I Announce My Candidacy

I am taking today to announce that I am running for office in the very next state wide election that we have coming up. I don't care what the office is, nor do I care what the responsibilities of the office are. I will give you a breath of honesty. I am in it for the insurance, and that is all. I am hoping to score a gig as sweet as the teachers have, but if that isn't available, I'll take what the elected officials get. Isn't it amazing that they work for us, yet they have the much better insurance? How dumb is that? When did we fall asleep at the switch for that one? I really don't want to hear how bad a teacher has it when they get paid more than a doctor does, considering the education that they have. Considering the importance of their job, why aren't potential teachers feted and encouraged the way that star athletes are? I truly believe that teachers (good ones anyway) are a source that we should be mining and taking care of for generations to come. What I don't understand is all the press that they get about not being rewarded financially. Poop. Now, I am not saying that a teacher facing 20- 35 students isn't a stressful job. When you factor in the children who aren't disciplined at home, or who have a home life that is less than ideal and you have increased the stress level considerably. But,..... please tell me another job that is going to give you every major Holiday plus the entire summer off. Bad weather? No problem, they are going to cancel your need to go to work that day. Also, if you aren't doing a very good job ( poor test scores for your students, etc.) the problem isn't your lack of skill, no sirree, it's bad home environment, lack of income for the students, etc. etc. You are not responsible. I have had many teachers over my school career. Three made a good impression. Yep, three. I'll never forget the teacher that used to read Harlequin Romances and eat roasted peanuts while we copied the latest lesson from our books. Good to see her education wasn't wasted. I think that teachers should be reviewed every year. The ones that aren't any good should be let go, tenure be damned. I also think that instead of throwing more and more money at the problem, we should find the solution and go from there. We pay more per student than most industrialized nations, but after the eight grade our test scores fall behind. Money isn't the issue. Good teachers are. Demand more for you tax dollars and for your children. You'll thank me later.