Wednesday, June 27, 2007

In defense of your neighborhood schools II


The Daily Herald awarded us the Buffalo Chip Award (double) for this one. Unfortunately they also made stuff up. That damn liberal press!

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

The Provo Daily Herald editorial board has clearly made up their mind on vouchers, they support them. That's fine, but they don't need to resort to exaggeration to make their point. Saturday's "double" buffalo chip describes a Utah Democratic Party statement this way: "Buffalo Chip (double) to the Utah Democratic Party for an anti-school voucher campaign that likens Utah parents who support vouchers to racist, Confederate flag-waving segregationists from the 1950s South."

I looked up the Utah Democratic Party's statement, and nowhere do I see any comparisons of voucher supporters to "racist, Confederate flag-waving segregationists from the 1950s South." There is a reference to voucher's origins arising in part from parents seeking help getting their kids out of desegregated public schools and into segregated private schools. It does not follow these are the motives of voucher supporters in Utah today.

The Utah Democratic Party's message describes regular "vignettes" being produced on the subject of vouchers and reads "The first vignette (below) tracks the origins of vouchers to the anti-community ideas developed by economist Milton Friedman shortly after World War II; the second describes vouchers as a tool to develop “white flight” academies of Southern segregationists in the late 1950s." Telling the Daily Herald didn't deny this was part of the voucher movement's history, and instead chose to misrepresent the statements as a direct comparison between segregationist parents of a bygone era to parents supporting vouchers in Utah today.

I wonder if the Sutherland Institute's Paul Mero got a "buffalo chip" when he published an Op-ed a few weeks back comparing arguments against vouchers to those used to support slavery prior to the Civil War. Something tells me he did not.

Anonymous said...

I see nothing wrong with this poster...in 1975 when some liberal judge order that me and my sisters be bussed to some 3rd rate school 30 miles away ..my folks pulled me and my sisters out of school and sent us to private schools..I've never looked back..today my children go to private school...the problem isn't vouchers..the problem is liberal judges who perform social experiments at the expense of others.

Rob said...

Anon,

Interesting comment. I would like to know more. My only question is what made the judge a "liberal" judge in your eyes?

Anonymous said...

Its good the Herald can spot fesis when it sees fesis.

Anonymous said...

rob,

look up Desegregation busing
is wikipedia

Anonymous said...

Fesis?

It's history and it's a fact.

Anonymous said...

Right, "white flight" is history. Broadly, implying the same intent to Utah's voucher law and supporters is fesis.

JM Bell said...

Rob, I think "liberal" to him means "not a racist" to most other folks.

Just a guess, though

Kelly Ann said...

I'm sorry Anon...what is fesis? Are you referencing the not-so-popular danish band formed in the late 90's...or did you mean to say feces (excrement)?

Anonymous said...

so every family effected by busing who pulled their kids out of public schools and into private schools so they wouldn't be bused is a racist?

Anonymous said...

not-so-popular danish band from the 90's of course.

Damn the lack or spell check in the comment section of blogger.

Anonymous said...

We need more of this! We need to expose voucher supporters as racist, redneck, segregationist religious zealots! We need to spend thousands of dollars getting this out through radio and tv advertising.

Unknown said...

Anon -

I doubt the white flight argument will be the message you'll see on tv and hear on the radio. But the ugly history of vouchers along with the ideological desire of out-of-state thinktanks and funding sources to privatize our public schools is real. If you look closely, there are unifying themes of self-interest in all of these scenarios. Self-interest is not a bad thing. But when taken to their extremes (e.g., white flight, in groups punishing out groups, abandonment of national parks, attacks on unions, etc.), we pull at the fabric of society and can cause lasting damage.

Vouchers are divisive. The Democratic party is inclusive. Simple as that.