The Wake

In the early 20th century, America was a country on the rise. Since the end of World War II, America has solidified itself as the dominant power in the world. The United States is second to no other country. As a result, America has prospered due to its global standing. Before President George W. Bush first took office in 2000, America was still the undisputed world power.

Now it is apparent that the rest of the world is closing the power gap on America. Countries, such as China and India, are gaining ground on America due to their superior education, research and development industries and technological infrastructure.

New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman writes, “As a nation, we [America] have a mounting education deficit, energy deficit, budget deficit, health care deficit and ambition deficit. The administration is in denial on this, and Congress is off on Mars.” Friedman’s thoughts echo the American public’s full awareness of the Bush administration’s shortcomings in the country. Moreover, recent polls conducted by Fox News television and Newsweek magazine report that a mere 36 percent of Americans approve of the president’s job performance. The low rating of Bush’s performance is a direct result of his poor handling of his self-proposed war against terror, the war in Iraq and America’s slipping status in the world as a power. Americans are also still appalled at Bush’s conduct during the Hurricane Katrina disaster in the Gulf Coast.

Consequently, the Bush administration is not only battling these things, but also a war against America’s own citizens. Bush is now questioned and attacked on almost every imaginable front and issue by the majority of Americans. To say the least, President Bush and his administration are reeling.

In the poem “I Am Waiting,” Lawrence Ferlinghetti writes, “I am waiting for a rebirth of wonder and I am waiting for someone to really discover America and wail …” President Bush’s approval rating demonstrates the majority of Americans are beginning to really discover America.

The Republican majority-ruled government is fighting back. In a move to quiet America’s criticisms of the government, there is a subtle conservative move occurring in Washington, D.C. According to Paul Gigot of The Journal Editorial Report, “Congress and about a third of the states are considering legislation aimed at protecting students from being punished for their opinions.” In other words, Congress is entertaining an academic bill of rights that would put a limit on what an instructor can say in class.

A group called Students for Academic Freedom threatens that if colleges and universities will not defend a students’ right to have and discuss conservative ideas in class, then the organization will look to politicians for protection. The Journal Editorial Report reports that Georgia’s state legislature has “held hearings to investigate clashes between conservative students and their liberal professors.”

Seemingly though, the First Amendment of the United States’ Constitution already protects students’ opinions as it is intended to protect every American’s freedom of speech. Therefore, this is not simply a case of defending students’ rights from professors. Rather, this is a conservative move to subvert the First Amendment by the Republican-majority Congress and courts to protect conservatism in America.

A bill to limit a professor’s opinions in class, in actuality, would undermine and abridge one’s Constitutional right to free speech. Academic freedom will no longer exist if it is legislated. Voices will be silenced. Students will be graded by the U.S. government and professors will read from government-prepared lectures. Freedom of speech would no longer exist. A bill to limit what a professor can discuss in the classroom is an attempt to ensure that conservatism will be the discourse of America 20 years from now. The conservative-majority government is trying to mold American- public opinion permanently in their favor. Eventually, Americans would comply with the government on every issue. Furthermore, politicians like Bush would not be opposed by the majority of Americans as he is today. The conservative government is attempting to condition the American public.

None of this is as far-fetched as Intelligent Design which President George W. Bush supported, and which is taught in Kansas. With Bush’s encouragement of Intelligent Design, a U.S. government acknowledged curriculum just as math and English. Intelligent Design cannot be challenged because it must be taught as an absolute Truth for it to be understood. However, new math formulas can be found and literary conventions can be changed. Even evolution, Intelligent Design’s opposite, can be reexamined. This is a proven example that the federal government has the power to manipulate America’s education system.

If the government is the only voice to educate America’s youth, then public discussion and debate will be silenced. This is totalitarianism. The American government would rule without opposition over political, economic, social and cultural life because the government would control access to information. This is the road the American governments of Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush have already paved with tar and concrete for the country to go down. In George W. Bush’s presidency, he has packed America into his red, white and blue SUV and is waiting for his Congress and his courts to give him the ignition key to drive America. The U.S. congress already gave President Bush absolute power in the war in Iraq. Who says that they will not give him absolute power in America’s classrooms?

Americans are starting, as Ferlinghetti writes, to “really discover America.” However, this is only the first step in changing America. Now, Americans need to act while they are still allowed to question. Recent liberal movements have been lackadaisical and will never produce change. The president is now attempting to preempt any future movement against his conservative ruling party by legislating academics. The First Amendment demands that Americans have the right to “assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” The time to question is now—Americans need to “wail.”