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Documentary ‘The War on Kids’ compares U.S. public schools to prison system
Foxnews,com ^ | May 03, 2012 | By Hollie McKay

Posted on 05/03/2012 6:26:48 AM PDT by US Navy Vet

Are public schools becoming more and more like prisons?

That’s what the documentary “The War on Kids” says.

Based on interviews with educators, medical professionals, students and sociologists, the documentary, which received a limited film festival run in 2009 and is being released this week on the Documentary Channel, paints the picture of an increasingly authoritarian and paranoid school system that is failing its students, stripping them of their civil liberties and constitutional rights.

“Kids have no voice. Everyone pretends to care, but it is never true, and it’s the children who are being blamed for all the failings in the education system,” filmmaker Cevin Soling told FOX411’s Pop Tarts column. “People do not learn when they are in such an autocratic environment

(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Government
KEYWORDS: homeschooling; learning; propagandacenters; publicschools; teaching; unions
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To: Katya; JenB; US Navy Vet; GOPJ; WMarshal; Ethan Clive Osgoode; Gumdrop; E. Pluribus Unum; ...

Most of us know there are some terrible school systems,
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

1) So?....When did the voting mob get the right to FORCE godlessness on captive children and to FORCE the citizen to pay for the establishment of this godless worldview. When did this become great?

Just too cooperate in the classroom the child must think and reason godlessly in his godless government school. How could it be otherwise?

2) Simply by attending socialist-entitlement schools children risk becoming comfortable with socialism.

3) Where is the evidence that some government schools are good? Huh? Prove it to me. Where at the studies that show how much is entirely due to the afterschooling, tutoring, and work done by the children IN THE HOME and not due to the government teacher. There aren’t studies because schools of education have never done them. The results would put the government schools out of business.

4) Government schools trash every First Amendment Right. They strictly control speech, press, assembly, and expression of religion, and they FORCE a godless worldview on their captive students.

5) In many ways, children in government schools are treated like prisoners.

Personally, I consider government schooling to be sooooooo evil for the child and such a threat to our continuing freedom that I have made a decision. I will no longer have a government school teacher for a friend. They are to evil, too stupid, or too much of a Useful Idiot to be a friend.( I won’t have an abortion worker for a friend either. )


21 posted on 05/03/2012 5:40:49 PM PDT by wintertime (Reforming a government K-12 school is like reforming an abortion center.)
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To: wintertime; Katya
Personally, I consider government schooling to be sooooooo evil for the child and such a threat to our continuing freedom that I have made a decision. I will no longer have a government school teacher for a friend. They are to evil, too stupid, or too much of a Useful Idiot to be a friend.( I won’t have an abortion worker for a friend either. )

Winter; Aren't you the man/ woman that sent your kids to public schools when it was convenient for you? Didn't you tell all of us that your kids went o community colleges and state colleges? Weren't you the one that went to a state school to get some sort of medical degree?

Wow this really sounds hypocritical of you doesn't it?

22 posted on 05/03/2012 7:06:16 PM PDT by verga (Party like it is 1773)
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To: verga; wintertime

I’m glad I never made any sort of changes to my worldview, ever! It’s so hypocritical to have a slow conversion to the truth, or even worse a Road to Damascus moment!

And I don’t believe I’ve seen wintertime attack state colleges. That’s an entirely different discussion from government schools.

I believe government schools are evil too. I was homeschooled from day one, my husband was homeschooled, our daughter is homeschooled. Is my ideology pure enough for me? Because I don’t always agree with wintertime’s rhetoric but I do agree with the statement that “I consider government schooling to be sooooooo evil for the child and such a threat to our continuing freedom”.


23 posted on 05/04/2012 6:05:36 AM PDT by JenB
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To: Ethan Clive Osgoode

Wow. I majored in English at college, just with a good old B.A., major in English, minor in Mathmatics.

I knew that the moon revolved around the earth well before college. Never even took a class in college regarding astronmoy. Might have had one or two math problems in trig that involved the moon...

I can’t even remember when I first knew the moon revolved around the earth. That’s how long I’ve known it. How could you live that long without having figured it out at some point?

‘Course, I was homeschooled. But most of my friends weren’t, and this tidbit of information did not escape them.

That teacher must have been a grade A idiot.


24 posted on 05/04/2012 9:01:34 AM PDT by Conservaliberty (25 and conservative. I guess I have no heart, Oh, well, makes shooting the bad guys easier.)
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To: wintertime

bttt


25 posted on 05/04/2012 3:49:49 PM PDT by GOPJ ( "A Dog In Every Pot" - freeper ETL)
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To: WMarshal
If your look at the most recently build schools they have almost no windows, very few doors, and are surrounded by chain link fences. If that is not a type of prison I don’t know what is.

Most new schools also have guards or police officers on duty - teachers who sexually abuse attractive inmates - oops, I mean students, and an adversarial relationship with the parents of the 'students. Also when a teacher's a thug - or violent, the 'system' doesn't fire them...

You have a point there, WMarshal

26 posted on 05/04/2012 3:59:12 PM PDT by GOPJ ( "A Dog In Every Pot" - freeper ETL)
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To: JenB; wintertime
I’m glad I never made any sort of changes to my worldview, ever!

Great use of the straw man argument and hyperbole to avoid the use of actual facts.

It’s so hypocritical to have a slow conversion to the truth, or even worse a Road to Damascus moment!

Winter's ginning of the system and use of public education when it suited her /his needs has been documented time and time again.

And if I have mischarecterized anything why isn't she /he pointing out my errors?

27 posted on 05/04/2012 5:54:43 PM PDT by verga (Party like it is 1773)
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To: verga; JenB
Verga,,

Hopefully, over the past 40 or more years ( if you are that old) you have changed your mind on some issues. Unlike the rest of humanity were you born with perfect understanding?

Given your insistence upon perfect consistency in human behavior over the course of a lifetime, then how do you manage in this imperfect world populated with imperfect humans?

Are conservatives who argue for the abolishment of social security hypocrites for taking social security?

Are conservatives who advocate for the return of federal lands to the states hypocrites for visiting a federal park or BLM lands on occasion?

Are those who are pushing for a fair tax or flat tax hypocrites for paying their taxes? What about those who are vehemently against abortion? Are they hypocrites for not holding back some of their taxes?

28 posted on 05/04/2012 7:12:46 PM PDT by wintertime (Reforming a government K-12 school is like reforming an abortion center.)
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To: wintertime; JenB
Winter, The issue is not consistency or inconsistency and it never has been. Nor is it your use of straw man arguments and red herrings as you raised in your last post. You have made "Universal statements" condemning myself and every other member of the public education system. You have attacked a system that is admittedly flawed, but have not taken a single legitimate step or made an effort to correct that system. At the same time you have referred to me and other members of that system that are trying to correct that system as "communists", "Socialists" and my personal favorite "Useful idiots".

At the same time you used that same system when it suited you.

It wasn't a matter of you developing your views or changing your mind. It was you doing what you wanted to do when you wanted to do it.

Others and myself have given you ample opportunity to engage in meaningful discussion and you have refused. You and your little automatons have your canned responses and your blinders are firmly in place, and that is okay.

But when you spread your vile and your lies I will be one of the people standing in your way.

When you decide to act like an adult I will the one ready to listen and now that I have received my Masters degree in Education leadership, be willing to assist n making improvements.

So the ball is in your court, Stop making wild eyed fanatical claims and get to work fixing, or get out of the way.

29 posted on 05/05/2012 5:11:02 AM PDT by verga (Party like it is 1773)
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To: verga

Fundamentally, political, cultural, and religious philosophies of all types are general. While not directed at specific individuals, if the philosophy prevails it will effect individuals, sometimes profoundly.

So?....How do you manage in this world if those who espouse a political, cultural, and/or religious philosophy different from own have the audacity to write or speak about them in your presence?

If you this thin skinned then perhaps Free Republic is not the forum for you.


30 posted on 05/05/2012 5:42:13 AM PDT by wintertime (Reforming a government K-12 school is like reforming an abortion center.)
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To: verga

from own
^^^^^^^

That should read, “your own”.


31 posted on 05/05/2012 5:43:36 AM PDT by wintertime (Reforming a government K-12 school is like reforming an abortion center.)
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To: wintertime
If you this thin skinned then perhaps Free Republic is not the forum for you.

Should read either If you are this...." or using the contraction "If you're this ....."

Might be time to get your self to a public school so you can learn to write using proper English.

Now on to the the rest of your post.

Taking offense at being lumped in with a very small minority that engages malevolent behavior (that means bad in case you didn't know) is not thin skinned.

Last year there was a case of a dentist that had sex with patients when they were knocked out. Last week another dentist removed all of the teeth of an ex boyfriend. Should I lump you in both of them, or even all dentists?

The beauty of our society and our system is that if you don't like something we are free to try and change it if we can gather enough support. Or we can consume other products if we don't like a particular brand.

But you do not have the right to condemn "Tide" detergent as "Useful Idiots" when you like "Cheer" better.

On a regular basis you and your automatons marching in lock step have done that.

BTW I noticed that you didn't congratulate me on earning my third Masters degree, how typically unchristian of you.

32 posted on 05/05/2012 6:17:01 AM PDT by verga (Party like it is 1773)
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To: verga

So the ball is in your court, Stop making wild eyed fanatical claims and get to work fixing, or get out of the way.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Fixing a system built upon the foundation of godlessness, single payer socialist-entitlement, and compulsion can not be fixed.

Also....Please note that I am very careful to address the **broad** issues of godless government schooling. Although it is possible that in the past half decade or so that I may have strayed from this principle on rare occasion, my posts are NOT directed at any specific individual.

As for lying, please tell me, which of the following is not true?

**ALL** government owned and run K-12 schools in this nation are godless. Just to cooperate in the classroom the child must think and reason godlessly. How could it be otherwise?

**All** government owed and run K-12 schools in this nation are a single-payer socialist entitlement. Children who attend risk learning to be comfortable with socialist funded tuition free schooling. Hey! if the voting mob can give them tuition free schooling, why not use the power of the voting mob to get lots of free stuff from their fellow citizens?

** All** government owned and run K-12 school districts are compulsory for all those children whose parents can not ransom them.

Taxpayers are under police threat to pay the taxes that support this system of godless government schools .

( Not proof read.)


33 posted on 05/05/2012 1:12:02 PM PDT by wintertime (Reforming a government K-12 school is like reforming an abortion center.)
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To: wintertime
Also....Please note that I am very careful to address the **broad** issues of godless government schooling. Although it is possible that in the past half decade or so that I may have strayed from this principle on rare occasion, my posts are NOT directed at any specific individual.

You paint in broad strokes to create straw man arguments.

And you have done nothing (by your own repeated admission) To fix the system. Instead you sit in front of the computer making these broad generalizations with out dealing with specifics.

The devil is in the details. What percentage have the financial resources to home school?

What percentage of parents have the desire to home school?

What percentage of children want to be home schooled?

BTW you still have not congratulated me on receiving a third Masters degree, this one in Educational leadership/ administration.

You also have not told me what you intend to do to help me improve a system.

Now try to address real issues with real solutions instead of your straw men.

34 posted on 05/05/2012 3:17:15 PM PDT by verga (Party like it is 1773)
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To: verga
To fix the system.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Again! Godless, single-payer, socialist-entitlement, government K-12 schooling can not be fixed **because** it is godless, single-payer, socialist-entitlement and owned and run by the government.

I will not comment on education degrees, specifically or in general, because I fear you would take my comments to be personally directed at you.

As for your comments about homeschooling, I have consistently, throughout this thread mentioned private schooling together with private schooling. We don't have a well developed system of tuition-free private schooling because the government monopoly cartel has disrupted the free market and discouraged private philanthropy. ( Please remember that colleges and universities, unlike K-12 education, have endowments in the billions upon BILLIONS! ) If government had never interfered in the education market perhaps not only U.S. children would be enjoying tuition-free private schooling but also every child in the world. ( Yes, as a nation we were and are that wealthy.)

35 posted on 05/05/2012 7:01:13 PM PDT by wintertime (Reforming a government K-12 school is like reforming an abortion center.)
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To: wintertime
All you do is post rantings of opinions and offer no solutions that are practical.I do realize that it is really much easier for you to sit around and whine, but at some point you actually do have to do something if you expect change. You have yet to offer a single "fact" that you substantiate with hard cold numbers. I ask you questions that can only be answered with facts and you go off on one of your tangents.

If you can't support your opinions or answer my questions with document-able numbers then you have nothing to say.

36 posted on 05/05/2012 7:51:48 PM PDT by verga (Party like it is 1773)
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To: verga

offer no solutions that are practical.I
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

There are no solutions ( practical or unpractical) that resolve the fundamental problems with socialist-entitlement, single payer, godless, government schooling because it is a socialist-entitlement, single payer, compulsory, government program.


37 posted on 05/05/2012 9:23:11 PM PDT by wintertime (Reforming a government K-12 school is like reforming an abortion center.)
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To: wintertime
There are no solutions ( practical or unpractical) that resolve the fundamental problems with socialist-entitlement, single payer, godless, government schooling because it is a socialist-entitlement, single payer, compulsory, government program.

This is cowardice at best. Burying your head in the sand while whining "Woe is me" is not the solution, It is how this mess began.

And you have done nothing (by your own repeated admission) To fix the system. Instead you sit in front of the computer making these broad generalizations with out dealing with specifics.

The devil is in the details. What percentage have the financial resources to home school?

What percentage of parents have the desire to home school?

What percentage of children want to be home schooled?

You also have not told me what you intend to do to help me improve a system.

Now try to address real issues with real solutions instead of your straw men.

Why are you refusing to anser these questions

38 posted on 05/06/2012 4:56:55 AM PDT by verga (Party like it is 1773)
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To: verga
Ok, here is a real solution:

Abolish government employee unions. They are already protected under civil service laws. That is enough.

In those states that currently have caps on the number of charters, remove these caps. Allow God-centered schools instead of restricting charters to only the religious worldview of godless.

Allow tax credits. Any individual or business who donates money to a private voucher fund, or sponsors a child would deduct the full amount from their taxes. For those who are poor, and do not directly pay income or property taxes, they would be get a reimbursement.

Allow any group of teachers at any government school to vote to turn their government school into a charter. This has already been successfully done at Green Dot schools in Los Angeles.

Gradually, reduce the amount of government involvement in education, on every level, over the next 25 years, as the private infrastructure is built and private philanthropy can assume the burden of educating our nation's children. Perhaps a once a year campaign similar to the United Way effort could be instituted, however, the funds would be directed to the private scholarship fund of the worker's choice.

Finally, currently about 3 to 5% of the nation's children are homeschooled. Homeschooling when done from the beginning, has an excellent record and, on average, homeschooled children **far** exceed institutionalized children in academic achievement. As adults, too, former homeschoolers have **far** less social pathology. These statistics can be found on the Homeschool Legal Defense Association website.

While homeschooling is the most ideal way to rear a child to adulthood, sadly, not all children can be homeschooled, for many reasons: Selfishness, materialism, health, intelligence, illiteracy, poor coping skills, lack of discipline, extreme poverty, etc. on the part of the parents. These children will need to be institutionalized for their schooling. We need orphanages, too, but no one is claiming that this is the best way to rear a child.

( Not proof read.)

39 posted on 05/06/2012 6:17:55 AM PDT by wintertime (Reforming a government K-12 school is like reforming an abortion center.)
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To: wintertime
Ok, here is a real solution:

Finally

Abolish government employee unions. They are already protected under civil service laws. That is enough.

Would you include police and firefighters in this as well, How about workers at county and State institutions such as hospitals and mental facilities. Some police and fire fighters unions provide "Hazard" insurance that are self insurance since other companies rates are to high for this.

In those states that currently have caps on the number of charters, remove these caps.

Good idea, Would these school have the option of refusing admittance to a school? or would they required to take ALL applicants on a first come first serve basis?

Allow God-centered schools instead of restricting charters to only the religious worldview of godless.

They already exist they are called parochial schools. Also you complained that at your daughter's or daughter-in-law's Catholic school she was the only one that did not support Obozo. Would these schools have to take ALL students on a first come first serve basis? Would they have to modify their curriculum to support all religious beliefs? For instance If the child of Wiccan parents applied to an evangelical school could they practice their faith?

Allow tax credits. Any individual or business who donates money to a private voucher fund, or sponsors a child would deduct the full amount from their taxes.

Good idea no disagreement.

For those who are poor, and do not directly pay income or property taxes, they would be get a reimbursement.

I disagree completely, 48% of our population does not pay federal income tax. This is enough of a "break" they are not entitled to more of my money unless I choose to give it to them.

Allow any group of teachers at any government school to vote to turn their government school into a charter. This has already been successfully done at Green Dot schools in Los Angeles.

Is this based on a simple majority or super majority? What about the teachers that don't want to work for a charter school? What about the students that don't want to attend a charter school or if their parents don't want them to? Where would they attend? How would the Charter school reimburse the county for land and building?

Gradually, reduce the amount of government involvement in education, on every level, over the next 25 years, as the private infrastructure is built and private philanthropy can assume the burden of educating our nation's children. Perhaps a once a year campaign similar to the United Way effort could be instituted, however, the funds would be directed to the private scholarship fund of the worker's choice.

Great idea, 100% agreement.

Finally, currently about 3 to 5% of the nation's children are homeschooled. Homeschooling when done from the beginning, has an excellent record and, on average, homeschooled children **far** exceed institutionalized children in academic achievement. As adults, too, former homeschoolers have **far** less social pathology. These statistics can be found on the Homeschool Legal Defense Association website.

There are three types of lies, Lies D@mn lies, and Statistics. Find and independent agency to support your numbers via a double blind study.

While homeschooling is the most ideal way to rear a child to adulthood, sadly, not all children can be homeschooled, for many reasons: Selfishness, materialism, health, intelligence, illiteracy, poor coping skills, lack of discipline, extreme poverty, etc. on the part of the parents. These children will need to be institutionalized for their schooling. We need orphanages, too, but no one is claiming that this is the best way to rear a child.

So you want to take these children from their parents and put them in an institution? Who is going to determine which students don't fit into your program? Are you going to have "Education panels" or "internment panels"? I was with you pretty much on everything until you went off the rails with this last one. Might be time to rethink this.

( Not proof read.)

There is no excuse for this.

40 posted on 05/06/2012 7:44:18 AM PDT by verga (Party like it is 1773)
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