Monday, May 27, 2013

It Takes A Village And Other Leftist Thought

Remember when a commentator from MSNBC said this?
 
That's because radical leftists honestly believe that only the state and federal government is capable of taking care of OUR children.  You can get a better idea from this picture:



That's why non profit organizations such as the United Way, Boys and Girls Clubs, and Big Brothers/Big Sisters have joined the "It takes a village" effort to help fund their after school programs.

Aside from federal funding, the United Way seeks to partner with private corporations.  They say: 

  Partnering with United Way provides companies a way to invest strategically in their communities and advance the common good by creating lasting, sustainable changes that lead to better, stronger places to live and work.



(Remember back in the day when we thought the words "common good" was code for communism?)

The federal government has donated over $150M since 1992 to the Boys and Girls club.  In recent years, the organization has focused on reducing high school drop out rates. The CEO back in 2010 received a measly $1M salary.  

For the common good.....


Another example is the 21st Century Community Learning Centers here in Arizona.  The state has received over $46M since 2010 from the Department of Education to fund 21st Century Community Learning Centers for after school programs. 
 
"This federally-funded program supports afterschool community learning centers that operate primarily on school campuses statewide. Services include academic intervention and enrichment activities along with a broad array of youth development opportunities. These after school and summer classes complement the student’s regular school day program. The 21st CCLC programs mainly serve students who attend high-poverty and low-performing schools and their families. After school programs help students meet the core standards in academic subjects such as language arts and math. In addition, other educational services are offered to family members of students participating in the program in order to further engage parents in their student’s learning and achievement goals."

According to the 21st Century Community Learning Centers website, they claim:

The average center provides services:
  • 32 weeks of the year
  • 4.8 days a week
  • 3.2 hours per day
  • To 287 students on a regular basis
That's a lot of common good.....


In 2010, the Obama administration authorized the "School Turnaround AmeriCorp" initiative through the Department of Education.  This initiative is a three year grant to pay "volunteers" to go to failing schools in an effort to boost graduation rates.  These "volunteers" then receive a scholarship to attend college.  (How qualified are they to tutor/mentor failing students?)

For the common good.







Thursday, May 23, 2013

Speaking of 501 (c) (4) Groups

How was community agitator, Randy Parraz, able to get 501 (c) (4) status for his Russell Pearce recall organization called Citizens for a Better Arizona so quickly back in the fall of 2011?

Citizens for a Better Arizona is a 501 C 4 Social Welfare Organization.  
All donations are not tax deductible. © 2013

While TEA Party groups around the valley are still waiting?



Weird.

Thursday, May 16, 2013

"Rigorous" Common Core Module: Nasreen's Secret School

We want to highlight one of the new Common Core modules for 3rd graders.  It is taken from the EngageNY website which is a resource for teachers here in Arizona. 


One of the text used for this particular module is called "Nasreen's Secret School."  It is a story about a young girl from Afghanistan whose parents have been taken away by the Taliban so she went to live with her Grandparents. 

Vocabulary for this module include words such as "Taliban" and "Allah."




One of the reviews for the book states:

"The grandmother hears of a secret school for girls and she brings her grand-daughter to the school, praying to Allah that she will find something there to help her bloom again.

The soldiers come to the school once, but the girls outwit them, says the grandmother, by hiding their forbidden schoolbooks and reading the Koran by the time the soldier comes....Is this too much for a young child? Parents must, as always, make that determination based on knowledge of their own children. My personal view is that young children do not bring to books the background knowledge and experience that adults do, and thus they will not find the book as frightening and disturbing as their parents do. We know that in all likelihood Nasreen's parents have been executed, but the book never says so, and small children do not have the historical knowledge and understanding that would make this clear to them."

As you thumb through the book, you will find drawings of Nasreen's father being taken away by the Taliban with his hands bound with rope.  Another picture shows Nasreen kneeling in prayer with a look of fear on her face as a Taliban stands over her with a gun.  And then you will see pictures such as this one:



This, mind you, is considered "internationally benchmarked" and "rigorous" for 7 and 8 year olds.

This, however, is not.