Good God. What will be cut next? The state vs. federal Department of Religion, (which we might now need more then ever, depending on curriculum quirks and quagmires?) Seminaries and such aside.
At least, God willing and the lesser regions seem to be gaining strength, you can still, locally, re-elect in our generally-good-test-score state, the state superintendent of public instruction. The ed behind the id (and odd?) That would be Jill Underly, or as a JC friend badly phrased three times in this state, Udderly or about Utterly, with over and under, without going under (completely.) Note the very nattily like-a-gnat notorious statement about construction not destruction, a flip, like the classic Black Sabbath song titled forever War Pigs, “evil minds that plot destruction. Sorcerer of death’s construction.” That song being the studying of battle, and darn politicians soon to be damned, whether learning or warring — and in the same warped ways such ills are being spun in our books that often take a confident confederate turn — Just before the transfer the fighting of it. Unless somebody with targeting takes out too many Teslas. Toucan touche.
A counterpoint to turning the DEO to the Dept. of Duh. Throwing money at problems is not always an answer, but hey, money talks. Or the teachers like in Denver who walk. So in many ways less feet on the floor, so who is going to run through those PELL grants and put them in place? Not the overworked DOJ? And will they provide justice to AD(H)D and autistic kids who fall through the cracks, with no one around in their (former) offices to defend their civil rights? With half of staff, already spread thin in transfers to other agencies, laid off? So why do our students turn to alt and metal, death and otherwise, even punk? (Country does have whole-grain values). Maybe our leaders should listen to more of it (and alt) …
— So a smattering of seasonal sautes. People are now, with Easter coming, not stealing egg nog (with tariff-taxation coming on such) but eggs, as per your omlettes, to make $9 per your $10, if paid up front. Also necessitated is ordinance by ordinance of number of chickens you can have in every residential garage, and rooster crowing restrictions. (If he happens to be well hung, does he count for a hen-and-a-half?) And a breakfast cafe down the way has had the balls for their eggs, to say their prices will be going up by 50 cents (per egg we assume) and also to say Billion $ Bacon Rate and that OJ, fresh squeezed, is also possibly going up, and they even said so on (three) signs. And at Agave, they are your base for March Madness bracket adjustment if your beer goggles ale you, so you can afford those nachos (egg based?) And the empty bowl fundraisers, as such, continue to up the ante and never fail to come up in occurrence, and that Coldest Night (historically and that has changed per each passing decade) fundraiser, one of those more than one I think locally, raised $47K for causes various. (Is that based per degree?) —
And was it one of those astute leaders who said “we are absolutely and fundamentally committed” to helping students of all abilities. Uhm, we’ve heard that tired old tack before. ADD slash Elon?
I was one of those students. But have become a productive member of society, if columns like this one qualify, however it was because of some compassionate principals and teachers — and some students — not the bureaucrats. (And how will DOE cuts affect anti-bullying measures is an issue that the bullied will be for the ages?)
All this is said to hurt the “red” states — read as more poor — the most. (The hue of the blue will range new.) Is that redness not the Very Great Republican Conservative Constituency? Rich districts will find a way without things like bloc grant dollars and if need be their bake sales will up it to $5 a bun and people will still buy. As it goes to soccer balls.
— I now digress with a Kwik Trip into equinox. March 31 is the last day to take advantage of their free car wash with a key card offer, (does this with your car count as spring cleaning? Equinox over, and solstice, whichever, but summer is still coming.) But you can still get in on their Fan Zone sweepstakes to obtain Kwik Brew Crew tix! For various levels of what should I call it, the terrain of various terrances and maybe mezzanines and other tiers? —
Was it not that Peanut Farmer Leader state — give them nuts, not cake, as some poor students get their only grub from school lunch — that first gave us the DOE? People say we existed just fine before that, in 1979. Well that same existence gave us Beaver Cleaver Land, and Nixon and pre-Nixon. I reference Soundgarden and Black Hole Sun. And Pearl Jam and Jeremy. And that’s only starting with grunge …
So, just throw it back to the states … Which assumes they are astute enough to get it right, without a whip. Yes, an extreme example, but what if say, Mississippi, decides in their beloved courts that a convicted black man — and that is always questionable — gets as their punishment a bull whip to the back, formerly known as a Black Betty in slave times, as in the soulful song, a total of ten times, where a white man only gets a couple of slaps with a singletail for, I must note, the same crime. Oh its state’s rights, so just let it alone. Three words: The Green Mile. We can’t automatically assume that the states are not racist, or unjust, after all it’s some of them that have given us the mantra, to be taught in ALL our schools, that slavery actually had some benefits for the black enslaved. That’s part of what they want in their curriculum!! And Jews actually gained in some respects from the Holocaust …
And OK, in a related way, just give authority, for things like curriculum, back to the parents, (and more about such blanket authority later.) We’ve seen how well that worked for not school choice, but rather that control over having your kids immunized. Fear autism? You should much moreso now that there are all those DEO layoffs. No bucks or feet on the floor to compensate. Or teach. Or just hold a hand.
And concerned about comprehension test scores? Comprende? Is not being in the top half, or the upper half of that, among (educated as they only rank 85 countries) fair to midland, and better than none? Again, I reference Mississippi, and yes there are these and many more problem districts, but maybe the answer to improving school success — and are test scores the only way it is rated? — is a few bucks for a gifted himself or herself assistant from that world. Even if off the books.
Yes, there is so much more to be said, but hear this: There is inefficiency and there is wasted money. But gutting a whole department, and its spending and staffing and spreading it to other overworked workers, is not the way to go. Aren’t our kids worth those extra few sheckles? So where to cut, and even what districts, and there are many to analyze, takes very much careful consideration and study, and not mererly a shoot-from-the-hip approach. This has been tried and has failed many times before, outsides of sanheidreidrique.
So, they shoot old horses don’t they?