What is today's American Dream?

[August]

Originally Posted by tater

Wow. I disagree with him pretty much 100%.

You actually believe that the reason people are so poorly educated is a conspiracy by our "corporate masters" to keep the people ignorant? You believe that? That in a nutshell is what Carlin says in that video.

The implication presumably is that even though MORE money is spent per student in poor areas, presumably they work hard to make sure the teachers there are incompetent. Myself, I don't blame teachers for poor outcomes, I blame parents. Private schools don't select on the basis of affluence, they select for parents who are involved. Affluent people live in nice areas. Nice areas have good public schools in general. Is that a money sorting? Yes, but the people with money have a different culture WRT education. They value it. The sad reality in urban areas is that the culture doesn't value education. Does that mean no poor people value education? Of course not, but just enough don't value it to really screw things up. Bussing in CT found that when they bussed in enough urban kids to the burbs that they hit >10% of the school population, they dragged the whole suburban school down with them.

A great story on an attempt to correct this cultural gap in NYC on This American Life:

http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radi.../364/going-big

It's the "Baby College" story.

Regardless, it's not a conspiracy, that's as absurd as truthers, etc, frankly.

This ^