Fall, 1980
Vol. 2 No. 2
Foundation Girds Students To Resist Campus Radicals This autumn over 3 million teenagers will enter college as freshmen. In most cases they will be greeted by professors and other students who are hostile to all the decent sentiments their parents have for years tried to nurture in them. This will be the beginning of a fouryear battle for the hearts and minds of these young people—a battle that is almost always one-sided. Young America's Foundation for the past 10 years has been working to make this battle a little less one-sided by providing alternative programs and literature to students who wish to defend their country and its beliefs. This August just passed the Foundation conducted its second annual orientation seminar; the centerpiece of its counter-offensive against liberal and radical indoctrination on campus. Foundation Program Director Jim Taylor said that while the first orientation conference on international relations in 1979 was most successful, this year's program outstripped it in every category. He said, "the 1980 program surpassed the first in the number of students attending, in the quality of students, and in the depth and breadth of the program itself." The orientation seminars seek to find good students who will be academic leaders and instruct them in the subjects they will study in school. Most decent American students enter college with strong loyalty to their country and deeplyheld belief in its principles. But they usually have never been taught how to defend those beliefs with facts and arguments. Most importantly, they
D r . A l a n S a b r o s k y l e c t u r i n g t o I n t e r n a t i o n a l R e l a t i o n s students at t h e F o u n d a t i o n ' s s e c o n d a n n u a l Orientation Seminar.
have never been prepared for the kind of rhetorical and philosophic attacks on our system with which college radicals will confront them.
'The seminar gave me a clearer rationale for my views/'— Harvard Universitij.
The Foundation seminars prepare them for these attacks and teach them how to fight back. This year 68 students from 32 states and 58 schools were instructed in economics and international relations. The students came to American University in Washington, D . C . from as far away as C a l i f o r n i a , Texas, Oklahoma, Florida, Wisconsin, and Vermont—a clear indication that students all over the country feel a need for such programs. E a c h student was sent a questionnaire immediately following the seminar to assess student reaction.
Without exception the returning comments have been most laudatory. The Foundation will again survey the students in late April to discover whether they have had the opportunity to use what they learned in the Foundation's program in their classes at school. Last April the Foundation surveyed the 1979 participants and learned that their attendance in that program had been very valuable in counteracting leftist arguments.
'7 would like to thank the Foundation. . .and all those involved for having given me the possibiliti; of expanding my knowledge of conservative ideals and theories.'' — Georgetown Universiti;
These students are also asked for suggestions on improving the FOUNDATION GIRDS STUDENTS continued on page 7
A Profile of Students Attending Orientation II Participant Academic Levels: High School Freshman Sophomore Junior Senior Graduate Student Post Graduate
5 19 16 13 5 7 3
Total
68
Schools Represented: Bakersfield College (California) Bennington College (Vermont) Brevard Community College (Florida) Bryn Mawr College (Pennsylvania) Bucknell University (Pennsylvania) California State Univ. (California) Cerritos College (California) Clarkson College (New York) Columbia University (New York) University of Connecticut (Connecticut) Creighton University (Nebraska) University of Dallas (Texas) Detroit College of Law (Michigan) Drury College (Missouri)
Publisher: Ron Robinson
East Carolina University (N. Carolina) Florida International Univ. (Florida) Franklin Pierce College (Connecticut) Georgetown University (Washington, D . C . ) Gettysburg College (Pennsylvania) Grove City College (Pennsylvania) Harvard University (Massachusetts) High School of Art & Design (New York) University of Illinois (Illinois) John Jay College (New York) University of Kansas (Kansas) Lake Erie College (Ohio) Lawrenceville Prep (New Jersey) Marquette University (Wisconsin) University of Massachusetts (Massachusetts) University of Michigan (Michigan) University of Minnesota (Minnesota) Millersville State Univ. (Pennsylvania) University of Missouri (Missouri) Moon Senior High School (Pennsylvania)
University of Nebraska (Nebraska) Nebraska Wesleyan (Nebraska) North Carolina State Univ. (N. Carolina) N. Florida Christian School (Florida) Notre Dame University (Indiana) Princeton University (New Jersey) St. John's College at Santa Fe (New Mexico) SUNY-Buffalo (New York) Rollins College (Florida) SUNY-Binghamton (New York) Rutgers University (New Jersey) Rosemont College (Pennsylvania) Southwest Baptist College (Missouri) University of Richmond (Virginia) Tara High School (Louisiana) Towson State College (Maryland) Vanderbilt University (Tennessee) Vassar College (New York) Virginia Polytechnic Inst. (Virginia) University of Vermont (Vermont) University of Virginia (Virginia) Washington University (St. Louis, Missouri) Williams College (Massachusetts) Yale University (Connecticut)
Editor: Jim Taylor
Libertas is published quarterly by Young America's Foundation, Suite 812, 11800 Sunrise Valley Drive, Reston Virginia 22091. Address all editorial matter, letters to the editor, subscription inquiries, and changes of address to Libertas, Suite 812, 11800 Sunrise Valley Drive, Reston, Virginia 22091. CHANGE OF ADDRESS; Send old and new address (including the envelope from a previous issue) with zip code number. Young America's Foundation was formed in order to provide essential conferences, seminars, educational materials, scholarships and speakers to the young people of America. As an educational organization, the Foundation strives to acquaint American youth with the principles of American government and the genius of the American political system in order that they may have a fuller understanding of contemporary public policy questions. If you would like more information about Young America's Foundation and the services it provides, please contact: Young America's Foundation, Suite 812, 11800 Sunrise Valley Drive, Reston, Virginia 22091, (703/620-5270). The Foundation gratefully accepts contributions from individuals, corporations and other foundations. All contributions are fully tax deductible. Printed by French/Bray Printing Company Subscription Price $2.00 per year
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Alan Ned Sabrosky Dr. Alan Ned Sabrosky is one of the more brilliant and dynamic professors of international relations in America today. For the past two summers he has served as the main lecturer in the Foundation's summer orientation seminars for college students. His robust and rapid-fire lecture style makes him extremely popular with the students, all of whom have given him high marks in their written evaluations of the Foundations's programs. Dr. Sabrosky is not your usual academic. For ten years he served in the United States Marine Corps, closing his military career with two consecutive tours in Vietnam.
Dr. James Gwartney "I had no previous exposure whatsoever to Economics and yet Dr. Gwartney made the subject both clear a n d exciting for me."
This is how a freshman at the Foundation's Orientation seminar on Economics described the effect of James Gwartney's teaching style. Dr. Gwartney served as chief lecturer for Economics and the freshman's description of his teaching methods mirrored the opinion of the other students who took part in the program. It is unfortunate that many people shy away from what some have called the "dismal science" only because they have never encountered an effective communicator of the discipline. In Dr. Gwartney the Foundation has found a very able communicator. James Gwartney is a native of Kansas and is currently professor of economics at Florida State University
D r . A l a n S a b r o s k y — " E v e n if w e t r y t o reassert o u r m i l i t a r y s u p e r i o r i t y o v e r t h e S o v i e t U n i o n , t h e r e is a s t r o n g possibility t h e y w i l l n o t a l l o w us t o d o so.
It was during his Marine service that he melded his military interests with his intellectual proclivities. He began his undergraduate education as an enlisted man and received his bachelor's degree soon after his service separation at East Carolina University. Alan went on to receive two master's degrees and a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Michigan. He has taught international relations at Middlebury College (Vermont) and at the United States Military Academy at West Point. He is currently Associate Professor of
in Tallahassee. He received his B . A. from Ottawa University in Kansas and his M. A. and Ph.D. in economics at the University of Washington in Seattle. He was a Weaver Fellow of the Intercollegiate Studies Institute and received the Outstanding
D r . J a m e s G w a r t n e y — h i s b o o k m a y h a v e farr e a c h i n g c o n s e q u e n c e s for the t e a c h i n g of economics.
Politics at C a t h o l i c University (Washington, D . C . ) and is General Editor of International Security; Review, published by the Center for International Security Studies in Boston, Virginia. Dr. Sabrosky is fast becoming known as one of the country's foremost authorities on national defense and military manpower requirements. His books and monographs include The Conventional Revisionist Controversy and the U,S, Role in World Affairs (coauthor). Blue Collar Soldiers? Unionization and the U.S. Military (editor and contributor). Defense Manpower Policy: A Critical Reappraisal, and Power, Pacts, and War: The Structure of International Conflict (editor and contributor). In assessing America's military preparedness. Dr. Sabrosky is not optimistic. "The military posture of the United States today," he says "is more precarious than at any time in our history. We have very little time in which to take the corrective measures necessary for our survival as a free society. Even if we try to reassert our military superiority over the Soviet Union, there is a strong possibility they may not permit us to do so."
Teaching Fellow Award of the University of Washington in 1968. In 1976 Dr. Gwartney, together with Richard Stroup, made a contribution to the field of economics that may have far-reaching consequences for the t e a c h i n g of economics for years to come. In that year they published their co-authored introductory economics text. Economics: Private and Public Choice. It was the first major economics text to give broad discussion of the free market as a valid means of allocating society's resources. The text is currently being assigned in approximately 400 American colleges and is one of the top three nationwide. G w a r t ney/Stroup far surpasses in use the Samuelson text, so long a favorite of liberal and statist professors. If it continues to grow in popularity, the book may one day be responsible for a major shift in economic thinking in the United States.
4
D r . J a m e s G w a r t n e y lectures t o E c o n o m i c s s t u d e n t s at F o u n d a t i o n ' s 1980 Orientation Seminar.
Foundation Program Director J i m seminar with Dr. James Gwartney.
T a y l o r discusses O r i e n t a t i o n
International Relations faculty d s e m i n a r o n the final day's colloc R o b e r t S c h a d l e r , P u b l i c a t i o n s Dire Institute; D r . A l a n Sabrosky, A C a t h o l i c U n i v e r s i t y ; Jeffrey G a y R e s e a r c h at t h e H e r i t a g e F o u n d assistant at G e o r g e t o w n University
See Fr( Orien S t u d e n t s b o a r d " S p i r i t of ' 7 6 " craft for F o u n d a t i o n e v e n i n g cruise o n the Potomac.
S t u d e n t s w a l k i n g b e t w e e n classes.
D r . J o h n C h e t t l e , D i r e c t o r for N o r t h A m e r i c a of the S o u t h Africa F o u n d a t i o n , lectures t o students o n U . S . p o l i c y i n S o u t h e r n A f r i c a .
E c o n o m i c s faculty takes u p studei l o q u i u m . Faculty are left to right Professor of E c o n o m i c s at G e o r G w a r t n e y . Professor of E c o n o r E u g e n e M c A l l i s t e r , W a l k e r Fello Foundation; and Robert Schadler collegiate S t u d i e s Institute.
icuss issues raised d u r i n g t h e l i u m . F a c u l t y are left t o r i g h t : t o r of t h e I n t e r c o l l e g i a t e S t u d i e s ;ociate Professor of Politics at er, D i r e c t o r of F o r e i g n P o l i c y tion; a n d P a u l K o c h , t e a c h i n g
A f t e r e a c h lecture the students b r o k e i n t o g r o u p s of 1 0 - 1 2 t o talk o v e r p o i n t s raised i n t h e lecture w i t h discussion leaders.
Foundation Leaders Improve European Students' Views of U.S. Student leaders from five Western European countries received a series of special briefings on American government and politics in a seminar arranged by Young America's Foundation. The students were in the United States under the auspices of the United States Youth Council on a tour funded by the State Department to study the American political process. They were especially interested in learning about conservative think tanks and academic youth organizations. Young America's Foundation President Ron Robinson cited the importance of the Foundation's briefings; "without an exposure to the projects and programs of groups like ISI and the Heritage Foundation, these leaders would have a limited and incorrect view of American politics. What we offered these students was an unconventional viewpoint regarding the future of free enterprise and conservatism in the United States." Among those who addressed the European leaders were James Taylor, p r o g r a m d i r e c t o r for Y o u n g A m e r i c a ' s F o u n d a t i o n ; Robert Schadler, publications director for the P h i l a d e l p h i a - b a s e d Intercollegiate Studies Institute; and Jeffrey Gayner, the director of foreign policy studies with the Heritage Foundation. Included in the European delegation were David Steyn, ViceChairman of the Federation of Conservative Students of Great Britain; E m m a n u e l Imberton, Secretary General of the Giscardian students of
F o u n d a t i o n President,
Ron Robinson,
R o b e r t S c h a d l e r , P u b l i c a t i o n s D i r e c t o r for the I n t e r c o l l e g i a t e Studies Institute, briefs s t u d e n t s o n the Institute's p u b l i c a t i o n s a n d activities for c a m p u s c o n s e r v a t i v e s .
France; Gilbert Besseling, Vice-Chairman of the European Democratic Students and former Chairman of the Federation of Liberal Students of the Netherlands; and Lars Eskeland,
European
Chairman of the European Democrat Students and former chairman of the Norwegian Conservative Students. The European leaders indicated they had previously underestimated
Jeffrey Gayner. D i r e c t o r of F o r e i g n P o l i c y research at the H e r i t a g e F o u n d a t i o n , a d d r e s s e d E u r o p e a n students o n H e r i t a g e p r o g r a m s a n d the g e n e r a l o p e r a t i o n s of i n d e p e n d e n t c o n s e r v a t i v e t h i n k tanks i n A m e r i c a .
discusses c o n s e r v a t i v e
youth
groups
s t u d e n t s at the F o u n d a t i o n ' s s e m i n a r for y o u n g E u r o p e a n p o l i t i c a l leaders.
with
European
the depth and strength of American conservatism. After the Foundation program they traveled to Detroit for the Republican National Convention and to Los Angeles for further programs. Young America's Foundation plans to brief future delegations of student leaders brought to the United States by the U . S . Youth Council. Foundation program director, James Taylor, stated, "Foreign students visiting America usually get a distorted view of our country. This is because American government officials put them in contact with primarily liberal and radical students and youth Organizations. We're trying tO change that."
7 FOUNDATION GIRDS STUDENTS continued from page 1 seminars and participants in both 1979 and 1980 have offered valuable advice on how to upgrade the program. With such input the Foundation is convinced the orientation conferences will continue to improve. This year's orientation consisted of two seminars; one on international relations and one on free market economics. Students were permitted to attend either of the seminars or both of them if they thought they could take the very rigorous schedule. The international relations segment was directed by Dr. Alan Sabrosky, associate professor of politics at Catholic University, who is a nationally-recognized expert on national defense. The economics seminar was conducted by Dr. James Gwartney, professor of economics at Florida State University, who is coauthor of the most widely-used free market economics textbook in America. (See profiles on both professors in the "Close-up" section.) The orientation format is an intensive one. The students attend morn-
"The seminar broadened my views on the importance of added strength for our conventional armed forces. It provided plenty of facts and proof to support ideas.''— East Carolina University
ing and afternoon lectures followed by question periods. The question periods are in turn followed by onehour discussions. The class breaks into small groups of 10-12 students who are led in close discussion by teaching assistants in an effort to clarify and reinforce points brought up in the lecture. There are also lectures on some of the evenings during the week in which outside speakers discuss issues relating to both seminars. But there is also free time and there are frequent social events to break up the routine. This year's program featured an evening boat cruise on the Potomac River, a bus tour of the capital, a session of ghost stories, and many informal gatherings among the students themselves. In spite of the program's intensity, it was not uncommon to find groups of students in the dorms or at meals continuing to
argue seminar issues. Moreover, the fact that most of the faculty shared dorm and meal facilities with students intensified the academic atmosphere. According to Program Director Jim Taylor, the almost unqualified success of the orientation programs in 1979 and 1980 ensure a repeat in 1981. He said the Foundation will certainly repeat its segments on international relations and free market economics. At least one additional seminar will be added and, if the necessary support is forthcoming, two will be added. Among the new subjects under consideration for 1981 are religion, the conservative intellectual movement in America, American history, and literature. When queried why the program might include non-political and non-economic subjects, Taylor said, "When the Left attacks our civilization and its values, it attacks through all academic subjects that bear on public policy, public virtue, and public beliefs. Important political and social beliefs are often influenced by novels, poetry, and how a person interprets history. The left has recognized this for a long time. Conservatives must also."
YOUNG AMERICA'S
FOUNDATION Scholarship Programs for 1981-82 One of the goals of Young America's Foundation is to encourage and assist future leaders of America now in school. The development of dedicated, knowledgeable leadership will be of major importance in keeping our nation vigorous and free in future generations. For this purpose Young America's Foundation provides scholarship funds to outstanding patriotic students who need assistance to complete their education in important fields sucfi as law, political science, journalism, education, and economics. Each year a Foundation scholarship grant of $2000 will be presented to a single outstanding undergraduate for use at the college of his choice. In addition. Young America's Foundation wiU make such other scholarship grants as its funds permit. Scholarship grants will be made on the basis of three primary criteria: academic qualifications, financial need, and the relationsliip of the appHcant's future plans to the purposes of the Foundation. Please write to the Foundation for information and an application.
8
Coton HID "With more than 10,000 professed Marxists on the faculties of the U.S. universities . . .this country's system of mixed capitalism, or market-directed enterprise, faces the most serious intellectual challenge in its history."
That is the assessment of Business Week magazine after it reviewed the current status of the American campus. Business Week cites increased sales and publications of Marxist textbooks, more than a dozen Marxist journals, and the increasing impact of the Marxist Monthly Review Press. And if that wasn't enough the review only included Marxists not other leftists and traditional liberals who are openly hostile to our free enterprise system. That such a situation exists on our college campuses is serious in its own right, but it is complicated by a general misunderstanding and underestimation of the problem. Many Americans who would recoil at a proposal to fund Marxist or leftist propaganda continue to support, directly or indirectly, these elements. Our public university system is dominated by the Left which is sustained by taxpayer funds and which is locked into position by teacher unions, lifetime tenures, and a radical and leftist "buddy" system. Even private institutions haven't escaped this left wing take-over because they have to draw their teachers and administrators from the same pool of University graduates. Our nation faces this crisis without a full appreciation of the consequences of ignoring it and the impact it has already had on our lives. It was the American campuses that served as a base for the virulent antiAmericanism in the late 1960s and
early 1970s. Almost all of our major dividually-oriented society to those universities prohibited student par- that uphold traditional American ticipation in national defense-oriented values. We must cease funding a projects, including reserve officer larger cadre of Marxist and radical training programs, defense in- administrators, professors and telligence agencies recruitment, and teaching assistants who seek a general defense research. University stranglehold on the next generation of administrations also used their stock college graduates. We must stop holdings to discourage corporations funding those campuses that producfrom participating in any defense- ed the students that led the antirelated projects. The results are a Vietnam movement of the 1970s and weakened American defense system the radical Iranian students of the and a generation of young Americans 1980s and channel those resources to who view involvement with our campuses and institutions that have government, or participation in the produced or can produce college defense of the Free World, as being graduates who share our common immoral! values. This will not be a simple struggle, More recently our campuses have become the base to attack American as those who have participated in our business dealing with our crucial ally, programs know. But it is an indispenthe Republic of South Africa, even as sible one. Every four years nearly ten the same campuses ignore similar million Americans go through our dealings with our sworn enemy, the college and university system. These Soviet Union. Our campuses also are students looking for new ex"educated" the Iranian students who periences and new ideas. We must brought the AyatoUah Khomeini to reach these students with our power. And these same students seiz- message. If we do not, we will leave ed American diplomats in Teheran the future of our Republic to the very and demonstrated on our campuses Marxists that Business Week warns and in our streets against any Amer- us about. ican attempt to free the hostages! Sincerely, This crisis can only be alleviated by a complete reexamination of our educational system. Our voluntary donations and even our tax dollars must be diverted from those instituRon Robiifson tions that are destroying an appreciation of our free enterprise and inPresident
F o u n d a t i o n P r e s i d e n t R o n R o b i n s o n discusses p r o g r a m s w i t h P a u l K o c h of G e o r g e t o w n U n i v e r s i t y .