Random Thoughts (Thirteen)

I haven't gone on a rant in quite a long time. I've been adding a bit more commentary prior to each post so the backlog of angst gets released more often. It's good to see teachers and other public employees taking it to the streets in Wisconsin and Ohio. Austerity fascism is going to be a bitch so you might as well go down with a fight. Connecticut, is beginning to hear the rumblings of talk about changing the teacher tenure laws. I know you'll be reading about protest and marches in the Nutmeg state soon if this creature rears its' ugly head here. Tenure is all that stands in the way of competent, experienced, higher paid teachers, being fired from their jobs by local officials with political or personal agendas or for plain old economic reasons. You can almost guarantee few will be released for reasons of incompetency. All teacher contracts have provisions for removing those who are not meeting "standards of excellence", as administrators like to say. It's called due process and it was earned by the sacrifice, hard work and determination of those teaching professionals who preceded us. I promise you, I will not give tenure up without a fight. What teacher in his or her right mind would stand up and speak the truth about policy or what they perceive to be some grievance at a faculty meeting or board meeting without fear of retribution from administration or other educational officials if the tenure law was abolished or weakened? It goes on even with tenure laws. We have suffered attacks from the public since the beginning of time. Losing tenure would result in the loss of what little remains in the areas of trust and openness in education today. It is bad enough we have outsiders, people from the business world that is, forcing reforms down our throats that we as experienced professional educators know won't work. But to give them the power to arbitrarily remove teachers from their jobs would be too much. Unions and tenure are not the cause of the economic problems our nation is facing. Get mad at the banksters and Wall Street crooks who have plundered our country of literally trillions of taxpayer dollars. Blame the government and military leaders who have lied to us while wasting trillions of dollars and destroying millions of lives on the phony war against terror both overseas, as well as at home,which is being directed against our own liberties domestically. Americans are waking up. If this attack against what is left of our dignity, economic well being and honor is expanded, watch out. Those that talk of a second American Revolution might just get their wish.

Well that should hold you for awhile. Until I have another original thought, Peace.