The Department of Education has a SWAT team

[MicroBalrog]

I think that used to be the case, and maybe where you are it still is, but I think American universities have now become one more branch of social welfare filigreed with mythological trappings about education and democracy.  How much real learning gets done is questionable; ditto how much actual preparation for society.  Absolutely staggering amounts of money, much of it public, are channeled through the education machine with increasingly dubious results.  (The hard sciences and engineering remain an endangered oasis.)

The purpose of the History department is certainly not to 'prepare' anyone for 'society'. We cannot be called out as having failed as this was never our goal.

[MechAg94]

once upon a time i was greatly a joe fan.  that faded upon closer examination. i also have seen real police gone wild and often find folks blow their "incidents" outa proportion.  and even when they do the zomg choir gathers to sing hallelujahs

Please keep it up.  I may not agree with you all the time (or much  ), but we don't need to start doing the echo chamber on these threads either. 

[longeyes]

The purpose of the History department is certainly not to 'prepare' anyone for 'society'. We cannot be called out as having failed as this was never our goal.

Just remember when you're studying history to prepare your future.  It's coming, you know.

My point was not to debate pure academic studies versus career/vocational ed but to suggest that higher education is now big business and heavily dependent on gov't subsidies with all that implies.