A prominent educator warns that AI and Large Language Models (LLMs) pose a “deadly threat” to the development of critical thinking and reasoning, especially for students. The warning came after a former colleague revealed the humanities department at the United States Naval Academy will formally integrate AI-generated writing into coursework. The plan is to accept AI “writing” as legitimate since students already use it for assignments.
The educator calls the move “spectacularly failing” the purpose of education, which is not about producing the best paper by any means but about practicing writing to sharpen thinking. They highlighted the risk that relying on AI could erode intellectual freedom and reasoning skills, key to personal and national success.
The core argument: Writing and thinking are intertwined. If you don’t write your own ideas, you don’t actually know what you think. AI-generated text is described as “unvariegated mush” that dangerously suppresses genuine learning and exposes society to a new kind of intellectual collapse. 
The source expressed deep concern about AI replacing the “core and foundational human activity” — thinking — calling the threat more serious than nuclear technology. The worry includes AI model collapse due to a feedback loop of AI feeding on AI-written content.
The educator urged students to reject AI as a crutch and resist shortcuts that skip real understanding. They called for institutional reforms like in-class writing and oral exams to safeguard human reasoning and freedom.
> “If you haven’t started using these tools, don’t. If you have started, stop.”
> The educator concluded, “Freedom starts at home. It starts in your mind. It, too, is an activity, not a possession. Don’t give up the race.”
