We have precedent aplenty:

@sarahposner.bsky.social wrote about it in Unholy, and I have a chapter in my 2015 Other School Reformers:

It's been a long road for Heritage. In their very first public outing in 1975, defending book boycotters (and school bombers) in WV, Heritage split over the same issue: Whether or not to share files and cooperate with the Ku Klux Klan.

Back then, the non-cooperate faction won.

One sobering lesson from the 20th century: It's not easy to cross over.

Walter Fremont was the Dean of Ed at arch-conservative Bob Jones University. He tried and kinda succeeded at promoting what we'd call "classical" learning.

But the A Beka folks accused him of being influenced by John Dewey.

In spite of Kurtz's cynical fail, I do think there's a large middle ground out there of self-described 'conservatives' and 'progressives' who all want their children to have a different kind of education, an education that digs deep into foundational ideas and builds real critical-thinking skills.

Agree in principle, but Kurtz's claim is way off. He says things have been anti-Western Civ for "two generations" now.

That's what Bill Bennett said in the 1980s; Max Rafferty said in the 1960s; William J Bryan said in the 1920s.....

It's a straw man. Vapid + only provocative.

It's always the tell: What kind of school do they want for other people's children? Is it what they want for their own kids?

adamlaats.net/2018/05/09/t...

Same. I am honestly surprised at the extent of efforts to revive the reputation of Joe McCarthy. There is no doubt he was opportunistic, narcissistic, and irresponsible. Even if you share his basic outlook.

Why not try to purge him from the record of conservative anti-communism?

Okay one more and then I'll drop it I swear.

Less surprising to see these standards explain the failed Bay of Pigs invasion in hard-to-understand terms. Just a "cancellation of US air support."

Good question. I don't know why it doesn't. It DOES include Martin Dies and Hamilton Fish by name, and insists on teaching that the work of committees like HUAC was heroic and necessary.

Plus there's nothing slanderous about the phrase "Red Scare." It's just what happened in the 20th century.

FL's right wing is terrified and butthurt that children are learning about the drunken depredations of Joe McCarthy and other right-wing excesses in the past.

Just watch: In 2075 Florida right-wingers are going to propose new history standards--forcing teachers to tell students to stop using "Trumpism" and "MAGA" as insults, as synonyms for racism, corruption, and unhinged Oval Office narcissism.

My first guess what that the NYT was influenced too much by people like Peter Wood of NAS who attacked Bowdoin so relentlessly.

But K-12 schools have been attacked at least as viciously and as unfairly, especially name-brand high schools like Bronx Science. Why didn't NYT mention that?