Weekly Grind: 3/3/10
Now, don’t get me wrong. I love Schoolhouse Rock. I remember watching it while growing up. It helped shape my mind into the powerful thinking tool it is today.
But I do have some trepidation when it comes to the cartoon shorts. Since they make their pieces so short, they have to cut out some of the most important parts.
For example, in "I’m Just a Bill," Schoolhouse hits all the major points but one: The conference committee. A conference committee is organized when one chamber does not agree with amendments created by the other chamber.
This may seem minor, but the fact of the matter is, most of the important legislation that passes through the Indiana State Legislature goes through conference committee. This week featured the beginning and end of conference committees, and among the legislation that ended up in these committees were firearm laws, township government reform, renewable energy and insurance and tax issues.
That’s a lot of issues that carry a lot of weight around the state, yet the simplest cartoon makes no mention of this very important part of the legislative system.
Basically, it seems like the history-related songs skip on the important information most people should know. The Revolutionary War cannot be told in a three-minute lyrical summary.
I did love the grammar and math songs, though. That's probably why those were my two best subjects in school. But otherwise, tell those writers at Schoolhouse Rock to get their information to include a bit more specifics.
