The Deeper Agenda to Privatize Public Education
By Ralph G. Neas
"A network of Religious Right groups, free-market economists, ultraconservative columnists and others are using vouchers as a vehicle to achieve their ultimate goal of privatizing education. Their embrace of vouchers reflects their view that to be successful, privatization must be achieved incrementally. The long-term goal is to make all schooling an activity supplied by private sources: for-profit management companies, religious organizations and home schools."
13 comments:
Yes, its a big conspiracy I'm just a pawn in it. Voucher supporters [the neo-cons] have brain washed me and now I'm a mind-numb robot, programmed to vote for vouchers.
Thats a nice try but actually one only need apply history and common sense to see the logic behind vouchers.
When the U.S postal service was the only way to send packages was service better? No, service improved big-time after Fedex and UPS came on the scene because the government then was forced to compete.
When phone service was regulated by the government was it better? No, much worse and much more expensive. Competition improved phone service and prices dramatically.
When competition and a free markets break up government monopolies, history proves the affect is always positive.
The teacher unions are fighting against vouchers because they fear losing control of the best and brightest. There is no question school choice would force dramatic innovation and would only improve our broken system.
more here
OMG. "Competition". "Free markets". "Monopolies".
Why don't you Republicans just come clean and admit it (as Paul Mero at least has): you just want to end public education. Period.
Phones, education?
That's a nice try. Nobody said you were brainwashed as I believe you know exactly what direction you are taking.
PotP: Of course, though the vast majority of us want publicly-funded education to go on. 'Member that big long post I wrote?
Calling Ethan an "advocate" of vouchers is like calling those crazed face-painted fans "advocates" of the Jazz.
Oh boy,
Where did the thugs in theachers union find this?
Oh wait...I hear the black helicopters coming
from Ethan's Blog (SLC SPIN)
Not Only Do I Support Vouchers
August 30th, 2007
But I believe that in January the Legislature should move to dramatically increase the amount of money available to poor families.
We should never forget that
Every child deserves a great education
and that it’s important for those who have more
to show generosity to children who have less.
Hey, utahn is absolutely right. For instance, when horse and buggy whip makers were confronted with the advent of the automobile, they were forced to innovate, resulting in the finest, most advanced horse and buggy whips ever conceived by man.
What? Oh, sorry. Thought it was ridiculously silly, deliberately misleading, false analogy day.
DS
Utahn, maybe you should actually read the report. It seems logical, well prepared, and right on the money.
Interesting how voucher proponents always attack the messenger and never address the merits of the message.
That said, I agree with Utahn. This isn't a big, bag, secret conspiracy. If it were, Paul Mero wouldn't be up on Capitol Hill testifying publicly the pro-voucher agenda includes doing away with things like high school sports and replacing it with privately sponsored "community teams". Perhaps Paul and the Sutherland Institute can tell us who is going to sponsor the football team in Bluff, Hanksville, Green River and other small communities around the state. How about the girls' teams in those communities?
This isn't a "big conspiracy" in which Utahn and other voucher proponents are mere "pawns". This is an openly advertised campaign to eliminate public Ed in which Utahn and others are proud participants. They are a product of the campaign to win government power by railing against government. What is sad is not that Utahn has been dooped; but that so many people now actually think government works better when you put people in charge that don't believe it can.
But I digress. FedEx may have increased competition with the USPS, Utahn, but I don't recall the government sending me a voucher to help defray the cost of my FedEx shipments every Christmas. Perhaps he can tell me which line on my income tax return I use to apply for one.
All this blather about "the loss of public education". What are we actually going to lose?
Neighborhood schools? No. People will still like to send their kids to a school close by. Teachers? No. Private schools need teachers too and public schools will still exist.
Standards? Maybe. The teacher shortage is fueled by standards. Some of the smartest people in the world don't qualify to teach 8th grade math because they don't have the right degrees.
Government control? Oh yes. I would bet half of things teachers complain about in the break room have their root in some gov't rule or mandate. NCLB was put into law by a bunch of rich, white lawyers who wouldn't be caught dead in a neighborhood with failing schools. They're too far removed from the things they try to fix.
Control needs to be local and the best local control is right with the parents of the children. If you want good schools, put parents in charge by letting them decide where the money goes with a voucher.
Also, there is no "we" when you refer to voucher supporters. The only thing "we" have in common is support for vouchers. Somebody may want to destroy the public school system but "we" don't. Somebody may want to put their kids in a religious school but "we" don't. "We" are comprised of individuals with many, many reasons for our support for vouchers.
www.commonsenseforutah.com
How about this idea instead. Let the Legislature provide funds for each school district to maintain and expand brick and morter, and let the local school boards decide how to spend the money. Then the state provide vouchers to all school children that they use when registering at any school, public, private, charter. That actual school would receive the funds in an a ccount that they would pay teachers salaries, materials, etc. This solves all the issues on both sides, couse there would no longer need to be a teachers union would there, because each principle would pay what that teacher was worth or lose that teacher to another school....
No lets be honest here folks, this is nothing more than a struggle by the teachers union to hold onto it's monopoly of education and job security.
How about we take the strangle hold from the Utah Republican legislature since they have put a stangle hold on our kids future by underfunding public school.
They are responsible for our last place in per-pupil spending. Make them responsible on election day.
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