The Moral Majority

[banedon]

[quote="Medios":3pfaj948]The money doesn't ever make it to the teachers. [/quote:3pfaj948]

This is so true. I live in Southeast Missouri, and the local school district has gotten several tax increases passed in the last few years, but they still have a high turnover of teachers b/c of low pay. Also, kids in the elementary schools here not only have to buy their school supplies, but have to provide red pens and 3 boxes of tissues for the teachers and in some schools, have to bring snacks for the class at least monthly if not more often.

Also there are several small towns reigonally (most in So. Ill) that have had tax increases passed for the schools, but the teachers still end up striking b/c of low wages.

[mahkra]

My father was an auditor in this state and the problem is definitely not the the teachers. There is so much screwball accounting going on with funding and absolutely no accountability that the money will never get to the actual teachers.
In one small town the trust fund manger for the schools lost several million in bad investments and he still holds the same job several years later. Every time the the voters protest with their money and votes, the problem just gets worse. Government will just not clean up their act.

Japan culture vs American is also not necessarily a good comparison. In Japan children bust their asses to get into college. Once they are in they are virtually guaranteed a job. It may not even be a good job, just one that is better than a street sweeper.

In America you may bust your ass through college and never get a job in your field at all. You don't even need an education to get along here. A lot of the most successfully people are drop outs. They just worked hard out of school. That is what makes this country different. Anyone can still come here and make it.

I have a lot of sympathy for teachers but not all of the problem is the parents or the pay. Culture is a large part of it, as is government and well some teachers and some of the management of teachers should just plain find something better to do, but then that is true for every company I have worked at as well.

All politicians are crooks and liars and as long as we continue to accept it, we will get more. I wish I could say there was a person I voted for that got into office that I was proud of in the last 2 decades. Sadly the last good president was Kennedy, and look at his brother as an example of someone who should not have a job at all but continues to be on one of the most powerful senators in Washington. Wish I could get drunk kill a couple people and keep my position....

I grew up believing in the America of Jefferson and Franklin. As I grow older I realize that culture may never exist again. And it troubles me.

[osric]

Two Quick Thoughts

1. I think the problem with Teachers these days is that it is actually quite hard to become one in some states, take Wisconsin for example, if you don't have a 3.5 gpa or better you can't even get into the school of education. Partly because WI has a high expectation for teachers and because they want to stay high in the national ratings for education. But in my opinion not all of the best teachers are the people who pull off great grades. I think there are plenty of potentially great educators who get blocked by program requirements and the less imaginative and less inspiring (thus prime for getting great grades themselves) but none the less hard working individuals end up teaching our nations children. Which I think is a sad state of affairs. I also think the same about the medical profession but thats another story.

2. One quick note on federal spending. During the Clinton administration there was an emphasis on balancing the budget, not because Clinton was at all concerned about that but because the American people were, and they were concerned because of some very valid points made by Ross Perot during the 90's (one of the best third party candidates to date). Because of this emphasis the budget was on its way to becoming a bit more healthy (spending was in fact almost in line with the budget). Of course when Bush came into power his "conservative" attitude has let govt spending skyrocket and put us back a decade as far as debt in this country. I say its time to shake things up and find someone who is interested in actually being fiscally responsible to be at the controls for a while.

[Weasel]

vote for pedro

[Tap]

Hillary Clinton Vince Foster
Barack Hussein Obama
Bill Clinton aka Presidential Rapist
George Bush Sr. and prob Jr.. large plantation in Puerto Rico that has armed guards.. oh yeah... chief crop... cocaine
George Bush JR. Skull and Bones proud member... closet Satanist open Mason
oh.. higher level mason use 'old Gods' in their rituals not that they themselves write such these downs...

Oh my.. i'm gonna have fun with this thread

Btw.. the world is in fact going to hell.. enjoy the ride

Mac ~n~ cheese done..cya

[Weasel]

perhaps I should get my tinfoil hat ready..

[Avatar]

So, have any of you considered serving? Even for local offices?

[Autolycos]

[quote="Weasel":ry9j5nqx]perhaps I should get my tinfoil hat ready..[/quote:ry9j5nqx]

Made this just for you bro

[img:ry9j5nqx]http://www.xgenco.com/sloth3/weaselhat.jpg[/img:ry9j5nqx]

[Tap]

With globalalization approaching record speeds, it's just a matter of time before one world government/commerce takes place. Yep, everyime that's mention the person in question is disregarded as a fluke. Yet, the signs are in plain view..just so many people are too scared to see. Myself, as someone who listens way to much to Coast to Coast and Alex Jones, I am perhaps screwup....scared shitless too.. also enthrawled by these exciting times that we live in.

ps- Nice Pic Autolycos but an audio rant of how weasels are running Hollywood would have nailed it.

[Tap]

Also, I'm either mad or both

[brand]

hell look at us, we got it all...

[Alberich]

laugh you have way to much free time jason

[alias]

There are very few good and honest politicians willing to do the right thing. When you come across one admire them while you can, because they won't be in office for long. They will either be turned into what we have now or will be run out of office or turned into a lame duck. The political system is broken and every canidate works for his/her friends not for the people. Most of you are lured into a particular political party by wedge issues; abortion, gay rights, religion, the children, gun control, ect. Just an example here, ever notice nothing really gets done on any of these issues no matter which party wins and controls congress- ie Bush and republican congress has done nothing to ban abortion, (don't start on me about which side I am its just an example). Its the same way for both parties, they are broken. Hopefully we can turn to system around, but I don't see it happening soon.

And I have thought of running for office, but if I won I don't think I would be able to stay long as I don't bend to pressure and would probally be scandalized or killed or just plain run out of town.


Alias


on a side note one of the Bush daughters will be getting married in a "hurry" because of issues growing inside her.

on a side note, my favorite quote.

"A working person who votes Republican is like a chicken who supports Colonel Sanders."

[Avatar]

I think Americans don't understand what we want from our politicians. If you want someone with Integrity, who won't back down, who insists on doing what he thinks is right, then keep supporting Bush. You can't argue that he hasn't persevered through a lot of criticism and challenge to continue his passion, the one issue he's most concerned with, the war.

American politics is based on compromise. It's very difficult to enact change that's supported by less than 90% of the populace. Those remaining 10% will fight much harder to make themselves heard if they feel like they're in the minority. Beyond that, any law that infringes on individual rights or state rights is likely to be challenged in court, and possibly overturned.

Let's use an analogy. Pretend we have a group of coworkers in a small town who are going to eat lunch together. 1 person won't eat chinese food, another won't go to taco bell. 1 person is perfectly happy to eat mexican food every day of the week. Another 2 people will eat at any restaurant, but won't eat at one restaurant more than once a week. Once you add a few "personal beliefs" to their eating habits, it should be apparent what I'm trying to illustrate. If noone compromises, these people are never going to agree to eat lunch together.

If these are politicians, in addition to lunch we might agree that they have other issues that they're trying to decide on. As an individual, someone named Tom might think that climate change, issue #3, is more important to him than our lunch plans. He may even agree to eat at taco bell, which he hates, in order to get someone else to vote with him on the climate change bill.

OMG OMG OMG!!

He's said several times during the elections that he doesn't like taco bell, now he's going to taco bell with this other politician! He's sold out his principles! The press would show him all day, walking into the taco bell. His opponents on the climate change issue would denounce his lack of integrity.

Using the same example, let's say that issue #5 concerns violent video games. Tom, our politician from above, plays FPS violent games online, but he understands that ... most laws attempting to limit violent video games are overturned in court as unconstitutional (see Slashdot or the New York Times today). If Tom is really smart, he might support the video game violence law even though he doesn't agree with it. He might be able to convince Sally to vote with him on the climate change bill, in return for supporting this video game violence law. His bill is one step closer to passing and contributing to the public good. The video game violence law that he doesn't agree with (but voted for) still probably won't pass even with his vote, and even if it does pass will probably be overturned by the courts. Of course all of the internet teenagers denounce Tom for supporting the video game violence law.

[Rynquald]

And that's why the amount change any government can ever make will always be inversely proportional to the number of politicians that have a say about it