Comments on: True Cost of Public Education http://www.parentatthehelm.com/1411/true-cost-of-public-education/ Your Family's Incredible Lifestyle Begins HERE - With Homeschooling Thu, 02 Feb 2012 05:07:44 -0500 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Laura http://www.parentatthehelm.com/1411/true-cost-of-public-education/comment-page-1/#comment-1182 Laura Mon, 08 Mar 2010 11:10:02 +0000 http://parentatthehelm.com/?p=1411#comment-1182 Ack! Of course it's important to have all the facts about the cost per pupil. But the Cato Institute is advancing their own political agenda. Their libertarian leanings are anti-government and pro business. They've been advocating for privatizing Social Security since the mid 90's (THAT would have been a great investment!) and debunking global climate change science, insisting that environmental protection laws hurt free enterprise. The Cato Institute, along with many other well-funded organizations, would like to see tax dollars flow to charter schools and other privatized options. The two major problems I see every time we privatize a formerly government run operation (from military interrogations to prisons) are these. First, the corporate entity taking over has a mandate to make a profit for shareholders. That money has to come from the people they serve or the taxpayers or both. Always painful. And second, the accountability isn't there due to laws protecting corporations as humans. As a homeschooler, I support free public schools over charter schools or e-schools any day. Cato Institute did a lovely job of revealing how expensive it is to school our nation's kids. I just wish they'd be as transparent by revealing their own agenda. Ack! Of course it's important to have all the facts about the cost per pupil. But the Cato Institute is advancing their own political agenda. Their libertarian leanings are anti-government and pro business. They've been advocating for privatizing Social Security since the mid 90's (THAT would have been a great investment!) and debunking global climate change science, insisting that environmental protection laws hurt free enterprise.

The Cato Institute, along with many other well-funded organizations, would like to see tax dollars flow to charter schools and other privatized options. The two major problems I see every time we privatize a formerly government run operation (from military interrogations to prisons) are these. First, the corporate entity taking over has a mandate to make a profit for shareholders. That money has to come from the people they serve or the taxpayers or both. Always painful. And second, the accountability isn't there due to laws protecting corporations as humans.

As a homeschooler, I support free public schools over charter schools or e-schools any day. Cato Institute did a lovely job of revealing how expensive it is to school our nation's kids. I just wish they'd be as transparent by revealing their own agenda.

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