After reading this thoughtful exchange on our children's education [on another forum], I think the bottom line is that we all be reminded that it's absolutely essential that we, as parents, stay involved in our children's education. That's equally important whether they're home schooled or attend public, charter, or private schools. So much of the kids' problem at public school these days is that the parents don't stay involved (or worse, that they're totally absent.)
Whatever your choice for educating your own children, we cannot afford to forget that universal education is the only way that universal suffrage can function in a democratic republic. Our republic can't survive if we have an ignorant and uneducated electorate (as witnessed by our recent and current elections.) And currently, our public schools are the only option for universal education, so they must be maintained, however much effort that requires of us. I spent ten years (1997-2006) working and living with my family in developing countries, and saw first hand the price of ignorance and the failure of those countries to thrive due to their lack of universal education. I fear that we're moving in that direction right here in the U.S.
I feel very fortunate to be blessed to be living and working here in sheltered St. George, Utah, where most of the public school teachers are nice Christian moms, including my own wife. I don't have any problems with what my kids' public school teachers have taught my kids (except when they ignorantly try to preach the decidedly non-scientific theology of man-made global warming in the science classes - but then I more than make up for that at home. If you have been duped by the popular media on this issue, please take a gander at: http://www.globalwarmingisalie.blogspot.com/.) Plus I have always made it a point to meet and talk to all of my children's teachers, along with most of the school board members and district administrators.
As for university studies: I was very gratified when my middle child, who is currently a freshman at SUU, was able to discern that the professor of her required "introduction to university studies" teacher was "evil" (her word) because the professor was trying to teach all of the freshmen that their parents had misled them and that they shouldn't "judge" and that there is no "right" or "wrong" - just different decisions.
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Response to Guest Editorial
On October 8, 2008, the democrat candidate for Washington County Commissioner wrote a guest editorial in the St. George Spectrum. See: http://www.thespectrum.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081008/OPINION/810080342/1014/OPINION. The opinions that he extolled were so far from reality that I had to write a response and submit it to the newspaper. It was very difficult, but I managed to pare my response down to under the 200 word limit. Unfortunately, the newspaper, which always favors the democrats running for office, chose not to run my rebuttal. Following is what I wrote:
[The democrat candidate] revealed several errors in judgment in his recent campaign proposals. First, the proposed 750MW solar farm in the “southwest corner of our county:” materials alone cost $6/watt or $4.5 billion, less the $500 million unsecured investment from the solar companies, plus $4.5 billion in labor, equals $8.5 billion. Without factoring in any costs for land (this project would require 4,500 acres of land,) or the multiple transmission lines required to move the 750MW to the grid, or the backup generation for nighttime hours, or operations and maintenance, or any profit for the project company, the energy price easily tops $0.40/kWh – four to eight times the going rate in Washington County. Second, T. Boone Pickens and his laughable TV commercials: surely no one is naïve enough to believe that he has anyone’s interests in mind except his own. Third, the proposed suspension of impact fees as an economic stimulus: we shouldn’t increase our local taxes to pay for the additional roads, sewer, water and power lines required to serve more empty houses sitting vacant, waiting for more bad loans to be bailed out by our income taxes. I’m voting for Alan Gardner.
[The democrat candidate] revealed several errors in judgment in his recent campaign proposals. First, the proposed 750MW solar farm in the “southwest corner of our county:” materials alone cost $6/watt or $4.5 billion, less the $500 million unsecured investment from the solar companies, plus $4.5 billion in labor, equals $8.5 billion. Without factoring in any costs for land (this project would require 4,500 acres of land,) or the multiple transmission lines required to move the 750MW to the grid, or the backup generation for nighttime hours, or operations and maintenance, or any profit for the project company, the energy price easily tops $0.40/kWh – four to eight times the going rate in Washington County. Second, T. Boone Pickens and his laughable TV commercials: surely no one is naïve enough to believe that he has anyone’s interests in mind except his own. Third, the proposed suspension of impact fees as an economic stimulus: we shouldn’t increase our local taxes to pay for the additional roads, sewer, water and power lines required to serve more empty houses sitting vacant, waiting for more bad loans to be bailed out by our income taxes. I’m voting for Alan Gardner.
By the way, the photo inserted above, is of some petroglyphs and was taken during our hike to Employee Canyon.
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