Thursday, April 22, 2010

The Story of Your Stuff

If you aren't the parent of an elementary school child or an elementary school teacher, then you probably haven't heard of Annie Leonard's video, "The Story of Stuff."
The Story of Stuff is a teaching tool - distributed throughout public grade schools - designed to bring environmental and Marxist ideas into children's classrooms disguised as a discussion on economics and ethics. No, that's not hyperbole.
Today being Earth Day, many schools will be airing this video to their students, and many of the concepts Leonard preaches will be blasted throughout all forms of media today to their parents (and the rest of us, as well).
The problem with Leonard's video isn't only that it attacks Americanism, innovation and industry. The problem is that it does so through lies and misinformation. Again, that's not hyperbole. Many of Leonard's claims regarding the environment, the government, capitalism and consumerism are easily disproven, and yet are still presented to students as truth.
Below I have embedded the first part of a critique of her video and these falsehoods, such as:
  • Over 50% of US tax dollars go towards the military (which is why we're all rich, right?)
  • Only 4% of American forests still exist
  • 99% of products are trashed within 6 months
  • Indigenous peoples in third world countries are better off in native poverty than they are in having foreign investors come and provide job opportunities
  • The government, corporations and media have all been working together for the last 50 years in a conspiracy to train us to hate ourselves and find comfort in materialism.
Yes, all those topics and more are explicitly stated in the video.
And are being fed to our schoolchildren. It is absolutely unacceptable that provable falsehoods be taught in the classroom.
There are four parts in total. This is just the first.
I promise, you want to watch the following 3 parts as well. And after you've watched, be sure and share this video.
If you repeat a lie loud enough and often enough, the people will believe it" ~ Joseph Goebbels

3 comments:

The Independent Rage said...

I linked to you just now on The Fabulous Tigerboard.com Politics Board. Hope you don't mind (you'll get a few extra page views, what the hell). We also have a "JG" over there, although I don't think the two of you would appreciate each other too much.

The Independent Rage said...

Dude, the other "JG" from Tigerboard.com's Politics Board seems to have officially called you out this evening (link below). But I warn you, I'm not sure you want any part of the world that you would be entering! ;)

http://www.tigerboard.com/boards/missouri-tigers.php?message=7543079

Porcupinetaxi said...

You nailed her a** to a tree there! Good job of keeping it real!