Here's What's the Matter With Kansas

[Heracles 417]

Yep and unfortunately, a value to society cannot always translate into market value. That is where free market ideals fall apart.

The free-market works, when you raise the bar [minimum expectation] for the average worker. You also need to restrict supply; which unfortunately based on other threads, you disagree with. It's no coincidence that no other first world country has a US style immigration policy, attitude towards illegals or even minimum wage.

The easiest way to see what works and what does not is to compare and contrast the policies of first world countries, basically using a Venn Diagram. From minimum wage, health care, employee benefits, immigration policies to welfare, most other successful first world countries share various policies and approaches.

Common sense dictates you look at those commonalities delivering positive results and attempt to implement the same in your country. However, the biggest problem here is actually getting people to admit or see there even is a problem. Pick an issue facing America and not any other first world country, I guarantee you people will come on here and claim there is no problem. E.G Health care, illegal immigration, homicide rate, poverty, dilapidated infrastructure, lack of infrastructure, lack of competition in areas like power or internet providers etc etc

Edited September 10, 2010 by Heracles

[Ban Hammer 13,394]

"Here's What's the Matter With Kansas"

no hippies allowed, that's what.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

"Here's What's the Matter With Kansas"

no hippies allowed, that's what.

[mawilson 2,133]

I said that? No... actually, I didn't. I am beginning to see why you annoy Heracles so much.

[HAL 9000 96]

Credentials are fine, but in practice credentials often get watered down or twisted into something that is no longer a good indicator of quality. Teacher certifications are a very good example of the latter. My wife went through the process. While her special ed certs are, in my opinion, meaningful because you have to learn a lot of useful stuff (they make you take a certain sequence of grad level classes) to get it, I have a very low opinion of the certification process for elementary and middle school general ed. Those certs are a joke and it's pathetic that anyone who has one of them qualifies for a salary at that level.

I can relate 100% from observing what was IMO, severely unqualified teachers acquiring credentials they had no way of applying in practice due to the very nature of their having obtained them.

As 'Master Teacher' programs do, practical credentials can be gauged across the board. This is unfortunately one thing I argued over with other teachers... and the unions in their corrupt logic would of course side with such logic in order to maintain the membership fee base as a method of continuing to supply the directive boards such ridiculously high salary rates in comparison to actual instructors. School districts would also side with such logic, as ensuring a true-qualified instructional force would create a market where salaries would have to be commensurate with such qualifications...

This is an institutional issue, not a conceptual one. Oversight can be designed to address teacher inadequacies. 'Highly qualified teachers' should, of course, produce higher-than average achievers in the classrooms, statistically speaking.

Yep and unfortunately, a value to society cannot always translate into market value. That is where free market ideals fall apart.

Priorities... priorities. Market pressure dictates that in a hedonic society, entertainment and pleasure will always trump academics.

[tmma 467]

All he has to do is say "spook" and you show up? You two scare me.

That made me chuckle!

[spookyturtle 9,466]

revered?

Yea, it's revered so much he lives here. Australia is an insignificant player in world affairs. It's like an elitist private club that thinks their sh!t don't stink.

[^_^ 5,021]

Yea, it's revered so much he lives here. Australia is an insignificant player in world affairs. It's like an elitist private club that thinks their sh!t don't stink.

It's not all that elite. Nor is it all that exclusive. Whenever I visit India I have a variant of the same conversation with someone who wants to "go abroad" as a student. These people always "apply" to many different countries, the US and Canada always being choices #1 and #2. Australia is always the safe backup. Anyone can get a student visa to go to Australia, from what I hear. They even have visa fairs in Indian cities to beg Indian kids to forego the University of North freakin Dakota to come study in Sydney instead. And yet, more Indian kids prefer North Dakota and Louisiana and other American backwaters to Australia.

[Ban Hammer 13,394]

we keep all the libs in one part of the state.

link

[one...two...tree 2,762]

we keep all the libs in one part of the state.

link

I'll bet it smells like weed.

[^_^ 5,021]

I'll bet it smells like weed.

And France.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

And France.

What does France smell like?

[^_^ 5,021]

What does France smell like?

Dirty, no good god hating liberals.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Dirty, no good god hating liberals.

I'm closing my eyes and imagine smelling patchouli oil mixed with a week's worth of sweat from not taking a bath.

[spookyturtle 9,466]

It's not all that elite. Nor is it all that exclusive. Whenever I visit India I have a variant of the same conversation with someone who wants to "go abroad" as a student. These people always "apply" to many different countries, the US and Canada always being choices #1 and #2. Australia is always the safe backup. Anyone can get a student visa to go to Australia, from what I hear. They even have visa fairs in Indian cities to beg Indian kids to forego the University of North freakin Dakota to come study in Sydney instead. And yet, more Indian kids prefer North Dakota and Louisiana and other American backwaters to Australia.

Are you implying that BY isn't being truthful to us?? Australia isn't the center of the universe?