73 Comments
User's avatar
Jacques Rousseau's avatar

Why, it is the communist way. Dumb down the population, to the point they are as ignorant as a rock, then teach them men are women, communism is great, Stalin was a hero, Islam is a religion of peace, and then they grow up and vote. Or perhaps just riot in the street to put their new commie leader in power.

The teachers union and the California government are the absolute worst thing that could ever happen to our kids. All they do is politicize education.

To quote the Pink Floyd song..."..hey, teacher, leave us kids alone..."

Bart Dickens's avatar

Hate California much? I hear Mississippi is a lovely place to get away to.

Cynthia Albert's avatar

Mississippi has better public schools if your child's education is paramount among your considerations.

Valerie Easton's avatar

Not everything is about the weather. Some things are more important, like the future of our children. If it takes moving to Mississippi to look out for our kids...good choice! Mosquitoes here I come!

Jim's avatar

Except for the humidity and bugs.

MRB1962's avatar

What have I been saying. The unions run that. Just another example of the state being held hostage because big union money.

Tim Kraus's avatar

All teachers, union and non-union, deserve to be paid a living wage. Charter schools and private schools impoverish their teachers and staff. The goal is not education. The goal is to steal public money for pretend education for the vast majority and then provide high level instruction for the very elite. The elite schools will not admit "undesirable" students while taking public money. It is playing out in Ohio with Ed Choice Vouchers that subsidize extremely wealthy families in very elite private schools that are super selective in who they admit as students. Charter Schools then become warehouses for every other student. All families and all students deserve a proper well funded education.

Cynthia Albert's avatar

Actually, charter school teachers get the same wage that public school teachers get. I taught in public schools and a private school. The private school test scores were better than the public schools in our area here in San Diego. Yes, our salaries were lower in the private school, but it didn't matter to me, the parents supported me and I could maintain discipline in my classroom which is a problem in public schools.

Tim Kraus's avatar

In Ohio, where I live, Charter Schools are notorious for low pay and few benefits. The Charter Scams are also Notorious. ECOT, The Electronic classroom of Tomorrow, took millions and millions from the state. They provided students with obsolete laptops and minimal internet to sit at home as their classroom. They inflated and lied about their enrollment and kept taking money every year delivering next to nothing for their students. They were finally exposed and collapsed. Charter after Charter in other Ohio cities offered very little for their students with the bulk of the subsidies going to Board Members and investors until they would be discovered and then they would shut down and open another school in another location. No Oversight, no standardized testing. They marketed to low income neighborhoods, promising culturally sensitive instruction and did nothing for those kids. No other private or religious schools would take them so they returned to public schools. When those kids returned to their public schools in Jr. High and High School they could not read and were years behind their peers. They were then the problem for public schools to remediate and the public schools were held responsible for these kids performance on the tests. Similar stories in cities like Philadelphia, Boston, Baltimore, etc.

Cynthia Albert's avatar

What a shame, I'm sorry it happened that way in OH, Tim. Here in CA, Charters are under the purview of the Dept of Education and are held accountable. I do have some questions about the Muslim charter school here in San Diego, though...mostly along religious instruction with public money lines.

John Doe's avatar

Peabody Charter is a pretty great school, don't know what you're on about.

Daniel Watt's avatar

Doesn't it sound like a similar plan of Margaret Sanger's Planned Parenthood? To eliminate a certain class of people and elevate a different class of people.

Bart Dickens's avatar

Thanks Tim, unfortunately I suspect most of the readership here believe that Trump is heaven sent and home schooling is wonderful.

Cynthia Albert's avatar

Actually I'm a credentialed teacher in CA. I've taught in public and private schools and I've homeschooled. All three have advantages and disadvantages, for my husband and I, we found public school fit our oldest son and private school fit our youngest son. Homeschooling was required when public school teachers had our youngest for 2 years and he still couldn't read. I fixed that within 3 months and he went back to school with a strong foundation the next year.

Valerie Easton's avatar

Partly true, yet a very narrow perspective of the whole picture. I know of no Charter school or private ones that impoverish their teachers!

Jim's avatar

Abolish all PUBLIC EMPLOYEE UNIONS.

bobbyboy's avatar

We punish our children because of extreme TDS. That is not only stupidity but absolute short-sightedness. The CTA should be declared a terrorist organization.

LT's avatar
4hEdited

It should be obvious to everyone who is calling the shots here in California. The Unions and NGO’s are in the drivers seat, recycling laundered money into campaigns to elect liberal politicians, which in turn has a blind eye to the monumental failure of our children. All while placating the psychosis of the left. When will this pay for play scam end? Never, ever. The fraud and grift is so pervasive that it has become part of our culture. The premise being a classic Alinsky tactic, to call out and shame parents who want academic excellence for their children with the most despicable terms.

It’s over in California, it was a great run, but it’s over. People are doing what they’ve always done, migrating to places with more opportunities.

Daniel Watt's avatar

Mr. Segal, thank you for your article regarding The Scholarship Tax Credit Program.

The LLL DemoNcrat party of CA has proven time and again they only "market" for money that they can directly influence the outcome of, for their benefactors.

Yes, "only an ARROGANT idiot persists in their error.” Look no further than California's high-speed rail for evidence of that.

I completely agree that their stupidity knows no bounds, by purposely oppressing the academic future of millions of children, particularly those home and privately schooled outside of the Godless, sexually confused public school system.

It is shameful that the public education system is the tail, capable of wagging the dog.

Bart Dickens's avatar

With so much hate for California, why not leave? Mississippi would welcome you I suspect.

Daniel Watt's avatar

Liberal's express "hate" by their actions and their words, whereas conservative's identify problems with the facts. The truth hurts and yes, liberal ideology is destroying the state of California.

Are you aware that Gavin Newsom started as CA governor with a 30 billion dollar surplus. He has since driven the state into the ground, and now has a $112 billion dollar deficit, while hundreds of businesses exit CA for less hostile taxation and regulations.

You see Bart, unless someone points out the dam is broken, no one is likely to fix it. That's not hate, that's identifying the source of the problem.

Cynthia Albert's avatar

The Democrats aren't CA, nor are the public schools. don't conflate his dislike for Dems and public schools with all of CA.

Brian MacIsaac's avatar

The Democrats know they can’t take that money because it will result in our children, actually being educated and they can’t afford that. They need them stupid so they can push their communistic agenda without interruption. The teachers union spoon feeds it to them beginning at three and four years old now,(TK) right on up through 12th grade for most. This is why they want to extend “free education“ through 14 years now, (community college). To give them two more years of activist training.

Well said Lou, screw the CTA and these crazy ass Democrats trying to undo the greatest and freest form of government the world has ever seen

Michael's avatar

In no small words, one of the most corrupt unions I've ever seen in my 62 years. That i have personally delt with! That's a union that needs to be dismantled.

Because of their radical ways! Things that are taught in the classroom now I didn't even hear until college and the military. Not to mention CTA allows extreme woke teachers to install their ways in our children, and if we complain we are the bad guys. Let just say not a fan.!

James R.'s avatar

This is not surprising, CA screws up in almost every category. CA ranks 37th in testing scores. Oh but wait, let's increase taxes on everything. The CA dream is dead, and unions and stupid special interest groups and a lame governor and worthless mayors are the cause. But let's keep voting them in because we don't want any other people telling us what to do...

Jon Fleischman's avatar

I have written in this multiple times. It is the ultimate symbol for the complete control of the CA Teachers Association.

Santa Barbara Current's avatar

Love your work, Jon!

Scott Lederhaus's avatar

The obvious reason California is turning down the money for education is that our governor does not want our kids to be educated. It surprises me how he would turn down this program since that would be a lot of money that Newsome could use for his bullet train, the bridge to nowhere or his pocket.

Tim Kraus's avatar

So you want to trap students and families in failing Charter Schools that are exempt from evaluation and oversight while you destroy Public Education. Charter Schools almost everywhere are scams that steal money from public schools, enrich their investors, and deliver very poor classroom instruction that often stick kids in front of canned programming on computers all day. The solution is to fund public education and make those schools better, not set up a scam that will drain public money into the coffers of failing charter schools and their investors. This is theft.

Nicholas Saunders's avatar

Hate California? No. Hate California government and the Unions? Yes. Mississippi used to be the brunt of the joke when it came to education. That day is long gone. They have far better education than California. We here in California, are at the bottom of the curve. Mississippi has better scores than us and spends less money than us to get them. While I believe California is making a huge mistake by not opting in for this money, the money isn't going to fix Californias education. When compared to the whole world, we spend vastly more money on education currently. Yet, have results at the bottom. Money isn't gonna fix it. Get woke out, entitlement out, politics out, LGBTQ+ out, drag queens out, over sexualized materials out, and special interests out of our educational system completely. It has no place. Stop our educators from believing they can keep secrets from the parents and encourage things like a gender change to kids that aren't even old enough to understand the birds and the bee's. Instead of keeping secrets from the parents, involve them more. Cause right now they'll teach gender ideology but not cursive handwriting. Our kids cant even sign their names to a lefal document. How is that preparing them for the world? Their is an insanely high illiteracy rate, as well. Who was the last group of people in The USA that were kept from learning how to read and write? Ill wait for that answer....Government is not, and will not, raise my kids. Get back to reading, writing, and arithmetic. A little science and definitely history. Those that don't know the history are more likely to repeat it. Also, teach computers. But, bring back books, pencil, and paper. Computers are one of many tools. Books, pencils, and paper are the fundamentals. Fundamentals should be at the core of everything they do. So, no, it's not hate for the State of California. California is beautiful and I love my home. It is hate for the tyrannical and corrupt State government, the unions that enable them, and anyone that supports what they are doing.

Harvey Pollack's avatar

Assuredly refusing this is a great blunder on the part of the government of California. However to say it is the greatest blunder may be a bridge too far. The government of California has made a great many blunders, so many that quantification becomes difficult.

Valerie Easton's avatar

Well articulated. I agree 100% with your perspective. We are in a very sad predicament. God have mercy!

Stephen Russell's avatar

Gee never knew this thanks Newsome & allies

Danny Crowell's avatar

the best thing you can do for California is to vote out democrats