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Post by benziger on Mar 6, 2020 19:53:31 GMT
The following lines are from Michael Rasch, economy editor from the Neue Zürcher Zeitung (a leading European Newspaper, like the New York Times), published yesterday in the Economy fascicle (text translated from German). I am not here to spread a political idea. Rather, as we all know, you can very well spread a message with well told stories and beautiful pictures. What surprised but also delighted me was that the business editor of a leading business newspaper discovered this. And did not hide it somewhere in the culture section, but in a rather prominent place. Maybe you are interested in? One can argue splendidly about what should be taught at school. Economics and the philosophy of freedom are likely to be neglected. A private initiative wants to change this and is bringing the concepts closer to the next generation with children's books. Can the liberal classic "The Road to Servitude" by Nobel Prize winner Friedrich August von Hayek be elegantly adapted for children? It can indeed be done in a greatly reduced form, as the American author Connor Boyack shows with his children's books about the Tuttle twins. Boyack is president of the Libertas Institute, a public think tank in the American state of Utah. In the latest work translated into German, "The Tuttle Twins on their way to Surfdom", young liberals are told that it doesn't always have to be good if the state fulfils the wishes of its citizens. The twins Ethan and Emily are researching the construction of a new road to the local surf club and find out how this can destroy an entire region. As always, the book is illustrated by Elijah Stanfield, the owner of the media company Red House Motion Imaging in Washington. The books, which are aimed at children between the ages of five and ten, are intended to introduce even the youngest children to economic principles and the philosophy of freedom, which, according to the author and the sponsors of the children's book series, are hardly taught in schools. According to the German translator Enno Samp, conventional children's books often tend to convey a criticism of capitalism, while the Tuttle twins focus on the importance of freedom, the market and the economy, as well as independence and personal responsibility. In the meantime, seven books have been translated into German. Each volume in the series conveys the core messages of one of the most important classics of liberal literature, including, for example, "The 24 most important rules of economics" by Henry Hazlitt, "Swords to ploughshares" by Ron Paul, "The Strike" by Ayn Rand or "The Creature of Jekyll Island" by G. Edward Griffin. In the latter, for example, the origin and history of money as well as the terms banking, saving, barter and inflation are explained. The nicely written and lovingly illustrated children's books should not only be something for libertarian and liberal parents, but also delight and inspire mothers and fathers far beyond. At least Hayek would have liked the children's books very much.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 6, 2020 20:21:07 GMT
I think it's a wonderful idea. In fact, I think it's crucial. When my son finished high school I had to explain to him that he had to do his taxes, and he asked why they never taught that in school. And, not even in one children's or young adult book. Imagine.
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Post by And Kevin 2024 on Mar 6, 2020 21:09:22 GMT
When I went to school they had some very practical useful in everyday life lessons. Nowadays they seem to concentrate mainly on maths and English.
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Post by benziger on Mar 6, 2020 22:18:19 GMT
Oh, that reminds me of another book (at the moment only in German): "Globi and the Democracy". Globi is a famous cartoon character in Switzerland - like Mickey Mouse in the rest of the world. In addition to comic books, non-fiction books for children aged 10-16 have been available for some years now, and this is just the minute I find out that a translation in French and English is to be presented at the World Expo in Dubai this year for the democracy book. Article by former Swiss Radio International: www.swissinfo.ch/eng/directdemocracy/-deardemocracy_globi--the-cartoon-character-explaining-democracy-to-kids/44411778Preview of the first pages of the book: www.bic-media.com/mobile/mobileWidget-jqm1.4.html?isbn=9783857031335_ Globi at the parliament (left) and during the interview with the (real) minister of foreign affairs (right). By the way: This can be an encouragement for us to write such great books as well. The book on democracy was first only an idea of the headmistress of our village school. Now it is available in large edition in German and soon in two more languages...
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Post by Retread-Retired-Cameron on Mar 6, 2020 23:03:57 GMT
Okay, I'll be brief and as apolitical as I can be. I can agree on the importance importance of freedom, as well as independence and personal responsibility. As for the market and the economy, those don't work the same way in the US.
A few years ago my spouse, who grew up in the Arizona strip bordering Utah, asked me to watch a documentary by some goober I'd barely heard of named Noam Chomsky. At the end she asked me if I'd read a lot of his work and I said no, I'd barely heard of him. Then she asked me why what he was saying sounded so much like things I've said -- my reply was simple, the guy obviously isn't an idiot, and what US history I didn't study I've lived through. I don't have to have a Ph.D. to know when a horseshoe is either hot or rusty.
I'll check out the books when I can.
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Post by BlueAndGold on Mar 7, 2020 2:18:57 GMT
Thank you, Benziger. That is surprising and happy news. I highly recommend Henry Hazlitt's Economics in One Lesson. ISBN 0-517-54823-2 Simple and to the point.
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Post by ronmiller on Mar 7, 2020 12:18:54 GMT
When I went to school they had some very practical useful in everyday life lessons. Nowadays they seem to concentrate mainly on maths and English. Not even nowadays, at least in the US. When I got out of high school (50+ years ago) I didn't even know how to open a bank account or write a check. Just one course over one semester could have taught me a lot of very basic life skills. (I could at least type. There was that at any rate.) My wife went to a unique high school in the city in which she grew up. The students went to school year-round. One week (or every two weeks---something like that) would be spent in classes, the alternate week working at a relevant job (in her case, she was taking accounting so she worked in an office). Classes would alternate so that when you were in class another student was taking your place at the job. By the time a student graduated, they already had two years' solid work experience and a resume. (She eventually went on to major in art in college.)
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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2020 15:45:34 GMT
When I went to school they had some very practical useful in everyday life lessons. Nowadays they seem to concentrate mainly on maths and English. Very little of practical value today. When I went to school, I took a sewing option, and woodwork option, a metal option, a cooking option. All proved extremely useful. A taxe course would have been great. Didn't do my taxes for three years.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2020 15:48:30 GMT
When I went to school they had some very practical useful in everyday life lessons. Nowadays they seem to concentrate mainly on maths and English. Not even nowadays, at least in the US. When I got out of high school (50+ years ago) I didn't even know how to open a bank account or write a check. Just one course over one semester could have taught me a lot of very basic life skills. (I could at least type. There was that at any rate.) My wife went to a unique high school in the city in which she grew up. The students went to school year-round. One week (or every two weeks---something like that) would be spent in classes, the alternate week working at a relevant job (in her case, she was taking accounting so she worked in an office). Classes would alternate so that when you were in class another student was taking your place at the job. By the time a student graduated, they already had two years' solid work experience and a resume. (She eventually went on to major in art in college.) Lucky her. I started with zero skills, zero experience and two immigrant parents who spoke little English and no French.
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Post by ronmiller on Mar 7, 2020 16:14:48 GMT
Not even nowadays, at least in the US. When I got out of high school (50+ years ago) I didn't even know how to open a bank account or write a check. Just one course over one semester could have taught me a lot of very basic life skills. (I could at least type. There was that at any rate.) My wife went to a unique high school in the city in which she grew up. The students went to school year-round. One week (or every two weeks---something like that) would be spent in classes, the alternate week working at a relevant job (in her case, she was taking accounting so she worked in an office). Classes would alternate so that when you were in class another student was taking your place at the job. By the time a student graduated, they already had two years' solid work experience and a resume. (She eventually went on to major in art in college.) Lucky her. I started with zero skills, zero experience and two immigrant parents who spoke little English and no French. Judith grew up in a bilingual environment. All four grandparents were Hungarian immigrants.
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Post by benziger on Mar 7, 2020 21:34:37 GMT
Very little of practical value today. When I went to school, I took a sewing option, and woodwork option, a metal option, a cooking option. All proved extremely useful. A taxe course would have been great. In our company 80% of all young people do an apprenticeship: 3-4 days of work and 1-2 days of vocational school. In addition to the vocational subjects, there is also general education. One double hour per week. During all three (or four) years. And a little bit of political science. At the end they take two exams: one practical in the company and one in the (state) school. The vocational diploma (similar to a BA), on the other hand, is issued by the federal state. Didn't do my taxes for three years. I still have to do that by the end of the month. Otherwise I will be assessed ex officio and that is rather unfavourable. So I will do it "voluntarily" after all ;-)
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Post by Retread-Retired-Cameron on Mar 7, 2020 22:16:36 GMT
Between 8th and 9th grade during summer school [back around 72] I took a practical math course. Balancing a checking account, affirmative. Adding up a grocery bill and calculating the tax, affirmative. Doing a hypothetical tax return, affirmative. All of it done on paper. That was in a US state often considered the 'anus of the South'.
As for year-round school, never had it. On the other hand I would read like a demon from about 1966 through the mid-2000s.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 8, 2020 1:35:42 GMT
Lucky her. I started with zero skills, zero experience and two immigrant parents who spoke little English and no French. Judith grew up in a bilingual environment. All four grandparents were Hungarian immigrants. Wow. She sounds super interesting, on every level. Extend an invitation from me for her to join us here. It would be an honour to have her.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 8, 2020 1:37:55 GMT
Very little of practical value today. When I went to school, I took a sewing option, and woodwork option, a metal option, a cooking option. All proved extremely useful. A taxe course would have been great. In our company 80% of all young people do an apprenticeship: 3-4 days of work and 1-2 days of vocational school. In addition to the vocational subjects, there is also general education. One double hour per week. During all three (or four) years. And a little bit of political science. At the end they take two exams: one practical in the company and one in the (state) school. The vocational diploma (similar to a BA), on the other hand, is issued by the federal state. Didn't do my taxes for three years. I still have to do that by the end of the month. Otherwise I will be assessed ex officio and that is rather unfavourable. So I will do it "voluntarily" after all ;-) We have until April 15th to do our taxes, and if we don't, nothing unfavourable happens. We just have to pay interest on what we owe them.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 8, 2020 1:39:37 GMT
Between 8th and 9th grade during summer school [back around 72] I took a practical math course. Balancing a checking account, affirmative. Adding up a grocery bill and calculating the tax, affirmative. Doing a hypothetical tax return, affirmative. All of it done on paper. That was in a US state often considered the 'anus of the South'. As for year-round school, never had it. On the other hand I would read like a demon from about 1966 through the mid-2000s. Really, you guys did all that? In US education? I always assumed we had a very similar curriculum.
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