On The Whole, I'd Rather Be In Philadelphia

Philadelphia, or Oakland, or anyplace besides Texas, as long as I'm going to be a teacher. On Friday, the Texas Board of Education succeeded where so many others have failed: They turned back the clock. And not just for a few minutes, but for years to come. Teachers in Texas will now be required to cover the Judeo-Christian influences of the nation's Founding Fathers, but not highlight the philosophical rationale for the separation of church and state. The U.S. government will be described as a "constitutional republic," rather than "democratic."
In addition to learning the Bill of Rights, the board specified a reference to the Second Amendment right to bear arms in a section about citizenship in a U.S. government class. Carrying guns to class is still against the rules, however. On the other hand, conservatives beat back multiple attempts to include hip-hop as an example of a significant cultural movement. There was little discussion about whether to include the distinction between Old Country and New Country.
There were numerous attempts to add the names or references to important Hispanics throughout history. These were denied, inducing one amendment that would specify that Tejanos died at the Alamo alongside Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie. Everybody knows John Wayne didn't fight for us to have a bunch of Hispanics in our textbooks. He was an American.
As debate became futile late Thursday night, the Democratic members of the board sensed the futility and left, leaving Republicans to easily push through amendments heralding "American exceptionalism" and the U.S. free enterprise system, suggesting it thrives best absent excessive government intervention. Just like editing textbooks, I guess.