NationStates Jolt Archive

This is my first proposal (currently available for support).

"This treaty aims to pass legislation in WA nations to ensure the growth and diversification of culture and the universalisation of philosophy, for the betterment of the people of these states.

Article 1
All WA nations are required to supply free education to all their citizens, with funding handled as described in Article 4. Education will be acknowledged as a universal right for all, with the governments of WA nations having power over the content of the syllabus other than those described in Articles 2 and 3.

Article 2
All WA nations are required to teach Philosophy as a compulsory subject from the first to last year of schooling.
The aim of this article is:
to enhance the provision of education in all WA nations,
to encourage free and independent thought,
to reduce the effect of corporate advertising and government propaganda on the people of WA nations through the enlightenment of the people to the risk of influence by corporations and governments through the use of flawed reasoning,
to increase the overall intelligence, through training in the methods of reasoned thought and education in the fields of ethics and metaphysics, of the populace of WA nations.
The desired effect of this article is to reduce the ability of governments to influence their people with lies, a reduction in the power of large corporations by removing the sway the people are held under by advertising and to instill a desire to learn and excel in academia in the populations of WA nations. A population educated in philosophy from an early age will also be immune to the indoctrination of fallacious principles by those around them.

Article 3
All WA nations are required to meet minimum funding requirements on musea, public libraries, art galleries, &c.; as well as encouraging culture and art-related youth activities with government initiatives and subsidies. Education in the study of art, music and literature is to be more widely available and given a more prominent place in the educational system.
The aim of this article is:
to enrich culture and bolster the unique identity of WA nations,
to encourage individuality and diversify culture, thus limiting the influence of large sweatshop-fuelled clothing manufacturers and big record labels which suppress emerging talent in competition to that already present,
to keep the youth of WA nations off the streets while doing something enriching, educational and productive,
to diversify the educational system of WA nations so that those less able in academic subjects can succeed.
The desired effect of this article is to prevent a loss of national identity and uniqueness in member states and avoid a situation in which native cultures die out; to make citizens of WA nations happier by providing them with mentally stimulating entertainment and to assist in the bringing about of an age of intellectualism.

Article 4
To prevent the poorer WA nations from losing out due to a lack of funding, the WA itself will fund the changes suggested by this treaty from a fund contributed to by all WA nations in proportion to their GDP. This money will be distributed equally to encourage development in poorer nations where currently education is poor.
The enforcement of the treaty will be overseen by a committee of inspectors who will compile data bianually and suggest ways in which a member nation can improve their implimentation of the proposed changes."

Thoughts?

There is one moderately awkward problem; you do not specify that free education should only be for some appropriate period associated with normal schooling. While we as a nation are quite happy to offer free adult education in appropriate circumstances, we do note that circumstances have to be appropriate, and we do feel that requiring this of all nations is a step too far. We are also somewhat concerned that as this currently reads, the 'career path' of Eternal Student is an entirely viable one, something even we are leery of.

That aside, we heartily commend your proposal's insistence on Philosophy as a compulsory subject, and hope to see a proposal of this nature come to vote at some point.

(OOC: which may have something to do with Boethius being my current bedtime reading :-)

"All WA nations are required to supply free education to all their citizens, with funding handled as described in Article 4. Education will be acknowledged as a universal right for all, with the governments of WA nations having power over the content of the syllabus other than those described in Articles 2 and 3."

The Duchess respectfully points out in particular the sentence, "Education will be acknowledged as a universal right for all, with the governments of WA nations having power over the content of the syllabus other than those described in Articles 2 and 3."
The period of this compulsory provision of education is up to the governments of each WA nation, as long as it exists.

A population educated in philosophy from an early age will also be immune to the indoctrination of fallacious principles by those around them.
Are you joking? You're saying that having the government teach students what to think at an early age is going to prevent indoctrination? Or do you think that governments who would indoctrinate average citizens would refrain from making the philosophy courses biased?

All WA nations are required to teach Philosophy as a compulsory subject from the first to last year of schooling.
From the first year of schooling? I highly doubt that most children could even understand what most philosophies were saying, and certainly not which one they think is correct, during their first year of school.

All WA nations are required to meet minimum funding requirements on musea, public libraries, art galleries, &c.; as well as encouraging culture and art-related youth activities with government initiatives and subsidies.
If my people think that they're worth funding, they can fund it themselves without having to have the government force them to though taxes.

Education in the study of art, music and literature is to be more widely available and given a more prominent place in the educational system.
The aim of this article is:
to enrich culture and bolster the unique identity of WA nations,
First, while I don't know how to improve it, this is very vague. Second, I fail to see how art can be taught if it's quality is entirely subjective. Third, I would rather have a rich nation than a cultured one.

To prevent the poorer WA nations from losing out due to a lack of funding, the WA itself will fund the changes suggested by this treaty from a fund contributed to by all WA nations in proportion to their GDP. This money will be distributed equally to encourage development in poorer nations where currently education is poor.
If they're poor, why should we fund education in bad-paying careers? That only makes it less likely for them to be able to fund it themselves later, and I have no intrest on having other nations continuously leech off of mine for their culture, which may have huge idealogical differences with mine. I don't pay people to disagree with me, and while I have no problem with people being artist or musicians, if they can't support themselves, I'm not going to force my people to pay them, especially if they aren't even in my nation.

The government would not teach children what to think, but how to think, i.e. the methods of logical thought and reason, so that they could form their own opinions with a basis.

Children in the first year of school can't understand calculus either, that's why they're not taught it. They are taught mathematics, however, in that they're taught how to count.

Perhaps your third point will be ammended: the governments of WA nations are encouraged, but not required, to actively fund these things; but promotion of them is compulsory.

Art itself cannot be taught, but talent can be nurtured and supplied with materials, and the study of art can be taught. And that next point is very disappointing, but the advancement of culture need not hinder economic growth, and indeed, it can boost it slightly.

If they're poor, why should we fund education in bad-paying careers? That only makes it less likely for them to be able to fund it themselves later, and I have no intrest on having other nations continuously leech off of mine for their culture, which may have huge idealogical differences with mine. I don't pay people to disagree with me, and while I have no problem with people being artist or musicians, if they can't support themselves, I'm not going to force my people to pay them, especially if they aren't even in my nation.

You are not paying for people to disagree with you, but for the promotion universally of culture and philosophy. Note also that funding education in your own country is "paying people to disagree with you" if you want to put it that way, since not everyone will agree with your government's perspective. Additonally, even if you don't fund it, they will disagree anyway.

My country of Porkscratching would be happy to support this proposial in the World Assembly. This is because the education is very important.