Why do people often cite education as something only government can provide?

Often, I have heard people defend the necessity of government by arguing that government is necessary to provide the "public good" of education. I have actually heard people argue that, unless the government collects taxes to fund a "free" government education system, nobody will be able to get an education.





Obviously, this can be disproven on empirical grounds, even in our current society where government requires everybody to pay for government schools, whether or not they send their kids to those particular schools. The fact that many people are willing to pay twice for education by either homeschooling their kids or sending them to a private school (yes, the private sector can provide schools).





Even the slightly more mild form of the argument for government education (that not everybody will get an education if government doesn't run its own schools) is spurious. Granting, for the sake of argument, that the claim that, without government spending on education, many children would be unable to get an education (although I don't think this claim is true either), that is not a good argument for government to run its own school system. In fact, the government could almost certainly save alot of money and achieve the same or better educational results by giving out vouchers to pay tuition for any private school. To use the example of Washington, DC, if the politicians in Washington, DC wanted to do so, they could send every kid in DC to the elitist private school that the president's daughters attend for roughly the same amount of money they already spend at their government schools (considering that Obama has chosen not to send his kids to the DC government schools, I think we all know which school provides a better education).





Politicians talk all the time about how they want to eliminate "waste, fraud, and abuse" in the government in this country. If they are serious about doing this, how about getting the government out of the business of building and operating schools, something which it has proven it cannot do efficiently? If you truly believe that children would be unable to get an education in a pure free market, then how about replacing the government's socialized schools program with a government handout program? That would be, at the very least, less of a drain on the taxpayers than the current money sink.|||The problem isn't that nobody would get an education - it is that not everyone - not all people - would get an education.





There are many failed private and charter schools.


The ones that do perform well do not accept and work with children with learning disabilities.





This country started without free public education and we know for a fact that literacy increased and educational levels increased with public education.|||I don't understand it either. The best education I have ever had I gave myself.|||I skipped your book, but I don't think the gov is the only source of education. next.|||Im for putting each school district out to bid we already own the buildings.Private company's could not do worse that what we have now.|||Government wants to run the education system so they can indoctrinate people. It's only oh so obvious, the teachers union indoctrinates children to their advantage to raise more tax revenue.|||Nice rant. I agree. The govt. should not be in the education business. The intent of the public education system was to insure that all Americans had access to education despite economic circumstances. But it has turned out to be a place where standards are low, results are poor and students are indoctrinated or brain washed with liberal ideas and reconstructed history.|||Not only is it not the only place where education can be provided....it is the absolute worst place to provide it.





Our public school education system is a ABSOLUTE disaster.


While private school flourish and excel at every level (FAR outmatching public schools ON EVERY SINGLE SUBJECT....and with not even a third of the funding).|||Because they received a poor public education and are too ignorant to demand a quality education for future generations.|||I think the last thing big government propagandist should point to is education, due to the fact that government has poured tons of money into education and We are no where near the top among education on the planet.|||Public schools have turned into government propaganda machines.


Having school vouchers is a very practical way to educate our students.


Vouchers cost about 1/2 what publlic schools cost, and the children are much better able to function as adults.


There are many wonderful teachers in the public shcool system, but they are hampered by all the 'rules' and have to waste a lot of time on things that do not educate the students.


The public schools have no way to get rid of people who have forgotten that the only reason the school exists is to benefit the students.|||Two main reasons. control of the political body by the teachers unions and the fact that progressives want to control the minds of all children in order to preserve and promote their view of the world and the political power they hold.