7 comments:

• Ed Miller posted at 1:26 pm on Wed, Sep 14, 2011.

  Posts: 56

  Here we go again. The school system, our most expensive, tax-supported charity, exists to teach our children the 3Rs; i.e., reading, writing, arithmetic. At this, they fail year after year. Want proof? Businesses will not accept a high school diploma for decent paying jobs because high school graduates typically cannot read, write or perform math competently, let alone think critically.

  The school system fails for multiple reasons but the prime one is the persistent social engineering of our children. Lodi Unified School District’s Green Tech High School Academy is the latest example of pushing ideology and ecotheology instead of critical thinking. This facility would focus “on sustainable environmental practices” per the Sentinel, code words for UN’s Agenda 21 political and ecotheology agenda. Furthermore, green technologies are not ready for prime time and may never be. Without the government’s protection and promotion, they would be stuck in R&D. Windmills kill endangered birds, ethanol consumes more energy than it produces while competing with the food supply, solar is so uncompetitive that the government must subsidize the cost by 50%, compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) will cause the next Super Fund for mercury contamination of ground water, and the list goes on.

  No, invest in conventional schools while focusing on the 3Rs and critical thinking skills; these skills are applicable to anything in the future including green technologies. Avoid the current political, ideological, and ecotheology indoctrination promoted by the schools and the politicians.
  

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• Kim Parigoris posted at 5:21 pm on Tue, Sep 13, 2011.

  Posts: 444

  I would just feel so much better if we had some people in our local, state and federal government that had some business background. People that have had to make ends meet with no grants, funds, bonds, or "free: money. People who have had to make a payroll and maybe had to charge it on their personal VISA to do so. It just seems like our elected officials (and unelected bureaucrats) grab every shiny object that comes along, and get sold by every consultant, and snake oil salesman that shows them the latest fad. I wish they would spend OUR money like it was coming out of their own pocket, because it is coming out of ours. And the money tree is about out of leaves..

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• Jackson Scott posted at 2:45 pm on Tue, Sep 13, 2011.

  Posts: 366

  I think a TECH Academy during boom times is a great idea! Not every student is going to college and old fashioned trade classes & new style tech classes are needed. But these are bust times and we must watch every penny!

  MY REAL PROBLEM is with the article. Jennifer quotes several LUSD Trustees, the LEA Union President, one parent, and then also quotes the Union Presidents Wife who is a Teaching Coach, and a Trustees Wife who is a retired teacher. Seems a tad biased to me.

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• Kim Parigoris posted at 10:45 am on Tue, Sep 13, 2011.

  Posts: 444

  Here is some information on Total School Solutions from 2008 -

  As we continue our series on the impact of former CBO Tahir Ahad and his prviate educational consulting company, Total School Solutions (TSS), it is important to note that TSS has contracts and projects in districts across the state of California and beyond. Their webpage lists as clients, 61 such districts including, Waterford Unified School District.

  Waterford is a small town of approximately 8,500 just east of Modesto. On Sunday, March 2, 2008, the Modesto Bee ran an investigative report about fiscal mismanagement performed by their Superintendent Howard Cohen and his relationship with Total School Solutions.

  A contract with a Bay Area consulting firm, Total School Solutions, was ratified as a $33,000 agreement to polish the district's master plan but turned out to be an open-ended contract that cost the district $124,000 before it was canceled with the work unfinished.

  Read more: http://www.modbee.com/2008/03/02/227668/report-rips-waterford-spending.html#ixzz1XrA0t8yQ

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• Kim Parigoris posted at 10:37 am on Tue, Sep 13, 2011.

  Posts: 444

  I understand that Kevin, and agree that there are ones that are doing well. But I also agree that these need to be privately driven, not just government funded. It seems that our government just does not stop and ponder things well any more- they go off half cocked spending billions of dollars on hair brained schemes before they do the research. We simply can not afford to keep investing in iffy propositions, on our dime! American has always succeeded on private and innovative ingenuity...let's keep it that way.

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• Kevin Paglia posted at 9:06 am on Tue, Sep 13, 2011.

  Posts: 1729

  Kim, please tell me one industry that hasn't had businesses go under, especially with the current economic times.

  And for all the green businesses that had folded, there are dozens who are doing good and growing. If you search or Best green tech companies you will find a lot on green businesses that are doing good. Green Tech and the businesses associated with it is still in its infancy, just because it wasn't born running doesn't mean it should be put down. Give it time and support, if not financial at least tolerance, and let's see where this can go.

  But i do think the driving force needs to be the marketplace, not government funding, tax dollars. I want the Green Tech to move on it's own, not with Government pushing it along.

  I wish I had some $$ to devote for Green tech, I got a couple Ideas that I would be interested in seeing in the market place that aren't yet. Maybe after i get some land where i can have a workshop I can work on some of these ideas and see where they go.

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• Kim Parigoris posted at 7:08 am on Tue, Sep 13, 2011.

  Posts: 444

  When are well intended environmentalists going to realize that their "movement" has been hijacked by a self serving, power and money hungry movement bigger than them? Take Solyndra, after receiving $528 million dollars in federal funding (otherwise known as the American taxpayer) the Energy Department agreed to restructure their loan and give them 10 years to pay back the loan instead of the original 7, and pushed the first payment back to 2013. (In other words, the American taxpayer did not see a dime returned from their investment). 6 weeks before the company closed their doors, they were reqssuring Congress that there was no danger of that happening.
  "Green Vehicles" in Salinas California shut their doors after the City of Salinas gave them $540,000 in addition to the $187,000 that the California Energy Commission (California taxpayer money) gave them. Where's teh money? All gone.
  When is the citizenry of this country going to wake up that they are being scammed? Plain and simple- this whole green thing has turned in to a debacle and a total sham- at the cost of the American Taxpayer.

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