Term paper about 'God' earns student failing grade

Daily Press Newspaper - Victorville, California ^ | Tuesday, June 28, 2005 | LEROY STANDISH - Staff Writer

[Buddy B]

Term paper about 'God' earns student failing grade

'He told me you might as well write about the Easter Bunny. He wanted to censor the word God.'

VICTORVILLE -- For using the "G" word 41 times in a term paper, Bethany Hauf was given an "F" by her Victor Valley Community College instructor.

[Buddy B]

Victor Valley College - Home Page

[inquest]

Maybe she can get SCOTUS to help her out! :-\

[spanalot]

Yeah - reminds me of the marxist prof who gave me a "C" on a term paper on the Ukrainian Holocaust "But they were Kulaks, weren't they?"

Its as if these profs heads are so big they have one ear in the class and the other in the Kremlin.

[TheGhostOfTomPaine]

Already posted.

[cvq3842]

Where is the ACLU?

I even made myself laugh asking that one!

[DoughtyOne]

VICTORVILLE — For using the "G" word 41 times in a term paper, Bethany Hauf was given an "F" by her Victor Valley Community College instructor.

Hauf's teacher approved her term paper topic — Religion and its Place within the Government — on one condition: Don't use the word God. Instead of complying with VVCC adjunct instructor Michael Shefchik's condition Hauf wrote a 10-page report for her English 101 class entitled "In God We Trust."

The teacher approved of a topic that could not be fairly addressed without the use of the word God. When confronted with this he then made a comment using the words God and Easter Bunny in it. The implication was that God is as factitious as the Easter Bunny. That is an insult to any religious person.

Note that the excuse used, was that the use of the word God might be offensive to some. Where was this professor's sensitivity when it came to this Christian? He thinks it's imperitive that God stay out so not to offend, but thinks comparing God to the Easter Bunny is okay.

Frankly, I'm sick of these little gods on campus. I hope he winds up with a large find, the stigma of being insensitive (something the left is supposedly loathe to be) and the college faculty get their noses brused as well.

This was such a waste of time. To this idiot, God is just a word. What's the big deal?

He used the example. I'll bet he wouldn't have batted an eyelash if the Easter Bunny were mentioned ten times in a term paper.

[spinestein]

[Hauf acknowledges she knew her teacher's condition for writing the paper, but argued it would be impossible to write about the affect of Christianity on the development of the United States without using the word God. "He told me you might as well write about the Easter Bunny," Hauf said. "He wanted to censor the word God."]


The idea that supposedly mature people attending college (or teaching a course) would be offended by HEARING THE WORD "God" referenced in a report about religion in history is ludicrous. Sadly, there are many people who fit this description.

I think the solution to this is increased public ridicule directed toward anyone who claims "hurt feelings" upon hearing mention of unpopular WORDS.

[AnAmericanMother]

She's not creative enough. She could have used the words "Supreme Being" or "Y-hw-h" or "Most Holy Trinity" and beat him at his own game.

[applpie]

how intellectually dishonest these teachers are. first they bait you with questions about religion and the government, knowing full well the intent of the founding fathers and then expect you to NOT write about the very GOD that the founding fathers acknowledged. duh. what a small minded bigoted idiot.

i am in school right now too. i cannot believe how openly hostile to god, jews, and christians the text book is. when discussing civilizations and ancient documents, the bible, jewish history, and christian history are THE ONLY ONES written in a critical, condescending form. UNREAL. evolution is the foundation for the entire book and strangely it is filled with huge logical (illogical) leaps in order to present their faulty case.

[mathurine]

The dorkheaded professor wanted to be God the Almighty and the competition from the Great I Am was too much for him to bear.

[AnAmericanMother]

You'll notice these idiot profs are usually at the third and fourth-rate "colleges" that wouldn't have passed for trade schools fifty years ago.

This school sure doesn't appear in the US News & World Report 200 Top Colleges list . . . nor in the Collegeboard.com site. They are apparently open admission - they will admit ANYBODY - even if you don't have a high school diploma!

[The Brush]

If the professor believes in a God and doesn't understand Christianity then he is responsible for his actions.
If, on the other hand, he doesn't believe in a God, he can't be held responsible for anything when he finds out differently.
That's textbook thinking for any Liberally trained mind

[spinestein]

[She could have used the words "Supreme Being" or "Y-hw-h" or "Most Holy Trinity" and beat him at his own game.]



That's true. Euphemisms can be great satire fuel.

If she had replaced the word "God" with the word "Yoda", for example, she could have given the same report and not violated the censorship restriction. And if the teacher makes an issue of it he only displays his own pettiness in front of the other students and illustrates the foolishness of censoring words from intellectual debate for the purpose of protecting people's fragile emotional comfort.

[vaudine]

Go to the article and read his words--he said no big G gods and no argumentation of one true god--i.e. a supreme being.

His whole argument about offending anyone is bogus anyway. Your fellow students do not read your papers unless passed around by the instructor as a great paper or example--or possibly how not to write one. This paper was written and turned in to the instr.--period. He looked at it and graded it. He is so sensitized about references to God that he has a knee jerk liberal reaction.
No mention of God, no reference, period.

What a prize jerk--no worse than a jerk.

vaudine

[BigLots]

I tried to post a response, but I think I screwed it up...I'm new, so set me straight if I mess something up.

This girl called Jay Sekulow a couple weeks ago prior to writing this paper, telling him of the professors warnings about the "G-word." Jay urged her to write it and keep in touch with him on the outcome. I think he has his attorneys on it.

[ApplegateRanch]

Anybody find it odd that "academic freedom" only applies to tenured profs?

[FauxBlonde]

Right...or the Deity, Heavenly Father, or whatever.

The instructor sounds like a jerk, but if a student blatantly chooses not to follow instructions, he or she shouldn't be surprised at a low grade.

[bethany_1776]

I thought about writing the paper and substituting the word GOD but then I thought, why should I!

[xone]

'I thought about writing the paper and substituting the word GOD but then I thought, why should I!'

To comply with the instructors direction...to get a better grade etc.