Category Archives: Perspectives

How would you define slavery?

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To me slavery is the loss of freedom; when my life; my property; and my rights can be taken from me without my consent based upon the whim and caprice of others. If there is nothing that I can call my own, then I am, in fact, a slave.

Your government can, and does, tax you to its heart’s content. It may allow you to keep a portion of your earnings, but if it raised the income tax rate to 90%, 100%, what could you do to stop them from taking every penny you earned. Government can seize your property through liens and eminent domain; and there’s not much you can do about it. Government can also take your rights; as it has through all the gun control laws, and the laws and programs enacted to fight drugs; terror; crime; and any other social injustice. Continue reading →

H.L. Mencken Quotes on Government, Democracy, and Politicians

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Today (September 12th) is H.L. Mencken’s birthday. The “Sage of Baltimore” (pictured above) was born in 1880 and is regarded by many as one of the most influential American journalists, essayists, and writers of the early 20th century. To recognize the great political writer on his birthday, here are 12 of my favorite Mencken quotes: Continue reading →

Homeschool or Traditional?: The Teacher Speaks!

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First, let me explain my qualifications for answering this question. I am a fully certified teacher in two states. I have credentials for teaching K-6 general education and K-12 special education. I have a BA in special education and a Master’s in Learning and Technology. I am currently a 6th-grade teacher in a public charter school and teach leadership and STEM. But my most important qualification for answering this question is that I homeschooled my own children for 24 years. (I did not teach outside of that during those years, but I did start a private cottage school and ran that for 7 of those years). You want to know why your grandson gets finished with assignments in such a short amount of time. It does not take as long in homeschool with 1 on 1 learning. There is no better learning situation than 1 on 1. You do not have interruptions like you do in a classroom. We were always finished with our core academic schoolwork at home in about 1.5 – 3 hours depending on the subject. Keep in mind, I have twins with autism as well (which is why I had the cottage school) and my other two sons had/have dyslexia. Continue reading →

The Problem With White Parents?

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When kids are pulled from failing schools, leftists blame the parents of white students.

For most parents, the 2019-20 school year was turned completely upside down and inside out thanks to the coronavirus-induced closure of school buildings. Millions of parents who were suddenly out of work themselves gained the added experience of shepherding their children through weeks of virtual school, with teachers doing their best to educate via computer. For some students, it was a welcome distraction they could handle, but for others it detracted from the hands-on classroom experience. Continue reading →

Socialism in Education

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It would be virtually impossible to find a better example of socialism here in the United States than the public schooling systems that exist in every U.S. state. Ironically, it is this socialist system that is primarily responsible for the widespread belief among non-libertarians that “the United States has never been a socialist country,” as New York Times columnist Timothy Egan stated in a recent NYT op-ed. (See my two recent articles “A Life of the Lie on Socialism” and “Socialism in America, 31 Years Ago.”)

It is worth noting that public schooling is a core feature of the educational systems in Cuba, North Korea, and Vietnam, all three of which are widely known as socialist countries. That’s because public schooling is a socialist system. Continue reading →

Russian government recommended banning Wi-Fi and cell phones in primary schools

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On July 17th, 2020, the Russian Ministry of Health published recommendations to schools to ban the use of Wi-Fi and cell phones in elementary schools. The Medical Department of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Russian National Committee on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection, prepared the recommendations together with the Russian Ministry of Health. Continue reading →

Hand-In-Hand: Bad Programs, Wasted Money, and Our Government

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Ronald Reagan once famously said, “I think you all know that I’ve always felt the nine most terrifying words in the English language are ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help.’”

That baseball team of words should continue to terrify us.

When we look at government failures in the last 50 years, the list goes on and on. Remember the war on drugs? How’d we do on that one? Or consider child support for unwed mothers. Has that policy enhanced family life or damaged it across the board? The U.S. Department of Education is surely helpful. Yet are our children better educated today than they were in 1980? Continue reading →

Restoring The Original Purpose Of Schools

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If you have read my past columns, listened to either my talk show, The Ron Edwards American Experience or my radio commentary The Edwards Notebook, chances are you have read or heard me declare that the government school system is the number one enemy of our republic. Years ago, when I first made that declaration, people disagreed with much vigor. Some said that I was looney for saying that, considering enemies like China, Islamic terrorists, Russia, hordes of illegal border crossers, etc. Of course, those are all major enemies. But in my opinion, none of them compare with the great enemy from within, the government school system. Since before the establishment of our great republic, there have been those in our midst who have desired to prevent the establishment of a republic where the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is recognized and honored. The reason being is that out of both Judeo and Christian principles came the wonderful concepts of unalienable rights, Liberty and Justice for all, equal opportunity and the right of self, family and property protection and much more. Continue reading →

Public Education As Messiah

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The adherents of public schooling in this country have always had a messiah complex. They have always sought to make that educational institution (so called) that they adhere to and promote appear to be the sole method of improving the lot of mankind. No longer are we supposed to lean on the Holy Scriptures and the Gospel of Jesus Christ to show us the way to better the lives of people. We are supposed to now jettison that outmoded belief and replace it with the latest pronouncements of the public school educrats.

In his book Idols for Destruction, published way back in 1990, Herbert Schlossberg observed this messiah complex in the public education system. He stated: “From the time they began in the United States, the public schools have been intended to be a social force. Beginning with Horace Mann, they were supposed to promote the socialization of diverse peoples, end crime and poverty, and in general solve the political, economic, and social problems of the entire society. Muggeridge recalls that his father’s socialist vision included a society in which the population would be transformed through education.” Continue reading →

Teach Your Children

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“I wrote ‘Teach Your Children’ because we have much to teach them. Conversely, I believe we as parents have much to learn from them as well. I think that Jeff Scher did a wonderful job of animating my lyrics and positioning the song in a contemporary setting.” ~ Graham Nash (2018)

I am sitting here watching this over and over and crying. I am 75 years old – this is my life. One good thing I did with my life was follow the advice in this song. Thank you for this. ~ Jim Edwards

Here’s how much school closures will cost parents in lost wages, reduce GDP — and negatively impact the nation’s education system

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The American public-school system is already largely segregated by race, class and outcomes, and expert say that trend is likely to get worse.

How a school in Bangkok coped in June with the coronavirus. The debate over whether to re-open schools in the U.S. is currently raging with costs to parents, teachers, students an school systems to consider. (Photo by Romeo GACAD / AFP) (Photo by ROMEO GACAD/AFP via Getty Images)

For America’s schoolchildren, their parents and their teachers, this fall will be unlike any other.

Over the past few weeks, prominent public-school systems all over the country have announced that they’ll be starting school remotely. Others have pressed forward with plans for in-person instruction amid pressure from the federal government to reopen.

It’s a weighty decision for officials with implications for students’ mental health, parents’ careers and public health and safety — particularly for teachers and others who work in schools. Continue reading →

Forgetting the War and Losing Our Heritage

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Regarding the War of Northern Aggression, Jefferson Davis once made an interesting statement. He said: “Our children may forget this war, but we cannot. The war came and now it must go on till the last man of this generation falls in his tracks, and his children seize his musket and fight our battle.”

It would seem that Mr. Davis’ comment about the children picking up the musket was somewhat figurative and not meant to be literal. What he seemed to be saying was that the children would not forget what their fathers fought for (and it wasn’t slavery).

However, Mr. Davis was not taking into consideration the advent of the Northern system of public education that was foisted upon the South as an integral part of “reconstruction.” There was no way he could have grasped what effect this one part of “reconstruction” would have on the South, not in his own generation or in those to come. Continue reading →

If Schools Don’t Reopen, Funding Should Go to Parents

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President Trump suggested that if public schools do not reopen, that money could go to parents so they could send their kids to a private school.

“If schools do not reopen the funding should go to parents,” the president said.

As I wrote in “Culture Jihad: How to Stop the Left From Killing a Nation,” the only way to save the nation is for parents to take back their local school system and root out the leftist educators. Continue reading →

Why College Is Never Coming Back

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CAMBRIDGE ~ July 14, 2020 – Photo taken on July 14, 2020 shows a view of the campus of Harvard … [+] XINHUA NEWS AGENCY/GETTY IMAGES

Here’s some great news: one of America’s most broken industries is finally being exposed as a sham. And make no mistake, the end of college as we know it is a great thing.

It’s great for families, who’ll save money and take on less debt putting kids through school. It’s great for kids, who’ll no longer be lured into the socialist indoctrination centers that many American campuses have become. And as I’ll show you, it’s great for investors, who stand to make a killing on the companies that’ll disrupt college for good. Continue reading →

‘OK Boomer… I’m Gonna Keep Homeschooling My Children

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As a homeschooling father, I am no stranger to explaining our family’s choice to home educate our children:

“Yes, they have plenty of socialization with other children.”

“Yes, we teach all the subjects.”

“No, you can simply buy the curriculum and it tells you what to do.”

By now I have the answers memorized. You can imagine my cringing, then, when reading Harvard Law Professor Elizabeth Bartholet’s recent article in Arizona Law Review, calling for an outright ban on homeschool and the curtailment of private schools as well! Continue reading →

Black Lives Matter In Public Schools Is Turning Kids Into Little Marxists

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School systems across the country are adopting BLM curriculum at at alarming rate, indoctrinating our children to achieve Marxist objectives.

New York City is one of many school systems in the United States set to roll out Black Lives Matter (BLM)-themed lesson plans this fall. According to the NYC Department of Education, teachers will delve into “systemic racism,” police brutality, and white privilege in their classrooms. Continue reading →

Homeschooling Is All About Power

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I was one of those “weird” homeschool kids. At least, “weird” seems to be what the all those cookie-cutter questions I received between kindergarten and 12th grade inferred. “Aren’t you afraid that you won’t be able to socialize with your peers?” or “Is it possible you are missing out on a ‘normal’ childhood?” were ones I heard regularly. Continue reading →

What If Public Schools Were Abolished?

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In American culture, public schools are praised in public and criticized in private, which is roughly the opposite of how we tend to treat large-scale enterprises like Walmart. In public, everyone says that Walmart is awful, filled with shoddy foreign products and exploiting workers. But in private, we buy the well-priced, quality goods, and long lines of people hope to be hired. Continue reading →