The United States is home to more than 2,000 dysfunctional High Schools. They represent 15 % of American High Schools Yet account for half of our dropouts. When you break this down you find that these institutions produce 81% of Native American dropouts, 73% of all American dropouts, and 66% of all Hispanic dropouts.
At our grade schools, two-thirds of all eight graders score below proficient in math and reading. The average African American or Latino 9 year old is three grades behind in these subjects.
We have dropped from first to twelfth place in the percentage of people between the ages of 25 to 34 who have a college degree. America is now in danger of producing a new generation that will be less educated than their parents.
Clearly it's not for lack of money. Over the past three decades we've nearly doubled spending on K-12 education in real terms. So, why are we spending so much and getting so little in return? The answer is that while the system is failing our children, it works very well for some adults. These adults include leaders of the teachers unions, They include the the politicians whom the unions reward with their cash and political support. They include the vast educational bureaucracies. They include teachers salaries that allow them to retire with more money than they made while they were teaching. In business terms, we have a system that rewards the providers and punishes the customers.
So, how do we fix it? Clearly a big part of the answer is giving parents more choices for their kids. For choices to mean anything, however, parents also need transparency so they can make real comparisons.
The Los Angeles Times just gave us an excellent example of this kind of transparency when it published a database of about 6,000 third through fifth grade teachers ranked by their effectiveness in raising student test scores. If you are a mom with a son or daughter in one of these classrooms, you know this information is vital. Unfortunately it's the type of information that seldom sees the light of day. Unfortunately our systems is set up to protect bad teachers rather than reward good teachers.
On top of that we have chancellors, superintendents and principals who can't hire and fire based on performance. We have tougher standards on "American Idol" And as long as we refuse to measure success by what our children are learning, we're going to have higher performance by pop stars than for public schools.
When we allow the children of other people to fail or leave school without an education, they do not disappear. They become adults who cannot provide for themselves. And guess what? The costs will be borne by our children.
It's time we begin ensuring that every boy and girl who enters a public school leaves with the same shot at the American Dream we insist on for our own children.
Friday, October 8, 2010
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
When The Republicans Win They Better Listen Carefully!
Outsiders become insiders quickly if they agree to tax and spend. This cannot happen again because this is our last chance to get it right. Here is what I mean: In 1995-1996 The Senate introduced two bills to increase spending for every bill they introduced that would cut spending. By 2003-2004 they became much worse. In the House there were 1343 bills introduced to increase spending and just 35 to reduce it. A ratio of 30 to1.
You will recall The "Contract With America" said, that the Republicans would put an end to a "Government that is too big, too intrusive, and too easy with the public's money." What can be done? We know that our elected officials love to spend money, to get re-elected and to be hero's back home when they bring home the pork.
But in order to bring real change we ought to have term limits to start with for obvious reasons. As Americans we need to demand change for it to happen.
In the private sector when individual companies become bloated and mismanaged but competitive markets ensure that they eventually go bankrupt or get taken over and restructured. About 10% of U.S. companies go out of business each year and corporate executives get ousted all the time. Failures are eliminated in the private sector, and poor performance gets punished. By contrast, many Federal agency's are inefficient and perform poorly year after year and yet they survive and grow.
Fraud and abuse: Medicare : Fraudulent payments cost 20 Billion annually.
Medicaid: Inflated billings and bogus claims waste Billions. The GAO found $1 Billion of fraud in California's portion of Medicaid alone. The New York Times reported in 2005 that from 10 to 40% of the states annual budget of 45 billion may be siphoned off in fraud and abuse.
Medicaid Nursing Home Benefits: These benefits are supposed to be for the poor, but financial consultants help higher income seniors hide their assets in order to qualify. This scam costs taxpayers $10 billion each year.
Post 911 Grants: Much of this $8 billion to help repair damaged New York Offices went instead to build luxury condos. The grant to hand out free air-conditioners ballooned in costs from $15 million to $100 million due to management failures and bogus claims.
Housing Subsidies: Overpayment's in federal rental housing subsidies cost $2 billion each year. Head Start: This $7 billion program is rife with misuse of funds.
Social Security: Pays out about $1 billion in fraudulent disability benefits each year.
Farm Subsidies: The Dept of Agriculture pays out $500 million of improper farm subsidies each year. Food Stamps: This program pays out about $1 billion annually in fraudulent and erroneous benefits. Federal Emergency Management Agency: FEMA has a reputation for being sloppy with it's disaster aid. It tends to hand our money indiscriminately after hurricanes and it loses millions of dollars to fraud due to poor management.
Earned Income Tax Credit: Almost one third of this program about $9billion annually--are fraudulent.
Gates has been talking of cutting the defense budget, and it won't be difficult. The Pentagon spent $400 million over two years on new boots and tents. and other items at the same time it was discarding identical products as excess over three years, $4 billion was in excellent condition and often in unopened packages.
Of $68,000 first Class plane tickets purchased by the DOD in one recent year 73% were not justified.
In April of 2005 a $239 million system that monitored U.S. Borders "Has been hobbled for years by defective equipment that was poorly installed. An ex border patrol agent said, "The contractor sold us a bill of goods and no one in the border patrol was watching. All these failures placed Americans in danger." The New York Times reported that much of the $4.5 billion worth of equipment purchased by the government since 911 will have to be replaced because it is ineffective and unreliable. The $3.2 billion spent on airport screening equipment has not improved the detection of a hidden weapon or bomb since 2003.
The Dept. of Veterans Affairs scrapped a $472 million project in 2004 as a failure. The agency had already spent $265 million on the same project.
Rather than discipline a poor worker or fire him, federal managers try to move them into other offices like hot potatoes. Managers who are stuck with bad workers often give them good reviews so as not to rock the boat. The merit systems protection board notes that there is an ingrained culture to score virtually all workers highly in annual reviews.
A team at Duke University found in a two year study that regulations on the U.S. Health Care Industry create annual costs of 339 billion annually. Regulations are costly because they restrict consumer choices, make production expensive and stifle innovation.
The Republicans tried to abolish the dept of Education in the mid-90's but was unsuccessful. Outlays on that dept have almost doubled from $36billion in 2001 to $71 billion in 2005. The department has $7 billion in student loans that are delinquent.
Fannie May and Freddie Mac became a haven for former government officials and others with good political connections who wet there to make millions. 21 Fannie Mae executives earned more than $1 million a year.
They overstated profits by $9 billion.
Senator Tom Coburn Said, "Term limits would be the most important reform that could be made in Washington. It is not the only needed reform, but it would remove a key systematic bias that promotes continual government growth."
The Cato Institutes Chris Edwards proposed budget cuts in the following Budget.
All farm and rural subsidy programs should be abolished, it would save the taxpayers $38 billion.
Department of Defense:$40 billion
Department of Education:$71 billion
Department of Health and Human Services:$63 billion
Department of Homeland Security: $6 billion
Department of Housing and urban development:$42 billion
Department of the Interior:$4 billion
Department of Justice: $2 billion
Department of Labor :$ 6billion
Department of State: $2 billion
Department of Transportation: $51 billion
Other agencies and Activities: $43 billion
The total savings $380 billion
Reform minded newcomers to Congress face deeply entrenched opposition from the old timer's. They must "play or pay". That is go along with the system or suffer. To get good committee assignments, to get floor time in debates, or to get cash to campaign for re-election, members must curry favor with party leaders and power brokers. This is where term limits would help. Let's pray these brave reformers will have the nerve to weather the storm. Let's also pray that the party leaders realize that Conservative Government is crucial!
You will recall The "Contract With America" said, that the Republicans would put an end to a "Government that is too big, too intrusive, and too easy with the public's money." What can be done? We know that our elected officials love to spend money, to get re-elected and to be hero's back home when they bring home the pork.
But in order to bring real change we ought to have term limits to start with for obvious reasons. As Americans we need to demand change for it to happen.
In the private sector when individual companies become bloated and mismanaged but competitive markets ensure that they eventually go bankrupt or get taken over and restructured. About 10% of U.S. companies go out of business each year and corporate executives get ousted all the time. Failures are eliminated in the private sector, and poor performance gets punished. By contrast, many Federal agency's are inefficient and perform poorly year after year and yet they survive and grow.
Fraud and abuse: Medicare : Fraudulent payments cost 20 Billion annually.
Medicaid: Inflated billings and bogus claims waste Billions. The GAO found $1 Billion of fraud in California's portion of Medicaid alone. The New York Times reported in 2005 that from 10 to 40% of the states annual budget of 45 billion may be siphoned off in fraud and abuse.
Medicaid Nursing Home Benefits: These benefits are supposed to be for the poor, but financial consultants help higher income seniors hide their assets in order to qualify. This scam costs taxpayers $10 billion each year.
Post 911 Grants: Much of this $8 billion to help repair damaged New York Offices went instead to build luxury condos. The grant to hand out free air-conditioners ballooned in costs from $15 million to $100 million due to management failures and bogus claims.
Housing Subsidies: Overpayment's in federal rental housing subsidies cost $2 billion each year. Head Start: This $7 billion program is rife with misuse of funds.
Social Security: Pays out about $1 billion in fraudulent disability benefits each year.
Farm Subsidies: The Dept of Agriculture pays out $500 million of improper farm subsidies each year. Food Stamps: This program pays out about $1 billion annually in fraudulent and erroneous benefits. Federal Emergency Management Agency: FEMA has a reputation for being sloppy with it's disaster aid. It tends to hand our money indiscriminately after hurricanes and it loses millions of dollars to fraud due to poor management.
Earned Income Tax Credit: Almost one third of this program about $9billion annually--are fraudulent.
Gates has been talking of cutting the defense budget, and it won't be difficult. The Pentagon spent $400 million over two years on new boots and tents. and other items at the same time it was discarding identical products as excess over three years, $4 billion was in excellent condition and often in unopened packages.
Of $68,000 first Class plane tickets purchased by the DOD in one recent year 73% were not justified.
In April of 2005 a $239 million system that monitored U.S. Borders "Has been hobbled for years by defective equipment that was poorly installed. An ex border patrol agent said, "The contractor sold us a bill of goods and no one in the border patrol was watching. All these failures placed Americans in danger." The New York Times reported that much of the $4.5 billion worth of equipment purchased by the government since 911 will have to be replaced because it is ineffective and unreliable. The $3.2 billion spent on airport screening equipment has not improved the detection of a hidden weapon or bomb since 2003.
The Dept. of Veterans Affairs scrapped a $472 million project in 2004 as a failure. The agency had already spent $265 million on the same project.
Rather than discipline a poor worker or fire him, federal managers try to move them into other offices like hot potatoes. Managers who are stuck with bad workers often give them good reviews so as not to rock the boat. The merit systems protection board notes that there is an ingrained culture to score virtually all workers highly in annual reviews.
A team at Duke University found in a two year study that regulations on the U.S. Health Care Industry create annual costs of 339 billion annually. Regulations are costly because they restrict consumer choices, make production expensive and stifle innovation.
The Republicans tried to abolish the dept of Education in the mid-90's but was unsuccessful. Outlays on that dept have almost doubled from $36billion in 2001 to $71 billion in 2005. The department has $7 billion in student loans that are delinquent.
Fannie May and Freddie Mac became a haven for former government officials and others with good political connections who wet there to make millions. 21 Fannie Mae executives earned more than $1 million a year.
They overstated profits by $9 billion.
Senator Tom Coburn Said, "Term limits would be the most important reform that could be made in Washington. It is not the only needed reform, but it would remove a key systematic bias that promotes continual government growth."
The Cato Institutes Chris Edwards proposed budget cuts in the following Budget.
All farm and rural subsidy programs should be abolished, it would save the taxpayers $38 billion.
Department of Defense:$40 billion
Department of Education:$71 billion
Department of Health and Human Services:$63 billion
Department of Homeland Security: $6 billion
Department of Housing and urban development:$42 billion
Department of the Interior:$4 billion
Department of Justice: $2 billion
Department of Labor :$ 6billion
Department of State: $2 billion
Department of Transportation: $51 billion
Other agencies and Activities: $43 billion
The total savings $380 billion
Reform minded newcomers to Congress face deeply entrenched opposition from the old timer's. They must "play or pay". That is go along with the system or suffer. To get good committee assignments, to get floor time in debates, or to get cash to campaign for re-election, members must curry favor with party leaders and power brokers. This is where term limits would help. Let's pray these brave reformers will have the nerve to weather the storm. Let's also pray that the party leaders realize that Conservative Government is crucial!
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