🚀 go-pugleaf

Bradley Richards wrote:
> 
> In article <329796E9.52AA@rmii.com>, sockeye@rmii.com wrote:
> >> I am not arguing that homeschooling should be banned or that severe
> >> barriers (spelling flames to alt.null) should be erected, merely that
> >> some basic standards be set.
> >
> >By whom, and for what purpose?
[ ... ] 
> The answer to the second question,
> "for what purpose" is quite simple: to promote the long-term health of society.
> Taking an extreme example, if we decided not to school children at all anymore,
> modern society would quickly disintegrate--education, at least in the form of
> basic literacy mathematics and conversancy with other fields--is essential, if
> one is to function in the real world. If one it to improve the world, one needs
> somewhat more than this bare minimum.
> 
> In that sense, when people go off and home-school their children, it is
> unquestionably a prerogative of society to ensure that those children will
> receive an education which will ensure that they will be productive members of
> said society.

Sez who? "Society"? Who is this "society"? The government? Do parents
count as "society"? What is this "education" anyway? Functional
literacy? An acceptance of an officially approved hagiography in place
of history? How far can "society" go to ensure that the child is
"educated"? Can s/he be held in school indefinitely if s/he does not
"learn"? Can s/he demand early release if s/he learns quickly? 
> 
> The first question, "by whom", is then clear: by the government of the society,
> or by an agency appointed by the government. 
Oho - this answers one of my questions ... society == the government,
approximately. Not by *my* lights, mister. 
 
> The government is, after all, the
> active organ of society, and if the people making up said society disagree with
> its actions, they have the power to change it.
	Nobody has the power to change government as an individual; a change in
government requires the co-operation of a majority. Even powerful
persons must be elected. So, you do NOT have the power to change the
government unilaterally. In particular, if you wish to educate your
child to your standards, you must fight City Hall and win. In other
words, no, you may not ... 
	A careful examination of the politics of school boards [in the USA]
will show that it is in fact nearly impossible to effect change within
the system, even if a majority wants change. In fact, education
bureaucracies are masters at the art of dilatory obfuscation in the face
of political activism; they can defeat, deceive, co-opt or outlast the
most determined reformers. Therefore, the change that _this_ citizen
wants to achieve is to strip the school system of its power to coerce
attendance, and to do so through the ballot box. Anything wrong with
that? 

> 
> To imply that, because the present system is not very good, we don't need any
> system at all--that is simply naive, and does not contribute to a real solution
> of the real problem. 

	I don't think we need 'no system at all'; I think we need a meaningful
choice about whether or not we will participate in the current one. The
system can continue to exist as long as it can attract (not compel)
people to send their kids into it. 


> Anyone who wants to live totally without constraints on something like
> educational standards, which are fundamental to the health of a society, should
> go off and live alone on a desert island. 
	Nonsense. You want to know how I feel about this? Try this paraphrase
on for size: "Anyone who wants to live totally without constraints on
something like
the contents of newspapers and printed materials, which are fundamental
to the health of a society, should go off and live alone on a desert
island. "
Does that make it any clearer? 

> Cheers,
> 
> Bradley
> 
> -----------------------------------------------------------------------
> Bradley L. Richards, AI Lab, Fachhochschule Furtwangen, D-78120 Germany

	Maybe this is a cheap shot, but why do I get the impression that your
opinions have something to do with your location?