Thread: Uh oh, McCarthyism-os!

So, my cute little minions have expressed interest in starting a Russian language club, as they are irrationally thrilled by the sight of their own names written OMG in the CYRILLIC ALPHABET ("Ai, vato! It has a backwards N!") Naturally, I am thrilled at this, not least because it shows that they actually want to learn something, anything, voluntarily. However, I am concerned that rumor will get around that I am a pinko commie. I mean, I am sort of a pinko, but we don't need to make that public, right? I just don't understand Texas at all. I've learned through bitter experience, for example, that although my part of the state votes Democrat, it is under PERIL OF FIREY DOOM that I say anything critical about Bush, which confuses me. So, knowing that there are several Texans on this board, I ask you. Do you think I'm risking irate parents if I teach the younguns how to conjugate some verbs and make blinchiki?

(P.S.: I teach middle school reading class.)

Your a teacher ? So lucky ! I think i'd teach them russian anyways. Maybe like every thursday or something. You know ? Russian day, yay all the kids will shout yay for lindsay. And then they will accent the last syllable of your name so it rhymes with yay. Yay for lindsay.

Hee! I don't let them call me Lindsay, though. So we'd have to think of a praising interjection that rhymes with my last name.

Do it! If they call you a commie, laugh and point out you aren't communist, you're in fact socialist. Or call them backwards po-dunk incest-loving country folk. Or you could just say some witty Lindsay-ish thing. The people down there would become severely confused and at the most mumble and throw an empty bottle of Jack Daniels at you. Really anything you could say would confuse them. Have some fun.

Well, I fin'ly started thinkin' straight
When I run outa things to investigate.
Couldn't imagine nothing else,
So now I'm home investigatin' myself!
Hope I don't find out too much . . . Good God!

bad manners, isn't that from an old Bob Dylan song?

It is.

Depends a bit, maybe, on where you are in Texas. Where are you?

I shouldn't think a Russian club would be an issue for most parents (although there are pleanty of nuts out there). Just play up the value of foreign languages (and requirements of college) and the increased opportunities in a global economy, blah, blah.

Now if you send them all free copies of Marx and Engels, you might raise some eyebrows (or shotguns).

Maybe you should have one of your colleagues start an Iraqi Club at the same time. Then no one is going to pay you any attention at all.

bad manners I love that song but can't remember the name. My favorite verse is where he's looking under his bed for reds

Talkin' John Birch Paranoid Blues

Originally Posted by Tambakis

Do it! If they call you a commie, laugh and point out you aren't communist, you're in fact socialist. Or call them backwards po-dunk incest-loving country folk. Or you could just say some witty Lindsay-ish thing. The people down there would become severely confused and at the most mumble and throw an empty bottle of Jack Daniels at you. Really anything you could say would confuse them. Have some fun.

Hee. I bet you get along JUST GREAT in your community

Originally Posted by TexasMark

Maybe you should have one of your colleagues start an Iraqi Club at the same time. Then no one is going to pay you any attention at all.

HA! Good idea.

bad manners, I adore that song.

Go for it, girl! YEAH!

Falling back into reminiscing mode. For some odd reason, my high school hired a Real Russian to teach Russian. I still remember his name, Николай Михайлович Марсель. Not quite sure if I spelled his last name correctly. He was a Jewish immigrant from Leningrad. I remember him telling us how he once lead a potato harvesting boycot.

This was way back in 1958 or so. We used as a textbook Родная речь, a standard Russian textbook for kids, I think it's still in use. The school board made him tell us we had to paste a blank piece of paper over the facе of Ленин where it appeared in the book. I kid you not!

I had a wonderful time in Russian class, as a senior in high school. He would bring his accordion to class and teach us Russian songs. Of course there were the old chestnuts like Катюша, Эх дороги, Подмосковные вечера. But we also learned Тихая ночь, сватая ночь, and other nonJewish and nonSoviet songs.

So, I wish you well in your journey and want to let you know I'm behind you сто процентов. Use music to reach the soul.

И не забудь, что родной город нашего великого (in his own mind at least) вождя поддерживает в президенты John Kerry.

Originally Posted by Линдзи

Hee! I don't let them call me Lindsay, though. So we'd have to think of a praising interjection that rhymes with my last name.

Yoghurt.

Originally Posted by smartdude

Originally Posted by Линдзи

Hee! I don't let them call me Lindsay, though. So we'd have to think of a praising interjection that rhymes with my last name.

Yoghurt.

Hm. My last name definitely does not rhyme with "yogurt."

Originally Posted by Линдзи

[Hm. My last name definitely does not rhyme with "yogurt."

What if you twist it around a bit?

Originally Posted by smartdude

Originally Posted by Линдзи

[Hm. My last name definitely does not rhyme with "yogurt."

What if you twist it around a bit?

I'm not sure what you think my last name is, but...no. What the heck are you even talking about? You're being even more incomprehensible than usual.