Pearl Harbor Remembered

[steinjr]

I think the point though, was that the "cycle of poverty" isn't going to end because some government act is going to come in and change the game. an individual's actions are up to themselves, especially in this country where people hate the government being on their backs.

Well, that is debatable. Not that some people passionately hate the federal government - that's pretty much a given. There is a lot of regionalism and skepticism against the federal government in the US.

But what is debatable is that that government projects and national laws always make little difference to individual's chances of success. That it is always up to the individual himself, and no one else.

Take things like the National Road. Establishing a national currency. Chopping back piracy in the Med. Opening up the far east to trade. The Homestead Act. The emancipation of slaves. The Pacific Railroad Act. The Federal Reserve. The GI bill. The Space Race. The Internet. The Staggers Act.

Obviously one can not legislate success for individuals. But a lot of the opportunities that today exist for individuals are due to things that was created by federal legislation and projects.

In my opinion - your mileage may vary :-)

but their is no doubt that knowledge is key. how can someone make an informed decision without having a clue?

There is no doubt that knowledge is important. And that there is a big difference between ignorance (which can be cured), and stupidity (which cannot be cured).

But it is hard to device a system that ensures that only people who "have a clue" make decisions, since we are not necessarily all in agreement about what "having a clue" means in various contexts.

When the school system lets otherwise normal people pass who essentially failed all their classes, who can hardly read or do math to save their lives (those two really being more important than anything else they teach), it doesn't really help the country as a whole. The only reason they do this is so the school can say "look at all these failing students who turned it around and passed!" so they can get more state and federal money.

It is a common problem of testing - how do you prevent some people from cheating?

The most obvious first attempt at a fix would be to give everyone the same national (or international) tests, send the tests to be graded elsewhere, and ensure that the people who grade the answers do not know where the test they are grading is coming from - maybe even to the level of not even knowing what state it comes from.

But it is really up to you guys how you want to tweak your system.

Smile,
Stein