Nothing's Easy

After all the flap about the peace prize, we really need to get serious about blaming the current administration for things. Onion has a piece about Obama negotiating with a forest fire--guess he CAN do anything!!! Today the news broke that American kids are even worse at math than last year after we elected what we thought was a REAL education supportive president. There's tsunamis in the Pacific and Dylan was right about SoCal---"a hard rain's gonna fall" and all those multi-million dollar homes the elite built on those recently denuded-by-fire hills may come tumbling down like Jericho's walls. Barack, blow that trumpet!!!!!!!!

But the ultimate insult, worse than H1N1 swine flu, is H3N8!!!! Obviously this plague has been visited upon us by Yahweh as punishment for our electing Obama. What, you didn't hear about this?? The ultimate apocalyptic event, worse than a Vince Vaughn movie or a Mayan prophecy?

H3N8 is a virus that infects horses. Apparently it can be transmitted to dogs, causing pneumonia in man's last and only best friend. Vets are recommending vaccinations for the K-9 population to protect them. Holy spiraling health care costs, and right on top of the swine flu vaccine issues!!!!! Barack, Barack, why hast thou forsaken us???? After nine months in office, all there is for you is blame---- blame for the wars you didn't start and the deficit you didn't create. Bet you even support Limbaugh's buying the St Louis Rams!!!! Don't worry, someone is sure to paint you with that brush,too......

Short Week

Last week marked the traditional end of summer--Labor Day. This week usually seems very packed with events for such a short-work week. It's the traditional back-to-school week; the time to prepare for the harvest and start the process of stocking up for winter; car sales; and that last summer week-end of irresponsibility.

This year the week seemed even more densely populated with events.

Tuesday had the presidential brainwashing of America's youth with socialist clap-trap. Horror must abide at the very thought of encouraging these impressionable minds to endeavor to fulfill their potential. Far better for our democracy that the next generation be dull and easily swayed by the demagoguery coming from the speakers of their radios and televisions. Just imagine what, say, Rush Limbaugh's or Fox News channel's ratings would be if their listeners or viewers were capable of critical thinking or schooled in the intricacies of logical debate. No wonder the hue and cry to prevent the president from addressing the nation's students about their opportunities if they stay in school, eschew gangs and drugs, and learn to think and evaluate issues and arguments.

This week, the Economist had two articles of note. First is the Lexington column that basically called health care reform a non-starter because American are afraid of rational public discussions about death. Second was an article titled "The nanny state" that addresses the issue of public spending on child well-being and how it misses the mark more often than not. The US is pretty much in the bottom half of OECD countries when it comes to effective use of public spending on childhood well being. It's tragic that we rank 24th of 30 countries in the health and safety of our children.

Wednesday brought the much awaited address to Congress on health care reform. Except that wasn't the topic. Health insurance reform was and it really looks like that's all we'll get. And I feel betrayed. I have very good health insurance through my employer. But if I retire before Medicare kicks in, which I hope to do, I need to feel anxious about the cost of any coverage. Basic health insurance will cost me about 5X what I presently pay per month!!! And like many retirees, my income will be less than it is at present. Doesn't take a genius to see this is not a good outcome. So while I appreciate the efforts of congress and the administration to attempt insurance reform, that's sort of like the cart before the horse. What is needed is health CARE reform. Health care providers should be paid for results, not number of tests prescribed. Certain screenings like HPV, mammograms, colonoscopies, cholesterol screening, prostate screens, should be, if not free, than at least at a minimal cost. Prevention and wellness are the keys to cutting medical costs and there is little beyond platitudes coming from congress to address these issues.

Last time I looked, the candidate who got the majority in the electoral college becomes president. Of all of the United States. So whether one might consider him a liar, a socialist, a reactionary, etc, he is still the president. Nixon was---lots of truth there, right?? LBJ was, another paragon of virtue. Bill Clinton---what can I say, Monica?? "W"--as in "Weapons of mass destruction"---even more truth telling. So I guess my comment to all those who say the current person residing at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is "not my president" is to go where your type president lives---maybe Russia, with Medvedev and Putin; or France with Sarkozy; or Zimbabwe with Mugabe?? I was prepared to go to Canada rather than serve under Johnson in Viet-Nam. I guess I'd say to you the same thing I heard back then---America, love it or leave it.

Lastly, Bertequila spent Tuesday night thru Thursday morning at the vet. Time to get him neutered. But even though he now has no balls, he's still got more cojones than the screamers and bloviators.

Liberty and Revolution

I just read Ron Paul's manifesto from the last presidential campaign, The Revolution. (See the Shelfari widget to the right----->) 

I can admit to agreeing with much of the libertarian philosophy he espouses.  We do need to shrink government.  We need to end war.  We need to get back to the basics of the Constitution. We need to project our values in our diplomacy, not the "big stick" of Teddy Roosevelt and W. Some of the other policies, especially the economic ones like reverting to the gold standard, I'd need to research and perhaps listen to thoughtful (as opposed to cable news and talk radio) debate. 

But I have to take issue with one policy--returning education exclusively to local control.  I agree that our educational system is a disgrace.  Our children don't learn what is required for our survival and leadership in the 21st Century global theater.  But returning full control of education to the states without some federal guidelines would aggravate the problem, not solve it.

My experience of 10 years on a local school board leads me to this conclusion.  Taxpayers don't want their taxes to increase.  The more local, the more taxpayer influence.  Most people look to their own pocketbook first and prefer to keep their money there, not using it to help the neighborhood kids learn.  Don't get me wrong, there's a lot of wasteful spending in education, much of it caused by states and local districts floundering without firm objectives for achieving educational success.  There is no national definition of what constitutes this success, so local districts are left to figure it out for themselves and often waste funds pursuing this or that "latest" theory of pedagogy.  That's why I feel the federal government should set and enforce a baseline competency that needs to be attained in language, math, science, and social studies.  Teachers, students,and administrators would be evaluated on the attainment of these benchmarks.  Those schools that make it, hurray.  Those that don't should be reorganized, the teachers and administrators dismissed, and resources allocated to the schools to assist them in succeeding.  Parents need to take responsibility for sending their children to school ready to learn and parents need to work WITH educators in maintaining standards of scholarship and discipline, not fighting policies and procedures that enable learning to take place.

Only with national standards can we compete in education with countries such as Denmark, Sweden, and Japan.  And local taxpayers will feel less of a pinch when the funding comes from the vastly larger money pool of the national government.   

A Bonus

I've been having an email discussion with a person close to me about teachers and their compensation.  I pretty much espoused the same positions I took over my 10 years on a school board, negotiating several collective bargaining agreements.  They had a lot to say about the unfairness of merit pay systems and the poor preparation of many children who do not come into the classroom ready to learn.

So I think the government has provided an answer----massive money for education as part of the stimulus and retention bonuses for teachers.  If AIG is too big and too important to fail, and we, the taxpayer/owners of the corporation have no say in compensation, how much more important is the huge education industry??  And surely no one would argue that we should ever, in any way, short-change the children.  So my solution is to get back all the AIG bonuses, or at least the half of them that their C E O requested they repay, and divide that money among all the teachers----no questions asked, just like in the financial sector's compensation where performance apparently does not matter.  And if the government wants to be really generous to these people who make such a difference, they'd make these bonuses exempt from income tax as well!!