It's the political period. You know. Voting time is around the corner. So we are flooded with signs for pet candidates and pet projects. One that caught my eye was baffling. It read, "Are they 4 education?" Now, I thought it sad that the people who made the sign didn't know that the word was "for" rather than "4", but, looking beyond that educational blunder, what were they asking? Are there candidates out there that stand on "I am opposed to education! I would oppose any education whatsoever. I believe in 'no child left behind' ... in that I don't think children should be left behind in school!" I mean, of course, that's nonsense. I've never heard a candidate who was opposed to education.
So what did they mean? I tried to figure it out for myself -- always a mistake in the political arena, I suppose. Perhaps they were concerned that the candidates wouldn't spend what they deemed "enough" on education. Of course, that doesn't boil down to "opposed to education". That's simply a difference of opinion about whether or not money makes for good education. Maybe they wanted more teachers or more books or ... you know, that kind of "4 education". But that, again, would be a difference of opinion about what makes for good education, not an opposition to education. No one is that narrow, right?
I was, of course, mistaken. I finally found their website. Expect More Arizona is a group dedicated to ... here, let them say it ... "creating a movement of passionate and engaged Arizonan's who value education as our state's top priority." Really! Really? We have immigration and crime and recession and housing and employment and water and power and personal rights and ... we have issues galore, and they want to make eduction "our state's top priority." If that means that police and fire lose manpower, so be it. Education is our top priority. If that means that crime goes through the roof, who cares? Education is our top priority. What if we run out of water here in the desert? Quit your whining! Education is the highest issue. Not families. Not health. Not safety. Education!
Conservatives often get accused of being "single-issue voters". You know, "Why don't you consider other things besides that whole, tired abortion issue?" The fact that more than a million babies are murdered every year should not be an issue. Nor should the sanctity of marriage or the moral character of a candidate or ... well, just about anything that conservatives are concerned about. No, no, the only acceptable "single-issue" allowed, apparently, is education. Mind you, I think that education is important. That's why I likely wouldn't put my children into the system today. And it's not for lack of money, manpower, or interest. I agree that it's important, but I think that ship has already sailed. Is that really what needs to be our state's top priority? At what cost to everything else (given our dwindling resources)?
But ... don't mind me. I'm just spouting off here. I mean, somehow I expect more ...
4 comments:
Well, if they don't know where to put the apostrophe in "Arizonans" (which is nowhere, since the word doesn't require one), perhaps they're right to be passionate about education. Remedial education, at least...
Man! Missed that one. So true. Very good. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe education needs to be our #1 priority. Maybe, after we teach them to spell and all, we can teach them that there are a lot higher priorities than education? Just thinkin' "out loud" here, so to speak.
Wow! Clicked on ya accidentally. Love what you've done to the place! Will return to read the post soon.
Just read the post.
I think it's kinda like AlGore whining on about global warming as far more important an issue than terrorism. In a way, it could be very much the same dynamic: champion an issue of which the results are harder to monitor so as not to have to spend time on other issues for which the results should be easy to review. If effort is put into education, poor results can be attributed to a variety of things not related to the efforts themselves. It might be the kids, or their parents, or the fact that we just didn't spend enough. Yet they can take pride in the fact that they're "doing something".
Everyone knows what the deal is with education. Time after time we find that spending money isn't the issue. But for these people to focus on that, they give themselves an out as regards affecting positive change in any of those other areas.
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