Why Self-Governance Cannot Be Optional:
Restoring Education as a Duty, Not a Consumer Choice
One of the most dangerous misconceptions in modern society is the belief that if people were simply given the option of a better education, they would naturally seek it out. This assumption, however, is demonstrably false. For generations, education has been framed as a consumer good; something individuals choose based on personal interest, economic incentives, or ideological preference. But education, when properly understood, is not just about acquiring information or marketable skills. It is the necessary foundation of self-governance.
The Fatal Flaw of the “Consumer Model” of Education
The majority of people today, raised in systems of passive compliance and conditioned to think of education as job training or personal enrichment, do not seek out the kind of knowledge required for self-governance. This is not because they are unintelligent, nor because they lack the capacity to engage with reality; but because they have never been trained to see knowledge as something that demands action and responsibility rather than as something they “consume.” Under this consumer model, education is seen as an optional tool for economic success or social prestige. But education in self-governance cannot be optional; because self-governance itself is not optional if a free nation is to survive.
The “Authoritarian” Fallacy:
Why Mandating Self-Governance Education Is Not Tyranny
When people hear that education in self-governance must be a non-negotiable national priority, their immediate reaction is often:
“Isn’t that authoritarian? Shouldn’t people be free to choose their own education?”
This response reveals just how deeply the consumer mindset has corrupted our thinking about liberty.
• Liberty is not the ability to remain ignorant.
• Self-governance is not a lifestyle preference; it is a civic duty.
• A free society does not sustain itself through passive citizens who outsource governance to political elites.
A population that lacks the education necessary for self-governance will always default into tyranny; not because they explicitly choose it, but because they lack the knowledge, habits, and discipline required to resist it.
A Republic Cannot Survive with an Ignorant Citizenry
The Founders of the United States understood this perfectly. They did not see education in self-governance as an optional privilege of the few, but as the only way to ensure that the people; not a ruling class, remained the true stewards of power.
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