So, let the contested terrain be mapped once again. As he reminds us, a review of the evidence provides at least the half-comforting thought that our anxieties and uncertainties are not new. The longish view offers the mild comfort that our condition today is not an especially fallen one, and that even in the absence of general agreement about what we are doing and why, we can do a great deal of good. That last sane and optimistic sentence is quintessential Ryan. Its moment of connection past, however, the high-minded thought may be revealed for an unsatisfying response.
Education is the object of perpetual dissatisfaction in America.
One or another component of it basic, post-secondary, advanced is always the target of someone's complaint. And yet, on the whole, the population seems tolerably well educated to function as citizens in a democracy, though too many choose not to accept the responsibilities of citizenship. Folks are less inclined to take an interest in the running of the country when they think it s running well enough. Troubled times catch the attention. In fact, there is cause to worry about the state of liberal education today.