On Nov 3, 2009, at 10:04 AM, kirby urner wrote:

>  On Mon, Nov 2, 2009 at 8:27 PM, Edward Cherlin <echerlin@[...].com>  
>  wrote:
>  Cards: You are right on the merits for combinatory math, but you will
>  run into strong cultural aversions.
> 
> 
>  Yes, anticipated.  However, the Python subculture has done the  
>  necessary work to publish a Diversity Statement, which has an  
>  antibiotic effect against puritanical bigots (assuming you mean some  
>  people have moral hangups about gambling?).

I was rather assuming that the hangups would be about the more cringe- 
worthy aspects of tarot cards.  The fact that people of faith may not  
get a good feeling about using a tool whose logo is a snake,  
introductory examples are using tarot cards, and whose theme music  
might be construed to be the rather irreverent creations of the Monty  
Python players, says less about the presence of puritanical bigotry  
and more about a complete lack of sophistication in marketing.

I love a good example (and a good joke) as much as the next guy, but  
let's not lean on a diversity statement as an excuse to not attend to  
some basic tenets of marketing.  If we had examples that incorporated  
the various "Stations of the Cross" it would likewise go over like a  
lead balloon.

Introducing Python as a unifying tool in early education (by some  
definition of early) calls for a particular discretion in the choice  
of examples.

Best,

Travis