The Story of Two Buses

In reply to alex:

So, since there were no compulsory education laws in the US before 1852, are you suggesting there were no educated people here for over 100 years? No wait... Harvard was founded in 1636. That means over 200 years!

Or are you suggesting that it is society's job to make stupid people do the right thing?

Are you equating lack of formal education with murder?

Who gets to determine what is right, or who is stupid?

I reject that thinking. I know of a lot of brilliant people who never went to school. I also know a lot of stupid people who did.

SVreX wrote: ...a lot of brilliant people who never went to school... a lot of stupid people who did.

I agree with that.

Duke wrote:

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote: That was exhausting.

And stupid. That was the essay equivalent of the idiot who sticks a Q-tip into his brain or throws boiling spaghetti all over his kitchen in a TV product ad.

LOL--well-put. I always marvel at how difficult and catastrophic menial, everyday tasks are in those "as seen on TV" ads.

As for homeschooling, it just screams "paranoid/batE36 M3 insane" to me. Sure, there are sub-par teachers out there, but there are also amazing teachers out there.

This is true:

gamby wrote: Sure, there are sub-par teachers out there, but there are also amazing teachers out there.

This is ignorant:

gamby wrote: As for homeschooling, it just screams "paranoid/batE36 M3 insane" to me.

I thought this was a misplaced build thread based on the title

In reply to gamby:

Your comment is easy to make from the Northeast. The Northeast has consistently topped the statistical charts for education quality for the past 30 years.

I was raised there.

Unfortunately, that's not the experience in the rest of the country.

I live in the Southeast. We rank in the bottom third. I guess that's good, because we were pretty close to dead last 10 years ago. But it still sucks. Southwest is pretty rough too.

In GA, my city ranks 276 out of 342 for education.

So, my options are to put my kids into one of the sorriest, most crime infested school systems in the nation, or do the best we can (as 2 people raised and educated in the Northeast) to raise them well without the help of the woefully inadequate state.

Homeschooling is painful. It's a hell of a lot of sacrifice. I don't homeschool because I am "paranoid batE36 M3 insane", I homeschool because I don't have better options, and because I care about my kids, and other people's kids. I work my ass off to give them a good education, and we FAR exceed anything that happens in the local public schools.

I'd rather not put them into a system that has a full time undercover police force, a 67% graduation rate, rapidly advancing meth usage rates, and the wonderful opportunity to live in the bottom 10% of the nation's wage earner's when (and IF) they graduate.

Keep your judgmental critical bullE36 M3 to yourself.

My apologies, gentlemen.

Posting the article was supposed to be humorous. It obviously was not to many of you.

Since when are prisons for rehabilitation?

I thought they where to keep people form killing my wife and raping me.

SVreX wrote: Posting the article was supposed to be humorous. It obviously was not to many of you.

Too long to be humorous.

Here, I'll make it funny:

I was driving down the freeway with my son when we saw a white bus, the same style used for schools, transporting criminals to prison.
My 9 year old son asked me, "Hey dad, why is that school bus white?"
"It's not taking kids to school," I told him. "It's taking prisoners to jail where people can watch them for several years and try to make them better people so they can be sent back into normal society."
"Oh," my son said and thought for a minute. "So it's school for adults then?"
"Pretty much son. Pretty much."

See, I said ultimately the same thing you did, but it only took 2 minutes to read and didn't feel like a sermon.

In reply to SVreX:

Holy testy testes...

So there are no private schools in the Southeast?

All of that would be motivation for me to GTFO of the Southeast.

As someone who teaches at a jr college part-time, who was raised by 2 public school teachers and is married to a professor with a doctorate, perhaps my bias against homeschooling is stronger.

FWIW, if I had kids, I'd never put them into my local public school system--thus I'd go private or move to a different town--even money in the long run (moving vs. paying for private).

In reply to gamby:

I am the product of 3 generations of doctoral level teachers on both sides. I have taught, so has my wife.

Private schools in the Southeast exist primarily for the purpose of promoting racial biases. Plus, the price tag exceeds my gross monthly income.

You don't think I would like to move? I'd do it in a heartbeat if I could. Not everyone has those kind of options.

And frankly as far as the education, I wouldn't have it any other way. My kids (and hundreds of others I know) are FAR better educated than the majority of public school monkeys I know. Why do you think colleges are climbing all over each other to get them admitted?

If you'd like to learn something about the subject, feel free to ask. I love sharing my experiences. If you'd like to resort to name calling based on nothing more than your narrow, limited, very biased viewpoint, take a jump.

SVreX wrote: My kids (and hundreds of others I know) are FAR better educated than the majority of public school monkeys I know. If you'd like to resort to name calling based on nothing more than your narrow, limited, very biased viewpoint, take a jump.

Ironic post is ironic.

Yep.

Though I didn't really intend it as an insult. I intended it as a referral to people who follow without question the method and system prescribed by the government without exception, assuming that the government knows best. But that sounded a little awkward.

I accept the slap on the hand, and apologize for the apparent insult.

Look at the bright side...

At least I didn't call them "paranoid/batE36 M3 insane monkeys".

In reply to SVreX:

I wonder about the level passive aggression that was used when this was posted. You HAD to be looking for a reaction. THIS:

SVreX wrote:

Gary North said: Here is where you are so far. Society makes the prisoners go to jail. It sees these prisoners as dangerous. It wants to teach them to obey. Society makes children go to school. It sees these children as dangerous to themselves. It wants to teach them to obey. If it can teach both groups how to obey, society expects the world to improve. Society therefore uses tax money to pay for the operation of jails and schools. This includes paying for buses. But there is a difference. Prison buses are white. School buses are yellow.

...is EXACTLY the paranoia I'm talking about when referring to homeschooling. Fine and dandy--you don't have it and are stuck in a pickle where it's your only choice. A lot of homeschoolers aren't and simply don't trust what school will do to their precious brood.

There is absolutely a stigma attached to homeschooling.

Children being around their parents this much can have adverse consequences. See: Pink Floyd--"Mother"

Homeschooling and what it does regarding socialization? Another stigma. What comes to mind immediately are the homeschooled kids who win the national spelling bees. Brilliant, but crippled in terms of being able to function in society.

Please don't tell me it's all unfounded. It may be unfounded in your case, but not in all. That isn't saying that public school (or private) is perfect, either.

Is the best information you have the lyrics to a Pink Floyd song??

As I said, you are ignorant on this subject.

The facts show you are mistaken.

In reply to gamby:

Can you actually name one home schooled student who won the national spelling bee and is "Brilliant, but crippled in terms of being able to function in society"?

Didn't think so.

Bet you can't find a statistic that shows it either.

Socialization? Yep. The absolute BEST reason to home school kids. But that's another discussion that I doubt you want to hear about.

Check with the college you are working at. Why is their admissions office working harder to attract home schooled students than others?

I am not suggesting the rumors about home schooling are unfounded. There are people who suck at teaching in ALL learning environments. I am suggesting they are rare and statistical anomalies used by people with agendas to promote and very few actual facts.

That's what you take away from my points--a Pink Floyd song. The point was more the smothering factor of being taught by your parents and then being parented by your parents. That's a LOT of interaction and I wonder what the results of that would be. THAT was my point.

The song refers to the results of that type of parental smothering, thus why I used it as a succinct example.

I'm pretty sure others here agree with me, but choose not to rouse rabble.

Even if they WERE common and not anomalies, the fact is that home school is a legally permitted and protected form of education in all 50 states, and that the students are doing quite well by all objective performance standards.

Your "batE36 M3" comment was inappropriate.

What do YOU have against educating children? Are you afraid of something a little different that you do not understand?

SVreX wrote: Can you actually name one home schooled student who won the national spelling bee and is "Brilliant, but crippled in terms of being able to function in society"? Didn't think so.

Here you go, buddy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqCtIL9ZPSQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pd4lZwshUpE

SVreX wrote: Even if they WERE common and not anomalies, the fact is that home school is a legally permitted and protected form of education in all 50 states, and that the students are doing quite well by all objective performance standards. Your "batE36 M3" comment was inappropriate. What do YOU have against educating children? Are you afraid of something a little different that you do not understand?

Look at how wound up you're getting. Look at yourself. Look what you're reading into what I wrote.

You posted an article by a homeschooler who equated SCHOOL to PRISON and I'm the one who is out of whack.

I'm saying there's a stigma against homeschooling. Empirically, there is. It isn't just me.

I hope you produce students who are better off than those schooled in "traditional" ways. Perhaps you're more sane than you're coming off here.

I asked if you could name one home schooled student.

You give me links to YouTube?

Reading isn't your strong point, is it? The point is, you don't know anyone.

BTW, Evan O' Dorney is autistic. Let's all make fun of the handicapped kid, huh?

Can you show me an autistic kid who was public schooled who won the national spelling bee?

gamby wrote: You posted an article by a homeschooler who equated SCHOOL to PRISON and I'm the one who is out of whack.

I have no knowledge that Gary North is a home schooler, and never said that. The article does not say that. Perhaps you know something I do not. Perhaps it is your biases showing through.

Since "stigma" and "bias" are virtually synonymous, I guess we are in agreement.

It was JUST a funny story. Beyond that, you are reading into it. Sorry it upset you so.

Didn't know he was autistic. The spelling bee stands out to me because so many homeschooled kids win it and so many of them are strange. I don't memorize their names because I'm not a huge fan of the spelling bee. all I know is, a lot of these kids wind up in comedy clip shows and it's their awkwardness that makes them stand out.

The links were used for proof. I don't memorize their names. So the girl wasn't autistic and she's pretty awkward, too.

The socialization angle isn't me pulling a myth out of the air. If it's a misconception, it's a common misconception. THAT'S my point. http://www.homeschoolnewslink.com/blog/?p=629

Christ, you're like a cornered rat.

SVreX wrote: I have no knowledge that Gary North is a home schooler, and never said that. The article does not say that. Perhaps you know something I do not.

http://www.lewrockwell.com/north/north460.html