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<p>If UT were a private Liberal Arts school then I could understand your argument but UT is a state school. UT was created by the state, for the state. While history and the arts are critical parts of our society, the Texas state government should have little interest in diverting public funds to convert philistines into highbrows. Our government is here to promote the general welfare of its people and that, in the face of finitude, is most efficiently accomplished by teaching “trades.” I would liken the Classics to state parks and the “trades” to roads and cities. Parks have their place in society, as do cities and roads but ultimately, and unfortunately, no matter how much we fight it, one must eventually yield to the other. And with the international economy as it is, I do not find it tenable to preserve “intellectual” majors over, if I may call them, useful majors.</p>
<p>I agree that the Classics should be taught wherever possible but in a stressed economic environment, I do not see it offering more utility than education or even social work. The laws of supply and demand should prevail and the voice of demand has strongly spoken.</p>