EDUCATION ON A DOWNWARD SPIRAL

What a dismal day for us liberals. We were smart enough not to vote either bomb, bomb insane McCain or venture capitalist Romney in as President. By rejecting Romney, I really thought American voters saw the dangers of turning over our government to a venture capitalist; however, this Nov. 4, election proved I was wrong. The voters put Republican in charge of congress. Take one example, as an example of what I mean by saying voters turned over public assets to venture capitalists, which is privatization of public school.

It is a complex matter to understand how and why venture capitalists are taking over education but we can start with cutting taxes. It is human nature to think that everything we have to pay for, costs too much, including government, which means that no matter how high taxes are, they are too much. Thus, we have a tendency to support initiatives and policies that cut taxes.  Add to this the belief by some folks do not want to pay to educate other peoples’ children; thus forming a sub set of folks who want their children to have the best educations possible but do not want to pay “taxes” to educate other peoples’ children. This combination hides the “under the radar” or “thinly veiled” connection for many voters that it is OK to cut taxes but not OK cut support to public education.

Nevertheless, the tax cutting effort starts a downward spiral in education. The voters of the state across the nation supported state politicians who logically reduce support for Universities because the money was not there to do otherwise. The lack of tax money support for universities resulted in a huge increase in tuition—few working people can afford to send their children to state universities. By the way, this is in line with the Ayn Rand thinking that people should have anything unless they can pay for it. Corporations are quick to take advantage of the situation. Not having enough money to pay for salaries creates a need for professors to do research financed by taxpayers subsidized by private industry; thus benefiting (corporations), although much more complex than this fits into the pattern. Of course, in respect to tuition our free enterprise system, for profit private colleges, follow suite. Therefore, cutting taxes disproportionately harms the great American dream for the poor disproportionately than it harms the rich, who can afford the tuition, which reverberates though the economy—Romney’s sons never had to borrow money to go to college; thus, never had to worry about interest on student loans.

Public schools depend entirely on tax money for support. Buildings, books, and supplies are public assets, and of course, teachers’ wages are a public liability. The buildings, desks, and supplies are public investments taxpayers have paid for and maintained over many, many years; thus, are part of the “common” wealth or our nation. Cutting taxes has extremely complex influence on public education system. For example, when there is no money to buy textbooks, paper and pencils, etc, and no money to pay teachers. The public demands “all” teachers do a good job and to be more and more highly educated. Thus, in our society, public school systems pay highly educated teachers much less, than private businesses and corporations pay equally educated people in other professions.

Teachers are a strange lot; they are dedicated to what they do which renders them susceptible to mistreatment to the point that some of them take part of their meager salaries and buy supplies for the students. I’ve seen this with my own eyes in the checkout line of a supermarket; a teachers buying pencils and paper and rules and erasures, etc. Thus, cutting taxes creates a viscous circle; teaching quality goes down, janitorial and maintenance services in public schools fall, which leads to taxpayers, who are parents, to complain about the treatment their children receive in public schools; therefore, choose to send their children to private schools, thus reinforce these peoples unwillingness to pay taxes. All parents want the best education possible for their children. The result is that rich parents send their children to private schools while poor families cannot afford that luxury therefore are stuck in poor schools.

This is where charter schools of privatized education enter the picture; they are in essence for profit businesses paid by tax dollars but paid for by tax dollars in an almost clandestine but complex way. The cost of education increases at by the amount of the profit margin. Business people negotiate contracts use public assets (school buildings, etc) for their endeavor; thus increase the profit margin. This is privatization, which is the transfer of public or taxpayers assets to corporate control to benefit the rich. The public supports politicians in their efforts to pass laws diverting taxpayer funds to charter school because public schools are bad. In doing so, they cut the amount of money available for public schools. The fact that public schools are bad in the first place has to do with the undisputable fact that not enough tax money is available to support them—thus, cutting taxes creates another vicious circle for education. Because charter schools keep getting better and public schools keep getting worse, a vicious circle is both created and perpetuated by those who profit the most.

By voting in the political party that favor privatization and favors the rich by across the board cutting taxes for public education both at the level of universities and public schools, you voted against the backbone of equality in America. Specifically, North Carolina voters voted for a man, Thom Tillis, who represents a political party that cut educations funding by $500 million. North Carolina is a state where public schools are hurting. In addition, North Carolina, can no longer afford bussing (no money for it), so parents who can afford to send their children to charter schools while parent of poor children for lack of $500 million confine the children to their neighborhoods where the “public” schools are very “bad”. Sadly, it is too late for voters to take their votes back. The shift of public assets to costly “education for profit” institutions is well underway. Did I mention that because of Supreme Court backing of re-segregation by voter suppression, poor people would probably never be able to change that? 

URL: firetreepub.blogspot.com Comments Invited and not moderated