Deliberate Dumbing Down of America Public Education

458 in the low-income urban areas end up? What private and/or “publicly-funded private” entities are waiting in the wings to orchestrate and relegate these students into dead-end workforce training institutions? As explained in the preface and at the end of this book, the global workforce training system is being put in place as I write. For example, on June 28, 1999, Gene Sperling, the director of the President’s Economic Council, in an interview with CNN’s “Moneyline” said that some of the $100 billion “surplus” could be used to make sure “children are ready to be the workers of the next century.” What real “choice” will parents have when it comes to where their children will be so-called “educated” (trained) to be the “workers of the next century”? The powers-that-be must be pretty sure of themselves to so blatantly refer to education’s primary goal as creating little workers. Are American parents really so dumbed down that they find such comments coming from the highest office in the land acceptable? Even if those operating charter schools had the best of motives, what is going to happen to the majority of children who come from homes where both parents work, where there is only one parent, where there are numerous societal problems which would impinge upon the freedom of parents to be a part of the privately-supported system—sell their children into serfdom? “Choice in education” is an appealing concept until put under the microscope of 1990s reality. At this point in time, “true choice” with no strings attached exists only for homeschoolers and private (independent and religious) schools that have not in any way compromised their freedom to do exactly as they wish . By that, the author means that such an entity has never: (1) accepted one single penny which has at any time, in any fashion, been a source of government—at any level—revenue (tax money; i.e., vouchers, tax credits, or funding from private sources subsidized in any way by the government); and or (2) availed themselves of any services provided by local, state, or federal governments or private sources subsidized in any way by the government (i.e., extracurricular school activities including music, art, sports, field trips, computer use, etc., or health and mental health services which may have been provided when the student was enrolled in the public school system). “True” choice is an option for the minority of children whose parents had better be on guard when offered free computers and software to learn the curriculum required in order to obtain the certificate in mastery necessary to obtain a job or be accepted in college. “True” choice is not an option for the majority of children whose parents are not in a position to avail themselves of it. A massive national effort to restore true local control of our public schools seems to this writer to be the only “real” long-term solution which will guarantee freedom and upward mobility for all our children. Such a solution is no more difficult to implement than solutions presently being offered by those who wish to “use” America’s youth for their own profit-seeking motives-resulting in the loss of economic and political freedom. In order for such a solution to be implemented, elected officials must understand from whence came the problems in education. It is for that reason, for the true understanding of public officials, that this book was written. The author hopes and prays that the great est number of elected officials will read this book and take the necessary courageous action to reverse the situation which, if left unattended, represents a grave threat to the continued freedom of our nation.

—C HARLOTTE T HOMSON I SERBYT