A Local Problem

But it's indicitive of the nation-wide problem facing everyone who has kids in public schools. The Marysville teachers are still on strike, and it's set a record for the longest strike in state history by a school district. I've blogged on the Marysville strike before. Marysville, a very rural area, has a higher average teacher's wage than the rest of the state. Washington state's average teacher's wage is higher than the national average. The actuall numbers are $49,000 for Washington's average, and $54,000 for Marysville's average. Here's a link to the original post, which has more links to how our students fare against other nations, how much we spend per student, and all that. If Blogger's links are shot, scroll down to the Sep. 9th post titled "Teachers on Strike".

And let's look at what the teachers want, shall we? I'll provide the link but you have to register, or take my word for it.

Union officials say teachers refuse to compromise on three issues: They don't want to switch from a local to a state salary schedule; they don't want additional workdays without pay; and they want locally funded pay and benefit improvements.

District officials contend the union has refused to back down from an 11 percent pay increase and health benefits that would cost $14 million.

An ELEVEN PERCENT PAY INCREASE? Name me one damn job in the private sector that hands out ELEVEN PERCENT PAY INCREASES! They want locally funded pay and benefit improvements? So shall we just suck the people dry now? As I've said, Marysville is RURAL! We're not dealing with downtown Seattle, we're not dealing with a dense population base! Demanding even more money from these people WILL NOT WORK!

What's the point of all this? I have a solution: Fire them all. I mean, lets be blunt here, shall we? These people get paid more than most teachers in the nation. Washington state is in a finacial crisis, and working hard to balance out the budget. The school district is tapped. And yet these fucking bastards are stomping around saying that they want a bigger piece of the pie! Fuck the kids, they want to see the money!

These people are the perfect example of a cocooned liberal. As a teacher, they've never been laid off. I know that's a generalization, but it's also a fact for most teachers. You don't get laid off. You get tenure. And therefore you never experience the negative effects of a bad economy. Also, even if you're a shitty teacher, you still keep your job! We have highschool seniors who can't read, and who can't do long division! Algebra? Nope. Many of the first year courses in college are REMEDIAL courses, classes to try and get incoming students up to the level that they should be at! By all accounts, public schools in this country are failing their students! And now they're demanding more money? Two words: FUCK THEM!

I say fire the bastards, all of them. Hire people who WANT to teach, and who are knowledgeable in the subjects they teach. I myself could teach music and English. Let ME teach those kids. My buddy Ari has a computer degree and a business minor. He could teach those kids about computers and programming. I bet that if you think about it, you can find people who's backgrounds make them fit to teach a subject. Would any people out there be able to teach math? How about an accountant? You think they could teach it? I know plenty of people with minors in history. I bet THEY would be willing to teach, if the environment were right.

Here's a point of reference for those who still might not get it. In 2001, the total expenditure for education in this country accounted for 18% of the total budget. Damn near one-fifth of the money spent by this country goes to education. And yet our students still lag. We spend more money per student than most other countries, and yet our students still lag. Where is all the money going? And if more money=better educated students, why aren't American students at the top of the bar? Because the TEACHERS AREN'T TEACHING THEM!

Liberals have been in charge of our schools for too long. What have we gotten for it? A bloated budget, the largest union in the world, and failing students. IT'S NOT WORKING, FOLKS! So let's start taking back our schools. Starting with Marysville. Fire them all.