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Glenn Beck's Founding Fridays Series

post #1 of 12
7/13/10 at 10:25am
Thread Starter 
I have been trying to catch his Friday programs because I love American History, and I'm blown away by what we weren't taught in school. I am especially impressed with his 2 part program on Black Founding Fathers. You can view Part 1 here. Part 2 is here. It will open your eyes and make you wonder why we were never taught the roles that black men played in the Revolution and the years following. His program also features David Barton, author of "Setting the Record Straight: American History in Black & White", a book I am now anxious to read.
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post #2 of 12
7/13/10 at 12:14pm
I also love history. Of course, when I was in school, I wasn't that interested.
But now, I can't get enough of it.

I will also try to catch the Friday programs.

Thanks!
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post #3 of 12
7/13/10 at 10:22pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by farleyv View Post
I also love history. Of course, when I was in school, I wasn't that interested.
But now, I can't get enough of it.

I will also try to catch the Friday programs.

Thanks!
You're welcome. When I started searching for my roots on my father's side, I became more interested in history when I could place my ancestors in some historical events. That made history real for me.

Thanks to Beck I have a new dislike for Woodrow Wilson. Never did like the fact that his wife ran the country after Wilson's stroke, but I never realized he was a major bigot who erased the black founding fathers from our history books.
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post #4 of 12
7/14/10 at 4:37am
I love that Glenn Beck. I haven't seen his Friday program either, but I will try to this week. I too am a history nut. I loved it in school and renewed my interest when I became interested in genealogy about ten years ago. I wrote a book and published it in 2002 tracing my paternal roots back to the 1700's. When I did the research, I learned much about my ancestors that was never talked about in the family. I never knew my early ancestors were large land owners with slaves. Does anyone know if US History is still a subject taught to high school students? We took it in the eleventh grade.
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post #5 of 12
7/14/10 at 1:56pm
Don't believe everything you hear on that program.

I will admit that I don't watch Beck except for brief bits here and there (because I just find him annoying). From some of the things I've heard from him though, I would say he seems to be very good at contorting the truth to match his own point of view (or the point of view that's allowing him to rake in the big bucks).

I love history as well, but so much of what's out there is revisionist history - both what is being taught in school now and what has always been taught. I see revisionism going on now all the time, by people like Beck with an agenda to push. Its very easy to believe what you hear when its something you already believe to be true, so as long as there are enough people willilng to believe something without bothering to verify, we'll never know the truth.

In any case, I don't think there can ever be one true version of any event because its all subject to interpretation, even by those who have lived through it.
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post #6 of 12
7/16/10 at 9:02am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Misty8723 View Post
Don't believe everything you hear on that program.

I will admit that I don't watch Beck except for brief bits here and there (because I just find him annoying). From some of the things I've heard from him though, I would say he seems to be very good at contorting the truth to match his own point of view (or the point of view that's allowing him to rake in the big bucks).

I love history as well, but so much of what's out there is revisionist history - both what is being taught in school now and what has always been taught. I see revisionism going on now all the time, by people like Beck with an agenda to push. Its very easy to believe what you hear when its something you already believe to be true, so as long as there are enough people willilng to believe something without bothering to verify, we'll never know the truth.

In any case, I don't think there can ever be one true version of any event because its all subject to interpretation, even by those who have lived through it.
Unless you have taken the time to watch Part 1 of Black Founding Fathers, you are really not in a position to pass judgment on the truthfulness of this series. I strongly urge you to watch it and then make up your mind. You may be surprised. I know I was. From the below link:
Quote:
Founding Father's Friday continues with the founders you've never heard talked about before: America's black founding fathers. That's right, they weren't all rich white guys who wanted slavery. These men played a HUGE role in the founding of our country and the fight for independence. Why are these amazing patriots being erased from our history books? It's time to set the record straight.
http://watchglennbeck.com/video/2010...nding-Fathers/

By the way, it only takes about 40 minutes of your time, since there are no commercials. PLEASE take the time to watch it, and then give me your opinion.
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post #7 of 12
7/18/10 at 10:56am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dusty's Mom View Post
Unless you have taken the time to watch Part 1 of Black Founding Fathers, you are really not in a position to pass judgment on the truthfulness of this series. I strongly urge you to watch it and then make up your mind. You may be surprised. I know I was. From the below link:


http://watchglennbeck.com/video/2010...nding-Fathers/

By the way, it only takes about 40 minutes of your time, since there are no commercials. PLEASE take the time to watch it, and then give me your opinion.
When I get a chance I will watch and get back to you. But how will I know if its truth or not? I freely admit to being influenced negatively by anything coming from Beck...
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post #8 of 12
7/18/10 at 11:09am
Okay, here is a comment from someone who expresses better than I can my opinion of Glenn Beck

Quote:
While Beck is influential and has many viewer, that’s all you can say about him. To say that he is “educating†Americans is simply untrue.

Unfortunately, Beck uses the Founding Fathers as a political tool to convince viewers that separation of Church and State is a fallacy. He tries to convince viewers that the Continental Congress was somehow sifting through Biblical passages looking for inspiration. I would urge viewers to actually read primary sources.

Read letters between the Founding Fathers and legal documents to see this. Beck has not only mentioned them, he selectively twists out of context anecdotes or makes up facts as he goes to an audience unfamiliar with that time period.

Read the Treaty with Tripoli of 1796 that was written under President Washington which states “As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religionâ€. Read letters by Jefferson. In one them he writes, “The day will come when the mystical generation of Jesus, by the supreme being as his father in the womb of a virgin, will be classed with the fable of the generation of Minerva in the brain of Jupiter.â€

Such statements are selectively left out by Beck. He is hardly an intellectual, rather, more of a revisionist trying to rewrite American history in a manner that suits him.
Other interesting point / counter point arguments in the comments:

http://www.pbpulse.com/arts-and-cult...nding-fathers/


I guess what I'm thinking at the moment is that everyone has an agenda (Right and Left), and what we should do is listen to all sides with healthy skepticism and don't just swallow everything because it resonates with what we inately believe.

I will at some point when I have time watch some of this series, and refrain from making additional comments until I do.
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post #9 of 12
7/18/10 at 8:20pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Misty8723 View Post
When I get a chance I will watch and get back to you. But how will I know if its truth or not? I freely admit to being influenced negatively by anything coming from Beck...
Why is that you have negative feelings about Beck? Have you ever watched him, or are you merely influenced by left wing propaganda? If you have never watched his show, don't you think in the interest of fairness, you should reserve judgment until after you have personally experienced it?

I will say that if you believe the propaganda that Beck is somehow a racist, then you must really watch this program, because he shares the spotlight with David Barton, author of "Setting the Record Straight; American History in Black and White."

Here's the link again. It will only take about 30 min. to watch it, but once it starts, you will forget about the time. It goes by fast!
http://watchglennbeck.com/video/2010...nding-Fathers/
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post #10 of 12
7/19/10 at 4:35pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dusty's Mom View Post
Why is that you have negative feelings about Beck? Have you ever watched him, or are you merely influenced by left wing propaganda? If you have never watched his show, don't you think in the interest of fairness, you should reserve judgment until after you have personally experienced it?

I will say that if you believe the propaganda that Beck is somehow a racist, then you must really watch this program, because he shares the spotlight with David Barton, author of "Setting the Record Straight; American History in Black and White."

Here's the link again. It will only take about 30 min. to watch it, but once it starts, you will forget about the time. It goes by fast!
http://watchglennbeck.com/video/2010...nding-Fathers/
Yes, I have watched him. No, I'm not being influenced by left wing propaganda - any more than I'm influenced by right wing propaganda - which is what I feel Beck / Fox are doing. I don't think Beck is racist, I just find him annoying. The far left annoys me just as much as the far right.

I'm listening to the presentation now. While the subject matter is interesting, to me, the presentation isn't. As for David Barton, isn't he a right wing activist?
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post #11 of 12
7/19/10 at 4:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Misty8723 View Post
As for David Barton, isn't he a right wing activist?
http://candst.tripod.com/boston1.htm

Quote:
At the end of his presentation, the speaker began hawking copies of a videotape titled, "Foundations of American Government." Curious, Barnett ordered the tape. What he got was a 12 minute attack on church-state separation that attempts to "prove" that the concept is a myth and that founders like Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and Alexander Hamilton really meant for government to reflect "Christian" principles.

The man behind the tape turned out to be David Barton, a fundamentalist activist who makes a living attacking separation of church and state. The video Barnett received is a shorter version of Barton's one hour documentary "America' s Godly Heritage." Both tapes in turn are based on Barton's 1989 book The Myth of Separation.

[Even though the book and videos are riddled with factual errors, half truths and distortions, they have become the weapons of choice for Religious Right activists in their ongoing war against separation of church and state.
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post #12 of 12
7/19/10 at 5:44pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Misty8723 View Post
Yes, I have watched him. No, I'm not being influenced by left wing propaganda - any more than I'm influenced by right wing propaganda - which is what I feel Beck / Fox are doing. I don't think Beck is racist, I just find him annoying. The far left annoys me just as much as the far right.

I'm listening to the presentation now. While the subject matter is interesting, to me, the presentation isn't. As for David Barton, isn't he a right wing activist?
Right wing? I don't know. The Left usually brands conservatives and racists in the same breath. I find this not only interesting, but tragic that so many black historical heros have been erased from American History. The people they talk about, I've never heard of. They weren't in my American History textbooks when I was a student. If David Barton via Glenn Beck is bringing this to the attention of all Americans, isn't that a good thing? As far as David Barton's other agenda is concerned, I can't venture an opinion. It seems to me that he knows American History and the principal players quite well.

Did you watch the after the show video, also on that page? You will notice that at least 50% of his audience is black, and they aren't too happy about having their history "white washed" out of history books.

And, as far as Fox goes, if you watch it during the day you will see that it is factual news reporting for the most part. And even the evening programs are balanced with Democrats like Bob Bechel, Juan Williams, Kristin Powers, to name a few, as featured guests nearly every evening.
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