<p>
</p>
<p>Ok, I concur, except for the “not all public schools everywhere,” which I would also concur with if there was evidence that such schools existed.</p>
<p>Still, I would not characterize the above description of what he supports as being “supportive” of public schools, at all.</p>
<p>bevhills,
As I previously posted, he is living in Pacific Palisades.</p>
<p>“City workers shovel out houses of worship and it is very expensive. I don’t want to pay that. Let the houses of worship do it themselves. I’m fine with public schools, hospitals and post offices being shoveled out on my dime, but that’s pretty much it. Except bus shelters. That is fine.”</p>
<p>If I had to guess why the sanitation dept does this in NYC my money would be it’s a union thing and their wanting to be in charge of all the plowing because of the overtime it brings with it.</p>
<p>^^^Agree again, Zoos.</p>
<p>
It’s not plowing. It’s actual shoveling. However, I do think you’re right. Another example of elite leadership being out of touch with the common man.</p>
<p>“bevhills,
As I previously posted, he is living in Pacific Palisades.”</p>
<p>So what? I live in the best district in my area and still chose to send my kid to private school. And it was a sacrifice financially to do so.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>No, I didn’t say that. I am fine with people thinking and doing whatever they want. What I think is hypocritcal is <em>publicly</em> advocating for a product, but in real life, choosing something different.</p>
<p>What I think is happening, is that Damon is not actually advocating for public schools as they exist today, but rather he is advocating for them to be different. So I am okay with him saying that and not sending his kids there, if that is in fact what he is saying.</p>
<p>Sheesh, emilybee, I was just giving bevhills some info as she apparently lives in the area.</p>
<p>Palisades High is a charter school, by the way, if that means anything different to anyone, especially in terms of whether it is “progressive” enough or “autonomous” enough.</p>
<p>“Another example of elite leadership being out of touch with the common man.”</p>
<p>Are the rank and file employees complaining about it?</p>
<p>Drawing from the same demographic, a Catholic school in NYC outperformed a public school by a wide margin at a fraction of the cost.</p>
<p>[Why</a> Catholic Schools Spell Success For America’s Inner-CityChildren](<a href=“http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/1997/06/why-catholic-schools-spell-success-for-americas-inner-city-children]Why”>http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/1997/06/why-catholic-schools-spell-success-for-americas-inner-city-children)</p>
<p>Funny how some people would throw poor inner city kids under the bus because of their disdain for people of faith</p>
<p>
Nobody is “forced” to send their kids to Catholic school so they are not “forced” to pay the full cost. My sons were fourth-generation Catholic school students. We chose this for them because we believed in it. Yes, we pay taxes to the public school system and as I mentioned upthread, in our county private school students get some auxillary services from the public school system. Further, I think the lack of government spending on religious schools is a good thing, because it allows us to keep our independence and self-determination. If we took government vouchers, we’d have to answer to the government for the money. As it is, as long as we fulfill state instruction requirements, we’re free to share our faith and traditions with the next generation, which is what Catholic school is about.</p>
<p>“Funny how some people would throw poor inner city kids under the bus because of their disdain for people of faith.”</p>
<p>The Catholic Church is quite wealthy. There is nothing stopping them from giving scholarships to those who want to attend and cannot afford to do so. There were lots of kids at my son’s school who received scholarships to attend. They also has a work/study program.</p>
<p>
As a matter of fact, they are. I certainly wouldn’t want to wield a shovel for 11 hours.</p>
<p>
Also alumni. Many Catholic schools have very devoted alumni who support scholarships for students down the road. My son has received the blessing of a scholarship and he has said (he is 14) that his goal is to be successful enough to endow a scholarship. No one would stand in his way.</p>
<p>Damon has a 13 year old stepdaughter. She may be entering 8th grade. His other 3 children are 3, 5, and 7. I don’t think the charter high school or preparation for the SAT is relevant to his and his wife’s choice of schools for them.</p>
<p>The Catholic churches in my area subsidize the schools. We paid about 7k for two kids in HS. The cost for two kids at the local HS is about 26k. And the Catholic school produced much higher ACT scores than the public school.</p>
<p>
Good point, Bev. No “famous” children at my sons’ Catholic school but there was a domestic violence/gun incident when S1 was in kindergarten. We had a security system with cameras, etc. installed immediately. How fast could a public school respond to something like that?</p>
<p>“As a matter of fact, they are. I certainly wouldn’t want to wield a shovel for 11 hours.”</p>
<p>Me neither - but I bet the extra money comes in handy. </p>
<p>“Also alumni”</p>
<p>Very true. We know several people who have endowed scholarships at my son’s school.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>A belief in the importance of the separation of church and state does not equate to “disdain for people of faith.”</p>
<p>
I think there are some tasks that they don’t consider worth the extra money. For senior people, they are already making very good money and don’t want to do that. For junior people, it’s not that much money. The city is now having citizens sign up as temporary workers on a per diem basis to do it. Which is much less expensive, but I still don’t think tax dollars should pay for it.</p>