Providing equal rights for all

In Public Pulse on Friday

Omaha City Councilman Ben Gray said, "We want to make sure people are protected no matter who they are, where they come from or what they consider their gender to be."
When our Constitution was created, it was earth-shattering. Sovereigns were no longer kings, queens or elite bodies of leaders, but individuals. Each individual had sovereign rights, which we were born with.

In Europe, Marxism worked, as class structure existed. Marxism was not so easy here. We had to be convinced there was no American dream of success with hard work, planning and setting goals. We had to be divided.

Today, we have almost every special-interest group imaginable, from age, color, race, sex, sexual identity, disability, veteran and on and on - divided mostly by groups we cannot choose to leave - I can't be young, male or Hispanic.
Groups now vie for favor of the government to gain their rights - rights we gave away in our fervor to be fair to all.

Separation of School and State

Ezra,

Hotly debated issues on education are created BECAUSE we do not have separation of school and state. Forget separation of church and state==its the schools as political footballs that are causing the quality of education of our kids to be relegated to the bottom of the adults' priority list. I'm listening to the Florida governors debate on C-SPAN and much of their discussion is how to 'RULE' education in their state. Top down cannot work as one size NEVER fits all. Their mortgages are teetering on the edge, says a reporter, but often that mortgage includes hundreds a month for education taxes.

If all schools were immediately unfunded by all level or agency of government, and only funded privately by tuition (or education stamps explained later,) property taxes would plummet, overhead costs at all levels and lobbyist groups would crumble, principals at existing public school buildings would need to negotiate tuition with parents and learn, as private schools do, that all resources must be used in classroom for teaching the kids including the head master. Most children would stay in their current school. The only difference would be the parents being empowered and education of children becoming the primary goal of schools again. I would abolish dept of education and In a five year phase out, have election of parents advisory board done at each school to work with the principal during transition.

What about the poor? Well, I think food stamps pro-rated by income is a good model as a tuition supplement for poor. I would base the amount on an average tuition for the county of residence. After all, we don't care whether grocery stores are owned by Jews, Catholics, Muslims or atheists for food stamps.

Justice Sotomayor's widowed mother worked two jobs to send her daughter to private Catholic school in NYC. In fact, Kagan attended Hunter College exclusive K-12 and Roberts attended Notre Dame K-12. Clinton, GW and Obama all benefitted from private K-12 school along the way. If the Justices who benefitted from private K-12 excused themselves from cases about public schools, how many would be able sit?

Bill & Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett's foundation as well as others interested in education could dive in to assist large city school districts (explaining business practices) during transition. Everything would begin to focus on one issue... only one.. the education of the child.

Certifications would be of no consequence. Either a teacher is teaching or they are not. If a neighbor has decided to stay home to teach their children, taking a hit in their double salary income, that teacher can now accept (for tuition) other children from the neighborhood. In my neighborhood we have an autistic child who could easily succeed with his siblings and neighborhood friends in a small class setting around the kitchen table.

States may decide it is in their interests to test children at set points to identify neglect, and absolutely test to certify 8th grade and high school diploma requirements have been met. Colleges and universities would no longer have to bear costs of the growing number of remedial classes. The ability to sit for annual testing can identify a need for coaching if a child is falling behind. As with college entrance exams, coaching programs will arise from free market.

Trades can once again be removed from community colleges and rolled into a high school focused on the borderline academic, who may be kept in school given the ability to work with their hands part of the day. In Omaha, our former Technical High, where interwoven with their classes, (given the sexism of the times) boys worked on their cars, and girls learned to type and take shorthand, has over 300 non-teaching staff and is being used as the district's headquarters.

The Prussians designed public education to create a class of citizens who respond to orders without question and are trained to endure long periods of boredom. Even the USSR did not fall for that standard. Public Schools are teaching our children that government is their friend and only has their best interests at heart. How many times has that worked out in the past? Was Uncle Joe Stalin a good guy? or Mao, or the politburo?

I say, separation of school and state is our best solution for education in the USA today.

My opinions are my own.. but It might be interesting to hear comments/questions.
Sent to wonkbook@gmail.com Washington Post