The Unbearable Oppressiveness of the American Left
It used to be, on university campuses in the United States, that a Residential Assistant (RA) was an older student living in the student dorms; the RA was put in charge of keeping the noise down, ensuring the plumbing didn’t leak, and lending a sympathetic ear to stressed-out freshmen during exam week.
At the University of Delaware, however, the RA job description now includes intensive training regarding the ins-and-outs of “diversity,” and the reeducation -- the indoctrination into the Leftist world-view -- of the new, incoming students, students unlucky enough to need room and boarding in the dorms. From the University of Delaware RA training manual:
“In a white supremacist, capitalist,male supremacist and hererosexist system, all non-ruling class of whites are in some way oppressed by that system, but we are also privileged by it. When we organize against our own oppression, but not against our privilege – that is, against the oppression of people of color, we become oppressors of people of color. Inaction is complicity. Silence is consent. To cease being oppressors, we must act against oppression.” (To download the manual go to thefire.org; click “intensive training.”)John Leo writes:
Students are pressured or required to accept an array of the university's approved views. In one training session, students had to announce their opinions on gay marriage. Those who did not approve of gay marriage were isolated and heavily pressured to change their opinion….In plain English…dorm students at the University of Delaware are indoctrinated with hooey. I think “The Cowboy Code ” would be of much greater value to today's students. What do you think? Once unwritten, here's the Code:
…The indoctrination program pushes students to accept the university's ideas on politics, race, sex, sociology, moral philosophy and environmentalism…The training is run by Kathleen Kerr, director of residential life, who reportedly considers it a "cutting-edge" program that can be exported to other universities around the country…She (Kerr) has been quoted as saying that the job of RAs is to educate the whole human being with a "curricular approach to residential education." In this curricular approach, students are required to report their thoughts and opinions. One professor says: "You have to confess what you believe to the RA." The RAs write reports to their superiors on student progress in cooperating with the "treatment."
Don’t ask a man where he came from; judge a man by what he is today.
Defend yourself whenever necessary.
Look out for your own.
Don't make a threat without expecting dire consequences.
Never pass anyone on the trail without saying "Howdy".
When approaching someone from behind, give a loud greeting before you get within shooting range.
Don't wave at a man on a horse, as it might spook the horse. A nod is the proper greeting.
Riding another man's horse without his permission is nearly as bad as making love to his wife. Never even bother another man's horse.
Always fill your whiskey glass to the brim.
Do not practice ingratitude.
A cowboy is pleasant even when out of sorts. Complaining is what quitters do, and cowboys hate quitters.
Always be courageous. Cowards aren't tolerated in any outfit worth its salt.
A cowboy always helps someone in need, even a stranger or an enemy.
Be hospitable to strangers. Anyone who wanders in, including an enemy, is welcome at the dinner table. The same was true for riders who joined cowboys on the range.
Give your enemy a fighting chance.
Real cowboys are modest. A braggert who is "all gurgle and no guts" is not tolerated.
A cowboy doesn't talk much; he saves his breath for breathing.
Cuss all you want, but only around men, horses and cows.
Complain about the cooking and you become the cook.
Be there for a friend when he needs you.
A cowboy is loyal to his "brand," to his friends, and those he rides with.
Never shoot an unarmed or unwarned enemy. This was also known as "the rattlesnake code": always warn before you strike. However, if a man was being stalked, this could be ignored.
Never shoot a woman no matter what.
Consideration for others is central to the code, such as: Don't stir up dust around the chuckwagon, don't wake up the wrong man for herd duty, etc.
Respect the land and the environment by not smoking in hazardous fire areas, disfiguring rocks, trees, or other natural areas.
Honesty is absolute - your word is your bond, a handshake is more binding than a contract.
Live by the Golden Rule.
Patty
30 Comments
View Printer Friendly Version
Reader Comments (30)
Patty -if that is accurate it is crazy.
Patty which link on Thefire, or in your post, brings me directly to the handbook. I have tried and tried in vain..
I am with Mahons, if this is accuarte.....
I can't believe a Uni would produce such a thing.
The manual and other info. is from:
Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (thefire.org). From their website:
"In 1998, Alan Charles Kors and Harvey A. Silverglate co-authored The Shadow University: The Betrayal of Liberty on America’s Campuses. In response, they received hundreds of communications and pleas for help from victims of illiberal policies and double standards that violated their rights and intruded upon their private consciences. To answer these calls for help and to transform the culture, Alan and Harvey founded FIRE."
You can access the names of their Board of Directors, the cases they are working on, other press releases and exposes etc. and judge for yourself the legitimacy of this info.
Pinky: Just follow the instructions I gave - go to the fire website - find the story (should be right there) on the Indoctrination at the U. of Del. click on the link to "intensive training" - download the pdf file and read the manual. This is what I did, and this is where I found the quote you see above.
This story is all over the web today.
Pinky: 1. click on my link to thefire.org
2. In the page that you will have on me, midway into the article you will see highlighted "intensive training" Click on this link.
3. You will see one pdf file. Download it and open it.
4. Page 3 of the pdf file. Towards the bottom in the paragraph on "oppressor, oppressed, oppression" is the paragraph I typed out. The rest of the manual is fairly interesting as well.
Daphne: Good..it should be. John Leo had it yesterday. I just couldn't get it posted.
I couldn't get the crazy language, but I went directly to the University of Delaware RA information (which is quite informative) and didn't see that type of regulation. Maybe the manual in question is not on their own site? They have some of the modern day what to do in the event of a hate crime and diversity platitudes, but nothing quite as volcanic as the quote in the post. Perhaps it isn't on line. Funny, but the quote in the post almost seems like a satire of a policy.
Mahons: Hey, guys... follow the instructions.it's not rocket science. I found the manual. I typed the quote. I didn't make it up.
1. go to my link for thefire.org (click it)
2. see the article???? Go to the middle of the article. Do you see "intensive training" highlighted? (click it)
3. do you see a pdf file titled "university of Delaware Office of Residence LIfe" Diversity Facilitation training August 14-15 2007
Presented by Dr. Shakti Butler
4. You must download the file. Open the file. Read the manual. Go to page 3.
Mahons: I thought you were a lawyer, for god's sake...can't you research? I know downloading a pdf file is a little out of the ordinary but it ain't that hard. Difficult to read??? So?
No wonder the lefties think "Bush Lied." Idiots! All lefties are idiots.
This cowboy code would be very bad for ATW
"A cowboy doesn't talk much; he saves his breath for breathing."
Patty, that's not in the cowboy code :-)
For all you folks having trouble with the linky, here you go;
http://thefire.org/index.php/article/8555.html
This is a piece of scaremongering. It's nonsense and no university could or would get away with forcing such stuff on all 'RA's or students compulsarily. The document no doubt exists but it would just be part of a selection of voluntary reading information.
Colm, you may be wrong on it only being scaremongering or voluntary, take a look;
http://joannejacobs.com/2007/10/30/brainwashing-in-delaware/
Colm: On what basis do you see "scaremongering?" I swear, someone could point a gun to your head and you would probably say that they were "scaremongering."
For the rest of us, documents on a site like FIRE - which is reputable if you bother to research it - is proof of something...
In any case, it's up on LGF now and if it is a fraud, a joke, or just some lefties wishful thinking that didn't pan out - we will know soon enough as some RA from the University of Delaware will come forward and tell us.
Honestly though, did you hear about the Duke Lacrosse scandal - the 3 white boys who were accused and railroaded? That whole scandal was possible because of lefty indoctrination like that cited above. I wouldn't write it off as "scaremongering."
I think the cowboy code is just great! Suite me,
Patty: One of the founders and apparently three of the top staffers of Fire.org happen to be lawyers, but let us not hold that against them.
I was able to access the attachments (I couldn't get the full article for some reason previously - probably a lefty plot). The manual seems quite ridiculous and counter to the university's own standards.
Daphne
That is still just the webiste of an individual with her own opinions. It strikes me that this is a programme which is part of the University's curriculum but I can't believe it could be forced on all students. It wouldn't last 5 minutes in a court of law.
And I thought British universities were bad!
Assuming this is accurate (and I know of no reason to doubt that it should be), then this would be far worse than any other case of leftist indoctrination that I have ever come across in a university. We really do need to purge our universities of some of these far-left brainwashers.
Colm: It's a training program for RA in the dormitories. Only students in the dormitories would be subject to it.
This is really not that different from many of the "sensitivity" programs launched in schools around the country. Just a little more explicit that's all.
Think for a second...how is it that political correctness has such a hold on people? If not for training and indoctrination like this?
Good Point Patty!
Patty
I am not defending it and if it is true then those in power imposing it should be stripped of their authority (by the courts if necessary) and Universities attempting to impose such indoctrination should have every penny of state funding withdrawn.
If they can afford to continue such policies as 100% private institutions then it's no-one elses business and students can choose whether to enrol or not. I just cannot believe that this manual (especially the cray language about white supremacist opression ) can be made compulsory. Where are the lawsuits ?. Why isn't this in court ?
'I couldn't get the crazy language, but I went directly to the University of Delaware RA information (which is quite informative) and didn't see that type of regulation. Maybe the manual in question is not on their own site? '
It seemed bizarre to me.
I looked at the college site as well and could fins no such document.
Something fishy here. Could someone call the Uni and ask for a comment on the matter. It is so BIZARRE.
Pinky, glad you're back btw, check my first link, it'll bring it right up for you. (I know your love of links :-)
Colm: There will be a lawsuit. FIRE is comprised of lawyers who have tasked themselves with protecting individuals against this sort of thing and apparently have sent a letter to the University. (LGF has reference to the letter up.)
Daphne, thanks for the good wishes. I wasn;t really gone- I was reading but too tired and weary to type for a couple of days.
Patty I am a leftie in your definition and I would favour punishing very severly anyone associated with this brochure.
P.S Daphne,
But I was reading and enjpyed many of the posts including yours. You are always good for a chuckle.
So the next time you think I am missing- I'll probably be reading- unless I tell you otherwise.
Cheers.
I saw this on a couple of different news sites last night. Scratch University of Delaware off my list of possibilities for the girls.
I love the Cowboy Code! Especially this:
Complain about the cooking and you become the cook.
The Fire seems pretty straight down the line - its top headline today is about a clearly Leftist environmentalist student who has been expelled for creating a Facebook collage protesting building plans at his University which included classic slogans such as 'No Blood For Oil' etc., so they can hardly be accused of only going after the targets who are stamping on Conservative students.
I find the reaction of people like Colm and Pinky very telling, particularly Colm. Two threads in a row today his reaction has been one of immediate scepticism, 'if its really true', when the message doesnt fit with how he'd like the world to be.
Information information information. Only the truly deranged Liberal can fail to turn away from the Dark Side as long as us nasty old rightwingers keep chipping away at them with the facts...