Since Elizabeth Bruenig has posted her whole opening debate statement, I thought I’d reply point-by-point. She’s in blockquotes; I’m not. Before I get started, though, let me say that personally, Elizabeth seems a gracious and kind human being. Still, even if I were an avid socialist, I’d be baffled by the way she tackles the issue.
Tag: education
Capitalism vs. Socialism: The Bruenig-Caplan Debate
“Capitalism” and “socialism” – what do these words even mean? You could just say that capitalism is the economic system of countries like the United States, and socialism is the economic system of countries like the former Soviet Union. In that case, I’d say that capitalism is at least ok, while socialism is hell on earth. Perhaps my opponent would even agree! It’s more fruitful, though, to treat capitalism and socialism as positions on the ideal economic system. Something like: the capitalist ideal is that government plays very little role in the economy – and the socialist ideal is that government plays the leading role in the economy. In that case, I say that capitalism is awesome, and socialism is terrible.
Racialism is Bogus
“The Unwelcome Revival of Race Science” is far longer than need be, and carries a certain amount of unnecessary political baggage, but nonetheless, there’s some gold among the dross.
School Writing vs. Real Writing
The entire education apparatus, from kindergarten through college, teaches skills relevant to how to succeed in academia, and nothing relevant to how to succeed in the free-market. Take writing as one example.
What if Everyone Was Forced to go to Auto Mechanic School?
There’s nothing bad about auto mechanic school. But it’s easy to spot the absurdity of forcing every person to spend 12 or 16 or 20 years in it and telling them it will be valuable no matter their interests, goals, or future career. It’s no less absurd to do what we currently do and force everyone to go to professor school for most of their young life.
Don’t Fake Your Way Out of Naïveté
“Faking it till you make it” is at its best a confident, earnest approach to a problem, with the hope that your “old college try” will bring you closer to mastery. If (like me) you are a relatively inexperienced young person in the professional world, that’s a necessity. But “faking it till you make it” goes wrong when you try to fake your way out of your naïveté.
Unschooling at the Institution
I had to consider how I had lasted through my 12 years of servitude and continual higher ed since then. The secret is that I never took it seriously. I was so busy educating myself that I had too little time to question my enjoyment of my environment. Never in my scholastic career did I see myself as not being self-owned, not being self-directed.
If You Want to Preserve Your Freedom, You Need to be Armed
The gun grabbers would turn everyone—except for the politicians and their enforcers—into supplicant serfs, entirely at the mercy of their masters’ demands. They would deny us not only our most fundamental right to defend ourselves but also the tools necessary to overthrow the tyrants and demagogues who threaten our self-ownership with every breath they take.
An Unschooling Snapshot
“No man has the right to dictate what other men should perceive, create or produce, but all should be encouraged to reveal themselves, their perceptions and emotions, and to build confidence in the creative spirit.” ~ Ansel Adams How does unschooling actually work? What does it really look like? How do children learn without being…
Schools, Not Guns, Are The Problem
Allowing government schools to continue to exist is a safety nightmare. First of all, you are putting your kids in the hands of cowards and ethical cripples. They ban the decent people from being armed, which encourages evil losers to treat the school as a shooting gallery. If you work for or in a school, and you don’t fight against the “no guns/weapons” policies you are part of the problem. If you help those policies be enforced you are so much worse.