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   Peter Cohen (flargh@mastodon.social)'s status on Wednesday, 26-Mar-2025 21:28:09 JST Peter Cohen

   These days I am absolutely haunted by a moment that happened to me in seventh grade, back in the 1980s.

   Our Western Civilization teacher (a conservative who was still railing against the Soviet menace) had us deep in a module on Stalin's brutal crackdowns when he paused for a long moment and said:

   "You know, as long as you're on the side of the fascists, fascism is absolutely the best form of government to live under. The problem is that no one stays on their side for long."

   • Embed this notice
     Warner Crocker (warnercrocker@mastodon.social)'s status on Wednesday, 26-Mar-2025 21:28:32 JST Warner Crocker

     in reply to

     @flargh We had the same Wester Civ teacher.

   • Embed this notice
     Peter Cohen (flargh@mastodon.social)'s status on Wednesday, 26-Mar-2025 21:30:50 JST Peter Cohen

     in reply to

     • Warner Crocker

     @WarnerCrocker hah! I think many of us did. This was the same guy who was not a very nuturing or supportive basketball coach to the boy's team during that season.

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     Warner Crocker (warnercrocker@mastodon.social)'s status on Wednesday, 26-Mar-2025 21:32:12 JST Warner Crocker

     in reply to

     @flargh Mine was a football assistant coash.

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     Roadskater, Ph.D. (roadskater@mastodon.social)'s status on Thursday, 27-Mar-2025 10:29:07 JST Roadskater, Ph.D.

     in reply to

     • Warner Crocker

     @WarnerCrocker @flargh Hah. Friend of mine who became a history professor told me many years ago when he had one of his first instructor positions at a college, "One of my students came up to me the other days and said I was the first history teacher he'd ever had that he didn't call coach." Of course, this was in Texas.