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My favorite teacher in high school was my chorus teacher, with my 9th-grade English teacher a close second. The conversations I had, the trips that we made, and the fact that these teachers made an impact on my life are something that I’ll always remember.
But I wouldn’t want to spend twelve hours a day with them.
We’re reaching the end of the paths that the culture has chosen, which is part of why you see society fracturing all around you. The culture is segmenting itself in three basic groups:
- The Single and/or childless
- Those who have two incomes and a family, with public/private schools
- Those who have one income and homeschool
There are, of course, subsets to these groups, but these are the basic arrangements we see. With the publicity of those in group 1, more people are opting to join that group, or complaining about the lack of freedom they have with group 2 or 3. And society does not continue without more children.
Enter the government:
It sounds like a dream for some working parents: school for 12 hours a day, starting bright and early at 7 a.m. and ending after dinner, at 7 p.m … all completely free. One elementary school, Brooklyn Charter School, is experimenting with the idea as a way to tackle two problems at once. The first is a sharp decline in students in urban schools. Families are leaving city public schools around the country, including in New York City, which has led some districts to consider merging schools or even closing them. The second is the logistical nightmare many parents face as they try to juggle jobs and child care….
Althouse
Althouse goes on to say that as the birthrate drops we’ll need to do more of this, because those in our society are motivated by self, and will choose to live the lifestyles they see influencers have rather than the ones that promote good society. And she’d agree with Plato, who argued in The Republic that it would be better for men and women to live their own lives, find the best matches, and have the government raise their children so that they could all work toward the greater good… but that doesn’t sound right either, does it?
I would say that a lot more could be done by any of the following:
- Declare social media a menace, and…
- Outlaw it
- Demonitize it
- Only allow people to match with people they know in real life
- Provide tax incentives for couples if only one spouse works
- Create more collaborative areas and spaces in neighborhoods where people can get together
More time with parents away from their children isn’t the answer.
