The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) held its annual conference in San Diego to fete its leaders and their anti-democratic agenda. ALEC is bankrolled by major corporations. Its members are about 2,000 state legislators. At its annual meetings, it drafts model legislation to advance corporate interests: to privatize public schools, to eliminate labor unions, to roll back environmental regulation, and to slash government social programs.
ALEC has model legislation for charters and vouchers, for online learning, and for anything that breaks public education and removes teacher professionalism.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
They hate labor unions.
….But, they love their ALEC business union.
Don’t go looking for logic here. There’s only greed.
ALEC is what is wrong with our country. The 1% is buying legislation that usurps democracy, and we are left with a country that is of, by and for corporate power and influence. Real people, not corporations, are collateral damage. We get to pay for the right to be exploited through our tax dollars.
agree.
“. . . we are left with a country that is of, by and for corporate power and influence.”
And that my friends is the definition of FASCISM.
it is very scary. I wish more people saw it. Why don’t they?
I say this only mildly facetiously, because public education has failed to properly educate children to be free critical thinkers unencumbered by controlling dogma of party, religion, race, gender, etc. . . . To many teachers and administrators (adminimals) are under the spell of dogmatic idiology that demands compliance and subservience to those of whom they believe they owe allegiance and their job.
A lot of people want to give up on public schools for those reasons. What do you think is the answer as far as hanging on to public schools but shedding those issues?
First one must dismiss outright any educational malpractice that is shown to be rationo-logically unsound, such as educational standards and standardized testing, malpractices that restrict thought through that standardization. Foremost in that process is to break the hold of the “measurement” meme which results in the sorting and separating of students, rewarding a few and penalize others not allowing them to pursue their individual desires, wants and needs.
Involved mom . . . Most people don’t care. As long as they have their iPhones and trips to Disney, they are happy. Sorry if that sounds over simplistic, but it’s what I encounter almost anytime I try to start a conversation about this. I also believe it has to do with personality type. The majority would rather get along to keep going along, and not rocking the boat.
Quite correct, Beth.
When government and corporations wed in their collusion with Wall Street, and banks too big to fail, and no more anti trust laws, and no more regulatory laws like Glass Steagall, it is indeed the perfect storm leading to fascism….agree with you Duane.
“Involved mom . . . Most people don’t care. As long as they have their iPhones and trips to Disney, they are happy. Sorry if that sounds over simplistic, but it’s what I encounter almost anytime I try to start a conversation about this. I also believe it has to do with personality type. The majority would rather get along to keep going along, and not rocking the boat.”
I agree Beth and Duane. That’s why it is crucial that WE must lead the fight, and never give up…
You’ve got that right!
Agree Retired t….well stated.
Oligarchy in action
ALEC’s latest child is the American City County Exchange (ACCE). I have posted about this younger sibling several times. ACCE is designed to help members—elected officials and corporations—work together to make about 90,000 local governmental units in villages, towns, cities, metro areas, and counties strictly free market zones, minimal or no regulation, privatization to the maximum. At the July meeting of ALEC, leaders of ACCE were there and focused on learning how to organize for local action. The keynote speaker for the ACCE meeting was Scott Walker.
One of ACCE’s first initiatives is to get rid of local public sector unions including those for teachers, faculty in higher education, and AFSCME—American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees—which includes nurses, corrections officers, child care providers, EMTs, sanitation workers and others. These contracts are “low-hanging fruit” compared to police officers and fire fighters.
ACCE members are already in office, or they will be running for local offices, including school board seats. I would not be surprised if ACCE receives money from “afar” to support stealth candidates, a practice of the Koch Brothers among others. Members of ALEC and ACCE are aided by “advisors” who track legislative and meeting agendas at the state and now local level of governance. For an example of these services visit http://www.stateside.com/services/legislative-monitoring/local-government-monitoring-services/
Thanks for that info, Laura!!
Laura…I wonder how many of the 28,000 TFA Rheeformers now embedded in public schools and as legislators and lobbyists, and in charter school associations (as reported here yesterday in Diane’s LAUSD blog comments) are also part of ACCE? And how many of the Broad Academy CEOs? I suspect a disproportionate amount compared to the general population.
Gotta keep things all in the family, eh!?!?
These people are deviously organized for destruction. Just imagine what they could accomplish if they wanted to do something worthwhile.
I tripped on this website after looking over some ALEC legislation. It would be great to use it as a model for rating states by their support for public education. The categories and criteria are clear and the interface makes it easy to use.
http://www.stateintegrity.org/ohio_survey_executive_accountability
Thanks for this link Laura…California rates 4th from the top with a B- rating. I am in shock at this high rating. Georgia is lowest with an F. If things can be as manipulated as they are in LA and our State Capitol, it is horrifying to think how corrupt things must be in the many states rated F.
The press should be zeroing in on the presidential candidates of both parties, so sort out just how much of this garbage is being fought, and how much is being given a free pass. I WOULD START WITH DEMOCRATS.
Reblogged this on David R. Taylor-Thoughts on Texas Education.