It s in our own self-interest that business take an active role in the educational reform of K through 12, while being more supportive of higher education. In closing, let me call your attention to a maxim. It says that those who do not remember history are bound to repeat it. With this in mind, I d like to close by referencing a quote my father taught me. It s from an old French philosopher who, after looking at the history of every recorded democracy, found that every one of them passed through 10 fateful steps from bondage to bondage.
Bondage is the first step, the place where civilization wakes up.
Next is faith in God. Then with faith, men acquire courage. Courage inevitably leads to liberty. Liberty generates abundance the top of the arch. Every democracy which achieved abundance moved toward selfishness, the sixth step.