Posted on 06/16/2003 3:21:35 PM PDT by webber
This one's so Outrageous, it makes our blood boil just to think of it. Take a look at his message:
ISSUE: Kim and George Bryant have been home-schooling their two kids, George (15) and Nyssa (13), much to the chagrin of the Waltham Public School (WPS) system. The Bryants thus far have refused to force their children to take a government-mandated standardized test to assess their education level.
The WPS empire struck back last year, obtaining a court order giving custody of the kids to the Department of Social Services (DSS), which ever since has been threatening to take the kids away from their parents.
As the MetroWest Daily News reported on Friday, "Both sides agree that the children are in no way abused mentally, physically, sexually or emotionally, but legal custody of the children was taken from Kim and George Bryant in December 2001." They were ruled to be "unfit" for not filing educational plans with the government.
Unfit. For not filing paperwork. With the government school system. Over the education of their OWN children.
In fact, George Bryant was actually ARRESTED six years ago for failing to comply with the government's dictates over the home-schooled education of HIS children.
Arrested!!...Thrown in jail!!...Like a criminal!!...For taking personal responsibility for the education of HIS kids.
This six-year legal battle exploded on Thursday as bureaucrats from the DSS showed up at the Bryants' home with police escorts at 7:45 a.m. and attempted to remove the children from their home and force them to take the mandated tests.
Once again, the Bryants told the government agents to pound dirt, resulting in a seven-hour standoff.
"This has been a six-year battle between the Waltham Public Schools and our family over who is in control of the education of our children," said Bryant.
How DARE these parents stand up to the government and defend their right to raise their children as they see fit? Who do they think they are?
At least, that's the attitude of one outrageous government bureaucrat involved in this brouhaha. "We have the legal custody of the children and we will do with them as we see fit," DSS trooper Susan Etscovitz told the Bryants Thursday morning. "They are minors and they do what we tell them to do."
It is near impossible to describe the rage I feel inside every time I read those chilling words. WE will do with them as WE see fit. They do what WE tell them to do.
The sheer audacity of a bureaucrat to make such a statement about someone else's children who are in no way abused in any shape, form or fashion is beyond comprehension to me.
Comrade Etscovitz maintained on Thursday that, "No one wants these children to be put in foster homes. The best course of action would be for (the Bryants) to instruct the children to take the test."
One can just imagine her words being delivered with a thick East German accent: "undt now, all vee need eez dee kidz!"
This isn't about education. It's about control. It's about an imperial government trying to crush a movement in its infancy which could one day spell the end of the public school monopoly over our kids' educations.
Home-schooling means children might start learning again. REAL learning. Not "whole language" and "self-esteem." Learning about radical notions such as freedom, liberty and personal responsibility. Notions such as limited government and the Constitution and the vision of our Founding Fathers.
Yeah, we can't have THAT!
ACTION ITEM: As it appears that DSS is getting its marching orders from the Waltham Public Schools, it seems the best place to start is with the School Superintendent there. Her name is Dr. Susan Parrella. She can be reached via email at:
parrellas@k12.waltham.ma.us
or by phone at:
(781) 314-5400
or fax at:
(781) 314-5411.
Emails are great... but nothing quite ruins a bureaucrat's day like dealing with a flood of phone calls. I know. I just called. The woman who answered the phone hung up on me when she found out what I was calling about. They do NOT want to answer any questions about this.
Oh, and by the way. I reached Ms. Etscovitz this morning. She was not a happy camper once she found out what I was calling about. Refused to comment on her "we will do with them as we see fit" statement, saying only, "I'm terminating this conversation now," before slamming the phone down.
I think it would really bug her if a lot of people called (781) 641-8500, so please, please don't rattle her cage, OK? That number not to call again to reach Susan Etscovitz is (781) 641-8500. That's (781) 641-8500. (You could also fax her at 781-648-6909.)
-- Chuck Muth, ConservativeAlerts.Com
NOTE: The situation in Waltham has gotten WAY out of hand.
Outraged Americans across the country need to contact these bureaucrats NOW to express their outrage and demand they do the RIGHT thing. Be sure to forward this email to everyone you know who wants to help save parental choice in America, starting in Massachusetts. p> Thank you!
--Chuck Muth, ConservativeAlerts.Com
If these educrat-fascists were really worried about kids growing up to be a drain on society, they'd focus on the kids who ARE in their government schools, which routinely turn out large numbers of completely ignorant, illiterate, and uncivilized young adults. The worst homeschooled kids aren't as bad as the worst government-schooled kids. As for the religious nutcase homeschoolers, at least they make sure the kids can READ -- so what if they've never read anything but the Bible; if they can read, then when they're grown up and out of the nest, they'll be ABLE to read other things.
Wrong person, too, since I wold never quote the EB.
Dissappointed too, because I had a really juicy reply, and now it's wasted.
Hank
Not that I'm disagreeing either way, but were you talking about the goose-steppers in the article, or their ideological clones (pseudo-conservative RINOs defending their actions) here in this thread?
Bwaaahahahahahahaaa! It's hilarious to me that you think the government is the final arbitor of education!! It is neither the right nor the responsibility of government to oversee the 'education' of children. Society has no right to test my or your children to see if they are educated to 'government standards', much less to take away perfectly happy children from a loving home because they will not submit the whim of some bureaucrat.
The failure of government schools is overwhelming. I know, I went to public school on the south side of Chicago. Thank God my parents provided me with what little time they could to educate me, and they also instilled in me a desire to learn. I learned despite public school, not because of it.
We are, if you do not know this by now, a nation of laws. Without them, total chaos and self interests impose on the rights of others.
The genius freedom philosophers that began this country came from 'nations of laws'. The rights of the individual are what make this country great, not the fact that assinine, ivory tower control freaks pass volume upon volume of laws every year. This country's value is 'Free'dom, not 'Law'dom.
Oh, and btw, laws can be an instrument to impose "chaos and self-interest" as well. Or are you that naive?
They don't seem to care about that at the government schools. Talk about hypocrisy. For every flaky home schooler, there are thousands upon thousands of braindead victims of educrats.
How about this for a compromise:
The kid takes the test. If he scores "average" or better, the parents get a refund on their property taxes for the "average" cost to educate a child in MA.
This would assume of course, that what passes for the American education system is concerned primarily with education. In reality, their only objective is indoctrination and building empires based on stolen goods.
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