EDU: Public Schools (Was: Re: [extropy-chat] Game theory of common cold)

[J Corbally]

At 10:20 AM 1/19/04 -0700, you wrote:

Catching up on posts over the last few days.

I've just read yours, and wanted to say I think you're a credit to Fatherhood.


James...

>Message: 34
>Date: Mon, 19 Jan 2004 11:20:08 -0600
> >From: "Kevin Freels" <kevinfreels at hotmail.com>
>Subject: EDU: Public Schools (Was: Re: [extropy-chat] Game theory of
>         common  cold)
>To: "ExI chat list" <extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org>
>Message-ID: <LAW10-OE4133mH9exWG0000a5b2 at hotmail.com>
>Content-Type: text/plain;       charset="iso-8859-1"
>
> >Others pay -- including
> >those who don't have children and those whose children are either past
> >school age or who do not use public schools -- for schools as well, so
> >this lowers the costs of parenting when the parents use public schools.
>
>Let's not forget that even those who have no children were once children
>themselves and most likely benefited from the school system.
>
>Also, it is important to realize the benefit of having an "educated"
>populations (I use the word educated VERY loosely here). It is a shame that
>more parents simply don't get even slightly involved in their children's
>education. The resource is there, paid for by everyone, and yet many parents
>just don't seem to give a damn! Most of them are like this because of how
>their parents were. It's a vicious cycle of stupidity!
>
>Sorry for the slight venting. This touches rather close to home. My children
>go to a public school. They are from a previous marriage and she had
>custody. They are 8 and 7 yr old girls. Their mother is a meth dealer and
>could hardly pay attention. The girls were getting D's and F's in science
>and math (N's for the yoiunger girl). They went to schools in crappy clothes
>with holes in them even though I paid $207 per WEEK in child support!
>
>She was finally busted for Meth in November with the kids in the house. I
>finally received custody of the girls. They were such a mess! Now they have
>never been happier. Their counselor called me the other day and informed me
>that if they just keep doing what they have been doing since they moved
>here, they will get A's in every subject! All they needed was a little
>homework help, and some concern for their education. I think the real
>difference is that I care. Nothing more. Mom didn't care, so why should
>they? They prefer living here and Dad cares about their education, so they
>do too!
>
>(On a side note, can you believe that they have this whole screwed up idea
>that Santa Clause and God are real? How can someone teach religion to
>children and be such a stupid meth-head trashy mother at the same time? SO
>now I have my chance to raise nice atheist educated girls and turn them
>loose on the world. The two messages I have to teach them are "You can be an
>atheist and be a good person too." and "Don't grow up to be one of the
>stupid people" )
>
>Anyways, I really don;t think our educational system is all that bad. Yes,
>it could be better, but it can only be as good as the people that are in it.
>I don't know the number, but I would assume that hundreds of thousands are
>involved in the educational system from the administrative level down. The
>odds are that a portion of these people are idiots.( There must be a lot of
>idiots in the public school system.) This would be offset if parents simply
>gave a shit about their kids.
>
>Kevin Freels
>