my seventh grade history course at a very good school covered every period of our history, the constitution and our principles. my children’s course at the same school thirty five years later started with the slave trade, jumped to the civil war, the failure of reconstruction, the movement for women’s rights and the civil rights movement of the 60’s. at the time i wondered what was going on but now it has become clear to me. the french writer Nora drew the crucial distinction between history and memory. Our schools are skipping so much of our history that it will be lost to the memory of this nation and when that happens there will no longer be a nation as we knew it.
100% spot on--an' in LOSIN' our sense of creed (I would argue that near 100% of today's MyGrunts have no idea WHAT America is about other than free money--free healthcare, free rent, a free-for-all--oy!--an' that--of course--is intentional!) Lose our CREED/ lose our WAY / lose our nation. Adams, Jefferson, Franklin--they all sawr it loomin' on the horizon an' kinda archly predicted the pending LOSS--"if you can keep it" or "short-lived possession"--I mean seein' human nature an' STILL riskin' all ta create this blessed (really!) nation--is quite stunnin' when ya think onnit!
In trooth, I have not heard "creed" mentioned fer...decades? It used ta be only commonplace in that we all knew ya could not discriminate against people based on (phrase-nugget) "race, creed, or color" -- most've us never thought about that much--creed? yup is indeed a shared "belief system" (apart from faith of course). An' once upon a time most Americans shared the same "creed" -- regardless of race or color or religion--this is why ONCE when we were all "educated" (but before we were improperly "edumacated") we knew we shared these "truths that were self-evident!"--NOW it's easy ta alienate large chunks of society because there is no shared "creed." "We" are told (some of us! whuther those of us who have abandoned political parties, wuther those of us that question the gubbamint / jabs / dogma...--whuther those of us of a certain ethnicity...) "we" can now be "othered" cuz now--sans unifyin' "creed"--we are told that "we" do not have anythin' in common with "their" America. Easy ta do once the concept of creed is erased (as it's been).
important point made!
How odd--now that I think onnit--that creed wuz lumped together with race & color--that needs ta be unpacked fer sure... One involves a CHOICE the other two are facts of one's birth.... Thanks fer this important (if disheartenin') "think" today Barry! Good stuff!
Matt Taibi and Walter Kirn recently addressed our loss of rights that have been a withering reminder. Since 9/11 and the passage of laws supposedly designed to protect the homeland, rights have been decimated. The re-up of the State of Emergency has happened every year including this year. Over 200 “exceptions “ to the rule of law have basically buried all manner of illegal activities. Dick Cheney has always been hated by liberals for his draconian ways. Not anymore. Anyone find this disturbing? Wake up before it’s too late.
Thanks, professor B. Your defense of liberty is so important.
there is a famous story of the man who goes to a rabbi and says he is a disbeliever. the rabbi asks did you study torah? no. did you study talmud? no. did you study rambam? no. the rabbi answers. you’re not a disbeliever. you are an ignoramus. there is background of common education that must be taught to know how we arrived at where we are. all the electives you want won’t raise you above the level of ignoramus if you don’t know the basics.
I am not sure I agree with premise of education today being somehow more or less conducive to the idea of personal freedom. Certainly in a historical context it is exceptionally tilted towards free thinking. The percentage of people getting education at religious schools is lowest ever. That in itself amps free thinking aspect exponentially! Mostly schools today teach math, science, language and history. The rest are electives, a cornerstone of free thinking framework. The outcomes are varied, often suspect. But that in itself is a definition of free thinking society not an argument against.
my seventh grade history course at a very good school covered every period of our history, the constitution and our principles. my children’s course at the same school thirty five years later started with the slave trade, jumped to the civil war, the failure of reconstruction, the movement for women’s rights and the civil rights movement of the 60’s. at the time i wondered what was going on but now it has become clear to me. the french writer Nora drew the crucial distinction between history and memory. Our schools are skipping so much of our history that it will be lost to the memory of this nation and when that happens there will no longer be a nation as we knew it.
Marc, I appreciate your chilling testimony. And thanks for the reference to Nora, who is new to me.
Wow. This is an amazing read. Interesting to see both Adams and Jefferson presaged what de Tocqueville warned of a little later on. Passing this on!
Thank you, Carol!
100% spot on--an' in LOSIN' our sense of creed (I would argue that near 100% of today's MyGrunts have no idea WHAT America is about other than free money--free healthcare, free rent, a free-for-all--oy!--an' that--of course--is intentional!) Lose our CREED/ lose our WAY / lose our nation. Adams, Jefferson, Franklin--they all sawr it loomin' on the horizon an' kinda archly predicted the pending LOSS--"if you can keep it" or "short-lived possession"--I mean seein' human nature an' STILL riskin' all ta create this blessed (really!) nation--is quite stunnin' when ya think onnit!
In trooth, I have not heard "creed" mentioned fer...decades? It used ta be only commonplace in that we all knew ya could not discriminate against people based on (phrase-nugget) "race, creed, or color" -- most've us never thought about that much--creed? yup is indeed a shared "belief system" (apart from faith of course). An' once upon a time most Americans shared the same "creed" -- regardless of race or color or religion--this is why ONCE when we were all "educated" (but before we were improperly "edumacated") we knew we shared these "truths that were self-evident!"--NOW it's easy ta alienate large chunks of society because there is no shared "creed." "We" are told (some of us! whuther those of us who have abandoned political parties, wuther those of us that question the gubbamint / jabs / dogma...--whuther those of us of a certain ethnicity...) "we" can now be "othered" cuz now--sans unifyin' "creed"--we are told that "we" do not have anythin' in common with "their" America. Easy ta do once the concept of creed is erased (as it's been).
important point made!
How odd--now that I think onnit--that creed wuz lumped together with race & color--that needs ta be unpacked fer sure... One involves a CHOICE the other two are facts of one's birth.... Thanks fer this important (if disheartenin') "think" today Barry! Good stuff!
Daisy, Thank you for further ramping up my essay!
Matt Taibi and Walter Kirn recently addressed our loss of rights that have been a withering reminder. Since 9/11 and the passage of laws supposedly designed to protect the homeland, rights have been decimated. The re-up of the State of Emergency has happened every year including this year. Over 200 “exceptions “ to the rule of law have basically buried all manner of illegal activities. Dick Cheney has always been hated by liberals for his draconian ways. Not anymore. Anyone find this disturbing? Wake up before it’s too late.
Thanks, professor B. Your defense of liberty is so important.
James, Thank you for your kind note and your added important points.
Excellent, excellent, excellent . Thank you
Barry
Always find your posts informative and interesting.
My take on essential books . . .
Isaiah - corruption and injustice will destroy a people.
Sermon on the mount - spiritual things essential for happiness
Augustine - how Plato combined with Bible producing western civilization
Duns scotus - free will more important than logic
Milton - what is good and evil? Why?
Locke - humans as God’s children have natural rights
I wish school had recommended these, not Homer - war and hatred.
Modern thought -
Thomas Sowell, Mises, Hayek, Röpke, Rodney Stark, Eugene Rose, Thomas Molnar.
Thanks
Clay
Clay, I appreciate the kind note and excellent list.
there is a famous story of the man who goes to a rabbi and says he is a disbeliever. the rabbi asks did you study torah? no. did you study talmud? no. did you study rambam? no. the rabbi answers. you’re not a disbeliever. you are an ignoramus. there is background of common education that must be taught to know how we arrived at where we are. all the electives you want won’t raise you above the level of ignoramus if you don’t know the basics.
I am not sure I agree with premise of education today being somehow more or less conducive to the idea of personal freedom. Certainly in a historical context it is exceptionally tilted towards free thinking. The percentage of people getting education at religious schools is lowest ever. That in itself amps free thinking aspect exponentially! Mostly schools today teach math, science, language and history. The rest are electives, a cornerstone of free thinking framework. The outcomes are varied, often suspect. But that in itself is a definition of free thinking society not an argument against.
Vitaily, I'm glad to read that a thoughtful person thinks our educational system has not devolved. I don't agree but I'm glad for the optimistic note.