Quoted from DemocraticVoiceOfReason

I believe ---- at least that is what I was taught --- that we fought the American Revolution to end taxation without representation.    Our founding fathers would not have supported private schools  (in this case Charter Schools) taking tax dollars away from public schools.    

Surprisingly or maybe not so surprising , those who claim to be so "authentically American" with their "tea party thinking" ... really don't know their history ... don't really know what the American Revolution was all about ... nor what America's founding principles were.     They are really "cafeteria Americans" ... they pick and choose which times to go by the original intent of our Constitution and other founding documents --- and which times to just toss them aside to push their own foolish ideas.

Oh, DV, you are so out of touch.

In the founding father's day, there wasn't the bullying in the schools, schools weren't dangerous, teachers weren't padding their pensions and ripping off the taxpayers, schools didn't have miserable 50% graduation rates.

I'll bet that DV is cheering that this poor low income struggling woman has gone to jail.  

DV's idea of education is government dictatorship of parents, but rich people are exempt - rich have choices, the poor people do not

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/mom-jailed-for-sending-kids-to-better-school-12766049

Listen in this story.  They said the woman wasn't paying taxes in the nicer district.  Well, the woman wasn't paying taxes in the district in which she lived either - she lived in public housing because she was poor, and public housing is exempt from paying taxes.

Poor (financially) mother - DV would say to this mother, "you are poor, well, tough sh*t, you can't choose your children's education, choice is allowed ONLY for the rich.

I am anxiously awaiting the unveiling of the proposed State Budget.  No use continuing the discussion here until we see that proposal.

Quoted from mikechristine1

Oh, DV, you are so out of touch.

In the founding father's day, there wasn't the bullying in the schools, schools weren't dangerous, teachers weren't padding their pensions and ripping off the taxpayers, schools didn't have miserable 50% graduation rates.

There wasn't the (unconstitutional) Department of Education, either.

Imagine if we just had the tax money that goes into this DOE to spend locally on fixing the schools.  That would be BILLIONS of dollars back in the local schools.

Actually - in our founding fathers' days ... kids were bullied in school ... graduation rates were probably a lot lower than 50 % ...  and  most families could only afford to let the kids leave the farm or shop to go to school for a few years -- many not at all.

So -- don't give me this crap that everything was so much better back then.    The fact is that MORE children are literate today than in our founding father's day ...  MORE children actually have access to education.

So -- nattering nayboob -- pick up a book  - if you know how to read - and learn the facts before you shoot off your mouth.

Quoted from DemocraticVoiceOfReason

Actually - in our founding fathers' days ... kids were bullied in school ... graduation rates were probably a lot lower than 50 % ...  and  most families could only afford to let the kids leave the farm or shop to go to school for a few years -- many not at all.

So -- don't give me this crap that everything was so much better back then.    The fact is that MORE children are literate today than in our founding father's day ...  MORE children actually have access to education.

So -- nattering nayboob -- pick up a book  - if you know how to read - and learn the facts before you shoot off your mouth.

but not because of the public schools.....because we have 'evolved'....the scary part is loosing the ability/knowledge to survive
without the infrastructure....and the slow or possibly  the inability to change when that infrastructure under you does....

In my line of work I have learned that some folks who are in a situation they dont like and with enough money can just move themselves
or other people to make them comfortable(fine, they worked for that) but, there is a price to pay---the loss of self preservation
when there is nothing/no one to preserve you any more....

I say cut all funding at the state level.  That way, the people who need to pay the bills get to pay the bills. If they need more funding for their school district, LET THEM PAY IT.  Government needs to be as close to home as possible.  Let the school district send out the bill to the residents for the FULL cost of running the school district, don't let the state steal the money only to look like the good guys and return it to us. School taxes are already high, but at least once you pay them, you can claim them when paying your state and federal taxes as a deduction.  As it is now, you pay part of the school taxes to the state, and part of it to the school.  The amount you pay to the schol can be used as a deduction against the amount that you pay to the state to have them send to the school.  That makes sense, we always need another layer of government.

Quoted from Kevin March

There wasn't the (unconstitutional) Department of Education, either.

Imagine if we just had the tax money that goes into this DOE to spend locally on fixing the schools.  That would be BILLIONS of dollars back in the local schools.

I haven't seen any Supreme Court decision declaring the Department of Education unconstitutional.

Quoted from DemocraticVoiceOfReason

I haven't seen any Supreme Court decision declaring the Department of Education unconstitutional.

So, can you show me exactly where in the Constitution they stated that we were to have a Federal Department of Education?  This falls to be left to the states.  Imagine the BILLIONS we would have to help the schools locally. Just because it hasn't been brought to the Supreme Court doesn't mean it's legal.

those who control the knowledge/truths/untruths control the masses......

The Department of Education was formed to improve the educational standards of the school systems, hows that been working out, Schdy School System graduating 50% of the students. Kevin is correct eliminate the Dept of Education and give the money wasted on them to the states.