<i>Public universities are government agencies</i><p>I'm pretty sure this is not true in the US. "State schools" (eg University of [state]) are private organizations that are chartered by the state, and partially funded by the government. So there is definitely a strong public link, but they're still private, and there is a big difference between a public university and (say) a public secondary school.<p>Not to disagree with your overall point; public funds should come along with some basic respect for the Bill of Rights.