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Coffee!!: Why you should drop out of higher education …

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Here’s Dennis Prager:

A radio talk show host for 29 years, I long ago began asking callers who made foolish comments what graduate school they attended. It takes higher education to learn to believe that America and Israel are villains, that men and women have essentially the same natures, that human nature is good, that ever-larger governments create wealth, etc.

Okay that woke you up, didn’t it?

His basic point, I think, is that we must be educated into some follies; most of us are just not smart enough to arrive at them by ourselves.

My basic theory: The world has always been a mess, but it is a more stable mess when the follies are the usual features of a human ecology. By contrast, follies arising from, for example, “the assured results of modern science” may be harder for a society to tolerate.

Beware of replacing stable common-sense prejudices with fantastic irrationalities. Or anyway, don’t be surprised by really weird evils flourishing alongside the usual run.

Comments
CY - Excellent point.johnnyb
April 6, 2011
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johnnyB, "I kid you not – Walmart." Global Walmarting. Now there's a story. I find it interesting that the evils of the world according to the newspeak (read: political correctness) are so benign. Let me see, what are they? Global warming (Human created) Religion (read: intolerant) Creationism and anti-Darwinism in general Walmart Academic Freedom (of those not PC) Strict parenting The 1950s Free market economies Anti-socialism Drilling for oil Forestry Democracy building General condemnation of cultural evils PC intolerance Promoting hate (Read: not being PC) I'm sure there's a lot more, but it seems like the real evils are only news stories once in a while: The PC evils remain constant. What are the glaring evils, which only become important when they're...well, in the news? Oppressive regimes Drug cartels Suicide bombings Human sexual slavery Child exploitation Killing of political enemies Religious intolerance to the extent of repression Ethnic Cleansing Again, I'm sure there's many more, and there is a point... With the newspeak, It becomes easier to remember the PC evils than the ones that really matter, and that we should really be focusing on.CannuckianYankee
April 6, 2011
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correction; on the NIGHT OF April 7bornagain77
April 6, 2011
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OT: The Craig/Harris debate will be live streamed on the Notre Dame TV site. Tonight, On April 7, go to; http://ow.ly/4tYVEbornagain77
April 6, 2011
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Here is a link to the entire video 'indoctrinateu' Indoctrinate U - Our Education/Their Politics(Part 1/10) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxSg2oRU6Bsbornagain77
April 6, 2011
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i'm not a fan of Mr Prager. higher education is mostly aimed at kids in their late teens and early twenties. they simply aren't as smart as older folks and they only know the little they have been taught. i suspect its not just the schools but the demographics they come from which today are very segregated and simply not main street USA. however i would insist Mr Prager bringing up a middle east country like israel is not mainstreet USA either. Israel is not like america and one can make a case that putting it in the same camp as America is in fact typical high education gobblygook.Robert Byers
April 6, 2011
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bevets, I like that 'indoctrinateu' trailer. I hope the documentary 'goes big' to wake people to the fact that a war against the values instilled into our children is being waged on very many college campuses; Here is a trailer to a series that tries to give the kids a little ammo to protect themselves with; True U -- Does God Exist http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICwmBpTlYhkbornagain77
April 5, 2011
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In seminary we read a book called "The Universe Story". This was one of the most hysterical books I've ever read. It was a history of the universe, told as an epic tale. Over and over again, it told about biological and physical changes that threatened *all* life on planet earth (certain crises in early life, the meteor that killed the dinosaurs, etc.). In each of them, it said something to the effect of "even though it killed X billion creatures, and almost caused life itself to go extinct, it wound up being for the good of life itself." Now, what's hilarious, is that when they get to the modern age, they encounter an evil so disasterous that it has no potential for good. One that, unlike the asteroid that killed 90% of life on earth, was irreconcilably evil. You know what it was? I kid you not - Walmart.johnnyb
April 5, 2011
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I love Dennis Prager..........a great teacher, great person.van
April 5, 2011
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Indoctrinate U FIREbevets
April 5, 2011
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Yes, by all means! And here is a thought experiment, Gil: In the usual course of human evil, a man abuses and then deserts his wife, and is considered a rotter by her family, friends, neighbours, and parish priest. Now, how would this non-Darwinized group react to: "His behaviour is easily understandable in terms of the fact that alpha chimps do it." The person who said that would not even sound sane, let alone correct or useful in their assessment. Chalk one up to the dangers of a Darwinized education.O'Leary
April 5, 2011
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I've been a big fan of Dennis Prager for years. Higher education does seem to be required to believe some really nonsensical things like: 1) There is no truth. (And that's the truth!) 2) Moral relativism. (A truth claim that no truth claims about morality are valid.) 3) All cultures are equally good and wonderful. 4) Be tolerant, but only of people who think like we do (politically correct). 5) Random mutations and natural selection explain every aspect of every living creature that ever existed. 6) Humans are just naked apes. 7) A never-ending series of impending disasters (almost always caused by humans, and all supported by the "scientific consensus") that never materialize (global cooling, global warming, a heterosexual AIDS epidemic, etc.). Perhaps UD readers could add to my list. The supply of examples is inexhaustible.GilDodgen
April 5, 2011
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