‘Negligent and intolerable’ Parents bring textbook concerns to Lodi Unified

Lodi News-Sentinel ^ | 11/7/07 | Amanda Dyer

[Clintonfatigued]

To paraphrase George Bernard Shaw, no one ever learned anything from a school book.

Hopefully, they’re instructing their children with what was once known as “Living Books.”

[Tired of Taxes]

Sad but true, I have had to tear out pages or cross out lines in a few of the books my sons have used at home. Here's an example in a book called, Everything You Need to Know About American History Homework: After describing the peaceful life of the nations and tribes of Native Americans and, of course, never mentioning that they ever fought with each other, the book goes on to say:

"At first, Native Americans welcomed the Europeans. They introduced the Europeans to tomatoes, corn, potatoes, and tobacco. Europeans introduced Native Americans to guns, sugarcane, and horses. They also brought diseases new to the Americas...which killed many Native Americans. When Europeans began to explore and later settle in North America, they used guns to take whatever they wanted. They thought they had to right to do this...."

I'm sure you get where this is going.

I've been thinking about starting a website where we all can review books and warn parents against buying them, but I'll probably never have the time to do it.