Fifty-sixty years ago, no one had ever heard of home schooling here in the States. It wasn’t necessarily nonexistent, but incredibly rare. You might find the occasional rancher or forest ranger or other remote family teaching their own children, but truancy (mandatory attendance) laws, tradition, and above all, public perception looked upon such things as horrible and totally unacceptable. Even parochial (Catholic) and other private (religious or not) schools were seen by the mainstream and general public as tolerated but weird. And rare. Many State constitutions enshrined the idea of “free tuition” – that is, public schools.
Then came a combination of measures and events which started gradually to change that. Indeed, to create the modern-day homeschooling movement. There was what was viewed as the “prohibition of prayer” in public (government-run, tax-funded) schools by the Supreme Court decision (Engel v Vitale, June 1962).
But that was just the start. A whole bunch of things happened in the next 20 years. Without worrying about exactly when, we can see the impact. The push for “special education” and integration of those students with other students in classrooms. The growing power of the teacher’s unions, together with the “new math” and new styles (fads) of teaching reading and writing, the mandated “must have a 4-year degree” program for teachers, and many other actions rapidly deteriorated the “public schools” (and seeped into the private schools as well). The consolidation of school districts and the rising power of administrators (and exploding staff) all reduced the power of elected school district boards of education. New State laws and especially the creation of the US Department of [UN]Education sped up the collapse. Many teachers were fired, others driven out of the schools by a combination of unionism, failure in discipline (and danger to teachers and staff from the students!), and growing bureaucracy and regulations.
The so-called “reforms” (supposedly driven by the competition with the Soviet Union and the need to educate American children in science and technology and “good citizenship”) were anything but. The decay of quality and standards has continued to this day.
Some States did better than others, but even the relatively good States are a travesty. Homeschooling was sought by parents (many of them actually teachers!) as an alternative to the decayed public and private schools. Other alternatives were also presented, such as the Montessori schools and unschooling. But it took time and often major pushes to change laws, regulations, and public understanding.
In the last quarter century, the development and deployment of online schooling (not just virtual academies but independent teachers and “tutors” together with ready availability of good resources) has made a significant impact. Parents (and grandparents) began organizing locally, in their States, and nationally to promote and provide for homeschooling. But the real impetus was the Beer Flu Panic and the mass closing of schools – brick-and-mortar schools – in every State in 2020. Even while legislatures and Congress and local boards threw ever more money at the public schools. And invented ideas like charter schools to try and coopt private and home-schoolers.
Instead, more and more people opted out, angry over the growing tax burden of public education and the continued deterioration of standards and the results on people.
Continue reading
The Price of Liberty 
Guest commentary: The Ukraine situation by Ron Paul
Editor’s note: Ron Paul published this during Thanksgiving week (25 NOV 2025), and succinctly explains both Ukraine’s problems and the only logical solution from the point of view of Americans.
We urge all our readers to think about what Dr. Paul suggests. And what makes more sense. The Donald is clearly torn and not being straight forward in dealing the US out. Too many lovers of liberty buy the Kool-Aid of Russia bad, Ukraine good, Europe in danger, US must help. We need to encourage preventing an even worse war than the last three years. We hope and pray that Dr. Paul is right about the end of the fighting.
We actually believe that the change in demographics (of not just Ukraine but Russia) is not “may” but a sad fact of life.
Read on, dear reader. See out thoughts at the end of Dr. Ron’s thoughts.
Last week’s surprise release of a draft Ukraine war peace plan has raised hopes that the nearly three-year bloody conflict may finally come to an end. Ukraine has suffered horrible losses that may change the demographics of that country for decades to come.
If this peace plan can be negotiated in a way that satisfies all sides and the guns finally go silent, I will be the first to cheer. However, the continued failure to understand the nature and origin of the current conflict leaves me skeptical that a real peace can be reached this way.
Continue reading →