Perhaps you nod in agreement when politicians or pundits criticize some of the books available in your children’s school. Maybe you see vaccine mandates as an overreach of government power. You may think election security needs tightening. If so, you can vote, speak up at school board meetings, write a letter to the editor or grumble on social media. These are all legitimate channels for citizens in a democratic society who want to debate issues.
But it’s wrong to veer that debate into outright vilification of teachers and other public servants who are just trying to do their jobs — often persevering despite shrinking resources.
We now seem to live in a world where we’re told that teachers in local schools pursue a “sinister agenda” by providing “grooming materials” aimed at preparing our children for sexual exploitation. Vaccine mandates are “totalitarian” if not deadly. The 2020 presidential election was stolen, with Trump supporters urged to “fight like hell” and “take back” their country.
The reality, of course, is that teachers aren’t sinister. The vast majority are deeply engaged in the task of helping prepare children and young people for happy and productive lives. Public health workers aren’t fascists trying to poison us. Rather, they are doing their best to keep us healthy in the midst of a deadly global pandemic. Local election officials aren’t engaged in vast conspiracies to steal elections. They instead play a vital role in making our democracy...
We respect your privacy Telewizja Polska S.A. w likwidacji processes your personal data collected when you visit individual websites on the tvp.pl Portal (hereinafter referred to as the Portal), i...