Obama Holds Another Summit on Education

Desperately attempting to get the teachers unions back into the Democratic fold, Barack Obama held another summit on education, this time directed at bolstering the budgets and enrollment figures of the nation's community colleges.

As one who lived for many, many years in a state that has a first rate community college system, Arizona, this push toward encouraging the "middle class" to focus on the more "affordable" community colleges merely is another sign that America's economy isn't getting better but worse, and using the education card another ploy to looking like we are doing something, when really doing nothing at all to help the middle class or support small business startups or emerging industries outside the tech and public employee fields, but offer them "options" and "alternatives" for their increasingly lowered standards of living.

The article quoted the substantial savings that these colleges offer, with averages of "only" $2,500 annual tuition costs.

When I graduated high school in Arizona, that rate was free or nearly so per credit hour as opposed to the $10.00 per credit hour that was being levied at the three major Arizona universities (1970's tuition was $160.00 per semester for a full course load at ASU or $320 per year). The junior college option was less than $3.00 per (before political correctness was the order of the day), or - although the cost of living from the 1970's to today has soared in housing, food, gas and other costs, education appears to be at the top of the list. Even though many of those teachers now at least in Arizona can retire after a mere 20 years, collect benefits, and then resume their teaching careers at other schools.

Or work at the community job center while collecting their retirement.

In fact, more and more it does appear that scholarships and grants are being used as sales tools since few grants cover full tuition anymore as the remaining costs most students or their parents must come up with are well above the COLA from the 70's to today. Although most Americans have been paying for those colleges and their operating costs through their property taxes and a host of other taxes passed on to the public for their costs - including rebuilding and expanding campuses that have been facing decreasing enrollments which is why so many foreigners now are being educated at America's top universities also at the taxpayer's expense.

It appears our four year universities are going to be reserved more and more for the well-heeled, and foreigners for that out of state, out of country tuition higher tuition due to also currency fluctuations, while the American middle class and state residents who have paid for those universities for decades are encouraged to utilize the community colleges for their offspring instead.

Not really such a bad idea as is becoming more clear for other reasons, since the classrooms in those colleges are far smaller for the most part and also since most students commute with no dorms or housing costs involved for the majority of those colleges, less of a chance that their child's roommate just might wish to hone his video skills also and broadcast via worldwide webcam what he or she engages in during his downtime.

It was also announced that there has been created another public-private partnership between government and corporate America.

This time with McDonald's and the Gap.

And the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Obviously, it appears that some of the upcoming high school students just might not be able to work those summer jobs at McDonald's or the Gap since it would appear that those jobs will now take an "associates" degree in order to even get through the application process. Maybe that is also why there is becoming more and more push toward year around schools so that parents are then shouldered with all those extraneous costs for getting those degrees outside even tuition rather than encouraging Junior to at least earn his own spending money for their splurges on their sports memorabilia, bookstore purchases, or fraternity and sorority dues or costs.

And don't think of not encouraging your college student to enroll for those technology classes, since the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is also contributing for this cause, since they will definitely need that skill so they at least can go through the application process post graduation after obtaining those degrees for any future positions for any position, including the larger retail chains.

Of course, since Microsoft has been the largest also beneficiary of the Obama and previous administrations "Americans Get Educated in Science and Technology" agenda with those massive government contracts at the taxpayer's expense with all those annual upgrades involved in keeping up with "new and improved" software, this demonstration of generosity simply means this Foundation would be then simply returning a great deal of the taxpayer's monies spent privately and through their tax bite back to the schools that have and continue to purchase their product - so really, Mr. Gates is simply utilizing some of his profits from those government contracts to "give back" to the schools those taxes they received that then used a great deal of their annual budgets to purchase those software upgrades.

The competitive edge also was used so that this country can continue to compete in this "global" economy, since we are now "socializing" education with a "science based" focus internationally as the populace becomes more and more "programmers" and data inputers for those mainframes.

While of course outsourcing many of the former industrial jobs and suppliers for those retailers to China, to those jobs provided to those poorer individuals in those countries instead who are working without having to go through the HAL process.

It does seem kids today are being taught and educated primarily to use computers, rather than their brains and critical thinking skills more and more outside the governmental agendas for the 21st century, as when those computers "crash" or are unavailable most major retail corporations and the government itself screeches to a halt. Or banks. Or airlines.

Here is an example of just how "tight" this partnership with the high tech gadget industry actually is. This is from a government website in a city in the western United States for their hiring needs with respect to the application process:

Application Process:

The City of ________________has an online job application system. It uses state-of-the-art technology which gives our candidates greater flexibility in the application process. (for the advantage of the candidates?)

Applications are only accepted through our online application system.

Human Resources will not accept or consider applications that are mailed, emailed, faxed, or dropped off at our office. (and just where is the stated "flexibility in the application" process?)

As a boomer, I'm still having trouble relating to the terms "human resources" rather than "personnel" since, while it may seem to be "politically correct in this "science based technology," era, I think a new terminology is needed here. Instead of "Human Resource" Departments, maybe the term should simply be modified to reflect the true nature of what corporate America and those government offices are actually is looking for.

The "Input Department" and electronic paper pushers for those far off "district" and regional offices, since more and more it is even computers based on software programs with a mathematical formula that are hiring and determining those "humans" it might need as "resources."

Including even who gets an interview.

Online applications are now the "new age" voicemail of the past. Human Resources doesn't wish to speak with you, until you go through their computers for screening and are deemed by "Hal" to be worthy. Or any employment agency, governmentally funded or otherwise.

This now in addition to calling for year around schooling in order to also "compete" in the global community.

I wonder when Uncle Sam will be listed on the "new" birth certificates at America's hospitals, since it appears that after the first five years, your children are not your children at all merely a potential human resource for global corporate interests - with many states are also initiating measures in order to deny public employment positions to those children who are homeschooled (this is not, however, discrimination) and any and all that don't get with the current jobs focus need not apply, but then again try arguing that fact when submitting your welfare or SSI application for your social services "benefits," rather than borrowing money once again to get "re-educated."

The computer has spoken. ONLY computer educated and friendly applicants need apply. Although the actual job itself just may not need much in the way of keyboarding. Or applicants will need then retraining on individualized software programs anyway.

It is, after all, a science to learning how to flip burgers or assist a customer on a clothing purchase at this point, and the corporate HALs are now hooked up to the banking HALs and government HALs and will be checking on your credit scores and traffic tickets in addition to your skills, job history and education.

I hope McDonald's and the Gap are just as supportive of raising that minimum wage in order to cover the advance degrees now needed for some of those positions that formerly were available to those who either could not afford to pursue degrees, or simply are more creative individuals rather than robotic material, in any event that might have an independent thought on just how to build a better mousetrap (another passé' expression at this point, it would appear).

I mean those business majors and graduates and their parents are now working side by side at McDonald's, so why should that industrious or hardworking free-thinking dropout who needs to go to work to help his formerly middle class parents pay the rent, or earn his own extraneous college expenses get a job without having to become indentured to his state government or the bankers and fill out those mandated computer loan applications, and committing the cardinal sin of not being prescreened by going through HAL and his cousins?

The competitive working environment is no longer a jungle out there in any event, it's now a network.

And "private/private" partnership also.

The other day I was in a local McDonald's and plastered all over the walls were cute drawings by some of the local grammar school students in grades K-4 with the message "Buy a burger Tuesday and help us get technology for our classrooms."

I wonder when teaching penmanship and handwriting will soon become relegated to the educational scrap heap, along with those dictionaries (who are now going out of print), since HAL can even help you avoid those awful phonics lessons, word lists and spelling tests.

What's wrong with U? Those online urban dictionaries instead now have the HAL and NEA seal of approval.

And wasn't Lincoln homeschooled?