The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

They Told Me If I Voted For McCain, ‘White Folks’ Would ‘Keep’ Charter Schools For Themselves!

Posted on | April 7, 2012 | 10 Comments

by Smitty

“If charter schools were so good, why didn’t the white folks keep them for themselves?”

This isn’t just wrong; it’s discouraging. When you look at the photo album of Washington DC charter schools, they may not fit the Chicago narrative. Nor, in fact, does the funding news.

But its not the reality of charter schools as both (a) racially agnostic and (b) genuinely helpful that is the bummer.

Nor is it the media and Raaaaacism Industrial Complex (RIC) insistence that only people of European extraction, plus certain useful exceptions like George Zimmerman, are  the only racists. That they’re conservatives who want to poison children. This while other actors like the speaker in Chicago, Sharpton, or Jesse Jackson are fighting for ‘justice’ when they play their games.

Nor am I given to any special guilt at the implication that I, as a member of the ‘white folks’ (when the inevitable binning has to occur) have in any way dealt with academics whatsoever. I have not so much as thought negative thoughts on the topic.

What I have done is serve my country in the military, which is shockingly, shockingly! (to any RIC rollers) integrated, egalitarian, and meritocratic, not only toward other service members, but toward the whole country. That is, I did not just don a uniform out of enjoyment of tooling around in a uniform, going to all kinds of exotic places I never would otherwise. No, I actually considered it an honor and privilege to support the ideals inherent in our Constitution for all Americans of all genetic backgrounds, religious persuasions, sexual orientations, education levels, medical conditions, economic profile, and, indeed, every single categorical line along which the Left is attempting to divide and conquer the country.

And for that reason, lady in Chicago whom I do not know, but I hope someone gets you copy of this post: I forgive you. It’s possible some people in Hyde Park or wherever actually measure down to the implication of your statement. However, know that, while “they’s some men you just cain’t reach”, the more accurate statement is that the bulk of people in this country just aren’t RIC members. I pray that enlightenment finds you, and you find yourself welcome in the egalitarian America which most of us enjoy, but by your very words, your eyes are too closed to see.

Update: linked by Daily Pundit. Thanks!

Update II: linked by Sentry Journal.

Category: Education, Racism

Comments

10 Responses to “They Told Me If I Voted For McCain, ‘White Folks’ Would ‘Keep’ Charter Schools For Themselves!”

  1. JeffS
    April 7th, 2012 @ 9:15 am

    I see Chicago hasn’t improved any since I moved from there in 1989.  Indeed, it appears to have gotten worse.

  2. Hang the Administrators First, Though | Daily Pundit
    April 7th, 2012 @ 9:53 am

    […] the Administrators First, Though Posted on April 7, 2012 6:52 am by Bill Quick They Told Me If I Voted For McCain, ‘White Folks’ Would ‘Keep’ Charter Schools For Themselve… However, know that, while “they’s some men you just cain’t reach”, the more accurate […]

  3. DaveO
    April 7th, 2012 @ 10:21 am

    Minor point: our military is neither meritocratic nor egalitarian. See also: GEN (R) Montgomery C. Meigs, and how the Academy grads tend to crowd the field at the top of each service.

    The Elite hogging the best for themselves started at West Point, not Harvard.  

  4. smitty
    April 7th, 2012 @ 10:39 am

    OK, not wholly meritocratic, but, nevertheless, I was a young swabbie who got into Annapolis. So there.

  5. dwduck
    April 7th, 2012 @ 12:07 pm

    Well, first off, you’re using a very narrow benchmark — not “success” generally, but a very specific marker of a very specific kind of success, albeit a very visible one. And second, who’s to say that the best preparation for four-star rank isn’t an Academy education and a 30+ year career on the command track? Perhaps that does truly produce the best flag officers — again, not necessarily the best officers in general, but the best people for the demands of that rank.

    I think you’re falling into the trap of assuming that “egalitarianism” and “diversity” are the same thing.

  6. SteveF
    April 7th, 2012 @ 12:25 pm

    Bah. It’s not perfect, so the military might as well be the KKK, right? Bah. The uppermost ranks are less than one percent of the officer corps and maybe a tenth of a percent of the total service. 99.9% meritocracy is plenty good enough for me.

    The military is the second most meritocratic organization I’ve encountered. The only one better is distributed, pseudonymous software development, in which other team members don’t know whether you’re black or white, a man or a woman, a child, or an artificial intelligence. All that matters is your technical chops and whether you can minimally get along with the rest of the team.

    Oh, and lest you think I am too sheltered to be able to offer an opinion about the military, I was offered an appointment to West Point, way back when, but turned it down and went ROTC instead. (I already had a couple years of college by the time I was old enough to enter West Point and I didn’t want to start over again.) In the Army I worked with plenty of ring knockers. Some were not very good as officers. They didn’t get the plumb assignments and weren’t promoted any faster than any other so-so junior officers, that I noticed. The good West Point grads tended to be very, very good. Fast-tracking their careers is perfectly consistent with meritocratic advancement.

  7. Shelleys Playtime
    April 7th, 2012 @ 12:45 pm

    When did Juan Williams become a  ‘known’ Republican? ~~Sighs~~ Who is THEY? That is a question I taught my now 15 yr old long ago. ALWAYS question who THEY is. What does THEY want? What is THEYs purpose? Dig deep. Go beyond the sound bite. Unfortunately as long as people are listening to and accepting what THEY say as truth, nothing is going to change.

  8. DaveO
    April 7th, 2012 @ 5:35 pm

    No. I’m very aware of the difference between egalitarianism and diversity. And go on ya Smitty – the services need more mustangs, IMO.

  9. DaveO
    April 7th, 2012 @ 5:44 pm

    Do you recall when they were selected for fast tracking?  What event triggered the senior raters to begin begin giving them ACOM consistently? In the pre-911 Army, the primary metric was the APFT, followed by schools.

  10. Teeing it up: A Round at the LINKs (Saturday Edition) | SENTRY JOURNAL
    April 7th, 2012 @ 7:12 pm

    […] THE OTHER McCAIN: They Told Me If I Voted For McCain, ‘White Folks’ Would ‘Keep’ Charter Schools… […]