Ordained By the State:
A Recipe for Failure
by
Michael Gaddy
by Michael Gaddy
My
life experiences have taught me to be more than a little skeptical
when it comes to accepting the words, qualified or certified, as
relates to those who are "educated." I am even more suspicious
when those certifications or qualifications are bestowed by the
State. I believe those words carry far too much weight with most
Americans.
My
first experience with this phenomenon came at the ripe old age of
18. I had problems understanding why a 23-year-old Lieutenant with
an Animal Husbandry degree from Clemson University, and less than
7 months in the Army, was more qualified to lead men into combat
than a 40-something sergeant with a 10th grade education
and several years of combat experience in WWII, Korea, and Vietnam.
What the hell, the Army said he did, and since they were the representatives
of the omnipotent State, they were the ultimate authority.
Again
in Vietnam, the State ordained another fiasco. Those in the field
came to call it the "Shake n’ Bake" program. Qualified
mid-level Non-Commissioned Officers (sergeants), many with more
than a decade in the Army, were leaving in droves because of the
debacle that was Vietnam. No one with the State had yet thought
of the back door draft called stop-loss. To counter this loss of
personnel, the Army/State designed what to them was the perfect
solution. They would take a new recruit/draftee who had scored high
on his Armed Forces Qualifying Test (AFQT) and place him in a Non-Commissioned
Officers Course. After 22 weeks of schooling, the candidate would
graduate as an E-5, while the top 5% were made E-6’s. They were
immediately sent to Vietnam and placed in the position of Platoon
Sergeant over soldiers of lower rank, many of whom had more time
in combat than these "instants" had in the Army! The resentment
was immediate: not exactly healthy or conducive to success in a
combat unit!
Could
certifications and qualifications, when issued by the State; be
not a guarantee of competence, but instead an indication of an acceptable
level of indoctrination? Where could this phenomenon be more obvious
than in academia? A person can have years of experience in a particular
field of study, but be unqualified in the eyes of the State to impart
their knowledge and experience to students. Without a battery of
tolerance and diversity courses, the State believes one should never
be in the presence of students seeking an education.
I
have often wondered if the State issued with each certification
or qualification certificate, a degree of arrogance? The thought
again came to mind when corresponding with a professor from a well-known
college in one of our Southern States. He took issue with my
article comparing the situation in Iraq today with that in Vietnam
in 1968. He went into great detail to inform me that, "we"
won the Tet offensive. While I was not in country during Tet, I
did attend the 20th anniversary reunion of the Tet Offensive
in Richmond, Virginia, in January of 1988. I heard hundreds of veterans
of those battles speak of "surviving" Tet, but I never
once heard them speak of the campaign as a victory.
I
assumed that since the professor had used the word "we"
in his email; he was a veteran. When I questioned him as to his
military service, he became incensed that one could imagine that
made a difference. His reply was, "Lets see... where was I
???? That makes a difference, does it? And you served in Nam? I
know another who did that and he is a traitor." This
"expert’s" certification certainly came with an arrogance
enhancement.
I
also received an email on my first
article at LRC from a professor who is chairman of a historical
society. His comment on my declaration that "I am an anarchist
as defined by Robert LeFevre," and that I saw the government
of the Confederacy responsible for atrocities committed in its name,
was, "What your article proves is: what was needed was more
government, not less;" I suppose only a "State Certified"
person would be qualified to make such an assessment.
Several
years ago, I met a man from Colorado who had sold his software engineering
company for millions. He was piloting his own Lear Jet and had flown
into Tucson, Arizona, for the day to play a round of golf. During
conversation, he told me he had recently gone to a local university
in his hometown and offered to teach in the Computer Engineering
department, pro bono. He was surprised when the dean of that department
called him and said, "no thanks." He was informed he was
not qualified to teach without proper certification and therefore
the university would not be able to accept his offer. To the State,
actually succeeding in your chosen field of endeavor does not equate,
in any way, with their bestowed honor of certification.
If
one had a son or daughter wishing to pursue a career in the computer
field, the wisdom and experience of such a man would be invaluable.
Yet, the system as it stands, will not allow the benefits of such
wisdom and experience. It is more important that one receive the
proper Marxist/statist theories and sensitivity training rather
than knowledge which could provide monetary gain for themselves
and their families and make them valuable members of society.
Considering
the State’s requirements, Bill Gates would be deemed unqualified
to teach a course in entrepreneurship without the proper State indoctrination.
This
nation has an abundance of people with a vast amount of experience
in many fields. They have acquired that level of practical knowledge
as opposed to those in the teaching profession who have only dealt
with theory. Many of these folks could make fantastic contributions
to the education of our youth, but to the NEA and State certification
boards, theory and proper socialist/statist indoctrination is much
more important than experience and knowledge.
Is
it not remarkable that the mere mention of God is not allowed in
our schools, but the concepts of Statism reign supreme? We are making
a terrible mistake by allowing the vetting of teachers by the State.
It is obviously not important that our children learn anything but
the concepts endorsed by the State!
No
matter what perfumed version of socialism proposed by government,
the results are the same. The only difference in the much vaunted
education programs of the Clintons (Goals 2000) and those of the
Bush regime (No child left behind) are their names. The goals of
indoctrination and political correctness are identical, the only
difference being NCLB comes with a much higher price tag.
I
have heard and read many in this country that say they are aware
of the shortcomings of the schools, but they supplement their children’s
education at home. This is a tragic mistake. You may be able to
give your children more knowledge at home, but how are you going
to combat 6 hours of liberal/socialist/statist indoctrination? That
equates to 30 hours each week. How many of us have that amount of
time with our children?
One
of the despotic acts by King George III that led to many leaving
England and coming to the new world was the requirement that all
preachers/ministers be licensed and sanctioned by the crown. This
insured only the doctrine of the crown was disseminated to the masses:
how convenient here in America for the State’s indoctrination to
begin at age 5 or 6.
Our
children’s minds are being stolen and poisoned by State ordained
teachers and professors who have inherited a whole stable of sacred
cows they revere and honor. There are notable exceptions, such as
Professors Thomas
DiLorenzo, Clyde
Wilson, Thomas
Woods, William
Anderson, Butler
Shaffer and Special Education Teacher Linda
Schrock Taylor, but they are in a most distinct minority. Steven
Yates writes a most compelling piece on why anyone who genuinely
cares about their children should get them out of the clutches of
the legions of statists.
We
have absolutely no chance of ever returning this nation to the one
envisioned by Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry and other true patriots
as long as we allow the State to dictate the standards and the curriculum
for the education of our children. The State and liberty are diametrically
opposed. As long as the State is in the position of certifying those
who teach, the majority of teachers will gravitate to the oppressive
doctrines that lead to slavery and our children will never know
why our founders intended this country to be a Constitutional Republic
and not a democracy.
February
21, 2005
Michael
Gaddy [send him mail], an
Army veteran of Vietnam, Grenada, and Beirut, lives in the Four
Corners area of the American Southwest.
Copyright
© 2005 LewRockwell.com
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Gaddy Archives
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