Compulsory-attendance laws force parents to send their children to public schools. These laws presume that the politicians we vote into office, our agents, have the right to take away parents' liberty and inalienable rights.
Compulsory education means that in America, contrary to the common view, we no longer live in the land of the free. Local and state governments that claim the right to control our children's education also claim, in effect, that they own our children's minds and lives for twelve years. That is an appallingly arrogant claim, especially in America.
One reason public schools get away with educational murder, year after year, is because local governments violate parents' liberty and parental rights with impunity. Local governments don't own or run food stores, auto showrooms, office-supply stores, or pre-schools and private colleges in America. Yet they own the public schools and control 1st through 12th grade education in America.
Do government officials have any right to dictate how we should educate our children? To answer this question, we have to examine what our Founding Fathers understood to be the real function of government. In the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson clearly stated the moral nature and purpose of government:
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these rights are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness-that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. . . ."
The Declaration of Independence affirms that we have natural rights as human beings to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." It establishes the principle that we, the people, acting individually and by free consent, created our government only to protect and secure our natural rights as human beings. That is government's sole legitimate function.
Look again at the phrase from the Declaration that says, "governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed." The "governed" means all the people, not just some, not a minority, and not a majority. It means that all citizens, including parents, have the same inalienable rights.
That phrase also means that government is our agent, not our master. It means that we, as free human beings, voluntarily grant limited powers to government for a specific purpose, to protect our natural rights. It means that government should only have those powers we specifically grant to it for that purpose.
Yet, nowhere in the Constitution is the word "education" mentioned. The Constitution did not give the federal government any right or power to control how parents educate their children. By implication, state governments do not have any such right or power either, because such a power would violate our fundamental liberties.
Nature and justice confirm that parents have the right to decide who educates their children. Like parents of all species, most human parents protect and nurture their children and teach them the skills and knowledge they need to survive. Parents in all cultures make teaching their children a first priority. Since reading, writing, and arithmetic are skills needed to prosper in a modern society, it stands to reason that most parents will find a way to teach these skills to their children if the means are available.
Joel Turtel is the author of "Public Schools, Public Menace: How Public Schools Lie To Parents and Betray Our Children."
Website: http://www.mykidsdeservebetter.com,
Email: http://www.mykidsdeservebetter.com,
Phone: 718-447-7348.
Article Copyrighted ? 2005 by Joel Turtel.
NOTE: You may post this Article on another website only if you set up a hyperlink to Joel Turtel's email address and website URL, http://www.mykidsdeservebetter.com
Most politicians are completely out to lunch and totally Machiavellian... Read More
"Those who sacrifice essential liberty for temporary safety are not... Read More
The great leader and Senator from New York and wife... Read More
IntroductionThe way one lyrist has written, "Hum logo ko samajh... Read More
Bill Cosby got it wrong. His many speeches regarding the... Read More
In many reports we see that the Federal Trade Commission... Read More
The recent Jakarta summit of Asia and Africa brought remembrance... Read More
We have known of the innate characteristic need of members... Read More
We are seeing some trade wars brewing as American trade... Read More
I, too, am saddened by the disaster in New Orleans... Read More
It can be dangerous to engage in free speech. This... Read More
Wealth Distribution is often discussed at length in periodicals such... Read More
This is no time for the Black community to sue... Read More
September 11, 2001 could have been prevented. We could have... Read More
INTRODUCTIONThe aim of writing this article is to encourage the... Read More
I was dismayed to learn the other day, that my... Read More
Tax Evasion has been used to criminalize many, Nixon did... Read More
Osama bin Laden probably needs to get a pay raise,... Read More
Throughout all recorded history on our lovely little planet, Earth's... Read More
Possible UAV materials are infinite: Foam, Composite, Balsa Wood, Plastic,... Read More
The offshore financial centres have been forced in recent years... Read More
OH MAN!Here we go again. I guess now the "proof... Read More
As I read the papers and watch the news day... Read More
Veterans Affairs Employees using government credit cards on personal items?... Read More
One question not addressed in GM Crops and Monsanto Terminator... Read More
Western Springs shuttle limo ..In the last Gulf War we saw thousands of enemy... Read More
Excess capacity occurs in many industries, such as power, electricity,... Read More
Legislation is getting legs to further curtail your use of... Read More
"Had there not been outsourcing and utilization of cheaper resources... Read More
This is the third in a short series of four... Read More
At the start of the US involvement in WWII Joseph... Read More
The globalist's are the new breed, the new generation if... Read More
To be justified, taxes should satisfy a few conditions:Above all,... Read More
The Second World War was the continuation of World War... Read More
From the comfort of their plush offices and five to... Read More
When we go through periods of droughts we also have... Read More
The cause of America is in a great measure the... Read More
Elliot Spitzer, recently said he wanted to drive a stake... Read More
We recently saw another ferry accident, this one in NY... Read More
User BaseThe non-US and non-English Web segments have been boosted... Read More
30 years ago, California, later followed by other states, decided... Read More
The debate to raise minimum wage in California is totally... Read More
Here is an interesting thought; Corn to make Plastic An... Read More
If a farmer plants the same crop three seasons in... Read More
Recently I got to talking with a gentleman at a... Read More
One third of all fertilized eggs spontaneously abort and are... Read More
An American soldier is taken behind enemy lines and brainwashed... Read More
As the Baby Boomer Generation continue to get older, one... Read More
Well the title is absolute Bull Crap, but this article... Read More
Many in the World Media are quick to judge the... Read More
Political |