I wish people would quit attacking "English" majors.
I put English in quotes because this thread does not apply to only English majors. Rather, it applies to any major that people attack as being worthless, rather it be English, history, philosophy, etc. I see so many people attacking these majors saying they are a waste of a degree and people who get them deserve to be poor if they can't find a job.
What people don't seem to realize is we need English majors, who else is going to teach our kids to read and write correctly? The same applies to history, if you don't know the mistakes of the past then you are going to repeat them. Philosophy is the one that gets attacked the most, but I think we need philosophers, hell I think our high schools should require philosophy courses, it would be good for students to learn to question and think critically.
What people don't seem to understand is our society owes a lot more to English majors and other educators than we do to CEOs. Educators are the real job creators, not CEOs.
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centrists, and attempting to create issues. 
In fact, I read in 3 separate right wingnut blogs people post that THEY have IDs in here (though they didn't refer to them by name), and so far they're still here because they're busy as bees passing as centrists.
Which is interesting. I swear to you I don't think I could pass for a 'puke even for a million dollars. I'd fail miserably because I lack their qualities of deception, hypocrisy, and just plain old ability to bullshit people into believing things that are wrong.
So yes, maybe they do put on different hats and assume disguises.
They don't fool me though. Every time I run into one on here, I want to smack the living _____ out of him. (They're usually males).
I do love the fact that on D.U. they can't spew what they want for fear of being punted. It's indeed a lovely thing!!
? 
Sure, the degree(s) allow you to sub in most districts, but of all my friends with English or other Humanities degrees, only one is a teacher - and she went back to University (College of Ed) to get another couple degrees
I have never had (or particularly wanted) a job in the fields I have degrees; I studied them because I thought they were interesting. I was very dumb in many ways at 17 (I entered as a Sophmore and had to declare) I don't overly regret being an idiot most days, though. I do wish I had enough money and patience for more degrees I won't use to learn more stuff I can't use.
...and none of these people are really Mr Average Anything (height, maybe 
).
I learned to code first in high school and then as a typesetter (which was first in college, but on the student newspaper and not a class). Tons of other people learned to code in similar ways.
I studied various English Literatures (i.e. Harlem Rennaissance) while in college.
Some of us actually make a living through writing and editing and such.
Yahoo has decided to post a list of the "most worthless" college degrees. Two of the top 5 are involved with growing plants (agriculture and horticulture). Considering that we humans are heavily dependent on plants, I give Yahoo a big 
http://education.yahoo.net/articles/most_useless_degrees.htm?kid=1KWNU
And oddly enough, before I became disabled, most of my jobs I got had nothing to do with either major, but with the screwing around on the Computer I did in College. Somehow, despite myself, I became good at Computers, and that is the main thing that has ever gotten me a paycheck.
There are valid points on both sides. On the one hand, if I had a son or daughter that wanted to follow in his dad's footsteps (not that he could, since his alma mater canned half the liberal arts degress for FOOTBALL!) I would say, "OK, go for it, but would you also agree to take a course in a trade, like Medical assitant, Plumber,something you could fall back on." Some people might say that is overkill, but in this society, the idea of being overeducated is dead; you need everything and anything.
On the other hand, Ammerica is, to be blunt, an anti-intellectual society, and as a result, it treats whatever cannot make money as trash. The only reason Philosophy departments stay is because it is consdiered the new "pre-Law" degree (after all,it is arguing.) When I hear some types rail on those degrees, I begin to have a mixture of pity and contempt, for they remind me that our society does not like to think or feel, just smash stuff. It really hurts when I hear it from the Blue Collar types that I should consider comrades, but I hear them talk about how "schoolin is nonsense", and how art is for (very nasty word that rhymes with "Bags."
Simply put, we need the Humanities and Social Sciences because they help us think. They give us the tools to ponder, question, analyze, yet still feel. In a day and age where religious extremists of all stripes (but especially the God of Abraham's crew) are ganing power, we need to show people that they need not lose their soul and become machines, you can acknowledge that life has a lot to it that can never, ever be counted or mathematically analyzed, yet avoid supersition. If we do not feed that side of humanity, the side that cannot live on bread alone, then should not be surprised when supersitions and foolishness we thought were long dead become the new normal.
... I ended up teaching remedial English to the entering freshmen. There weren't enough English grad students to fill the need. So, to anwswer your rhetorical "who else is going to teach our kids to read and write correctly," the answer would be unemployed history majors.
-- Mal
