Coronavirus

[Al-O-Meter]

It's a good thing if they fear being voted out. It's a bad thing if they fear people harassing their families.

School boards are an incredibly local thing. The funds to pay for those schools come from the property taxes of the homes around the school. The children of those parents are the most affected by the school board’s decisions. The members of the school board are public servants. They are supposed to be beholden to the public, specifically the immediately local public. That is the whole reason for there being local school boards.

Too many school boards seem to view the local public as a nuisance while taking their instruction from far away agencies like the CDC, State or Washington bureaucrats, and national advocacy groups. The problem there is the school board and the rage from those parents is completely justified. I don’t condone threats of violence but I certainly understand the frustration that drives it.

 

[Red]

School boards are an incredibly local thing. The funds to pay for those schools come from the property taxes of the homes around the school. The children of those parents are the most affected by the school board’s decisions. The members of the school board are public servants. They are supposed to be beholden to the public, specifically the immediately local public. That is the whole reason for there being local school boards.

Too many school boards seem to view the local public as a nuisance while taking their instruction from far away agencies like the CDC, State or Washington bureaucrats, and national advocacy groups. The problem there is the school board and the rage from those parents is completely justified. I don’t condone threats of violence but I certainly understand the frustration that drives it.

Naw, I don’t excuse the behavior of the parents at all. I don’t appreciate the response to his Op-Ed, when it went national, at all. Personally, I think I would have simply resigned, and passed on writing the Op-Ed to explain why the resignation. Not worth it in today’s climate. I think many are motivated by flat out ignorance. Don’t need that ****. Wash my hands of that ignorant nonsense, go live in a cave somewhere lolol.

It’s only going to get far, far worse. I see where many at yesterday’s Trump rally seem convinced we are heading for civil war. Trump is “still the president”, 2024 will be about righting the wrong that was the 2020 election. How absurd.

So many Americans angered and motivated for revenge because of a Big Lie. How very destructive of our body politic. Personally, I can’t even imagine what a civil war would look like in our National Security state.

This is the Op-Ed that provoke so much vitriol toward the guy. Can’t be too sensitive in the America we live in these days. It’ll just earn ya more hatred….

OPINION: Why I had to leave the School Board

Former School District Trustee Kurt Thigpen explains his resignation from the Washoe County School Board.

thisisreno.com

 

[Al-O-Meter]

I think many are motivated by flat out ignorance. Don’t need that ****. Wash my hands of that ignorant nonsense

I would go even further and say the majority of people are motivated by flat out ignorance, but the ignorant get to have their say too. The school board cannot act like The Thriller and block anyone voicing an opinion they don’t agree with.

This former school board member makes reference to a statement put out by the school board president that condemned violence. In that statement was a link to a counseling page that provided tips on how to address these traumatic events.

1. Reassure children that they are safe. Emphasize that schools are very safe. Validate their feelings. Explain that all feelings are okay when a tragedy occurs.

2. Make time to talk. Let their questions be your guide as to how much information to provide. Be patient

In the first point, the school board did exactly the opposite. They said the schools were not safe and closed them all. If you look at the hate filled comments directed at the school board president’s statement, the bulk referenced the schools being closed. As for instructive point #2, yup.

So many Americans angered and motivated for revenge because of a Big Lie.

I personally believe the causation is backwards on this. I believe many Americans are angered and so they resonate with things like Q Anon and The Big Lie. It is like rain. It doesn’t rain because there is dust in the air. It rains because conditions are such that water will condense on dust and fall to the ground. It is the conditions, not the dust even if the dust plays a minor role.

Even if the causation is the other way around or it is working like a feedback loop to reinforce the conditions, isn’t that the same phenomenon we’re talking about? People being upset that government is disregarding their voice?

 

[NAOS]

School boards are an incredibly local thing. The funds to pay for those schools come from the property taxes of the homes around the school. The children of those parents are the most affected by the school board’s decisions. The members of the school board are public servants. They are supposed to be beholden to the public, specifically the immediately local public. That is the whole reason for there being local school boards.

Too many school boards seem to view the local public as a nuisance while taking their instruction from far away agencies like the CDC, State or Washington bureaucrats, and national advocacy groups. The problem there is the school board and the rage from those parents is completely justified. I don’t condone threats of violence but I certainly understand the frustration that drives it.

This kind of response to @One Brow is precisely the kind of bollocks I loathe more than just about any other. It’s a bold-faced Trumpism that’s learned how to code-switch more effectively.

Why don’t you address the very clear distinction in OB’s comment?

 

[One Brow]

Too many school boards seem to view the local public as a nuisance while taking their instruction from far away agencies like the CDC, State or Washington bureaucrats, and national advocacy groups. The problem there is the school board and the rage from those parents is completely justified. I don’t condone threats of violence but I certainly understand the frustration that drives it.

So, schools boards are paying attention to the health experts to keep kids healthy, the state bureaucrats that decide on the local accreditation and provide funding, the Washington bureaucrats that also provide funding, and the parents are "completely justified" for "the rage" they experience because the school board is trying to keep their kids healthy and accredited? Sorry, but mis-informed parents deserve no sympathy for trying make other parent's kids unsafe and uneducated.

 

[NAOS]

So, schools boards are paying attention to the health experts to keep kids healthy, the state bureaucrats that decide on the local accreditation and provide funding, the Washington bureaucrats that also provide funding, and the parents are "completely justified" for "the rage" they experience because the school board is trying to keep their kids healthy and accredited? Sorry, but mis-informed parents deserve no sympathy for trying make other parent's kids unsafe and uneducated.

Someone has to step up for them, though, and provide a thinly veiled support for them to do whatever they want—including violence if they just so feel like it.

I mean, what if Quiznos also happened to be out of their favorite bread on the same day their kid’s teacher said something weird? Rage-inducing all teh way.

 

[Al-O-Meter]

the state bureaucrats that decide on the local accreditation and provide funding

That is exactly the myth being used to justify this unresponsive behavior. The state bureaucrats do not provide the funding. The funding does not come from them. The funding comes from property taxes. It is those who provide the funding that are being ignored. That same dynamic is credited as the spark that ignited a war in 1775. The school board of all people should know that history yet they're doing the exact same thing and acting shocked at how the social temperature seems to be rising.

the parents are "completely justified" for "the rage" they experience because the school board is trying to keep their kids healthy and accredited?

The nobleness of the actions is immaterial. The ends do not justify the means. If the school board has stopped acting as public servants representing the will of the people they serve, and instead choose to act with unilateral power to simply tell the local parents how it is going to be then it doesn't matter if those school board members did it to cure cancer or save puppies. If the school board is dictating policy rather than implementing the aggregate will of those they serve then 'those they serve' are completely justified in being outraged.

Sorry, but mis-informed parents deserve no sympathy...

What I'm trying to point out is there is a cliff right in front of us. We know historically it is there. We can see in a rising trend of current events it is there. Are you sure I can't convince you of the wisdom of going a different direction or to stop mashing the accelerator?

 

[One Brow]

That is exactly the myth being used to justify this unresponsive behavior. The state bureaucrats do not provide the funding.

I don't know the details of every state, but in the three states that I have lived in as an adult (MO, OH, IL), the state supplies part of the expenses for public schools. what state do you live in?

The funding does not come from them. The funding comes from property taxes.

You seem to be suffering from the libertarian disease of "either/or" thinking. Yes, property taxes are a major source of funding, probably the biggest source in many districts.

It is those who provide the funding that are being ignored.

Public schooling is not a capitalistic endeavor.

That same dynamic is credited as the spark that ignited a war in 1775.

More overblown hyperbole. School boards are elected.

The school board of all people should know that history yet they're doing the exact same thing and acting shocked at how the social temperature seems to be rising.

Yes, they are shocked that people are not turning to the ballot box, as they are supposed to in our system of government.

The nobleness of the actions is immaterial. The ends do not justify the means.

that's better said regarding the parents, who are circumventing the electoral process, than the school board that just doing their job.

What I'm trying to point out is there is a cliff right in front of us. We know historically it is there. We can see in a rising trend of current events it is there. Are you sure I can't convince you of the wisdom of going a different direction or to stop mashing the accelerator?

Since it is the side you are defending driving us off the cliff, perhaps you ought to take your foot off the accelerator, and remind people to use the ballot box .

 

[One Brow]

Adequate and Equitable Funding Spent Wisely

We work to improve public education.

stand.org

 

[Douchebag K]

Ivermectin: How false science created a Covid 'miracle' drug

Thousands worldwide have taken ivermectin to fight Covid. But what's the evidence?

www.bbc.com

man the BBC have fallen so far in their standards That's an unfortunately atrocious piece of writing lacking specificity, referencing and pretty much any merit. Shame on such an important topic.

 

[Scat]

Someone has to step up for them, though, and provide a thinly veiled support for them to do whatever they want—including violence if they just so feel like it.

I mean, what if Quiznos also happened to be out of their favorite bread on the same day their kid’s teacher said something weird? Rage-inducing all teh way.

This is a horrid analogy. Absolutely horrid. There are only two Quiznos in Salt Lake. Nobody here knows what the **** you are talking about.

 

[Al-O-Meter]

Since it is the side you are defending driving us off the cliff, perhaps you ought to take your foot off the accelerator, and remind people to use the ballot box .

There was a near collision documented in a transcript of a radio conversation of a US naval ship with Canadian authorities off the coast of Newfoundland in October, 1995. Radio conversation released by the Chief of Naval Operations 10-10-95. **

Americans: Please divert your course 15 degrees to the North to avoid a collision.​

​

Canadians: Recommend you divert YOUR course 15 degrees to the South to avoid a collision.​

​

Americans: This is the Captain of a US Navy ship. I say again, divert YOUR course.​

​

Canadians: No. I say again, you divert YOUR course.​

​

Americans: This is the aircraft carrier USS Lincoln, the second largest ship in the United States' Atlantic fleet. We are accompanied by three destroyers, three cruisers and numerous support vessels. I demand that YOU change your course 15 degrees north, that's one five degrees north, or countermeasures will be undertaken to ensure the safety of this ship.​

​

Canadians: This is a lighthouse. Your call.​

Demanding the parents change human nature to keep paying their taxes and silently obey dictates they find to be a morally reprehensible targeting of their children, being handed down from their administerial superiors is one way to do things I suppose. Good luck with that.

 

[NAOS]

@Jason
It’s too bad that you can’t keep JazzyFresh off this site.

 

[One Brow]

Demanding the parents change human nature to keep paying their taxes and silently obey

Well, since what I said is that they need to exercise their voice and vote (not to mention I never said they should be silent at meeting, I only said they should stop threatening people), your response is based on a lie. Further, since I referred to using the power of the vote no less than 3 times in comment 6132, it's an egregious and malicious lie.

Good luck with that.

Your disbelief in democracy (or republicanism, if you prefer) and a civil society is noted.

 

[Al-O-Meter]

Your disbelief in democracy (or republicanism, if you prefer) and a civil society is noted.

My belief or disbelief in political constructs isn’t as important as understanding what drives people.

 

[NAOS]

....understanding what drives people.

You’ve got the naked truth about this, eh? ****ing awesome, braugh.

 

[One Brow]

My belief or disbelief in political constructs isn’t as important as understanding what drives people.

Basing your "understanding what drives people" on a false narrative (you've put forth about 5 or 6 in the last couple of pages) will get you faulty results.

 

[Al-O-Meter]

Basing your "understanding what drives people" on a false narrative (you've put forth about 5 or 6 in the last couple of pages) will get you faulty results.

Even if what you said was correct, the truth of the narrative believed by those angered is immaterial. It doesn’t matter at all. Those falsely believing an injustice is being done can spiral out of control every bit as quickly as those correctly believing an injustice has been done.

As for which is the false narrative, it currently looks like angry parents threatening school board members at school board meetings is the made up one. There are 13,800 school districts in the United States and each has a monthly meeting that is recorded on video. That is over 165,000 school board meetings every year and millions of parents. If parents threatening school board members at meetings were a real issue then we should be swimming in video of these threats being issued.

I’m sure there are instances of people online saying truly awful things. Welcome to the internet. At the school board meetings full of outraged parents, that seems to be entirely or almost entirely voicing frustration at school board members who do not feel they are accountable to the parents. If it is only the threats you want to see stopped then I don’t think we have a disagreement because it isn’t happening at school board meetings.

 

[NAOS]

Lol

 

[One Brow]

If parents threatening school board members at meetings were a real issue then we should be swimming in video of these threats being issued.

So, as long as it's only few, so that we only get a new story every few days or so, it's not a real issue? I'm just making sure that's your standard, for future reference.