Our Next Generation

An article called "Ongoing Experiment in Artificial Stupidity" in The Gaston Gazette(March 15,2010) brings to light a disturbing trend in our education system. The article tells of a woman going around the crowds at a state fair collecting names on a petition to ban "dihydroxymonoxide - a fancy chemical name for water". A conditioned response for see a petition, sign a petition without ever really finding out what the issue is at hand. It shows how our children are being taught to see only one side of an argument-any argument. I can remember in school being given the assignment of researching a topic and then writing to our representatives to air our thoughts or complaints. What does it say when children less than ten years old are told(not researching these topics) of earths global warming, nuclear weapons, or medical care and then given an assignment to write letters to members of congress or even the president. At thirty-seven I haven't formed opinions on some of these issues, how can we think our children are ready to form a opinion. In chapter 12 we looked at social psychology and the area of conformity. Were one changes there opinions or behaviors to closely match the thoughts or feelings of others to fit in to the social norm.