacher!

I really just wanted to print the transcript of what Jay Bennish said, but all I can find when I do a google search are blogs.

Sorry for cutting and pasting a blog, maybe Google could make a separate category for blogs so I can just get what I'm looking for without having to copy someone's blog.

--------------------------------------------------

A project of the Media Research Center

* home
* blogs
* forum
* rss
* donate
* about
* search

Home ? blogs ? Geoffrey Dickens's blog
Transcript: NBC Sympathizes With "Set Up" Leftist Teacher
Posted by Geoffrey Dickens on March 7, 2006 - 12:05.

NBC?s Today played the story of Colorado teacher Jay Bennish?s comparing Bush to Hitler as a story of academic freedom. Matt Lauer played PR man to Bennish as he played the role of humble instructor of a simple Introduction To World Geography class. But in fact Bennish was teaching an Indoctrination to Communism class as seen in the anti-capitalistic quotes Today didn't show viewers. And it?s not like Today didn?t have the time to collect the quotes or even send invites to the offended students and parents as it?s been five days since the story first broke. No instead Today devoted its first half-hour to teasing its exclusive with the teacher that compared George W. Bush to Hitler. (Mark Finkelstein had our first take here.)

Lauer opened the show: "A Colorado high school teacher suspended after he compared President Bush to Adolf Hitler but is there more to the story? This morning the teacher speaks out for the very first time right here." Lauer again at 7:21am: "Still ahead here on Today the Colorado teacher who finds himself in some hot water after a student recorded him comparing President Bush to Hitler. He says he's getting a raw deal now he's here for an exclusive interview in our next half hour."

Finally at 7:30am Mark Mullen began the setup piece to the interview: ""Analyzing the President's State of the Union speech Colorado high school teacher Jay Bennish made some provocative comments to his students about how the President defended his decision to invade Iraq. Even comparing the tone of Mr. Bush's address to an Adolf Hitler speech." Note how Mullen called the comments "provocative," and not "radical," or even just plain "liberal," but later in the piece Mullen freely applies the "conservative" label:

Mullen: "16-year-old student Sean Allen was so offended he recorded part of the lecture and played it on a conservative Denver radio talk show."

Mullen did get soundbites of Allen on a radio show as well as a representative from the school district saying Bennish was being biased but also got a soundbite from Bennish?s attorney and a pro-Bennish student leaving the impression this was a story about free speech.

[Students chanting: "Let him teach, freedom of speech..."]

Mullen: "The suspension prompted a student walk-out in protest."

[Angelica Ortega, student: "I think the teacher should be able to teach outside of the books and not just the books."]

Mullen: "And ignited a debate about free speech."

[David Lane, attorney for teacher: "What his agenda is as a teacher is to provoke his students with controversial positions on just about everything and engage them in discussion."]

The following is the entire exchange between Lauer and Bennish including Bennish?s lame attempts to portray himself as a moderate:

Lauer: "And Jay Bennish is here for his first interview. Mr. Bennish good to see you, good morning."

Jay Bennish: "Good morning."

Lauer: "You should say right off the bat I know you think that his one particular excerpt of this lesson, this lecture has been played over and over again and perhaps it's been taken out of context because this was a much longer discussion, a 50 minute class. But do you understand why there's an uproar over this?"

Bennish: "Sure of course. I mean I think it's only naturally especially the way it's been presented that people are going to be upset and in this country there's a lively democracy and people are entitled to their various opinions."

Lauer: "Is it being presented incorrectly?"

Bennish: "In my opinion, yes."

Lauer: "Alright gimme, gimme your side then before I play the tape."

Bennish: "Well the first thing I'd like to do is to say thank you so much to all of the students and my family and friends who've been so supportive to me over these past couple of weeks. It really means a lot to me to see the overwhelming students, the overwhelming number of students come out and, and, to my defense. That really means a lot."

Lauer: "And yet you're sitting here as a guy who's on paid leave so obviously the school board is investigating this closely. They want to know if you violated school policy on presenting balanced viewpoints and even intimidating students. Let me play the tape and then we can talk about it on the other side."

[Bennish on tape: "'It's our duty as Americans to use the military to go out into the world and make the world like us.' Sounds a lot like the things Adolf Hitler used to say. 'We're the only ones who are right, everyone else is backwards and it's our job to conquer the world and make sure that they all live just like we want them to.' Now I'm not saying that Bush and Hitler are exactly the same. Obviously, they're not, okay? But there are some eerie similarities to the tones that they use."]

Lauer: "Again that's one portion of a much larger discussion but you don't make statements like that without looking for a reaction. The reaction you got is it what you expected?"

Bennish: "From the students? Yes. From the national media and the attention from people all over the country? Obviously not. You know my job as a, as a teacher is to challenge students to think critically about issues that are affecting our world and our society. And you know the process of cognitive dissonance is one way to activate their minds and to get them to think about these various things."

Lauer: "As, is that role to, to take on that role as a teacher, to get students to think. Should teachers in your opinion be allowed to say anything? Pure freedom of speech."

Bennish: "I certainly think there could be some constraints to what teachers would say but everything that was discussed in the class fits within the curriculum of the class. My class syllabus clearly outlines all of the material that will be covered. This is signed by parents, this is registered with the school. It's been approved by the school."

Lauer: "Had you gotten complaints from students? Had parents called saying, 'My student is not comfortable with some of the messages you're delivering in class?'"

Bennish: "No I have not and, you know, like I, like you said and I would like to reiterate that this is 20 minutes, most people are not listening to the entire tape. And this is 20 minutes out of a 50 minute class and the rest of the class provides the balance."

Lauer: "The, the, the family here, the, the student's family didn't go to the school board with this tape. They went..."

Bennish: "They never, they never contacted me and they have still never contacted me with any type of concerns."

Lauer: "They basically shopped it around to conservative media outlets and when they finally released it to one it created an uproar and on the tape you can hear Sean Allen asking you questions that seem to be egging you on a little bit. Do you feel you were set up?"

Bennish: "Well you know the lecture initially was an introduction to world geography and we were covering very, you know stereotypical terms like mental mapping and cultural landscapes. And I was receiving questions from Sean as well as from other students trying to get me to respond to the State of the Union address that was the night before and I explained to the students that in the case of the State of the Union this is applicable to a world geography class because for many people around the world this speech might impact their lives more so than the speeches that their own, own leaders give."

Lauer: "And after the portion that we've heard you did say something else and I want to, in fairness, play that portion as well."

[Bennish on tape: "I'm not in any way implying that you should agree with me. I don't even know if I'm necessarily taking a position but what I'm trying to get you to do is to think, right, that, about these issues more in depth, you know? And not just to take things from the surface. And I'm glad you asked all your questions because they're good legitimate questions and hopefully that allowed other people to begin to think about some of those things too."]

Lauer: "So after, after, comparing Bush in loosely to Hitler and questioning the legality of the war in Iraq and, and, and stating the U.S. is one of the most violent nations on earth is that enough of a disclaimer in your opinion?"

Bennish: "Well you know like I said this is a small section of one class. You know my job as a social studies teacher is to argue alternative perspectives and viewpoints so that students are aware of those point of views. They do not necessarily reflect my own views. They are simply thrown out there to encourage critical thought so that students are aware that those views do exist in the world and that they can then contemplate them and decide to make up their own mind. And I would like to reiterate also that all of my students are encouraged to take those types of things and go home, reflect on that and look at other current events and get extra credit regardless of what their viewpoints are."

Lauer: "Let me just make a point that Sean Allen's family now says they didn't want to get you fired. They don't want you to be fired. Do you think you'll be reinstated and would you welcome Sean Allen back into your class if you are?"

Bennish: "Of course I would. Like you heard me say in the tape, you know until this all happened I really thought that Sean was asking good questions and that allowed other students to hear that particular viewpoint and you know, it just adds to the whole dynamic of, of the critical thought that was taking place."

Lauer: "Jay Bennish, Jay good to have you here. Thanks very much.

Bennish: "Thank you."

Geoffrey Dickens's blog | login or register to post comments
Categories: Katie Couric | NBC | Today
Comment viewing options
Select your preferred way to display the comments and click "Save settings" to activate your changes.
Eric Arr Says:
March 7, 2006 - 12:20

Hey Lauer -

Get the kid on there, and get the REAL story. The kid put a lot more on the line here than the teacher - this was standard operating procedure in this classroom until he was busted.

In another circumstance, say if a liberal student had recorded a conservative teacher preaching from the Bible, he would be treated as a "whistleblower," and an advocate for free thought in schools. I thought the news was supposed to "side with the less powerful," and in this case, the kid has less power than the teacher.
The student is now a marked man at any University or future educational endeavour he pursues. Mr Benning will either lose his job or will keep teaching.

login or register to post comments ?
Jack Bauer Says:
March 7, 2006 - 14:10
That is a dead-on point. What would Lauer's take be if Bennish had spent 25 minutes say, "prosletyzing" his Christian faith. And not in a reasoned way, but in a rant.

Okay -- I don't have a crystal ball, but I would suggest that this is how it probably go down.

This time Lauer has the whistle-blower student on and not the teacher. The student objects not to Bennish's faith, but to the fact that in a public school a TEACHER comes off like Martin Luther preaching hell-fire and damnation.

And that IS reasonable. So why isn't it just as reasonable for Lauer to have this kid on as well?

Why is it that liberals/leftoids always love the banal phrase "speaking truth to power", yet are more than happy to back up the powerful as represented by the TEACHER against Sean Allen's truth. Institutions like schools and their teachers hold great power over their students.

I smell MSM manure, yet again.

I'm gonna need a hacksaw

login or register to post comments ?
Joseph F. Says:
March 7, 2006 - 14:38
The fact that this student and his family shopped around the secret Bennish tape for a far-right outlet rather than go the the school board reveals much. It leaves the likes of the Sean Hannitys or Tony Snows absolutely red-faced!

login or register to post comments ?
dagda Says:
March 7, 2006 - 14:42

I have yet to see any proof that it was "shopped around." I have heard innuendos accepted as truth, but no proof. Mind supplying it?

I got very well acquainted with Joe Stalin, and I like old Joe! He is a decent fellow. Harry Truman after Potsdam Conference

login or register to post comments ?
kathleenirish Says:
March 8, 2006 - 10:27

Bold-faced biased media, what chutzpah!!!

Even if there was "proof" that the tape was "shopped" around, so what??? It wasn't doctored, it is what it is. Why can't you be real, Matt Lauer? The teacher and his rant of a "lesson" are the issue here, just try to report a little bit of the rest of the story, you total syncophant.

Thanks to everyone who posted on this site, it really helped bring me up to speed on what's going on. (been away on vacation and working on school papers). You are all brilliant...with only a few exceptions!

login or register to post comments ?
ScottyDog Says:
March 8, 2006 - 17:49

The only reason they went to talk radio is after the meeting with the Principal who basically kissed them off after Sean and his father told her about the antics of Bennish in class.

Yet Matt Lauer portrays this kid as come kind of right winged nut case that was out to get the instructor.

That is not shopping a tape that is desperation with the school system failing to take action on a valid complaint. Bennish has had previous complaints but nothing was done them according to other parents.

I hope all kids start doing this to prove that our schools have become propaganda centers for Marxism.

login or register to post comments ?
dagda Says:
March 8, 2006 - 17:54

This is from the abc channel 7 news in Denver.

Bennish had recently shaved his head for his national TV appearance and no longer looks like his yearbook picture.

Attorney David Lane had said the district planned to tell Bennish the results of its investigation at noon Wednesday. However, the school district announced on Tuesday that it had postponed its decision.

"Due to calls we have received following Mr. Bennish's appearances on television and radio (Tuesday), we have postponed our meeting tomorrow with Mr. Bennish. No new time has been scheduled and there will no news conference (Wednesday.) I cannot comment on the nature of the calls," Cherry Creek Schools spokeswoman Tustin Amole said.

She said the phone calls were "from people who have something they think may be pertinent to our investigation."

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news...02/detail.html

I got very well acquainted with Joe Stalin, and I like old Joe! He is a decent fellow. Harry Truman after Potsdam Conference

login or register to post comments ?
BD Says:
March 7, 2006 - 15:46

Do you really think the School board would do anything about it?

(I loved hearing that from the libs when the Military was investingating Abu Ghraib, finally have a chance to fire back...)

login or register to post comments ?
dagda Says:
March 7, 2006 - 15:54

Given the publicity that the case has gotten, it is likely they will do something. Not sure what it would be though. If it is a one-time thing, then maybe a day off and a letter in his file. If he has a history of doing this, then it could be worse.

I got very well acquainted with Joe Stalin, and I like old Joe! He is a decent fellow. Harry Truman after Potsdam Conference

login or register to post comments ?
BD Says:
March 7, 2006 - 15:58
Yes, but prior to the publicity, and in its absence, do you really think the School board would have done ANYTHING about it?

login or register to post comments ?
Dan The Man 2 Says:
March 7, 2006 - 16:00

Only if an influential person was to get behind the story and in an election year. In fact the incident can be used effectively to boot some of the more objectionable members. Remember politicians listen to the powerful.

Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely

login or register to post comments ?
dagda Says:
March 7, 2006 - 16:05

It probably would have been handled by the principal who would have spanked his hands and told him to be a good boy and play fair. If the principal was on the ball, then the principal would have called the student back in a couple of weeks later to make sure the improvements had taken place.

I got very well acquainted with Joe Stalin, and I like old Joe! He is a decent fellow. Harry Truman after Potsdam Conference

login or register to post comments ?
Dan The Man 2 Says:
March 7, 2006 - 16:16

The principal has bigger fish to fry, its just a hard life and ge is probably worrying more about funding, drugs and violence to keep up with this. So the best course was to expose it to the light of day and watch the vampires explode.

Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely

login or register to post comments ?
dagda Says:
March 7, 2006 - 16:23

This is the biggest thing on the principal's platter. This is the goto person for this event. No principal would not investigate. That is how principal's get fired.

I got very well acquainted with Joe Stalin, and I like old Joe! He is a decent fellow. Harry Truman after Potsdam Conference

login or register to post comments ?
Dan The Man 2 Says:
March 7, 2006 - 16:44

If this has been happening for a while then much has been swept under the rug. There are some questions, how long has Bennish been teaching there and how long has he been spewing this stuff? If the school is typical then rumors have been floating and possibly complaints also. So like a vampire until you open the coffin and expose the vampire to the light he will stalk and kill you in the darkness.

Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely

login or register to post comments ?
dagda Says:
March 7, 2006 - 16:51

According to the news, Bennish has been teaching at the school since 2000. Not sure if compliants have been lodged before. There may have been some rumors and underground complaints without the students narcing him out. Then again, complaints may have gone to the department head and not gone up the chain of command. A lot depends on the systems within the school.

I got very well acquainted with Joe Stalin, and I like old Joe! He is a decent fellow. Harry Truman after Potsdam Conference

login or register to post comments ?
gfrrman Says:
March 8, 2006 - 00:06
You, like Lauer, should get your facts straight. "Shopped around"? Where? Who?

login or register to post comments ?
Karl Rove Says:
March 8, 2006 - 05:26

He can't answer your question becuase, like a typical brain-dead leftist, he simply throws some crap up on the wall hoping it will "stick."

?Yet, there is a difference between responsible criticism that aims for success, and defeatism that refuses to acknowledge anything but failure. Hindsight alone is not wisdom, and second-guessing is not a strategy.? - President Bush

login or register to post comments ?
gfrrman Says:
March 8, 2006 - 00:19
You, like Lauer, should get your facts straight. "Shopped around"? Where? Who?

login or register to post comments ?
Jack Bauer Says:
March 8, 2006 - 05:02
HEY TEACHER, LEAVE THAT KID ALONE...

So you don't like "secret" tapes - -what ever the eff that means. Presumably had it been a teacher who was also a member of the KKK spouting racism, you'd have been more than happy. Me, I'm comfortable with both. You, I bet. are a stinking hypocrite.

The only thing revealed here is you think it's great for a representative of the state to indoctrinate children. And then, when the child complains you're happy for the power of the state, some press and some broadcast media to attempt to crush the child.

You're a real man aintcha Joseph F. (I'm assuming F. is your grade average.)

How about standing up for the kid. Too much for ya?

I'm gonna need a hacksaw

login or register to post comments ?
Karl Rove Says:
March 8, 2006 - 05:25

Yeah Jack. These brain-dead leftists had NO PROBLEM with the revelations of Nixon's secret tapes, but let some student tape an idiotic leftist teacher spewing his Bush hate, and you'd think the Republic was ending!

Oh please, and that whole "shopping the tape to right wing media outlets" is SUCH a canard. The student and his family DID offer the tape to the out-of-the-MSM media, all of whom refused to play it in its entireity, but wanted to "edit it" to make the teacher sound as good as possible (under the circumstances).

Trust me, if moveon.org came up with a tape of Bush smoking a joint in college, you think they'd go to Fox News first? Uh, no! Why, they would go SHOP IT to FAR LEFT MEDIA OUTLETS like CNN, MSNBC, the AP, ABC, NBC, and CBS!

?Yet, there is a difference between responsible criticism that aims for success, and defeatism that refuses to acknowledge anything but failure. Hindsight alone is not wisdom, and second-guessing is not a strategy.? - President Bush

login or register to post comments ?
Jack Bauer Says:
March 8, 2006 - 05:56
Karl - The story's been out a week -- and yet Lauer and NBC still have not interviewed the "source" -- Sean Allen. Instead they softball the alleged-teacher who's cut his hair and rented a tie for the occassion.

You want to see the ugly face of the bully -- see how they pile on this kid to see that. Makes me really angry.

And I bet you're the same, I'd be just as angry whatever the politics (right, left, moonbat) of a teacher who used his position of power to browbeat his students.

You know what this reminds me of -- the way the whole media press-ganged up on Paula Jones, and all those women who called out Clinton.

Speaking Truth To Power, my ass.

I'm gonna need a hacksaw

login or register to post comments ?
QueenMum Says:
March 8, 2006 - 08:10

"his family shopped around the secret Bennish tape for a far-right outlet"

I think this article provides a more balanced characterization.

Use of the words "shopped around" and "far right" makes much more of the intention of the family than is accurate, IMO.

Lesson to be learned: You can't trust the likes of Matt Lauer, et al when it comes to providing the whole story.

I also find the use of the term "secret Bennish tape" a rather laughable attempt to make the whole thing sound so sinister.

"But let me tell you, you'll never find it if you just follow the Washington media. You'll never know the good. All you get is controversy, crap and confusion." - Alan Simpson

login or register to post comments ?
SayWhat Says:
March 7, 2006 - 12:26

Lauer: "And Jay Bennish is here for his first interview. Mr. Bennish good to see you, good morning."

I'm sure Mr. Blemish will get a more polished story blaming the student as he toursMSM. After all this was only his first attempt.

The real story is he has an agenda and he got caught delivering it.

login or register to post comments ?
QueenMum Says:
March 7, 2006 - 12:42

Saw the student on H&C last night. He pretty much suggested that Mr. Bennish and his attorney were - shall we say - not being completely honest. Let's hope that the school district doesn't cave and that other students will be willing to back up Sean (that's the student - not Hannity).

I found it interesting that some reports mentioned the number of students who walked out in support of Mr. Bennish. Sean's mother said that the school principal could vouch for the fact that most of the students who walked out were just taking advantage of the opportunity to get out of class. I believe it. I saw something very similar in my own school district when a levy was being promoted. The walk-out was "organized" by adults in support of the levy and the majority of students simply saw it as an opportunity to get out of class on a nice day.

"But let me tell you, you'll never find it if you just follow the Washington media. You'll never know the good. All you get is controversy, crap and confusion." - Alan Simpson

login or register to post comments ?
semby Says:
March 7, 2006 - 12:44

Lauer: "They basically shopped it around to conservative media outlets" I don't know how this is a conservative or liberal topic. He's the President of the United States and there are no comparisons. And anyone who thinks there is, is out of his mind. Enough with this media who only give aid to those who incite violence and anger...I think Matt should stop all that "snorting".

login or register to post comments ?
Specter Says:
March 7, 2006 - 12:58
Bennish loses - Godwin's Law is now invoked. He is probably too young to remember the days of Usenet though..LOL

login or register to post comments ?
Greg Says:
March 7, 2006 - 13:09

I sent an email requesting that Today get Sean Allen (the student) on the air and chastising Today for such biased reporting. If your interested in doing the same, send comments about this biased stupidity to [email protected]oday

Semby makes great point: Why should only conservatives be offended when someone compares the President of the United States to Hitler? In a better world (without those who put politics above national interest) this would offend all Americans.

Also, Lauer's comment about "shopping it around" portrays the teacher as the victim of a conservative agenda --- THIS IS THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION STIFLING DISSENT! WE'RE LIKE A PLANTATION OR SOMETHING...! NO ONE KNOWS THAT SOME PEOPLE DO NOT AGREE WITH BUSH!!!

login or register to post comments ?
ScottyDog Says:
March 7, 2006 - 13:37

Lauer is a liar. Sean Allen did not shop the tape. In addition, this instructor has had previous complaints that were obviously left out of Lauers orchestrated defense of Bennish.

What amazes me is that it so transparent that the MSM is actually defending this guy. They know the stakes are high in that Sean Allen has exposed government schools as indoctrination centers for the DNC and Marxism.

Sean Allen provided the proof and they cannot rationalize his behavior without attacking Allen's credibility. The same old play book, attack the messenger when you have no facts on your side.

login or register to post comments ?
benrand Says:
March 7, 2006 - 13:35

Lauer is a boob, so he sees NOTHING WRONG with a 20 MINUTE harangue during a 50 MINUTE class???

"Oh, it was only 20 minutes."

Incredible. I am guessing he barely graduated HS much less went on to college.

login or register to post comments ?
dagda Says:
March 7, 2006 - 14:29

Maybe he generally goes 30 minutes on his rants, so 20 minutes was not too bad for him.

I got very well acquainted with Joe Stalin, and I like old Joe! He is a decent fellow. Harry Truman after Potsdam Conference

login or register to post comments ?
Greg Says:
March 7, 2006 - 13:41

Below is the response to my email to Today about their biased and disgraceful journalism. I'm looking forward to their promise to answer my question of why they chose to NOT air the student's story.

Thank you for contacting TODAY with Katie Couric and Matt Lauer.
We receive hundreds of E-mail messages a day, and while we read them all, we might not be able to reply to each one directly. We do want you to know that we appreciate the mail you have sent and the comments you are making about our show. We created this automated response to answer many of the frequently-asked-questions as quickly as possible. We will try to answer all other questions directly when we can. For immediate help you can always call us at (212) 664-4249.

login or register to post comments ?
Geepers Says:
March 7, 2006 - 14:14

Bennish says now:

Bennish: "Well you know the lecture initially was an introduction to world geography and we were covering very, you know stereotypical terms like mental mapping and cultural landscapes. And I was receiving questions from Sean as well as from other students trying to get me to respond to the State of the Union address that was the night before

Bennish said the day of class:

I'll give you guys another minute or two to get some of these [definitions] down. I agree with Joey. Try to condense these a little bit. I took these straight out of the dictionary.

Anyone in here watch any of Mr. Bush's [State of the Union] speech last night? I'm gonna talk a little about some of things he had to say.

Bennish is a pathetic LIAR.

login or register to post comments ?
Woody Boyd Says:
March 7, 2006 - 14:17

Amazing how the handling by the MSM is different on this story than it was on the teacher harassed and suspended for a picture of President Bush last year. Here is a quote from the School Superintendent in their press release;

Ms. Pillai-Diaz is a new Language Arts teacher in the South Brunswick Schools. Recently, the school administration began receiving complaints from students and parents that Ms. Pillai-Diaz was using her position, classroom and teaching time to engage in partisan politics. Students reported that she had made statements which denigrated one party over the other. The conversations included Ms. Pillai-Diaz telling some students who offered opinions contrary to her statements, that she was "glad they were not old enough to vote." Other comments to students, including such statements as, "you should be ashamed to be a Democrat" have been verified through student interviews.

A classroom bulletin board, normally intended for curriculum-related matters, was set up as what she herself described as a "personal bulletin board." On the bulletin board she placed a picture of the President, the President's dog, the Oval Office and several other Presidential artifacts. In addition, she placed a stuffed elephant on a classroom cabinet, which generated student reaction and discussion about partisan politics. Following receipt of complaints from parents, the Assistant Principal met with Ms. Pillai-Diaz and cautioned her not to engage in partisan political discussions in her Language Arts classes. He did not initially ask her to remove the picture of the President. As the issue grew in intensity, the teacher herself chose to remove the stuffed elephant because of student
comments.

Turns out there was not actual evidence of the classroom actions whether it be a tape or a reliable witness. It turns out it was merely insinuation by the School board and some parents.

So here is a comparable story with an opposite political component and yet I don't remember all the support for the teacher and the interviews with Lauer. I don't remember the "acceptable" excuses of "she was just challenging the students to think" or "she was simply arguing alternative perspectives".

It can be amazing to watch clear cut true media bias in action.

The source is no longer available at the Home News Tribune (a Central New Jersey paper) website, but it is available along with other links to pertinent information here

"The strength of the Constitution lies entirely in the determination of each citizen to defend it. Only if every single citizen feels duty bound to do his share in this defense are the constitutional rights secure." - A. Einstein

login or register to post comments ?
Roger the Shrubber Says:
March 7, 2006 - 14:58

Woody, where is the liberal bias? I do not see any!

That was a pre-emptive Hater/Mass Lib posting.

Man, my tongue has been so firmly planted in my cheek today they're growing together...

login or register to post comments ?
benrand Says:
March 7, 2006 - 14:30

IIRC, there was a teacher suspended for wearing a crucifix a year or so ago. My guess is that Matt Lauer and his puppetmasters were averting their eyes to that one.

I got a chance in 2004 to run into a fellow with the MEA and told him I was voting for Bush. He didn't like that answer being the good baby boomer he was and shook his head and tried to argue me down. That wasn't going to work. Later, a older woman that was also a teacher apparently came up to me at the drink cart thing and told me that he said she needed to punch me in the head.

Ahh, aren't teachers great.

login or register to post comments ?
dagda Says:
March 7, 2006 - 14:36

Wait until you have the other teachers attack you in their classroom, knowing it will get back to you. That is the most fun.

I got very well acquainted with Joe Stalin, and I like old Joe! He is a decent fellow. Harry Truman after Potsdam Conference

login or register to post comments ?
Dan The Man 2 Says:
March 7, 2006 - 15:57

I heard the entire 22 minutes and my feelings were mixed. On one hand he is right about governments in general and they will do things to protect themselves from threats perceived or current, real or imagined. He did seem to spew leftist hate Bush propaganda and his bent was clearly demonstrated to me by the gaff he made. He was trying to equate the USA with violence and related the bombs President Clinton threw around.

He started with George Clinton and then corrected himself and said Bill. To me that said it all. I would have asked him if he liked living in the USA and if he didn?t then if he was planning on leaving?soon. Of course I think Sean brought up sopme good points about Hamas and how Bennish was equating killing civilians and terrorism with the USA nad its actions.

Do you think Hater is Bennish?

Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely

login or register to post comments ?
hater Says:
March 7, 2006 - 16:00

DAN:

dear god how many times do i have to say it...i hate Bennish...he's a joke...he was out of line and should be fired...this is literally the 10th time i've posted this sentiment...just b/c he has liberal ideas doesn't mean i think he was right...furthermore, if you're going to rant, at least sound intelligent...he sounded like an idiot...

listen...there are no teams...i am not on the liberal team...i am one person with liberal beliefs...i don't share all liberal beliefs...i support the death penalty...i was for afghanistan war...

i'm pro-life (haha ok that last one was just a joke)...

login or register to post comments ?
gfrrman Says:
March 7, 2006 - 23:57
So then you are pro-death??? (ha-ha?!)

login or register to post comments ?
Karl Rove Says:
March 8, 2006 - 05:53

Just wait people: I predict a RASH of taping incidents not only in High Schools, but on College campuses as well!

Then we'll REALLY hear the radical left scream like stuck pigs!

Most young people today are NOT liberal, but are, in fact, conservative, or moderate. They certainly do not appreciate having leftist propaganda shoved down their throats when they are SUPPOSED to be learing English and other subjects totally unrelated to politics.

Check out this website:

http://www.studentsforacademicfreedom.org/

It is Students for Academic Freedom, and is dedicated to countering the leftist propaganda our young people are unfortunately subjected to.

Let everyone you know (espeically young people) find out about this web site, and how they can become active in countering lefist propaganda on campus!

?Yet, there is a difference between responsible criticism that aims for success, and defeatism that refuses to acknowledge anything but failure. Hindsight alone is not wisdom, and second-guessing is not a strategy.? - President Bush

login or register to post comments ?

I think it's the same song and dance we heard in the Cold War days.Same game different players.We were all taught about the dangers and horros of communism,how we would lose our freedom if the Reds prevailed and worst or all,horror of horrors,these Commie Heathens don't believe in God.This rhetoric was repeated every time someone questioned the Vietnam War,which as it turned out was all about $$$$$.

Now we have the same rhetoric.Those Godless Heathen Radical Muslims who hate Christians and American Freedom.If they prevail women will have to wear viels and freedom will be lost.What do we have in Iraq?Another war about $$$$.This time,though,I think it's more tranparent because Bush just isn't as bright as Nixon was.Every bit as crooked,just less smart.Somewhere in Texas a village is missing it's idiot.