Educational system can lead to
deception, 'hollow credentialism'
In '"Book smarts' remain most valid in evaluating stu
dents" (July 20, ODE), Scheid argues against critics of the
present grading system and in favor of the construction of
grades as a measurement of "book smarts." Scheid's primary
error is that he argues against a straw-person critic of the pres
ent grading system. The main problem of grading as it cur
rently stands is not that book smarts are inapplicable to the
so-called real world (which is all too often thought of as the
professional world) but that current evaluative methods do
ration specifically for standardized tests and talent for filling
in the proper bubbles while under pressure rather than any
sort of conceptual mastery.
Scheid goes on to argue against the notion that our current
grading system encourages cheating, explaining that those
who cheat truly will not prosper because their methods will
be ineffective in their roles as employees. While it may be the
case that employers place their workers under a great deal of
scrutiny, lest their profits be siphoned, we still cannot main
tain the notion that this sort of social pressure has largely
eliminated cheating in the professional world. Put simply,
cheaters do prosper. This is especially evident if we look to
not give an accurate picture
of even book smarts. Multi
ple choice tests, the most in
(X) M iVl P,NTA RY ^amous being standardized
tests such as the SAT, are a
more apt measure of prepa
the epidemic of white-collar crime. In The Rich Get Richer,
The Poor Get Prison, Jeffrey Reiman estimates the monetary
and social costs of white collar crime, as are measured in US
dollars, human injuries and deaths, respectively, to far eclipse
those of street crime. Indeed, crime does pay, and we leam
this first in pursuit of grades rather than currency.
Scheid finally argues that the present grading system is
effective in teaching youth to "follow directions and re
spect authority." Future white-collar criminals aside, I have
to concede this point to Scheid, but I ask, is this really a
good thing? While obedience would be a virtue if authori
ty were infallible and the status quo were the best possible
societal arrangement, history has shown this not to be the
case; rather, we have seen some of the worst atrocities com
mitted in the name of authority with the justification that
one was "just following orders." If we are to transform soci
ety into a form that is more humane and more just, we
must begin with a critical analytic mindset so that present
social structures may be judged, refined, and creatively re
placed. If such a mindset is to be cultivated on a wide scale,
we need to begin in our educational system. The present
regimented system of grades based largely on standardized
tests cultivates not this critical mindset but rather hollow
credentialism, on one hand, and opportunistic deception,
i.e. cheating, on the other.
Andy Kohnen graduated from the University in 2004
In physician-assisted suicide issue,
Oregon law gives doctors power
Freedom is so little understood in
this "land of the free" that it is often
confused with its opposite. Case in
point: Oregon's 1994 Death With Dig
nity Act, which a federal appeals court
recently shielded from attack by U.S.
Attorney General John Ashcroft.
The law permits what has come to
be known as physician-assisted sui
cide. It and the appellate ruling have
been hailed as victories for patient au
tonomy and the right to commit sui
cide. Indeed, the New York Times edi
torialized. "The voters of Oregon
they decided to allow terminally ill
people to determine when they have
suffered enough."
But did the voters really do that?
A closer look at the law shows they
did not.
The law only allows a patient who is
expected to die within six months to
ask his doctor for lethal drugs. The doc
tor can say no, as he has every right to
do. But since a patient cannot end his
own life without the doctor's consent,
the law is no milestone for freedom.
What happens when a patient makes
such a request of his doctor? The state's
COMMENTARY
GUEST
acted
with
great
h u -
mani
t y
when
requirements are "stringent," according
to Dr. Peter Goodwin, a long-time fam
ily physician and an emeritus associate
professor in the Department of Family
Medicine at Oregon Health and Sci
ence University. They include, Good
win writes, "the attending physician's
diagnosis/prognosis and determina
tion that the patient is informed, capa
ble and acting voluntarily."
Note that the attending physician
must be convinced that the patient
knows what he's doing. Whether or
not you think doctors have a special
ability to see the absence of volition in
an action (I don't), this requirement is
hardly consistent with "allow(ing) ter
minally ill people to determine when
they have suffered enough."
The law also states, "A consulting
physician must examine the patient and
the medical records and concur with the
attending physician's diagnosis/progno
sis and assessment of the patient."
Dr. Goodwin comments: "If the at
tending physician or the consulting
physician thinks the patient may suf
fer from a psychological disorder
causing impaired judgment, the
physician must refer the patient for
evaluation and counseling. No med
ication may be prescribed unless it is
certain the patient's judgment is not
impaired" (emphasis added).
What terminally ill patient in great
pain could not be said to have impaired
judgment? What's the difference be
tween a judgment that's impaired and
one that clashes with the doctor's? In a
conflict between a patient and a physi
cian, who prevails? The doctor, of
course. How can there be "death with
dignity" when the patient must
humbly petition the doctors, then
meekly wait for a unanimous ruling?
Whatever one thinks of the legal mer
its of Attorney General Ashcroft's at
tempt to use federal anti-drug laws to
thwart Oregon's voters, physician-assist
ed suicide is a fraud. As Dr. Thomas Sza
sz writes in his book Fatal Freedom: The
Ethics and Politics of Suicide, "The term
'physician-assisted suicide' (PAS) is in
trinsically mendacious. The physician is
the principal, not the assistant. He de
termines who qualifies for the treat
ment and prescribes the drug for it."
The Oregon law is about giving pow
er to doctors. If individual freedom
were the concern, we would simply re
peal the drug laws and recognize each
adult's right to buy any kind of drugs.
Why empower doctors? Suicide is
n't a medical issue. It's a moral issue.
Sheldon Richman is senior fellow at
The Future of Freedom Foundation,
author of Tethered Citizens: Time to
Repeal the Welfare State, and editor
of The Freeman magazine, srich
man @conwaycorp. net
Kentucky Fried Chicken should
improve treatment of chickens
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals' recent under
cover investigation of a Kentucky Fried Chicken slaughter
house run by the second-largest chicken company in the U.S.
has opened my eyes to the reality of the chicken industry.
Workers were filmed
GUEST
COMMENTARY
stomping on birds, kicking
them, and slamming them
against floors and walls.
They also ripped off
chickens' beaks, twisted off
their heads, spat tobacco
into their eyes and mouths, spray-painted their faces, and tied
their legs together for laughs — all while still fully conscious.
The investigation was conducted at this location because it
was the site of a KFC "Supplier of the Year" award ceremony.
Chickens are probably the most abused animals on the
planet. They have their sensitive beaks seared off with hot
blades and are crammed into tiny cages with the decom
posing remains of other birds. Hundreds of thousands
are left to starve to death, and huge numbers die as a re
sult of long journeys in extreme weather conditions. Basi
cally, any and all abuse is allowable when it comes to
chickens, who are, in fact, remarkable animals with dis
tinct personalities and intelligence that, if allowed to de
velop, is as advanced as that of cats and dogs. Most im
portantly, they feel pain, just as we do.
The video is almost beyond description — workers at a
KFC slaughterhouse stomp, kick, and slam birds against
walls. How bad does it have to get before KFC changes the
way it treats chickens?
For more information and to see the video for yourself,
please visit http://www.KFCCruelty.com.
Curtis Taylor Hues in Eugene.
fashion
that
pays to
be me
libUii
MEXICAN & SALVADOREAN RESTAURANT • 900 WEST 7TH AVENUE • 683-9171
1 *7*1 I
*wM
[ m\wJ P
J rftt
-,-/>Ji 1 -
• Homemade Soups
• Fresh Salads
• Fresh Pizza • Hamburgers
• Fish & Chips • Pastas • Ribs
• Microbrewed Beer and full bar