Friday, 5/16/97 Try socialism again for the first time EDUCATION
Liberal ideas have made colleges more accessible to all classes
By Dale Chapman Unlike Daniel Rego, I was NOT ecstatic to see
Tuesday’s article "Socialism blocks path to progress." Moreover, I
was appalled to see a first-year student, with several years of
tuition ahead of him, stepping up to become a cheerleader for the
death knell of liberal politics and social welfare. "Socialism," as
Rego so hysterically calls it, is benefiting his own situation as
we speak. It is worth reflecting upon what would happen to Rego’s
academic career if we were to support the full implications of the
socialism article and remove all public support for state
universities. It would not be long before Rego would be forced to
choose between the Ivy League and the Little League, between
forking over $25,000 a year or accepting the mediocre life that, as
we all know, is the deserved destiny of the "have-not." Being
Canadian, I come from a country where, shockingly, aspiring
students from all economic brackets are still able to obtain a
university education, where merit, not money, is the primary means
of deciding who will have the opportunity to realize their dreams.
Tuition levels at ALL Canadian schools are kept scandalously low in
comparison to U.S. levels, and not surprisingly, this means that
numerous friends of mine from lower economic backgrounds have been
able to attend Canada’s best universities, and have thereby been
able to realize "the Canadian dream." Moreover, we have universal
health care – a benefit that we believe to be the right of every
human being – but that’s another issue. Of course, because of our
country’s desire to emulate America’s fabulous laissez-faire
system, these advantages are slowly being eroded. Rego had better
hope that the Maoists and Trotskyists keep debating on Bruin Walk,
for in spite of their crazy antics, they’re among a tiny minority
of political voices standing up for his rights as a student.
Chapman is an ethnomusicology graduate student. Related Links:
International Socialist Organization