MAKING CITIZENS:

Constitution goes to the front of the class (Justin Pope, September 17, 2005, Associated Press)

At first, some grumbled and noted the irony. A new federal law requiring schools to teach about the Constitution didn't seem to fit the spirit, at least, of the document they were supposed to celebrate.

But when the day came, schools and colleges showed there are as many ways to honor the nation's founding charter as there are to interpret it.

A law passed last year requires the federal government and any school receiving federal funding to organize Constitution-related activities on or near Sept. 17, the day the document was adopted in 1787. With that day falling on a Saturday this year, many events took place yesterday.

What irony? The public school system was created for the express and sole purpose of preparing an increasingly diverse American population to be good republicans. The time spent in class on other pursuits is wasted.

Posted by Orrin Judd at September 17, 2005 9:24 AM