PRIVATIZE EDUCATION DEBACLE

I read bogs on +Education Revolution, a very interesting Google discussion group. For the most part the people who contribute are teachers, ex-teachers or want-a-be teachers. The person who started the group is a professional educator. Many of the participants are from developing countries and exude enthusiasm for education well beyond any possible budget. I am sensitive to money issues in education, the perpetual fight between taxpayers, educators and parents including the sometimes bitter argument, “I do not have children so why should I pay to educate your kid?” Seldom do I lose my temper over things people write on this blog. This morning that changed. An advocate for privatization everything posted a link to a series of articles.

Seldom have I read a more discouraging article dealing with education. Clearly, it was written to take advantage of taxpayers’ innate reluctance to pay taxes. There is a way of giving a +1 but there is no way of giving a –1, because if there was I would have used that option on this post. I know about the ‘dollars’ but am left with the question, “What about the children?” I know about charter schools but what about education for everyone. I know about private cafeteria providers but what about the children; the potential victims of the “cheaper the meal, the more profit. Free enterprise in education is like free enterprise in health care or free enterprise in prisons; it should never be because it does not work and it does is not work because of human greed. I know that and you know that, which means “we” know that.  If there is a dollar to be made, let’s grab the money then pat our selves on the back for saving the taxpayer’s a buck by buying a walk in freezer to enable us to buy bulk chicken—what is there about funneling taxpayer money into the pockets of private businesses that taxpayers do not understand. I know that taxpayers will go for education that doesn’t cost anything; it is like training a pet dog you love to live without spending money to feed it; however, just about the time you reach your goal the dog will die. 

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