What it takes to succeed

The very first job I had coming out of high school was being the courtroom artist for the Arcata Union, the local newspaper where I grew up. Arcata is a small town in northern costal California. Back then it consisted primarily of fishermen and loggers. Now it is mostly environmentalists, hippies and artists seeking an escape from corporate America. But that is not the context of this missive.

Above this body of text is a graphic. It is the landing page of a web site I am illustrating. Long before I got into politics I was a, and continue to be a professional artist. That means I usually draw for money. I haven’t really done so for a long time as most companies don’t seem to think that a man over the age of 60 is capable of handling graphic art instruments much less programs such as Corel Draw, Photoshop and Illustrator, even though every one of those software packages were created by someone who is now well over 60.

The map is an illustration of WobWorld. It is a site created to be an educational experience for pre-school and elementary school age children. It will never be seen as something valuable by the crowd that considers embarrassing bodily functions as the height of humor. However, what it does do is entrance, entertain and educate those children fortunate enough to visit it; and there is a reason for that. It includes an emormous amount of detail.

An illustration with that much detail takes time, talent and skill, but I am not being egotistical. I can easily tick of several names of artists I feel completely in awe of. The simple fact is that in order to do work of a professional nature the individual attempting such work needs to understand the nature of what is to be accomplished, the tools required to do the job and the skills to use those tools in the best and most efficient manner possible. You don’t get there by being unable to read or write, and you certainly don’t get there by spending all your time manipulating characters in a video game. You get there by learning what it takes to be the best you can be in the profession you choose to be in, and that takes both time and training.

At Arcata High School I was fortunate to come under the guidance of thee extraordinary women, Mrs. Anderson, Mrs. Smith and Olga Dahl, my freshman, sophomore and senior art teachers. Every one of these women was qualified to teach at the college level, but they chose to be high school teachers instead. I had the additional good fortune to have a great grandfather who is known as a prominent American Artist, Irving R. Bacon. Some of his artistic tendencies come my way through lineage, but even with that bent, learning had to be done and classes had to be passed.

Today some so-called educators are attempting to eliminate the letter grades. They claim that having the ABCDF gading system is labeling students and creating a lack of self-esteem among those who are not as gifted as their peers receiving the higher grades. There are a number of phrases I can think of in response to such a claim, but not one of them is something a gentleman would say. The least objectionable word that comes to mind is nonsense. By eliminating a system that records accomplishment you are also eliminating accomplishment. There is nothing wrong in having a child excel, but there is everything wrong in awarding praise where none is earned. Consider what that would do to the world of competitive sports.

Just like a professional sports team, the world of business that deals in using skills to create products such as the WobWorld website has no use for a person with no marketable skills. Those who counsel today’s children into believing that they do not have to strive for excellence in academics are abusers of the worst sort. Less than one tenth of one percent of this year’s graduating class will ever become a professional in sports. An even smaller percentage will become a sports star, but that is what is heard by those children who not only have failing grades but seem to be glad of the fact. Not one of them will ever move to the top of the business world without some kind of mental sweat. Many in today’s education hierarchy seem to believe that they must shelter the children from the harsh realities of the outside world. Either that or they believe that somehow a boy or girl with no marketable skills will somehow prevail along with those who do. Neither view is healthy.

If you are a parent and your son or daughter is in school, the best thing you can do for them is to be unbending where academics and homework are concerned. Force them gently, if necessary, to excel in class in all subjects, even if they don’t like it. Turn off the TV and hide the cell phone and music player until homework is done. Until that child is graduated you have two jobs and if you are a working parent the second is more important than the first. I have to stress that Bill Cosby and I have no agreement where ordinary politics is concerned, but on education we are in lockstep. To paraphrase the man, there is nothing to be proud of in being ignorant and even more shame in being the one who raised an ignoramus.

The Myth About Teachers, Busted

Throughout this political cycle there has been considerable discussion over funding education, especially where that funding concerns the classroom and the classroom teacher. Many of those on the left have bemoaned the nearly criminal lack of tax hikes created to augment America’s profound parsimony where education is concerned. They never mention the utter disparity between administration salaries and staff, but the hue and cry is profound. On the right the teacher is viewed primarily as either an enemy of the state at worst or an indoctrinator of leftist causes at best. Both extremes could not be further from the truth and there appears to be a missing factor in the debate. Both the right and the left have steadfastly refused to separate the vast bulk of classroom educators with the real genesis of the problem; ill-prepared, disruptive students, utterly uninvolved parents, socialistic union leadership concerned only about their own power, school boards far more agenda-driven than education-driven and administrations concerned only with maintaining the meager flow of federal dollars.

Let’s make one thing perfectly clear; the "teachers work for only 9 months" myth is just that, a myth. Every teacher I know works throughout the year for less pay than any other degreed profession. Their work doesn’t end simply because they leave the classroom. Consider this comparison, let’s say that a degreed individual has a position that requires considerable time away from his or her desk, but the general public only considers the time spent at the desk as “being on the job”, is that in any way a fair judgment? It is the same with the classroom teacher, but the media continues to ridicule those who object to the generally accepted stance on teaching hours vs. contracted hours. Ask a teacher what he or she has to do to prepare for next year during that so-called "vacation". In my research, every decent teacher puts in a 12 hour minimum day during school and an average of 6 to 15 hours weekly during the "vacation". This does not include the additional hours of continuing education required to maintain the teaching credential.

It seems that some in-depth reporting on what a teacher is forced to put up with and the incredible amount of additional work required of them in addition to just the teaching deserves putting down ink on a page. The average administrator is paid over twice what the average teacher receives, including the benefit packages, yet teachers are constantly reviled as overpaid, lazy “indoctrinators” who only work 6 hours a day “at the public trough". What would be the consequence be if those advocating the elimination of public education got their way? Just how many parents would be responsible enough to shoulder the burden now shifted to them? How many would be either willing or able to afford a private school education? Those advocating such a move cannot simply suggest a shift of public monies to cover this expense unless they are willing to also admit to extreme hypocrisy.

  As time passes, it seems that the public school eliminators may get their wish through attrition alone. More and more educators are leaving the profession and for good reason. A prime example is the ever-growing lack of respect shown to the classroom teacher from the parents on down. This is not mere coincidence as the teaching of manners now ends after elementary school and far too many with the power to do so are removing any sense of accomplishment associated to succeeding in school. Take social promotion as an example. These advocates of mediocrity claim that assigning failure to a student who actually fails harms the child somehow. By the time that student reaches high school age the damage is quite possibly irreversible, and yet the teacher is somehow at fault for what others have done. For some reason it is not the politicians, the administration or even the parents, but the teacher who is to blame for the illiterate brats that continue to hit the streets each year.

Another reason is lack of respect. Every professional occupation there is owes its existence to the teacher and yet very little, if any, appreciation comes their way. Not from the students, not from the parents and especially not from the school administration, and even less from those reporting and commenting on the issue. Our teachers are stuck in a horrible system not of their making, yet the media constantly calls for teacher accountability. Where is the student accountability? Where is the parent accountability? Where is the community accountability?

Nearly every classroom teacher I have spoken to simply wants to be able to impart knowledge of their subject to their students. They do not want to be babysitters and they are deeply offended by No Child Left Behind, standardized testing and the stance of the union that attempts to dictate how teachers should think and vote. They are worn out from the lack of discipline and prevalence of social promotion, and every other issue they are wrongly blamed for. Teachers do need more than lip service, they need the afore-mentioned respect, it is doubtful they will ever get what is needed, certainly not from any political party and certainly not from the conservative media, even though a significant percentage of teachers are supporters of the tea party movement. But what is even worse, they will not receive any thanks from the parents who send their little darlings off to the cheapest nanny there is. Teachers are simply tarred with the brush that should be aimed at those causing the problem, not because doing so is right but because it is easier.

Unions are no longer needed

My wife is a teacher and because she is a teacher she felt forced to join the teachers union. The reason was the litigious character of today’s society. Based on what she was told, the union is the only body capable of defending her is a student or a student’s parents sued her over an imagined slight. It was until much later on that we discovered that there is an association of American teachers, http://www.aaeteachers.org/ offering every benefit of the unions and more at a considerably reduced cost. In addition to that, the association doesn’t use its member’s money to support issues and candidates the teacher doesn’t agree with. In essence, the union, as far as most teachers are concerned is not only useless but harmful. Now for a history lesson;

The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in New York City on March 25, 1911, was the deadliest industrial disaster in the history of the city of New York and resulted in the fourth highest loss of life from an industrial accident in U.S. history. The previous sentence is taken verbatim from a Wikipedia article, but even at that, its information is historically accurate. Max Blanck and Isaac Harris, the owners of the business did everything they could to create the worst possible working environment in a highly competitive industry, and as a consequence put in place the factors necessary for disaster.

Following the disaster lawmakers began to correct the oversights allowing misers such as Blanck and Harris the freedom to abuser their employees. Unfortunately, those oversights also paved the way to give eastern European style socialists a foothold into the American economy in the form of trade unions.

Right now the United States of America is faced with an implacable enemy bent on nothing less than the total destruction of the US economy and the pursuit of individual prosperity. No, I’m not writing about Islamic Fundamentalism. Our enemy is the vast interlocking group of trade unionists. If you don’t believe me, check out the posted death threat sent to the courageous Wisconsin legislators who, in spite of the illegal tactics of the Democrats managed to pass a bill that forces the unions to work on the same playing field as everyone else. If those threats had come from a conservative source they would have been the week’s headline news in every media outlet possible. As it is, you have to dig to find a single article.

Back in the early 1900’s a case for unions could be made since far too many business owners function from a primary motive of utter greed. These men had little or no regard for the men, women and yes, even children whose sweat made them millions. But those days have long passed and entire libraries of legislation have been created mandating a safe workplace. The chief obstacle against employment and prosperity these days is the interagency of the unions against what matters to nothing more than common sense.

Consider the American automotive industry. There was a time when America was the primary industrial power of the world and the partnership between the steel mills and the auto manufacturers rolled out the best most-affordable mode of tr4ansportation money could buy…and then the unions got greedy. Class warfare showed its ugly face and instead of being the reason they had good jobs, people like Henry Ford became the enemy. Where is Detroit now? It is nothing more than an ever-expanding ghetto that produces far more crime than anything else.

Education is another industry the unions have ruined. Teachers are under the illusion that the NEA is there to help them that their local union branch is there to protect their jobs, even though every ancillary position, included janitorial, has better wages, benefits and working conditions than the classroom teacher. A teacher is the only governmental job requiring a 4-year degree that pays less than that of a Las Vegas parking valet. Here is a bit of news that would never make the news; if the public employee unions did not exist every decent teacher would get a raise because the government would be allowed to pay the workers based on their merit. They would also be allowed to get rid of the lousy ones, and kick the brats out of the school to make room for kids who want to learn.

So, do we need unions? No, not with the current laws covering the workplace; a job should be something you earn, not something you inherit.