【正文】 eard, but have little interest either in finding mon ground with or in acknowledging the merits of the opponent39。s legitimate concerns for its national security, its political sovereignty, the 3 stability of its economy and currency, and so forth. In sum, unless two opponents in a debate are each willing to play on the same field and by 2 the same rules, I concede that disagreement can impede learning. Otherwise, reasoned discourse and debate between people with opposing viewpoints is the very foundation upon which human knowledge advances. Accordingly, on balance the speaker is fundamentally correct. Issue 2 No field of study can advance significantly unless outsiders bring their knowledge and experience to that field of study. I strongly agree with the assertion that significant advances in knowledge require expertise from various fields. The world around us presents a seamless web of physical and anthropogenic forces, which interact in ways that can be understood only in the context of a variety of disciplines. Two examples that aptly illustrate this point involve the fields of c ultural anthropology and astronomy. Consider how a cultural anthropologist39。 otherwise, a nation39。s youngsters would be worse off as a result of their ignorance about the traditions, values, and cultural contributions of all the people whose citizenship they share. 5 Finally, it seems to me that imposing a uniform national curriculum would serve to undermine the authority of parents over their own children, to even a greater extent than uniform state laws currently do. Admittedly, laws requiring parents to ensure that their children receive an education that meets certain minimum standards are welljustified, for the reasons mentioned earlier. However, when such standards are imposed by the state rather than at the munity level parents are left with far less power to participate meaningfully in the decisionmaking process. This problem would only be exacerbated were these decisions left exclusively to federal regulators. In the final analysis, homogenization of elementary and secondary education would amount to a doubleedged sword. While it would serve as an insurance policy against a future populated with illiterates and ignoramuses, at the same time it might serve to obliterate cultural diversity and tradition. The optimal federal approach, in my view, is a balanced one that imposes a basic curriculum yet leaves the rest up to each stateor better yet, to each munity. Issue 4 The video camera provides such an accurate and convincing record of contemporary life that it has bee a more important form of documentation than written records. According to the speaker, the video recording is a more important means of document hag contemporary life than a written record because video recordings are more accurate and convincing. Although I agree that a video provides a more objective and accurate record of an event39。 written documentation will always be needed to quantify, demystify, and provide meaning to the world around us. Issue 5 It is often necessary, even desirable, for political leaders to withhold information from the public. I agree with the speaker that it is sometimes necessary, and even desirable, for political leaders to withhold information from the public. A contrary view would reveal a naivetd about the inherent nature of public politics, and about the sorts of promises on the part of wellintentioned political leaders necessary in order to further the public39。s health and safety would be promised as a result. Withholding information 5 might also be necessary to avoid public panic. While such cases are rare, they do occur 7 occasionally. For example, during the first few hours of the new millennium the . Pentagon39。s withholding of information about his active role in the Watergate coverup. His behavior demonstrated a concern for self interest above the broader interests of the democratic system that granted his political authority in the first place. In sum, the game of politics calls for a certain amount of disingenuousness and lack of forthrightness that we might otherwise characterize as dishonesty. And such behavior is a necessary means to the final objective of effective political leadership. Nevertheless, in any democracy a leader who relies chiefly on deception and secrecy to preserve that leadership, to advance a private agenda, or to conceal selfish motives, betrays the democracyand ends up forfeiting the polirical game. Issue 6 Governments must ensure that their major cities receive the financial support they need in order to thrive, because it is primarily in cities that a nation39。 and (3) cultural traditions are preserved and generated primarily in our large cities. I strongly disagree with all three claims. First of all, subsidizing cultural traditions is not a proper role of govemment. Admittedly, certain objectives, such as public health and safety, are so essential to the survival of large dries and of nations that government has a duty to ensure that they are met. However, these objectives should not extend tenuously to preserving cultural traditions. Moreover, government cannot possibly play an evenhanded role as cultural patron. Inadequate resources call for restrictions, priorities, and choices. It is unconscionable to relegate normative decisions as to which cities or cultural traditions are more deserving, valuable, or needy to a few legislators, whose notions about culture might be misguided or unrepresentative of those of the general populace. Also, legislators are all too likely to make choices in favor of the cultural agendas of their home towns and states, or of lobbyists with the most money and influence. Secondly, subsidizing cultural traditions is not a necessary role of government. A lack of private funding mig