Peter Schrag presents the ills of California?fs current politics in an angry and persuasive tone. He says California used to be ?gboth model and magnet for the nation—in its economic opportunities, its social outlook, and its high-quality public services and institutes?h; however, California started to fade after the passage of Proposition 13, the initiative of tax limits (7). Schrag?fs work clearly shows what is the problem in today?fs California, and it is easy to understand even for those who have little knowledge of politics. By focusing on issues of ?gneopopulism?h which is easy to find in California?fs diversity, he succeeds in giving his readers the sense of crisis not only about California?fs politics, but also the national wide …show more content…
In the second section, ?gGood-bye El Dorado,?h Schrag focuses on the issues of public services which he calls ?gMississippification,?h infrastructure, ?gthe fundamentally changed government structure,?h and ?gsocial relations that California?fs tax revolt and its political progeny have produced,?h especially he pays particularly close attention to ?gMississippification?h of the public school system. The budge for the educational system use to be mostly financed by property taxation; however, the state government stopped to spend enough money to keep the high quality educational system after Proposition 13 passed. He describes today?fs California schools as ?gmigrant camp—row after row of drab wooden boxes of uncertain safety, most of them painted brown?h (83). It helps imagine easily California?fs schools with high densities of children and poor conditions. Older and affluent whites, Schrag tells us, care primarily about tax reduction, and they had disproportionate power because the majority of voters were whites. Many measures which reduced tax from rich people and increased from poor people, ?gwho use public services but vote in much lower numbers,?h passed, with the result that the gap between upper-middle class and low income class extended. Schrag shows important facts related to that class issue and how
That being said, the school system stood to profit greatly from the desegregation of schools, and, although initially desegregated schools were aimed to benefit the students, “the figures put beyond dispute the fact that virtually every white person in the city would benefit directly or indirectly from the desegregation plan,” (And We Are Not Saved, 107). This illustrates the Derrick Bell’s point that white government’s are only adamant about helping the black community if they stand to prosper from it--and in most cases--they will through the lens of a dollar
Carl Kaestle’s Pillars of the Republic focuses on the history of schooling. Kaestle writes about the common school movement in England, the Midwest, the South, and the American Northwest. Kaestle argues that common school systems, the tuition-based elementary school that served all children in the area, were continued and accepted due to the Americans’ commitment to the republican government, the assertiveness of native Protestant culture, and through the development of capitalism (1983, p. X).
Milton’s Paradise Lost has been praised as being the greatest English epic of all time, most stunningly in its author's depiction of the parents of humanity, Adam and Eve. How Milton chose to portray the original mother and father has been a focus of much criticism with contemporary readers. One of the main subjects of these comments is in reference to Eve, who, according to many, is a trivial character that is most definitely inferior to her mate. Nonetheless, many do not recognize that, after the fateful Fall, she becomes a much more evolved character. When Eve is introduced to the storyline of the epic, her character is shallow and extremely undeveloped, meant simply for display. She is quite firmly set as being inferior to her mate
Passions drive people, and the townspeople in “The Lottery” and Paul in “The Rocking-Horse Winner” are no different. Each of the members of the unnamed town has a strong passion for tradition. The original black box used for the lottery is described as being, “lost long ago, and the black box now resting on the stool had been put into use even before Old Man Warner, the oldest man in town, was born” (Jackson 251). This sentence gives the reader an understanding that the lottery is an ancient tradition that has become an integral part of the town’s lifestyle. Such a tradition can only be carried on for this length of time if the people are passionate about preserving the tradition. Paul had a passion to be wealthy as a way to prove to his mother that he was lucky. From a young age, he saw that his family always wanted more money to support a better lifestyle, yet
This demonstrates that if Sam’s school had got more funding then Sam may have received a proper education, and would have learned the intellectual skills that could help him to obtain a high paying job. Unlike many other people in richer parts of America who are able to achieve a lot in life due to their education, Sam’s lack of wealth ruins his future. Another example is one that hits closer to home- in terms of educational funding, the Illinois system is corrupt, and one of the districts that suffers most is that of Chicago Public Schools. In an interview with Ryan Young from CNN and an anonymous Chicago Public School teacher over the recent strike over budget cuts and the overall lack in school funding, the teacher states, “We care about the students. We want funding for our schools so our children can have supplies… gym, art, and PE., just like the kids in the suburbs do.” This is a direct representation of what is occurring in the Chicago Public School system today as a consequence of budget cuts and unequal funding. In general, the lack of school funding gives poorer children disadvantages when it comes to supplies that can help them to thrive. Also, budget cuts weaken the capacity of schools’ to develop the intelligence and creativity of the next generation of workers. In fact,, funding cuts lessen the ability of the schools to help prepare children better for their future, such as improving teacher
Once again, he finds children that are forced to learn in a facility that isn’t fit to be inhabited, much less a school. He the visits P.S. 79, which is extremely overcrowded, After viewing these two decrepit schools, he visits Riverdale, P.S. 24. Because of the property value of the houses around Riverdale, the school gets a lot more money than either P.S. 261 or P.S. 79. This chapter focuses on how money is divided up to schools. It appears that the value of the homes in the district far a school determines the amount of money that in invested into that school. Kozol emphasized the importance of financial need in the school system therefore giving a positive outlook on many of the schools. He incorporated the fact that values and income does determine the level of a child’s education.
In fear of the deteriorating value of education materials to support the appropriate grade levels, white families flee the public school system to magnet or private school for higher enrichment. Meanwhile, suburban legislators and Governor Thompson agree that “we can’t keep throwing money into a black hole” (Kozol, 1988, p. 53). Ultimately, the education at public schools were thrown aside at the cost of enriching the lives of students in affluent schools. Within the two districts I researched, Dallas ISD and Highland Park ISD, I found that the gathered median income from Highland Park is four times that of Dallas ISD. Because of this, Dallas ISD students are forced to rely on the limited sources of educational materials which are reflected by the substantially different median income compared to Highland ISD. Additionally, racial divide amongst the two ISD’s is astonishing. In Dallas ISD’s only 5.1% of the student body is identified as white but Highland Park is 85.8%. Meanwhile, the other ethnicities for the two school districts have the percentages swapped. Having Highland ISD’s black, Latino/Hispanic, Asian, or Pacific ethnicities just below the 15% margin and Dallas ISD’s non-white ethnicities soaring above 94%, the clear distinction of racial inequality among these two districts are evident. Comparing these percentages aligns to Kozol’s evaluation of white overpopulation in affluent schools within different districts such as Highland ISD.
In this detailed and shocking book, Jonathan Kozol describes the horrific and unjust conditions in which many children in today’s society are forced to get their education. Kozol discusses three major reasons for the discrepancies in America’s schools today: disparities of property taxes, racism, and the conflict between state and local control. The first of these reasons is that of the differences of available property tax revenues. Kozol discusses the inconsistencies in property tax revenues and the problem that the poorer districts aren’t getting the same opportunities for education as the more affluent neighborhoods. He says the reason for this is that the
During this time period, public education and the idea of tax-supported elementary schools and high
Public Education reform has emotional, political, and economic ties due to the impact America endures from the public school system. New American Academy writer Yehudi Meshchaninov writes,
The first chapter of the book is an introduction to the economy, politics and people of California. It encompasses the economy, politics and demography of the state for the past, present and the future. The edition features updated demographic information of the state from the census that took place in 2010. The chapter explains the state’s transition from colonization to rebellion and statehood. It discusses California’s past, including the great depression, political turmoil, infrastructure, workingmen’s party and World War II. The growth, reform and progressive change of the state to what it is today is also highlighted in the book. California previously faced budget deficits
In Paradise Lost, author Terry Hekker contrasts her new life, as a housewife, with what she had experienced 30 years earlier. In this article, Hekker depicts her personal experience of being a full-time working mother and how much it hurt when when she was divorced after 40 elongated years of marriage. It was mortifying for her to cope with the loneliness she felt after their divorce and, unfortunately she was forced to reestablish herself back from scratch. Defending her point, Terry admits her sorrow/frustration stating, “I wasn't advocating that mothers forgo careers to stay home with their children; I was simply defending my choice as a valid one.¨ (Hecker 38, p5) Hekker has a strong opinion on the matter of being a housewife Unlike “Satisfactions of Housewifery and Motherhood”, where Hekker stated how she enjoyed her role as a stay-at-home mom, Paradise Lost is written differently--to advise mothers/current housewives to have a “backup plan”and a strong education base behind their occupation of Housewifery. By alluding to her past (The Satisfactions of Housewifery and Motherhood) and through the use of her degrading and defensive language, Hekker advises women and other housewives to be prepared for anything to happen to themselves in a marriage.
Paradise Lost is a poem about Adam and Eve, how they were created and how they came to lose their place in the Garden of Eden, which was also called Paradise. It is very similar to the book of Genesis in the Bible, except it is expanded by John Milton into a very long, detailed, narrative poem with a different view of Satan. Even though he leads a war against God, is sent to hell, and seeks revenge throughout the poem h still ends up being a very likable character.
The theme of the 'heroic' in John Milton's Paradise Lost is one that has often been the focus of critical debate, namely in the debate surrounding which character is the 'true' hero of the poem. Most critics of the subject have, however, noted that the difficultly in defining the 'hero' of Milton's work is mainly due to our “vague understanding of what constitutes heroism”1 and the fact that “the term itself is equivocal”2. The 'vague' terming of what heroism can be defined as it what draws critics to disagree with one another over the nature of heroism, as Charles Martindale points out that there are 'different models of heroic', many of which Milton employs in his epic poem. To incorporate these different 'models' of the heroic into his
Many people wonder if heaven exists, and if so, what it consists of. There are many theories that will tell you different stories of heaven. In the bible heaven it is named Eden, where man can walk and talk at the side of God. Heaven is an intangible place where only the true ideals of life can be realized. On earth there is no way to know the true meaning of life. People can never fully comprehend the reason behind existence. The human world is full of many outside sources, such as evil, corrupting many lives. There will never be peace on earth due to that corruption. Many people are envious of other lives and are bound by senseless ideals. They spend much of their life with the want for