Here’s another anecdote from my brother’s experience in the middle school classroom. He was teaching logic to seventh graders and gave an example of Ronald Reagan’s using a red herring to his advantage. When asked in a presidential debate if his age might be seen as a disadvantage, Reagan responded that he certainly wouldn’t, for political purposes, take advantage of his opponent’s youth and inexperience. (see interview)
Around that time, my brother paused and asked the class, “Wait, do you all remember Ronald Reagan? What year were you born?” These kids were born in the early nineties. And then he asked, “And whom did Reagan defeat in 1980?”
After a pause, one girl timidly raised her hand. “Adolph Hitler?”
Mulberry Street 