Posted on 07/05/2002 6:25:02 AM PDT by SheLion
As to the failure of public schools in general, open your eyes and look around. It's pretty clear if your eyes are open.
I'm not saying all public schools are failures,but most of them are. Public schools are where kids go to learn what part of their anatomy needs piercing or where to place a tattoo. Or how about this one? How to put on a rubber. Every kid needs to know how to do that.
What the schools need to teach is math, language and science. And history wouldn't hurt either.
We have a long-term care unit of 33 beds which we'd like to keep going.
To do that we must have a hospital near-by and a doctor on call.
To be called a hospital we must have an ER room with beds and a doctor on call.
The ER room and the doctor are big money loosers because we have so little business for them.
We can't provide other normal hospital services for pretty much the same reasons.
We are looking for ways to provide these services more cheaply and for some solution to the emergency room problem.
In addition there is the general, country-wide program of inadequate remuneration for services.
I posed these problems to Ozone 1 (and one other poster) because I thought they were knowledgeable professionals.
Ozone 1 proposed some stuff which I can't evaluate (I'm a citizen volunteer). The hospital administrator - a professional - is supposed to do that. I have no reason to believe that Ozone 1 hasn't been honest in his proposals. I'll find out their value when I send them to the administrator.
Now what's wrong with that? Whats bothering you?
Don't tell my pediatrician that!!!!!!!!
When my daughter was about 6 months old (she turned 4 this week) she had hit a spot where she wasn't gaining much weight and the doc told me to add her ice cream to her diet because of the fat content. I knew that wouldn't be a problem because there is ALWAYS ice cream in my house. That night, after dinner and the requisite nursing session, I headed for the freezer. My poor husband thought something was wrong with me when I practically hit the floor because I was laughing so hard - the only ice cream we had was FAT-FREE!!!!!!
My whole problem with this is the prohibitionist incrementalism - what is now called the slippery slope.
OTOH, I'm lucky - so much of this is genetics. Neither my husband nor I were soda drinkers as kids, not because it wasn't available, because we didn't want it. My daughter's drink of choice is milk. With the excessive heat we've had lately I've been pushing juice and water, which she readily accepts. So when she asks for a soda - guess what? She gets it. Her favorite foods also happen to be vegetables. I don't think obesity, or even being fat, is going to be problem for her. I'm 5'10" and weigh 120.
What you can't seem to grasp is that I and many others have listened to the liberal argument and it doesn't hold water. Big government "solutions" make problems worse, not better. With any luck you'll realize that someday. And that day will come when you have to earn a living in the real world.
I'm a sucker. I keep trying. In your case it worked I got something reasonable.
Yes, large numbers of public schools are failing.
You and I would probably agree on the reasons. PC. Political Correctness. Equality of opportunity morphed into equality of result. Forced busing. Affirmative action. Remedies to social problems carried to extremes which in turn have created other problems.
But closing down the public schools is another extreme - and not remotely possible in the real world. Forget about recreating the past. Even if it were as good as you remember it - which it never was.
So people will work it out as they always do in America. Vouchers are a good idea. They'll shake things up. People who've been secure in their wrong-headedness will now run scared and re-examine things. That's good.
But I don't for a minute think that private schools have the answers either. There have always been kids who get a great education no matter what - smart kids, ambitious kids, lucky kids. And there've always been those who simply can't be educated. And there's always been the great middle. It's the middle that suffers most under a bad system. Probably what will happen is that we'll return to something like what existed in my day. The incorrigebles will be kicked out for the sake of the middle. But who knows, really.
And junk food shouldn't be sold in the schools no matter what.
As to your first assertion,I agree. As to your second assertion what you think I said was reasonable does not agree with your beliefs no matter what you claim. I never trust a snake with honey on it's tounge.
A perfect example of the kind of stereotypical assumptions, close-mindedness, and casual insult that I was talking about. I'm retired.
What you can't seem to grasp is that I and many others have listened to the liberal argument and it doesn't hold water. Big government "solutions" make problems worse, not better.
What big government solution? We're talking about stopping the sale of soda pop on schools campus' in Maine. The alternative is to allow it to continue. Why make it into a big ideological issue? Are you really afraid that it's the first slippery step towards depriving you of you property and freedom? If so, I can't follow you. Too paranoid for me.
You have a professional admistrator, what is his cut.
What is the nurse to patient ratio?
How many "sick people" visit the emergency room.
How many employees are related to county elected officals/
What is the compensation of the employees compared to the County Average Wage?
What is the political demographics of the county and the political demographics of the hospital?
As you can see by the questions that I am a Masshole and there is something for someone in this mix, you perhaps?
I didn't. You did.
Yes you were. And as far as me being an ass, I thank you for pointing that out. It was very sensitive and kind of you to do so.
When I see a valid proposal to reduce the tax burden on the people of Maine, talk to me.
I thought as much. You talk a great game when it comes to tolerance but you fall short when it comes to the practice of it.
I'm not sure what you mean but we have no problem filling the beds.
What is the nurse to patient ratio?
The minimum required by law. We have a nurse-practitioner and two aids on duty at all times for the 33 beds. And a doctor on call at night and on the floor most days.
How many "sick people" visit the emergency room.
Ah, yes. The $64 question. A helicopter brings in an injured hiker once or twice a month. A similar number of car wrecks. A few locals.
How many employees are related to county elected officals
Can't answer you directly. But two directors did an extensive study of the books - looking for fraud. Couldn't find anything significant.
What is the compensation of the employees compared to the County Average Wage?
Can't answer that one. But we are constantly losing employees because we pay them significantly less than other hospitals in the West do. In addition there's a special problem with nurses. There's a nationwide shortage so they're hard to get AND, by going hourly, they can get really high compensation - $60-70/hr if I remember correctly.
What is the political demographics of the county and the political demographics of the hospital?
Long-term poor Republican county, generally. Used to be farming and ranching. Still a few big ranchers. In transition economically to ? The hospital politics are much simpler - everyone wants to save it.
As you can see by the questions that I am a Masshole and there is something for someone in this mix, you perhaps?
Well, until I got here I thought you were serious. At least I'm satisfied that I explored this avenue honestly. Not real happy with what I've found.
You repeatedly give yourself too much credit. You don't think at all.
You talk a great game when it comes to tolerance but you fall short when it comes to the practice of it.
Stick your butt in the air and I'll take a shot at it. Why not?
First, you persist in calling me a liberal because of my screen name and regardless of my arguments. Foolish in the extreme.
Second, you think that I'm going to tolerate your nonsense and your insults - pretend they're reasonable arguments. Pathetic.
Why not? I've tolerated yours. I guess we will have to agree to disagree. Or is that concept to difficult for you. I've been dropping hints about it for some time now.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.