ike most people, I very early adopted the political and social attitudes of my parents and was influenced somewhat by my early education. My attitudes towards American society were learned through the conveyed experiences of my parents and through the various books on American history read during elementary school. College educational experiences expanded my contact with various political philosophies and ideas, including those which were disdained by my parents. In the end, however, my views corresponded more closely with those of my parents than with those of the radical political theorists whose realm now extends no farther than class syllabi.
The attitudes of my parents and myself will probably live on in my children. At this point in my life, I can see no better alternatives to the political society in which I live. Because I have noticed that most of my peers think likewise, it is probably safe to assume that my children will become politically socialized in much the same fashion as I was. At the same time, I like to think that my children will be taught to be open to radically different ideas, to intelligently consider views different from those of their parents. I suppose that this openness was also a part of my socialization, having been taught that the United States was founded on the basis of fairly radical ideas concerning government and self-determination.
One way to improve the functioning of the federal government would be to give the president an item veto. Currently, the president can only veto an entire piece of legislation presented to him. As a result, members of Congress frequently add "riders" to important appropriations bills, knowing that the president will not likely veto such an important bill. These riders usually have little or nothing to do with the subject matter of the bill to which they are attached. They are sops for "important" constituencies back home, items which will fund pet project...