The Answer

"A primary purpose of the educational system is to train school children in good citizenship, patriotism and loyalty to the state and the nation as a means of protecting the public welfare,"
-- Justice H. Walter Croskey

Justice H. Walter Croskey of theSecond District Court of Appeal for the state of California wrote the above in an official decision for a case that answered whether parents can legally “home school” their children.  Justice Croskey was quoting from a 1961 case on a similar issue. A story on this decision can be found here and concerns the courts interpretation of the current Education Code for the state of California. Even more chilling than the above is this quote which ends the article that asserts that public schools are not primarily a place of education but instead help children by "being in a place daily where they would be observed by people who had a duty to ensure their ongoing safety." Huh? I'm pretty sure I, as a parent, have a duty to ensure their safety. This boils down to a very simple standard - who's children are they and who is ultimately responsible for them? If the ultimate arbiter is "society", then the above quote makes sense. Making better citizens makes for a better society and all of society benefits from institutionalization of the young and impressionable - for a while. The next logical step would be for children to be assigned by the state (in other words conception would require screening and licensing) and only those deemed compliant would be allowed to reproduce. I, for one, am very uncomfortable with this kind of society. If the decision of the court stands and this law is not repealed, I think that you will find a lot of very smart people that love their children moving out of the state as quickly as they are able.