“And what is a good citizen? Simply one who never says, does or thinks anything that is unusual. Schools are maintained in order to bring this uniformity up to the highest possible point. A school is a hopper into which children are heaved while they are still young and tender; therein they are pressed into certain standard shapes and covered from head to heels with official rubber-stamps.”

And in the end..."sameness" is what we get. We've come a long way from a nation of rugged individuals and trailblazers.

Historically in the de jure U.S.A., citizen was a designation of a certain recognized sovereignty associated to a domicile. Individuals were sovereigns of any given State within the States united. There was no such thing as a multi-State or United State(s) citizen. Not until the 14th Amendment to the Constitution was a dual citizenship created or recognized. In that dual citizenship, 'citizen' was/is no longer a designation of a sovereign individual - superior to his representatives but rather, dealt with as a non-sovereign herd member, being at best a point in an uniform chattel. Thus the accuracy in Mencken's quote.

And anyone who doesn't fit the mold is a 'potential terrorist.'

A great definition of public schools.

You may find it interesting to research how the 14th amendment was ratified, it was basically done with a gun held to the head (figuratively speaking) of southern state legislators after the war of Northern aggression. Talk about coercion in under duress! Thomas Woods author of " nullification" talked about this tactic of coercion used against the southern states to pass the 14th amendment.

By what stretch of the imagination can any contract or law be considered legitimate if done so under those circumstances.
WE HAVE BEEN HUSTLED!

This description doesn't describe me as a good citizen. If I don't perform a world first, its not a usually day for me. The unusual brings necessary change to maintain the life process, my view of the good citizen.