[extropy-chat] Boycott National Geographic

[Brian Lee]

While I disagree with NG's policies, I don't think it is necessarily 
targetting homeschooling specifically. It targets any small school that 
doesn't have enough participants.

While I will no longer subscribe to NG's publications because of this issue, 
I think that NG is free to create any restrictions it sees as fit. NG does 
not receive public funds and so it should be able to restrict participation 
without worrying about the 14th ammendment.

The same way I support gov't non-intervention in home school, I support 
National Geographic's right to create competitions without government 
intervention.

BAL

>From: Mike Lorrey <mlorrey at yahoo.com>
>To: ExI chat list <extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org>
>Subject: RE: [extropy-chat] Boycott National Geographic
>Date: Mon, 21 Mar 2005 21:59:03 -0800 (PST)
>
>--- Brian Lee <brian_a_lee at hotmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > It seems like the restriction is really around schools with less than
> > 6  Geography Bee participants. So it does not directly prevent
> > homeschoolers,
> > but makes it harder. There are homeschool associations that allow
> > parents to group together to join stuff like this.
>
>a) many states, like NH, mandate that homeschoolers have a
>'professional' teacher appointed by the parents to oversee or audit the
>childs progress a  few times a year. That person also helps coordinate
>the childs participation in any extracurricular activities the school
>district offers (which under Title IX they can't refuse to
>homeschoolers), so each homeschooler has a preexisting affiliation with
>a public school system in many such states.
>
>b) it is unconstitutional for states to compell membership in a
>homeschool association. Compelled association is a first amendment
>violation. Many homeschoolers do not belong to a homeschool
>association, and compelling their membership in one is burdensome not
>to mention unjust.
>
>c) while NG is the sponsor, every Geography Bee is a public event at a
>public venue, and therefore under the case law is a public accomodation
>under the 14th Amendment. Homeschoolers cannot be excluded from public
>school geography bees. The NG rules you cite create not separate teams,
>but entirely segregated competitions, a 'separate but equal' status
>which was ruled unconstitutional in the 1950's. Shall we start
>excluding asian kids because they do well also? How about separate
>competitions for black kids so their self esteem isn't damaged?
>
>d) the separate competitions force homeschool parents to drive much
>more so their kids can compete, therefore creating barriers to entry
>and discouraging homeschoolers from participating.
>
>d) the NEA has put the NG under pressure because the NEA feels
>threatened by the fact that 'amateur' educators are producing better
>product than the 'professionals'. They have made the NG create a
>separate 'special olympics' for homeschollers so that public school
>parents are not exposed to homeschoolers and their parents, where they
>might learn how easy it is to homeschool and the benefits of
>homeschooling to the childs academic acheivement.
>
>Mike Lorrey
>Vice-Chair, 2nd District, Libertarian Party of NH
>"Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom.
>It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves."
>                                       -William Pitt (1759-1806)
>Blog: http://intlib.blogspot.com
>
>
>
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