The Times they are changing….





It’s no secret that nothing stays the same, nor should it.

But if you really want to mourn over the past, you might consider

that most of the people who taught college over the last thirty years or two generations are beginning to retire in droves.



With their loss to the educational firmament, we can begin to put an end to the kind of college activism that characterized the sixties and shaped most of our lives.



Most of the people who are entering the practice of teaching today have no recollection of the Vietnam War, Martin Luther King, the deaths of Bobby and Jack, Kent State, the takeover of college campuses, the protests or any of the influences that we grew up with.



According to an article in the NYTimes, this is leading to a teaching body who’s main orientation is what is referred to as Moderatism, a word not in vogue in my day.

But it exemplies a move from our liberalism and progressivism to an atmosphere where there is little activism (compared to the past where 17% of teachers were engaged to some degree in politics).



When you consider that this change will eventually affect 675,000 teachers in 4,100 colleges, what we will see in the near term future will reshape students and new graduates’ view of the world.







Maybe it is time for the past to fade, but, hopefully, not be forgotten and for a new brush to sweep clean. Clearly, the support for Obama among the young is an indicator that while the new of body of college teachers want “change,” they are not seeking to tear down everything that’s been built up over time to achieve it…..



It seems to me that the jury is out until we learn more about where this new educational trend will be headed. But it is clear that the outrage we felt is over. That the Nation’s teachers will be responding to new challenges ahead. That most seem concerned over many of the same things that concern their more activist parents and grandparents, global warming, global relations, war, the economy, jobs, America’s status in the world, health care, the plight of the poor.



We hope that Obama’s aim to involve the young in public service will take root. That the young will recognize their obligations to the old and the less fortunate. And that we will return to the values that we so cherished before. And that people will be free to believe in what they want without risk of being ostracized by their peers.



If that’s the case, I’m primed. Bring positive change.

We are ready!



Happy Fourth of July to all!



From the Armchair Curmudgeon





Les Aaron

The Power of One Society.