Have you all been paying attention to what's happening to schools in this country?

[proud2BlibKansan]

Some districts in Kansas are considering 4 day weeks. A couple have ended sports programs.

'Everything's on the table' for Kansas school district cuts

Students will find larger classes, fewer teachers and fewer extracurricular activities next fall, based on budget cuts being considered by Kansas school districts.

A survey by the Kansas State Department of Education shows districts are considering cutting curriculum and services to the core as they face a $187 million cut in state aid next school year.

But this time, schools are also considering reductions that would alter the schedule on which the schools — and families — operate.

The decisions now affect jobs, as salary and benefits are about three-fourths of most districts' budgets.

more . . . http://www.kansascity.com/2010/02/28/1778891/everythings-on-the-table-for-school.html

Lots of teachers are being let go.

As stimulus money dries up, budget cuts loom in school district

Forty-four Napa Valley Unified School District teachers kept their jobs this year thanks to federal stimulus funding. But next year will be different.

So-called stimulus dollars from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 reached all the public schools in the county to varying degrees last year, buying time against the full impact of state budget cuts. Most of that money is now gone, and with local schools looking at another year of reduced funding from the state, they are preparing for cuts in staffing, school days and supplies.

Stimulus funds netted the school district $7.6 million so far — almost half of which paid teachers’ salaries for the current academic year, said Debbie Brenner, the district’s assistant superintendent for business services. Stimulus money also went to buying programs including Read 180 for struggling English students and “a variety of one-time purchases” for special education and other programs, Brenner said.

more . . . http://www.napavalleyregister.com/news/local/article_63ffb01e-2432-11df-b5dc-001cc4c03286.html

No more free rides to school

Royal Oak school district cuts bus service

ROYAL OAK — The school district will eliminate bus service for as many as 1,800 students next fall to save $500,000, but the budget cuts won't stop there.

The $58 million spending plan needs to be reduced by another $4.5 million, putting in-house support services, special education teachers, library staff and school counselors on the chopping block in the next few months.

"The intention is to protect the general education classroom," Superintendent Thomas Moline said. "One thing the PTAs said is to do everything you can outside of the classroom to reduce costs. They want to keep teachers and class size low."

So far, the school board has decided to end bus service for general education students to the six elementary schools, Royal Oak Middle School and Royal Oak High School. Transportation will continue for special education students, but it may be provided by a private company.


more . . . http://www.theoaklandpress.com/articles/2010/02/23/news/local_news/doc4b83acaf6d6a4859164468.txt

It wasn't that long ago that the 'experts' finally admitted smaller class sizes would make a difference for our kids. Now that's one of the first things to go.

Many more Quincy School District cuts expected

QUINCY, Ill. (WGEM) -- Massive cuts are on the way for the Quincy School District.

The district announced Thursday that Irving Alternative School will close and the Teen Parent Services and adult education programs will be moved.

The services will still be provided to students, but the programs will look very different.

Lonny Lemon, the superintendent of the Quincy School District says this is just the beginning of more cuts to come.

The district has already decided on $1.8 million dollars worth of cuts, many of which have not yet been made public. The district is now searching for another $2 million in reductions.

"It's going be hard enough as it is with the size of classes and losing teachers," said Jeann Morrison, a PTA member at Baldwin Intermediate.

more . . . http://www.wgem.com/global/story.asp?s=12012681

[leftstreet]

1. Look, if my healthcare is going to be for-profit, education can be too

LOOK:

:sarcasm:

K&R

[happygoluckytoyou]

86. CHEAP LABOR GOP.... keep them dumb.... under pay.... lose the ladder to success....

[stray cat]

2. Public schools face budget cuts because States face budget cuts

Most states are bankrupt and anyone they send money to is going to face cuts or already has.

[proud2BlibKansan]

18. The biggest budget item for states is public education

So it's the first to get the axe.

[peggygirl]

60. The Fed. revenues during the Clinton admin have disappeared and

therefore, the aid from the Feds to the states has disappeared as well. It's the real domino effect and the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy are making it all possible. Never forget this!

[HCE SuiGeneris]

3. Separation of the haves and have-not is at full throttle.

The majority of this country is quickly finding out how poorly our government functions on its behalf.

[RKP5637]

13. Quite True!!! n/t

[northofdenali]

41. Exactly.

The neocons want only ONE type society - masters and serfs. They've been working on it since Raygun. The sheeple fundies go along, because they are already mired in their serfdom.

Education for the masses? Bah! Our public schools can no longer educate, and the wingers are making inroads on a daily basis to be sure their consitutents are kept as ignorant as possible in order to achieve their goals of masterdom.

[ananda]

76. It's also a backdoor military draft.

nt

[Jakes Progress]

84. +1 This is just a part of the attack.

It is the part that kills our children's souls, but it is something that way too many DUers seem to agree with.

[Turbineguy]

4. In a republican paradise

prisons are more profitable. Even given the latency, which will now work in their favor.

[niyad]

5. the budget issues are just one part of it (and, wow, we know they are serious when they cut SPORTS

programs, yes??)

"you can't control an educated populace who can THINK and reason"-- and it seems our educational system is designed to produce students who can do neither--which seems to be at least one reason we have so many clueless cretins running around.

years ago, in the magazine Signs, I read an article which confirmed what I had suspected for a long time. You can't throw as much money as we have (little though it may be) to a system that has the outcomes it does, without those outcomes being intentional. our educational system has been "dumbing down" for years--and we get joe sixpack, sarah iquitarod, rush, etc., as a result, because people don't have the mental acuity to see through them.

in the major district here, there are few actual school buses. the students use the pitiful public transit system--good for transit, doesn't cost the schools anything.

[Flying Dream Blues]

11. I agree with you completely. It's all been intentional. nt

[Catshrink]

14. The problems that are showing up in schools are just symptoms

the real problem lies in poverty, the widening gap between the haves and have nots, and the shrinking middle class. Schools haven't been dumbing down, society continually sends kids messages that being smart is bad, being dumb is cool, and we get the anti-intellectualism of Palin. Schools in which parents are involved generally have better "educational outcomes" than kids whose parents are absent or don't care -- and that is the major issue we teachers face daily. (I remember once calling a parent about a disruptive student who wouldn't do any work. The parent's response: laughter and "yeah, I was the same way." I asked another parent for suggestions on how to motivate his child. His response: "I don't know. When you figure it out, let me know." If a teacher had called my parents with these concerns, I'd have been in heap of trouble.)

There is no one cause of school failure -- it's an amalgam of issues and will take a complex and thoughtful approach to "solving" not Arne's hellbent determination to privatize public education.

[RKP5637]

16. Excellent analysis! n/t

[raccoon]

71. +1.

Re: that parent. You must have the patience of Job. :hug:

[redqueen]

73. +1

[RKP5637]

15. More steps to bring the US into a third world country, and we are already there

for many. What this country has now become in my lifetime is extremely sad to me. Often I wonder if the US has gone too far over the cliff now to recover. The domino theory is moving along rapidly now and we are all sliding down the hill. It will be the republican dream, a mindless population easy to control and manipulate.

[hack89]

6. When tax receipts go down

while costs (especially health care) sky rocket, bad things happen.

[Xithras]

94. It's not just tax receipts. We're also seeing a child population drop.

The average age in the U.S. is climbing, and part of what we're seeing is late fallout of the "mini Baby Boom" of the early 1990's. That boom, which ended by the mid 90's, produced a generation of children who are now exiting the public school systems and are entering the workforce or colleges. The birthrates dropped after that, meaning fewer young children entering the schools.

Because most schools and districts are funded based on the number of children attending, a drop in attendance means less money overall. Districts have been able to mask this for a while by shifting money downwards to "subsidize" the emptying elementary schools as the boomlet kids aged, but can't continue to do so as they exit the school districts entirely.

This places public schools in an unfortunate position. To maintain existing program and service levels, the schools need an increase in per-student spending to compensate for the reduced number of students. The economy, unfortunately, has robbed the states of the ability to increase that funding to compensate. The result is simple...class sizes increase and schools are forced to close even if the state doesn't cut a penny from per-student spending. When the states DO cut, it just makes a bad problem that much worse.

[ThomWV]

7. I live in the single County in the United States with the verifiably worst education system

In the state, West Virginia, that ranks last or very near last in every measure of an educational system we have Preston County. Last year the state of West Virginia, one of the worst to be found, had to take over Preston county's system because it was so bad even this state could not stand by.

Think about that, the worst of the worst.

And it shows. This is a static county. No one moves in, young people move out, the ones that die count about the same as the ones that are born, and here we are. Most of the high school graduates from this area that I know can not read on any level worth mentioning. They can no apply simple arithmetic to a problem, they can not comprehend a good argument or see through a bad one.

You can no believe how it is to live in a place where just about everyone is just plain stupid. Not everyone mind you, but in general its just horrible.

[RKP5637]

17. Quite distressing to hear. My fear is in the future there will be many more counties

similar to Preston county. I have no idea how the US expects to shine in the 21st century. Much of the country well might be severely uneducated. The problems in this country are so multifaceted and deeply rooted it will take a major paradigm shift for correction and many of our politicians (collectively) today do not have the skills or desire to effect real change. I also think most are so insulated from the "real" problems in this country they have no idea... the problems are out of sight and out mind.

[Catshrink]

19. Exactly.

You said it so much better than I did above. For those of us in the trenches of education, it can be overwhelming. But every once in a while, there is a bright light in the face of a student that makes it worthwhile -- otherwise I think we'd be certifiably insane to stay in this profession.

[RKP5637]

22. I wish education were the top priority in the US. Often I think parents

need more education than students. I am always stunned when I hear what some parents say to teachers when their children have problems in school and a teacher tries to help a student. My overriding concern in the US today is many are proud to be ignorant and uneducated. That is a very unhealthy recipe for the future. We are lucky to have teachers such as you.

[truedelphi]

48. The sad thing is, though, that even kids in the best

of the best schools no longer are required to learn math tables. One reason for learning math tables was (IMHO) that teachers understood intuitively, starting more than a hundred years and more ago, that young people's brains got wired in a certain significant way through such memorization.

Now kids simply cannot give change from a five dollar bill. They do not know that there are four quarters in a dollar, or that a half dollar piece is worth fifty cents.

I have tutored these kids and their lack of understanding of any of this is appalling.

Of course, this is all very helpful when the Republicans and those allied with them need to be able to easily manipulate the younger people. One thing they hope is that today's younger person will not notice things like the amounts taken out for Social Security.

Some of the RW young people I know are not aware that Social Security is taken out of our paychecks for our retirement years. They think it is Welfare.

The comedy channel will have the movie that best explains this on during the early morning line up tomorrow: "Idiocracy"

Great movie, sad commentary. (takes place in the future, but from what I can see, the future is here.)

[montanacowboy]

8. Why not close all public schools & charter schools

and everyone home school their kids???? that will wake the idiots up to reality

just kidding, but hey, this is coming

[montanacowboy]

9. Why not close all public schools & charter schools

and everyone home school their kids???? that will wake the idiots up to reality

just kidding, but hey, this is coming

[montanacowboy]

10. Why not close all public schools & charter schools

and everyone home school their kids???? that will wake the idiots up to reality

just kidding, but hey, this is coming

[1monster]

12. Yeah. I work for a school district and saw over 200 teacher let go two years ago. The number this

year was considerably lower due to the Stimulis Plan, despite continually more students in the schools each year.

The Stimulis Plan, though, isn't permanent. It saved jobs for only one year. I suspect that next year, there will be more teacher cuts. (Pay has been eliminated or cut for extras: National Board Certified Teacher used to get $3,000 more a year. No more. That pay was completely cut. Club mentors and coaches got pay cuts. Etc...

[DesertRat]

20. It's terrible here in Arizona too

I'll be joining the ranks of the unemployed after May since our state grant for at risk preschool will be eliminated. The Governor's budget also cuts several education programs which get matching federal funds such as the state vocational education block grants.

Our Republican Governor and Legislature have decided to try to balance the budget on the backs of the poor, young and elderly in our state.

[RKP5637]

29. That sure seems like republican fare, go after the defenseless. What creatures republicans are...

[CoffeeCat]

21. Cuts in our area...

My husband and I were discussing upcoming cuts in education, and he
mentioned that in the Des Moines school district there will be drastic
cuts in PE, art and music. Hubby mentioned that many of these programs
are being completely cut from some schools.

So, that's how they're solving the lack of funds in my state.

This is unbelievable.

I'll try to find a link.

[proud2BlibKansan]

23. The GOP is trying to get districts here in KS to consolidate

But they have apparently not looked at a map. Western Kansas is sparsely populated. So kids now riding a bus to school for 30 minutes may face a 90 minute ride next year.

I am really blown away that our elected officials are balancing the budget on the backs of our kids. It's rather repulsive. Farmers in Kansas pay no sales tax but school districts have to consolidate so the farmers can continue to suck off the government tit. Oh and surprise! If they eliminate sales tax exemptions, they would have more than they need to meet the current deficit. For 3 years.

[RKP5637]

25. This is clearly an insane approach to a solution. I have no idea how the US thinks

it's going to survive as a major leader in the 21st century. Or perhaps the US will be wandering uneducated serfs living in villages outside the walls of a few elite cities. Frankly, I think the US will end up as a territory of China.

[dysfunctional press]

24. we made the concious decision not to have children...

so it's not really any of my concern at this point.

our property taxes on the other hand- THAT is a big concern for us.

does that help answer your question?

[RKP5637]

27. Given the future, that is IMO a wise decision. I'm also afraid property taxes will start

going through the roof.

[proud2BlibKansan]

30. Well, there is a connection between quality of schools and property values

I would be surprised if you didn't realize that.

[dysfunctional press]

42. so...?

we like where we live, and don't have any plans on ever selling it. :shrug:

[proud2BlibKansan]

43. So if your property taxes go up and the schools benefit it's a win win

[dysfunctional press]

47. not for us- as i've already mentioned- we have no kids, and no plans to sell.

and since i'm on a fixed income, i'd rather not see my property taxes going up.

and i vote accordingly.

[progressoid]

61. Wow.

Even if you don't care about others' education, surely you can see that a less intelligent, more impaired population will also affect you.

[dysfunctional press]

79. i doubt that the population is going to get that much less intelligent...

in the remaining years of our lifetimes.

no worries.

[proud2BlibKansan]

65. And the value of your property means nothing to you

Sure.

[dysfunctional press]

78. if we aren't planning on selling- why would it...?

we like the house, the property, the people- and we plan to stay. unless of course we win the lottery and decide to trade it all in for a compound on the big island.

maybe you're just more money-centric than some people...? :shrug:

[raccoon]

72. So it's not just conservatives who think that way. nt

[dysfunctional press]

80. it's more about being on a fixed income than political point-of-view.

so, yes.

[raccoon]

85. Lots of working people are on a fixed income, essentially, since they don't get raises.

And some have taken pay cuts.

Maybe I'll start a thread about that.

[dysfunctional press]

92. they also have many more options than a disabled person...

even if they refuse to admit it.

[Number9Dream]

88. Property taxes are NOT equivalent to property values

Our property taxes have increased significantly every year for twenty years, but our property values fluctuate with the market. Even when our property values dropped forty percent with the recession, our property taxes went up fifteen percent.

[DefenseLawyer]

63. Newsflash

Your taxes help pay your share of a lot more than schools. Newsflash number two, whether you have kids or not, the education level in our society at large will have an impact on you, whether you like it or not. Sadly, your attitude is the very crystallization of the problem. Cut my taxes. Cut my taxes. Cut my taxes.

[dysfunctional press]

82. where did i ever say "cut my taxes"...?

i just don't want them going up needlessly.

newsflash for you- as we've entered our 50's, the education level in our society isn't going to change much, or have that much of an impact, in the remaining years of our lives. and yes, the property taxes pay for other things- but it's also itemized, so that proposed tax increases are identified as to where the money is intended to be spent- that way, people can decide whether the proposed increase is worthwhile.

[Name removed]

83. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Number9Dream]

97. Or taxes wasted on shady bond swaps or extravagances

Bethlehem SD is spending to provide laptops to most of its 15,232 students. The district has also lost over $10M in shady bond swaps.

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/bethlehem/index.ssf/2009/11/auditor_generals_probe_finds_s.html

Nazareth High has a million dollar weight room, and a $4.5M pool for two grades.
Saucon Valley High has a rock climbing wall.
Parkland High has padded bleacher seats and food court style dining.
Emmaus High has a new natatorium.

[dysfunctional press]

98. a lot of those things(apart from the laptops) should be paid for by 'booster' clubs...

or student fund-raising activities.

i don't mind funding quality education with my taxes- the school district we live in(burlington 301) is already a very good one, and yes- it's one of the reasons that our property values(and our taxes) are that much higher than similar properties just half a mile or so away- but in a different school district(elgin u46).

[JDPriestly]

93. If you ever plan to retire, dysfunctional press whether on a pension or on your savings

and investments, you will have to rely on the children who are now attending school to work and manufacture and provide the the products and services you will need in retirement.

For example, it takes an enormous investment to educate an medical doctor, especially a heart or brain surgeon. A doctor's work is hard. Spoiled kids with big trust funds are unlikely to bother. It's the public school kids who will be providing the income you earn when you retire and caring for your health.

So, even though you don't have children of your own, if you plan to live past, let's say 55, you had better care about the kind of education that children across this country are getting today. How well your doctor has been trained, how well the guy who builds your retirement home can read architectural plans, how well your pharmacist understands math -- may determine just how long you live.

[dysfunctional press]

99. i'm 49, and i'm already retired. i retired when i was 38...

due to disability.

when you retire at that age, you generally haven't had much opportunity to sock away any kind of retirement savings.

and i really don't see much of a chance that any of my tax dollars that go toward public education will yield any discernible improvement in my quality of life between now and check-out time. :shrug:

[JDPriestly]

103. If you retired early due to disability, you either rely on some form of

investment, whether in real estate, stocks, savings or anything else or you are receiving government assistance. In either case, some of your money is coming from work done by recent graduates of our education system, and if you live another year or two, some will come from students graduating right now.

You, too, should be concerned about the quality of the education those students are receiving. We all have a stake in it.

[dysfunctional press]

105. i have no investments to rely on. i have social security...

and my monthly SS check deposit is around 12% less than it should be, because one of my early employers never paid in the fica money they deducted from my check every week...and now that the company is long gone and bankrupt, i have no recourse for either getting the money, or getting 'credit' for having paid it into the system- i just get to live with lower checks.

"In either case, some of your money is coming from work done by recent graduates of our education system, and if you live another year or two, some will come from students graduating right now..."

i actually hope to live another 25 years or so...or maybe more...:shrug:
but- my benefit amount is not dependent upon the amount of wages workers are making- it is based on how much I made while I was working.

[JDPriestly]

106. Whether Social Security continues to exist depends on how well

our economy performs -- and ten years from now that will depend on the kids who are in high school today. Twenty years from now it will depend on the kids who are in grade school today.

So, you have an interest in the education of all American children whether you have any or not.

In fact your interest is greater than that of someone who had or has children who are doing well in school. The children who are doing well in school will be there to provide for their own parents, but will only be there to pay into your Social Security if all of our children are educated well enough to compete in the world economy.

A good part, if not all, of your Social Security benefits come out of the money that is being paid into Social Security by working people today.

[dysfunctional press]

107. it's a chance i'm more than willing to take.

with a few 'tweaks', SS can remain solvent for decades to come, at least.

[Kalyke]

26. I've been too busy monitoring the news regaring my son's 4th grade teacher who shot

and nearly killed our principal and assistant principal.

[RKP5637]

28. What have our schools become... I was also reading a posting about bullying in

schools today... it sounds like a war zone. I feel so sorry for kids today.

[proud2BlibKansan]

31. Well fortunately he isn't teaching anymore

Has anyone asked your school board why they allowed this man in a classroom?

[nadinbrzezinski]

32. We pay lip service to education in this country

have for a long time, like oh over two hundred years. It just has gotten worst...

[Catshrink]

33. bump

[EFerrari]

34. At some point we will realize, we are a failed state.

It's not a series of small failures like our schools or our wars or regulating banks or having no health care, it's a great big one.

I never, ever imagined my sons would be faced with THIS. :(

[proud2BlibKansan]

38. Yes we are definitely failing our children

:cry:

[truedelphi]

49. Today our nation cannot afford to educate our kids.

In ten years time, will kids be eating?

When the Soviet Empire crumbled, the children suffered. Now our nation is going through the same cycle that that USSR's populace faced.

[arcadian]

50. You are so correct.

It's not just one thing. It's everything. The US is indeed a failed state. What makes me sick is these criminals and their idiot supporters on the right grinning and yelling socialism at indication of trying to improve conditions. Seriously, at this point I'm thinking let it fail and start all over again. In the up coming depression there will be two choices, status quo handouts of the US Treasury to the already well off or FDR style New Deal. Looks like the powers that be have decided it's going to be the former and not the latter ergo we are fucked.

[EFerrari]

53. Yes, this is how the people of Haiti feel.

No opportunity and deaf politicians and rhetoric that never seems to move into action. For me, it's not even about Obama or the Dem Congressional leadership, it's much bigger than any of them. Reagan pushed us off a cliff and the whole culture has been pretending for decades that there would be no consequences.

[LWolf]

35. Yes. My district went to 4-day weeks for this year.

:(

[proud2BlibKansan]

36. Yes I thought of you when I read my paper this morning

These are hard times indeed. My district is closing half of its schools.

[LWolf]

40. I'm hearing these stories from all over the nation.

It isn't limited to any one region. :(

[libodem]

37. Yes

Especially since I occasionally listen to Dr Laura (the behaviorist PhD. aholeo of the airwaves) trash public school in favor of private religious education.
You know she carries a lot of water for her Conservitive paymasters. I've long thought that since she is soooo anti-public school it must be on the chopping block of hated programs like unions, welfare and health care for humanity's sake.
Anything that takes a buck away from the Pentagon for backing the military industrial arms cartel is a wasted buck. Anything that might make a human 'bean' an intellectual who loves learning and knowledge, who might think for themselves or believe in Scientific theories, must be a threat to the Conservative agenda.

THEY FUCKING WANT US ALL TO BE FUCKING STUPID SO WE MAY BE MORE EASILY CONTROLLED.

I'm pretty sure a religious fanatic who is all for God and country with the intellect of a pissant is much more amenable to the authority of the private enterprise corporate rhetoric.

[MichiganVote]

39. But don't the executives and billionaires need another yacht or something?

How can you be so heartless? They're trickling down just as fast as they can.

[proud2BlibKansan]

44. Well now that you mention it,

In a time of budget cuts, yacht sales sail through untaxed in Missouri

[sendero]

45. We are IN an economic depression....

.... and almost every state has been hit.

Get used to this, it's not going away anytime soon.

[AwakeAtLast]

46. Mitch Daniels (R-Repugnant) is cutting $300 million from IN schools

He started Jan. 1 with no warning. Any budget from the beginning of the 09-10 school year suddenly became toast. My district is growing and we are cutting staff. The mood for teachers in our state is dismal, very dismal. :(

[amborin]

51. k and r

[depakid]

52. Yet another symptom of a nation in decline

With actions like this (and many others) receiving widespread support- no one can say that decline's not well deserved.

[DollyM]

54. Our school system has already announced cuts for the coming year.

Our local school system has already announced they are cutting one teacher, two aides, a janitor and cutting the music teacher's time to 9 months instead of 10. No word on whether they will cut the sacred cow of sports yet! (hell will freeze over before that happens!)

[Zoeisright]

55. So that fuckhead Reagan's dream continues to prosper:

the dumbing down of the American public.

Fucking repukes.

[Initech]

56. My mom works for a school district and they have to hand out pink slips on Friday.

I cant imagine how much that would suck.

[Egnever]

57. America the greatest nation on earth!

for about 40 years...

Didn't take us long to fuck that up.

[Fire1]

66. +10

[ClayZ]

58. And some are using Neil Bush's educational software !!!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ignite!

[proud2BlibKansan]

59. And the rich keep on getting richer

All hail capitalism!

[DefenseLawyer]

62. If every politician runs on the "No taxes" platform

and every politician pledges to "never raise taxes"... Guess what? Eventually it catches up with us. Welcome to now. A few years ago in Indiana they changed the way property taxes were assessed. This was a good thing, as the old system was weighted heavily against new construction, while people living in big old mansions paid almost nothing. The fix was undoubtedly more fair overall, but came as quite a shock to people in high value older homes who had been used to paying less they their fair share for years. Of course there was a massive outcry. Politicians of both parties scrambled to pass "caps" on property taxes and cut property tax rates. It worked. Between their efforts and the drop in property values my property tax bill went down 60% last year. That's right six-zero. Now everyone is shocked to discover that the schools, police, fire department, parks and city services are broke. The whole idea that "it's your money" and taxes are just the government stealing "your money" and flushing it down the drain is a powerful idea indeed. We have reaped what we have sown.

[annabanana]

68. +1. . . . Taxes are Patriotic

absolutely NO sarcasm smiley

[raccoon]

74. Yeah, if you cut taxes you have to either (1) make up the money somewhere else, or (2) cut services.

Why is THAT so hard for some people to understand?

Great post, yours.

[HughBeaumont]

101. "Yeah! Cut mah taxes FEREVER!! How is THAT a bad plan??"

Welcome to 21st Century Laissez-Faildom. Idiots.

Paying taxes is the price we sort of have to pay to live in the society we do and no one seems to get that. Everyone thinks the Government is this Great Lucifer and the Private Sector are these angels of greatness that never do bad things and are looking out for the best interests of the people.

Of course, I think we'd all feel better about paying taxes if they DIDN'T go to things like unnecessary occupations of corporate folly or lining the coffers of Corporate Welfare Queens.

[blueworld]

64. Well, consider the GOP logic...

How much education will our children really need to be gardeners, cooks, maids & chauffeurs to the rich & their children? Or to work in coal or uranium mines? :sarcasm:

The 3 counties around me are closing or consolidating schools & laying off teachers & ending school programs...it's everywhere.

[janet118]

95. New course of study: How to kiss up to rich people n/t

[4_TN_TITANS]

67. Result of repub policies from 2000-2008

Public education is about to be drowned in the bathtub. Scary stuff, my wife is an elementary music teacher and has been the backbone of our income for our entire marriage. We don't know what is going to happen from one year to the next, any more.

[Jim__]

69. What do we do about it?

In all seriousness, the regular electoral process will not resolve this. Corporations have bought our government. Taking it back will require some serious civil disobedience. I doubt a national strike would work - not enough people would participate. However picking a busy weekday and blocking main roads and highways all across the country would get some publicity. I really think it's going to take radical actions to get our government back.

[mopinko]

70. chicago public schools has ended support for all fine arts competitions

sports, of course, are sacred.

[MicaelS]

75. "Extracurricular activities"

This is the problem right here. Americans worry too fucking much about "extracurricular activities", which really means sports, pep squad and marching bands, and not enough about the real purpose of going to school which is to get an education and learn how to think. Far too many parents have the attitude that school's REAL purpose is act as a preparatory sports academy so their kid can hopefully get into the NBA or NFL and make millions of dollars. All that "book learnin stuff" is just seen as an unnecessary adjunct to the kid being able to play sports. Intramural athletics to let them get some exercise, but I'd cut the rest of crap out in a second and use the money to hire more teachers to teach real knowledge.

[DefenseLawyer]

89. I'll go ahead and disagree with you.

There needs to be a balance. Students are hopefully learning how to be citizens of a community, not just little test taking machines. Extracurricular activities have a place in that development. Music and art and sports and school plays have a place. Actually just "hanging out" with one's peers has a place in that development. Obviously, if the balance gets tipped to the point where "book learning" is sacrificed for the sake of extracurricular activities, that's a problem. But I still insist that growing up is more complicated than learning to pass a standardized test.

[Xithras]

96. All of the research disagrees with you.

Academic success can be directly tied to a students perceived involvement in the school "community", and extracurricular social and athletic programs are a highly effective way to motivate and build that community. Schools which lack these programs nearly ALWAYS have a higher dropout rate, lower academic achievement levels, and lower college transfer rates.

It's a simple thing really. Which students is going to do better in school? The one who looks forward to going? Or the one who sees it as a boring perfunctory requirement?

There is a direct relationship between a students involvement in extracurricular activities and their overall academic success and happiness. I'm not talking about just cheerleading or the football team either. Chess club, glee club...any sort of school organized on-campus social interaction between students helps.

[callous taoboy]

104. Band was the only thing that motivated me to go to high school each day.

[AllyCat]

77. Even though we expect to homeschool our kids, we are part of a group to increase taxes

on property owners in our town to surmount a similar budget shortfall. We are fighting an uphill battle, but the increase is less than $200 to maintain current programs and fix infrastructure.

Nonetheless, sign went in my yard today and I am talking to all my neighbors. Our reasons to homeschool are many, but we believe EVERYONE needs good schools. A compulsary, free education, as well as the means to get there are a requirement of any civil society. The 'cons would love all of us to be stupid and so far, they are getting what they want.

[Maat]

102. I've homeschooled my daughter for three or four years now.

We go through a school that is a charter school run by the school district, with public school teachers as its employees. It's what works best for my daughter. Please PM me if you need any support.

I'd like to second that 'everyone needs good schools.' They need to be fully-funded (all of them). Maybe we could close a few military bases around the world. Then, the U.S. could fully fund education and healthcare!

[wizstars]

81. So much of it starts with parents

and a big part of it is getting their kids' heads out of the TV and video game boxes. Sad to say, too many are too lazy to do that and take time to actually educate their children. But schools have to have the resources to step it up, too, and our govt (state, local, and federal) are failing here because of this conservative, anti-tax mentality that Raygun et al have stuck us with. This has to change, folks. It puts me in mind of (sorry) the bumper sticker: "wouldn't it be great if our schools had all the money they needed, and the Pentagon had to hold bake sales to build a bomber?"

[cjbgreen]

87. Killing the baby and throwing out the bathwater! Deformed/Reform

So should anyone really be surprised when public schools are loosing the race to the top (of what). Or should anyone be shocked when teachers fail because they most do more with less and internal systems are weakened and destroyed. Does anyone care that neighborhood schools are being closed and children who desperately need some semblance of security, loose even this basic lifeline. The reason public schools fail, we are told, is because of bad teachers that can't be fired. We are told this by "reformists" and their corporate partners. We are told that teachers have not been held accountable to the "same standards" of .... whom? This mythology is repeated over and over by the media and the press. Accountability and standards is the key to reforming schools. So we replace our schools with "Charters"/ We never know whose standards will be used to judge teachers, politicians' standards, bankers' standards, lawyers' standards, Chancellors' standards? The "perfect storm" compels financially desperate States to close schools which will be re-placed by Charters. And when Charters fail then what? Who will be left to ask who is participating in "race" and "to the top" of what?
http://www.schoolsmatter.info/2010/02/just-like-public-schools-right.html

[Skidmore]

90. Well, our spanking brand new high school to which the village children

must be bussed 15 mi. last fall, before one classroom had been filled, spent $5m to astroturf the football field while cutting the library staff time. Lest someone launch on budget lines and funding streams, I would point out that for a nation complaining vociferously about how uneducated our children are, cutting access to learning materials does not appear to be a desirable move.

[Rebubula]

91. Stop the WAR MACHINE!

That is the biggest threat to the US economic security.

Then we could fully fund schools and healthcare.

Of course, that is far too simple to work...

[LibertyLover]

100. While my daughter is only in elementary school, the

high school that she will in all likelihood be attending has the unofficial motto of "Yale or jail". We are happy with her elementary school program, but supplement the hell out of it at home so that she is part of "Yale" side of things.