Arizona's Public Education in Trouble-BIG TIME!

Nothing New!

Every since a Republican moved into the Governor's Office again, Public Education in the form of "District Schools" have suffered one cutback after another.  Underfunded, unappreciated and under constant attack by ideologues and for profit private charter schools parading as extensions of public schools, funding has dwindled.

The voters of Arizona mandated funding for public education, however the Legislature has cut and short-changed District Schools.  Now the Court has ordered the voter approved public education funding be fulfilled and the Legislature has been ordered to pay up that obligation.  Now it is time to live up to the Constitution and voter approved Law.  Taken to Court a  ruling has been given, "Money is owed public schools".

It's high time we move into gear and demand the Governor call a Special Session of the Legislature and pay our public schools the money they are owed.  

http://tucson.com/news/state-and-regional/judge-arizona-owes-public-schools-more-than-m-now/article_9f33cd77-aa09-512e-88c5-38962d9ed4a2.html

Not one voice but thousands of voices.  Members of the Legislature, all candidates, political leaders, school board members, teachers and all teachers groups should be making news letting the Governor know they want action now.

Letters to the editor, social and business networking sites, students starting back to school writing to blogs, picketing and letting their friends and fellow students know that they have been cheated by past legislatures.  Better education choices, teachers, schools and students have waited long enough, it's the Law, the Constitution of Arizona requires it.

The Governor should have shown leadership on this issue and she has let us down.  At the minimum she should have vetoed the theft, now she needs to call the Legislature into session and request they do the right thing.  Start paying the students of this state the funds for their education that the Courts have ordered them to pay starting immediately with 300 Million.

The Court can order, but the Legislature has control of the state budget process.  The Legislature needs to be called into Special Session to do their Constitutional duties.

Waiting for the regular session of the Legislature with the political charades the leadership demonstrates and the dysfunctional members display will result in no solid accomplishment.   Sneaky, tricky sweeps of funds from dedicated (or what should be dedicated funds) is fraudulent budget balancing. 
 
A special session with a narrow objective will cut down on the smoke and mirror distractions the few in control use to promote a few profiteers and payback special interests who furnish campaign funds.  

Let's see who really believes in the Law, the Court has ruled. Time for action!  Time to demand payment!

I have full confidence in FRED DuVAL if he is elected Governor education at all levels will be a top priority of his administration.  The problem is IF!   The voters in Arizona have been so distracted by other issues election of any Democrat statewide especially in an off-year election is problematic. Great candidates, better qualified are not always elected.  

BUT, Pro-Public Education candidates have a good opportunity to pick up three additional State Senate seats giving a new look and more friendly outlook for proper funding coming out of the State Legislature for public education.  People like State Senator Steve Farley, Legislative District 9, are working tirelessly to elect more Democrat candidates to the State Legislature, however, that's a battle royal and the Republican machine in this state is well aware of those efforts.

Dr. Randy Friese a candidate for the Legislature in the same LD 9 puts education high on his "to do list" in the Legislature.   Dr. Friese states, "Public investment in our public education infrastructure equalizes opportunities."  Friese knows the difficulties providing solid education and pledges top priority for proper funding.  In order to have a high performing economy investment in education and skill training are building blocks to accomplish our goal of more good paying jobs.

Out of Arizona's thirty legislative districts, the candidates for the election in LD 9 this November you couldn't find more dedicated proponents of public education than State Senator Steve Farley, State Representative Victoria Steele and State House candidate Dr. Randy Friese.

Narrow business special interests have stakes in keeping anti-environment, anti-tax tea party types in full control of the Legislature.  Private prisons, Charter Schools and "Special Favor Tax" benefits get involved in campaign finances with dark money flowing into crucial campaigns of their legislative supporters.

Elections matter, and this election is critical for Education, Jobs and the Economy for Arizona.  People are moving to Arizona and will continue,  The difference is are we moving forward with a solid base of better paid working people as well as the seniors and retired folks who for the most part support lower paying jobs or not? 

School Vouchers are another red herring.  Take your eye off the ball and switch, more of the same deceptive transferring state revenue from public education. 

More discussion on education vouchers, click here 

The discussion if the Governor called a Special Legislative Session where would the money come from to repay the schools the Court Order requires.   One suggestion has been taking money from the "State Rainy Day Funds".

Another person wrote recently in the Tucson Weekly:

...call a special session and repeal the vouchers and tax credits for private schools that are sucking money out of the general fund into religious education. After that, raise the revenue that voters have demanded and that is the legislators' obligation. Finally, publicize the name of every legislator who voted for the cuts, vouchers and tax credits and make this an election issue. 

Whatever we do, speaking out for a Special Legislative Session seems like the best course of action.

Let's make this November a referendum on public education.

During last century’s Cold War, Great Britain’s Winston Churchill said: “The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of wealth; the inherent vice of socialism is the equal sharing of misery.”

Let's take a spin off those words, and compare the equal sharing of ignorance, lack of education, void of job skills and the current state of opportunity for young people and working age people in Arizona and consider what can be done.

It doesn't have to be that way!  We can change things and bring jobs, opportunity and brighter futures for everyone by determined effort to change course and set a new direction for everyone by making the November General Election a referendum on candidates holding positive attitudes and sincere principles in public education for all.

Candidates for public office must be masters of words, they are coached and practice sure-fire buzz phases designed to win favorable impressions from voters.  "School choice", and similar statements of support for educational opportunity are easy to express,  but what is the real meaning of their words?  

Education vouchers, privately owned charter schools sucking up public funds under the guise of being public schools need close review as alternatives to "district schools" which are  operated by locally elected boards of education.  Open meetings with time and place for public participation leading to real give and take on local school decisions. 

What is the real public input into these for profit education facilities called Charter Schools?  Do they really have "open enrollments"?   Do they offer special educational opportunities for handicap and students with special needs or disabilities?  The Charter Schools seek equal public funding, trust us finances with no public recourse on how or where the money is spent.

Starting with the "troubled" Pima Community College do we have candidates seeking election prepared to turn the direction around and bring quality back and solve the issue of accreditation?

Worth investigation seeking election to an open position on the board is Mark Hanna.  Is he for real or just a good song and dance candidate?  Sounds worth a second look.  Quoting from public material:

The best way to ensure a prosperous future for Tucson is through education. For 40 years the Pima Community College has been providing this education to our youth who are the leaders of tomorrow. By voting for Mark Hanna, you are helping to ensure that the Pima Community College continues as a leader in education for the next 40 years and beyond.

Pima Community College has such an important roll as a first stop for education after high school we need to elect new leadership committed to providing the community a learning center with skill building programs to ensure employment quality graduates.  

The success of Pima Community College is paramount as a resource for education in our  community, we must not put it on a back burner to just do the best it can.  Top priority to its governance and public support and financing needs our full attention.

This November election are we watch dogs of the candidates from both parties and their proven records of support for education.  

The candidates know the words, but what are their records?  Not the campaign blowing smoke, "protect the border", "bring jobs", "save the environment", "cut taxes", "balance the budget stuff" but the real issues like money for education, replacing lost gas tax revenue for transportation.

We need to hear where the candidates plan on getting funds for transportation projects, maintaining our streets and highway.  Where are local governments are to find money for the programs mandated by the state for their operations?   

Do we have a sluggish job market, stagnant wages, lazy people looking for welfare subsidies?  Across the country the employment picture has shown some improvement, more people are finding jobs but problems still exist.  Arizona is no exception, but reaching out and ready to lead is a fresh change in the climate of politics old school.  

Arizona has a very unique opportunity to elect a real in your face a savvy educator that is making his way as a good politician.  Without any doubt, with no reservations our chance of an election cycle to put education back on the front burner where it belongs. Show all ninty legislators, the to be elected governor we care about our kids, we care about jobs, we are tired of educating our children to move to other states for decent jobs, we want education improved.

Our vote for one of the most important posts in state government, a leader who not only knows but cares about education, a new Superintendent of Public Instruction with a 4th generation Arizonan who knows the state, ready and prepared to move us ahead, DAVID GARCIA

DAVID GARCIA  Experienced with Vision who knows the classroom, our children and someone we all can be proud to follow, for our future education systems and strong public schools.  

Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country

Now is time to resist fear, prejudice, stand tall for Progressive Ideals, Values that all Liberal-Progressives believe and carry forward into the fray we call an election.

Certain things are evident, President Obama is our first Black President.  He has more than proven his leadership and reaffirmed our trust in him for his second term as our President.

All across this country North, South, West and East there are people who have a reservoir of prejudice and will not be willing to accept his leadership in these times.  Any person of color would have that problem.  People really like President Obama and his family, but are not willing to accept him as the elected leader of our country.  

Someone said, Money is made round to roll around.  Greed and the seeking of financial benefit is a fact of life.  [**Corporate Greed]  People of great wealth never seem to have enough.  There are people willing to exploit that seeking to fill their own wallets.  Just a fact of life we cannot take money out of politics--this year!

The real patriots are those folks against some odds who are willing to become summer soldiers and march forward gathering as many as we can to stand shoulder to shoulder with us and elect those candidates willing to support President Obama and his last two years as our leader.

I firmly believe President Obama fully deserves to be placed in history along side the great Presidents not limited to but in my lifetime, Roosevelt, Truman, Kennedy, Johnson, yep, Jimmy Carter the under-credited humanitarian of our time.

President Obama is leading the United State in the worst set of global turmoil, no leader outside actual war has faced such world conditions.  Coming out a Great Recession, standing firm with responsible advisers President Obama has been a steady force at the wheel moving forward to renewed prosperity for our country.

Coming off the Great Recession who is the steady hand?

Put this is your book of the world today, Europe is still suffering from recession, China the second biggest economy in the world is in a worse struggle.  Japan and Germany's economies are shrinking, Italy's economic and political structure is in full decline, most of economies of the world are basket cases of financial ruin.  

Russian troops on Ukraine's border feeding rebels trying to topple Ukraine's government after having moved into part of Ukraine declaring it part of Russia.  Islamic militants seized Iraqi territory, attempting to create its own state out of Syria and Iraqi.  In punishment of Russian expansionism US sanctions are disrupting trade and creating problems for our European allies.

Ebola outbreak spreading fear and death over Africa.   World poverty, pitting nation against nation, Israel's war in Gaza upsetting the simmering powder keg of the Middle East.  No peace there for another piece of time.

Constant political harping against President Obama, if it rains too much on the East Coast and fires rage on the draught ridden West Coast, it was the lightening caused by President Obama visiting the West Coast to possibly do a little political fund raising to help Democrat candidates who are being buried by dark money political action packs. 

President Obama remains a steady hand at the wheel of state, and I am darn happy he is!  Progressives it is our assignment to become the soldiers, electioneers for this fall's elections. This mission and the short time we have to turn things around means, all hands on deck!

Give Up and Give Credit - President Obama is a success!

Our  future Health Care with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act another of the great achievements of the President Obama needs to be added.  Open enrollment for this year with nearly 14 Million more Americans under some Health Care program is a reality.  

Another 5 million plus denied health care coverage because the politicians in Republican controlled states refused to expand the Medicaid programs offered with Federal funds.  The citizens of those states are cheated the basic need of health care because for political reasons their elected representatives would rather make them suffer than see another crowning success given to President Obama.

The pressure is building as more and more citizens realize just across the border in another state with more progressive government leaderships health care is offered and more folks are now under a health care program.  How long before those Republican politicians can no longer withhold Medicaid expansion and by popular demand join the ranks of millions of other Americans offered health care?

How much longer before the medical professionals, hospitals, insurance companies and employers revolt against picking up the tab for emergency and other medical treatment for the uninsured?