Ask parents who the education terrorists are

Jewish World Review ^ | Feb. 25, 2004 | Michael Graham

[SJackson]

"[Calling the NEA a 'terrorist organization' is] the most vile and disgusting form of hate speech, comparing those who teach America's children to terrorists." — Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe.

Of course Rod Paige was wrong when he called America's most powerful teacher's union a "terrorist organization." Al Qaeda isn't nearly as bad at terrorism as the NEA is at educating our children.

Everyone agrees, including Secretary of Education Paige himself, that his flippant comment went too far. He apologized, the White House is pleased that he apologized, and the Democrats are thrilled to have yet another opportunity to prove they have sold out totally and utterly to Big Labor, particularly the teacher's unions. So everybody's happy.

Everyone, that is, except parents who care about children trapped in the wildly expensive, pathetically underachieving government-run school system. And why are these moms and dads trapped? Because of a political cell of heartless, vicious, ideologically-driven extremists who are willing to sacrifice the future of millions of American kids for the sake of their personal gain and ideological principles.

No, the NEA is not a "terrorist group." Not quite.

For example, nobody believes the NEA actually wants our kids dead. But they certainly don't care to see them educated, either. And parents who want the best education for their children don't go to bed each night in fear of the teacher's unions. But perhaps they should.

When Secretary Paige made his unfortunate remark he was meeting with a group of governors, all under pressure from teacher's unions back home to wiggle out of the Bush Administration's "No Child Left Behind" act. According to the states' own testing, about 25% of public schools perform so poorly that no student should be forced to attend them. Keeping kids trapped in these schools almost assures they will either drop out, or flunk out, or receive an education so useless it will limit the economic opportunity of their entire lives.

What kind of heartless monsters would want to continue to force children into these failing, educational rat holes? That would be the NEA.

The teacher's unions are terrified of Bush education policies that might allow families to escape the worst-of-the-worst public schools. Why? Because that's where the worst-of-the-worst public school employees go to get their paychecks. Does the NEA care that these schools are so lousy they couldn't teach a University of Colorado football player how to get lucky in a Vegas bordello? Of course not.

In Washington, DC, the NEA is desperately trying to kill a voucher program that would rescue a handful of children from the worst performing, most dangerous schools in America. Is it because these vouchers take away money from an underfunded public school system? Only if you D.C.'s $12,000 per student is "underfunded."

Washington schools aren't underfunded. What they are, and have been for a generation, are cesspools of educational incompetence. And yet the NEA is screaming, yelling and suing to keep low-income black kids trapped inside those walls. The closer those children come to a quality education at a private academy or parochial school (for about half the cost, by the way), the more frenzied the teachers' unions become in their efforts to shove these children back down.

[Hegewisch Dupa]

When my best lib buddy puffed out his chest in regard the Sec's remark I did have to admit it was unfair and unjust. At least terrorists admit to the harm they cause.

[sausageseller]

I think it should read: When my best lib buddy puffed out his chest in regard the Sec's remark I did have to admit it was unfair and unjust to the terrorists. Because they admit to the harm they cause.

[TMSuchman]

My daughter has a terrible teacher & I refer to him as a terrorist! I is sssssoooo liberal he makes klinton look consertive. So far there is nothing we can do to remove this idot from his job! He has tenur[sp], thus he can not be removed! thanks nea for this MORON!

[magslinger]

"[Calling the NEA a 'terrorist organization' is] the most vile and disgusting form of hate speech, comparing those who teach America's children to terrorists." — Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe.

I think Terry has a point. But then I don't really care if terrorists are offended

[EdReform]

Bump

The National Education Association: America’s Fifth Column

The National Education Association: Emphasis on the Ass

[valkyrieanne]

Excuse me - these "moms and dads are trapped" because, for one thing, there *is* no "dad." Mom has 4-5 children out of wedlock, probably uses drugs, and the children start school academically and intellectually *behind.*

The real "terrorism" here is the terrorism of immorality and family disintegration in the inner cities. *Good* public schools are getting ruined by No Child Left Behind, because even the Republicans are too politically correct to identify *destructive family behaviors* at the root of most poor children's inability to do well in school.

If people are "trapped" in inner-city ghetto schools, don't blame the teachers.

[bluegrass]

Ditto

[netmilsmom]

Homeschool!

My daughter's ex vice-principal was Mr. Talbot - all the parents called him "Mr. Taliban". I thank God everyday that he gave me the means to educate my daughters myself.

[GigaDittos]

A poor education is part of the communist agenda. It IS part of the Marxist/Leninist/Communist doctrine. Make no mistake about it.

[netmilsmom]

When I first moved to MI, a neighbor told me that the main mission of the schools here is to educate line workers. My hubby (from MI) was greatly offended.
When our schools slipped from 37th to 43rd in the country, he may not have agreed with the statement by the neighbor, but saw the truth and I was allowed to homeschool.

(also thanks to many FReepers who helped with facts)

[LandofLincoln]

The teacher's union has done more to destroy the education process than the ALL other entities combined. I am a parent, and that is my vote.

[sandydipper]

Maybe not terrorist but real close. The NEA makes terminating an idiot teacher impossible and many of the NEA bureaucrats are being investigated for theft of general funds. I think teacher's unions should be banned.

[savedbygrace]

The NEA supports homosexual rights, and advances the homosexual agenda in the classroom through its member teachers.

Homosexual behavior kills people earlier in life than non-homosexual behavior. Therefore, it can be argued that the NEA does support killing our children. Killing them earlier than they would otherwise die if they had not been exposed to, and encouraged to be a part of, the homosexual community.

[savedbygrace]

Of course, in saying they are killing, I mean that they are contributing to the early deaths of a number of their charges.

[TheSpottedOwl]

I'm a little terrified about Bush's foray into Federal education mandates...and I'm a parent. The problem is that the teachers are terrified, so it rolls down to the kids. My daughter cries every morning about going to school. In her math classes for instance, she hopscotches between geometry and fractions, but hasn't mastered multiplication and division yet. She's 9, btw. This in turn frustrates me, and I'm worried that she's going to get a bad attitude about school.

I've never been fond of the NEA, or public education, but it's getting worse.

[r9etb]

I've got some education terrorists for you -- those dumbasses who think they can improve education by forcing teachers to do hours of paperwork, and who think it's a swell idea to soak up literally weeks of instruction time on state-mandated tests.

Among other things, this crap chases out good folks who have better things to do than waste their efforts on non-teaching related bureaucracy -- thereby making the problem worse.

And the real irony here is that it's the "reformers," those who claim to be opposed to the NEA, who are the most guilty.

[RightField]

In the Feb 2004 edition of the "California Educator," the California Teacher's Assocation (NEA) magazine, CTA President Barbara Kerr says the following in her monthly remarks about her talks with Governor Schwartzenegger:

"Throughout our negotiations with the governor, I knew we would have to compromise, but I also knew we would not capitulate. We kept our core values always in mind: protect our members, protect our students, and save our public schools."

She also encourages teachers to vote for Howard Dean ....

[RightField]

#16
In her math classes for instance, she hopscotches between geometry and fractions, but hasn't mastered multiplication and division yet.

Sounds to me like she's being victimized by an "integrated" approach to mathematics, along the lines of Mathland or some similar curriculum. Sad.

[Eva]

The quality of public school education is inversely proportionate to the growth of the NEA.

There was a good article on the NEA is the WSJ this morning. It's not on Opinion Journal, though. Too bad.