--- title: Signs of the Apocalypse; Part II description: Signs of the Apocalypse; Part II --- [717-556-0690](tel:+17175560690) - [Blog](https://info.veritasacademy.com/headmasters-blog) [![veritas_logotype_digital_horizontal_white_2021](https://info.veritasacademy.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Veritas%20Academy%20Updated%20Logos%202021/veritas_logotype_digital_horizontal_white_2021.png?width=5756&name=veritas_logotype_digital_horizontal_white_2021.png "veritas_logotype_digital_horizontal_white_2021")](http://www.veritasacademy.com/) [![veritas_crestlogotype_horizontal_fullcolor_digital](https://info.veritasacademy.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Veritas%20Academy%20Updated%20Logos%202021/veritas_crestlogotype_horizontal_fullcolor_digital.png?width=6807&name=veritas_crestlogotype_horizontal_fullcolor_digital.png "veritas_crestlogotype_horizontal_fullcolor_digital")](http://www.veritasacademy.com/) - About - Arts - Athletics [![Visit Veritas](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/1958683/d194301c-413d-4865-8436-d996d87bdc06.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/1958683/d194301c-413d-4865-8436-d996d87bdc06) ![veritas_crestlogotype_horizontal_fullcolor_digital](https://info.veritasacademy.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Veritas%20Academy%20Updated%20Logos%202021/veritas_crestlogotype_horizontal_fullcolor_digital.png?width=6807&name=veritas_crestlogotype_horizontal_fullcolor_digital.png "veritas_crestlogotype_horizontal_fullcolor_digital") - About - Arts - Athletics - [Blog](https://info.veritasacademy.com/headmasters-blog) # Veritas Blog #### Popular Posts #### Browse by Category - [Education (228)](https://info.veritasacademy.com/headmasters-blog/topic/education) - [Culture (153)](https://info.veritasacademy.com/headmasters-blog/topic/culture) - [Faith (132)](https://info.veritasacademy.com/headmasters-blog/topic/faith) - [Family (100)](https://info.veritasacademy.com/headmasters-blog/topic/family) - [Economy (62)](https://info.veritasacademy.com/headmasters-blog/topic/economy) - [Democracy (56)](https://info.veritasacademy.com/headmasters-blog/topic/democracy) #### Posts by Month - [August 2022 (2)](https://info.veritasacademy.com/headmasters-blog/archive/2022/08) - [July 2022 (2)](https://info.veritasacademy.com/headmasters-blog/archive/2022/07) - [June 2022 (1)](https://info.veritasacademy.com/headmasters-blog/archive/2022/06) - [May 2022 (2)](https://info.veritasacademy.com/headmasters-blog/archive/2022/05) - [January 2022 (1)](https://info.veritasacademy.com/headmasters-blog/archive/2022/01) # Signs of the Apocalypse; Part II Posted by [Ty Fischer](https://info.veritasacademy.com/headmasters-blog/author/ty-fischer) on Apr 1, 2009, 12:01:27 PM - [Tweet](https://twitter.com/share) April 1, 2009   Without missing a beat the Lancaster papers ran a story about the redeeming value of McCaskey’s, a.k.a., the School District of Lancaster ’s, musical Urinetown. Again, by way of reminding, McCaskey is receiving $12 million additional dollars in “stimulus” money. The story in the papers sheds some light on the content of the play. This content, seems innocuous—the paper even calls it “innocuous.” Admittedly, the title and the content (concerning “pee”) are, well, at least meant to be provocative and offensive, but we are encouraged to set aside our small mindedness, get past our “pee” problems and come and see this uplifting musical. [Here](http://articles.lancasteronline.com/local/4/235531) is the story:     [Lancaster Online Article about Urinetown](http://articles.lancasteronline.com/local/4/235531)   Well, I for one have been convinced by this article… Well, I for one have been convinced by this article…convinced to more fully embrace my closed-mindedness. The point of my closed-mindedness on topics like drawn from Wendell Berry’s fine essay *Sex, Economy, Freedom and Community*. In Louisville , he was facing the same sort of issue. Plays were being brought in to town and publicly funded. These plays often offended the most basic community standards. This offensiveness was, of course, lauded by the local media who aggressively sought to make people feel embarrassed about having local standards of decorum, manners and moral standards. The media would like all of us to feel our shame for not living in and having the standards of New York and Los Angeles —the only two important places on earth. We should receive and learn from their rebuke and adjust out antiquated, rustic manners. We should, in this case, embrace the “pee.” Well, this sort of thinking is a bunch of bunk. In my house, you are not allowed to talk about “pee” at the table. This ban on potty talk at the table is particularly in force if you are using “pee” to make a particular point by metaphor—like “urinetown” which uses “pee” to speak of monopolistic government, social control and censorship. If you want to make your point about erudite social topics, you need to make a decent enough argument that you need not throw in gross potty talk to get my attention. To fail to meet the basic standards of civil discourse is not a sign of refinement. It is a harbinger of juvenile delinquency. Any argument, essay, or musical that has to use gross language to get our attention should be rejected out of hand. The writer should be asked to revise his argument before we will listen. Usually, shock language is a sign of a talentless hack who has to use offensiveness to gain attention.    It is obvious that McCaskey needs a bail out, but it is not just financial. They need a philosophical bailout. To take public funds, to demand heap of additional federal “magic money” to simply make ends meet, to year-after-year produce educational results that are horrifyingly egregious and then to have the audacity to give subtle lectures to the community about its standard is outrageous—and in a ironic way it makes “Urinetown” completely understandable. This musical is the exact equivalent of a foul-mouth youth who ruins his family diner by his consistent bodily humor and gross language…while living off of the produce of the rest of the family who uphold cultural standards, lives within it means and makes his meals and clothing possible. 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