- What about those uncollected parking tickets?
- What is the warranty for the Public Safety Building?
- What can we do with the property on McNeilly Road?
- What are the rules and regulations for 25 acres of property in Scott Twp. and who is going to patrol it?
- What is Wildlife Services' safety record?
- Have our elected officials paid their taxes?
- Have the guest bloggers on our municipal blog paid their taxes?
- Is alcohol permitted on school grounds or municipal property?
- Do we really need two Public Information Offices?
- Who is running for school board?
- What do we know about the candidates who are running?
- How can we have elected officials run simultaneously for two offices?
- How do we hold our elected officials accountable?
- What is the new millage going to be?
- Whatever happened to the owners liaison?
- How many elementary schools do we have, five or seven?
- Are there enough parking spaces for the high school renovation?
- When are the Superintendent and Finance Director going to walk the walk and I don't mean Relay for Life?
- What about the kids who are struggling with TERC Investigations?
- What do we do with school board directors who plagiarize?
- What do we do when our administrative staff submits false documentation to the PA Department of Education?
- What ever happened to the District task force established in 2009 to fight student drug and alcohol use?
- How can we build another Taj Mahal without a referendum?
- When will our elected officials be more respectful of their constituents?
- How are we going to pay for all of this?
Sunday, April 28, 2013
Don't know and don't care
"Don't know and don't care." I got to thinking about those five words that were mentioned in the previous set of comments. Those five words have gotten us to where we are today. That can be said for both sides of our local government, as well as the typical response by many residents here in Mt. Lebanon. A case could be made for the following questions:
Is this one of the reasons we don't need to send more money to public schools?
ReplyDeleteSee when our local politicians send out glitzy campaign literature pledging to get more money for schools, they're not talking specifically about our pretty good school district, any action they'll vote on affects every district in the state. Thereby continuing the following:
"Is evolution missing link in some Pennsylvania high schools?"
By David Templeton / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
"Ending her freshman year, and in pursuit of a career in medicine, Ms. Estevez, 19, said she's "a bit upset" that her high school teacher played down evolution while others trashed the science that serves as the foundation of modern biology, genetics and medicine.
"In high school, a lot was not taught correctly, and it didn't prepare me for college," she said. "They should have gone into evolution in detail. The controversy should not be what is taught in school.""
http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/news/education/is-evolution-missing-link-in-some-pennsylvania-high-schools-685389/
That why "Don't know and don't care" attitudes are so damaging.
GC-34-83 for $23,144 to Nello – Raise floor on third floor G Building due to elevation discrepancy.
ReplyDelete"Don't know and don't care" its only $23,144 and we can always raise student parking and lab fees to cover it.
Yep, that is another one. THIRTY inches off!
ReplyDeleteHow about ignoring our solicitor and going with multiple prime contractors? Ignoring the CAC? Ignoring the school board directors who warned us? Ignoring the advice of our last superintendent in regard to the renovation? Ignoring the "critics?"
Elaine
What Elaine Gillen is describing in this thread is called "statism," which the dictionary defines as "the principle or policy of concentrating extensive economic, political, and related controls in the state at the cost of individual liberty."
ReplyDeleteI wonder how many of our local statists know that the entire philosophy of statism comes from 19th century Prussia; the same country that gave us our current school system with its emphasis on AIS* "clock hours" and rigorous schedules.
In what may be the quintessential irony, most older statists came out of the 1960's anti-government movements. Those of you in your 60's or older may remember this period of time well - I certainly do. "Ban the bomb," "Make love not war," "Get the government out of our bedrooms," etc. The people who held sit-ins and smoked pot in an effort to stop the government from sticking its nose into other people's business are now the ones embracing "government über alles"; the nanny state, where your life is controlled by elected and appointed government officials who decide what you should and should not eat, how you should live, who you should associate with, how your children should be educated, and what kind of medical care you will receive in the very near future. Many statists started out as teachers - who are now or will be retiring soon - in a successful effort to avoid the draft during the Vietnam War era.
Statism appeals to many people who seek public office and see themselves as "superior but kindly," only wanting to "improve" the lives of others (while exempting themselves from any rules they may write) - an idea that, sadly, is appealing to its victims. It also explains why government at all levels seems to be in ascendency lately, and why people are willing to trade liberty for faux security; especially in the wake of various outrageous national tragedies.
So when you read about our school board flouting its own rules; our commission writing more and more restrictive ordinances; the county making stupid assumptions as to the value of real estate; the state engaged in civil forfeiture against innocent people; or the Feds coming up with new and innovative ways to spy on you, don't be surprised or shocked - it's simply what the majority of people who vote want.
*ASS IN SEAT