In case this isn't your beat, Hampshire College is on the verge of collapse. An outgrowth of the sixties, Hampshire was about creating your own major and exploring. The results include Ken Burns, an alumnus who has gone on to create series about baseball, jazz, the Civil War and more.
But today's parents just want their kids to get a gig. That's the job of college, but it shouldn't be. Didn't Steve Jobs testify as to the power of the liberal arts? He learned calligraphy at Reed, even if he did drop out, supposedly because he didn't want to spend his parents' money. But now the price of higher education has outstripped inflation and you can't get a job at all without a degree and parents want value for their dollars and is that what education should be all about?
No.
Somewhere along the line, the country took a wrong turn. I can say when, but half the country will flip out. That's right, Ronald Reagan legitimized greed and sowed the seeds of income inequality. That's what the pursuit of "freedom" will get you. Then again, it's hard to learn the truth when states rewrite history. America is no longer in pursuit of the truth, but bias. Everybody's working the refs, everybody's got an agenda, and the end result is few know what is going on, including the media. The media is a business oftentimes run by those holier-than-thou. Let me get this straight, AOC got elected and then suddenly the whole country, or at least the Democratic Party, skewed left? As for the right, they don't realize we already live under socialism. Now this same media is saying the country is moving to the center and if you listen you know...they've got no contact with the people making the decisions. I know, because my inbox is gonna explode as a result of this paragraph, unless you're on the front lines you're clueless, but no one wants to reside there, because the blowback is horrifying. Used to be you were rich and famous and insulated, but that no longer applies, especially in the land of entertainment, the haven of nincompoops, especially in music, because...
Everybody with a brain is out.
Now I'll admit, when I went to school parents wanted their kids to be doctors and lawyers. But those professions pay a pittance compared to the banks and tech, and the truth is boomer doctors are giving up practice and I know more non-practicing attorneys than those writing contracts and going to court. You see these people woke up, just like the scions of today's parents will...is this what I really want to do, do I want to waste my life in pursuit of cash?
But we hear that Kylie Jenner is a billionaire. Is that the goal, to get plastic surgery and sell vanities? Try having a conversation with one of these Kardashians...I've seen them on TV, they'd benefit from going to college, although I must admit Kourtney did, and when she opens your mouth you can tell.
College, that's where you learn to be an adult, away from mommy and daddy. But now you're on the cell with them all day long and then you move back in and no one grows up, everybody's got a safety net, except those who don't. And those left behind...are addicted to opiates and voting for Trump because they want someone to pay attention to them when no one does!
And music is pop, whether it be hip-hop or Ariana Grande. We laud these know-nothings because they're popular, as if they were Tolstoys. But the truth is you can learn more from someone working at the 7-11, at least they're in touch with reality, whereas everybody else is selling you something. Meanwhile, those selling are oftentimes scammers, did you read about that radio host promoting a Ponzi scheme?
But that's modern America.
But if you study the liberal arts, you learn how to parse the truth. Life isn't about ones and zeros and objective tests. Life is all about essays. Bezos requires a six page summary, meanwhile, all those business class wankers are lamenting writing. If you can't convey your ideas, good luck!
And our nation deplores those majoring in art or theatre or dance, thinking the joke is on them. Well, it might be if they're looking for a well-paying gig, but chances are these students are better rounded with more insight than the frat rat raping you after studying sports business, or whatever it takes to get a degree.
And, once again, the blame lies with the wealthy and educated, they're the worst perpetrators. They're over-involved with their kids' lives and don't want them to go off course. Want them to be world-beaters. How about being a good person who can understand what you read and spread the word of truth?
But then we've got Fox News not even printing the same headlines as the rest of the media, never mind giving the news a different spin.
No one knows what's going on anymore. Oh, they'll tell you they do, but they don't. It's all about intimidation, trying to angst you up against your interests. And the best defense against this is a liberal arts education. Because you've got to divine your own damn truth. You've got to learn to go your own way. The crowd is oftentimes wrong. All the great writers of yore, isn't it funny that they were singular, not members of the group, meanwhile today herd mentality rules. Cohen doing what Trump said so he could get rich.
Of course you need money, but how much?
And the truth is there's no entry to life for those left behind. They just fall further and further behind. And of course corporations pay no taxes and the Koch Brothers lobby for disintegration, but there are big issues at hand here, and we refuse to address them anymore. JFK implored us to go to the moon. Now the government is the enemy that must be defunded so the rich can get away with their crimes. That's right, Trump didn't pay his fair share and he got to be President!
He constantly paid fealty to the uneducated, his base.
But the educated are punting. They're self-centered. It's all about getting your own piece of the rock, screw everybody else, don't even let the poor know about their options.
Most people should not go to college.
Then again, there are not enough jobs for thinking people. A degree allows you to be a receptionist. And you owe your life to the bank for the privilege.
Used to be artists spoke truth to power, when they were products of the middle class. But that group has been eviscerated, now we've just got the haves and the have-nots. And the haves want nothing to do with music because there's just not enough money in it. That's for the rubes, the underclass, just like reality TV, where you parade for a minute before you fall behind. Want to know what's going on in this country...listen to a record? Give me a break!
But whenever I write this I hear from the wannabes saying they've got the next hit, when the truth is in the pre-internet era they wouldn't have been able to record, never mind distribute.
That's right we keep giving the clueless false hope, while the privileged run the game.
The Youngbloods sang that we should get together and love one another. Boy how times have changed. But the boomers thought they'd find their way. That becoming fully-realized was more important than garnering cash.
Our entire nation is about jumping mindlessly through hoops to get somewhere you ultimately don't want to be.
And those left out are scrounging for a living, looking for a way for momentary fame. They hear about influencers, Spotify playlists, when the privileged hear about Goldman Sachs.
And the media tells us Kamala Harris will be President and Bernie Sanders shouldn't run. Meanwhile, no one in California, where Harris held office, is excited about her and Sanders immediately raises $10 million in small donations when he announces.
Which is why you should question everything you read and hear.
But do you have the education to do this?
In high school they're teaching to the test and in college they're teaching you how to be a cog in the wheel.
Maybe you should read a book and go to the museum to experience the wisdom of the ages. And armed with this knowledge maybe you can make a difference.
But you just want to make money.
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