Dumb and Dumber (Nos. 111-112)

Watching the Education Apocalypse in Slow Motion

*Again, many thanks to those of you who converted your subscription from free to paid. Because of your generosity, I took Mrs. Redneck out for date night on Saturday, and she enjoyed a succulent Chick-fil-A #1 Meal with the ice cream dessert bonus. Life is good!

**I will be back next week with my ongoing “selfishness vs. selflessness” series with an essay on either the Puritans or Adam Smith!

***I’m told that a major “marriage” case is headed to the Supreme Court, and so I’ve decided to commit to writing a series of essays on marriage. The primary purpose of these essays will be to define what marriage is and is not (wherein I make the radical claim that marriage to a dolphin just might not be marriage!!!) and why marriage is a pillar of a civilization.

****Last week’s essay on “The 51st State” has proved to be, as I predicted, both very popular and highly controversial. Several anti-Trump subscribers read the title only and immediately unsubscribed without ever realizing that the essay was highly critical of Trump. Several pro-Trump people read the whole essay and then unsubscribed without appreciating the fact that the essay was anti-socialist. (Yes, Substack analytics gives me all this information.) Conclusion: We live in a hyper fragile age.

DUMB AND DUMBER (NO. 111)

K-12 EDITION

VERY OLD NEWS: Your Kids Aren’t Learning: Reading Is No Longer Required in School.

IS THERE A CORRELATION BETWEEN INCREASED GOVERNMENT FUNDING OF THE GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS AND DECLINING SCORES IN READING, SCIENCE, HISTORY, GEOGRAPHY, ETC?

IF THESE TEACHERS HAD ANY SENSE, THEY’D KNOW THEIR AUDIENCE. The problem is, though, they do know who their audience is and that’s the point: they want to change the ideas, feelings, and attitudes of children as payback against the views of their parents: Mom Tries to Get Pornographic Content Out of Daughters’ High School Curriculum

THE GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS, IN CAHOOTS WITH THE SO-CALLED “ED” SCHOOLS, ARE ABOUT LEFT-WING INDOCTRINATION. PERIOD. FULL STOP: Columbia University hosts week-long program to instruct teachers on how to teach about climate change

BURN TO THE GROUND, SALT THE EARTH UNDERNEATH, AND THEN LET THE FREE-MARKET REBUILD: American Education Needs a New Founding

THIS IS ALL TOO COMMON: He had a sky-high GPA — but couldn’t read, write, or understand basic lessons

HOMESCHOOLING/MICROSCHOOLING EDITION

RULE # 1 OF A SANE HUMAN BEING: NEVER MESS WITH HOMESCHOOL MOTHERS: Controversial Homeschool Act Stalls In Illinois House

ENDORSED—AT LEAST THE TITLE: The Death of the Nation, and How to Prevent It: Modern schooling weakens family bonds and parental authority—homeschooling is the key to preserving tradition, fostering virtue, and raising self-reliant citizens.

HIGHER ED EDITION

HEATHER REALLY IS THE BEST: ‘Being female is not an accomplishment,’ Heather Mac Donald tells UW-Madison.

JUST AS I PREDICTED: Are Universities Following the Supreme Court’s Affirmative-Action Ban? Data suggest that some of America’s top schools may be practicing racial preferences by other means.

TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE: ‘LINE IN THE SAND’: Barnard College president publishes op-ed condemning unruly anti-Israel protesters who disrupted campus.

YOUR TAX DOLLARS AT WORK: At Northwestern, NIH Grant Funds Gender Institute That Hosted ‘BIPOC’-Only Academic Program: ‘The program invites a small cohort of trainees … who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) and also sexual and gender minorities.’

PROGRESS, ONE SMALL STEP AT A TIME: CUNY takes down Palestinian Studies job posting amid anti-Semitism concerns.

DEFUND COLUMBIA BIGGER AND HARDER! $400 million is obviously not enough. Cut off ALL funding to Columbia now! Columbia Professors Cancel Classes in Solidarity With Pro-Hamas Activist in ICE Custody: One professor gave students an automatic ‘A’ for their canceled midterms.

DO IT NOW! #JustWalkAway: Christian, Jewish and Muslim parents join forces to fight school's secret forced LGBT indoctrination

OKAY, THEN. We’re off to the races: ‘DEI IS DONE’: Virginia Gov. Youngkin praises University of Virginia’s abolishing of DEI office.

SUE AND SUE BIGLY: Coach Fired For ‘All Lives Matter’ Sign Gets OK From Court To Sue School

PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION EDITION

AMERICA’S MEDICAL SCHOOLS TURNED INTO EXTREMIST, FAR-LEFT-WING SO QUICKLY THAT NO ONE NOTICED . . . UNTIL NOW: FEDS TELL MED SCHOOLS TO STOP DISCRIMINATING.

DUMB AND DUMBER (NO. 112)

K-12 EDITION

YES, THIS IS REAL, AND YES, THIS IS HAPPENING: THE SCROLL: Pre-K teacher only teaches how to 'be gay'

WE HAVE TO FIND A WAY TO PROTECT CHILDREN FROM LEGITIMATE NEGLECT AND ABANDONMENT AND WE MUST ALSO PROTECT HOMESCHOOLERS AT THE SAME TIME. The former should never be used as a blanket rule to control the latter: We Should Worry When Students Don’t Show Up

BEWARE THE NEOCONS, ESPECIALLY CHESTER FINN: An Open Letter to Linda McMahon

“NOT TO BE”: Department of Education—To Be, or Not to Be

TIME TO PARTY: What if Trump Closes the Department of Education?

MAKE THEM EVERY INCH OF THE WAY: Wisconsin Teacher Fired For Refusing Trans Students’ Pronouns Wins $20K Settlement

WHEN SELF-PARODY GOES TO THE NEXT LEVEL: Randi Weingarten: People Are Really Angry, Trump Is Taking Away Opportunities From Disadvantaged Kids.

PROGRESS: Trans Ideology Could Cost Blue State Schools $10 Billion.

IDEAS (+ $$$) HAVE CONSEQUENCES: Biden and the Democrats squandered more than $1 trillion on DEI indoctrination in just four years. We’re only starting to understand the damage to our society this effort caused.

WE SUPPORT THE CLASSIC LEARNING TEST. LET’S DUMP THE SAT: Upstart 'Classic Learning Test' Gets Testy Welcome From the SAT

AGREED 100%: Dump the Education Department? It's About Time

AND YOUR FIRST CLUE . . . It’s time to dissolve the Department of Education.

HIGHER ED EDITION

THIS MUST END NOW: Social Workers Get Millions To Push DEI In Schools

THE STUDY OF ENGLISH LITERATURE ON AMERICAN COLEGE CAMPUSES IS DEAD: R.I.P.: MARK BAUERLEIN ON HOW ENGLISH PROFS SHOT THEMSELVES IN THE FOOT.

GOOD NEWS! Trump Is Draining the Higher Ed Swamp

NO: Are Universities Following the Supreme Court’s Ban?

COLUMBIA IS THE POSER CHILD OF HIGHER ED FAILURE. It’s a clown show: Columbia Exemplifies the Failure of Universities

GOOD QUESTION, ALTHOUGH I THOUGHT THE CORRUPT DEPT. ED TOLD LOAN HOLDERS THAT THEY DIDN’T HAVE TO PAY THEM BACK: If the Ed Department Closes, What Happens to Loans?

THIS IS A TREND: Live an Intellectual Life, Leave the Ivory Tower

NO, THAT’S THEFT! Just caught off government funding of higher education: Want to Soak the Rich? Tax University Endowments.

PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION EDITION

PATHETIC OR PROGRESS? You tell me: UConn Med School Drops Mandatory DEI-infused Hippocratic Oath.

I hope everyone has a great week!