berman@psuvax1.UUCP (Piotr Berman) (09/15/86)
> >>>The consumers have to learn how to make > >>>intelligent choices, that is one of the > >>>virtues of a voucher system. [Tedrick] > > >I think it isn't a matter of stupidity, but of access. Poor par- > >ents, with no car or maybe just no time (or gas money) to fight traf- > >fic N hours a day, will not send their children to school 30 miles > >away from home, [Oded] > > So, give the poor enough "educational voucher money" so that decent > schools will be set up for them nearby. I would support sinking a lot > *MORE* public money into education. Only, I don't want the bureaucrats > to get their hands on it. > ........ > If students have enough voucher money the schools would make good > lunches available for the students, else the students could go to > another school also competing for their voucher money. > > I would also suggest making more "food stamp money" available to the > poor. The Romans had it right, give the people bread and circuses > if you want to maintain the social order. The Reaganites haven't > seemed to understand the need for bread. TV has done a good job > providing circuses. What I would add to the mix is education, once > the bread and circuses are taken care of. > The proposals I heard about were talking about $600 per year voucher. The average public school spends more than 3 or 4 times than that. For a preschool (rather good, I hope) I pay around $1900 per year. You are talking about vouchers of at least $2000 per year. I would agree, provided: a. the funding is federal; b. the establishment clause is obeyed (I would be flexible: e.g. a catholic school accepting vouchers could not require children to be catholic, should have no discount for catholics, and should not teach/preach during the time were all chldren are required to be present, they could do it during extra time, however); c. the minimal requirements on programs are obeyed (with evolution and sex education). d. discrimination prohibition should be enforced. By now, however, we talk about a program which is pretty liberal (or, to an objective person, just pretty). Piotr Berman