I largely agree with your take on these matters, which is well expressed here. I would add, though, that in weighing the competing interests and responsibilities of parents and the State in rearing citizens (and you correctly note that we're talking about child-rearing, not just education), sex is generally considered way to the parents…
I largely agree with your take on these matters, which is well expressed here. I would add, though, that in weighing the competing interests and responsibilities of parents and the State in rearing citizens (and you correctly note that we're talking about child-rearing, not just education), sex is generally considered way to the parents' side -- especially at such a young age.
It's significant, too, that there's not a lot of fundamental disagreement in today's America about issues of race and equality, but there's a very large segment that prefers, to a greater or lesser extent, traditional sexual mores. For a teacher to tell his students that, say, "all kinds of love are equal" and answer the the parents' outrage with "What? What'd I say?" is either disingenuous or -- more likely -- obtuse.
I largely agree with your take on these matters, which is well expressed here. I would add, though, that in weighing the competing interests and responsibilities of parents and the State in rearing citizens (and you correctly note that we're talking about child-rearing, not just education), sex is generally considered way to the parents' side -- especially at such a young age.
It's significant, too, that there's not a lot of fundamental disagreement in today's America about issues of race and equality, but there's a very large segment that prefers, to a greater or lesser extent, traditional sexual mores. For a teacher to tell his students that, say, "all kinds of love are equal" and answer the the parents' outrage with "What? What'd I say?" is either disingenuous or -- more likely -- obtuse.