What do you think?
Rate this book
DEVALUING OF AMERICA: FIGHT FOR OUR CULTURE AND OUR CHILDREN
A provocative and personal study of the crisis in American values discusses the problem of educational standards, drugs, AIDS, and sex education; racial strife; the controversy over values; and the debate on affirmative action and quotas. 50,000 first printing.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1992
1 person is currently reading
109 people want to read
About the author
William J. Bennett
131 books198 followersWilliam J. "Bill" Bennett is a politician and author who served in the Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush administrations, as chief of National Endowment for the Humanities and later Secretary of Education under Reagan, and Drug Czar under Bush. He is a nationally well-known figure of political and social conservatism and authored many books on politics, ethics, and international relations.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
February 7, 2021
Wow.. what an interesting perspective.. 30 years ago! I found this book on the $1 table and read it out of curiosity. Yet... what he said rings too true. Shocking that he calls the "intellectual elite" out on their tactics. So interesting to learn of the relationship between education and drug enforcement.
June 11, 2018
Excellent discussion on education and the drug issue in the USA by a man who was in the middle of the battle. I gained a better understanding of both topics and a greater appreciation for Bill Bennett.
October 7, 2023
It's dated ...there are still nuggets in there that can be found amongst the travelogue. Some points I agree with and some points I don't.
April 9, 2012
I read this because I am doing a project for my intellectual freedom class for my Master's in library science. And yes, I am giving him a much lower score because I think he's patently wrong. No. 1 it is for his assertion that almost all Americans hold true to the traditional Christian values of a "moral upbringing." First of all, one can have a virtuous and moral upbringing without being "Christian." One can also grow up an asshole if one is Christian. I've known plenty of every kind. Ones religion does not necessarily dictate how good or bad a person is.
Second - there's a lot to value in the "liberal materials." Conservatives look at something and see dirt, filth and sin. They don't look deeper to the true meaning of the book, work of art or film. They just see on the surface. Mr. Bennett would have us teach our children that most things are bad, only the things we hand you are good and you should never listen to what one of those terrible liberals tells you. Therefore, they attempt to prevent everyone else from being able to give their children the education they feel is best. Before you get all up in arms and scream at me for being an awful liberal, hear me out. Yes... there are materials that are not exactly literary. We should not, as Mr. Bennett asserts, defend something worthless just because it's there. If I am a collection development librarian, I am going to judge the book on all its content. If it's not deemed worth having it in a collection, I won't get it for that collection. That doesn't mean the first f-bomb is going to put it on the out list. And that doesn't mean a rape scene is going to put it on the out list. A child can be taught values by being exposed to things other than Jesus. We should prepare them for the world in which they will have to live. We should prepare them for the bad things and the good. Sheltering them forces them into isolation. Mr. Bennett makes some good points, but he is way off the mark. I gave him an extra star for his occasional good points. He just fails to realize there's such a thing as the 1st Amendment. Jesus was a long time ago. The Constitution was a little more recent in history. He did seem to think history was an important part of education. He should remember that part. However, Mr. Bennett - here's my message to you and I will get dirty with this one, because I offer you no credit where this is concerned:
You said, "From what I have observed, the liberal elite proceed from a certain social and political predisposition. The predisposition tends to be an adopted orientation, not a conclusion based on evidence and argument." Ok, Mr. Bennett. How many pages of sources were in the back of your book? Ok, geez... I forgot, I need to look. Ok, yes, you quoted the occasional conservative think-tank in the text, but there are, oh yeah: NO PAGES OF CITATIONS. You did not reference court cases, scientific studies, or scholarly papers in a sources cited section. Why? Do you not want us looking up your so called facts? The last book I read on intellectual freedom from a what you call LIBERAL scholar, had over 100 pages... yes, you read that right... 100 PAGES!!!!... of sources cited. This was Ms. Marjorie Heins. I reviewed the book just about a week ago. Feel free to look back in my history. Then again, she is just operating from a false predisposition and has no evidence. That's right. You said so... duh... I believe you. And yes, I do realize William Bennett will not actually read this review. It just makes me feel better to say what I would love for him to hear!
Second - there's a lot to value in the "liberal materials." Conservatives look at something and see dirt, filth and sin. They don't look deeper to the true meaning of the book, work of art or film. They just see on the surface. Mr. Bennett would have us teach our children that most things are bad, only the things we hand you are good and you should never listen to what one of those terrible liberals tells you. Therefore, they attempt to prevent everyone else from being able to give their children the education they feel is best. Before you get all up in arms and scream at me for being an awful liberal, hear me out. Yes... there are materials that are not exactly literary. We should not, as Mr. Bennett asserts, defend something worthless just because it's there. If I am a collection development librarian, I am going to judge the book on all its content. If it's not deemed worth having it in a collection, I won't get it for that collection. That doesn't mean the first f-bomb is going to put it on the out list. And that doesn't mean a rape scene is going to put it on the out list. A child can be taught values by being exposed to things other than Jesus. We should prepare them for the world in which they will have to live. We should prepare them for the bad things and the good. Sheltering them forces them into isolation. Mr. Bennett makes some good points, but he is way off the mark. I gave him an extra star for his occasional good points. He just fails to realize there's such a thing as the 1st Amendment. Jesus was a long time ago. The Constitution was a little more recent in history. He did seem to think history was an important part of education. He should remember that part. However, Mr. Bennett - here's my message to you and I will get dirty with this one, because I offer you no credit where this is concerned:
You said, "From what I have observed, the liberal elite proceed from a certain social and political predisposition. The predisposition tends to be an adopted orientation, not a conclusion based on evidence and argument." Ok, Mr. Bennett. How many pages of sources were in the back of your book? Ok, geez... I forgot, I need to look. Ok, yes, you quoted the occasional conservative think-tank in the text, but there are, oh yeah: NO PAGES OF CITATIONS. You did not reference court cases, scientific studies, or scholarly papers in a sources cited section. Why? Do you not want us looking up your so called facts? The last book I read on intellectual freedom from a what you call LIBERAL scholar, had over 100 pages... yes, you read that right... 100 PAGES!!!!... of sources cited. This was Ms. Marjorie Heins. I reviewed the book just about a week ago. Feel free to look back in my history. Then again, she is just operating from a false predisposition and has no evidence. That's right. You said so... duh... I believe you. And yes, I do realize William Bennett will not actually read this review. It just makes me feel better to say what I would love for him to hear!
March 15, 2008
Bennett is a former official in the Reagan and Bush I adminsitrations who reflects on his time in that era partiuclarly focusing on educationk, drugs, poverty, race and what he calls the "culture wars." Whether you agree or disagree with him, you have to admire his clarity, honesty and passion. I have reflected on the book in my blog at http://drickboyd.blogspot.com/ (Why I hate being called a liberal). I found much to agree with particularly around his concern for educators to realize they must help shape the character of their students in addition to imparting knowledge. While I do't share his critique of multiculturalism, or his faith in government or some of his solutions to the pressing problems of our day, I do think he would be an engaging person with whom to have an evening of conversation.
July 15, 2009
Didn't finish before I had to take it back to the library. Lots of good stats and ideas. It was written 15 years ago. I don't think I want to see the same stats for today!
February 11, 2015
A look at morality in the US - drugs, schools, churches
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews