Using "anti-American".

toeflsmeagle · Post by **toeflsmeagle** » Tue Apr 04, 2006 3:07 pm

Enough of this political nonsense. Some people in this thread should take their snide, bitter, largely unsupported comments elsewhere. You are certainly entitled to your own opinions, but it's better to stick them where they belong -- on genuine political blogs -- rather than corrupt this forum with one's own ideology. The meaning of the term "anti-American" does not merit applied linguistic analysis the way, say, tag questions do. (It is instructive, though, that the comparable term "pro-American" seems to deserve no attention by the commentators on this thread.) This thread is merely an excuse for amateur pundits to air their comments regarding President Bush, which is not what this board should be for. Teaching is not preaching, whether it is of the religious kind or the political kind, whether it is left-wing or right-wing, pro-religious or anti-religious. Teachers who believe in methods that are overtly political (as, for example, Paulo Friere) create more lemmings than freethinkers. Therefore, I urge the propagandists take their views to an a non-teaching-related forum.

metal56 · Post by **metal56** » Tue Apr 04, 2006 6:31 pm

toeflsmeagle wrote:Enough of this political nonsense. Some people in this thread should take their snide, bitter, largely unsupported comments elsewhere. quote]
Wow! A newbie with attitude. In a few weeks you'll be the boss of the forum.

metal56 · Post by **metal56** » Tue Apr 04, 2006 9:35 pm

toeflsmeagle wrote: This thread is merely an excuse for amateur pundits to air their comments regarding President Bush, which is not what this board should be for. .

So do you think that the posting of this thread is...anti-American?

wilderson · Post by **wilderson** » Wed Apr 05, 2006 12:29 am

toeflsmeagle said

Some people in this thread should take their snide, bitter, largely unsupported comments elsewhere.

Does the some people include toefsmeagle?

toeflsmeagls said

Teachers who believe in methods that are overtly political (as, for example, Paulo Friere) create more lemmings than freethinkers

Top-down reading should be reserved for newspapers, menus, et cetera; not for serious academic texts. Failure to do so may result in catastrophic misinterpretation.

Metamorfose · Post by **Metamorfose** » Wed Apr 05, 2006 12:59 am

Enough of this political nonsense.

Yes, sir!

lolwhites · Post by **lolwhites** » Wed Apr 05, 2006 12:07 pm

How can 40% of people dislike America it is just a bit of land. I can understand not liking its government or peolpe, but not the land itself.

When I taught in the UK I had students who said they disliked Britain because the weather was too cold, so it is possible to dislike the land itself, though admittedly America has rather more of it! I responded by asking why they hadn't gone to study English in Florida or Sydney if the weather was so important to them....

tigertiger · Post by **tigertiger** » Fri Apr 07, 2006 2:50 am

metal56 wrote:
toeflsmeagle wrote:Enough of this political nonsense. Some people in this thread should take their snide, bitter, largely unsupported comments elsewhere. quote]
Wow! A newbie with attitude. In a few weeks you'll be the boss of the forum.

Metal
Way back at the begining I was concerned that this post would end up all political.
Which is why I posted my comments about - I hope there is a gramatical point to this (or words to that effect).

Sadly a topic like this does degenerate, it was too predicatable.
toeflsmeagle does have a point when he/she says

"I urge the propagandists take their views to an a non-teaching-related forum."

Newbie or not this is a very pertinent point.

stephen · Post by **stephen** » Fri Apr 07, 2006 2:00 pm

tigertiger wrote:
metal56 wrote:
toeflsmeagle wrote:Enough of this political nonsense. Some people in this thread should take their snide, bitter, largely unsupported comments elsewhere. quote]
Wow! A newbie with attitude. In a few weeks you'll be the boss of the forum.

:evil:
Metal
Way back at the begining I was concerned that this post would end up all political.
Which is why I posted my comments about - I hope there is a gramatical point to this (or words to that effect).

Sadly a topic like this does degenerate, it was too predicatable.
toeflsmeagle does have a point when he/she says

"I urge the propagandists take their views to an a non-teaching-related forum."

Newbie or not this is a very pertinent point.
I disagree. The perspective shown in many American textbooks have extremely strong political and cultural positions although they are not openly presented as such. In that I mean there is no real admitance that alternatives exist, but rather a presentation of such attitudes as correct. Therefore, the political impact of language is relevant to many students.

I might add that the politcal and cultural representations in some textbooks I have used would not be inaccordance with the views of many students I have taught!! This is something of immense significance. Perhaps, making this point is also something that the newbie feels should be stifled. If this is so, perhaps, they should look at the politicisation of science and history teaching in the U.S.

metal56 · Post by **metal56** » Fri Apr 07, 2006 4:23 pm

tigertiger wrote:
Newbie or not this is a very pertinent point.

It's a banal point, IMO. It was made politically too:

The meaning of the term "anti-American" does not merit applied linguistic analysis the way, say, tag questions do.

Teachers who believe in methods that are overtly political (as, for example, Paulo Friere) create more lemmings than freethinkers.

womblingfree · Post by **womblingfree** » Sun Apr 16, 2006 1:56 am

toeflsmeagle wrote:Enough of this political nonsense..........The meaning of the term "anti-American" does not merit applied linguistic analysis the way, say, tag questions do........Teachers who believe in methods that are overtly political (as, for example, Paulo Friere) create more lemmings than freethinkers.

Absolute nonsense.

The use of language is highly political and this kind of call to end relevant and topical debate into language usage is misguided at best.

Allan · Post by **Allan** » Mon Apr 17, 2006 2:23 am

The term "Anti-American" (but especially "anti-Americanism") is commonly used in Canada by the right-wing Conservative Party, its members and the people who vote for them to describe all the other parties, the CBC, and anybody who has anything to do with anything that seperates Canada from the US.

I have been described as an Anti-American by an American English teacher...because I went an entire morning without saying anything good (or bad, or anything at all) about the US.

metal56 · Post by **metal56** » Mon Apr 17, 2006 6:35 am

Allan wrote:
I have been described as an Anti-American by an American English teacher...because I went an entire morning without saying anything good (or bad, or anything at all) about the US.

I can believe it. Seems we non-Americans can't even make a move without being labeled so.