\doc\web\97\07\environ.txt Educating Our Children and Envrionmental Activism By Dr. Charles Bolgiano: Advisor for Environmental Affairs to The Lincoln Heritage Institute. The Lincoln Heritage Institute, is submitting the following article on the dangerous activities of environmental activist in our public education classrooms. If you would like the full article, please contact C. Drago at the Institute by e-mail at LHIboard@aol.com or by fax at 517-663-5245 Educating Our Children and Envrionmental Activism By Dr. Charles Bolgiano: Advisor for Environmental Affairs to The Lincoln Heritage Institute. EDITOR'S NOTE: This article is excerpted from an Article in the current issue of the ADDRESS, a Lincoln Heritage Institute periodical. Two issues, the environment and education, occupy the interest of the majority of Americans more than any other two topics. Coupling such concerns with the differing interests of vested environmental groups, both liberal and conservative, has rung the bell of alarm among educators, parents and protectors of quality-education. Critics are saying that too much fear and too few facts have brought the weight of the world on the shoulders of our children. Environmental messages aimed at children in the classroom deliberately predict excessive doom and disaster, and promote concepts of anti-individualism and anti-business. There is a vacuum for accurate information in the classroom to address children's concerns about the health of the planet. Instead, extremists have seized upon the education process to thwart a balanced discussion and presentation of environmental issues. In 1990, President George Bush signed the National Environmental Education Act that gave environmental activist school teachers the tools they needed to create "politically correct" students when it comes to environmentalism. The Problem with programs implemented by many states becuase of this act is that control over the curriculum was undefined and environmental zealots celebrated knowing they now had the upper hand along with education liberals that were already in place in the school system. Similar scenarios developed in other states. The liberal Goals 2000 and Outcome Based Education supporters had exactly what was needed to further pursue "politically correct" liberal curricula. "Many of those who shape the environmental curriculum believe that the purpose of liberal environmentalists is not to weigh conflicting facts, values, aid theories, but to instill a sense of crisis." writes Jo Kwong, a Virginia parent and business consultant. Not to be denied is a growing group of MOMS who call themselves the "Kitchen Militia". Armed with alarming documents and information on Outcome-based Education(OBE), Goals 2000 and other socialist or eletist education programs that threaten to dumb down our children or subject them to behavior modification, the "Kitchen Militia" is focusing in on bringing some truth and awareness to the forefront. They partially blame gloom and doom, crisis driven environmental taechings as cause for once-happy children becoming rebellious, angry, quiet and withdrawn once they are released from home into the public education system. Parents, educators, and politicians must make the issue of fact-and-not-myth the standard and guideline in teaching environmental science at all grade levels. If it can't be supported by scientific fact, it's not science and must not be used. ------- To subscribe to c-news, send the message SUBSCRIBE C-NEWS, or the message UNSUBSCRIBE C-NEWS to unsubscribe, to majordomo@world.std.com. Contact owner-c-news@world.std.com if you have questions.