This column presents a conservative viewpoint about items of interest in our community and our lives. Focus is on items impacting your pocket book, your personal freedoms, and your rights. I hope you will read the column regularly and it occasionally influences your opinions and actions.
I am convinced that somehow the American public has been a victim of a role reversal with the political bureaucracy which has grown steadily over the past fifty years. When I was a young man I often heard such terms as “Public Servant”, “Servant of the People”, and “Public Service” when describing the role of the bureaucracy within the American system of government. It seems that those terms have migrated in meaning as the power of the bureaucracy has grown, until today they have become oxymorons.
I believe we have evolved into a system which closely parallels the medieval system which existed between the rulers of that day and the poor serfs which lived and managed to scrape out their survival in the boundaries of their kingdoms. Government was closely managed and controlled by an “elitist” group which consisted of the extended royal family, their friends, and the politically connected part of their society. Entry into this select group was difficult to accomplish, and those Counts, Countesses, Dukes, Duchesses, Earls and Earlettes, Knights and Knightesses, and other members of the royal establishment enjoyed lives of lavish riches enabled by the power of their positions.
They lived from the plunder garnered from the poor, hard working serfs who toiled the fields and as the harvest was gathered had to yield a significant portion of their gains to the King, leaving them with less than was needed for the survival of them and their families. They were servants to the government, living lives of torment and misery at the pleasure of the governing elite. For their sacrifices they were afforded the pleasure of living on the land, protection from enemies, and management of the affairs of government. Their liberties, choices, and opportunities for gain were yielded to the needs of the decadent ruling class.
As I hear news stories relating to the abuses of today’s all knowing, all consuming, bureaucracy I can not help but draw comparisons to the medieval system of government. It appears they are no longer the “servants of the public”, and have instead become “Overlords of the Public”. The people of America are now working to serve the needs of the bureaucracy.
For their wonderful services our governments are taking over 50% of our earnings, restricting and regulating our every move, and controlling all of our properties. We see them boarding their government aircraft, riding in their chauffeured limousines, dining at great banquets, riding in their yachts, and living their lives of luxury as they rule our lives. All of this extravagance is bought through their power over our lives. Our bureaucracy has become the elitist ruling class.
Today the average federal worker earns over $120,000 per year, while the average non-government worker earns just over $65,000. These figures do not include the lavish government benefit packages which include generous vacation and sick leave programs, generous health plans, and retirement programs which offer almost full wages and benefits after retirement, often garnished with huge accrued benefit “buy outs” and retirement “drop” double dipping programs. They have steadily increased their spoonfuls from the public till, loosened the eligibility requirements, and increased their annual “take” from the public coffers, as their numbers multiply by exponential leaps.
It sickens us all to hear of the extravagance, corruption, and waste of our tax monies as the inept herd of bureaucrats and protective politicians continue to enact laws and rules which reduce our rights, restrict our freedoms, and generally make our lives unnecessarily more miserable. Add to this the stories of corruption involving bribery, trading government jobs for favoritism, and the passage of huge salary and benefit packages for themselves.
Simultaneously the plight of the serfdom general public has steadily worsened as costs have risen, industries have waned and died, regulations increased as freedoms have been lost, and our standard of living has declined. We are merely “slaves” to the political elite of today’s “American System”.
Personally, I hold our leaders totally responsible for the plight of our nation, and the possible plight of the world. Their system of organized corruption, self serving decision making, and placing retention of position and power ahead of national needs has created a system which is so huge, so mismanaged, so corrupt, and so entrenched that correction may be impossible. I see the elections of the next decade as the last opportunities for reversal of our negative downslide as a nation. Unless we can find, support, and elect true patriots instead of mere politicians…we are destined for failure.
As patriotic, caring Americans we must muster all of our available resources, strengths, and time to regaining control of our nation. We must return to basic beliefs, concepts, and ways of running our nation. Only then can we begin to “Get It Right”. We are certainly “Getting It Wrong” right now.
Rudiments: Odds and Ends Worth Mentioning –
● (Always include something nice) I applaud Richard Harrison for his personal effort to inform and arouse the public over the future impact of the ill conceived Septic Tank Laws which were passed during the last legislative session. He is a good example of an individual citizen taking action on his own for a good cause. We all need to support his efforts. (See story on front page.)
● In regards to this terrible new law which will take away more of your property rights, add to the bureaucracy, and cost all rural property owners thousands of dollars…. It appears to me that once again the general public is sitting back and being stupidly quiet while this new law takes effect. Just as no one attended the Public Service Meetings on electric rate increases the year before the rates were approved, (only about ten local citizens took time to attend the meeting) and then hundreds became outraged months later when they got their outlandish power bills…they are again not coming to the meetings on this septic tank law. “Speak now or forever pay through the nose.”
● Shame on all of you who did not take the time to vote on Tuesday or during the early voting period, or by getting an absentee ballot and simply mailing it in. If you are one of the lazy 18,919 Jackson County citizens who did not vote, then you are in effect saying you are happy with the way our nation, state, and local governments are operating. You have no right to complain over your taxes, utility bills, school system, bureaucratic rules and regulations which control your life, fees required, permits required, inspections required, fines, or anything else the “system” does to you. Just keep your mouth shut until you finally get up off your duff and take part in our nation’s processes.
Note: The opinions stated in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Hatcher Publications.
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Friday, August 20, 2010
Our Economic Engine Has Been Choked Too Much
This column presents a conservative viewpoint about items of interest in our community and our lives. Focus is on items impacting your pocket book, your personal freedoms, and your rights. I hope you will read the column regularly and it occasionally influences your opinions and actions.
The funding and financial support provided to hundreds of thousands of small businesses across the nation has historically been provided by the thousands of banks spread across the land. Many of these banks are not the “too large to fail” New York variety, but are instead the small “hometown” banks which are an integral part of the financial health of their local communities.
The Washington elites tout the need for jobs creation, and with each unemployment report they seem to be desperately seeking good news on jobs creation in the private sector of the economy. Jobs creation will never occur under the existing banking climate.
This “economic engine” for our economy has been choked into an inoperative condition by federal overregulation since the housing crisis nearly bankrupted the nation two years ago. It seems that government can never find the range of “common sense” in its regulatory processes. They always seem to have the pendulum of control swung too far to the left….or too far to the right. This has certainly been the case in their approach to banking regulation.
During the “Boom” period of highly speculative investing and easy credit which prevailed during the ten years or so prior to the bursting of the “housing bubble”, the liberal “federalcrats” decided to convert the entire banking system into one huge “Habitat” program by forcing banks across the nation to make high risk home loans to people who had little chance of paying off a mortgage. Owning a home was made into another expensive and ultimately disastrous, “social entitlement” for America’s poor. Banks were harshly criticized and even penalized if they did not introduce into their loan portfolio’s the required number of minority and low income loans. Credit was easy to get, and loans were often knowingly made for more than the property was worth.
Then the financial system fell apart…bailouts…fear of depression and complete failure of the banking system… Wall Street plunges…banks and brokerages fail…our world changes.
Today those same Federal Bank Regulators who “forced fed” bad loans into every bank have introduced a set of operating rules and standards for these hometown banks which has effectively shut down the system. As a result, small businesses are unable to expand, and in many instances are unable to maintain the needed cash flow for continuation of operations. The lack of available financing is causing many small businesses to close, thus costing our nation jobs instead of creating those jobs the administration is seeking.
One aspect of the lending process in which new, strict regulations appear to be regulating in an especially “bureaucratically stupid” manner is the property appraisal process. They have forced appraisers to use ultra, ultra conservative measurements, have forced borrowers to have multiple appraisals performed, and have prohibited appraisers from living near the area where the property is located….thus increasing the inaccuracy of the appraisal due to lack of knowledge of local conditions.
Regulators are also requiring banks to have many properties with existing mortgages reappraised even if the loan is current and the borrower has never had a late payment. When these reappraisals demonstrate that the property value is deemed to be inadequate to cover the outstanding balance of the mortgage in effect, the bank is then forced to demand an immediate payment for reduction of the loan principal to a satisfactory balance….or the loan is “called”. This action often results in failure and forfeiture, even though the borrower was properly paying the debt. Bureaucratic idiocy.
The ability of local bankers to make business decisions based on their knowledge of the individuals, the nature and potential of the business, or any other personalized aspect of the evaluation is gone. It is purely a “numbers game”, with the rules dictated by federal banking authorities. Bank owners can no longer run their own business… big brother is in charge.
This is the environment in which Jeff Kindelspire has been desperately trying to get needed financing to complete his project at Kindel Lanes for the past two years. His creditor, Bank of Jackson County, resisted the pressures exerted by federal bank authorities for as long as possible, but the bank was finally forced to take foreclosure action against that popular local business. They had little choice in the matter. Thus, another small business was caused to fail.
Banks need to make loans for survival. That is their primary source of income. Because these restrictive regulatory practices have almost shut down the lending processes, many banks are in trouble. Bailout funding has only been available to banks deemed too large to fail by the Administration, or those “special” banks who have relatives of politicians on their bank boards, or have strong union or politically powerful investors.
What should be done to resolve this desperate situation?
In my opinion, more control should be returned to local owners and managers of banks. The overdone restrictions on appraisals should be relaxed somewhat, recognizing the decline in marketability of many properties in today’s market. Loan security and initial payments on equity should be set at the levels which were required in the 1970’s, around 20%. All loan considerations should be made on an ability to repay basis with no regard given to minority status or low income condition.
Special “stimulus” programs should be made available to banks in conjunction with the Small Business Administration loan guarantee programs to increase funding availability to small businesses. This will increase employment, stop business failures, and enhance local economies. Even if some of these loans fail….it is better than spending money on sidewalks no one will ever use.
Those risky low income loans which the government previously forced banks to make as part of their national “housing entitlement plan” in which they turned the entire banking system into a welfare program, should not be counted against the bank’s financial condition today. Those government imposed loans should be pulled off the bank’s portfolio of loans and transferred to a government account. This will help struggling banks improve their ratings, and properly place responsibility on the shoulders of the government where the blame should rest.
If they will focus on revitalization of the local banking systems across the nation they will be “Getting It Right”.
Rudiments: Odds and Ends Worth Mentioning-
● (Always Say Something Nice)...I am very pleased to discover funding is available for the repair and remodeling of our County Court House. In its present condition it is a scar on the face of Marianna.
● The Administration just passed a $27 Billion bailout of state funding for the School Systems. Many are saying it is primarily a “Gift” to the teachers union and SEIU. Proof that campaign donations do pay returns.
● The foreclosure action against Kindel Lanes is a sad event. If you want evidence of the recession and hard times in our community, this is an example. Other recent examples would be the closing of Cornerstone Restaurant, Jema’s, Century Lighting, Angie’s Kitchen, Habana, and the changes at Peoples First Community Bank, and the Bank of Bonifay are all examples.
● Our nation is still sinking…..When I listen to the news each day I think I have the same sensations that passengers on the Titanic must have experienced. I can hear the band playing on the upper deck from Washington. They are trying to calm my nerves and telling me all is well, while I continue to hear deep rumbling sounds around me, and feel the deck tilting as our economy tries to remain upright. I know it can not continue to remain afloat under the overwhelming weight of government, over regulation, horrendous wasteful spending, and continuing corruption. All they seem to be doing to try to save the day is…. rearrange the deck chairs.
● Another local horse has that mosquito borne equine virus. Health officials are telling us to stay indoors during the evenings, and to clean out our gutters. ….Why don’t they tell business owners to fill in those EPA mosquito ponds they had to build behind their buildings? They have created a public health danger and are ignoring it.
The funding and financial support provided to hundreds of thousands of small businesses across the nation has historically been provided by the thousands of banks spread across the land. Many of these banks are not the “too large to fail” New York variety, but are instead the small “hometown” banks which are an integral part of the financial health of their local communities.
The Washington elites tout the need for jobs creation, and with each unemployment report they seem to be desperately seeking good news on jobs creation in the private sector of the economy. Jobs creation will never occur under the existing banking climate.
This “economic engine” for our economy has been choked into an inoperative condition by federal overregulation since the housing crisis nearly bankrupted the nation two years ago. It seems that government can never find the range of “common sense” in its regulatory processes. They always seem to have the pendulum of control swung too far to the left….or too far to the right. This has certainly been the case in their approach to banking regulation.
During the “Boom” period of highly speculative investing and easy credit which prevailed during the ten years or so prior to the bursting of the “housing bubble”, the liberal “federalcrats” decided to convert the entire banking system into one huge “Habitat” program by forcing banks across the nation to make high risk home loans to people who had little chance of paying off a mortgage. Owning a home was made into another expensive and ultimately disastrous, “social entitlement” for America’s poor. Banks were harshly criticized and even penalized if they did not introduce into their loan portfolio’s the required number of minority and low income loans. Credit was easy to get, and loans were often knowingly made for more than the property was worth.
Then the financial system fell apart…bailouts…fear of depression and complete failure of the banking system… Wall Street plunges…banks and brokerages fail…our world changes.
Today those same Federal Bank Regulators who “forced fed” bad loans into every bank have introduced a set of operating rules and standards for these hometown banks which has effectively shut down the system. As a result, small businesses are unable to expand, and in many instances are unable to maintain the needed cash flow for continuation of operations. The lack of available financing is causing many small businesses to close, thus costing our nation jobs instead of creating those jobs the administration is seeking.
One aspect of the lending process in which new, strict regulations appear to be regulating in an especially “bureaucratically stupid” manner is the property appraisal process. They have forced appraisers to use ultra, ultra conservative measurements, have forced borrowers to have multiple appraisals performed, and have prohibited appraisers from living near the area where the property is located….thus increasing the inaccuracy of the appraisal due to lack of knowledge of local conditions.
Regulators are also requiring banks to have many properties with existing mortgages reappraised even if the loan is current and the borrower has never had a late payment. When these reappraisals demonstrate that the property value is deemed to be inadequate to cover the outstanding balance of the mortgage in effect, the bank is then forced to demand an immediate payment for reduction of the loan principal to a satisfactory balance….or the loan is “called”. This action often results in failure and forfeiture, even though the borrower was properly paying the debt. Bureaucratic idiocy.
The ability of local bankers to make business decisions based on their knowledge of the individuals, the nature and potential of the business, or any other personalized aspect of the evaluation is gone. It is purely a “numbers game”, with the rules dictated by federal banking authorities. Bank owners can no longer run their own business… big brother is in charge.
This is the environment in which Jeff Kindelspire has been desperately trying to get needed financing to complete his project at Kindel Lanes for the past two years. His creditor, Bank of Jackson County, resisted the pressures exerted by federal bank authorities for as long as possible, but the bank was finally forced to take foreclosure action against that popular local business. They had little choice in the matter. Thus, another small business was caused to fail.
Banks need to make loans for survival. That is their primary source of income. Because these restrictive regulatory practices have almost shut down the lending processes, many banks are in trouble. Bailout funding has only been available to banks deemed too large to fail by the Administration, or those “special” banks who have relatives of politicians on their bank boards, or have strong union or politically powerful investors.
What should be done to resolve this desperate situation?
In my opinion, more control should be returned to local owners and managers of banks. The overdone restrictions on appraisals should be relaxed somewhat, recognizing the decline in marketability of many properties in today’s market. Loan security and initial payments on equity should be set at the levels which were required in the 1970’s, around 20%. All loan considerations should be made on an ability to repay basis with no regard given to minority status or low income condition.
Special “stimulus” programs should be made available to banks in conjunction with the Small Business Administration loan guarantee programs to increase funding availability to small businesses. This will increase employment, stop business failures, and enhance local economies. Even if some of these loans fail….it is better than spending money on sidewalks no one will ever use.
Those risky low income loans which the government previously forced banks to make as part of their national “housing entitlement plan” in which they turned the entire banking system into a welfare program, should not be counted against the bank’s financial condition today. Those government imposed loans should be pulled off the bank’s portfolio of loans and transferred to a government account. This will help struggling banks improve their ratings, and properly place responsibility on the shoulders of the government where the blame should rest.
If they will focus on revitalization of the local banking systems across the nation they will be “Getting It Right”.
Rudiments: Odds and Ends Worth Mentioning-
● (Always Say Something Nice)...I am very pleased to discover funding is available for the repair and remodeling of our County Court House. In its present condition it is a scar on the face of Marianna.
● The Administration just passed a $27 Billion bailout of state funding for the School Systems. Many are saying it is primarily a “Gift” to the teachers union and SEIU. Proof that campaign donations do pay returns.
● The foreclosure action against Kindel Lanes is a sad event. If you want evidence of the recession and hard times in our community, this is an example. Other recent examples would be the closing of Cornerstone Restaurant, Jema’s, Century Lighting, Angie’s Kitchen, Habana, and the changes at Peoples First Community Bank, and the Bank of Bonifay are all examples.
● Our nation is still sinking…..When I listen to the news each day I think I have the same sensations that passengers on the Titanic must have experienced. I can hear the band playing on the upper deck from Washington. They are trying to calm my nerves and telling me all is well, while I continue to hear deep rumbling sounds around me, and feel the deck tilting as our economy tries to remain upright. I know it can not continue to remain afloat under the overwhelming weight of government, over regulation, horrendous wasteful spending, and continuing corruption. All they seem to be doing to try to save the day is…. rearrange the deck chairs.
● Another local horse has that mosquito borne equine virus. Health officials are telling us to stay indoors during the evenings, and to clean out our gutters. ….Why don’t they tell business owners to fill in those EPA mosquito ponds they had to build behind their buildings? They have created a public health danger and are ignoring it.
Friday, August 13, 2010
America’s School System is a Miserable Failure
This column presents a conservative viewpoint about items of interest in our community and our lives. Focus is on items impacting your pocket book, your personal freedoms, and your rights. I hope you will read the column regularly and it occasionally influences your opinions and actions.
In my opinion the national approach to educating the youth of our country is a terrible failure. The remarks I will make in this column are not pointed at our local school system, because I feel we in our community are blessed with a system which is functioning at a level far above the miserable performance levels which predominate across the land. Admittedly, there are hundreds of thousands of dedicated, hard working, qualified educators working to educate our nation’s children. Unfortunately, there are also hundreds of thousands of unqualified, uninspired, lazy, and uninspiring people with the title of “teacher” working in a unionized system which provides them tenure and protection.
Across the nation, the graduating product of the existing education process is a young adult which can barely read and do basic math. They have little knowledge of history, geography, government, physics, biology, social skills, health, proper English, writing skills, science, and other needed areas of personal development. Their main skills are the ability to text on a cell phone, operate a play station….and be “cool”. We are suffering from a general “Dumbing of America”.
The problem is NOT lack of expenditures. The United States spends more money per student than any other nation, yet our comparative student scoring reveals that we rank near the bottom of all industrialized nations. Throwing more money at this problem is not the solution. In fact, in areas which invest the most per student, such as Washington D.C., the scoring is lowest. The problems lie with our basic approaches and philosophies.
This tragic situation exists from our Primary Education Schools through our High Schools. How has this situation been allowed to develop in a nation steeped in a rich history of technological and social development? What negative factors have entered the involved processes? What should we do to correct this national disgrace?
It is interesting to note that this same deplorable condition does not exist in our national schools of “higher learning”. The colleges of America are institutions which are revered throughout the world, and hundreds of thousands of foreign students travel to our country for the privilege of going to college here. What are the differences in our approach to college level teaching and primary and high school teaching?
It appears to me that the situation in our public schools has evolved over the past forty years because of the influence of several negative factors working in concert to diminish the effectiveness of our educational systems. In my opinion, the principal negative components are:
● The unionization of the school system teachers and employees. The presence of unions within the educational process introduces an influence which is focused on serving its membership instead of serving the students. This is a diversion of focus. Unionization has led to a system of tenure in most schools which protects teachers who are unqualified, non performing, and are a costly “drag” on the system. For example in the New York school system there are over 1000 teachers who are paid full salary and benefits, but are so bad in performance, work habits, and behavior that no principal within the system wants them on their staff. They are thus paid to not teach….just because of their union protection. This represents millions of dollars which are needed in the classrooms but must be paid to these incompetent, worthless teachers.
● The introduction of bureaucratic and political influences via the funding processes. School systems are no longer controlled by local opinions, philosophies, and desires. Instead, they are now regulated by politically motivated oversight which emanates from the federal Department of Education, and the state departments of education. In order to qualify for the myriad of grants, funds, and programs from the federal and state agencies, the local school board and Superintendents must fully comply with every bureaucratic edict, regulation, rule, and wish the herd of overseers at those upper levels spew out. They can only ask “How high?” when ordered to “jump”. This situation has led to the removal of God from education, removal of corporal punishment, adherence to rules of “political correctness”, excessive administration and overhead, and involvement with a long list of social welfare programs which have been imbedded within the educational system. These place emphasis on teaching those students who have refused to participate and learn throughout their student history, while often neglecting the needs of those exceptional students who wish to progress and learn.
● The development of a “sue, sue, sue,” society led by a horde of hungry lawyers. Just as our doctors are forced to practice defensive medicine out of a fear of being sued in today’s lawyer dominated society, our school boards live in an environment of fear of being sued because of some school program, philosophy, or action. Because of this they constantly practice “defensive education”. This fear has led to removal of corporal punishment, the idiotic rule of a teacher never, never touching a student, removal of all prayer or semblance of a prayer from all school functions, the involvement of the courts and police to handle many discipline problems which should be handled by school authorities as routine incidents. This fear has also multiplied the cost of record keeping and detailed documentation of every action taken in enforcement of school rules. This fear has led to every school needing a costly full time police staff on site.
● The continuing disintegration of the family structure within our society which leads to lowering of moral standards, drug use among youth, an absence of religious influence, and a general decline in personal character and values. This is exhibited by a society in which over 50% of the children are born out of wedlock, thus leaving the child with no father influence. The evolution of values and beliefs based on a social philosophy in which we should rely on government to provide us with all needs instead if stressing the need for self reliance, hard work, and providing for oneself an your family. As our reliance on government is increased from generation to generation of entitlement minded citizens, the emphasis and need for a good educational foundation for survival is rendered unnecessary. Consequently educational requirements and standards have been lowered, in some instances enabling a student who can not read to graduate.
What can we do to begin the process of correction and change which must occur if we ever hope to create an educational system which will “do the job” for our children? What should we do?
#1. I feel we must return control of the educational processes for primary and high school student development to local control. We must enact legislation which prohibits supervision, regulation, and attaching of “funding strings’ by state and federal agencies.
#2. All tenure protections should be eliminated.
#3. School funding, teacher pay and staff pay should be based on a fairly conceived and designed system of performance measurement. If a staff of administrators and/or educators are not capable of teaching our children, the system should identify their shortfall and enable their replacement. Competition should prevail between schools. Good schools should be rewarded and incompetent schools should be penalized and replaced.
#4. Schools should be no larger than 200 students. This will keep schools more closely tied to community involvement and bonding, enhance parental involvement, enable more students to participate in school activities (which I feel are an essential element of the process), and will strengthen the level of individualized attention the teachers and administrators are able to give each student. I realize this will increase costs of facilities and services, but why create huge, impersonal schools which produce an uninvolved, uninspired student.
If we can regain control of our local schools….we will be “Getting It Right”. Choose your elected officials carefully.
Rudiments: Odds and Ends Worth Mentioning-
● (Say Something Nice) I am very pleased with the decisions made by the County Commissioners and many City Commissions in regards to taxes this year. They voted to keep the millage rate we had last year, which when applied in many instances to a reduced property valuation will give the overburdened property owners a small iota of tax relief. Only the School Board raised their millage, and that was due to those “strings” attached to funding measures as described in this week’s column.
● Kindel Lanes will be sold on the court house steps on Thursday…a sad state of affairs. We can all walk down our new million dollar stimulus sidewalk and think about how it came to pass as we stroll along. This is an example of the recession impacting our community.
● Football season will be beginning very shortly. That should divert our attention from our national misery.
Note: The opinions stated in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Hatcher Publications.
In my opinion the national approach to educating the youth of our country is a terrible failure. The remarks I will make in this column are not pointed at our local school system, because I feel we in our community are blessed with a system which is functioning at a level far above the miserable performance levels which predominate across the land. Admittedly, there are hundreds of thousands of dedicated, hard working, qualified educators working to educate our nation’s children. Unfortunately, there are also hundreds of thousands of unqualified, uninspired, lazy, and uninspiring people with the title of “teacher” working in a unionized system which provides them tenure and protection.
Across the nation, the graduating product of the existing education process is a young adult which can barely read and do basic math. They have little knowledge of history, geography, government, physics, biology, social skills, health, proper English, writing skills, science, and other needed areas of personal development. Their main skills are the ability to text on a cell phone, operate a play station….and be “cool”. We are suffering from a general “Dumbing of America”.
The problem is NOT lack of expenditures. The United States spends more money per student than any other nation, yet our comparative student scoring reveals that we rank near the bottom of all industrialized nations. Throwing more money at this problem is not the solution. In fact, in areas which invest the most per student, such as Washington D.C., the scoring is lowest. The problems lie with our basic approaches and philosophies.
This tragic situation exists from our Primary Education Schools through our High Schools. How has this situation been allowed to develop in a nation steeped in a rich history of technological and social development? What negative factors have entered the involved processes? What should we do to correct this national disgrace?
It is interesting to note that this same deplorable condition does not exist in our national schools of “higher learning”. The colleges of America are institutions which are revered throughout the world, and hundreds of thousands of foreign students travel to our country for the privilege of going to college here. What are the differences in our approach to college level teaching and primary and high school teaching?
It appears to me that the situation in our public schools has evolved over the past forty years because of the influence of several negative factors working in concert to diminish the effectiveness of our educational systems. In my opinion, the principal negative components are:
● The unionization of the school system teachers and employees. The presence of unions within the educational process introduces an influence which is focused on serving its membership instead of serving the students. This is a diversion of focus. Unionization has led to a system of tenure in most schools which protects teachers who are unqualified, non performing, and are a costly “drag” on the system. For example in the New York school system there are over 1000 teachers who are paid full salary and benefits, but are so bad in performance, work habits, and behavior that no principal within the system wants them on their staff. They are thus paid to not teach….just because of their union protection. This represents millions of dollars which are needed in the classrooms but must be paid to these incompetent, worthless teachers.
● The introduction of bureaucratic and political influences via the funding processes. School systems are no longer controlled by local opinions, philosophies, and desires. Instead, they are now regulated by politically motivated oversight which emanates from the federal Department of Education, and the state departments of education. In order to qualify for the myriad of grants, funds, and programs from the federal and state agencies, the local school board and Superintendents must fully comply with every bureaucratic edict, regulation, rule, and wish the herd of overseers at those upper levels spew out. They can only ask “How high?” when ordered to “jump”. This situation has led to the removal of God from education, removal of corporal punishment, adherence to rules of “political correctness”, excessive administration and overhead, and involvement with a long list of social welfare programs which have been imbedded within the educational system. These place emphasis on teaching those students who have refused to participate and learn throughout their student history, while often neglecting the needs of those exceptional students who wish to progress and learn.
● The development of a “sue, sue, sue,” society led by a horde of hungry lawyers. Just as our doctors are forced to practice defensive medicine out of a fear of being sued in today’s lawyer dominated society, our school boards live in an environment of fear of being sued because of some school program, philosophy, or action. Because of this they constantly practice “defensive education”. This fear has led to removal of corporal punishment, the idiotic rule of a teacher never, never touching a student, removal of all prayer or semblance of a prayer from all school functions, the involvement of the courts and police to handle many discipline problems which should be handled by school authorities as routine incidents. This fear has also multiplied the cost of record keeping and detailed documentation of every action taken in enforcement of school rules. This fear has led to every school needing a costly full time police staff on site.
● The continuing disintegration of the family structure within our society which leads to lowering of moral standards, drug use among youth, an absence of religious influence, and a general decline in personal character and values. This is exhibited by a society in which over 50% of the children are born out of wedlock, thus leaving the child with no father influence. The evolution of values and beliefs based on a social philosophy in which we should rely on government to provide us with all needs instead if stressing the need for self reliance, hard work, and providing for oneself an your family. As our reliance on government is increased from generation to generation of entitlement minded citizens, the emphasis and need for a good educational foundation for survival is rendered unnecessary. Consequently educational requirements and standards have been lowered, in some instances enabling a student who can not read to graduate.
What can we do to begin the process of correction and change which must occur if we ever hope to create an educational system which will “do the job” for our children? What should we do?
#1. I feel we must return control of the educational processes for primary and high school student development to local control. We must enact legislation which prohibits supervision, regulation, and attaching of “funding strings’ by state and federal agencies.
#2. All tenure protections should be eliminated.
#3. School funding, teacher pay and staff pay should be based on a fairly conceived and designed system of performance measurement. If a staff of administrators and/or educators are not capable of teaching our children, the system should identify their shortfall and enable their replacement. Competition should prevail between schools. Good schools should be rewarded and incompetent schools should be penalized and replaced.
#4. Schools should be no larger than 200 students. This will keep schools more closely tied to community involvement and bonding, enhance parental involvement, enable more students to participate in school activities (which I feel are an essential element of the process), and will strengthen the level of individualized attention the teachers and administrators are able to give each student. I realize this will increase costs of facilities and services, but why create huge, impersonal schools which produce an uninvolved, uninspired student.
If we can regain control of our local schools….we will be “Getting It Right”. Choose your elected officials carefully.
Rudiments: Odds and Ends Worth Mentioning-
● (Say Something Nice) I am very pleased with the decisions made by the County Commissioners and many City Commissions in regards to taxes this year. They voted to keep the millage rate we had last year, which when applied in many instances to a reduced property valuation will give the overburdened property owners a small iota of tax relief. Only the School Board raised their millage, and that was due to those “strings” attached to funding measures as described in this week’s column.
● Kindel Lanes will be sold on the court house steps on Thursday…a sad state of affairs. We can all walk down our new million dollar stimulus sidewalk and think about how it came to pass as we stroll along. This is an example of the recession impacting our community.
● Football season will be beginning very shortly. That should divert our attention from our national misery.
Note: The opinions stated in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Hatcher Publications.
Friday, August 6, 2010
Opinions and Comments On Current Issues
This column presents a conservative viewpoint about items of interest in our community and our lives. Focus is on items impacting your pocket book, your personal freedoms, and your rights. I hope you will read the column regularly and it occasionally influences your opinions and actions.
Arizona:
This entire situation is so filled with anti-American, political, selfish, undemocratic, and downright foolish behavior that I have trouble believing it is actually happening in our country.
The conflict has evolved into a multitude of face to face confrontations and inappropriate government policies which seem unimaginable.
First there is the responsibility of the Executive Branch to uphold the laws enacted by the Legislative Branch. Congress enacted the national immigration policies, procedures, and laws. Now our Executive Branch (Bushes branch included), have refused to have the Federal law enforcement agencies and Federal prosecution personnel enforce those laws. This is a blatant violation of the “checks and balances” prescribed in the Constitution. It is also a disgusting example of selective law enforcement because of political considerations.
This inaction by the Administration then led to Arizona taking steps which were obviously necessary on the part of the state Governor who had the responsibility of protecting the safety and welfare of the citizens of her state. Thus, Arizona enacted its own border protection laws and enforcement procedures, which were in reality merely a restatement of the Federal laws which were enacted by Congress. This action created a loud uproar from a mob comprised of some of the 15,000,000 illegal aliens we are hosting, a portion of the legal aliens on the scene, and bus loads of California union members paid for by various unions in support of the Administration.
This created a historical States Rights Vs. Federal Authority court case which is now working steadily towards a Supreme Court Ruling. Most of the lower federal courts are filled with liberal, Democratic appointee Federal Judges, and Arizona has little chance to win at any level other than the highest court in the land. Anyone who has ever read the Constitution would know what the Founding Fathers would have ruled in this case…their greatest fear was the creation of a powerful central government which would erode the then existing powers of state governments.
What is the real reason for all of this conflict? In my opinion, if Obama is able to maintain control of the House and the Senate after the elections this November, his next step on the immigration front will be to force through legislation which grants citizenship to the herd of illegal’s on a time frame which would give them voting rights before the 2012 elections. They are one of his hopes and strategies for a second term.
Political Corruption:
Charlie Rangal has been renowned as a public shyster, self serving, crooked political icon who was always assured reelection from his Harlem, New York base which exemplified those same characteristics. He was reelected twenty times and has served forty corrupt years. He became so cocky, so outlandishly full of himself and his image of being above the law that it finally caught up with him. Can anything be more representative of the unbelievable idiocy of the Washington scene than for this man to be “Chairman of the Ethics Committee”?? It is an example of how bad our fragile democracy has become. It is another example of why we need to “vote all of the rascals out of office” as soon as we have the opportunity. If it is too late, and we are unable to muster the needed majority….I fear our nation is doomed. I plead for everyone to vote (at least one time even though many of them will be voting several times). We have to “Get it Right” immediately, or we will never get it right again.
The Oil Spill:
Thank God that it appears we are about to permanently get this monster well under control I think several positive lessons may ultimately result from this experience.
First, we must determine what additional safeguards are necessary and force that technology into use.
Second, we must continue to drill but step up access to alternate sources of energy including conversion to natural gas, more nuclear, and drilling in easier to reach oil reserves such as the West, Alaska, and oil shale technology, along with more research on hydrogen cells, solar and wind technologies.
Third, we should create a poised, ready to use response system which can serve the entire Gulf shoreline with skimmers, booms, barriers, and other technology for keeping any released oil from reaching land. This could have been accomplished in this incident if political bureaucracy had not hampered international reaction and mobilization.
Clean Up:
Another thing which is interesting to observe is the ongoing clean-up efforts. It appears that the one thing that all of the experts on the environment failed to plug into the situation was the self healing skills of Mother Nature. It appears that the oil that went into the ocean has been quickly and efficiently broken down by natural microbes, and is effectively disappearing from the problem of clean-up. It appears that the discussion of oil covering the entire shoreline of the Florida peninsula and the Eastern seaboard was in error.
This leaves the problem of cleaning those areas of grassland and shore where the oil did create ecological problems. This oil could have been stopped before it reached those shores if government had not deterred and hindered reaction, but now there is a clean up problem in several areas, primarily in the Louisiana Mississippi Delta.
This is a good example of something our liberal environmentalist should heed, “Mother Nature is still in charge”.
Rudiments: Odds and Ends Worth Mentioning-
● (Always say something Nice)… The crew putting the utilities underground around the court house are a very productive, skilled, organized, and hard working crew. They exemplify what good management and motivation can accomplish in the private sector…wish we could accomplish the same in the public sector.
● I commend the County Commission and the Marianna City Commission for not raising taxes to offset the property devaluations which were recognized in the tax roll this year. (Oops- That is two nice things.
“There is no worse tyranny than to force a man to pay for what he does not want merely because you think it would be good for him.”
Robert Heinlein (1907-1988) (Provided by Dick Kranker)
Note: The opinions stated in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Hatcher Publications.
Arizona:
This entire situation is so filled with anti-American, political, selfish, undemocratic, and downright foolish behavior that I have trouble believing it is actually happening in our country.
The conflict has evolved into a multitude of face to face confrontations and inappropriate government policies which seem unimaginable.
First there is the responsibility of the Executive Branch to uphold the laws enacted by the Legislative Branch. Congress enacted the national immigration policies, procedures, and laws. Now our Executive Branch (Bushes branch included), have refused to have the Federal law enforcement agencies and Federal prosecution personnel enforce those laws. This is a blatant violation of the “checks and balances” prescribed in the Constitution. It is also a disgusting example of selective law enforcement because of political considerations.
This inaction by the Administration then led to Arizona taking steps which were obviously necessary on the part of the state Governor who had the responsibility of protecting the safety and welfare of the citizens of her state. Thus, Arizona enacted its own border protection laws and enforcement procedures, which were in reality merely a restatement of the Federal laws which were enacted by Congress. This action created a loud uproar from a mob comprised of some of the 15,000,000 illegal aliens we are hosting, a portion of the legal aliens on the scene, and bus loads of California union members paid for by various unions in support of the Administration.
This created a historical States Rights Vs. Federal Authority court case which is now working steadily towards a Supreme Court Ruling. Most of the lower federal courts are filled with liberal, Democratic appointee Federal Judges, and Arizona has little chance to win at any level other than the highest court in the land. Anyone who has ever read the Constitution would know what the Founding Fathers would have ruled in this case…their greatest fear was the creation of a powerful central government which would erode the then existing powers of state governments.
What is the real reason for all of this conflict? In my opinion, if Obama is able to maintain control of the House and the Senate after the elections this November, his next step on the immigration front will be to force through legislation which grants citizenship to the herd of illegal’s on a time frame which would give them voting rights before the 2012 elections. They are one of his hopes and strategies for a second term.
Political Corruption:
Charlie Rangal has been renowned as a public shyster, self serving, crooked political icon who was always assured reelection from his Harlem, New York base which exemplified those same characteristics. He was reelected twenty times and has served forty corrupt years. He became so cocky, so outlandishly full of himself and his image of being above the law that it finally caught up with him. Can anything be more representative of the unbelievable idiocy of the Washington scene than for this man to be “Chairman of the Ethics Committee”?? It is an example of how bad our fragile democracy has become. It is another example of why we need to “vote all of the rascals out of office” as soon as we have the opportunity. If it is too late, and we are unable to muster the needed majority….I fear our nation is doomed. I plead for everyone to vote (at least one time even though many of them will be voting several times). We have to “Get it Right” immediately, or we will never get it right again.
The Oil Spill:
Thank God that it appears we are about to permanently get this monster well under control I think several positive lessons may ultimately result from this experience.
First, we must determine what additional safeguards are necessary and force that technology into use.
Second, we must continue to drill but step up access to alternate sources of energy including conversion to natural gas, more nuclear, and drilling in easier to reach oil reserves such as the West, Alaska, and oil shale technology, along with more research on hydrogen cells, solar and wind technologies.
Third, we should create a poised, ready to use response system which can serve the entire Gulf shoreline with skimmers, booms, barriers, and other technology for keeping any released oil from reaching land. This could have been accomplished in this incident if political bureaucracy had not hampered international reaction and mobilization.
Clean Up:
Another thing which is interesting to observe is the ongoing clean-up efforts. It appears that the one thing that all of the experts on the environment failed to plug into the situation was the self healing skills of Mother Nature. It appears that the oil that went into the ocean has been quickly and efficiently broken down by natural microbes, and is effectively disappearing from the problem of clean-up. It appears that the discussion of oil covering the entire shoreline of the Florida peninsula and the Eastern seaboard was in error.
This leaves the problem of cleaning those areas of grassland and shore where the oil did create ecological problems. This oil could have been stopped before it reached those shores if government had not deterred and hindered reaction, but now there is a clean up problem in several areas, primarily in the Louisiana Mississippi Delta.
This is a good example of something our liberal environmentalist should heed, “Mother Nature is still in charge”.
Rudiments: Odds and Ends Worth Mentioning-
● (Always say something Nice)… The crew putting the utilities underground around the court house are a very productive, skilled, organized, and hard working crew. They exemplify what good management and motivation can accomplish in the private sector…wish we could accomplish the same in the public sector.
● I commend the County Commission and the Marianna City Commission for not raising taxes to offset the property devaluations which were recognized in the tax roll this year. (Oops- That is two nice things.
“There is no worse tyranny than to force a man to pay for what he does not want merely because you think it would be good for him.”
Robert Heinlein (1907-1988) (Provided by Dick Kranker)
Note: The opinions stated in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Hatcher Publications.
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