Reply #63: Cool, I get to reply!!!

[aggiesal]

I'll pay ~$1386 in taxes toward the schools in my district (~40% of my property taxes). I realize that I'll pay that amount even though I don't have kids in school, and even after my kids have graduated. I don't think anyone in this thread is arguing against using tax dollars to fund education. My issue is whether those funds are allocated by a bureaucracy that cuts parents/students out of the loop in deciding where those funds should go, or if we'll assign the dollars to the parents/students to make their own choices about where they are spent.
Right now the best chance I have to put my kids in the best performing public schools and avoid the bad ones is to make sure I buy my house in the 'right' part of town. Is that equitable?
Since you only pay $1386 in taxes towards education, then you should only be allowed $1386. The remaining money $7614 should remain with the public schools.
If you leave with $9000, you should be taxed on the extra income that you receive (i.e. $7614)
And since it appears that you are a product of the public schools system, then it's your turn to pony up, whether you have kids in the system or not. You got to benefit from others money, now it's time for others to benefit from your money.
Why is it now that parents are complaining about the public schools system? My parents put 8 of us through the system. I don't remember a community ever complaining how the money was spent and yet 7 of us got college degrees, along with plenty of my neighborhood friends. Believe me we didn't come from a wealthy community. My dad probably never made more than $30K per year.
Companies use as one of the benefits of attracting people to an area is the schools systems. When I moved to San Diego, believe me I looked for where the best community where I could afford to buy a house. Knowing that those communities usually have pretty good schools. I'm sure your not going to intentionally move into an area that has poor performing schools.

Why? What if other people paying property taxes want my kids to have that choice? Can I take their money too? Seems simpler and more equitable to provide the funds to parents/students and let them choose.
Sure, pay taxes on the extra $7614 that you get. Otherwise you're walking off with an extra $7614 per student of tax free $$$'s.

The public wants the money spent to education children. Why should the school that people don't want to go to get more money per pupil than the school that people do want to go to?
Right! and that's where it will be spent. Believe me if more money is pumped into the "'public' school that people don't want to go to" they will be able to pay for better teachers, and services. If people want to send their child to the "'charter/private' school that people do want to go to", nobody is stopping them. They just can't use our public dollars to do it.

Why, especially when you admit 'there is waste in public schools systems'? How does rewarding waste and poor results constitute a better investment of tax dollars?
Because the waste doesn't come close to what the public will be charged when PROFIT is involved. When the Army privatized serving their meals to soldiers, (Chaney did this when he was Sec. of Def. under Papa Bush), Halliburton got the contract (Surprised?). It was later determined that they were charging the Army almost $30 per meal, when it only cost the Army about $2 per meal when they did it themselves.
Look at Healthcare. The overhead on Medicare is only 3% while insurance companies charge over 30% overhead. Even with the waste, Medicare wouldn't come close to 30%.
Last but not least, try mailing a letter to a neighbor across the street without using the USPS. I'll guarantee you that it's going to cost you about $10 using Fedex, UPS or any other privatized delivery service, while only costing you about $0.45 using USPS.
You want to send your child to a privatized charter school, be my guest. But don't complain when they close the school your child is attending because they aren't making enough profit on your child.

Why would they not have access to the $9000 per pupil if that is what Floridians approve to be spent for the education of children? Why shouldn't the money be tied to the student?
Because the $9000 belongs to the public schools system not the student!
I'm sure if you told them that it was going to a Charter school, they wouldn't agree to let that money go. Look at Detroit. They are going to privatize the complete Detroit Public School system. But guess what. While the DPS, supplied a school for every child to go to a school in their neighborhood, they're having problems selling the schools in poor neighborhoods. So, those students will either go without schools, or they will have to attend a school that is not in their neighborhood, and may not even be in their immediate community. And the Charter school is not even obligated to accept them if there are too many students in class for fire code reasons, or that the Charter school can't make a profit on that student.

Do you think the people who work at schools don't consider themselves profiting from the exchange of their time for a paycheck? If they're just there because they care so much for the well being on the students, then they wouldn't mind a pay cut would they? They do? Maybe there's more to this profit motive in the world than you give credit...
Talk about Apples and Oranges. Those people work for the public school system. They're not privatize entities. Pay cut? They should be paid even more. Talk about a race to the bottom. These people didn't choose to work for a public school system for profit. They have a calling, and they should be rewarded for it. Paying them less is causing this system to deteriorate, to the detriment of the student. This is really the most ridiculous statement of all.

The owner of a restaurant is accountable to his customers. If they choose to take their money somewhere else, he will be forced to close his doors, but so long as he pleases his customers, he will gain more and more business, enabling him to expand his operations and please even more customers. This is how accountability works in the 'real world'. Can you explain how accountability works in the public school system?
Yes, by having students get an education. Charter schools are not obligated to hire accredited teachers, and accredited teachers are not allowed to collectively bargain. So, they will hire the cheapest teacher, not feed your child, and not supply services like libraries, computers, after school care, or any athletics. Why? BECAUSE IT WILL EAT INTO THEIR PROFITS!!!