Weekend Muse
The Myth of Institutionalized Learning by Kerry McDonald
There is a crucial difference between schooling and education. Schooling largely relies upon standardized, quantitative measures to define success, thus there are obvious limits to it. Education, on the other hand, can occur in brick and mortar buildings (or at the kitchen table for homeschoolers), but it moves far beyond the realm of scopes, sequences, and the dizzying array of standards. Someone once said that, education…real education, involves an “unfolding of the human soul”. It points to the true, good, and beautiful, wherever they may be found. And it respects the nature of childhood learning and seeks to school in a way that goes with that grain. Thus, McDonald challenges the belief that school is the primary place for learning. Only when we begin to understand the limits of schooling are we prepared to appreciate the endless possibilities of education.
Cultural-Appropriation Outrage Over a Prom Dress by Jonah Goldberg
In an age where individuals are celebrated for appropriating whatever gender (or non-gender) strikes their fancy, one would think the social media masses would be more accepting of a young woman’s choice of prom attire. Ah, but not so! Heaven forbid an American be found committing the high crime of admiring another culture’s fashion or food to the point of imitation. There are some things that just can’t be tolerated by the PC police and this is certainly one of them. Thankfully, this young woman made it clear that she wasn’t going to bend in the face of the totalitarian Twitter mob, leaving those that choose to respectfully appropriate with an example to follow.
Control the Words, Control the Culture by PragerU and Michael Knowles
“The culture war is first and foremost a war of words – and the left is winning.” The power of words can not be understated. Philosopher Peter Kreeft once said, “Words are houses that ideas live in.” The thing is, words can be beautiful cottages, warm and welcoming or they can be armories, weaponized and lethal. Knowles shows how changing even one adjective can completely change the meaning of an idea or belief. Actions might speak louder than words, but words change minds and changed minds change the culture.
The Weekend Muse is a weekly installment featuring several links to articles or videos Civitas staff has deemed to be “the best of the best” when it comes to timely, thought-provoking, or satirical content.
