Myth: Schools don't have enough money

First you say there is no correlation whatsoever, and then you say there is definitely a negative correlation. It has to be either/or; can't be both.

Perhaps I didn't do a good enough job in conveying the irony of attempts to correlate money spent to academic performance, but that was my intent, not to "have it both ways". When dealing with statistical noise, you can pretty much twist the results to say anything you want. My point is that, overall, money spent as it relates to academic performance is statistical noise.

The population of the town in which I live is less than 1000 souls. There are easily more cattle here than people. Corruption and nepotism are not limited to small towns, and I submit that the larger the town, the easier it is to hide corruption and nepostism. I don't have to look far here to make that observation.

As far as I know, the schools in New Hampshire are all closed shops. The unions here are behind a lot of the political upheaval we are seeing and the torturing of our Constitution to say something that it plainly doesn't, flying in the face of over 200 years of jurisprudence.

When one chooses a profession, he also chooses the risks, known and unknown, that come with it. As an engineer, a previously unknown risk has emerged whereby my job, and those of my fellows, may be shipped off to India or some other place. That's just business. We have to deal with it as professionals. We may even have to find something else to do.

Choosing a field of endeavor, and then complaining about the vicissitudes of that field of endeavor, is bad form at best.

My point is that, overall, money spent as it relates to academic performance is statistical noise.

That's probably so, because there are so many confounding factors. IF you could hold all the other variables (cost of living, parental involvement, etc.) constant, you might see a difference, who knows? I do think that annual salary has some effect on how many people attempt to enter a profession and the qualifications of said people, but again, that's not the only variable.

As far as I know, the schools in New Hampshire are all closed shops.

That seems to be the case in several of the northeastern states, as well as California. It's not true in the South, where the unions are pretty weak. I'm not sure that it's true of most of the the states west of the Mississippi either.

Choosing a field of endeavor, and then complaining about the vicissitudes of that field of endeavor, is bad form at best.

Are you referring to the need for professional liability insurance? I'd consider that a result of a lawsuit-happy public. You'll notice that medical personnel also carry it. Industrial engineers may or may not, although I'd guess that civil engineers tend to.

For that matter, teaching is my second career, and it seems to me that those who run businesses are more professional and less capricious than most elected school boards. In most communities I've seen, being elected to school board can be the adult equivalent of homecoming court or prom king, and may or may not require any actual experience or knowledge, whether academic, administrative, or other.

I always wondered why people would choose to live in DC rather than Northern VA, pay higher income taxes, have less public safety and lousy public schools.

Does six minutes door to desk resonate with you? Some of us don't care to spend two to four hours a day in our cars. D.C. is full of lovely neighborhoods with minimal commutes.

Public safety? Capitol Hill is safer than Old Town Alexandria. Depends on the neighborhood, and as anywhere, things can shift in a matter of blocks. Taxes are a mixed bag; our income tax is high, but the 'burbs ain't exactly cheap either, and what we give up on income taxes you lose on property taxes. The differential is less than a lot of people think. I grant you the schools; private school is part of the deal for the middle class to live in the city.

Each to his own. D.C. is gentrifying fast. If you've been away for a few years, you will be in for a surprise when you come back.

I had friends in the 90s that lived on Capitol Hill (about half way between the Capitol and RFK. They had been burglarized twice and had to spend $$$$ on reinforcing their doors and windows. Also, didn't go for walks down the street after dark. Has it changed that much?
As for being close to work. If you live in N.Va, Rosslyn, Ballston or Crystal City, commuting would be great. I lived for five years in Woodbridge and "slugged' into the Pentagon (job was great, commute stank).

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