Buchanan Mocks Sotomayor For Learning English By Reading Children’s Books

[sarah553807]

BUCHANAN: Well I, again in that Saturday piece, she went to Princeton. She graduated first in her class it said. But she herself said she read, basically classic children’s books to read and learn the language and she read basic English grammars and she got help from tutors. I think that,I mean if you’re, frankly if you’re in college and you’re working on Pinocchio or on the troll under the bridge, I don’t think that’s college work.





Buchanan is referencing a recent New York Times article, which talked about how hard Sotomayor had to work to graduate at the top of her class from Princeton:

Judge Sotomayor is not known to have identified herself as a beneficiary of affirmative action, but she has described her academic struggles as a new student at Princeton from a Roman Catholic school in the Bronx — one of about 20 Hispanics on a campus with more than 2,000 students.

She spent summers reading children’s classics she had missed in a Spanish-speaking home and “re-teaching” herself to write “proper English” by reading elementary grammar books. Only with the outside help of a professor who served as her mentor did she catch up academically, ultimately graduating at the top of her class.


http://thinkprogress.org/

[Flying Dream Blues]

1. If there's a hell I hope it's big enough. nt

[elleng]

7. Surely it is.

He attends/ed church in my old neighborhood; fortunately we didn't, nor did our kids go to school there.

:evilfrown:

[Cha]

2. Only drooling trolls would find

anything other than complete admiration for the way Sotomayor learned and earned her way to the top.

poor poor little jealous fuckwad.

[sarah553807]

3. It's funny when they bash hispanics for not learning english

but when they try,they're made fun of.

[Cha]

6. It's pathetic that he has

a forum for his stupid bigoted attacks.

[Flying Dream Blues]

18. Yes, and parades himself as a "Christian" and the supposed true Christians

who are so appalled by the Tiller murder say NOTHING to discredit him. Nothing.

[Bluenorthwest]

4. One more example of Pat's racism,as if we needed it

And of course, also his stupidity. I wish they would come to understand his redundant status and put him in some home for retired bigots.

[Botany]

5. I learned English by reading children's books too.

just saying

[elleng]

9. MOST kids do!

:rofl:

[Botany]

14. tomorrow Pat will come up w/ the shocking ....

..... kids learn math by working w/ numbers.

[Drunken Irishman]

20. What, no Wacky Wednesday?

Pfft.

[muntrv]

8. Pukecannon! Just wear your Klan regalia on MSNBC!

[Starry Messenger]

10. Uh, so did I.

How did he learn? Cave wall drawings?

[4lbs]

11. Gee, that's how I learned English as a child.

I was born in another country, and came here not knowing any English.

Within a year, after reading lots of children's books, several per week, with assistance from my father, I knew English well enough to get almost straight A's in K-6, and be elected 6th grade class President by my peers.

However, I see Pat's point. Those children's books prevented me from getting 100% straight A's. :eyes:

[CTyankee]

21. I teach adults in ESOL. One of my tools is the poetry of Shel Silverstein and other

poems/songs that children sing. ESOL teachers use them to instruct English learners about the timing of our language. Even native English speaking children sing/speak them ("the WHEELS on the BUS go ROUND and ROUND...") English is a stress timed language. Spanish is a syllable timed language. The difference is that in Spanish every syllable is given equal time. In English this is not the case; syllables in certain words are routinely dropped. Sometimes I sing the song "Little Boxes" to my learners so they can understand this: Little BOXES on the HILLside, little BOXES made of TICKy TACKy...

Learning time stress is essential to learning English.

[dalaigh lllama]

27. Someone should ask Buchanan what second language HE speaks fluently

and how he learned proficiency in it. I somehow doubt he has any clue on how a second language is acquired.

[CTyankee]

36. I'm sure ole Pat would say that it's "un-American" to speak any language other than English.

As one RW fundie is quoted as saying about English, "If it was good enough for Jesus Christ it's good enough for me!"

[beac]

40. Lucky students! I love Shel Silverstein. What a treat to learn English with his words.

I wonder if some of your former students giggled when they saw "Little Boxes" used as the theme song for "Weeds"? ;)

[CTyankee]

46. Actually, I found it difficult to use with one of my students, a woman from China.

She loved singing it with me but the meaning was lost on her. I had to shift tactics...

[BlooInBloo]

12. Direct link...

http://thinkprogress.org/2009/06/01/buchanan-sotomayor-english/

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

13. He's got some balls bringing Clarence Thomas up as an example of

somebody who understands the law. It's also good to know that he thinks the drug addled gas bag has good instincts on who should be a Supreme Court justice.

[global1]

15. Hey Buchanan - I Got One Thing To Say - My Pet Goat........nt

[Jennicut]

16. Like duh...that is how children learn to read English everyday.

As a preschool teacher, shame on him! Reading to children and reading as an adult improves you English no matter what kind of book you read. Idiot.

[MadHound]

17. Gee Pat, I guess that semester that I had of Children's Literature didn't count then

I mean after all, I was reading a couple of kid's books a week there for a college level class. Hmmm.

And frankly, kid's lit is how most people in this country, at one time or another in their lives, learn how to read, write and speak the language. Of course given Pat's atrocious grammar and speaking, I see he skipped that part.

[MadMaddie]

19. Oh Pat, Pat, Pat it so hard to be any more racist.

At least she was reading! Fuck you Pat!

Picking up a children's classic to improve her English is something I think ole Pat would support. Pat doesn't like anyone that doesn't look like him, sound like him.....

She still graduated at the top of her class.

The right wing doesn't like minorities or women who get educations and are high achievers. Men like Pat are intimidated by people that are smarter then they are.

[RoadRage]

22. So the lesson here is:

Sotomayor is so friggin' bright that she not only graduated at the top of her class at Princeton, but she did so without even having a complete understanding of the English language first. And, instead of partying and having a good time during the summers.. she took it upon herself to master English instead.

So, thank-you Mr. Buchanan for pointing out both Sonya's extremely high intelligence AS WELL as her admirable work ethic!

[saltpoint]

23. Look and see. See Dick. See Jane. See Sally. See Spot and Puff.

See Pat, notorious bigot.

Spew, Pat, spew!

[saltpoint]

24. If you graduate at the top of your class from Princeton it seems to me

you must have a hell of a lot on the ball.

Bravo, Judge Sotomayor.

[salguine]

25. What method did you use to learn Spanish, Pat? Or any of the

many other languages you speak?

You fucking anal crevice, you.

[NatBurner]

44. ^^

my thoughts exactly

[saltpoint]

26. The steps she made leading up to her commanding accomplishment at

an Ivy League school included what looks to me to be some of the soundest pedagogy on earth.

Loud, sustained cheers for Judge Sotomayor. Pat Buchanan can go suck a doorknob.

[Doremus]

28. As opposed to students at Regent Univ., who don't take Elementary Grammar until their 4th year. nt

[BeyondGeography]

29. A moralizer who demoralizes

[Are_grits_groceries]

30. Patsy learned it reading "The Turner Diaries."

That was Amurican Histury to him.

I learned to read with comic books. Some of them were Classic comics. They were about Ivanhoe and such. Because of that, I read the books later on. I also became bilingual reading Sargeant Rock comics. I can count to 3 in German.

[Canuckistanian]

43. Or "Mein Kampf"

The pop-up edition.

[EquallyExhausted]

31. not surprisingly he totally misses the point of that anecdote

i've heard her tell this story before, and the point is that she spent time reading some of the children's classics and other classic works that she hadn't been taught in school, in order to better understand common literary references that were made in her courses; stuff which it is often taken for granted that all children will have learned in school. sure sounds like a lazy dummy doesn't she? :eyes:

[Occam Bandage]

32. So she graduated at the top of her class, despite having to re-learn English at the same time

she had to learn the course material in English. And this is a sign of lower intelligence.

:crazy:

[Uzybone]

33. why MSNBC has him on I can never understand

if there was a left wing version of Buchanan that person would never be seen on TV even once, let alone be a regular commentator.

[Ganja Ninja]

34. Most kids can be taught to read before kindergarten by the parents

taking the time to sit down and reading children's books with them. Sadly most don't take the time or make an effort.

[grantcart]

35. I would love to see Buchanan struggle learning a second language

Everyone who has struggled knows exactly what she was doing, how difficult it is and how much she should be admired for becoming so profecient in two languages. Maybe Pat can get as proficient in one.

[Hieronymus]

37. Buchanan, another right wing warmonger who didn't serve. He was

exempt for Reiter's Syndrome ... Google it.

http://www.nndb.com/people/053/000023981/

[Politicalboi]

38. I bet Sotomayor knows

What a VP does. Unlike Pat's beauty queen who was nominated for the job.

[LiberalAndProud]

39. Pat .. Reach much?

The Nay-sayers are really picking nits while voicing objection to this nominee.

I'd tell him to stfu, but he looks the fool again, so where's the harm?

[Justitia]

41. And look how much more erudite she is than the nativist, Pat Buchanan.

Her IQ must outpace him in the quadruple digits to accomplish such a feat by a non-native speaker.

[kimmylavin]

42. What the hell is English grammars?

And I took several college level classes on children's lit.
The study of language, myth and lessons learned was fascinating.

[anonymous171]

45. Fuck that loser. He wants everyone to learn english but mocks their attempts to do so?

Asswipe. :grr:

[yellowcanine]

47. WTF? How is it relevent HOW she improved her English? She did it on her own initiative.

She didn't ask for special treatment because her English was inadequate. She worked hard and corrected the situation. Isn't that what the loudmouths on the right say they want people to do?

[Cleita]

48. Sorry Pat, but so did he. We all learned our language from children's books

because at one time we were children, even Pat!

[Odin2005]

49. I read kid-level stuff to work on my Spanish. Pat is an asshole!

[sheila mae]

50. This story confuses me. You mean that while at Princeton (during summers)

she used kiddie books to bone up on English, as well as enlisted a prof to assist her? Does anyone know how she got into Princeton in the first place? I mean, it's an Ivy League school, she comes from very humble means, admitted that her English wasn't too hot (and don't they have to write essays to get in?), most likely had no connections...Was it merely her grades?

[saltpoint]

51. Maybe Pat feels that 6-year olds should begin with Proust and Melville,

forcing people learning English later on as adults to do the same.

Then again, what does Pat know? He was a Nixon defender.

[saltpoint]

52. It's been a couple days now on this, and I'm still real mad at Pat Buchanan.

We could do with his sexist and racist trash talk on Judge Sotomayor.