WILLIAMS: Americans' supreme ignorance

This is the second article I've seen on the ISI quiz. It is better than the first. However, it still doesn't fully describe the quiz. Yes, there are questions on the constitution and the roles of the various branches of government. And there are questions on basic history. But there are also questions on history trivia. The correct answer to the source of a phrase on separation of church and state in one of the questions is Thomas Jefferson's letters. This is not basic information the average person needs to know. It may be useful to a constitutional lawyer arguing a case, but I can't imagine anyone else having much use for this knowledge. The lack of knowledge in other areas not covered by the ISI quiz is also troubling. Clearly there is a need for better education. How about some meaningful suggestions on how we accomplish that?

Start with the curriculum, 12 years of public free school, what is learned by the students? Social political correctness. Students know all about racism, recycling and reproduction. They graduate and some can't write, do simple math, or know the basics of our government. Oh yes, they are drilled that to vote is their duty and by doing that they are good citizens. Kinda like shooting into a dark closet. You betcha!

It would be interesting to see a comparison of the people's responses from the age of 20 to 60 in 10 year increments. I think we would find where the transition to liberal self esteem education occurred. It used to be basic information for immigrating to the U.S. so it would also be interesting to find some 20 through 60 year old immigrants. But then again, U.S. kids are always bored with old people and their stories. My parents never really talked about World War II, they just lived it.

This situation is simply ignorance by design. It has more to do with indoctrination at all levels than education. This concept is fully endorsed by the NEA and the marxist democrats on Capitol Hill.

WILLIAMS: Americans' Supreme Ignorance 12/4/08 I agree with Mr. Williams, and with dittoman, below. It is obvious that the liberals' substitution of "social studies" for the traditional subjects of civics, history, geography, etc., in the U.S. public-school system has been a total failure--just like every other teaching-innovation they have introduced over the past 70 years or so. Yet the liberals soldier on unhindered, relying upon their massive political-power at all levels of government to protect them against any real effort at reform; and they continue to dumb down the nation. And when the liberals gained control of our colleges and universities, they junked the old concept of providing the students with well-rounded educations. Another person commenting on Mr. Williams' piece complains that the test under discussion includes irrelevant questions--such as the source of the phrase "wall of separation between church and state," which the U.S. Supreme Court has used successfully ever since 1947 (in "Everson") to justify its systematic decisions to discredit and suppress Christianity as the national religion underpinning our entire structure of laws, and replace it with the liberals' religion of secular humanism. If you know that Thomas Jefferson, as a private citizen, wrote that famous phrase to a group of churchmen, and thus it has no standing whatsoever in constitutional law; and if you then read the relevant clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which says, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion....," and you look up "respecting", and "establishment" (as regards religion) in the dictionary, you see that the First Amendment simply prohibits Congress from naming any specific religious denomination (such as Baptist, Methodist, Catholic, Episcopalian, etc.) as the official religion of the nation, to be supported by federal taxes. If you read the circumstances surrounding the creation of the Constitution, you know that the Founding Fathers laid out the U.S. as a Christian nation; otherwise, they would have had to set up a police state to maintain public order. If you know those facts, then you know that ever since 1947, the Supreme Court has been completely ignoring the Constitution and making up the law as it goes along, substituting the whims and biases of a majority of its nine-person oligarchy for the Constitution. Unless you're a liberal, and you don't care how liberalism attains its goals, that has to be a frightening piece of knowledge. If you were actually taught civics in school, then you also know that per the Constitution, the Congress takes precedence over the Supreme Court; thus, the Congress could have stopped the Supreme Court from ruling by personal bias instead of the Constitution at any time since 1947, but the Congress has not done so. If you are anything but a hardcore liberal, THAT piece of knowledge should really frighten you.

Don't expect the dumbing down to change anytime soon. What with Obama and a Democratic congress in charge, combined with a liberal monopoly both in education and the media, it looks like status quo for a very long time.

Good point Collardgreen, While the Supreme Court has vehemently recognized the first phrase-Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion-as to mean that no religious reference or prayer at a public function can be uttered as "establishing religion", it does not recognize the second phrase-nor prohibiting the free exercise thereof-. Using the same logic as the court uses for the first phrase, then it would have to find itself guilty of the second. disgusting

It's the Liberals, It's the liberals, It's the Liberals. Sounds like a broken record. If only it were that simple. No child left behind sounded good, how's that working out. There's plenty of blame to go around & it is. Many here seem to know whose at fault but don't give any constructive, practical & implementable solutions. In other words "Hot Air".

When you have an institution that has no competition. No accountablility to it's customers because the D's will not allow school choice. A system of teaching colleges that is more concerned with political correctness and self esteem. I guess the article above is what you get. Of coarse Fauxpas doesn't get it. Could it be he is a product of the same public education. Lucky for me I can afford to send my children to a Catholic school. I feel for the ones who can't afford the tuition for a private education. But hey, if most of the teachers in big cities send their kids to private schools who am I to argue.

Without knowing what the results of such tests were from earlier in our history we have no way of knowing if this has been the norm throughout our history. However this is pretty sad no matter how poor it may have been in the past. We easily have the resources where this should not be the case. I would add a couple of things to Mr. Williams list....Presidents can lead us to war under false pretenses without Congress actually declaring it and thats ok. Where the President breaks the law and as long as Congress says sure go ahead suddenly it's ok with us.

Try the home-schooling option if you're not happy with your taxpayer funded public education. Not all homeschooling parents are religious fanatics. I love what dittoman said: ___________________________________ Start with the curriculum, 12 years of public free school, what is learned by the students? Social political correctness. Students know all about racism, recycling and reproduction. They graduate and some can't write, do simple math, or know the basics of our government. Oh yes, they are drilled that to vote is their duty and by doing that they are good citizens. Kinda like shooting into a dark closet. You betcha!

I have to laugh a bit. I just got back from a doctor's office where I picked up a Newsweek magazine. It's been a while since I read one (the liberal bias I encountered was remarkable.) The magazine date was a week before the election. One of the articles was a hypothetical "Why McCain won" article. The reason cited - the uninformed and stupid electorate. After seeing the Zogby poll and the Ziegler polls of the knowledge of Obama supporters versus McCain supporters, I just had to laugh at the irony.