The traditional four year liberal arts program should be eliminated

Submitted by Dave (United States), Feb 12, 2021 at 21:57

The intellectual conformity in non-technical subjects is a sign that the liberal arts university has had its day. Efforts to fix the problem through state legislation that seeks to protect free speech are just applying makeup to a corpse. The fact that legislation is needed to protect what should be a fundamental right in institutions designed to promote critical thinking illustrates just how hopeless the situation has become.

The issue is not just a matter of free speech in the sense of being legally protected from state interference or coercive peer pressure. It's also a matter of protecting the intellectual integrity of our children and society from the corrupting influence of toxic group-think.

For example, after World War II, many aspiring leaders of newly independent Third World countries were "educated" at elite Western universities where they learned that the best method of governance for their countries was Socialism. As a result, by the late 70's, most of the world's population was living under Socialism. The result was massive economic disruption and autocracy, ultimately leading to collapse and the realization that Socialism was a disaster. Now, only Cuba and North Korea are true Socialist holdouts.

Today, given the internet and the cheap and varied access to information that it brings, those wanting to learn do not need to sit in classrooms hour after hour and pay a king's ransom for the privilege. For those seeking specialized knowledge, there are a multitude of private organizations dedicated advocacy, as well as to study.

The Middle East Forum is one example of the huge multitude of organizations offering an amazing array of topics for the curious, but the catch is, only those seeking knowledge will become educated. And that begs the question: Should the intellectually bigoted and the incurious dolts really be taking up space in colleges? No, they should not, but unfortunately, that is exactly what has happened. It's time to replace our conformist educational institutions with independent groups of students yearning to think free.

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