One of the classic signs that any group is actually a cult is when that group encourages or commands its members to cut ties with those outside the group. A true church is supposed to ENGAGE the world, not cut itself off from it! Read the end of the Gospel of Matthew and you'll see this is true! Hence, westboro cannot truly call itself a church, since it encourages its members to cut off ties with anyone outside the group and it does not engage the world in such a way as to make disciples as Jesus commands at the end of the Gospel of Matthew. So, since it cannot truly call itself a church, lets just lay all the cards on the table and call it what it really is: A CULT.
I had enjoyed using Front Flip at Minsky's and winning awards of garlic toast on several occassions including a large pizza of my choice. It appears it must be costing them too much, because they have already discontinued the program.
@Reality
The election is over and this guy got your vote, Jeffrey Heavin's and probably Factsmaam was the other one.
Not a good showing from the Pitch commenters with a racist persuasion.
Too bad boys. Maybe a new Hitler poster for your bedroom will help you feel better.
Let's see, I'm a graduate of Park Hill High School and also a former high school History teacher who was born in the diversity of Southern California. For this guy to say that recognizing minority holidays and teaching our kids about the diversity that makes our country what it is today, is something that needs to be undone, proves how absolutely small-minded and ridiculous this guy is.
In excess of 90% of every textbook in our schools for the past 100 years have been written and published by white middle to upper class males, from their perspectives. I want my kids to learn the truth beyond that perspective.
Having black history month, or segments of the curriculum devoted to learning more about specific parts of our society and history offers teachers a unique opportunity to engage other resources with different perspectives to further enlighten our kids, which is always a good thing.
As for the commenter down below that said this nutjob is the "future", well your "future" finished in last place with just 272 likely bigoted votes, just 5% of the total vote. That said, I guess Mr Stephens won't be breaking out his white hood or Heil Hitler salute in a board meeting anytime soon.
If this kid is racist, it's likely for the same reason most others are...he lacks an education beyond the solitary perspective he's adopted for himself because it looks like him and feels like him and makes him feel like he's better than everyone else.
Maybe, just maybe, the 95% of the voters in the PHSB race who disagreed with him will prompt Mr Stephens to reassess his life and become less of a douchebag, but I'm not counting any chickens on that one.
I thought white people had St. Patrick's Day? And Christmas? Isn't Santa white? Oh, and I'm not sure if Italians are considered "white" or not, but there's Columbus Day.
Now, these are federally recognized holidays, which might establish a national recognition of the, or one of them, white race. It could be that Stephens refusal of federal government support doesn't allow him to celebrate these days.
To be honest, whites also have hockey, golf and Nascar to celebrate as practically their own sports. Not to mention swimming.
I think Stephens must have not had the honors classes at Park Hill, and had to slough about with the poorer kids in the lower education groups. Otherwise he'd be celebrating rather than whining.
As a Park Hill grad, I can guarantee you he is far form the only racist inn that community. In fact, as much as you hate his politics (I do, too), you have to respect his willingness to lay it all out there unlike the rest of the PH white flight Administrators.
@Tired of biased news -
It is okay to be proud of one's color, even to want to celebrate one's color. No racism there. Racism, by definition, must be committed AGAINST a race other than your own.
It IS racism for a public official (or wannabe) to stereotype another race (say as being poor for instance) and use the stereotype as a basis for governing.
So your entire post is like a Seinfeld episode.. it has no point at all!
How refreshing to see another biased news article. While I did NOT vote, I have to say that just because someone points out the inequality in something doesn't make them racist. We have Black History Month (Feb.), Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month (May), Caribbean American Heritage Month (June), Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept./Oct.) and National American Indian Heritage Month (Nov.). It doesn't make someone racist because they think that there should be a month that celebrates White History. Somehow, this country has let the minority rule the majority in everything including religion and in dictating what is racist and what is not. If Edward Stephens wasn't white but still suggested that there should be focus on teaching about white history, would everyone still think he was racist and be so worked up? I am a female and think that having a month dedicated to Women’s History is ridiculous. I can say it because I’m a woman but the minute a man says it, he’s sexist. I think that my children should get to learn about all history. I want my children to know all the good, the bad and the ugly in history across all races and genders and religions. I also don’t want my kids to fear being labeled as racist because they are proud of their heritage. It's okay for people from other cultures/races to be proud of their history/heritage but if you're white and proud of it then you are racist.
I know that there’s more to this than just the “focus on white history”. I read his comments on what type of economic groups the district should want to attract. Again, I think that the fact that he’s white and stating these things makes it easy to label him as racist. My step dad is black and grew up in the inner city. He’ll say that those aren’t the people you want to move into your neighborhoods and schools because then your neighborhoods and schools will end up just like the ones they left. Is he racist? Do his remarks have the same impact as Edward Stephens remarks?
When I read “Race is the matter” what comes to my mind is not that he’s racist but that this country has so many problems because of race. Everyone turns everything into a race issue. If we could all just get past the color of someone’s skin, the world would be a better place.
I don’t know anything more about him than any of the other candidates but I just get tired of bias in the news and people jumping blindly on the bandwagon.
Mr. Stephens is the future. A future that is willing to state the truth without fear. More to come.
PS @Eos
This jerk is now a public figure and therefore subject to a different standard for defamation than would be a private citizen. Basically, as a public figure he has no protection against it.
But for a minute there you almost sounded like you knew what you are talking about!
@Eos
(1) Yes the nanana was overboard. Just having fun.
(2) And thank you for defending @Reality - but I'm afraid his position (that the lame ass in this article simply had a casual picture of himself and Hitler taken at the museum, and that the author is now unfairly smearing him with it) is so patently ludicrous, there is no way to help it.
(3) I'll bet $100 this guy does not get elected to the school board. People in Park Hill don't want his brand of hate.
I think the childishness of this... "Since you have 'exited the conversation" I feel justified in saying - YOU LOSE! Na Na Nanana!" ...by Refractional, pretty much makes everthing they spewed out null and void.
@Green Not that Mr. Stephens said what you claim at all about an all white school but just for the record, there are black schools.
In Chicago you have Beasley, McDade, Shoesmith and Pershing. Beasley and McDade both have a small amount of whites 10% for Beasley and 8% for McDade. Here is what the school officials say about the whites they have, we don't need these whites but we get them anyway as part of the program. Imagine what an uproar there would be if a majority white school said that about the black kids.... Then of course there are the black colleges and the United Negro College Fund...So ya know what, there would be nothing wrong if there were all white schools. What's good for the goose, Is good for the gander I always heard.
@MelissainParkhill As to your statment..Defamation is a false and unprivileged statement of fact that is harmful to someone's reputation, and published "with fault," Libel is a written defamation.
The elements that must be proved to establish defamation are:
a publication to one other than the person defamed;
a false statement of fact;
that is understood as
a. being of and concerning the plaintiff; and
b. tending to harm the reputation of plaintiff.
Your post seems to fit the criteria
I will be voting for Edward Stephens.
I took photos several years back at the St. Patty's parade (on Grand Ave) of good friends, including a priest, with the chosen background (opposite our location) showing Temptations and their sign "Live Nude Girls". It is a favorite photo.
That said, His personal beliefs can and probably will reflect his work on the school board.
PS @Reality - Since you have "exited the conversation" I feel justified in saying - YOU LOSE! Na Na Nanana!
@Green - He has a plan - his plan is to keep the poor blacks out of his schools so he won't have to pay for their lunches or their remedial training. He knows, all blacks are poor and have lower IQs too
As a corollary, maybe more white people will move there and increase the white tax payer base. And of course the white kids all will be paying for their own lunches!
He plans to make the whole school district just white people and then everything will be fine.
Ed Stephens wants to reject all federal funding in the Park Hill School District, which means we will lose about $5 million. He has articulated no plan to replace that money or identified which programs or teachers he would eliminate to live without it. He is wrong to state or imply that school district funds are used to feed children who qualify for the free and reduced lunch program. Only federal funds are used for that program. He has not articulated any plan to help our teachers deal with hungry kids at school should the school district stop participating in the National School Lunch Program. Ed Stephens has also said that we should reduce funding for special education, since it is wasted on "duds" (his words). He is obsessed with having a white history month--such a trivial issue compared to all of the other challenges facing our school district. He believes that black children get more resources than white children simply because their skin is black. Children qualify for additional academic resources based on their test scores and for nutritional supplements based on their families' income levels: NOT on the color of their skin. He is concerned that the white population in the school district is decreasing. Helloooo--it's decreasing nationally because our country is growing more racially diverse. He seems to suggest that Park Hill would be better off if it were a segregated bubble comprised only of affluent whites without disabilities. I reject his beliefs. I reject him.
@Reality - Racism is discrimination AGAINST a race other than your own!
I can call you honky, white bread, etc., NOT racist because I am white and you are too!
Most 5th graders understand it.
How depressing that anyone would support such an obviously mentally defective person for any office. He has some serious issues, repressed homosexuality among the least of them.
Re: “Park Hill's school-board race has a great white dope: race baiter Edward Stephens”
Yes, February is recognized as Black History Month. But you ask "When is White History Month?" This reminds me of when I was a kid and I asked my dad on Father's Day "When is kid's day?" His answer.. "Every day is kids day!" sooo...
ALL MONTHS ARE WHITE HISTORY MONTH!!!!