President Who?

I was listening to the radio this morning where a study about the abysmal lack of civics knowledge today's college graduates have was being discussed. Consider nearly 10% of them think "Judge Judy" is a member of the Supreme Court.  That was a jaw dropper.

I felt pretty good knowing that my generation is far more knowledgeable about such.  But then we had civics courses in high school and college, if we went, as part of a core curriculum.

Some other shockers were many did not know the terms of either House or Senate members whats more able to name them.  It didn't say but I wager they don't know the same about the President and the Vice President.  They didn't know presidential impeachments are tried before the Senate nor that Congress has the power to declare war.

We've probably all heard "man on the street" interviews that show how many can't even name the Vice President and other pertinent questions but I always thought it to be a matter of selective editing depending on what I heard where.  Apparently that deserves a rethink.

It got me wondering if in order to vote one should have to pass some sort of a proficiency test; perhaps the same one people take before becoming a citizen.  They at least have a rudimentary knowledge of what makes this country tick, why and who the players are.

They don't have to go to college to learn that information, but they have classes and they do learn.  Colleges today are over priced with little substance to rationalize the cost.  We should put as much into education as we to sports programs.  Professors should be required to teach, not have surrogates do so for them.  It might even help to discourage over indulgence among the students.  There would be fewer students falling from balconies or out windows while in a stupor.

I know, fraternities and such are trying to curb drinking and drugs but if the same effort was put into the classroom environment it would be better.  Get rid of the classes to nowhere because there's little if any demand for some knowledge.  Go back to the basics.

Of course secondary education and parents have some responsibility too. Give the kids the basics before anything else. After all these young people are the ones who will be leading us in the future.  Near future, not distant.

I'd like to think the names on the ballot have some meaning to them.  That of course means they have to vote.  Maybe apathy on their part isn't all bad.  If they continue sending bad choices to Washington because we didn't instill in them the knowledge not to do so it won't be an outside force that brings us down.  It will come from within.

Just look at us now.