V For Viability
columnist: Spencer Jayden

Topic: Libertarianism
On Education: A Way Forward

---

The primary defense against any encroachment of government is education. Education comes natural to Libertarians, as we have seen from the successes in growing our ranks this year. How then to further capitalize on this theme?

---

by Spencer Jayden
(Libertarian)
Sunday, April 27, 2008

"If the children... are untaught," he said, "their ignorance and vices will in future life cost us much dearer in their consequences, than it would have done, in their correction, by a good education."

Madison, too, shared his concern: "Learned institutions ought to be favorite objects with every free people. They throw that light over the public mind which is the best security against crafty and dangerous encroachments on the public liberty."

Despite there being no mention of education in the Constitution, they remained leery of the government exploiting the ignorance and creating an apathetic situation very similar to our current state. Of course, they also endorsed independent education rather than what we have today.

Yet public education had usually maintained some form of decency up until this point. Amidst one of the greatest waves of American innovation, the mid-1950's to be exact, new format of war coerced the government into its first audacious attempt to steer education for national purposes. The rate of intervention and its entangling effects upon the system were astronomical afterwards.

Today, before many even make it to college, many children are indoctrinated with collectivist sentiments, an instilling of instant gratification, and a hard-coded belief in respecting authority from their learning. Despite the controversial No Child Left Behind Act passed in 2002, our schools haven't even made progress in the academic area, which is usually the sole criterium being judged.  To  state it bluntly,  our schools mirror the impending fate of a nation being sold out to corrupt interests. Civic responsibility has been so watered down in the acidic environment that places rigid expectations and a slieu of standards. Ultra-liberal teacher unions, biased resources, and an anemic curriculum.

Does anyone else see the writing on the wall?

Libertarians have often decried the public education system and pointed to private institutions as a better way of seeding values and a real education in young minds. I share that notion, despite having never attended one myself- for I have seen firsthand the disastrous public system. But, for how many families is that a realistic answer today? Further, how achievable would it be to turn a majority of students over to private institutions in a few short years in the event of a Great Libertarian Awakening? First, we must precipitate one.

And what better way to start than using one of our enemies' institutions? Take the education scenario- even without holding major office, this is probably the most obvious and important area we can make a dent in.

Because the libertarian view is a largely unbiased view in terms of rights and freedom, an objective curriculum should be in our best interests. Liberals are a sworn ally to public education, often seeking the need for more regulation and bureaucracy. I'm sure most of us can agree it's the wrong move. Still, it should be no surprise that one of the prime reasons they have succeeded in flourishing recently is due to their presence from public schools.

With the quandary of problems on the horizon, the importance of rational institutions to enlighten our nation's youth is all the greater. As it stands, all of them are just begging for a larger collectivist impact on our society. The costs are too great to wait for economic calamity, immigration overflows, environmental disasters, etc. and then come to the rescue.

Though now, you may consider it to be equally criminal that we impress our beliefs on the young instead of the backwards agendas of the left and right. Fair enough. But when was it last thought that arming someone with the ability to critically analyze and take reasonable action was a crime? If people reach their OWN conclusions, so much for the better, right? That's certainly not how the system works right now, and counting on state and national victories certainly hasn't paid off yet. But this way, we'll have an even greater base to start with, that can't be undone as easily.

By helping guide government policy against itself, we empower young citizens to be civic-minded and reduce the apathetic conditions that allowed our current crisis to come forth. Even if you doubt this dreary outlook, or refuse to believe there will even be a U.S. soon, is it really worth it to risk our chances with a worse , mob-run affair in the future?

Consider how China and India, no matter the economic and political factors that separate them from each other as well as us, have asserted their claims to the world of tomorrow- they invested in the future with every choice they made. I'm not trying to sound an alarmist horn, nor am I suggesting we have more than ample time to make these corrections (refer back to my 1st guided assumption in the prior article.)

I encourage you to weigh these options and devote the existing grassroots energy we have now into building a permanent base that won't be depleted in the wake of every political nightmare we face. Run for local and state school board. Reach out to high school students. The presence by conservatives and especially liberals at my own high school is overwhelming to say the least.  And we already have a loyal space in colleges, so it's not that much of a stretch. There's a lot that can be done right now.

That's the best part. Not only will we then gain a better foundation for which to climb to higher office once people see our policies in action, but we will have also started to reintroduce integrity and critical thinking to generations born into apathy. So for now, hold off on the mayors, councilmen, governors, congressmen, and presidents.

I plan to follow up on this issue in the future. Either way, let me know what you think.

Did you like this article?
If you did, Thumb It!
7 thumbs so far

2008 Spencer Jayden, all rights reserved.
Published: Sunday, April 27, 2008
Last modified: Monday, April 28, 2008

The views expressed in this article are those of Spencer Jayden only and do not represent the views of Nolan Chart, LLC or its affiliates. Spencer Jayden is solely responsible for the contents of this article and is not an employee or otherwise affiliated with Nolan Chart, LLC in his/her role as a columnist.

Report violation by Spencer Jayden of Nolan Chart LLC's terms of use policy.