A chance for me to share my thoughts (or, maybe just vent a bit).
Thursday, August 9, 2012
NPR Airs Story About David Barton, the Right’s Favorite Teller of Historical Lies and Peddler of Bull
Last night, NPR’s All Things Considered aired an important story about one of the most dangerous people you’ve probably never heard of. His name is David Barton and he pretends to be a historian. In reality, he is an evangelical Christian activist and charlatan who has made a living out of trying to reinvent American history to “prove” that America is a “Christian nation”.
While you have most likely never heard of Barton, on the right and in certain segments of the evangelical community, he is a virtual rock star. Why do I say that Barton is dangerous? Because people believe the lies that he tells (for example, please see my post Cognitive Dissonance in Action) and, more importantly, they have been using those lies to shape our laws and society. Case in point is the recent textbook adoption process in Texas in which Barton was a star witness for those who sought to make drastic changes to the Texas history curriculum in a way makes the history of America far, far different both from what you learned in school and from what virtually all true historians will tell you. Or, as you can see if you watch one of the videos below, my own Congressman, Dan Burton (R-IN) has even quoted Barton’s falsehoods from the podium in the House of Representatives.
But Barton is an activist on a mission, so inconvenient facts don’t deter him at all.
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