Ive often thought there ought to be a manual to hand to little kids, telling them what kind of planet theyre on, why they dont fall off, how much time theyve probably here, how to avoid poison ivy, and so on . . . And one thing I would really like to tell them about is cultural relativity. I didnt learn until I was in college about all the other cultures, and I should have learned that in the first grade. A first grader should understand that his or her culture isnt a rational invention; that there are thousands of other cultures and they all work pretty well; that all cultures function on faith rather than truth; that there are lots of alternatives to our own society.
- Kurt Vonnegut