• JasonDJ@lemmy.zip
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    1 month ago

    force fed the bible.

    Dude…I was talking to my 5yo today. They’ve learned the pledge of allegiance in kindergarten.

    He recited it, perfectly, verbatim.

    I cringed slightly at the “under God” part, as I’m a devout atheist (though we’ve barely mentioned religion at all to the kids).

    Once he was done I asked him if he knows what any of it means.

    “No. But I can say the whole thing!”

    Smh.

    • wieson@feddit.org
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      1 month ago

      I cringed at the part “pledge of allegiance” and then again at “kindergarten”.

      Americans don’t realise how north Korea style that is.

      • Metz@lemmy.world
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        1 month ago

        Couple of years back i stumbled over this video, which i as a german think is absolutely fucked up: https://youtu.be/DjX7zoFrd7g?si=6BtMIxqTxtdAYHvi

        Quote from the Wiki about the “Young Marines”

        The creed that every Young Marine lives by is:

        • Obey my parents and all others in charge of me whether young or old.
        • Keep myself neat at all times without other people telling me to.
        • Keep myself clean in mind by attending the church of my faith.
        • Keep my mind alert to learn in school, at home, or at play.
        • Remember that having self-discipline will enable me to control my body and mind in case of an emergency.

        Its absolute insane what they do to this kids: https://www.instagram.com/means_tv/reel/C7T93trOtg3/

        • Enkrod@feddit.org
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          1 month ago

          Fellow german here, if you want even worse ick, look for “Jesus Camp” on YouTube.

      • CascadianGiraffe@lemmy.world
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        1 month ago

        Oh we do. We often recognize it while still in school. But you learn quickly you are not allowed to question it. If you don’t follow orders, you will be disciplined.

    • whoisearth@lemmy.ca
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      1 month ago

      Reminds me of when I had to have a meeting with the school about some additional speech therapy for my daughter. It was in the morning and cut to the Canadian Anthem playing. Everyone stopped what they were doing and stood up for the anthem. Fucking weirded the shit out of me. I’m 47 and born and raised Canadian. Standing or reciting anything blindly as a group is fucking weird.

    • Lemminary@lemmy.world
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      1 month ago

      I was, um, gently informed by a teacher once that you can say the pledge without “under God” and it sounds natural as it was originally intended. This blew my mind as a young atheist and made me realize how pervasive religion is.

      • Saleh@feddit.org
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        1 month ago

        I would consider the daily fascist flag ritual the pervasive thing here. If someone wants to swear by his faith that seems much smaller of an issue to me.

        Incidently it seems fascist nationalism and other totalitarian political ideologies to have been at odds with religion in their times and places. See Hitler and Stalins regimes as examples.

    • boonhet@lemm.ee
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      1 month ago

      Meanwhile my 3yo stepdaughter in kindergarten spends the day painting with watercolors, singing, dancing, playing with others and apparently learning common courtesy (The other day she told me that in kindergarten they’re supposed to say “please” when asking for something).

      Much as I’ve wanted to move to the US for the significantly higher salary ceiling as a software engineer, I don’t think I could do it to her.

      • Phoonzang@lemmy.world
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        1 month ago

        Well, the much higher salary ceiling might look nice on paper, but let me tell you from experience that it is eaten up quickly by higher cost of living. I have been fortunate enough to work for short (one to three year) stints in the US, most of that in the SF bay area. A few years after returning (more or less for good) to my EU home country where I now have a government job (which does not pay as well as industry jobs), one of my former SF bosses asked how much he’d need to pay me in order for me to come work for him long term. It was quite tempting, and I did the math back and forth and in the end arrived at 2.5x of what I’m making now, and that is on the low end. I have a few colleagues and friends in similar situations, and the 2x-3x figure is what we generally agree on. Between health insurance, child care, retirement savings and housing, your cost will be dramatically higher than in most EU countries, and this does not factor in differences in Labor rights and potential visa issues.

        The SF bay area of course is extreme, but a low six figure salary puts you just above the poverty line there (so people say). Working remotely living in some low COL state might be an option, but then again you will live in East armpit nowhere Kansas…

        • boonhet@lemm.ee
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          1 month ago

          Low six figures is easily 3x what I make in my home country. FAANG salaries would be nearly 10x and I don’t even mean senior positions.