Or wishful thinking (on my part) as I believe that even though most folks were caught up in the Manifest Destiny idea it was not so much the Imperialistic mode, for most, as the shinning city on the hill mentality.
Most jobs do not require a college degree despite what we have been told.
True.
Perhaps we should explore the idea that our dwindling resources should be spent to train our children for a world of work wherein they or us will not have burdensome student loans to repay and a good job can be had with the right training in the right field. College is not required.
True again.
Employers and government agencies require college degrees for some jobs because they can get people to apply for them. The lessons learned at school, often have no applicability to the position at all.
The 21st century equivalent of a HS diploma; shows that you showed up, participated, and finished something.
I would hazard a guess that a graduate of a good urban high school, in 1930 would do better on anexam, mutatis mutandis, that a 2009 college graduate.
.... Empire is closely related to Imperialism : "the creation and maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural and territorial relationship, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination." France had an emperor once but its imperialism lasted more than Napoleon himself.A question of semantic ?
Agreed.
Do you go along with the theory that the book was an allegory about the gold standard?
;D Quite right; far more years sweating and swearing than any other means of making a living. ;DThough sans the "step" this should give one the idea....
Nope, I'm a fan of V. Gordon Childe; he outlines the steps in the progress from a folk society to a civilized one, taxes being one of the steps. While the wikipedia article on the urban revolution (his term) doesn't mention it specifically it is part and parcel of #3 about using “surplus to fund gov't…”. Also pays for #'s 4 and 5 in the list.PS: I used this in a lesson.
On of the failures of education (IMHO) is not spending more time getting the right fit for kids. Far too often students are encouraged to go to schools that are too much too soon… don't get me wrong I'm for any kid that can going on beyond HS, but with a caveat. Don't take a kids that could use a couple of years at a community college, to polish their skills, and send them directly to a four year school; don't take a kid that would do well at the local 4 yr, and send them off into the state university (read the likes of USC, etc.) system; don't take the State U prospect and send to Harvard / Yale / Princeton… get the kid on the first step and having success before pushing higher.Too many times I saw kids set up for failure by this process... happens not just with affirmative action programs, but generally anytime we want to promote the progress. The failure is then pinned on education generally.On another line; why blame HS's for Johnny and Janey not being able to read or do math? They should have learned that stuff in the primary grades, eh?