Quote:
Originally Posted by photon
I agree, and there's a big difference between having society dictate what's taught in schools to children and enforcing what's right thinking for society in general.
The question is does society have any right at all to interfere with what parents teach their children? Society DOES interfere with what parents DO to their children, even something like emotional abuse. I can think of things that a parent could teach a child that I would consider abuse.
I personally wouldn't suggest that parents should not be allowed to teach their children creationist nonsense on their own time. I guess I wouldn't say that parents should not be allowed to teach their kids that the earth is flat either. But what about teaching their kids that gays are evil? Teaching their kids that blacks are inferior? Teaching their kids that the holocaust was a good thing that didn't go far enough? Teaching their kids that women need a good smack now and then to keep them in line?
Some of those things I would consider child abuse if a parent taught to their child. The problem is quantifying it, if you can't define it, can't quantify it, you can't make decisions and actually do anything about it.
Is it just the cost of living in a free society? Parents are free to transfer the evil ideas (and thus evil behaviours) to the next generation just like the good ones.
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The ones you high lighted i would agree are child abuse. The thing is that would be pretty clear with most people. Teaching someone creation is not going to harm them or make them out to be evil..