Don't Always Hate Mondays

As the Yellow Duck quacks at me today I was thrown into reflection. Be a good example to young folk I must. Watch me language (games) I must. But jokes apart a good point was made. How can blogs and bloggers set any kind of reasonable example to young folk today?
The talented and esteemed intellectual, Juha Suoranta ( see links ), makes a part of his blog by telling us that a group of teachers from the USA have come out with the following information. The cost of just one B2 bomber for the Iraq invasion is about equal to the cost of sending all of the Chicago public school students to university for 4 years and this includes tuition and living costs. I guess I would say that those teachers are trying to set a good example to young folk. I am still romantic and idealistic enough to support that Campaigning with eductional institutions. We might recall that campaigns for nuclear disarmament were once popular with school students and college students. But that was before "Warwick University Limited" ( good book by an historian by the name of E.P.Thompson, late 1960s). That was before the USA White House officials turned on the water sprinkler system to get rid of young children trying to present a partition peacefully to the then president Mr Ronnie Regoon. ( see the book edited by Guido Grunewald " Childrens Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament" 1985). That was before the likes of PM Blair changed the language game of education-education-education into training-debraining and framing!!!

Frank Furedi, writing in the on-line magazine Spiked, seems a bit fed up with those people that are all too ready to label the kids as mad and bad without good reason. He wants adults to take more of any of that nasty blame. I agree.

I remember - a wonderful memory from the late 1960s when i lived in the UK - I went to learn about the famous Summerhill school. It was a school that practiced participatory democracy and kept alive by activist educators and especially the founders Mr and Mrs A.S.Neil (RIP). My first step inside the open gates was the impression that remained. I was greeted by school kids and they were happy to see me and welcome me. Wow! They did not hate Mondays. The example set by those activist progressive educators showed in that greeting. Warmth and hope. Alas but mere memories now. Where have or did we go wrong? Have I done enough myself? Yellow Duck made a good point even in jest.

Maybe it is something to do with career politicians and career teachers institutionalised. Maybe those kids, that are allright, deserve more "Free-Floating Intellectuals"? Maybe too we have had far too much of method, method, method ( remember Albert Camus?) and not enough of Character!!