After reading Brian Eller’s “The Right Way” about competition being the answer, I was appalled at how one-sided his views are. He presented information in the wrong way by failing to mention the key difference between someone who chooses to attend college, and a K-12 student. Minors are required, by law, to attend school (it’s called compulsory education). Once you get out of high school or reach the age of 18, there is no force compelling you to continue on with your education. This simply solves the answer of how and why America has the best universities around. People choose to continue on to them. And the people that choose to do so are not the ones who were busy skipping school, or not turning in homework. They were the ones who took notes, attended school, tried and realized the importance of an education. It is very hard to educate someone who does not want to be there. For him to compare these entirely different systems, one of choice and one of force, is wrong.
As for competition being the answer – he said that when he retires he wants to “drive a super-cool, American-made and developed, hydrogen car.” This is a very patriotic thing to do, however, American-made cars suck, not because of a lack of intelligence in the designers, but because of America’s addiction with materialistic items. Looking around at Cal Poly, I see countless trucks getting horrible gas mileage. The owners of these beasts are the very reason American car manufacturers are so hesitant about making energy-efficient cars.
David Hansen
Environmental horticultural sciences freshman