I heard this morning that there have been 70 mass shootings since the first of this year. Another last night in Michigan. It may not be covid that makes every parent turn to homeschooling, but fear of the frequency with which children are shot at school that makes it necessary.
It reminded me of the response we hear from those resistant to restrictions on guns:
Guns don't kill people. People kill people.
I've received a flurry of emails over the past several days suggesting it's time to come to the aid of our party. I'm all in. Here's why.
The governor and his inner circle wanted Bobbie Richardson to remain in place as Chair. They we're comfortable with how the shots were being called and they wanted to stay the course with the same leadership, the same consultants, and the same results. We got our asses kicked last year, but it wasn't their fault.
SCHOOLS ARE FOR LEARNING, NOT A BATTLEFIELD IN A "CULTURE WAR": The data on the status of public education in North Carolina is shocking. More than 5,000 North Carolina classrooms without teachers. Fewer substitutes are available, many lack necessary teaching qualifications to do more than monitor classrooms. 10% of the buses don’t have drivers to get students to school. Shortages of nurses and counselors abound. These dire circumstances plague school districts large and small, urban and rural. No school, no system is immune. What kind of urgency do our state legislators bring to this crisis? None. They’re obsessed with waging their so-called culture war. In a state where there aren’t enough teachers for every classroom, the first topic on the agenda was legislation to prevent teachers from talking about certain subjects. Regretfully, North Carolina’s legislative leaders choose to play politics with their partisan base. They promote a facade of parental involvement while short-changing the schools their children attend. Stop the rhetoric and antics. End the disruptive tactics and start now to make the prudent decisions and investments in the education of students, the quality of those who lead their classrooms and the resources these students and teachers need so they have the quality learning opportunities they’ve been promised. Education is the cornerstone of a healthy economy, and it's even more critical in a state that is trying to evolve from textile and furniture manufacturing to higher tech 21st century operations. We need leaders who understand that, not bible-thumping demagogues. https://www.wral.com/editorial-schools-are-for-learning-not-battlefield-for-culture-war/20707466/
I've listened to everyone running for chair of NCDP and tried my best to keep an open mind. But eventually you have to choose, and I'm choosing to agree with Gary Pearce. He's the ultimate insider-turned-outside and his perspective about the NCDP leadership is right on the money.
Recently, the NC Senate passed it’s own version of Florida’s infamous “Don’t Say Gay” bill that would not only restrict discussion of LGBTQs in school curricula and allow parents to challenge what they perceive as “harmful” school materials, but also force teachers and school staff to “out” students that might engage in discussions about their own struggles with gender or sexuality.
The bill, sponsored and being talked up by state Senator Amy Galey of Alamance County, seems to be a on fast track for passage in the legislature where the NC GOP gained an expanded majority in the mid-term election.
While many observers - and even LGBTQ and allied organizations themselves - have focused on the damage this law would do to LGBTQ young people and portray it as a “bone” for evangelical conservatives in the GOP base, there’s a more simple reason that the leadership of the GOP is promoting this anti-LGBTQ law.
As a retired educator and President of the NC Retired School Personnel, I know how important health care is to retired educators across the state. After retirement, we want to continue to live comfortably, independently, and safely. That is made possible through my state health care plan on Medicare Advantage.
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