Tag Education

Are Democrats Smarter than a 6th grader on economics?

Allen Frederick 3 Comments

English: A teacher and young pupils at The Bri...

Dr. Jay Richards tells a great story about his sixth grade teacher’s explanation of economics. One day the teacher came into class and gave each student a small toy…a silly putty egg, a whiffle ball, a set of Barbi trading cards, and so on. (This was back in the day when 6th graders were still kids, not the mini adults parents send to school today.) The teacher said, “Each of you look at your toy and the ones around you. Then I want you to mark on a piece of paper how much you like the toy on a 1 to 10 scale. A 10 means you love it and you wouldn’t trade for anything you see. A 1 means you hate it and would trade for anything else. Everything else means you are somewhere in the middle.” Each child submitted a number. The teacher added them up, and wrote the sum on the board.

“Now,” said the teacher, “you are sitting in five rows of five desks each. You may trade freely with any student in your row, but you don’t have to trade if you don’t want to.”

After a few minutes some of the students had traded toys, and the teacher once again asked them to write a number representing how much they liked their toy. Amazingly (if you are a zero sum believer) the sum of the numbers was higher. The toys were the same, but free trade had made the children collectively much happier.

The teacher then told the class they could now trade with anyone in the room as many times as they liked. There was pandemonium for a few minutes as the kids moved around trading, re-trading, laughing, and enjoying the exercise. At the end, the teacher added up their submitted numbers. As someone who believes in a free economy would expect, the last sum was much higher than the earlier ones.

One notable thing from this elementary school exercise is that there was nothing new added to the equation…no new wealth, in other words. The kids made themselves happier by creating an exchange on their own terms, without strict rules (government regulations), without intervention by the teacher or school board (bureaucracy), without someone taking away their toys (taxation) and giving them to someone else (redistribution). Imagine what the result might have been if, like in a free economy, new and better toys (new wealth) had been added to the exchange. Eventually, newer and better toys would have allowed every child in the room to mark his or her toy as a “10.”

Zero sum? Don’t believe it! Zero sum economics is one of the many canards invented by Marxists and adopted by Democrats whose main desire is to control all the wealth generated by the working people of America. Free trade coupled with invention will create more wealth and greater contentment for all.

Obama and the Democrats are wrong. American ingenuity and businesses do not steal dollars from the poor; quite the contrary, those once-lauded elements of the American experience actually create new wealth, which creates new jobs and opportunities for all citizens, which creates even more wealth!

Proving that they are not smarter than a 6th grader. 

eagle_feather_icon.gifThis is a view from the nest. What say you?

But those who are waiting for the Lord will have new strength; they will get wings like eagles: running, they will not be tired, and walking, they will have no weariness. Isaiah 40:31 (BBE)

Along for the journey

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This has been A View from the Nest. The statements, comments, or opinions expressed are solely that of the author and do not represent the views or opinions of the host of this site or any affiliates thereof. Any questions or comments should be directed to myself and not to the host or hosts of this site.
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Wisconsin School Proves Walker’s Policies Actually Work

Allen Frederick 1 Comment

The sky will fall, Armageddon was sure to come, the end was near, this will be a disaster for our schools and our children, where the doomsday cries of those who opposed Scott Walker’s reforms in Wisconsin. All this was before the law was passed and enacted. Before ink was put to paper, before democrats returned from MIA status to block the bill’s passage. All these negative reports came fast and furious in an attempt to overturn the voter’s will in Wisconsin. Well now that the law is actually passed and enacted at least one school district in Wisconsin is raving about the positive impact the new legislation has had on their bottom line. At least for the Kaukauna School District the new law was the salvation needed. In other words the UNION THUGS along with the Democrats LIED to the voters.

Could it be the changes enacted in Wisconsin will actually work in other districts across the country? They can and they will, this is why the unions and the democrats who are bought and paid for by the unions fight so hard for education reform.

Amplify’d from washingtonexaminer.com

The Kaukauna School District, in the Fox River Valley of Wisconsin near Appleton, has about 4,200 students and about 400 employees. It has struggled in recent times and this year faced a deficit of $400,000. But after the law went into effect, at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday, school officials put in place new policies they estimate will turn that $400,000 deficit into a $1.5 million surplus. And it’s all because of the very provisions that union leaders predicted would be disastrous.

In the past, teachers and other staff at Kaukauna were required to pay 10 percent of the cost of their health insurance coverage and none of their pension costs. Now, they’ll pay 12.6 percent of the cost of their coverage (still well below rates in much of the private sector) and also contribute 5.8 percent of salary to their pensions. The changes will save the school board an estimated $1.2 million this year, according to board President Todd Arnoldussen.
Of course, Wisconsin unions had offered to make benefit concessions during the budget fight. Wouldn’t Kaukauna’s money problems have been solved if Walker had just accepted those concessions and not demanded cutbacks in collective bargaining powers?

“The monetary part of it is not the entire issue,” says Arnoldussen, a political independent who won a spot on the board in a nonpartisan election. Indeed, some of the most important improvements in Kaukauna’s outlook are because of the new limits on collective bargaining.

In the past, Kaukauna’s agreement with the teachers union required the school district to purchase health insurance coverage from something called WEA Trust — a company created by the Wisconsin teachers union. “It was in the collective bargaining agreement that we could only negotiate with them,” says Arnoldussen. “Well, you know what happens when you can only negotiate with one vendor.” This year, WEA Trust told Kaukauna that it would face a significant increase in premiums.

Now, the collective bargaining agreement is gone, and the school district is free to shop around for coverage. And all of a sudden, WEA Trust has changed its position. “With these changes, the schools could go out for bids, and lo and behold, WEA Trust said, ‘We can match the lowest bid,'” says Republican state Rep. Jim Steineke, who represents the area and supports the Walker changes. At least for the moment, Kaukauna is staying with WEA Trust, but saving substantial amounts of money.

Then there are work rules. “In the collective bargaining agreement, high school teachers only had to teach five periods a day, out of seven,” says Arnoldussen. “Now, they’re going to teach six.” In addition, the collective bargaining agreement specified that teachers had to be in the school 37 1/2 hours a week. Now, it will be 40 hours.

The changes mean Kaukauna can reduce the size of its classes — from 31 students to 26 students in high school and from 26 students to 23 students in elementary school. In addition, there will be more teacher time for one-on-one sessions with troubled students. Those changes would not have been possible without the much-maligned changes in collective bargaining.

Teachers’ salaries will stay “relatively the same,” Arnoldussen says, except for higher pension and health care payments. (The top salary is around $80,000 per year, with about $35,000 in additional benefits, for 184 days of work per year — summers off.) Finally, the money saved will be used to hire a few more teachers and institute merit pay.
In the Kaukauna schools, the world is not only not falling apart — it’s getting better.

Read more at washingtonexaminer.com
 
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The Problems of Washington’s Role in Education Simplified

Allen Frederick Leave a comment

Thank you Heritage Foundation for this simply to understand video of Government regulated education’s failures. We need to return local education to the control of local jurisdictions and the families whose children are affected by the education being offered in their communities. Like they say the customer is always right. Except when it comes to Federal bureaucracies.

Amplify’d from www.myheritage.org
http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f8/1274179818

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Educating Our Children

Allen Frederick Leave a comment

“Train up a child in the way that he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” — King Solomon, Proverbs 22:6
 

consequences_of_failureOne group of people apparently knows this truth better than another. With the advent of public education we now have a system in place to train children to believe whatever it is the public school system wishes for them to learn. With a school system under the control of godless men and women is it any wonder that we have raised several generations who have forgotten from wench we have come? Is it any wonder that these same children grow into adults who repeat back the pabulum they were fed as children?

Is it any wonder that the government controlled school system teaches that it is the government which occupies the highest seat of honor in the country and not the individual for which our constitution was drawn up to protect. Is it any wonder that today’s young people view socialism positively and yet our founding father’s looked askance at the very idea of a strong centralized government interfering in the lives of the citizens. Train up a child in the way they should go and when they are old they will not depart from it is wise instruction. Do you suppose it is time we get back to teaching our children what made America great? Do you think it is time to get back to teaching our children about the richness of our Christian heritage? Do you suppose it is time to teach our children about what freedom really means and how to maintain a free society? Do you suppose it is time to teach our children about the failures of our federal government and remind them of what our Constitution actually taught? Do you think that perhaps it is time to do away with government-run education?

 

This week is National School Choice Week, School Choice advocates will gather all across the nation to shine a spotlight on effective education options for every child. Rather than accepting the status quo, and putting up with failed schools, advocates for school choice stand up to demand their children be given a choice in their education. Parents want alternatives to the failed government-run school system. National School Choice Week, a collaborative effort by more than 150 organizations, will raise public awareness about any and all forms of educational choice, including public charter schools, magnet schools, virtual education, homeschooling, tax credit scholarships, and opportunity scholarships.

Americans have talked about the need to fix our public schools for decades. There have been movies, documentaries, books, newspaper stories, panel discussions, academic studies, and presidential speeches all pointing to the problem within Americas public school system. And yet here we are still talking.

Our leaders promise reform, but each spring, too many kids graduate high school full of hope and dreams, only to quickly find out they don’t have the skills necessary to compete in a global economy. Our public schools have failed them. That must change.


During the week of January 23 29, 2011, concerned citizens from all across the country are joining together to promote school choice as the best way to reform our nations failing public education system.

The message of National School Choice Week is very simple: let parents decide which kind of school works best for their child. It might be a charter school (which is just another type of public school), a cyberschool, a private school, a religious school, or a traditional public school. Whichever option they choose, parents should have the right to decide which school will best help their child to learn and grow.

Allowing children to stay trapped in failing schools is immoral. Critics charge that school choice advocates secretly want to do away with public education. That’s simply not true. School choice advocates want all children to receive the best education possible. Instead of questioning our motives, teacher unions and their political surrogates should join the effort to do what is best for each child.

God advocated for parents to teach their children especially when it came to teaching them about the ways of God. He desired that every child be learned in the way of God so that when they grew older they would remember all the wonderful things that God had done for their parents. Therefore allowing parents to have the final say in their child’s education is supported by scripture.

As a nation we have failed to instill in our children all the blessings bestowed upon this great nation and as a result we have seen our children grow up to forsake the way of the righteous and run off after worldly gain. It is sad really to see how quickly our society has crumbled because of our neglect for the ways of the Lord. Parents, grandparents, I urge you to once again take up the torch of truth and light the pathways of knowledge for your children and grandchildren, shine the light of truth into the darkness of deceit and declare with certainty and authority the right paths to take. Shine your light of truth so that those who are seeking truth can see it and be led into the path of truth.

There is a great deal of teaching going on in our public schools that is having a harmful effect on our children and thusly upon our nation. It is time we get back to the basics and teach once again about the goodness of God, and teach our children to honor the Lord in all things. Now there is a civics lesson that needs to be taught.

For more information about National School Choice week, visitwww.schoolchoiceweek.com
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Taking Our Country Back One State At a Time

Allen Frederick 1 Comment

November 2nd is an important election where the American people vote to decide whether to continue on the course set by the current administration or put the brakes to ever-expanding government and a rapid erosion of our liberties.

Although it is possible that the Republicans will see a large victory this November does not mean the work is done. The voters need to continue to press for Conservative leadership at the local level, returning our country back to the sovereignty of states rights will diminish the effect the federal government has over all of us.

Here are some common sense reforms that need to be enacted in as many states as possible starting this November and continuing forward until our country is once again the great nation she used to be.

It is way past time we starve the leviathan of the federal government and choke off their source of power. We must keep up the fight not only for ourselves but for those who follow us. What are we going to leave behind us as a testimony to our stewardship? A free country or a bankrupt one?

LET”S GET OUT AND VOTE! OUT WITH THE OLD IN WITH THE NEW!

Amplify’d from dyn.politico.com
no matter how well Republicans do in November, the Obama administration is still likely to stand in the way of real reform at the federal level, ensuring a standoff that could last through the 2012 presidential election.

There doesn’t need to be a stalemate at the state level, however, since voters across the nation are poised to elect GOP governors and conservative state legislative majorities. They will be able to act immediately to address the fiscal crises that plague their states, devising innovative and less costly ways to deliver vital public services to their citizens.

Public pension reform
We need some tough reforms to control public pension costs, including changing the defined-benefit plans into defined-contribution plans, barring part-time government workers from receiving full benefits and ensuring that all enrollees contribute to their own retirement and health care plans.
Growth-oriented economic policies.
While federal policies delay job growth, states can create more business-friendly environments to encourage private-sector job creation and economic growth. The quickest and most effective way for governors to boost their economies would be to reduce state income and investment income tax rates
states must limit the destructive effects of Obamacare
Increased federal mandates have already caused premium hikes, averaging 9 percent for small businesses and individuals.
Zero-based budgeting
States should conduct top-down assessments of every taxpayer dollar spent, to identify areas of waste, duplication and inefficiency
Many government departments and structures are badly outdated, incapable of delivering essential services efficiently.
Educational excellence.
Even as state spending on education increases, student and teacher performance lags. States need to regain control from the U.S. Department of Education and demand better performance at the local level. School curricula should be redesigned to create a stronger connection between education and the skills needed for employment. States must also create an environment that allows parents to choose among competing educational opportunities. Charter schools, vouchers and other competition-focused programs are among the best ways to guarantee greater accountability and better-performing students. Read more at dyn.politico.com
 
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