[geedee]

This, to moi, should infuriate those of you with children. Where was I when the NEA was given this kind of power? Asleep, obviously. We have to take it back.

[elbucko]

The NEA sends more voting delegates to the Democratic National Convention than does the State of California, yet the NEA enjoys tax-exempt status, claiming not to engage in political activities of any kind.

This is disgusting. Most organizations that lean to the left, such as AARP, receive tax preference. Donations to conservative groups, to the contrary, are not deductable.

[ClearCase_guy]

People with self-esteem never talk about it. People who won't shut up about self-esteem are always lacking in self-esteem. Teachers lack self-esteem (as well they should) and they convince their students that focusing on self-esteem rather than accomplishments is the right way to go. Sickening.

[CatoRenasci]

The NEA obtained this power pretty much by asking for it and by default. The obtained it when public employees were allowed to organize. The obtained it when school boards knucked under to strike threats instead of saying "fine, you want to strike? you're all fired. And we'll staff the schools with adminstrators and volunteers until you come crawling back without the union or we can hire certifed teachers or get the volunteers certified. And by the way, no more tenure. No politics."

Public unions can be broken, Reagan did it, Thatcher did it. It takes will and the will to mobilize resources to do without the 'withheld labor' of the unionistas.

[Fiddlstix]

.....Most intellectuals believe that they are superior to all other people, who, even if they must use their minds in their work, have sold out in some manner to achieve their economic success.......

Seems to me I've met one or two of those....

[elbucko]

Where was I when the NEA was given this kind of power? Asleep, obviously.

If I recollect correctly, National Education Assn. was founded by an insurance agent whose wife happened to be a teacher. He cooked up a better insurance package than teachers were getting from their districts. Sounds good to me. But once the money and power were there, corruption by the Democrats soon followed.

[A_perfect_lady]

Oh, and finally: to be a teacher you have to go through the Education courses at your local university, where you will be fed left-wing propaganda relentlessly.

Sweden good, USA bad;
collectivist good, individualist bad;
black, hispanic, native American good; white, jewish, bad;
Islam good; Christian, Jewish, bad;
socialism good, capitalism bad;
enrivonmentalists good, industrialists bad;
emotion good, reason bad;
and on and on and on.

[RightOnline]

I had been listening to one of my sons, a sophomore in high school, tell me time and time again about his ELP (economics, law, politics) teacher spouting liberal drivel, putting down conservatism, Republicans, and President Bush. This has been going on all year to date, and finally......enough was enough. The following took place little over a week ago:

I asked my son to get me this teacher's email address. He did it.....if a bit nervously.:) I sent this clown an email wherein I explained that I was VERY aware of what he had been spouting to his class (his own, very liberal opinions) under the guise of "teaching". I challenged him to openly debate such issues with me in front of his class(es) if he was so sure of the veracity of his stances. I made it clear that it was his duty to teach; to present facts; to present multiple sides of every issue. He wasn't doing that, so I called him on it. I also laid out my qualifications for such a debate, provided my work and home phone numbers, and awaited a response.

I got one......and double quick.

The guy sent me an email response and fell all OVER himself apologizing. I mean, I thought he was going to drive to my house and beg to kiss my behind while exposing his throat.

No more problem.

Stand up to these jerks, folks, and CHALLENGE them. Like all bullies, they back down when someone stands up to them.

[Lil'freeper]

The author is naming the trees but ignoring the forest.

The motivating force behind teaching and all the problems of mass-schooling is control, which is, of course, the heart of leftism. Control drives the unions, it drives the laws, it lays seige on the homeschoolers. (Perhaps the desire for control arises out of low self-esteem or perhaps the low self-esteem develops out of a failure to do something besides learn how to control. It matters not. Any point that relies on a "self-esteem" argument is lame.)

John Taylor Gatto wrote an excellent essay ( The Six-Lesson Schoolteacher) on this topic. Even the most well-meaning teachers fall into the control trap.

[lainde]

bttt for later read

[Lando Lincoln]

Good commentary. Another related problem is that many enter the education profession because they already feel inadequate for other professions. And, our universtities are churning out tons of these "professionals". Each of them enter the profession knowing full well the supply/demand for teachers and the prevailing compensation. Once there, they see that large segments of the population are passing them by - and a form of class envy develops. Once there is class envy, they become easy prey for the mantras of the left.

[em2vn]

One hundred thousand plus in a large school system? Wrong. My little city in Missouri has one high school, one junior high school and five elementary schools plus one tech school. We have one superintendant at about $130 thousand a year plus two assistant superintendants. This is in a city of slightly more than ten thousand citizens. I think large systems such as Kansas City or St. Louis are over the $250 thousand a year range.

[Paradox]

My first wife was a public school teacher. She was one of the very few conservative ones. The majority of her peers, I found to be shallow, pseudointellectuals. A criticism I have heard is that the pool of public school teacher candidates was made up of people who were too wimpy to get a job in the private sector. Well, I find that to be true.

My wife had first worked for many years in the private sector, before getting a job teaching. She was hard nosed and didn't take any cr*p from her students, and she was a "special ed" teacher (basically, all the problem behavioral students). She was so good she went on to win an award in the State for teacher of the year, or some such.

But the fact is, most teachers are exactly as the stereotypes portray them. Beevis and Butthead do an excellent parody, as does South Park.

[RushLake]

But, but, but......if it wasn't for teachers, where would the rich doctors and lawyers come from?

We live in one of the most affluent school districts in our state. Thankfully, both of our kids are now in college and do not seem to be too badly maladjusted. It was a struggle to keep them on the RIGHT path. When we went to PS functions (band concert, parent/teacher conference, etc), they all invariably featured a poverty speech. Jenny Mulhern, Michigan's next governor, has promised the MEA (Michigan Extortion Association) that she will work to overthrow the law that prohibits teachers striking.

[xsmommy]

ping

[1Old Pro]

the average salary of a U.S. public school teacher for the 2001-02 school year was $44,499. No doubt, this is much lower than other professions such as law and medicine, but one can't enter those with a 2.0 undergrad average from, say, Chico State

One must recalculate the $44,499 to reflect the fact that teachers get over 3 months OFF.

[MeneMeneTekelUpharsin]

Not ALL teachers are leftists. Why don't some of you try supporting and backing up those of us who think correctly? Hello?

We're out here...we just don't get much support. My main beef with conservatives is that they don't support each other. The liberal element sticks together like glue.

[kstewskis]

ping-ing my dear, humble, and obedient to the North!

[Zeroisanumber]

Say it with me class.

Teachers are not all lefties...

And?

People who generalize are automatically going to be wrong...

And?

If you think that it's so damn easy, you come and try it for a semester.

Thank you class.

[FreedomPoster]

>>Where was I when the NEA was given this kind of power?

I remember a Forbes magazine cover from at least 10 or 15 years ago, with a chalk blackboard and an apple, and a headline that was something like "The Most Dangerous Organization in America." The cover feature article was of course about the NEA.

BTW, anyone who reads the general business magazines will quickly come to the conclusion that Fortune is written by Democratic Socialists and Forbes is reasonably conservative.

[Salvation]

On a side note here:

I subbed at a school last week where I got into a discussion about shopping for Christmas and asked a teacher if she had heard about WalMart having its biggest sale day ever.

Her reply:

"Oh, I certainly would never shop at WalMart because they are a non-union store and as a union member I just would not lower myself to go there."

Made me want to go over and purchase something at WalMart (not made in China)! LOL!

So the answer to the title is union, union, union, NEA, NEA, NEA.