It is time for a populist approach to education, an approach that serves the American family and their struggle against the political elite. When I say populist, I do not mean “school choice” although I am sympathetic to the cause, as school choice bills do at least give parents an option as to how their tax dollars are spent, which is unquestionably better than being forced to pay for the degrading public school system. School choice, however, does not address one of the root issues that is harming the American family today: overtly abusive taxation.
School choice, while positively taking power away from the monopoly of government indoctrination schools, does not do away with the fact that families have to pay for ever-increasing property taxes. School choice does not change the reality that the American family never owns their home, as they will be forced to pay the government whatever said government demands for their property, and if they don’t comply, they lose what they supposedly “own.” Even if one has “fully paid off” their home, no American ever pays off the rapacious government.
From a populist point of view, I am not necessarily against school choice bills in the short term. They will temporarily free the American family from the clutches of government schools, but they don’t free the American family from the death grip of taxation. Both the populist and libertarian in me see that for a real long-term solution to be given to the American family, it would require two solutions:
- Abolish the property tax.
- A grassroots education effort.
Both of these are easier said than done, and although “abolish the property tax” is a measly four words, it will likely not be done until after our current government inevitably collapses from its growing thirty-six-trillion dollars of debt and the expanding political divide between right and left.
Since we know that the political elite are addicted to power and will not surrender it – hence the unsolvable debt crisis – the best that can be done from a legislative point of view is school choice bills, as that satisfies the politicians’ need for power, but gives citizens some choice. I have to pause here and say it’s rather comical that we have sunken so low as a country, that it’s “radical” for a citizen to want to have say in how their own money is spent, yet here we are.
Given the insanity of our current situation, it’s important to remember that in any time and place, the fate of liberty lies in the hands of the people themselves. The beauty of this truth is that it reminds us to not sit idly by, begging and hoping that the government will give us our own damned money back to us. The beauty is that we get to take action right here, right now, without seeking the blessing of the corrupt elites who rule over us.
We can essentially kiss government solutions goodbye, which frees us to look at what actually is within our power: a grassroots effort to make the highest quality education available to even the poorest amongst us. The true populist mission is to create our own educational organizations to save our families, this country, and Western Civilization itself. There will be varying approaches to this, in terms of educational methods such as Classical or Montessori, and in terms of online programs and brick-and-mortar institutions as well as homeschooling cooperatives. Regardless of approach, the shared goal is not to enrich ourselves with the highest possible tuition rates. The shared goal is to give the American family peace of mind knowing that their children are receiving an elite education in spite of the elites.
With this goal in mind, we will collectively take our ideas to the marketplace and start winning the culture war. In a nation on the brink of collapse, with a school system in disarray, the parent and the educator are the new revolutionaries. The education system that has been destroyed by D.C. will be reinvigorated by exhausted moms and frustrated dads at neighborhood meetups, and by innovative teachers and entrepreneurial administrators who refuse to accept the destruction of our sacred families. If we take this seriously and pursue it with the same righteousness of our founders, then a total patriotic victory is imminent.
