Preparing Boys for Manhood

By the age of 18 every American male should be able to:

• Stay physically fit.
• Practice first aid.
• Swim, row, sail, and navigate.
• Speak a foreign language.
• Competently operate cars, motorcycles.
• Safely use and maintain hand and power tools for working wood, stone, and metal. 
• Wire, plumb, frame, roof, and duct to code.
• Handle a concealed pistol defensively.
• Maintain and shoot rifles and shotguns.
• Garden.
• Ride and care for horses.
• Manage personal finances.

He should:

• Kill, skin, and eat a wild animal.
• Fell and stack a large tree.
• Read Ayn Rand and The Federalist Papers.

Most importantly — though there may be no sure prescription for it — he should have a sound moral character.