Does Veritas Press Give Homeschoolers a Bad Name?

[SorrelZG]

 

Either way, is comes off looking peculiar IMO. :001_huh:

 

 

I think it really depends on where you hail from. I wouldn't say these are my peeps but due to where I live, we do mingle so certain things that may have been, "say, what?!" are now instead, "oh yeah, that's those guys over yonder again." :001_smile: Every crowd is a mixed bag, for better or worse.

[Paisley Hedgehog]

nm

[poetic license]

Full disclaimer: I'm a former public school teacher, current Afterschooler, and a Peace hill Press devotee. I'm not just writing this because VP is direct competitors for Susan Wise Bauer and Jessie Wise, whose homeschooling philosophies and opinions I deeply respect.

 

But are the owners of Veritas Press CRAZY?????" Did anyone else find their Christmas greeting bizarre? I thought it showed an appalling lack of professional judgment to represent an education company by holding a gun. I have a bit of a rant about it on my blog.

 

I'll be sticking with SOTW, and anything else the WTM recommends, thank you very much!

 

Looks like you might have picked the wrong place to ask this question. :tongue_smilie:

 

Creeps me out too. Let's just say I wouldn't show this to my mainstream friends who already think homeschoolers are a little... off.

[Dustybug]

I don't see a problem with it at all. It was a "down home" video. The gun is a family heirloom. He said they were going to go out with their boys to shoot clay pigeons. VP is very big on heritage and family togetherness. I think the gun went with those values very well.

 

As for the wife? I didn't think she looked coerced at all. She was trying to keep the dog calm. She was upset over losing loved friends this year. She spoke at length.

 

Honestly, I think you are purposefully trying to find a blemish.

 

ETA: That video has fewer than 500 views, as of my posting this. Considering that a portion of that is because you posted the link here, I seriously doubt that this video has much effect on "giving homeschoolers a bad name".

 

I still have no idea what someone's religion has to do with their enjoyment of hunting? Nor what it has to do with a woman being nervous on camera. What does religion have to do with any of this?!

 

And the fact that people who enjoy hunting (live or clay pigeons) and for whom huge shotguns are as homey as pumpkin pie AND people who get nervous when sitting silently on camera ALSO happen to homeschool and/or publish homeschool materials doesn't incline me to judge and broad-stroke any subgroup of the country I live in (regardless of their religion).

 

:iagree::iagree:

 

I don't really see the big deal. *shrug* I think people are getting all worked up over nothing and really reading into the wife's behavior when nothing is there.

[Wabi Sabi]

I think the gun was supposed to be a neat visual aid. Family history = shooting great-grandpa's gun. That's it. For some families, going out to shoot something on Christmas is just part of the holiday. Nothing subversive or political about it.

 

What I thought was more peculiar was including "Evangelical atheist" Christopher Hitchens in their list of family and friends who'd passed away this year. Uh ... how exactly did he fit in? :001_huh:

 

I know, right? That just struck me as odd...and disingenuous, perhaps?

 

As for the actual video- eh, yeah, bizarre. FTR, I have no issue at all with hunting rifles (especially those of the antique variety that are family heirlooms), but the way it was being prominently and awkwardly displayed just seemed odd.

 

I'm so far left of center that I'm absolutely not in their target demographic anyhow, but I suppose that they know their audience and are appealing to who they feel is their typical customer. Personally, knowing the tiny little bit I do know about their religious/social agenda, I'm the absolute last person who would ever give them a dime of my money anyhow.

[Farrar]

What if they were promoting a homeschooling company that taught from a conservative Muslim perspective instead of a conservative Protestant view? Same scenario; silent, nervous looking wife (this time wearing a hijab) sitting next to a husband holding a gun and doing all the talking. Would that make you pause?

I would think that would make the national news.

 

If you'll delete your post, I'll delete this quoting of it. We have Islamic friends on this board who might be very offended by what you've said here.

 

Is it offensive? That's a genuine question, not a rhetorical one. I saw it as trying to push a point and make people question what they were saying.

 

I do think it's offensive to say you find one (Christian evangelicals in a holiday message holding a gun) folksy and nice and the other (Muslim evangelicals in a similar greeting holding a gun) to be wrong or frightening somehow. They're the same thing just with the religions switched.

 

I would find them both weird and uncomfortable, honestly, but depending on the context (actual threats of violence - which presumably neither would have) I wouldn't find either offensive or scary.

 

A guy holding a gun in a homeschool Christmas video isn't any weirder than having a pro-slavery "paleo-Confederate" Minister write your materials on Slavery and Slave Narratives.

 

These are some very (very) bizarre folks :001_huh:

 

Bill

 

Yep. There sure are.

[Mrs Twain]

Did you guys watch the end of the video?

 

Having a family heirloom gun (as others have said) is not unusual. I thought it was funny when he said he and his kids were going to go out to shoot clay pigeons, and that they hoped to get enough for Christmas dinner. Ha ha!

 

Maybe some of you are just offended by guns in general. I don't think you should be. Guns are not bad in themselves.

 

By the way, I love Veritas Press. They have great homeschooling materials. I drool over their catalog every time it arrives at my house.

[Kathryn]

Having read your blog post and watched the entire video, I think you're very confused about the differences between homeschooling and public school. I agree with the pp about telling people there's no reason to watch the whole thing. I think the video was awkward, but not really because of the fact that there was a gun present. It was obvious the wife was uncomfortable in front of the camera just sitting there waiting for her turn to talk; her stroking the dog was distracting (I did not in any form or fashion get the impression that she felt "forced" by her husband or the gun). The way the gun was held was awkward, not really the fact that he was holding one. It's not like he was holding an assault rifle. In the end (which you urge your readers not to watch), he tells viewers that it's a family heirloom that he and his children are going to go clay shooting with and makes a joke about catching dinner. While it's definitely not my idea of a good time, I recognize that it is for many families. If the script was the same and the religion/nationality of the people were changed, no, I would not feel differently. Many homeschoolers (and others) feel very strongly about their Constitutional rights, and gun ownership is one of those.

[SorrelZG]

I think one lesson here is that everyone has their own prejudices and not everyone shares ours. There are certainly prejudices showing all over the place in the presuppositions that are resulting in all manner of absurd interpretations of this video and that disturbs me far more than the video.

[eloquacious]

It seems strange to send a greeting message to anyone but your enemy while holding a weapon. I don't understand what the purpose of it is. It is so large as to be unlikely that he just happened to be holding it when he started the recording. I would be equally puzzled if she were holding a flag or an apple pie or a giant pencil. It just seems over the top.

 

However, maybe their target audience finds it appealing, a sense that they are one of them?

 

:iagree:

 

That being said, perhaps it was his Christmas present. Boys with their toys, you know. He couldn't put it down!

[Sebastian (a lady)]

:iagree:

 

That being said, perhaps it was his Christmas present. Boys with their toys, you know. He couldn't put it down!

 

Well, since he explains what he was intending to do with the shotgun in the video . . . to target shoot with his sons, it seems odd to just guess why he had it.

 

It would bother me a lot if I saw a video with someone holding a rifle and suggesting via double entendre that he was intending to go out hunting people. That would bother me no matter what background the video producer had.

 

BUT, that is not the content of the video under question.

[Kathryn]

What I thought was more peculiar was including "Evangelical atheist" Christopher Hitchens in their list of family and friends who'd passed away this year. Uh ... how exactly did he fit in? :001_huh:

 

everyone knows VP is associated with that wacko pro slavery nut job Doug Wilson right?

 

They wrote "Is Christianity Good for the World?" together.

[EKS]

I think it's completely bizarre. But then, I'm not a part of their target demographic.

[...................]

But I think he was going for the homey, cozy feel. His wife was trying not to cry. She was probably still grieving the loss of Denise. But really if your wife cant keep from crying why make her do the video?

 

Being pro gun, and pro liberty, and living in the south, the gun thing isn't weird-

 

If your Christmas tradition was playing football, you would hold a football on your lap!!! That's all he is doing.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

Is it offensive? That's a genuine question, not a rhetorical one. I saw it as trying to push a point and make people question what they were saying.

 

I do think it's offensive to say you find one (Christian evangelicals in a holiday message holding a gun) folksy and nice and the other (Muslim evangelicals in a similar greeting holding a gun) to be wrong or frightening somehow. They're the same thing just with the religions switched.

I would find them both weird and uncomfortable, honestly, but depending on the context (actual threats of violence - which presumably neither would have) I wouldn't find either offensive or scary.

 

 

 

Yep. There sure are.

 

Who has suggested that they see the one fondly and the other fearfully? The Muslim analogy was suggested by someone who objected to the actual video. I guess as a way of explaining how horrifying it is to see a homeschooler who is planning on going target shooting.

 

My biggest objection to his holding the shotgun is that he seems not all that familiar and comfortable with it and probably needs to plan a lot more range time with it.

 

But then we're looking into forming a rifle team with some fellow homeschool families.

[eloquacious]

Y'know, on your blog where you wrote about this, you told your readers that "there's no need to watch the whole clip". Actually, yes, there is. If you watch the whole thing, then you find out the reason for the gun in the first place and how it ties in with the Christmas message they are sending. Seems to me that you are intentionally trying lead your readers into forming a biased opinion, one that agrees with yours.

 

I do get that ... he could have had it off to the side, though. I think it's a little odd holding it the whole time. I was half expecting him to announce a new curriculum for fathers which teaches how to question prospective suitors. ;)

 

(And I have no problem with VP, would in fact use some of their materials if we were going to be homeschooling properly, not before- and after-schooling. I do not come from a hunting background at all, though. Perhaps that influences the "weirdness factor" for me!)

[Lang Syne Boardie]

If the script were the same and he were discussing going down to the local version of Dog and Game and shooting trap with the family? No issue with it at all.

 

He didn't discuss violence against anyone. Not even against birds, since they were headed target shooting.

 

But then I don't have a problem with gun ownership or use within legal restrictions. And I don't think that right only belongs to people who share my ethnic background, or religious or political views, as long as they are acting within the law.

 

There was nothing in the video that suggested the shotgun was for forcing people to use their curriculum or for fending off officials who challenged homeschooling or for using on someone if they got out of line or for forcing religious compliance. That would have been disturbing. But mentioning that they were headed off to the range to have fun. Sound like a good time. Make sure you're back in time to be done cleaning the guns before dinner.

 

Thank you for typing this! I logged on this morning intending to say something very similar.

 

I don't have a problem with any law-abiding citizen exercising his second amendment rights to have a gun in his hands, regardless of his religion or politics. Guns are bad when they are used for crimes, not when they are possessed and used lawfully by people we don't happen to like.

 

I hope a Muslim family will write a homeschool curriculum that reflects their beliefs. I've seen a wish for that many times, on these very boards. If they do, and the patriarch of the family puts out a video in which he touts his curriculum and displays a gun that is part of his recreational activities and family tradition, I won't be afraid of that.

 

Isn't it nothing more than bigotry to fear guns in the hands of people who have a different religion or worldview? Wouldn't I have to be the worst kind of prejudiced to be terrified of the hypothetical Muslim man with the (legal) rifle, or the Dominionist white man with the (legal) rifle, when neither made any threats of any kind?

 

My Dad used to collect guns. He's a secular humanist who happens to like guns. I don't think he's scary, either.

[jenbrdsly]

everyone knows VP is associated with that wacko pro slavery nut job Doug Wilson right?

 

IMO yeah, VP is bad for homeschoolers. Both the public impression of and the children of.

 

 

I did NOT know that. Thank you for edifying me. This is from Wikipedia:

 

Wilson's most controversial work is probably his pamphlet Southern Slavery, As It Was (ISBN 1-885767-17-X), which he wrote along with League of the South co-founder and fellow Christian minister Steve Wilkins. The pamphlet stated that "slavery produced in the South a genuine affection between the races that we believe we can say has never existed in any nation before the War or since."

 

 

Is it offensive? That's a genuine question, not a rhetorical one. I saw it as trying to push a point and make people question what they were saying.

 

I do think it’s offensive to say you find one (Christian evangelicals in a holiday message holding a gun) folksy and nice and the other (Muslim evangelicals in a similar greeting holding a gun) to be wrong or frightening somehow. They're the same thing just with the religions switched.

 

 

Farrar, I am the OP. I did NOT say that I would find the Christian message with a gun "folksy", and a Muslim version "frightening". I said that I would find them BOTH equally abhorrent. The difference I see is that in a post 911 world one would possibly make the news and the other wouldn’t. That is offensive too.

[jhschool]

There is nothing wrong with the video.

He was pointing it up.

They look like totally normal people.

 

Your statement: "Schools and guns don't mix"

First of all--we are not schools!

 

Second--one of my friends went to a high school where

the boys would bring their (hunting) guns to shop class

so they could polish and clean them in shop.

This was in the 70s in

a very rural area. The students all treated the guns with

respect, and no psychos ever came into that school

to shoot any students. They wouldn't have dared.

[jhschool]

Originally Posted by jenbrdsly

What if they were promoting a homeschooling company that taught from a conservative Muslim perspective instead of a conservative Protestant view?

---------------------------------------

 

Whoa!

This guy obviously uses guns

to hunt for dinner and he is obviously a Conservative Christian who

appreciates his American freedoms. Good for him!

*From your post* and *in your mind* the Muslim holding a gun might

represent something else. That's prejudiced.

*In reality* there would be

nothing wrong with anyone of any religion appreciating their freedoms.

Your theoretical Muslim and his wife have as much right to do the same

thing. If the Muslim said he was hoping to hunt dinner, good for him too!

[TheAutumnOak]

I don't see anything wrong with it...They spoke of losing loved ones this year and said the gun belonged to a loved one they lost...

 

I am not familiar with Veritas Press and do not know what they sell so I do not know their audience, but this video would not discourage me from buying anything...

 

I felt more sympathy for the fact that they lost loved ones this year than anything else...

 

ETA: They said they were shooting clay pigeons, not real ones...

[littleWMN]

I think the gun was supposed to be a neat visual aid. Family history = shooting great-grandpa's gun. That's it. For some families, going out to shoot something on Christmas is just part of the holiday. Nothing subversive or political about it.

 

What I thought was more peculiar was including "Evangelical atheist" Christopher Hitchens in their list of family and friends who'd passed away this year. Uh ... how exactly did he fit in? :001_huh:

 

I thought the same thing about Hitchens!

[cin]

But I think he was going for the homey, cozy feel. His wife was trying not to cry. She was probably still grieving the loss of Denise.

 

Between her grief and trying to keep the dog in the picture, I think she did fine. It appears that the woman had a really rough year.

[littleWMN]

Farrar, I am the OP. I did NOT say that I would find the Christian message with a gun "folksy", and a Muslim version "frightening". I said that I would find them BOTH equally abhorrent. The difference I see is that in a post 911 world one would possibly make the news and the other wouldn’t. That is offensive too.

 

But see, this logic makes no sense to me. It's not ok to stereotype a whole group of Muslims based on a terrorist facet but it's ok to stereotype a whole group of homeschoolers based on a corny Christmas greeting?

 

Both are over-generalizing and neither is ok. I think you are making a mountain out of a molehill. I thought it was goofy at worst. In no way did it seem threatening (how?) or wrong.

[...................]

Exactly. She just had a rough year, poor thing.

[SorrelZG]

I know, right? That just struck me as odd...and disingenuous, perhaps?

 

 

 

Is there some particular reason why one would not truly grieve the death of someone they strongly disagreed with on eternal issues? It would rather be their confessed faith that would be disingenuous if they didn't grieve the loss.

[Homemama2]

I'm not seeing what the problem is. Who cares if it isn't professional? It sounds like they were going for personal, homey, friendly. It felt a bit awkward like they were trying a bit too hard, but that's it.

 

Oh, you are freaking out about the gun. LOL. Not sure what to say to that, as I just left my FB page where my cousin's child had patches of deer blood smeared on his face for his picture with his first kill. :lol:

 

:iagree: Good Grief! My husband hunts and would think holding a gun and talking about a Christmas tradition that involved shooting PRETEND CLAY pigeons with his kids was no big deal. Really not getting what people are freaking out about.....

 

If the guy was talking about a Christmas tradition where the family went skiing and he had skis next to him, people wouldn't see the problem.

Edited December 27, 2011 by Homemama2

[Laura in STL]

I'm not a huge fan of guns or sales pitches in a Christmas greeting. I'm also never going to use a product from VP, so my opinion on their greeting probably doesn't matter much to them.;)

[Hedgehogs4]

I am not reading all of the responses, but I think he was just holding his grandfather's gun so he could explain about going shooting with his boys. I don't think it's a statement beyond that. There is legacy there...I think that is what VP is about. I don't think it is a statement about gun ownership, Americanism or anything else you could "read" into it...

 

We own guns and like to go shooting as a family. It is not a political statement if I send a picture of us all holding our rifles at the shooting range in the Christmas card. It's part of who we are.

 

Shooting is a sport like golf, swimming, or archery. Would you have been as upset if he were holding a bow and arrow? Maybe you're being a bit overly sensitive.

[Jenny in Florida]

:iagree: Good Grief! My husband hunts and would think holding a gun and talking about a Christmas tradition that involved shooting PRETEND CLAY pigeons with his kids was no big deal. Really not getting what people are freaking out about.....

 

Expressing an opinion is not the same thing as "freaking out."

 

I would suggest, though, that the VP folks might be interested to know that their video may be turning people off to their products. It just doesn't seem like terribly sound business thinking.

[Joy at Home]

Expressing an opinion is not the same thing as "freaking out."

 

I would suggest, though, that the VP folks might be interested to know that their video may be turning people off to their products. It just doesn't seem like terribly sound business thinking.

 

I think they probably realize that the people who have a strong reaction to it are those who would never buy their products anyway.

 

Lisa

[Jenny in Florida]

Shooting is a sport like golf, swimming, or archery. Would you have been as upset if he were holding a bow and arrow? Maybe you're being a bit overly sensitive.

 

From my point of view, which I've readily admitted is not shared by most on this board, the difference between the "sport" of shooting and golf or swimming is that neither of the the others is designed to mimic violence against other living beings.

 

And, although I am not "upset," yes, I would have the same reaction a bow and arrow as to a gun.

Edited December 27, 2011 by Jenny in Florida

[Jenny in Florida]

I think they probably realize that the people who have a strong reaction to it are those who would never buy their products anyway.

 

Lisa

 

Except, that's not true.

 

As I've mentioned, I get their catalogue/magazine thingy. I read it carefully and have frequently considered buying one of more of their products. When push comes to shove, what dissuades me is the price. I can usually find the same books or similar ones elsewhere less expensively.

 

I'll never be able to look at that catalogue the same way again, though. From now on, I'll always see that man holding a gun.

 

Again, I'm not "upset" and not "freaking out." I'm just filing away information that will help me make purchasing decisions in the future.

[jenbrdsly]

I don't see anything wrong with it...They spoke of losing loved ones this year and said the gun belonged to a loved one they lost...

 

I am not familiar with Veritas Press and do not know what they sell so I do not know their audience, but this video would not discourage me from buying anything...

 

I felt more sympathy for the fact that they lost loved ones this year than anything else...

 

ETA: They said they were shooting clay pigeons, not real ones...

 

But...VP supporting an author who is pro-slavery doesn't bother you?:001_huh: It really bothers me.

[Lang Syne Boardie]

But...VP supporting an author who is pro-slavery doesn't bother you?:001_huh: It really bothers me.

 

AutumnOak didn't say that. She said the video itself wouldn't discourage her from buying.

 

VP's pro-slavery and dominionist views might be offensive to you (and to me, and to the majority of people, probably) but those beliefs are a totally different topic.

 

I don't support VP because of their ideology, but I have no problem with their Christmas video. I thought the video was the topic of the thread.

[newday]

I use Veritas Press products some. I am not unused to firearms. I do not have any problem with hunters or gun-owners. I don't have any issue with children learning to hunt or shoot. That said, I think that this greeting is strange. I am suppose there must be some kind of cultural history reference which I am missing. Still, it seems an odd way to proclaim the usual Christmas message of Peace on Earth - Good Will to All. And "the wife" did seem quite uncomfortable.

[newday]

AutumnOak didn't say that. She said the video itself wouldn't discourage her from buying.

 

VP's pro-slavery and dominionist views might be offensive to you (and to me, and to the majority of people, probably) but those beliefs are a totally different topic.

 

I don't support VP because of their ideology, but I have no problem with their Christmas video. I thought the video was the topic of the thread.

 

Ah, eye-opening.

I guess I'll have to do more research before I purchase more of their products. I would rather not support some of the ideas mentioned here. :no

[jenbrdsly]

I am the OP and this will be my last comment. Thank you for the people who have compared shooting to a sport like golf or fishing. That puts it in a slightly different perspective that somehow softens my view a bit about the Christmas video. I am listening and considering your comments.

But before I started this thread I did not know that VP promotes an author who is pro-slavery. This explains the dearth of children’s books in the VP catalogue that describe the American experience of non-whites. I cannot understand how anyone could purchase products from a company that in associated with a pro-slavery author. That’s a major deal-breaker for me.

Merry Christmas.

[Shellydon]

I didn't think it was weird at all. Maybe that makes me weird. :lol:

The wife looked distraught, perhaps about the 'tough year' part and having close friends dying. The gun didn't even phase me and I wouldn't have noticed it on my own.

[Mergath]

I don't think any of us are "freaked out" by the gun, or actually offended. I think it's more that we're confused by its presence.

 

And ftr, I grew up in northern Minnesota in a house with many guns, and was in the Army for a time after high school. I've been around more guns than a lot of people, and I was still confused by it. Not offended, or angry, but genuinely baffled.

 

I think it would have helped if he'd referenced it at the beginning of the video, instead of just sitting there holding it and smiling without a word about it. Then we would have had a bit of context, at least.

[Homeschoolnewbe]

But before I started this thread I did not know that VP promotes an author who is pro-slavery. This explains the dearth of children’s books in the VP catalogue that describe the American experience of non-whites. I cannot understand how anyone could purchase products from a company that in associated with a pro-slavery author. That’s a major deal-breaker for me.

Merry Christmas.

 

Wowsers! I did not know that either! Definitely a deal breaker. But, explains a lot!

[Myeightkiddies]

I'm just addressing the video/Christmas greeting and not their philosophy, friends, or anything else.

 

In my opinion, the gun was there as a prop to lead to the discussion of using the family heirloom for a family activity. It would have been better if the explanation of the gun happened at the beginning rather than at the end of the long Christmas message. Also, he could have picked the gun up at the end of the video when it was time to share about the family activity rather than hold it the whole time. It's not offensive, having it there the whole time; it just seems odd until he explains it.

 

The wife's demeanor didn't bother me. It's hard to say how many takes it took to do the video. The dog was restless. She probably had family over and needed to do other things. The whole process may have taken longer than expected. It's hard to say, but I don't think she was there silent out of fear or anything. She was most likely waiting her turn on the twentieth take of a video while food is overcooking on the stove. I don't know. It didn't strike me as odd.

 

My only complaint about the video overall was that it was really just a sales pitch. They would have done better with it had it just been a Christmas Greeting/Message to customers. Save the sales pitches for another time.

[Paisley Hedgehog]

nm

[TranquilMind]

Sorry, but I think you're making a mountain out of a mole-hill. If you watch the whole video, he says the gun was Laurie's grandfather's and the sons want to shoot it for the first time. He also said they're hoping to shoot their Christmas dinner.

 

I don't like all VP's philosophies/curriculum, but I have used them and are going to use them starting in Jan along with SOTW. I don't like hunting, or guns. However, my father and my husband's father are both hunter safety instructors and avid hunters. More than once my in-laws have had a hunting picture as their Christmas card. It just depends on your likes and personalities I guess.

 

Blessings!

Dorinda

Yes, it did seem particularly weird until the very end when he explained why he is holding the gun, and that they intended to shoot grandpa's guns in memory of him, I guess. The wife did talk at the end. You had to watch the whole thing.

 

I think it is odd to do a whole advertising thing holding a gun, actually. If he simply HAD to hold the gun, he should have explained it up front, not at the very end, because it was quite distracting.

[TranquilMind]

I think the gun was supposed to be a neat visual aid. Family history = shooting great-grandpa's gun. That's it. For some families, going out to shoot something on Christmas is just part of the holiday. Nothing subversive or political about it.

 

What I thought was more peculiar was including "Evangelical atheist" Christopher Hitchens in their list of family and friends who'd passed away this year. Uh ... how exactly did he fit in? :001_huh:

Maybe they were actually friends? I don't know. I thought it was odd the way he mentioned that Hitchens was an evangelistic atheist when he didn't mention the agenda of anyone else that died.

[JumpedIntoTheDeepEndFirst]

Is there no one on this board who is either camera shy or suffers from "stage fright"? I don't think this is an unhappy woman-maybe a shy woman. What I am left wondering is why folks would first assume that she is somehow being repressed or coerced before any other explanation?

 

There are materials I've used that are included in the VP catalog and materials they sell that I wouldn't even consider. This video doesn't sway me either way.

[go_go_gadget]

I don't think that video will do anywhere near as much damage to the public opinion of homeschooling as the Jesus Freak documentary did/is doing.

 

I do think that the explanation about the deceased relative who owned the gun and the family activity planned for later would have better placed at the beginning of the video rather the end, but otherwise... meh. I have no issue with guns or gun ownership, and actually just walked in the door after taking my six year-old to the range to use his new BB rifle, and I've never checked out VP's materials so I can't really comment on that. All I know is that they're very much not secular, and so not for us. If the book/books in question really do paint slavery in the light described, well, that's pretty galling. I wasn't in their demographic before, though, so no loss for them, I guess.

[silliness7]

Full disclaimer: I'm a former public school teacher, current Afterschooler, and a Peace hill Press devotee. I'm not just writing this because VP is direct competitors for Susan Wise Bauer and Jessie Wise, whose homeschooling philosophies and opinions I deeply respect.

 

But are the owners of Veritas Press CRAZY?????" Did anyone else find their Christmas greeting bizarre? I thought it showed an appalling lack of professional judgment to represent an education company by holding a gun. I have a bit of a rant about it on my blog.

 

I'll be sticking with SOTW, and anything else the WTM recommends, thank you very much!

 

I thought the greeting was bizarre because it sounded more like a promotional video than a Christmas greeting. Yuck! The gun didn't bother me in the slightest, and I don't understand the OP's strong reaction. Oh well, to each her own.

[trailofsparks]

It is judgmental folks who give Homeschoolers (and anyone) a bad name. I don't mean to take a shot at you personally...just sayin.

[Farrar]

 

 

I did NOT know that. Thank you for edifying me. This is from Wikipedia:

 

Wilson's most controversial work is probably his pamphlet Southern Slavery, As It Was (ISBN 1-885767-17-X), which he wrote along with League of the South co-founder and fellow Christian minister Steve Wilkins. The pamphlet stated that "slavery produced in the South a genuine affection between the races that we believe we can say has never existed in any nation before the War or since."

 

 

 

Farrar, I am the OP. I did NOT say that I would find the Christian message with a gun "folksy", and a Muslim version "frightening". I said that I would find them BOTH equally abhorrent. The difference I see is that in a post 911 world one would possibly make the news and the other wouldn’t. That is offensive too.

 

I know. That's sort of what I'm saying. I think you asked the question to point out the potential discrepancy in how people were thinking about it. I didn't say anyone had actually stated that discrepancy outright nor did I see you state it.

 

But a lot of people said that your comparison was offensive. I certainly don't think so - but I was curious to see someone say how so.