Walter's 2 Cents & Mine

Walter E. Williams, a kneegro member of the neo-conservative right and a regular contributor at Townhall and Jewish World Review, enters his 2 cents on the Jay Bennish episode in Colorado. Bennish is the high school geography teacher who was recorded by a 16 y/o student while spouting, according to Williams, "anti-Bush" and "anti-American" words.

Williams has written that Reaganism and GWB contributed to a plutocracy yet Williams regularly and steadfastly repeats the language and logic of the neocons. Sometimes he tosses a reasonable bone of an idea to his fellow Black Americans but most know he's one of the Washington academics chosen by the neocons. He believes "In the past, Europeans were unwilling or unable to protect themselves against Nazism and communism. Now they demonstrate an unwillingness to protect themselves against Islam hell-bent on conquering the West. We just might have to pull Europe’s chestnut out of the fire—again." He's a conservative cowboy who too often writes short columns in support of neocon rhetoric. Williams is gung-ho hooya to protect the world from those Islamic's hell-bent on conquest of the West.

Regarding Bennish, a couple of comments in Williams' piece stuck in my craw. Williams uses "indoctrination" in describing Bennish teaching methods, and much of our education system. The indoctrination in the schools is correct – just not in the sense of the awful evil "anti-American" or the "attack on family values and traditional standards of decency" that Williams subscribes to, which he lifted straight from the rightwing memo. Wally, by first grade kids enter school indoctrinated with the values and decency they have at home. Today's public schools merely exacerbate it, Adderall it, or warehouse it.

Williams lives in another realm, where 16-year-olds are "relatively uninformed teenagers." In my world, 16 y/o teens are high tech, gaming, text messaging, sometimes politically aware whizzards. Many may not be interested in government but they're not all that uninformed about Bush and the US relationship to the world. I'm certain the little twit who recorded Bennish was informed with the politics of his parents, so much so he could barely wait to give interviews dissing his teacher. Why go through the system with his parents notifying the school's administration about a perceived problem when he can have his 15 minutes.

Williams states, "I've taught economics for 37 years. I encourage students to record my lectures. Moreover, I tell them that the class deals with positive economics and if they hear me make a statement appearing to be an opinion, without saying so, they are to raise their hands and say, "Professor Williams, we didn't take this class to be indoctrinated with your personal opinions passed off as economic theory; that's academic dishonesty." I also tell them that if I ever preface a comment with, "In my opinion," they can stop taking notes because my opinion is irrelevant to economic theory."

What a crockster. Williams teaches at university level so certainly some in his classroom are aware he teaches capitalist economics infused with his own bias; that he is a proponent of capitalism and in agreement with US corporatocracy methods to maintaining that system. He has not taught 37 years of pure theory without tilting information to suit personal capitalist bias.

Williams passes himself off as a compassionate conservative academic, subbing for Rush Limbaugh talk radio, Heritage think tank member (home tank of the neoconservatives); he preaches the theory that liberals fool Blacks into playing victim - or the liberals are liars and Blacks are fools neocon routine. Does he compete with Armstrong Williams for those neocon dollars or what?

If Bennish had used Williams method and prefaced his "Bush is threatening the whole planet" with the phrase "in my opinion" would that have satisfied Williams conservative teaching methodology? Bennish gave the definition of capitalism as "capitalism is at odds with humanity, at odds with caring and compassion and at odds with human rights." Walter, a few billion around the world and a few million in America might agree that is more fact than opinion.

Economist Williams should know all about "indoctrination" and dollars. If the talking point was pro-slavery, he'd say Blacks should be grateful – since it brought us to America, and being the capitalist he is, we should pay for the passage.

Officially, Walter E. Williams is placed on KAB's (kate/a/blog) list of There Are Black Conservatives Out There Hoax.