Should public education be called "socialized education"?

[zulchzulu]

Poll question: Should public education be called "socialized education"?

Since the frame of "socialized medicine" is used as healthcare reform by the Republicans, should Democrats ask Republicans if they support "socialized education"?

[Colobo]

1. I wouldn't put education and health care on the same level. Different issues

that demand different approaches.

[Stephanie]

2. I have no doubt that IS what they'll call it, when they try for vouchers again.

No frame is too extreme or outrageous for them.

[SteveG]

3. Many republicans already rail against "socialized education"

They want an end to public education. That's what all the talk about vouchers is about.

[Yael]

4. And socialized roads

...socialized fire houses
...socialized police departments
...socialized libraries

If they want to frame the debate -- then turn the tables on them

[plusfiftyfive]

5. This is obviously NOT about education..

It's about medical care.

Where in the USA (or in any other civilized nation) do you find people NOT willing to pay for the public education of their children?

But ONLY IN THE U S A do you find people in civilized nations that want only those that can afford it to have decent health care.

Socialized Education: Privatized Education? sounds absurd to me!

So does insurance companies and others making millions a year by NOT delivering health care to people.

[jmp]

6. If you are against healthcare reform? Yes.

I don't know about where you are, but most people I know hold public schools in low esteem ... and pretty much view them as a failure. And we all came up through public schools.

[LWolf]

7. Conservatives from both parties would love that.

A perfect talking point to assist them in further privatizing public education.

[Maribelle]

8. When conservatives mandated the reading of the protestant bible in public schools, they loved them-

Fully funded by the government, public schools flourished in the United States, with their largest supporters being conservatives.

In the 1800s immigrating Catholics found sending their children to these protestant schools unacceptable, thus opening more and more Catholic schools unfunded by the government. For over a century, the anti-catholic sentiments were highly successful in preventing Caltholic schools from receiving government funding.


That's all changed now, hasn't it. Protestants now call themselves Christians; they've found they need conservative Catholics in their drive to control the political agenda; they've found gold in their "Christian Schools".

Rebublicans now want to dismantle public education brick by brick - - no matter what you call it, no matter what you teach, no matter how successful public students are, the neo-christian-conservatives will paint it black - - - they want more gold for *their* schools.

So don't bother asking.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

9. It *is* socialised education; I see no reason to call it that in general.

For one thing, I suspect that if that became common usage in the US the response would be to end public education.

There's no need to draw attention to it. Denying that that's what it is is dishonest, though.

[ljm2002]

10. Absolutely not!

Don't get me wrong. Clearly, in a technical sense, that is exactly what our public school system is: socialized education. But Americans have been trained to react in a Pavlovian fashion to words like "socialism". So if we strain to point out that our education system is socialism in action, the net effect will be to erode support for public education even more.

[slackmaster]

11. A lot of conservatives (not just GOPers) already call it that

:shrug: