The Most Politically Controversial Statements on Education

Education - as you might imagine of a University lecturer with a family which has been involved in education for three generations - is close to my heart. Online Colleges have produced a list of the ten most controversial statements about Education made by politicians. Of course it is US based - but values are shared across the Atlantic. (And worrying Michael Gove, the current Secretary of State for Education - a journalist not an academic or a teacher - is very much influenced by some of the right wing ideas emanating from the USA).

The article starts -

"No one argues that the American public education system is in crisis. But the question of how to revive it is a difficult and increasingly partisan one. Many politicians, no strangers to rhetoric, have grown fond of using public education as their whipping boy, giving favorable crowds what they want to hear but often stirring controversy in the process. Here are 10 of the most buzz-worthy quotes that stirred up a hornet’s nest.


“President Obama once said he wants everybody in America to go to college. What a snob.”

The campaign trail has historically been a place where reason and common sense go to die, and in the 2012 election that seems to be holding true. GOP candidate Rick Santorum recently made headlines by calling President Obama a “snob” for supposedly saying every American should go to college so that he could “remake people in his image.” Apart from the fact that the president never said that, Mr. Santorum happens to hold three degrees — one more than President Obama.

“Like his colleagues in the faculty lounge who think they know better, President Obama demonizes and denigrates almost every sector of our economy.”

Presidential candidate Mitt Romney would like you to note that he was making odd jabs at education well before Rick Santorum. In September 2011, Romney attempted to paint a picture of the president drinking brandy with east coast intellectuals while mocking blue-collar workers. The “faculty lounge” in question was apparently another reference to Harvard’s faculty lounge, the first coming in August. Romney told veterans Obama’s foreign policy is weak, saying, “That may be what they think in that Harvard faculty lounge, but it’s not what they know on the battlefield.” There’s just one problem, Mitt old chap: you went to Harvard and Harvard people donate money to your campaign.

“Most of these schools ought to get rid of the unionized janitors, have one master janitor and pay local students to take care of the school.”

Your 9-year-old doesn’t have enough money, you say? Well has he thought about being a janitor at his school? Thus proposed candidate Newt Gingrich at a Harvard (big surprise) speech in November 2011. Newt Gingrich was born 70-years-old with white hair and a tie, which explains why he had no idea it would be excruciatingly embarrassing to be a janitor at your own school. Or that the suggestion was pretty darn offensive.

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The full article is available at http://www.onlinecolleges.net/2012/03/20/most-politically-controversial-statements-on-education/

Perhaps one day I will post some of the comments of Michael Gove and his sidekick, Nick Gibb - but while you might think the comments are funny, I could weep!!!!

Law and Morality

I remember a discussion with an academic colleague - who was of the view that 'law' and 'politics' were two academic disciplines that should never be mixed. As you can imagine we disagreed strongly on that one. Constitutional Law (particularly in Britain, but the same applies to countries with written constitutions where all the major rules are set out in that document) is about the inter-relationship of legal rules and political practice.

A legal issue is also at the centre of political discourse. My W200 students have recently submitted their first assignment (eTMA in 'OU-speak'). I'm currently marking them. The first question reads -

"You have read the following paragraph in a letter to a newspaper; “In my view, if something is immoral, it should also be illegal. Also, the difference between civil law and criminal law is pointless; if someone has done something wrong, the same court should be able to deal with all the issues”.

Discuss the views expressed in this letter, explaining the differences between
a) Law and morality, and
b) Civil law and criminal law.

Evaluate the extent to which you think the views expressed are correct."

I may deal with the criminal/civil issue in a later post - but if you look at the current debates going on in the USA the issue of the relationship between law and morality is central. Most people agree that there is an area of personal morality which is entirely private. The State should not interfere. There is also widespread agreement that some acts have public consequences and the State should intervene to promote or dissuade such behaviour. The argument is over where the lines are drawn.

Some call for "the State to get off the back of business". They don't want the State interfering in how they conduct their business affairs. Others say that the State should intervene to protect people from those with fewer scruples. That's why we have health and safety legislation. It's why trading standards is one of the oldest functions of government. Today most people regard slavery; child labour; misleading advertising as immoral - but should the State criminalise such behaviour. Have a look at the debate about regulations with this perspective.

In the US at the moment we see debates about the state enforcement of morality in the sexual area. Some people genuinely believe that homosexuality is wrong - but should the State deny the legal protections of long term relationships (such as the right to inherit property or to have a say in the medical treatment of a partner) to those who don't share that moral view? That is what the debate about the legalisation of gay marriage is about. Should those who oppose abortion be able to enforce their will on those who disagree? We've even seen attacks on contraception.

So law and politics are closely related. In a democracy we the people have the responsibility for the laws in our society. The results of this years elections in the USA and France will have an impact on where the line is drawn between the 'personal' and the public. Our representatives will decide when faced with the economic crisis, whether the burden is shared fairly or not (and we could argue about what a fair share means - our personal morality will influence this). The politicians we elect will have the job, on our behalf, of holding those who wield power to account (for example the Murdoch press; the Bankers; those who run companies and choose to allocate the greater rewards to themselves whilst stripping the rights and rewards for their workers). Whatever your views - as a citizen in a democracy - you have a duty to play your part in determining where the boundaries should lie. YOU make the laws....