Who Really Cares “For the Children”?
"If there must be trouble, let it be in my day,
that my child may have peace."
Tom Paine, 1776
As I sit here on a special Sunday morning, listening to one of my favorite pastors on the headphones, and enjoying one of my favorite brews in my cup, Tanzania Peaberry, I can’t help but think of how often, and how carelessly we use the phrase “for the children.”
Everywhere you look we hear it.
So let this girl count the ways:
A $22 million renovation at LCHS is “for the children.”
Who cares if mom and dads can feed themselves. Let's fix that breezeway!
And darnit! Don’t you taxpayers remind us of that we said: “No new property taxes if you give us the sales tax increase!” (Note: I will remind them every chance I get.)
Can’t dispose of “More at 4” because it’s “for the children.”
Can’t cut sports programs because it’s “for the children.”
One young lady claims cheerleading was how her friends got into college.
Oh boy, we’re in trouble because that’s the next generation of leaders for America!
Again, who cares that there is a 12.7% unemployment rate in Lee County. Which in reality means 12.7% of our neighbors are wondering where the mortgage or rent will come from, if they will be able to put gas in the car or food on the table, or pay the utilities.
Can’t refuse the laptop intiative for middle school kids because it’s “for the children.”
Doesn’t matter if you can’t retrieve all of them at the end of the year or reuse due to damage. Really doesn’t matter for next year’s crop because some of our local officials state they don’t care where the money comes from. They don’t see it as taxpayer dollars.
The Superintendent and BOE members taking a San Francisco trip costing taxpayers thousands of dollars under the disguise it’s “for the children.” Might I add I couldn't find it on their calendar either! I want answers to that!
The fear-mongering 715 forums we’ve had in Lee County the past two months on the budget crisis are “for the children.”
(Note: reread the previous statement on SF retreat.)
How about this phrase “hurt the children”?
Let me again count the ways:
Not getting 7.9, 6.5, 4.3 million more in local funding (whatever number they pull out of their hats today) will hurt the children.
Not attending the SF retreat at taxpayer expense will “hurt the children.”
Any proposed cuts in our federal spending spree will “ hurt the children”. Those darn Republicans want to take away school lunches and give Granny dog food.
Defunding NPR, EPA, and Obamacare will “hurt the children”.
Cutting Congressional perks will “hurt the children”. (Trust me they think this.)
Republicans want to the hurt the children when they…, when they…, when they…
Get the drift?
About the only thing the liberals are not saying will “hurt the children” is Planned Parenthood. And that’s the darn thing that HURTS THE CHILDREN! It kills them!
It’s legalized murder. Sorry for the bruntness, but it’s the truth.
Is your head spinning by now? Where’s the freaking Tylenol?
What have we become as a society?
So have you been paying attention to what happened Friday night? You know, the budget deal? Did you know the “Boehner” deal forced the hand of the Obama Administration on DC School Voucher program? Obama claimed not too long ago that axing the program was “for the children” even though the children were blossoming under the program. Pelosi and cronies gave him a bill that killed this valuable program.
Here’s what some DC residents had to say to him.
Watch this video and others to the right!
This program, my friends, really is “for the children”.
Boehner and the republicans played with a full deck and the DC Voucher program is alive and well for another 5 years.
So are you happy about our Republican friends only getting 38.5 million in cuts? I'm not. I wanted more. I asked why NPR wasn’t put on the chopping block. Why should I have to fund the lies from the left? I asked many other questions as well.
But I am for once proud they had guts to play the game, and win some!
As for those DC kids, they won and won big “for the children”, in my opinion.
Question for the County leaders: Do you really want to help the children? Let us parents choose where to send our kids. You want to talk about efficiency in the school systems? Let us parents CHOOSE where to send our kids! Let competition prevail and see what support you'll gain from the taxpayers.
What do you my friends think about that? Your response is requested.
By the way, Sunday, April 10, was special because my grandson turned 3! I have been blessed to be an integral part of that child’s life for three years. What was life like without him? Doesn’t matter. I can’t remember anyway.
Wait, that’s sort of not the truth.
However, I have had to re-learn a few things while conquering new stuff:
• Huggies has 7 different flavors.
What’s the difference in regular and smart movers?
• Baby wipes work for more than cleaning up the messy diapers! They work great when you have crab legs or ribs!
• Apple Juice won’t replace Pa’s tea
• There are dinosaur chicken nuggets, McDonald’s Chicken nuggets, Chicken nuggets with 0 trans fat, white meat chicken nuggets…yada, yada, yada.
I want chocolate chicken nuggets. Ha!
(My father-in-law hooked me onto fried chicken and chocolate. Now I can’t eat fried chicken without some serious chocolate, like a brownie, with it. Try it.)
• Cars and more cars!- When Chad was little, there was only Hot Wheels Cars. Now they have cars that talk, take pictures, turn a different color in hot/cold water, flip, spin, etc.
• Dora the Explorer and Diego – Oh my goodness! I expect the next time I see Kayne he’ll be speaking Spanish. Dora and Diego have done more for his vocabulary than any “More at 4” would have!
That purple dinosaur didn't have this much affect on my kids!
• Always have money available to get Mickey D’s Chicken nuggets and tea. When he won’t eat anything else, well, at least he’s eating.
(Please don't ban happy meals or this memaw will be in trouble!)
• If I buy him a toy every day he’s with me, so be it. It’s my right as a grandma. My right to enjoy the pain his mama will go through when he gets back home after being spoiled by me!
But the most important lesson I’ve learned is today may be all I have.
Make the best of it. Live, laugh, and hold sugarbear with all my might.
Give him lots of kisses.
Because he reminds me everyday of the reason I passionately speak out and fight for my country, the Constitution, and excessive taxation.
That reason is because it’s “for the children”.
Sheila
1 comment:
Great post Sheila. I echo those sentiments. Here's some irony for you...
Rarely does anything good come from our nation's capitol. Sad, but true.
Well, Wake County, NC got a real gem from the Washington D.C. School District-- Tony Tata, their new Superintendent. He's all about the children (and the teachers too). It's downright miraculous how he, the School Board and the County Commissioners in Wake County are taking steps to adjust to the budget crisis there (which dwarfs ours in magnitude).
No talk of tax increases in Wake County to fund the schools. Nope. Just deep cuts to Central Office, elimination of non-essential programs and personnel, return to neighborhood schools, and near 100% protection of teacher positions. All at the same time!
And who said nothing good ever comes out of D.C.?!?!?
Perhaps our "San Francisco Six" should have spent the weekend in Raleigh, conferring with Tata and Crew, rather than mingling with the NEA mafia and left coast COSA lawyers in San Francisco.
TJ
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