Patterico's Pontifications

3/2/2009

WaPo Slams Congressional Democrats on Opposition to Vouchers

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 11:32 pm



Sweet:

REP. DAVID R. Obey (Wis.) and other congressional Democrats should spare us their phony concern about the children participating in the District’s school voucher program. If they cared for the future of these students, they wouldn’t be so quick as to try to kill the program that affords low-income, minority children a chance at a better education.

There’s only one false note in the piece:

Their refusal to even give the program a fair hearing makes it critical that D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D) seek help from voucher supporters in the Senate and, if need be, President Obama.

From Obama? Good luck. He’s a “school choice for me but not for thee” kinda guy.

23 Responses to “WaPo Slams Congressional Democrats on Opposition to Vouchers”

  1. Hmm. A political party that won’t support better education for those children most at risk, inner city kids who are predominantly black.

    A political party that opposes the reintroduction of a proven antimalarial strategy in Africa, because of “environmental concerns.”

    A political party that opposes the introduction of GM foodstuffs in the Orient to reduce ocular degeneritive disease and blindness, again on “environmental grounds.”

    Admittedly not a monolithic party stance in all of those cases, but, sounds pretty damn racist to me.

    EW1(SG) (e27928)

  2. Bloody hell. I need more tea. At least I hit a vowel, if not the right one, in the post above.

    ADJECTIVE: Of, relating to, causing, or characterized by degeneration: a degenerative disease.

    EW1(SG) (e27928)

  3. and…. so what? The Democrats aren’t going to back off because of this (how many divisions do the Post editorial writers have?). And while the Post’s editorials occasionally buck the party line (they did so on Iraq), they’re still a reliable shill for the Democrats and an enthusiastic basher of anybody who has an (R) next to their name.

    steve sturm (369bc6)

  4. The WSJ had an article on the same hypocricy regarding Obama’s previous statements on the subject (he had decried the hypocricy of school and public officials blocking his reform efforts, while sending their kids to private schools), contrasted to Durbin’s efforts to kill the DC school voucher program. So Obama’s kids can still go to Sidwell, but to hell with the poor folks who can’t afford it – nice.

    Dmac (49b16c)

  5. This is payback for the teacher’s unions. Anyone who believes the Democrats when they cry about the inner city has never seen the Democrat run inner city or is already on their dole.

    The Government guarantees that you will have the education they deem is appropriate for you.

    Amphipolis (fdbc48)

  6. Virtually all major urban school districts are under the control of Dems/Libs supported by the Ed establishment (NEA). The NEA pipes the tune, and their leashed monkeys do the dance.
    Teachers and Administrators rake in the tax dollars with fully-paid health-care and retirement, and the taxpayers and residents of those blighted urban school districts take it in the arse.

    AD - RtR/OS (e4c8ef)

  7. amphipolis: what should have been a democrat eutopia is it’s greatest failure. new Orleans. run and governed by liberals for over 50 years at both city and state levels. and it is still mostly ruins today. AD is right about the education Nazis we call the NEA. run by left wing extremist’s, our children are being brainwashed into their beliefs. and in los angeles they are dropping out at a rate of 50%. and the ones that do graduate, can barely read their diplomas.this educational system is nothing more than a money pit. out of, I believe, 900 million or 9 billion. I forgot, my point is not a single penny goes for school vouchers, or any alternative to public education.

    last year california tried suing home schooling parents for child abuse. it was deemed negligent to keep them out of the public education system. 2 years ago I, personally had social services called on me because my then 14 year old was caught ditching, by me. I went to his school and asked for his attendence records . my son forged my name on a few notes, and left a few unexcused. I got no phone calls,letters, nothing from the school about this. what I did get was the DA taking me to court for child negligence. but because I was such a caring parent, they sent me to parenting classes for 14 weeks. if I failed to complete the course, they would then file my case. and for what, the money.

    mr. falcone (eed2b3)

  8. “school choice for me but not for thee” kinda guy.

    I’m all for trying out vouchers, but this argument labeling as hypocrites those voucher opponents who send their children to a private school is ridiculous. If you oppose nationalized health care but pay for a premium health plan for yourself, does that make you a hypocrite?

    kenB (88b394)

  9. If you oppose nationalized health care but pay for a premium health plan for yourself, does that make you a hypocrite?

    Let’s see, if I oppose free cars for everyone and buy one for myself…

    If I oppose free steaks for everyone but buy a side of beef for myself…

    If I oppose free but buy…

    And where do my tax dollars go?

    John Hitchcock (fb941d)

  10. kenB, I’ll be charitable and chalk it up to being new on the keyboard, but how exactly does your argument work?

    Here’s the current argument: People like Bambi have enough money to send their kids to private school. Allowing vouchers would let poor parents send their kids to schools of their choice, including private schools. Vouchers would be paid for with the funds set aside for them.

    Now, how does this tie into the argument about nationalized healthcare?

    steve miller (c76b20)

  11. kenB – I am not really sure that analogy holds up.

    JD (11141b)

  12. Comment by EW1(SG) — 3/3/2009 @ 4:40 am

    Studies show that voucher systems and charter schools actually cause schools to be even more segregated than even the typical urban school (Kozol). Are you suggesting we go back to Plessy v. Ferguson?

    Ed from PA (d99227)

  13. If you oppose nationalized health care but pay for a premium health plan for yourself, does that make you a hypocrite?

    No.

    Kevin Murphy (0b2493)

  14. Now, if there was a national health plan, where the doctors and such were assigned at random and in some places only incompetent doctors practiced, all the facilities were rundown and unsanitary, and the patient death rate was many times the average — and you could not change any of this without paying out of pocket — yes, then someone who paid for their own health care would be a hypocrite for opposing making the public system portable, too.

    But that’s not what you meant, I suppose.

    Kevin Murphy (0b2493)

  15. Vouchers are simply another transfer payment.

    One of the reason people work hard is to be able to afford a house in a good school district, or to pay for their kids’ attending a good private school. Flooding those schools with ‘low income, minority’ youth isn’t going to help anything, but will wreck plenty of schools just like busing has.

    horace (547ced)

  16. Oh, great. horace is back. Not content to hate him some jooooooooooooooos, he wants to add to his list.

    JD (11141b)

  17. Horace was among the highest graduates in his local chapter of the Hitler Youth. Cue Ride of the Valkyries for Horace’s next post.

    Are you suggesting we go back to Plessy v. Ferguson?

    Nice Strawman you got there, Eddy. It’s called setting a farkin’ example for once in your life, Poindexter – and practicing what you preach to the same constituents that put you in office. If a politico denies his citizens the same right to a decent education that he allows his own chidren to experience, then he should be beaten with his own rhetorical stick. Obama railed against exactly this type of hypocricy and conspiracy back when he was a local politician here, and now he’s silent all of a sudden?

    Dmac (49b16c)

  18. One of the reason people work hard is to be able to afford a house in a good school district, or to pay for their kids’ attending a good private school. Flooding those schools with ‘low income, minority’ youth isn’t going to help anything, but will wreck plenty of schools just like busing has.

    Whoa. Racist, anyone?

    Ed from PA (c313be)

  19. What are you referring to, Dmac? Are you referring to vouchers? These students in these ultra-poor districts may as well wipe their asses with these vouchers. Most private schools require additional payments than just the vouchers. Also, the movement to a different school provided in No(Lotsa) Child(ren) Left Behind only allows students to move within that district, not to another one altogether. How does this help a student who is stuck in a severly underfunded (and in most cases hypersegregated) district? The simple answer is that it doesn’t. Charter schools are nice, but they end up being even more segregated than the urban schools from which these students came. Furthermore, many charter schools attempt to turn a profit. How is a school that is collecting the same amount of money per student able to turn a profit? Easy-they hire unlicensed teachers at reduced rates. Yeah, that sounds like a great answer. Don’t give me your “don’t look at the man behind the curtain” education arguments… you clearly know very little about the subject.

    Ed from PA (c313be)

  20. severely*

    Ed from PA (c313be)

  21. Our district set up a magnet college prep school and it was enlightening to see all of the union hacks doing everything they could to torpedo the idea. Everything the parents wanted in the school, the union hacks opposed.
    My grandson goes to a kindergarten where he is the only kid in his class who speaks English as his primary language. The union hacks don’t care about that because they get their money even if the student is an illegal alien. All they care about is how much money they can get, the do not care about the children.

    tyree (926e0a)

  22. EfP

    … you clearly know very little about the subject.

    Not only do you know very little about the subject, Ed, you seem to be pulling a lot of shit straight out of your ass. But to get back to your first load of crap,

    Are you suggesting we go back to Plessy v. Ferguson?

    If people with a choice choose to self segregate, they are allowed to do that in this country. Its called freedom of association.

    EW1(SG) (e27928)

  23. Actually I read quite a bit about the subject, ewwww-stargate. And they are not choosing to self segregate, but thank you for once again attempting to explain away racism and underfunding in our public schools.

    Ed from PA (d99227)


Powered by WordPress.

Page loaded in: 0.0755 secs.