episode 155

Debate Preview, America Got Rude, Canceling Sex Ed

The first Republican primary debate is tomorrow. Ravi and Rikki take stock of who’s in, who’s out, and predict the winners and losers. In a new piece in The Atlantic, David Brooks asked why Americans have become so mean. Is he right? The hosts debate this question and what we should do about what Brooks calls a “morally inarticulate, self-referential world”. Finally, Rikki and Ravi take stock of the movement to ban sex education. They break down whether the movement is real, its origins, and the evolution of sex ed instruction across the country.

SHOW NOTES

Debate Preview [00:43]

Biden campaign predicts GOP candidates will ‘out-MAGA each other’ at debate (The Hill, 8/19/23)
Trump Plans to Skip G.O.P. Debate for Interview With Tucker Carlson (New York Times, 8/18/23)
Who’s in, who might be out: Eight candidates have qualified for the first Republican debate (AP News, 8/18/23)
Full list: The GOP candidates who qualify for Fox News debate (Axios, 8/21/23)
It’s more than a poll. The Iowa survey is grim news for everyone but Trump. (Politico, 8/21/23)

America Got Rude [15:23]

HOW AMERICA GOT MEAN (The Atlantic, 8/14/23)
She Brought Caring to Education Research (Stanford Magazine, 3/1/23)
General Society Survey (GSS Data Explorer, 2022)
What The Longest Study On Human Happiness Found Is The Key To A Good Life (The Atlantic, 1/19/23)
America is Having A Moral Convulsion (The Atlantic, 10/5/20)
Facts About Suicide (CDC, 2023)
Political and Lonely (AEI, 4/17/20)
The Lonely (Political) Crowd (Rea Clear Policy, 3/20/20)
What Makes Someone a Good Member of Society? (Pew Research, 11/16/22)
Americans at the ends of the ideological spectrum are the most active in national politics (Pew Research, 1/5/22)
How the Trust Trap Perpetuates Inequality (Scientific American, 11/1/18)
Share of people agreeing with the statement “most people can be trusted”, 2022 (Our World In Data, 2022)

Canceling Sex Ed [36:34]

Inside the campaign to cancel sex ed (Popular Information, 8/17/23)
Republicans Declare War on Sex Education (Newsweek, 1/30/23)
This California mother exposed how the CDC indoctrinates students with leftwing ideologies (Washington Examiner, 4/26/23)
Fort Worth schools suspends sex education lessons amid curriculum backlash (Dallas News, 1/30/23)
LCS moves forward with sex ed curriculum after editing out contested optional material (Tallahassee Democrat, 3/29/23)
In NJ, progressives mobilize against ‘right-wing extremism’ on sex ed, LGBTQ school policies (Gothamist, 4/25/23)
Maryland Parents School Board Opt Out Gender Identity (Daily Caller, 3/10/23)
How parents are kept in the dark about sex education (Spiked News, 6/19/23)
Don’t say “period”: How Florida Republicans are taking aim at basic sex education (VOX, 3/24/23)
Texas got a sex ed update, but students and educators say there’s still a lot missing (NPR, 4/30/23)
Comprehensive sex education programs can lower teen pregnancy, study says (The Hill, 2/15/22)
These Abstinence-Only States Have the Highest Rates of Teen Pregnancy (Inner Body, 12/21/22)
Sexual Risk Behaviors (CDC, 2021)
Moms for Liberty emerges as a force in the 2024 US presidential election (Reuters, 6/30/23)
Moms for Liberty’s focus on school races nationwide, sets up political clash with teachers unions (Whyy, 7/3/23)
Who’s Afraid of Moms for Liberty? (The Free Press, 7/13/23)
EXTREMIST GROUP INFO: Moms for Liberty (SLPC, 7/1/23)
SPLC Defends Hate-Listing Moms for Liberty (Wall Street Journal, 7/1/23)
Who are ‘Moms for Liberty’ and why is the group so controversial? (Yahoo, 5/10/23)
LGBTQ+ Rights (Gallup)