@chuckfinley22
John Brown fan, historian of Reconstruction & Lost Cause education, HS teacher of history & political science. 2× alumnus IU. Enemy of nostalgia. Long-suffering Chicago Bears fan. Army vet. Heavy metal enthusiast.
Who could possibly have foreseen that war on Iran would (a) make Iran retaliate by closing the strait of Hormuz, which (b) could disrupt world oil markets, enriching Russia and penalizing most everyone else?
Who, indeed, except EVERYONE WHO HAS EVER THOUGHT FOR ONE MINUTE about the situation.
God, this conflict with Iran just feels so incredibly heavy
Like a weight you carry around with you all day long. It all just feels too stupidly familiar.
I wonder if this is how Vietnam vets felt in 2003
Just a reminder that Muslims have been on this continent since the first arrival of non-Indigenous people. They were among the first generation of Americans, and have been here ever since.
Yes, they’ve trivialized antisemitism by using it to mean things that they don’t like, like college campuses, enabling them to be actual antisemites while avoiding criticism.
NBC’s Richard Engel: “The White House meme campaign is outraging many former US military commanders… they say only someone who has never really seen combat would think it’s a joke and put out material like this.”
Enlistment is now part of the slogan for the new Indiana graduation requirements.
Our seniors who cannot pass the SAT have to take the ASVAB. There has even been talk that for some, graduation may eventually hinge on enlisting.
This is paired with a state government push to de-emphasize college.
The amount of mental discipline it takes to refrain from comments that would blow up my wife's dynamic with her family would give me a stroke if not for the meds I take because of my service experiences.
My RBF game is strong, however, and I can sigh in such a way that my displeasure is clear.
2/2
At a birthday party listening to my 17 year old nephew talk about how awesome war movies are, and his Maga dad agreeing with him. Both praise what's happening in Iran as the right thong to do.
Neither would ever consider actually serving, but it sure seems fun to watch.
1/2
So am I, but I teach history and politics, so I'm talking about it all the damn time.
They've now killed four people -- three U.S. citizens and a Mexican national. They've shot several more.
They've lied about all of them. They haven't shaded the truth. They haven't "misled" us. They've brazenly, knowingly lied while in possession of the evidence disproving their lies.
Gosh, who coulda foreseen this?
(Hint: literally anyone, ever)
Our troops are dying this isn’t a video game. The White House is posting so-called “hype” videos that mix real footage from the war in Iran with clips from movies and video games like Call of Duty. It’s an absolute disgrace.
Iraq did this to me. I realized as I attended multiple funerals & was aware of many more, that nobody making decisions cared.
I looked forward to the end of my enlistment more than just about anything else in my life because I knew I'd at least be safe from politicians playing games with my life.
Their so-called “Big Beautiful” bill cuts $3b from student lunch programs for 10 years, leaving 12 million kids hungry.
Meanwhile, the Center for American Progress estimates at least $5b in direct costs in few days of war, aircraft losses, munitions and calls that a conservative.
Are we great yet?
So this excuse isn’t going to work anymore.
#pairedtexts
This is insane. Trying to convince these young people to embrace becoming cannon fodder.
www.rawstory.com/military-267...
It didn't fail. It was defeated by Northern white apathy and racism combined with Southern white supremacy.
John Daly wrote an excellent book titled The War After the War that addresses this exact topic.
Unfortunately, we don't teach this well due to the Lost Cause.
I think about this Tony Benn speech much more than I used to
Exactly why I left the army after only 12 years and currently hesitate to recommend/support students who think about joining.
My chief frustration in politics at all levels has always been the overwhelming apathy of the privileged
The people who sit back & ignore the fray because they know that any & all outcomes will not affect them
The is the state of the US Congress
Their apathy will be their undoing
And yours
I came from a poor working-class family. Every enlisted person I served with, every recruit I trained, every soldier that I had some connection to that was maimed or killed in Iraq was from a lower middle-, or working-class background.
We're the expendables.
The reason I became a teacher is because I had teachers like this.
The reason I approach teaching the way I do is because I had professors like this who cared enough to push me further than I thought I could go.
I tell my students all the time that knowledge matters more than standardized tests.
This seems to be how the 'Mississippi Miracle' manifests as well: two decades of shaky growth in 4th grade scores that don't show up *at all* in 8th grade.
Are curriculum/literacy policies and practices designed to get 3rd graders to pass a test or actually create readers?
From the full report:
"Despite the regular comprehension HQIM use and focus...in 67% of the lessons, teachers and students engaged in work (i.e., instruction, engagement, and activity) that only facilitated students’ surface-level understanding of texts."
www.sri.com/wp-content/u...
Just saying, but when people are trying to do everything they can to prevent you from voting, that’s when you absolutely need to vote.
Ready to make this the biggest midterm turnout in history?
Finally, good news in this maelstrom of shit.
A former student reached out to let me know her father finally got his green card & permanent resident status.
Her mom is still waiting, but this is progress.
We've both spent the past year worried about it, so this is a relief.
Attacking Iran is of course a bad idea.
1) Yes, the US would beat the Iranian military, but it would NOT be the relative cakewalk we saw in Iraq
2) We’ve already proven we have nothing for the period after we beat their military; we’d lose again
3) Fucking why? What’s to be gained? (Rhetorical)
honestly, plaintively begging people to think about power when they think about politics
politics is not about being right, it's not about justice - that's what *our* politics is about, but politics as such is about who has power, and how much. if we don't have power, things we want will not happen
