Appearing during the middle two hours, education reformer John Taylor Gatto offered a critique of the American school system. Compulsory education has been set up to render the population manageable, and instill a reflexive obedience to a factory/corporate hierarchical system, he said. Yet, this kind of modality has become hopelessly out of sync with what the world has become, he argued.
Standardized testing is a scam that reveals worthless information, rather than actual performance, Gatto commented. It's easier for students to learn in a more customized environment such as home schooling, he noted, adding that "open source learning" is a valid alternative to forced education. In open source learning, the student becomes the active initiator in their education, and chooses who they'll learn from and what they wish to study.
The Cross Mission
First hour guest, Arthur Blessitt spoke about his decades-long mission in which he carried a 12 foot wooden cross around the world, walking some 38,000 miles, through all seven continents. He described his trek through countries in the midst of war, such as Lebanon in 1982, and difficult terrain like a jungle near Panama, and glaciers outside of Afghanistan.
Lost Treasures
In the last hour, author Lionel Fanthorpe talked about his new book on lost treasures, including those of the ancient world. He recounted the tale of an Ecuadorian priest who teamed up with a beautiful woman and became a pirate around the year of 1800.