I love that man.

I love George too. Just, you know, not in a Takei way.

I think pretty much anytime Takei speaks, he rules. He could even say the sky is a deep shade of orange with goosefeathers for clouds and I'd likely find myself nodding along with him due to the majesty of his voice.

Better than that, however, everything he says actually makes sense.

Brilliant!

From the article:
"We should leave it to families to decide when it is appropriate to talk with children about sexuality - specifically before the eighth grade," he added.

Makes sense to me. I wouldn't want my kid's teachers pushing their agenda on my kids. On the other hand, passing a law seems a bit silly, maybe fear driven? If I'm doing my job as a parent, of preparing my children to properly understand these things and the world they live in, then I don't need to be worried about some comments a teacher may or may not make.

Matt1616, be careful of finding any sense whatsoever in something being touted as "crazy dumb southerners showing their ignorance," or you will be accused of being a Fox News watching, George Bush loving, oil drinking right-winger. Everybody knows southerners are always wrong about everything. Thinking is better left to our East and West coast betters who have a monopoly on understanding morality and ethics.

matt1616 --

They are specifically speaking to only the Takei kind of of sexuality, not the hetero kind. Because apparently kids can only handle hearing about one kind and not the other at school. Don't talk about it and it doesn't exist, huh? That's how there weren't a lot of black people in history books until recently. Must have been too hard for some people to admit for a while.

As soon as we stop acting like it is some kind of Big Bad that must not be mentioned the sooner it will be normal enough no one is freaked out about it and people get just get on with living again. Because there isn't anything to be freaked out about. Not anything more than the hetero kind. Unless you are planning to teach your kids to hate certain groups. It might put a wrench in that plan. Kids notice when something is taboo. Pretending something doesn't exist adds to that.

@Advising caution: I personally don't live within 1000 miles of a coast. Gotta watch those stereotypes, assumptions, etc. And as @cranscape said, the question was not sex education per se -- on which I have opinions, but reasonable people can disagree -- but singling out a particular group, which I'm perfectly comfortable labeling as ignorance. Cheers,

S

While I respect George Takei, I must call out the Tenn. Bill as I see it. It's a push-button issue designed for political advantage at the polls. Instead of fighting the issue - which plays into their hands - everyone should call out the scam for what it is. Exploiting a minority for political gain.

Addendum: I'm not advocating dedicating a lot of time in the classroom to sexuality at that age, but in a country where "gay" is one of the top hate words said on the playground for that age group it seems like being able to talk about things in a neutral setting like the classroom isn't a bad idea. Even if it is just a couple students needing to be corrected on their language or someone asking about a friend's aunt or something or even simply being noted in the text book at all. I wouldn't want teachers gagged on the subject when it does come up from time to time. Especially when more kids than you think have gay parents, uncles, friends etc. Demystify something early and you won't be shocked by it anymore.

I can understand parents wanting to talk about things with their kids...but when are you going to start? If your kid calls people gay on the playground or laughs along when a friend does you haven't started soon enough. Negative and the taboo seemed to be picked up faster than parents catch on and things stay taboo when there is a gag order on it. In grade school gay means a bad word because they don't have any positive, real world info about it. Back when I was in school it started around the age seven. Think any of those parents had a talk with their kids? I bet not. Kids learn early about things and will get their info from peers and the tv if you don't supply it soon enough. You should have had the talk long before elementary school hits.

I love George Takei. I just wish that the people who would listen to him are the ones who are not already inclined to do so.

I really wish people would stop using their children as a moral battle ground to fight with other adults. Every parent assumes their kid is heterosexual but not all of them are correct.

Do people not remember what it was like to be a kid at all? Seriously, this is absurd. It's as if these people believe that kids learn information from their parents and their teachers and no one else. Umm... that's just not true at all; there are these things called "peers" who, you know, are able to talk to you... haha It's one of those laws that's simultaneously ignorant and destined to be ineffective.

But the Takei response is hilarious.

@Longtimefan

I think the issue is about to be rehashed ad nauseam, so I really just wanted to add in my response to something you specifically said. I'm not calling you out, I just want to correct your assumption.

I have a 9-year-old daughter, and a 9-year-old stepson. I do not make sexuality assumptions about either of them. I know several people with daughters who refuse to wear dresses, like spiky hair and prefer to play football over tea-parties. My daughter is a princess stereotype incarnate. Neither of those opposites, or any point on the range between them, is more likely to determine homo or hetero sexuality. And I don't care. I want her to love someone who loves her, and that person's chromosome pairings aren't part of that equation.

I hope only that my step-son finds happiness with himself and who he is, sexuality and friends and preferences on all points related to them included.

There are many parents who don't make heterosexual assumptions about their children; even irredeemably straight ones like myself.

On every other facet of what you said, I completely agree with you.

@ 13 BookGoblin,

I will admit I did make a bit of a blanket statement and I am happy to be wrong in your case.

I can only hope that someday such wisdom becomes a majority behavior because then such controling bills would not even make it onto paper let alone into the halls of state government.

If any teacher in a public school has an agenda you, as a (resposible) parent, should inform the administration and transfer your kid to a school that has absolutely none... like a Catholic school.


That being said:

Takeis AREN'T Voldemort!