Opinion> Walter Williams> Ignorance Reigns Supreme

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Ignorance Reigns Supreme

How about a few civics questions? Name the three branches of government. If you answered the executive, legislative and judicial, you are more informed than 50 percent of Americans. The Delaware-based Intercollegiate Studies Institute (ISI) recently released the results of their national survey titled "Our Fading Heritage: Americans Fail a Basic Test on Their History and Institutions." The survey questions were not rocket science.

Only 21 percent of survey respondents knew that the phrase "government of the people, by the people, for the people." comes from President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address. Almost 40 percent incorrectly believe the Constitution gives the president the power to declare war. Only 27 percent know the Bill of Rights expressly prohibits establishing an official religion for the United States. Remarkably, close to 25 percent of Americans believe that Congress shares its foreign policy powers with the United Nations.

Among the total of 33 questions asked, others included: "Who is the commander in chief of the U S. military?” "Name two countries that were our enemies during World War II." "Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the federal government. What is one power of the federal government?" Of the 2,508 nationwide samples of Americans taking ISI's civic literacy test, 71 percent failed; the average score on the test was 49 percent.

ISI findings about cultural illiteracy and academic incompetence are nothing new. A 1990 Gallup survey for the National Endowment of the Humanities, given to a representative sample of 700 college seniors, found that 25 percent did not know that Columbus landed in the Western Hemisphere before the year 1500; 42 percent could not place the Civil War in the correct half-century; and 31 percent thought Reconstruction came after World War II.

In 1993, a Department of Education survey found that among college graduates 50 percent of whites and more than 80 percent of blacks couldn't state in writing the argument made in a newspaper column; 56 percent could not calculate the right tip; 57 percent could not figure out how much change they should get back after putting down $3.00 to pay for a 60-cent bowl of soup and a $1.95 sandwich, and over 90 percent could not use a calculator to find the cost of carpeting a room.

But not to worry. A 1999 survey taken by the American Council of Trustees and Alumni of seniors at the nation's top 55 liberal-arts colleges and universities found that 98 percent could identify rap artist Snoop Dogg and Beavis and Butt-Head, but only 34 percent knew George Washington was the general at the battle of Yorktown.

With limited thinking abilities and knowledge of our heritage, we Americans set ourselves up as easy prey for charlatans, hustlers and quacks. If we don't know the constitutional limits placed on Congress and the White House, politicians can do just about anything they wish to control our lives, from deciding what kind of light bulbs we can use to whether the government can take over our health care system or bailout failing businesses. We just think Congress can do anything upon which they can get a majority vote.

The Intercollegiate Studies Institute has one finding that I find both a bit perplexing but encouraging. Roughly 70 percent of Americans, even those who failed the test, agreed that our history, culture and institutions are important and should be taught to our college students. They might even agree with Thomas Jefferson who warned, "If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be."

Walter E. Williams is a professor of economics at George Mason University. To find out more about Walter E. Williams and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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Dear Mr. Williams,
I've enjoyed reading your columns for years and rarely if ever do I disagree with you. I was hoping for your permission to post your article, Ignorance reigns supreme, on a website that I am in the process of building. Myself and 3 neighbors, have started a campaign to enact a law in our state of PA, which we hope will spread nationwide. Our campaign is called "I Swear To Uphold." We have one objective. When a politician is elected into office, whether it be local, state or federal, that elected official will place their left hand on the Bible, raise their right and then "swear" to uphold the Constitution. Our belief, is that many of these elected officials have never once actually read the Constitution, so therefore, it would be rather difficult for them to swear to uphold something that they have never taken the time to understand.

So our goal is have legislation enacted that would place a requirement on anyone pursuing running for office. And that requirement would be that before 'throwing your hat in the ring', that hopeful politician will have to first take and pass a college level course in Constitutional Law. We fully understand that this will not solve all of the problems that happen every single day in politics where politicians completely ignore or are ignorant of their sworn promise to uphold the Constitution. Our hope is that one day, somewhere in the future, when Congress will be voting on a law that if enacted will strip away some more of our Constitutional rights, that maybe that deciding vote will be placed by someone who took and passed that college level course, and has a little bit better understanding of their sworn promise, and will place their vote based on that promise.

I would assume that you know Nat Hentoff, another national syndicated columnist. I have spoken with Nat and he thought our idea was a wonderful idea and he plans to write an article about it in the near future, as soon as we have the website fully functional. My request to you, is for your permission to place your article on the website to reinforce the unfortunate reality that so many people are so ignorant of civic and political affairs. And as you stated in your article, 'with limited thinking abilities and knowledge of our heritage, we Americans set ourselves up as easy prey for charlatans, hustlers and quacks.'

I hope to hear from you soon.

Michael Pultro

Comment: #1
Posted by: Michael Pultro
Tue Dec 16, 2008 11:10 AM