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"As Huxley remarked in Brave New World Revisited, the civil libertarians and rationalists who are ever on the alert to oppose tyranny "failed to take into account man's almost infinite appetite for distractions." In 1984, Orwell added, people are controlled by inflicting pain. In Brave New World, they are controlled by inflicting pleasure. In short, Orwell feared that what we fear will ruin us. Huxley feared that what we desire will ruin us.
This book (1985) is about the possibility that Huxley, not Orwell, was right.” ― Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business, 1985
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There is a point where the less intelligent one is, the more difficult it is to self govern. And for the past 100 years Americans have been given easier and easier tests slowly for that time. And now, our education system is simply a hint of a shadow of its former self.
The issue is not under age 18 children in schools. The issue is 78 year old adults and age 71 RFK Jr, etc.
Fox News is the true teacher of society, not school classrooms. That's Neil Postman's point. Elon Musk X is the true place people learn in USA. Not from classrooms, that shit all gets replaced with more entertaining content.
That's kinda why the federal government need to get smaller, as to limit the power and let guild systems, like the Britain in times long gone, govern so as to reach a true community type governance while also having republic esq values is so important (pretty much barter system as well as mineral currency).