I respect your opinion as always, but I did not go to college to get anything but a degree. Did I pick up other things along the way, sure. I had a crazy diverse group of friends , but I was already pretty "diverse" before I got there. I grew up inner city, but was on my grandfathers farm on the weekends growing up. (two very different life experiences).. My friends included just about every race and religion. But that wasn't what I went to school for. I went to get a degree, and move on to a career. Parties, maturity, + a hundred other things were side benefits, but not why I went. Nor did I go to become a better citizen.
The things that irritated me more than anything was going to a class on XXX, and the professor trying to preach his brand of XXX, or views on XXX, more than fact and data on XXX. I remember in an advance lit class, the professor took every opportunity to parlay the lit topic of the week into a political or social agenda (his). I remember wanting my money back.
I think it would be helpful to explain what we mean by "education". Vocational training and liberal arts schooling, especially at the post-secondary level, are very different things. The former is very practical and, as you've argued, shouldn't place much emphasis on politics, philosophy, etc. It's also the only form of education that most people should be pursuing past high school. Conversely, the latter is very theoretical, and because it often lacks practical application, is an inherently
elite good. When it was invented by the Greeks, it was intended to teach the future rulers of the city-state about what is Good, True and Beautiful, so that they could one day exercise their franchise responsibly in the Senate.
Unfortunately, modern America is the land of participation ribbons and special snowflakes, so we don't do a good job of distinguishing between those two types of education. And a lot of kids end up deep in debt with impractical degrees as a result.
That's one stance to take, but I disagree. One of the reasons why general education courses exist, no matter what major you choose, is because there are certain things that are important for an individual to learn that aren't concretely "useful" in their day to day lives.
Does the average citizen use their reading of the federalist papers on a daily basis? No. But a reading of those essays enables citizens to think more about the role of government, the danger of tyranny, the power of debate, and the brilliance of our own history. In short, it's not concretely useful on a day-to-day basis, but it makes them better citizens.
In my mind there's more than a little utility for the exposure of different perspectives and cultures, especially if you're going into one of the fields I listed above. But, even if you're going into physics, that exposure gives you a perspective as to the wider world. That perspective is a key aspect of obtaining a higher education.
As I noted above, the ability to study those sorts of things beyond high school is a luxury that few can afford. If we, as a nation, feel that every citizen needs to study certain subjects in order to be a good American, we'd better be able to teach it effectively in grade or high school.
I'm not a fan of rewriting history to disparage those of the past who held certain beliefs or values that were perfectly respectable and common in their time, but have since become unfashionable. People are a product of their time and generally hold the views they were taught or that were common in their era. That doesn't mean all views or behaviors from the past are OK, as some were clearly wrong even then, but to start wiping out huge chunks of history and condemning those who lived in those eras because their values & beliefs are different than the prevailing views today is unnecessary, dangerous, and counterproductive.
Makes you wonder how many SJWs have seriously questioned their grandparents on these issues. Does your Nana need to be publicly shamed because she still harbors some ugly beliefs about certain racial or sexual minorities? Probably, since most of them seem to be all justice and no mercy.
