Election Day 2010 is fast approaching and I still don't know which candidates I'm voting for this year -- or should I say which candidates I'm voting against? Because truely, based on the campaign ads I've seen and heard and read this election year, I couldn't begin to tell you even one plank in the platform of any of the candidates for either major party.
I can tell you, however, that Richard Blumenthal lied about his service in Vietnam; that WWE's Linda McMahon apparently wears chains, not pearls, when not engaged in public debate; that Dan Malloy drove the city of Stamford to financial ruin; while Tom Foley single-handedly shut down a Georgia town. I can tell you, in short, that in Connecticut, at least, this has been the dirtiest campaign year in my memory -- which is not short. These are campaigns rife with personal attacks and all-out efforts to make one's opponent look venal or stupid or confused or corrupt using only innuendo, half-truths, and outright lies. I know I live in Connecticut -- the home of John Rowland and Eddie Perez and Joe Ganim and Philip Giordano -- but I've never been quite as ashamed of my state as I have during the current election.
So you can understand why a recent email from RaceBridges for Schools caught my eye. The RaceBridges For Schools site, an outgrowth of a Chicago project called Catholic Schools Opposing Racism (COR), provides classroom tools to help kids explore issues regarding racial justice and inclusive behavior. The site's highlighted topic this month is "Disagreeing Without Being Disagreeable: The Search for Civility."
Wow! That's going to be a tough search in Connecticut this year, but maybe it's a search we can facilitate in the future if we use some of these RaceBridges For Schools resources today:
* Classroom Activities
* Resources
* Lesson Plan Ideas
* A Checklist for Teachers
* Reflections
I can tell you, however, that Richard Blumenthal lied about his service in Vietnam; that WWE's Linda McMahon apparently wears chains, not pearls, when not engaged in public debate; that Dan Malloy drove the city of Stamford to financial ruin; while Tom Foley single-handedly shut down a Georgia town. I can tell you, in short, that in Connecticut, at least, this has been the dirtiest campaign year in my memory -- which is not short. These are campaigns rife with personal attacks and all-out efforts to make one's opponent look venal or stupid or confused or corrupt using only innuendo, half-truths, and outright lies. I know I live in Connecticut -- the home of John Rowland and Eddie Perez and Joe Ganim and Philip Giordano -- but I've never been quite as ashamed of my state as I have during the current election.
So you can understand why a recent email from RaceBridges for Schools caught my eye. The RaceBridges For Schools site, an outgrowth of a Chicago project called Catholic Schools Opposing Racism (COR), provides classroom tools to help kids explore issues regarding racial justice and inclusive behavior. The site's highlighted topic this month is "Disagreeing Without Being Disagreeable: The Search for Civility."
Wow! That's going to be a tough search in Connecticut this year, but maybe it's a search we can facilitate in the future if we use some of these RaceBridges For Schools resources today:
* Classroom Activities
* Resources
* Lesson Plan Ideas
* A Checklist for Teachers
* Reflections
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