Thou Dost Protest Too Much
What to know: U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ speech at the University of Texas at Austin last week was greeted by protests from UT students.
The TPPF take: Thomas’ speech outlined what has gone wrong in higher education.
“The existential crisis of higher education, then, is not simply one of trust, cost, or speech, though it includes all three,” says TPPF’s Cameron Abrams. “Our universities can no longer just recite empty platitudes about what education is for, which will inevitably drift toward managerial slogans, therapeutic abstractions, and procedural reforms that leave the center hollow. It must lead young people towards purpose — a purpose rooted in the values of our Western tradition.”
For more on Justice Thomas’ speech, click here.
Cultural Literacy
What to know: The Texas State Board of Education has approved a new Social Studies reading list that includes passages from the Bible and other Western literature.
The TPPF take: Texas students should be taught where our most important ideas—such as freedom and personal responsibility—come from.
“Unless young Texans understand that our principles of individual rights, freedom, independence, equality, justice, law and moral responsibility all come from Judeo-Christian teachings, they won’t be able to understand why the Pilgrims came to America or what motivated Thomas Paine to write Common Sense, or Thomas Jefferson to write the Declaration of Independence, or Harriet Tubman to lead hundreds of slaves to freedom, or Martin Luther King, Jr., to demand civil rights,” says TPPF’s Sherry Sylvester.
For more on the SBOE, click here.
Artificial Boyfriends
What to know: The New York Times is weighing in on AI boyfriends, which are becoming increasingly popular.
The TPPF take: AI boyfriends aren’t real boyfriends.
“Over the past decade, much of the public square has migrated online,” says TPPF’s Hannah Bruck. “Conversations, friendships, and communities increasingly exist through screens and platforms. As our social lives have moved into digital spaces, it is perhaps unsurprising that artificial voices have entered those spaces as well. But something important risks being lost in the process.”
For more on AI relationships, click here.