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COMMONERS VOICES

Rules are rules

All existing forms of government are old-fashioned. They originated a hundred years ago and are not of this time anymore. The same for all constitutions. They need to be revisited urgently. For example, the compulsory education law in the Netherlands, which dates from 1901 and stipulated that children had to go to school for 6 years. Now in 2019 children have to go to school for 12 years (until the age of 18).

But we are in the midst of the era of digital evolution. We are in an age where you can throw most children with a laptop with a Internet connection into a corner and they learn themselves, based on the Montessori principle. The compulsory education law is not in the best interest of the children but that of society. Our kids have to be productive, they have to serve,be submissive and pious.

I remember well the day I delivered my youngest for her first school day. At that time I was not so aware of the questions of life and politics, but when I saw her sitting at her table on that little chair with arms crossed around each other, I knew I was making a big mistake. In retrospect, I compare this with the worst form of child abuse. I have taken away her freedom, forced her and pushed her a life down her throat that she may not have wanted at all. Who will say? She herself says to be happy. I wonder on what basis she thinks this.

Should the compulsory education law be completely abolished? No, that is too radical, but in the current form it is obsolete. A prosperous country as the Netherlands with a enormous social control does not need such strict rules.

Rules are rules. The rules apply to everyone. If there are no rules for it then they are hysterically cobbled together, think of drones, stints, segways, hoverboards. There are rules for manufacturing of socks even the eggs of chickens have to meet certain sizes.

We have completely gone mad, we have forgotten why we want rules. Actually, there should be rules for making rules ... ... sigh

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6 Comments

Anonymous avatar

Anonymous

February 22, 2019 at 10:58

One issue is with regulative rules (more than constitutive ones - a possible reading on this: http://www.fupress.net/index.php/pam/article/view/22429). Another issue is with social division of labour: children need to be apart from the adult (working, productive) world for large part of the day, and more and more so given the organization of productive and reproductive work in Western societies since mid '900 on (that is why from 6 to 12 years of school, to me). We need to imagine a different way to organize societal activities -- what would you propose, what is the future society you imagine?

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squatyourlife

February 22, 2019 at 13:23

Why not ask them? Giving them a voice, right to veto or voting rights. As a child they are repressed by design. As a child they have no rights whatsoever other as by the grace of the parents or establishment. They have no way to enforce anything. They are being held captive by the same adults who plunder an destroy their heritage. I would see that changed. I would tell them to stop going to school, strike and demand change. Greta Thunberg is one of the few brave strong minded kids who will take no more. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWQPDsHJ0gc I wish every parent, school and child watches this video and every child would turn it’s food plate upside down and revolt. That will be a nice starting point. You ask “what is the future society you imagine?” That might very well be beyond the scope of this article. It is not as simple as adjusting or removing rules. All is connected. You can not do one and not the other. What I would suggest is to rethink everything and come up with some kind of alternative to today's governmental systems. In my country (Netherlands) they just cancelled the so called “advisory referendum” mind you one of the few referendum we had in 2004 let to rejection of the Netherlands to join the EU just to find ourself a member of the EU in 2007. Same for France. It is stunning we didn't revolt, I mean the sheepish submission of the French en Dutch is just mind boggling. Sure I could come up with ideas for a future society but it would be one for humans not sheep. I fear we are too late, the wheel is turning and grinding and there is nothing I can do to change that. My hope is on the children, our future caretakers, the same ones we are stealing from now, how ironic is that? I do think they could make a difference but only if supported by a persevering military branch.

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agonist72

February 22, 2019 at 18:51

i think it's a question of privilege as well. not all parents could afford for their children to decide not to go to school (or elsewhere). and letting a child just sit at the computer, no face to face socialization, sounds like a recipe for otaku disaster. a lot more is learned at school than conformity, is not everything about 'learning'

Anonymous avatar

Anonymous

February 22, 2019 at 22:38

Althought rules and norms can be quite different, there are many relationships between them. Here is another commonfare story about norms. Maybe it can add something to the discussion. https://www.commonfare.net/it/stories/enacting-common-behavior

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CommonADA

June 03, 2019 at 16:03

As a mother I can feel you — had the same feeling when holding his small hand in his elegant uniform off his comprehensive school in the UK — yet the idea of taking education out of the public sphere well no thank you

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squatyourlife

June 16, 2019 at 22:54

@commonADA "Should the compulsory education law be completely abolished? No, that is too radical, but in the current form it is obsolete. A prosperous country as the Netherlands with a enormous social control does not need such strict rules." The point is we are stuck in "old ways" and need to rethink, refresh and reinvent old habits and governments.