Rally tomorrow - please join us!! (Monroe: appointed, credit, unemployment)

[anifani821]

Awwww . . .come on . . . let's beat the horse some more, LOL.

This subject is actually a microcosm of all the frustration we are feeling right now w/ so many facets of our lives here in the good old USA. We have all had a rude awakening and I think the thing that has so many of us concerned is how the FEDS and Congress and the President intend on "making it right." We know our history - and just as with federal $$ and the school systems across this country, we can all see how "wrong" programs have gone that have received federal funding. This huge bail out and the stimulus program look like more of that same horror show . . .

So any talk about a public institution - such as schools - is gonna have us all in a twitter. We have already seen the waste . . . and we are scratching our heads, wondering how things are ever going to get straightened out, not only in this country - but right here at home in CharMeck.

I personally think it is time we all start asking questions. As I have said before . . . it is OUR TAX MONEY and yet, Uncle Sam (and his cohorts) are handing it out like candy. We should be screaming! It is time to take back our local government, and that includes SCHOOLS!!!

[Whytewulf]

Originally Posted by anifani821

Awwww . . .come on . . . let's beat the horse some more, LOL.

This subject is actually a microcosm of all the frustration we are feeling right now w/ so many facets of our lives here in the good old USA. We have all had a rude awakening and I think the thing that has so many of us concerned is how the FEDS and Congress and the President intend on "making it right." We know our history - and just as with federal $$ and the school systems across this country, we can all see how "wrong" programs have gone that have received federal funding. This huge bail out and the stimulus program look like more of that same horror show . . .

So any talk about a public institution - such as schools - is gonna have us all in a twitter. We have already seen the waste . . . and we are scratching our heads, wondering how things are ever going to get straightened out, not only in this country - but right here at home in CharMeck.

I personally think it is time we all start asking questions. As I have said before . . . it is OUR TAX MONEY and yet, Uncle Sam (and his cohorts) are handing it out like candy. We should be screaming! It is time to take back our local government, and that includes SCHOOLS!!!

And what would you do with them?

[anifani821]

What would I do with schools?

A complete operational overhaul, to start with. Now, don't get me wrong. I respect Gorman but the man was given a plate of SH&T to work with. You add the old boy network and tenured teachers who should have been fired two decades ago . . . and administrative staff who have been promoted as a way to remove their incompetent duffs from the classroom . . . So I am not disparaging Gorman. Indeed, I think he is dealing with what the majority of administrators across this country are dealing with. We have Title This and Title That from the Feds and we are all standing around with our Tin Cup waiting for our school dollar hand outs . . . no different here than everywhere else.

We are teaching our children using archaic methods, for one thing. Some programs are working well and that is where we should start. Identify what is working and model off those things.

That is where I would begin.

[sheenie2000]

Originally Posted by BrianH1970

Sheenie, I could care less what they do with their little rally. If they want to waste their time that's fine. It's up to them. To call upon others to stand beside them when those same people could be losing their jobs as well, with all due respect...screw that. What I'm also against is this sense of entitlement for all teachers that their profession is above all and therefore should be recession proof.

As far as your "every penny we worked for gets stolen from us", what are we going to do? Have a Bob Marley style Uprising (always loved that album)? What menace do we overthrow? How do we overthrow it?

Lemme guess...you won't step foot anywhere Starbucks too, won't ya

Not to mention that point deviates from the original point which was this march.

The best points made on this came directly from the source with mathman09's post and I couldn't agree more. Sheenie, I ask you this: what's wrong with his suggestion of trimming the fat by eliminating less than standard teachers?

I looked at the rally differently, not how you are looking at it. The issue today is layoffs worldwide. And why, because of money which is just a piece of paper.

Who issues that paper? The Federal Reserve. The issue more is our gov't and congress.

I think you and whytewolf made a good point, what are they rallying against and what? The issue really is who issues the money and the original source of it. We're just wrapped up in the small picture of buses and no buses, rather than the big picture.

[BrianH1970]

Originally Posted by sheenie2000

I looked at the rally differently, not how you are looking at it. The issue today is layoffs worldwide. And why, because of money which is just a piece of paper.

Who issues that paper? The Federal Reserve. The issue more is our gov't and congress.

I think you and whytewolf made a good point, what are they rallying against and what? The issue really is who issues the money and the original source of it. We're just wrapped up in the small picture of buses and no buses, rather than the big picture.

<big hug for Sheenie>...I knew you'd at least start seeing it our way.

[chicagocubs]

Well, my 2 cents is worth just that...

I have never been a fan of the school system here in NC; my boys had a very difficult time getting educated because they were the overachievers; my youngest had adhd which was never recognized and educators basically refused to work with him (with just one or two exceptions). I worked 3 jobs to send them to private school and it was not much better. So, I tend to agree that whatever system they have in effect that leaves the top students behind is a bad system!! Many of the regulars here will remember my stories on what I went through with trying to get my son educated. And, I know for a fact that he is not the only one to have been affected in this manner.

My other complaint is the whole busing issue. I never saw a school bus until I moved here and, with the exception of the time when I had meningitis and was too ill, neither of my sons was ever on one. Accidents like the one this morning made me too leery to trust a total stranger with my son's lives. I also agree that if the kids walked to school, a TON of money could be saved. The only exception to that might be the actual farm families that live in a really rural area.

And, thirdly, before we start making cuts in our actual education programs (as poor as they might be) what is wrong with getting rid of sports? Unless the kid is a potential professional, it will not matter 10 years from now that he was on the football team. Having a job and learning the responsibility of having to walk to school (or otherwise get oneself there) is what will create the work ethic that will carry that kid through life. Certainly adding a no-tolerance policy for miscreants would also go a long way.

At the risk of sounding like someone's crotchety old aunt, in my day , it was expected that everyone had a (minimum) part time job by the time they were eligible (15) and they got themselves to high school. If you played around or did not work in school, you were booted and sent to reform school (which was not a pleasant place). Grammar school K-8 was split into 1/2 days and kids walked, coming home for lunch, and then walking back to school. (So, why do we have lunches served in grammar school again?)

[Art1979]

There is more wasteful spending at the government level than we will ever know. I was reading my professional society's magazine yesterday, and it outlines more than $468 million in fraud over at the Dept. of Defense (i.e. healthcare kickbacks, theft, substitution, etc.) I can only imagine there is plenty going on in our educational systems, too. I have also seen equipment in governmental agencies be top of the line and much more than necessary. Heck, my old boss used to brag about his copier that he bought for $300 back in 1986, and that it still ran like a champ.

What we are facing here has two main prongs: poor stewardship of public funds and children who simply do not want to be taught.

They aren't easily remedied either.

My experience with public officials is that there is quite the detachment between the funds and the person spending them. It was always someone else's money. To be honest, who's really there to tell them what for, anyway? The taxpayer? Ehhh, all they'll ever get is some excuses, some finger pointing and no real solution. The band plays on. Suffice it to say, the only real way to reduce government spending is to reduce the number of government officials.

In regards to the children who are Hell-bent on screwing around, well, I have few ideas but none of them will be popular. I think my favorite muse is to have something along the lines of an 1880's Pullman, Illinois. Congratulations kid, you’re working piece-rate and just sold your soul to the company store. When they've had enough blue-collar toil, sweat and tears, they might just be a little more agreeable when they have a second shot at getting their diploma.

Man, if I could only write satire. I could make a mint!

[mathteacher09]

Originally Posted by chicagocubs

And, thirdly, before we start making cuts in our actual education programs (as poor as they might be) what is wrong with getting rid of sports? Unless the kid is a potential professional, it will not matter 10 years from now that he was on the football team. Having a job and learning the responsibility of having to walk to school (or otherwise get oneself there) is what will create the work ethic that will carry that kid through life.

So would you say the same thing about band, chorus, art, drama, etc? I doubt many of those students will ever make a living singing in front of national cameras.

I'm going to assume based on this post that your children did not play sports. The purpose of high school sports is not to produce professional athletes. The purpose is to teach the student responsibility, discipline and how to become self-motivated. The lessons learned from a part-time job pales in comparison to what can be developed through a productive sports program. If you don't think that a high school boy playing on a football team is equivalent to the work done at a part-time job, you are right, it's more on par with a full-time job.

I would hate to think where I would be today if I did not have sports to steer me in the right direction as a teenager. Thousands and thousands of productive lives are a direct result of the lessons learned while particpating in sports. Losing sports would be a tragedy for children.

[chicagocubs]

Originally Posted by mathteacher09

So would you say the same thing about band, chorus, art, drama, etc? I doubt many of those students will ever make a living singing in front of national cameras.

I'm going to assume based on this post that your children did not play sports. The purpose of high school sports is not to produce professional athletes. The purpose is to teach the student responsibility, discipline and how to become self-motivated. The lessons learned from a part-time job pales in comparison to what can be developed through a productive sports program. If you don't think that a high school boy playing on a football team is equivalent to the work done at a part-time job, you are right, it's more on par with a full-time job.

I would hate to think where I would be today if I did not have sports to steer me in the right direction as a teenager. Thousands and thousands of productive lives are a direct result of the lessons learned while particpating in sports. Losing sports would be a tragedy for children.

I'm sorry, I disagree completely. After all, playing a sport is simply giving license to a child to still play games long after game-playing time is ended. My oldest son played soccer and all he got out of it was a broken leg. I did not believe that he should be playing to begin with and I definitely do not believe that he should have wasted his time on this worthless activity. (he still limps because of it and he is 32!!) It did nothing for his work ethic; in fact made him lazier. Working at a job where there is a tangible result (money earned) and the prospect of loosing it if you don't work hard teaches you a lot more than playing about on a field. I have worked since I was 12, never had time for that kind of nonsense. My parents would never have allowed it (and were appalled that I allowed my son to do so) Work and education is what gets you ahead, not playing some silly game. Art & music appreciation are needed to expand cultures, but, there again, it should not interfere with a job.

[mullman]

Originally Posted by chicagocubs

I'm sorry, I disagree completely. After all, playing a sport is simply giving license to a child to still play games long after game-playing time is ended.

I disagree as well.
I played sports all through school, AND worked part time jobs.
The lessons learned at my jobs are still with me.
Sports, for me at least, were just a competitive release which I now get through exercise.