David Weldon: “one reason why education is such an important issue is because it is education which should play such a vital role in…”

“one reason why education is such an important issue is because it is education which should play such a vital role in teaching, in the words of Alexis de Toqueville, ``the art of being free.'' Mr. Speaker, few Americans these days think about the art of being free, I suspect, and few schools talk about the democracy and the American republic in terms of the art of being free. But all one has to do is look around the world and it is quite obvious that societies are free not by virtue of free elections alone; not by the virtue of a written constitution that guarantees freedom on paper only; not by virtue of a judicial system that promises justice, but is corrupted by arbitrary Government power and police misconduct. No, Mr. Speaker, the art of being free must be taught at home, cultivated in school, and given free expression and practice. The habits of freedom are encouraged in schools through the study of the uniqueness of America, our belief in individual rights over group rights, our history of forward-looking optimism, and the shared faith in the availability of the American dream to all.”