USA, We're #11

Wayne Harrison wrote: I'm not gonna be surprised. People always vote the bums out. It makes them feel good. But it doesn't really change anything.

We spend a disproportionate amount on military and schools have to have to hold bake sales.

You brag about giving money to the rest of the world... but aren't you against that, as a member of the Tea Party? How can you be against spending federal money and brag about it at the same time?

Why do schools have to hold bake sales? Is that because they are extremely inefficient with the funds? Why not allow competition in schools...at least if we then spend the same $$, and actually graduate a much higher percentage of high quality students. Minorities and the poor would also have access to a high quality education instead of the junk they are forced into now.

Wayne Harrison wrote:

outdoor338 wrote: it will take decades for libs to rebound if they ever do!

And who do you see as the torchbearer for the recovering Republican Party?

Excuse me but it's not the Democratic Party that has a large group of people so dissatisfied with it that they started their own splinter party. If the Tea Party takes hold, I'm wondering if the Republican Party will rebound or join the Whigs as a has-been party.

I'd love it if the republican party that existed during the 2008 elections went the way of the whigs. I hope the conservative movement takes it back over. Big govt, big spending republican party does this country no good. We already have a party that stands for that.

Chris Christie is the torchbearer, but sadly, he said he won't run for prez. I'd love to see a Christie/Rubio ticket!!

Wayne Harrison wrote:

HEARTLESS wrote: Well said Wayne. You appear to be another one of the angry mob that is growing in this nation.

The Republicans aren't against big spending -- they've grown the government every time they've been in power -- they're just against big spending if it's not their big spending.

That is the old republicans, not the new ones, who are winning now.

If they go back to big spending again, lets get rid of them.

What we need are the democrats to do the same. Hold their people accountable to spending, and throw theirs out too...that way the big spenders won't have a majority anymore.

RenegadeCJ wrote:

Wayne Harrison wrote:

HEARTLESS wrote: Well said Wayne. You appear to be another one of the angry mob that is growing in this nation.

The Republicans aren't against big spending -- they've grown the government every time they've been in power -- they're just against big spending if it's not their big spending.

That is the old republicans, not the new ones, who are winning now.

If they go back to big spending again, lets get rid of them.

What we need are the democrats to do the same. Hold their people accountable to spending, and throw theirs out too...that way the big spenders won't have a majority anymore.

Well RCJ, I agree we need a pay-as-you-go way of running the government, just that there are two things we might (will) disagree on.... how much we have to spend (tax rates/revenues) and where it gets spent. I believe that most of the dems on this board are fiscally more conservative than you might give them credit for... but if you strip away all the nasty rhetoric we have had here and talk about those issues... we might actually be able to get a civil dialogue going!





I am not sure I can get behind private sector education... I really feel as strong about private sector greed causing disfunction probably as you probably feel about government run education being the same way.... I do feel that one of the greatest things we can provide our kids is a decent education, the question it how do we get there?

Of course if we under-fund public schools, we can all step back and say it is not working.... in stead of going private, how about properly funding it?
I feel that public educators, for the most part, have a much stronger commitment to providing a good education, their motivations are more pure than a profit driven product that will put profit over quality of education every time.....


(FWIW, both of my kids are now in college and beyond most of our scope of discussion here)

Wayne Harrison wrote: We spend a disproportionate amount on military and schools have to have to hold bake sales.

If we put the military on the border and kick out all the illegals along with all the anchor babies, I bet the number of bake sales schools need to hold drop.

netdude wrote:
Well RCJ, I agree we need a pay-as-you-go way of running the government, just that there are two things we might (will) disagree on.... how much we have to spend (tax rates/revenues) and where it gets spent. I believe that most of the dems on this board are fiscally more conservative than you might give them credit for... but if you strip away all the nasty rhetoric we have had here and talk about those issues... we might actually be able to get a civil dialogue going!





I am not sure I can get behind private sector education... I really feel as strong about private sector greed causing disfunction probably as you probably feel about government run education being the same way.... I do feel that one of the greatest things we can provide our kids is a decent education, the question it how do we get there?

Of course if we under-fund public schools, we can all step back and say it is not working.... in stead of going private, how about properly funding it?
I feel that public educators, for the most part, have a much stronger commitment to providing a good education, their motivations are more pure than a profit driven product that will put profit over quality of education every time.....


(FWIW, both of my kids are now in college and beyond most of our scope of discussion here)

The problem is, funding has increased substantially more than inflation vs. when most of us were in school, but the quality of education keeps dropping....why is that?

Private sector education does not mean "for profit" education. Heck, even charter schools do a much better job than the public (aka union) schools do for the most part. It means letting everyone have equal access. It means letting parents decide what is best for their own kids. Look at the success of the DC voucher program. Huge success....shut down by the govt.

Funding has never been a problem, because when funding increases, there has never been a correlation with better results. I'd be ok with increased taxes for education if we would allow choice and competition in our education system. We are falling behind the rest of the world because our school system isn't teaching to excellence. Competition works everywhere it is tried, and brings out the best in people. Wouldn't it be cool if the best teachers...who produced the best results made tons of $$, of course that would mean the ones who just coast along would be fired.

We have some great public schools. In the case of school choice, these schools would continue to do very well. Those that fail SHOULD close. Let some other school take it over and put a better product on the table. Why is the school system allowed to continuously fail, and yet receive increased funding every year???

Are you sure that the quality of education has dropped? Here in Jeffco, kids are learning stuff we never would have considered in High School 30 years ago. My kids are light years ahead of where I was, but then, I do have an IQ south of 64.

I would agree with you scruffy, school back in the 70's and early 80's is nothing like today's schools, I have 5 daughters, 3 out of college, 2 of those are teachers in high school, the other one works at a large corp in Flaggstaff AZ, 2 in the military, 1 in the army and the other navy. There is no way I could even begin to keep up with these kids today..but we had better gym classes, that was required everyday. I loved that! I had to walk to school, and to every placed that I wanted go with friends. The kids today have cars, and I know you need them up here and in rual areas. I lived in Chicago, so walking was the only way to get around.

conifermtman wrote: If we put the military on the border and kick out all the illegals along with all the anchor babies, I bet the number of bake sales schools need to hold drop.

AND...People's weight would drop because they won't be eating French Revolution style "cake", the nation's citizen's health would improve, health care costs would drop despite what B.O. is trying to accomplish, Public Safety costs would drop dramatically...a win win by getting rid of these leeches !!!

Wayne Harrison wrote: No, I am not happy with the spending or spending money we don't have. I wasn't happy with it under Bush and I'm not happy with it under Obama. I"m not happy with the whole political process -- regardless of party -- the way special interests (lobbyists) control politicians. I'm not happy with they way politicians gain political favors by promising to vote for another politicians bill if that politician promises to return the favor. I'm not happy with politicians who slide local projects into important national bills so they'll get passed and then the politician can go home and brag about how they are bringing federal money to the district.

In short, I'm fed up and disillusioned with the whole system. In my lifetime, I've seen no real change from this, irregardless of what party is power.

Well said !!! Now, if we could only cure you of your progressive/liberal bent, and it is really bent...