A reader who goes by the name “Democracy” reminds us of the much-hyped report by a task force of the Council on Foreign Relations, whose co-chairs were Joel Klein and Condoleeza Rice. It blamed the public schools for endangering national security and for the nation’s economic problems. I reviewed it here.
This is “Democracy’s” comment:
“Aah, Joel Klein.
Klein was a recent co-author – with Condaleezza Rice – of a Council on Foreign Relations education “report” that consisted mostly of tripe. But what can one reasonably expect from the likes of Klein and Rice?
Joel Klein perpetrates and perpetuates the myth that public education is in “crisis,” and without serious “reform” “the U.S. economy will continue to suffer.”
The “reform” pushed by Klein (and the Council report) is to impose the “business model” on public schools. This is the same “model” that led to big budget deficits, a ballooned national debt and a broken economy. Rather than take responsibility for what they did, the big bankers and hedge funders and politicians who brokered it all point the finger of blame at public schools and teachers.
Klein advocates more testing, merit pay through “value-added” evaluations, more charter schools and vouchers as “innovative” reforms. There is little or no research to support any of them.
Klein blames the current economic quagmire on public education. He writes that we used to “have a successful middle class,” but “that’s changed markedly since 1980.” Klein says “we’re rapidly moving toward two America’s –– a wealthy elite and an increasingly large underclass that lacks the skills to succeed.” His answer to the problem? The market, since “markets impose accountability.” A person would have to be moronic to make – or believe – such a claim.
Klein never makes any mention whatsoever, as he blames schools and teachers, of the supply-side economic policies pushed by conservative presidents, politicians and businessmen that are directly responsible for big budget deficits, millions of job losses, the most severe income stratification in the developed world, and our unsustainable national debt. He calls for “radical reform” of public education (more tests, merit pay, vouchers, etc), but says not one word about reforming the banking, derivatives trading and skewed tax system – coupled with regulatory enforcement –– that are sorely needed.
Condaleezza Rice was George W. Bush’s national security director before 9/11 occurred and during the launching of the war in Iraq, which she favored and supported. Rice helped to sell the American public the big lie of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, warning infamously that “ we don’t want the smoking gun to be a mushroom cloud.” Journalists who covered her reported that she “made public claims that she knew to be false.”
There’s little doubt but that Rice (and her colleagues) ignored repeated warnings about imminent terrorist threats. After 9/11, she said (repeatedly) that no one could have predicted that planes might be used as weapons, despite the fact that there were at least a dozen documented warnings of it.
Initially, until public pressure forced the Bush administration to relent, Rice refused to testify before the 9/11 Commission. When she did, it wasn’t pretty. She wiggles and squirms, and tries to obfuscate and evade answering questions about the Presidential Daily Briefing (PDB) of August 6, 2001. That PDB was titled “Bin Ladin Determined To Strike in US” and warned that Bin Ladin was “determined…to conduct terrorist attacks in the US,” that he “prepares years in advance and is not deterred by setbacks.” The memo noted “patterns of suspicious activity in this country consistent with preparations for hijackings or other types of attacks,” and it warned that a group of “Bin Ladin’s supporters was in the US planning attacks with explosives.”
Now just imagine that the physical and human dimensions of the Twin Towers and Pentagon and planes were converted into schools and schoolchildren. Would anyone seriously think that there had not been ample warning of an impending disaster? Would anyone think that any of those involved in ignoring the threat should NOT be held accountable? What Rice said in private testimony to the 9/11 Commission has not been declassified (it should be…there are likely some real “whoppers” in there). What she said in public testimony can be seen below. It isn’t pretty.
The Aug. 6, 2001 PDB is here:
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB116/index.htm
Question: Why hasn’t Condaleezza Rice been held accountable for her negligence and malfeasance in office, and for her repeated lies?
Question: Why does anyone believe a single word that comes out of Joel Klein’s mouth?
Why does anyone believe anything that comes out of Obama/Duncan mouths? RttT abets the privatizers, the banksters got away with everything, NSA spying on everybody. What a mess!
America the (not) beautiful . . . . .
I believe NADA coming out of Obama’s/Duncan’s mouths. Obama does not even uphold Our Constitution that he swore to uphold and protect. Even our Bill of Rights has NOT been repealed. So, WTF?
Obomber personally ordering the hit on a sixteen year old American (sic) citizen (yes, he was murdered) without any judicial proceedings whatsoever.
I can’t begin to describe my anger at Obama. Duplicity on steroids. I remember when questioned why the banksters should grant themselves millions in bonuses even though they were only in business because taxpayers bailed them out, Obama responded that the sanctity of contracts must be maintained! Apparently that didn’t apply to teachers in Central Falls, RI who were fired for refusing to work extra hours without pay. Obama stated their contracts should be abrogated and supported very publicly their firing. Apparently Obama believes teachers caused the economic meltdown and not the banksters.
What? You didn’t know that us LIFO, union, money grubbing avaricious bastards and bitches of teachers just waiting for retirement don’t cause all the world’s problems????
I didn’t vote for the Obomber, I did my homework, but like many a puppy love stricken teenager many a teacher fell for his schtick the first time and voted for him again, even after he had ordered the killing of the 16 year old USA citizen, not to mention the CF, RI affair, Wisconsin with no walking shoes, etc. . . .
I and most teachers I know were disgusted with Obama shortly after winning in 2008. I found out that ads running seemingly everywhere titled “KeepGreatTeachers.org” that were anti-union/seniority/tenure were actually run by Obama administration members. When I first pointed this out to the publisher of ednotesonline I was greeted with “not true”. I forwarded my internet search “research” and proved to the publisher how true it was. ednotesonline published an article supporting my view and asked me to send any other information I may dig up over time. Obviously I could not vote for Obama the 2nd time and wound up voting for the Green Party candidate. Most people I know didn’t vote for Obama, they voted against Romney.
Pressing the YouTube link results in, “This video does not exist.” Is there another working link to a video of Rice’s public testimony?
Anyone who checks out the truly scary ties and history of the Council on Foreign Relations will see that this latest, blatant attack on our country’s public educational system is anything but surprising! That “council” subscribes to GLOBAL GOVERNANCE. They make no apologies for that Orwellian allegiance. What disturbs me most is the HONORED, “end all discussions” edicts that the jackals of this group are afforded on the airways! They are NOT about advancing OUR NATION, but advancing the elimination of national borders and rights for a supra state that they work assiduously to achieve. Did you note that ROMNEY, in the presidential race, never referred to the United States when discussing his warped views about the oil problem, but he would say, “The North American Continent” or words to that affect. Carefully NOT saying the USA…
As to Rice, that willing lackey to the neo-con cabal, lies as well as her leaders, CHENEY and “W”…WHY in the world were they all not called to account for lying us into a war for their oil buddies? “W” even had the audacity to make JOKES about looking for WMD!
Nothing like rubbing the nation’s face in his treasonous lies! While Rice finally did show up to be questioned about 9/11, and lied like a pathological lying poster girl, “W” and Cheney fought tooth and nail to PREVENT the investigation! WHY? A truly disturbing question that was NEVER asked or answered. When those two war criminals finally did “testify” they REFUSED to do so UNDER OATH! Their “testimony” has yet to be released. And the absolutely most atrocious part of their little team testimony was that “W” REFUSED TO SHOW UP WITHOUT CHENEY!
We have brought this blight on ourselves by abdicating our responsibility to hold power to account! The media, ever the lackeys for corporate cronies who buy their subservient loyalties, have enable such travesties to be perpetrated. The rest of the world was NOT fooled, but here in the haven of “free speech” anyone who DARE
cast a questioning critique of the outrageous, murderous hoax was hit with cries of
being “unpatriotic” and even treasonous! How disgusting when the real, treasonous actors danced off the stage untouched!
Now the CFR is joining in the demise of public education with a vengeance. Is it because the charter school corporate raiders are meeting with justified resistance, OR is it because they want to take the credit for the national destruction of what once was the envy of the world? Could be either or both reasons. Blaming the victim (teachers) for the malicious machinations of Arne and his cohorts of corporate cronies try to ay every national malady at the feet of the underpaid, over worked teachers of America. WE are the recipients who of the most vicious, PLANNED attack ever seen on any group of national, dedicated professionals. No unions, no tenure, no decent benefits;
how can the nation endorse that plan? States seemingly are joining in the inquisition with glee. WHO WILL SIGN UP FOR A PROFESSION SO MALIGNED AND ABUSED?
I am thrilled that Diane posted this prescient, informative essay!! We need to shake off our lethargy and rise to meet the destroyers or be trampled under their corporate feet!
Next time Sweatpea62103, try not to hold back on how you really feel. I thank you and Diane for this essay. Klein, Rice and others alike venture to destroy the core of democracy. Educators, lets stay united and fight this absurd war.
Ha! 🙂 I’ve just watched this descent of our country in so many areas that it’s hard to be sophisticated and blase. Maybe that was easier pre-“W” when the encroachments of the corporate planned destruction of the middle class/manufacturing base of America were in their genesis and could be cloaked in euphemistic terms like “trade agreements” that were presented as positive advancements of the “global community.”
NAFTA was the first blow and revelation that all too often these “agreements” are like wolves having “agreements” with chickens! Add to it the bogus invasion and destruction of Iraq, billions in American treasure and huge death counts in US troops and Iraqi civilians. Now, we find that we are spied on 24/7 and the Paul Revere who alerted the nation to this travesty is the villain in this shocking revelation? REALLY? The CFR now champions the demise of public education and joins the ranks of Rhee, Arnie, Gates and a host of corporate cronies ready to feast on public funds and throw teachers to a right less existence. Not a pretty picture…
Yes, it has actually long been a bipartisan effort against the working class. This is why it’s so important to get the word out that the “New Democrats,” as exemplified by Clinton, Obama et al., are in fact what we used to think of as Old Republicans. So, really, only corporate America has representation in Congress and that’s by BOTH parties today.
The 99% really must unite, get people to stop voting against their own best interests, put up our own candidates and vote elitist, corrupt politicians out of office in EVERY election!
Does anyone know if there is one website where voters can look up every candidate for public office in every community and see who their corporate sponsors and allegiances are, as well as review what their voting records are like, if they are incumbents?
Oh, how delicious that list would be! If anyone knows of such an enlightening epistle,
PLEASE let us all know! That information alone could shred the happy, trough feeders in Congress!
Wowee all, from Diane on down: great thread; way to rope together disparate, connected zeitgeist.
Cosmic Tinkerer: precisely. No real student of history, I do believe though that the “republicans” in this country were once essentially “democrats”, no? Even earth’s physical polarity reverses; this dialectic political system seems to like to reverse itself periodically too.
Though I guess CT’s point isn’t so much that things have reversed top-to-bottom as reoriented “sideways”, 99%:1%-wise.
I am curious about the council on foreign relations. I thought it sounded very formidable but recently having instated essentially a high-end playmate I am seriously wondering about the principles of, and who makes them tick.
If we are responsible for National Security, then logically, education should be under the defense budget/military expenditures. That budget doesn’t seem to be cut very often.
Good point.
The peons in defense and military are losing their jobs and/or getting up to a 20% furlough because of the sequester. My brother, a computer programer for the Air Force, has just been laid off, and our local Air Force base is forcing 11 unpaid furlough days. My nephew in the Army has frozen wages. But the grand high poo-bahs at the Pentagon (not to mention Congress) won’t do a thing to fix the sequester.
It is amazing to me that anyone would take anything that Condaleezza Rice has to say about at all seriously. How wrong does one have to be before losing all credibility?
It’s the same with the other token minorities, such as Colin Powell –and that’s just in the previous administration. We can start looking at the very top for lack of credibility today.
I always figure she should have stuck with music. Then there would be more harmony in the world.
I read her book.
Mostly I am baffled that she is one of two women with a membership at Augusta National (but I live in a family of Scottish-descended golfers).
The Presbyterian church gave her family its pathway to becoming educated (as did it mine).
She is definitely a frustrating figure for our country because of who surrounded themselves with her (not the other way around).
They are correct and they are causing the problem. Maybe, they should spank themselves.
Unlike Dianne, these jokers like Klein will never admit error.
Someday, there may be those who admit they were on the wrong side of “reform” aka privatization, but it’s difficult to imagine there will be many or if any of them will try to right their wrongs, like Diane has been doing. The timing of their admission and what they do next would be key. (CYA would not count, IMHO.)
That’s very unlikely though. Did anyone take ownership and apologize for the scare and war over supposed WMDs in Iraq? Profiteers who made millions+ are least likely to be sorry.
They would have to have a Road to Damascus type moment for sure.
There’s sense in hoping they will; but no sense waiting for it, I imagine.
I respect Diane Ravitch for that a great deal as well. That takes courage.
Perhaps children reading Harry Potter novels is a threat to national security.
How do we know who actually wrote this “non grounded” fantasy that has colonized the minds of intelligent children, an educational foundation?