WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO AMERICAN CULTURE?

By Debbie O'Hara
July 23, 2003
NewsWithViews.com

What's up with our children being taught in government schools to embrace "diversity" and "multiculturalism"? While we have always been a nation of diverse peoples and felt it important to teach our children about other cultures, the main focus in the past was for them to learn about their own American culture. The reason for this emphasis was for the purpose of promoting a more thorough knowledge of American government and the Judeo-Christian principles upon which it was formed. Without this knowledge our children would lose their heritage of freedom. Why have American children been denied their heritage while all other cultures are taught and even celebrated in our schools? Even more puzzling, why have we allowed it?

The United States was founded as the freest nation on earth in modern times, because it was uniquely based on the principle that rights come from God and not government. Judeo-Christianity is the bedrock of modern jurisprudence, morals and philosophy in the West. When Moses cried, "Proclaim liberty throughout the land, unto the inhabitants thereof", (Lev. 25:10) it was the first time in human history such a claim was made. After the birth of Christ this claim was made anew. Though as human beings we always fall short, the liberty of mind, body, and soul has been the ideal of Judeo-Christianity. That is why those who do not believe in freedom for mankind always attack religion first, because it is belief in the God of the Bible that liberated mankind.

Although unique at the time, universal education was emphasized by the American founders because they felt it was necessary in order for America to survive as a free nation. When John Adams visited France he was shocked to learn that out of 24 million Frenchman, only about half a million could read or write. The founders rejected the European idea that there should be only an elite educated upper class. Only with the education of the Common Man could freedom really take root.

Direct responsibility for making sure children received an excellent education was placed on parents, whether they homeschooled, used a private school or a public one. There was a strong emphasis on spiritual values, morality, and the qualities needed to build a strong character along with the basics. Children were taught the need to perpetuate the American economic and political system. The Ten Commandments and the Golden Rule were stressed. This lasted for about 280 years.

In the late 1880's and '90's it all began to change. Powerful groups were demanding change. The Populist movement demanded the federal government use income taxes to confiscate property from the rich for redistribution. Wealthy industrial and financial leaders wanted to have a role in regulating the economy both here and abroad to limit competition and to line their own pockets. There were those economic and political leaders that called for government ownership or control of the means of production, known as socialism, and lastly those who rejected the spiritual and moral foundation of this country and wanted it eliminated from education.

Bit by bit these ideas gained a stranglehold on our institutions of learning. We now have the educational system abhorred by the founders, an elite upper educated class while millions are graduating high school while functionally illiterate. The purpose of government schools is no longer excellence in education for each individual, but to benefit government or should I say, the elites that control the government. The main goal of schools now is to prepare our children for a total government-orchestrated society.

For those of you who think that our "Christian" president will fix the "problem" in education, you better take a closer look at the president's recently passed education bill titled, "No Child Left Behind". Notice it says, NO child left behind. Don't think because you are a homeschooler that you have nothing to worry about and that you will automatically escape this system. Even adults will have to go to government approved job training centers, and those that don't fit the "politically correct" mold will not get the best jobs. President Bush has pumped billions more dollars into this federally controlled system whose job it is to make little "politically correct" robots that are ready to become "world citizens". And I would be very wary of William Bennett's K12 program. To my knowledge, Bennett has always been a strong supporter of nationalized testing and federal centralized control of schooling. There is also a big Charter School movement. Don't be fooled, it is still a government school! Even religious schools need to be closely scrutinized as many have become secularized.

We can see where these ideas that the founders detested have taken us. In 100 years we have gone from the foremost industrial nation in the world, to the largest debtor nation in the world. By 1905 when the United States had only 6% of the earth's population, it was producing over half of the world's developed wealth. (e.g. over half of all food, clothes, houses, cars, etc.) Now, to benefit the wealthy, our manufacturing jobs have been sent overseas with our service jobs following right behind. Many are out of work not only because of the export of our jobs, but because on our own shores foreigners are being hired over American workers.

Even worse than our loss of financial freedom is the loss of our moral character. Our respect for life has plummeted as we continue unabated with murdering tens of millions of unborn children not only on our own shores, but our tax dollars around the world are doing the same. We wonder why infants are left to die in trash bins when it is just up to human choice as to whether the child is precious life or a piece of garbage. Murder has become such common place news that we are not surprised at the most gruesome of details. Our children are taught homosexuality as an alternative lifestyle in school and we are afraid of saying anything as we might be looked at as being "intolerant". Families are falling apart as divorce rates are sky high. We are the biggest exporters of pornography in the world. Our streets are filled with riots and criminality. We think nothing of plundering the public treasury. We tolerate injustice and an attitude that "anything goes". Above all, we have the philosophy that God is dead and that man reigns supreme. Is this really the legacy we want to leave our children and grandchildren?

Very little of this diabolical plan for America has happened by accident. Those who do not believe man should live free have captured our country. As we continue to hope that someone else is taking care of the problem because we are too busy to get involved, we as a nation are moving ever farther from the foundation that made this country free, which in turn is what made it so great. I believe God will hold us accountable for the stewardship he entrusted us with over this country and for allowing the robbery of our children's Judeo-Christian heritage of freedom.

The window of opportunity is still open for us to make sure our young ones are taught about their American Culture. God knows how long that window will be open. We will one day have to relinquish all we have to our children. We are so concerned about leaving them an inheritance of worldly possessions, but what good are all the riches in the world without freedom? The Lord entrusted parents with the responsibility of educating their children. In Deuteronomy 6:7 God reminds us to take every opportunity to teach our little ones about Him. Even if you delegate that authority to others, which is your right under God, you are still responsible for that education. Isn't it time to take back control of your child's learning? What more valuable gift could you possibly leave to them than the richness of their Judeo-Christian heritage?