Critical Thinking Question:
Simply put, what have my work experiences revealed about public education?

Topic:
I record a podcast while driving a car. During the drive, I ponder a couple of important professional questions, veer off course (podcast-wise), channel Stewie Griffin, and discuss what I think the real job of an "educator" should be.

My Embedded Curriculum: (Within Mainstream Tutoring Services)
-Logical Reasoning
-Critical and Creative Problem Solving
-Revival of Childhood Curiosity
-Building Positive Relationships with Adults Who Are Potential Mentors
-A Healthy and Persistent Skepticism of Authority and Tradition (social, cultural & mystical)
-Intellectual Confidence
-Ethical Consistency

Bumper Music:
"Head Over Heels" Tears For Fears
Click Here To Watch A Rad 80s Video!

Look Closer:
John Holt's Website
http://www.holtgws.com/

A Good Resource For Unschooling
http://www.unschooling.com/

"The Teenage Liberation Handbook: How to Quit School and Get a Real Life and Education" by Grace Llewellyn
http://www.amazon.com/Teenage-Liberation-Handbook-School-Education/dp/0962959170

Teenage Liberation/Grace Llewellyn Website
http://gracellewellyn.com/

The third episode in a series aimed at detailing and dismantling specific elements of the destructive hidden curriculum in public education.

Critical Thinking Question:

What happened to... "why?"

Topic:
The third embedded lesson of public education: Apathy and Indifference

If the training in obedience and conformity doesn't properly sink in, or doesn't last throughout a person's life, this lesson provides a nice safety net for the status quo.

“There is no neutral education. Education is either for domestication or for freedom.” -Joao Coutinho

Bumper Music:
"Got A Right To Be Wrong" Joss Stone
http://www.jossstone.com/

Look Closer:
CNN: How Stupid Are Americans?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0efLWdJWk4

Freedomain: The Money That Is Sold Abroad Is You!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cd-SLRyuRq0

George Carlin - Education
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFwTIPRLwCM

"The Teenage Liberation Handbook: How to Quit School and Get a Real Life and Education" by Grace Llewellyn
http://www.amazon.com/Teenage-Liberation-Handbook-School-Education/dp/0962959170

Teenage Liberation/Grace Llewellyn Website
http://gracellewellyn.com/

As they might say at school...
All Students,
Please bring this home for your parents to review.

You Tube Video:
The Liberty Roundtable #1: Education and the State
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_bLcxOU4ww

A rousing roundtable with
Wes Bertrand
http://www.completeliberty.com
Brett Veinotte
http://www.schoolsucks.podomatic.com
and Stefan Molyneux of Freedomain Radio
http://www.freedomainradio.com

Look Closer:

Punished by Rewards: The Trouble with Gold Stars, Incentive Plans, A's, Praise, and Other Bribes by Alfie Kohn
http://www.alfiekohn.org/books/pbr.htm

The Teenage Liberation Handbook: How to Quit School and Get a Real Life and Education by Grace LLewellyn
http://www.amazon.com/Teenage-Liberation-Handbook-School-Education/dp/0962959170

Above: 80s Teen Movie Antagonist William Zabka
(This will make sense when you're done listening)

An update on the future of the show...
-Donations
-Redesigning the website
-Setting up a forum
-Let's have a logo contest!
(For people who don't care too much about winning big prizes)
-Activism and incorporating that into the show as well
-The next bump?

Also...
-Daniel Lakemacher's visit to NH
-Ofer's incredible efforts
-My failure to connect with public school teachers about these topics

Bumper Music:
"Random Topic" by Jason Mraz and Bushwalla
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9B0ul4jtZlM

Also discussed:

Buy Wes Bertrand's Book, Complete Liberty: The Demise of the State and the Rise of Voluntary America
http://stores.lulu.com/wbertrand

Donate to Freedomain Radio
www.freedomainradio.com/donate.html

AMP Free Talk Live (Advertise, Market, Promote)
http://freetalklive.com/AMP.php

This guy is not me:
Happeh Theory
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9RzAXU3sHw

My interview on The Peter Mac Show from October 10th, 2009. I've added a quick introduction about the discussion and my "performance."

Note: Because of the length, I've uploaded the MP3 at a lower bit rate (64 kbps). Please let me know if this is intolerable.

Peter's Bio:
Peter is a former math professor turned entrepreneur. He swims, works outs regularly, and occasionally competes in U.S. Masters Swimming. His interest in freedom, government, and current events caused him to launch The Peter Mac Show in 2001, which ran for over five years. He is thrilled to be back on the air with The (new) Peter Mac Show.

Website: http://www.petermacshow.com/

To Stream His Show:
http://www.libertynewsradio.com/

Mentioned In Our Discussion:

Complete Liberty Podcast
http://completeliberty.com/

Freedomain Radio
www.freedomainradio.com/

Kurt Tischer (guitars, music, pro audio, philosophy, politics, etc.)
www.kurttischer.net/

Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations
by Clay Shirky (BOOK)
Details On Amazon

Here Comes Everybody (SITE)
http://www.herecomeseverybody.org/

"Against School: How public education cripples our kids, and why"
By John Taylor Gatto
http://www.spinninglobe.net/againstschool.htm

Larken Rose
Cowboy Clyde sings his hit song, "I Love My Country"!
http://www.larkenrose.com/

Critical and Creative Thinking Exercise:
Imagine a free world...

Topic:
Wes Bertrand and I continue our discussion about conformity and collectivism. Wes touches on the impact of the family in conformity. (Part 2 of 2)

This episode also includes some discussion about self-esteem, self-worth, and honoring the imagination and individualism of others.

(NOTE: I have to apologize for a few snaps, crackles and pops; I was experimenting with a different call-recording process)

Bumper Music:
"Who Are You" The Who
http://www.thewho.com/

Look Closer:
Complete Liberty: The Demise of the State and the Rise of Voluntary America by Wes Bertrand
http://completeliberty.com/contents.php

Imagine A Free World (From Complete Liberty)
http://completeliberty.com/chapter4.php#91

Complete Liberty Podcast
http://completeliberty.libsyn.com/

Apple - 1984 (YouTube)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R706isyDrqI

Steve Jobs demos Apple Macintosh, 1984 (YouTube)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0FtgZNOD44&feature=fvw

The Amazing Internet 1993 (YouTube)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1A9lYC3g-0

The Internet In 1969 (YouTube)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0pPfyYtiBc

Pictured ABOVE: Most of the people you know (Foreground)

Critical Thinking Question:
First imagine you live in a neighborhood controlled by a violent gang...
What if you started using first-person plural pronouns when discussing the gang and their activities, even though you were not in the gang, you didn't know anyone in the gang, and no one in the gang knew or cared about you? Would this linguistic programming eventually lead to sympathy for the gang's activities? Or resistance to the idea that what they were doing was wrong?

Topic:
How does training in conformity scale up to collectivism in society?
Wes Bertrand joins me to discuss conformity and collectivism
(Part 1 of 2)

I also talk about Ayn Rand's novelette, "Anthem" (1938)

(NOTE: I have to apologize for a few snaps, crackles and pops; I was experimenting with a different call-recording process)

Bumper Music:
"Consequence of Sounds" Regina Spektor
www.myspace.com/reginaspektor

Look Closer:
Complete Liberty: The Demise of the State and the Rise of Voluntary America by Wes Bertrand
http://completeliberty.com/contents.php

The Psychology of Liberty by Wes Bertrand
http://www.amazon.com/Psychology-Liberty-Wes-Bertrand/dp/0738837407

Complete Liberty Podcast
http://completeliberty.libsyn.com/

How Quiet Helps at School(1953)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOtkQWpKABo

Anthem, A Novel by Ayn Rand (With a Preface and Notes by Richard Lawrence)
http://www.noblesoul.com/orc/texts/anthem/complete.html

The second episode in a series aimed at detailing and dismantling specific elements of the destructive hidden curriculum in public education.

Critical Thinking Question:
Consider for a moment the amazing and wonderful diversity of human beings: in thought, ambition, imagination and creativity...
Why would certain people want to reduce so many unique individuals to a point where they can easily fit into a uniform and homogeneous group?

Topic:
The second embedded lesson of public education: Conformity

This is what Alexander Inglis called the "Integrating Function" of secondary education. We certainly pick it up in elementary school as well.

And who has benefited?

“There is no neutral education. Education is either for domestication or for freedom.” -Joao Coutinho

Bumper Music:
"Steal My Sunshine" Kidz Bop!
www.kidzbop.com/

Look Closer:
"Principles of secondary education" By Alexander James Inglis
http://books.google.com

"The Six-Lesson Schoolteacher" by John Taylor Gatto
http://www.cantrip.org/gatto.html

AGAINST SCHOOL(How public education cripples our kids and why)
By John Taylor Gatto
http://www.spinninglobe.net/againstschool.htm

How Quiet Helps at School(1953)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOtkQWpKABo

So-Called Education Intentionally Dumbs Down Americans by Heidi Stevenson
http://www.naturalnews.com/023215_America_health_United_States.html

For A New Liberty by Murray N. Rothbard (Chapter 7: Education)
http://mises.org/rothbard/newlibertywhole.asp#p119

My interview on Freedomain Radio from September 27th, 2009. I've added a quick introduction about the discussion and about my thoughts on Freedomain Radio.

freedomainradio.com

Freedomain Radio Interview: Brett Veinotte (You Tube)

School Sucks Beginner's Guide to Freedomain:
(For those who are unfamiliar, some suggestions...)

If Episode 7.2, with Daniel Lakemacher, raised some questions about war:
True News 10: Soldiers, War and Freedom...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANZhW0zxDVs
(This is the first Freedomain video I saw. I watched it about 10 months ago for the first time, and I've watched/listened at least a dozen times since then. Extremely powerful.)

For the "disenfranchised conservative," who recently discovered libertarianism...here's an introduction to consistency:
True News 18: Obama's Inauguration - The Antidote
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymHMY4P3OPM

For those looking for a new way to approach debates/discussions with statists:
New Hampshire Liberty Forum - Keynote Speaker: Stefan Molyneux 1 (Against Me?)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKOTqRb5nvg
New Hampshire Liberty Forum - Keynote Speaker: Stefan Molyneux 2 (Against Me?)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANZhW0zxDVs

For those who see what's going on, but are still saying, "maybe there's some ethical, logical, noble, and effective way for strangers to do violence against me and my children that I haven't thought of yet..."
True News 5: The Truth About Voting
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igbBItLemsM

Some of my favorites:
True News 50: Ten Lost Years
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydtP-CzyMCg

True News 13: Statism is Dead - Part 3 - The Matrix
http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=stefbot#play/uploads/105/P772Eb63qIY

True News 46: Health Care Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nt0tKl0J-S4

Follow Up:
'School Sucks' podcast gets tenfold listenership increase after FDR interview...
http://freedomainradio.com/board/forums/p/22755/178291.aspx

(ABOVE: There's that tree I'm always talking about)

A personal story about personal responsibility...and liberation from the illusion of virtue associated with obedience and self-sacrifice

Critical Thinking Question:
How could disobedience to authority save millions of lives?

Topic:
Daniel Lakemacher (warisimmoral.com) joins me to discuss obedience. He also shares his personal story of how he freed himself (within the last year) from three types of crippling obedience training - public education, religion and military.

About Daniel's interview on Antiwar Radio: Daniel Lakemacher, founder of the website WarIsImmoral.com, discusses his conscientious objector (CO) discharge from the U.S. Navy, how the experience of working at Guantanamo and (independently) learning about the libertarian “non-aggression principle” changed his mind about war and justice, the process of becoming a CO and how the military defines morality in terms of obedience/disobedience.

Bumper Music:
"Living On A Thin Line" The Kinks
http://www.thekinks.com

Look Closer:
Daniel Lakemacher's Website
http://warisimmoral.com/

Daniel Lakemacher on Antiwar Radio
http://antiwar.com/radio/2009/09/16/daniel-lakemacher/

History of Atlas Shrugged
http://atlasshrugged.com/book/history.html

The Perils of Obedience by Stanley Milgram
http://home.swbell.net/revscat/perilsOfObedience.html

Milgram’s Experiment on Obedience to Authority
http://www.cnr.berkeley.edu/ucce50/ag-labor/7article/article35.htm

For an extended discussion on obedience (between Wes Bertrand, Dan Lakemacher and myself), check out Complete Liberty Podcast Episode 84

The first in a series of episodes aimed at detailing and dismantling specific elements of the destructive hidden curriculum in public education.

Critical Thinking Question:
Why is obedience to authority actually the opposite of virtue?

Topic:
An experience I had with students last Saturday led to a web of ideas about the problem of obedience training and about the philosophical path toward the solution...

The effect of this obedience training on 3 Values:
Reason, Purpose and Self-Esteem

“There is no neutral education. Education is either for domestication or for freedom.” -Joao Coutinho

Bumper Music:
"Obedience" Christian Song
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKxOaGLTPTM
"Slaves!!!" Wunder Showzen Clip (at 1:51)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdL2jiM601U

Look Closer:
The Night Is Dark and I Am Far from Home by Jonathan Kozol
http://www.amazon.com/Night-Dark-Am-Far-Home/dp/0826400086

History of Atlas Shrugged
http://atlasshrugged.com/book/history.html

The Six Pillars of Self-Esteem By Nathaniel Branden
http://www.nathanielbranden.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=35

More On Branden
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathaniel_Branden

Wes Bertrand On Nathaniel Branden (Complete Liberty Podcast Episode 34)
http://completeliberty.libsyn.com/index.php?post_id=382364

The Perils of Obedience by Stanley Milgram
http://home.swbell.net/revscat/perilsOfObedience.html

Milgram’s Experiment on Obedience to Authority
http://www.cnr.berkeley.edu/ucce50/ag-labor/7article/article35.htm

Mike Wallace Interviews Ayn Rand
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ukJiBZ8_4k

In this 1959 interview, Mike Wallace repeatedly commits one of the most common logical fallacies used by the TV media: Poisoning the Well. Through the way he phrases many of the questions and through his tone of voice, he is subtlety encouraging the untrained mind to passively dismiss Rand's ideas without even considering them.

For an extended discussion on obedience (between Wes Bertrand, Dan Lakemacher and myself), check out Complete Liberty Podcast Episode 84

(Introduction to the Hidden Lessons of School)

Critical Thinking Question: Imagine a very small group people trying to exercise power and control over a very large group of people. How dangerous would this situation be for the small group if they lacked the tools to control the thinking of people in the much larger group?

Topic:
Introducing the three aims of public education:
blind obedience, assimilation, and the surrender of self-ownership

The Matrix and Plato's Allegory of the Cave

What if the Hokey Pokey IS what it's all about?

Bumper Music:
Psychostick "Hokey Pokey"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKZZ7ed7vXY

Look Closer:
The Matrix and the Cave
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRNMZEDOBrM

John Taylor Gatto: Schooling is not Education
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKci3_cmlqI

"AGAINST SCHOOL: How public education cripples our kids, and why" By John Taylor Gatto
http://www.spinninglobe.net/againstschool.htm

"Separating School & State: How To Liberate American Families" by Sheldon Richman
http://www.sntp.net/education/school_state_intro.htm

Crossing Education's Rubicon With Horace Mann
http://sixthcolumn.typepad.com/cubedseducationblog/2007/05/education_is_a_.html

WAS DEWEY A MARXIST? By William Brooks
http://www.stlawrenceinstitute.org/vol13brk.html

(Part III: Authoritarian Absurdities vs. The Philosophy of Liberty)

Critical Thinking Question: WHO is the owner of YOU?

Topic:
A comparison between a cluster of degrading and crippling ideas (referenced throughout the show as the "Authoritarian Absurdities") which I believe are prerequisites for embracing the political process and...The Philosophy of Liberty, based on the principles of self-ownership and property rights.

A brief discussion of popular rationalizations for these absurdities and my rebuttals.

Bumper Music:
Steve Winwood "Different Light"
http://www.stevewinwood.com/

Look Closer:
The Philosophy of Liberty (Video) By Ken Schoolland and Lux Lucre
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8z1buym2xUM

More About Ken Schoolland
http://www.jonathangullible.com/

Hans Hoppe: The Economics of World Government (Audio)
http://www.lewrockwell.com/podcast/?p=episode&name=2009-08-18_130_the_economics_of_world_government.mp3

Hans-Hermann Hoppe: Archives (Past articles by Hans-Hermann Hoppe on LewRockwell.com)
http://www.lewrockwell.com/hoppe/hoppe-arch.html

Democracy: The God That Failed by Hans-Hermann Hoppe
http://www.lewrockwell.com/hoppe/hoppe4.html

(Part II-Politics Is Force)

Critical Thinking Question:
Explain the difference between government and organized crime...

Topic:
Continued explanation of why I am against political solutions for education or anything else, AKA using the system to change the system by working within the system. Further explanation of the political process in the United States. Shocking comparison between the government and the mafia.

I also talk about Ron Paul's principles compared to other politicians, but let's be clear: a Ron Paul Presidency would solve nothing. (See article by Per Bylund below)

Bumper Music:
MJ "Beat It"
http://www.michaeljackson.com/us/home

Look Closer:
The Politics Of Obedience The Discourse Of Voluntary Servitude By Etienne De La Boetie

"Democracy--the god that failed: the economics and politics of monarchy" By Hans-Hermann Hoppe

"DC is a Mafia"-A Government You Can't Refuse
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtO7LuK9-Xw

The Myth of Democratic Peace: Why Democracy Cannot Deliver Peace in the 21st Century by James Ostrowski
http://www.lewrockwell.com/ostrowski/ostrowski72.html

Freedomain Radio-True News 5: The Truth About Voting
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igbBItLemsM

DEATH BY GOVERNMENT (Chapter 1: 20th Century Democide
http://www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/DBG.CHAP1.HTM

Democracy Is Not Freedom by Rep. Ron Paul, MD
http://www.lewrockwell.com/paul/paul233.html

Obama Single Payer Strategy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-_SGGcJu_c

Obama on single payer health insurance (AFL-CIO 2003)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fpAyan1fXCE

Stephen Ducat: Hypocrisy in Red and Blue: How Republicans and Democrats Betray Their Principles Differently
http://www.noovo.com/posts/4134995/?f=0@0

Universal Health Care: A Near Death Experience for Innovation by Les Lafave
http://www.strike-the-root.com/92/lafave/lafave1.html

The Ron Paul Problem by Per Bylund
http://www.strike-the-root.com/72/bylund/bylund7.html

Freedomain Radio-True News 46: Health Care Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nt0tKl0J-S4

"Complete Liberty:The Demise of the State
and the Rise of Voluntary America" by Wes Bertrand
Chapter 1: WHY POLITICS IS SO CONFUSING
http://completeliberty.com/chapter1

"For A New Liberty" by Murray Rothbard
(Chapter 3: The State)
http://mises.org/rothbard/newlibertywhole.asp#p45
(Chapter 8: Welfare and the Welfare State)
http://mises.org/rothbard/newlibertywhole.asp#p142

For more discussion on this topic (between Wes Bertrand, Dan Lakemacher and myself), check out Complete Liberty Podcast Episodes 78 through 82

(Part I-The Myth of Democracy & The Illusion of Freedom)

Critical Thinking Question: How easy would it be to convince someone that they were free...if you could also make sure that they never knew what "freedom" really was?

Topic: Why I am against political solutions for education, AKA using the system to change the system by working within the system. To me, that sounds like a myth that came out of the system, like bears spreading rumors about staying still when you encounter bears (it's easier for them to eat you that way).

Jim Gaffigan On Bears

In this episode we'll address three big myths about democracy:
1. It works
2. It's good
3. It's freedom

(!!!SPOILER ALERT!!!)
1. It doesn't
2. It's not (this is very important)
3. It's almost the opposite

We'll also discuss the role of public education and the mainstream media in this illusion.

Bumper Music:
Jamie Cullen "21st Century Kid"
http://www.jamiecullum.com/latest

Look Closer:

The Politics Of Obedience The Discourse Of Voluntary Servitude By Etienne De La Boetie
"Democracy--the god that failed: the economics and politics of monarchy" By Hans-Hermann Hoppe
The Myth of Democratic Peace: Why Democracy Cannot Deliver Peace in the 21st Century by James Ostrowski
Death by government By R. Rummel
Freedomain Radio-True News 5: The Truth About Voting
Kicking the Vietnam Syndrome
by Brigadier General H. R. McMaster
Gulf War: The More We Watched, the Less We Knew By Rosalind Silver
Democracy Is Not Freedom by Rep. Ron Paul, MD
THE PRINCIPLE OF UTILITY By Ronald F. White, Ph.D.

For more discussion on this topic (between Wes Bertrand, Dan Lakemacher and myself), check out Complete Liberty Podcast Episodes 78, 79 and 80

Critical Thinking Question:
What would you think of a person who claimed that they had the ability to make plans for the life of another person who they had never met and didn't know anything about?

What if they said they had the ability to make plans for the lives of ten people that they had never met and didn't know anything about? 100 people? 1000? A million? And so on...

Topic:
Central Planning in Education and Beyond

What if people tolerated the same system for their food as they did for their education?

Examples of people who did:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USSR
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Chinese_Famine

Government school is factory where followers and authority worshipers are made. The American education system was borrowed from the Prussian model for compulsory public school. The Prussians were conditioned to blindly follow their leaders.

German philosopher Johann Gottlieb Fichte, a key influence on the system, said: "The schools must fashion the person, and fashion him in such a way that he simply cannot will otherwise than what you wish him to will."

(We'll be talking more about this in the future)

Bumper Music:
Chad Verbeck, "Heaven In the End"
http://www.myspace.com/chadverbeck

Look Closer:
"The Violence of Central Planning" by Llewellyn H. Rockwell
http://www.lewrockwell.com/rockwell/centralplanning.html

"Separating School & State: How To Liberate American Families" by Sheldon Richman
http://www.sntp.net/education/school_state_3.htm

"Complete Liberty:The Demise of the State
and the Rise of Voluntary America" by Wes Bertrand
Chapter 1: WHY POLITICS IS SO CONFUSING
The Timeless Allure Of Communism
http://completeliberty.com/chapter1.php#15

Critical Thinking Question:
How many things that are good for you, that you will benefit from, need to be imposed on you...with force?

Introduction:
Explanation of title, "School Sucks" and subtitle "The END of Public Education"

Who I am, what I'm doing and why.
This is not a show about public school reform, because that would suck nearly as much as school.

Topic:
The problem with the "business?" of public education. And it's a big one. (An evaluation of the logic and ethics of the American public education system)

Bumper music: "Troublemaker" by Weezer
http://www.youtube.com/user/weezer

Look Closer:
"The Non-Aggression Axiom of Libertarianism"
by Walter Block
http://www.lewrockwell.com/block/block26.html

"The Argument From Morality (Or, how we will win…)"
by Stefan Molyneux
http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig6/molyneux7.html

"For A New Liberty" (Chapter 7: Education)
by Murray Rothbard
http://mises.org/rothbard/newlibertywhole.asp#p119