Socratic debate!

Please bear with me as I attempt to tie together the thinking of these great men!

Self-Portrait: from 'Out of my latter Years' written by Albert Einstein

OF WHAT IS SIGNIFICANT in one's own existence one is hardly aware, and it certainly should not bother the other fellow. What does a fish know about the water in which he swims all his life?

The bitter and the sweet come from the outside, the hard from within,from one's own efforts. For the most part I do the thing which my own nature drives me to do. It is embarrassing to earn so much respect and love for it. Arrows of hate have been shot at me too; but they never hit me, because somehow they belong to another world, with which I have no connection whatsoever.  I live in that solitude which is painful in youth, but delicious in the years of maturity.

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The main goal of this blog (YSTA) is to create critical thinking

Larry P. Arnn
President, Hillsdale College

Two Ways of Education 

At Hillsdale College students read a lot of old books, including Plato’s Republic. In the Republic they read the story of Gyges’ ring—a ring that makes the wearer of it invisible. One of Socrates’ interlocutors in the Republic, a young man named Glaucon, raises the question: Why would a man in possession of such a ring not use it to do and obtain whatever he wishes? Why would he not use the ring’s powers, for instance, to become a tyrant? In response, Socrates turns the discussion to another question: What is the right way for a man to live? What is just by nature and what is unjust?

These Socratic questions were once at the center or core of education, and they remain at the center or core of education at Hillsdale College. But in American education as a whole, these questions have been abandoned.

A Rebirth of Liberty and Learning

"The difference between the old and the new way of governing is directly connected to this turn in education. One way to see the difference is to see that laws in America used to be simple and beautiful. They were written with care, and citizens could read them quickly and understand their meaning. Of the four organic laws that founded America—the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, the Northwest Ordinance, and the Constitution of the United States—none of them was more than 4,500 words long. " Read the complete article here: http://imprimis.hillsdale.edu/current

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Moral Decay;  Albert Einstein

ALL RELIGIONS,ARTS and sciences are branches of the same tree.  All these aspirations are directed toward ennobling man's life, lifting it from the sphere of mere physical existence and leading the individual toward freedom.  It is no mere chance that older universities have developed from clerical schools.  Both churches and universities-insofar as they live up to their true function-serve the ennoblement of the individual. They seek to fulfill this great task by spreading moral and cultural understanding, renouncing the use of brute force.

  The essential unity of ecclesiastical and secular cultural institutions was lost during the 19th century, to the point of senseless hostility.  Yet there never was any doubt as to the striving for culture. No one doubted the sacredness of the goal.  It was the approach that was disputed.

  The political and economic conflicts and complexities of the last decades have brought before our eyes dangers which even the darkest pessimists of the last century did not dream of.  The injunctions of the Bible concerning human conduct were then accepted by believer and infidel alike as self-evident demands for individuals and society. No one would have been taken seriously who failed to acknowledge the quest for objective truth and knowledge as man's highest and eternal aim.

  Yet today we must recognize with horror that these pillars of civilized human existence have lost their firmness.  Nations that once ranked high bow before tyrants who dare openly to assert:  Right is that which serves us!  The quest for truth for it's own sake has no justification and is not to be tolerated. Arbitrary rule, oppression, persecution of individuals, faiths and communities are openly practiced in those countries and accepted as justifiable or inevitable......

  And the rest of the world has slowly grown accustomed to the symptoms of moral decay.  One misses the elementary reaction against injustice and for injustice-that reaction which in the long run represents man's only protection against a relapse into barbarism.  I am firmly convinced that the passionate will for justice and truth has done more to improve man's condition than calculating political shrewdness which in the long run only breeds general distrust!   Who can doubt that Moses was a better leader of humanity than Machiavelli?

  During the War someone tried to convince a great Dutch scientist that might went before right in history of man.  " I cannot disapprove the accuracy of your assertion," he replied, " but i do know that I should not care to live in such a world!"

  Let us think, feel and act like this man, refusing to accept fateful compromise. Let us not shun the fight when it's unavoidable to preserve right and the dignity of man. If we do this we shall soon return to conditions that will allow us to rejoice in humanity.

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"ALL RELIGIONS,ARTS and sciences are branches of the same tree," but how many branches have fallen and rotted?

Then is? "The difference between the old and the new way of governing is directly connected to this turn in education?"

 What's is our responsibility?

Lets explore, today's children are now connected to something in their hand! The impact of the smart phone, games and pads on children is yet unknown. Thinking back to the days, years of Triathlon training, swim, bike and run, who knew then the impact of creating all those free-radicals and not enough time to recover between workouts could cause unknown damage to your health. 

Someone once said do everything in moderation, but do we?  Do we use the internet in moderation? Is there a reason we have millions of diet plans?  Sure we moderate our eating, our drinking sodas, wine, beer, our TV time, Facebook time.  What about video games?  Or do we?

How are some games like Grand Theft Auto impacting our children?  How about their diet? How does sugar, and even carbohydrates impact them?  Are we as adults paying attention to the overuse of video games, or the fact that instead of writing our children text!

Do they read, do they know who Socrates was?  Do they know who wrote and delivered The Gettysburg Address?  Who created the space program?  Or even who was John F. Kennedy? 

Now that we are into a era far removed from Socrates, or Einstein their impact on the world will never be forgotten.  The goal at YSTA is to capture young minds, help then realize their potential to create.  Create that dream like Walt Disney, to dream, to create is real.

Friends the future is theirs, I mean them ( the children ) are going to be in charge one day.  Now is the time to show then ( the children ) how to create a brand new world, it's called the future!

York