The DLC disconnect on education and vouchers.

[ulysses]

Moreover, conceding leadership of the educational accountability movement to George W. Bush unjustly rewards his poor record in implementing NCLB, and helps Republicans disguise their long-range agenda of privatizing public schools through vouchers and weakening, not strengthening, a national commitment to quality education.

In Sunday's Iowa debate, Joe Lieberman hit the right tone for Democrats when he said, "I will fully fund No Child Left Behind, and I'll listen to the teachers and the principals about changing some of the requirements. But anybody who says they're going to pull back and repeal No Child Left Behind is turning their back on the students, and particularly the low-income students, of America. I won't do that." Nor should other Democrats.

http://www.ndol.org/ndol_ci.cfm?kaid=131&subid=192&contentid=252307

Does Lieberman hit the right tone for Democrats when he support vouchers, then?

Keep vouchers out of reforms, so reforms can get done. (Jan 2001)
Would advocate vouchers privately, but support Gore publicly. (Aug 2000)
Supports charter schools, private education savings accounts. (Aug 2000)
Choice won’t “ruin” schools; they’re already in ruins. (Aug 2000)
Lieberman’s view on vouchers closer to Bush’s than Gore’s? (Aug 2000)
Voted for vouchers; against block grants. (Mar 2000)
Voted YES on school vouchers in DC. (Sep 1997)

(and a little disconnect for Joe himself, although this isn't meant to be a Joe thread, per se...)

Firmly opposed to Bush’s voucher proposal. (Jan 2001)

Our vouchers are better than theirs, I guess...

http://www.issues2000.org/Joseph_Lieberman.htm

What *is* the DLC's position on vouchers these days?

[PVnRT]

1. Their position is

whatever will cozy them up to the Republicans even better.

[lcordero]

2. He said that he will

"listen to the teachers and the principals about changing some of the requirements" this is not the same thing as doing something about it.

Officials have a LONG history of approving trojan horse legislature and doing absolutely nothing about fixing what is wrong.

[JailForBush]

3. Joe Lieberman flunks education, too.

"Moreover, conceding leadership of the educational accountability movement to George W. Bush<snip>

Huh??? WHAT leadership? More important, why are we even talking about something as insanely absurd as "educational accountability" when it's run by the biggest bunch of incompetent jackasses in the history of public education?

I believe in accountability alright. If I could be dictator for a day, I'd have several thousand school officials and teachers union goons thrown behind bars, along with the corporate pimps who run the show.

"unjustly rewards his poor record in implementing NCLB, and helps Republicans disguise their long-range agenda of privatizing public schools through vouchers and weakening, not strengthening, a national commitment to quality education."

Earth to Liberals: Public education has already been privatized.

"In Sunday's Iowa debate, Joe Lieberman hit the right tone for Democrats when he said, "I will fully fund No Child Left Behind, and I'll listen to the teachers and the principals about changing some of the requirements."

No, THIS is the right tone: "I'll wage a pre-emptive strike against Leave No Child Alive and high-stakes tests, and I'll replace America's corporate whores with a regime that actually cares about the kids!"

"But anybody who says they're going to pull back and repeal No Child Left Behind is turning their back on the students, and particularly the low-income students, of America. I won't do that." Nor should other Democrats."

Baloney. Goals 2000 and Leave No Child Alive are just manifestations of corporate corruption. If I had the authority, I could do far more to help education at less than 10% the cost of Leave No Child Alive.

"Does Lieberman hit the right tone for Democrats when he support vouchers, then?"

I support charter schools and vouchers IN THEORY. In actual practice, they're doomed because THE ENTIRE SYSTEM IS CORRUPT. It's foolish to jump from one experiment to another when the problem lies with corrupt school officials and corporations, but most of all with apathetic teachers and parents.

[ulysses]

4. care to expound

on what the problem is with those "teachers union goons"?

[JailForBush]

5. No problem.

The only thing they excel at is stabbing teachers in the back and screwing students.

Anyone who was expecting sparks to fly between the National Education Association and our newly (S)elected president was hopelessly naive: They're sleeping in the same bed.

[ulysses]

6. I was hoping for a bit more than that.

Any links on your NEA/Bush connection?

[JailForBush]

7. I hope to have my website online in a few weeks.

I spent sixteen years working for the Seattle School District and was utterly stunned by the corruption I discovered in the union. The Washington Education Association's scandals made national headlines.

After I became more politically involved, I began to discover that teachers had similar complaints aobut their unions across America.

I'm a charter member of the National Association for the Prevention of Teacher Abuse (NAPTA). If you visit their website at http://www.endteacherabuse.org , I think they have a number of teachers' stories onilne, some of which probably mention their unions.

In the meantime, it's important to note that education is in the grips of a conspiracy - not an Elvis Presley type conspiracy, but the same sort of conspiracy that has perverted our governmnet. Powerful corporations are calling the shots, and there are some eerie similarties between education problems and scandals not just in the 50 states but in Canada, the UK and Australia.

In the meantime, some of the best evidence of the NEA's involvement is its LACK of involvement. They may criticize Bush now and then, but it's generally just tokenism. The NEA's motto ought to be, "We're Trying - Honest!"

[The Backlash Cometh]

8. Voucher systems do not strengthen public schools

Lieberman is being disingenious. If the public schools reduced the number of students, but maintained the same government assistance, then maybe voucher systems might work. But reducing public funds to schools is the problem, not the solution.