#RedForEd

A few folks asked me if I had anything to say about the #RedForEd movement. Yeah. I have a lot to say, and the entire take can be boiled down to three words: it's about time.

I've spent a lot of time going around the country advocating for people to stand up and fight for their schools, for the kids who go to them, and for the teachers who teach in them. I've rallied friends and strangers around the idea that all of us have to be willing not just to speak up on behalf of our schools and teachers, but to do so loudly. I've asked people to hold those difficult conversations that point to what is clearly happening: the systematic destruction of our public education system.

Photo by Gina Maravilla

That educators (and it IS educators, not just teachers) have finally had enough should come as no surprise. It's the inevitable result of trying to run a growing state like Arizona on an austerity budget that year-after-year took away the state's ability to make the necessary investments in education. Arizona is home to seven million people, and the money coming into the state's general fund is a mere $9.8 billion. That's not enough to fund basic programs and services. On top of that Arizona gives away $15 billion (and counting) annually in corporate tax breaks and rebates. The Joint Legislative Budget Committee — which analyzes the effects of budgets and budget proposals in the AZ — has pointed out for many years that these breaks haven't worked.

And we wonder why we have a teacher shortage, or why a teacher and 49,999 of her best friends decided to leave school and visit the capitol today.

They had no choice. I'm glad they're doing it. This is their time, and this is their fight. Don't believe anyone who tells you that this is all about politics. It's not. It's about wanting something good and right and deserving for our kids, and the people closest to them standing up and fighting for them.

I stand with them.

All decent people should.

#RedForED bitches.

And a note for the purists: Not for nothing, but the next time someone comes up to me and tells me I'm wearing the wrong color red, or my shirt doesn't have the proper graphic I am kindly going to tell them to suck it. This has happened to me twice over the last week. It debases the actual purpose of what's happening and takes a galactically stupid argument from trite to trivial in a nanosecond. I've made a career out of fighting for kids and teachers, and up until a few weeks ago no one noticed or cared what color I was wearing. Shit, I was #RedForEd before it was cool.

'Don't boo . . . vote!"

Don't boo . . . vote! — President Barack Obama

Elections count. Every vote counts. And tomorrow voters in the eighth congressional district in Arizona have an opportunity to do themselves and the nation a great favor by voting for Dr. Hiral Tipirneni. Read her website. She's rational, supports common-sense policies that are good for our area, will protect social security and Medicare, is well-spoken and clearly bright.

In other words, she is everything her opponent, Debbie Lesko, is not.

I know Debbie Lesko, and I know her well. She was a parent in a school district I used to work for, and the experience was less than gratifying. During the three finance campaigns I ran while there, Lesko opposed them all. She didn't just offer opposition, she lied about the school district's position, lied about tax rates, lied about where money would be spent and . . . well, she lied. A lot. The best one: the school district planned to replace teachers with computers. No kidding.

Things went from bad to worse when she was elected to the Arizona legislature, where she had a less than starling tenure. In fact, during her term, she didn't introduce a single piece of legislation that was not cooked up by ALEC or the Koch Brothers. Not a single original thought passed through her head. But a lot of dark money did pass through her dirty little fingers.

Meanwhile, she voted to deny services for the poor, sick and elderly. She voted against registering dangerous firearms and against students, teachers and schools. She did, however, vote for school vouchers, and to give Arizona employers the ability to deny birth control coverage to women who work for them.

While her legislative record is a clear disaster, Lesko the person is worse. She will lie, cheat and badger any individual who stands in her way. She is a thin-skinned sycophant who no more belongs in Congress (or any other elected seat) than my cat. When she voted against a bill that would have required a waiting period and registration of firearms in Arizona I took to Twitter. I called her vote a disgrace because it was. She took exception, as she always does to legitimate criticism, and responded to my Tweet with a not-too-subtle —not to mention misspelled — threat (and, not for nothin', but I kill it on Twitter with my witty political commentary. You can find Bad Hombre Jim @Phxflyer). Not getting the response she had hoped for, she emailed me at work, copied my boss, and again threatened me and my school district with payback. This is the behavior of a petulant child, not a congressional representative.

We live in serious times, and we deserve serious people to represent us. We deserve better than a small, petty person like Debbie Lesko. We deserve an adult.

Arizona: where poor kids come to die

I now live in a state where it is public policy to allow sick children to die.

Today, the republican-lead Arizona legislature, along with republican Gov. Doug Ducey, refused to restore a federally-funded health insurance program that is used in 49 other states, and which would not have cost Arizona a dime. So now, 31,000 sick children of lower income working parents have no place to turn for medical help.

I would repeat that to emphasize the point, except that it would only serve to piss me off further.

Known as KidsCare, republicans refused to restore it because, get this, it would “blow up” the state budget because . . . well, since it costs the state nothing, no one really knows. It did prove one thing, though: on the very day in which we have chosen to honor and thank our teachers, the Arizona legislature proved how important math education is to someone who wants to hold public office. 

So let’s do the math for them:

$9.58 billion + 0 = $9.58 billion

See? Ta da! No increase! No explosion! Pretty simple, right?

Still, if Arizona lawmakers are serious about letting loose with items that will actually “blow up” the budget, they need not look further than the $8 million in corporate welfare they’re giving away this year (a tax package, by the way, that will cost the Arizona $17 million next year). Or they can do without the $5 million set aside for Koch “freedom schools” at each of the state’s universities. Side note: neither the University of Arizona, Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University or the University of Glendale on Olive asked for either the money or the freedom schools.

If you're looking to reach out, then might I suggest you do so to the leader of this republican-lead mess: Senate President Andy Biggs. He seems nice, so just give him a call him 602-926-4371.

This is as shameful as it gets. Just when you didn’t think Arizona couldn’t lower the bar any further (after the last legislative session more than 350,000 needy Arizonans were kicked off Medicaid) the governor and legislature managed to speed up in our state’s race to the bottom.

And before I go, there’s another group that needs to carry some of the blame for this disgrace: the state’s faith-based community. I don’t like picking on other people’s religions, so I’ll pick on mine.

The Diocese of Phoenix uttered nary a word as the fight for KidsCare was picked up by democratic and a handful of republican legislators. Unless the Christian Brothers who taught me were just yanking my chain, the whole idea of helping the less fortunate is, well, sort of the cornerstone of the faith. You know, the Beatitudes and all that.

And yet . . . not an Easter season peep from Bishop Thomas J. Olmstead or Auxiliary Bishop Eduardo A. Nevares. Not a plea from the pulpit. Not a paragraph in its publication The Catholic Sun. Nothing in your church bulletin from last Sunday. Their inaction was, in every respect, antithetical to the words of Jesus his bad self. Their silence, and that of the state’s entire faith-based community, was as cruel and heartless as it was conspicuous and deafening.

So the next time the governor, legislative or faith leaders try to tell you about their overwhelming concern for human life and dignity, remember this: they care fuck all about all that, and their actions today prove it.

And before we go, here's the vote tally on KidsCare from the legislature today (remember this in November):

It was almost better when the Arizona legislature just flat out lied to us

This is the abandoned School of Pripyat in Chernobyl in Chornobyl, Ukraine. If the republican majority in the Arizona legislature
has its way, your local school will look like this in just a few years

They don’t even try to hide it anymore.

This was the week when the legislature finally dropped all pretense of wanting a strong public education system for Arizona’s kids. Both houses voted to expand private school vouchers to . . . well . . . everyone. The practical side effect of this — at least in the fertile minds in the republican majority at the legislature — is that by offering scholarships to everyone, we can pretty much strip the public from our public schools somewhere down the road. Should Governor Doug Ducey sign the bill — and the chances that The Deuce will let this opportunity slip are about the same as an ice cube surviving for more than a 45 seconds on an Arizona dashboard in July — more dollars will be siphoned from Arizona’s already woefully underfunded public education system because . . . FREEDOM!

Lovely.

Of course, they don’t call them vouchers. They call them empowerment scholarships, but a rose by any other name . . . amirite?

And have I mentioned that there is NO accountability attached to these scholarships? That’s right, we’ll toss public dollars into private schools and no one will have to prove kids are learning, and not one of those students will ever have to take a ridiculous state-mandated test because, in the trifling minds of Arizona legislators, private is a synonym for successful (And if you really want to get sick, watch the video of Sen. Debbie Lesko, R-Koch Brothers, as she explains why this is a good idea sans any evidence. The Arizona senate isn’t exactly a beacon for intellectual heavyweights, but Lesko, R-ALEC, is the dimmest of all the bulbs in that musty old room. Sweet Jeebus on a SmartBoard).

Why Arizona taxpayers —especially public school teachers and parents — are not howling at this is an absolute mystery.

Vouchers are a disaster, and that’s not hyperbole. There’s a right good battle going on in Oklahoma right now over these same type of scholarships. Vouchers have already proven themselves to be a disaster in Louisiana, where, after just a few years of the free market getting a chance to tee up school kids for profit, student achievement has gone more dixie than a king cake a week after Mardi Gras.

Vouchers are the way republicans, like those who control the Arizona legislature, like to cover themselves in compassion. After all, they tell us, these scholarships will put poor families and children on the same footing as families and kids with great wealth. This is really funny coming from a group that worships at the altar of the free market. Why? Because when you open the market to, say, private schooling to everyone, the cost of that schooling will go up.

Here’s how it works: Say you own a private school. You can enroll 100 kids (so long as none of those children are special needs or require lessons in how to speak English). Right now, based on the interested parents you attract, you can charge $7,000 for a seat in your school. Suddenly, someone — like . . . I don't know . . . the Arizona legislature? — opens the door for pretty much everyone to go to your school. You still only have 100 seats, but the value of those spaces has increased dramatically, so much so that you can now charge $15,000 per seat. Pretty sweet deal for you, eh? The empowerment scholarships cover less than a third of that cost. So who is going to fill those seats? Pretty much the same group of people who fill them now. So screw YOU poor kids and families.

All things considered, last week was a lousy one for education in Arizona.

Lessons not learned

Every Monday I get to hang out with a first grade class for 90 minutes through a program in my school district that, really, every school district should have. Today was a particularly good day. Since this was the last time I would visit with them before Christmas, their teacher let me read 'Twas the Night Before Christmas and the story of little Virginia O'Hanlon and her letter to the New York Sun to the kids.

I love my Monday visits. Being in the classroom grounds me, and both the kids and their teacher are a real touchstone and inspiration for me as I go about my work. Yet today . . .

Today is the third anniversary of shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. The third anniversary of when the lives of 20 first-graders, just like the ones I get to visit every Monday, came to an end at the hands of a madman, along with the lives of six educators.

If you're not still upset about Sandy Hook, you should be. It was the moment in which we had an opportunity to do something about gun violence in our country. It was a chance to stand for reason over fear. A chance to put into place sensible gun laws that protect all of us — gun owners, too. A chance to put paid to the idea that a person's right to live outweighs another person's desire to shoot you. A chance to do the right thing.

But we did nothing. And we allowed our leaders to ignore our calls for sensible legislation, even with the backing of of a public tired of violence. Tired of death. Sickened by the deaths of 20 innocent six-year-olds. Desperate for proof that they would lead rather than succumb to the fear mongering of a special interest group.

Three years later, we've had more mass shootings than we have days in a year. Our steps, and there have been many, are all backward.

I remember the vilification of Dan Hodges when he tweeted out the message above. Sadly, and to the shame of us all, he was right.

Don't forget Sandy Hook. Don't forget those 20 first-graders and six educators.

Don't forget them.

Ever.

The Arizona school funding settlement smells a little fishy

I'm not sure the deal cut to return funding to Arizona schools is the best trade that could have been made. I don't say that easily because I know many of the people who were involved in the discussions. Much as I respect them, it seems to me that there was a lot of public dissatisfaction with state policy makers that could have been leveraged to greater advantage. Instead, education gets 70 cents of every dollar its owed (maybe). No matter what kind of hustler you are, 30 points is a very good vig, and that's what Governor Ducey and republican leaders in the legislature got.

There is every reason to distrust Ducey. If you're one of those Arizonans who do trust him, then I have a bridge to sell you in Gila Bend. Ducey (autocorrect wants to call him Ducky) already has plans to further invade the state's general fund. Arizona burned $140 million in corporate tax cuts last year, and another $60 million this year. In 2016 $112 million more in corporate tax cuts will kick in, and $108 million more in fiscal 2018. Can anyone make a case for giving away so much to people and entities that have more than enough? The Joint Legislative Budget Committee, among other groups, can't. They say the tax breaks aren't working. Revenue, of course, is never discussed. It never is in Arizona. In Ducey's Arizona, the rich will get richer; the state land trust will pour out more money than what's put in; the poor and middle class will pay disproportionately more in taxes; teachers won't get raises and will continue to leave the state; classrooms will be devoid of qualified teachers; and students will get the shaft. Lovely place, Arizona is.

The fact is, the money is there to fully fund Arizona's schools. A majority of people in the state are even willing to raise taxes to provide those funds. But two critical components are missing: the political will to do right by students and teachers, and a willingness to hold policy makers' feet to the fire.

The problem with public schools isn't a lack of money in the classroom but rather a lack of leadership in Arizona to make funding public schools a priority. Budgeting isn't just about money; it is about creating priorities to spend the money that is available.

Cutting school funding by 22 percent in six years coupled with failing to fund inflation to the tune of $1,300,000,000 (despite voter approve of Proposition 301) shows a complete failure to recognize that providing our kids a top-notch education is what Arizona needs to move ahead. Being 50th in school funding is outrageous and embarrassing. — Former Peoria Governing Board President Julia Smock

There's good reason to be suspicious of this settlement. First, the early language on this deal made it seem as though dollars would be flowing to Arizona schools this year. They won't. As a result, a lot of people — a lot of voters — think this is a done deal. It isn't.

Second, the settlement package is dependent on voter approval. In Arizona, Proposition 301 is the only statewide education funding measure to ever pass. Most others have lost, often by large majorities. Unless and until Ducey and republican legislative leaders, let alone educators, start to vigorously campaign for approval of this package in May, there's every reason to worry about the odds of the measure passing. Add to that the influence of unaccountable dark money on previous ballot measures (remember when the one-cent sales tax extension had 70 percent support before falling?) and it is clear that there is a lot of work to be done in order to earn voters' approval.

Finally, should voters strike down this settlement the game is over. Ducey and the legislature will wield a loss like a hammer on education, and education funding, and do so under the banner of carrying out the will of the voters. We cannot allow that to happen.

For those of you who are interested, and you all should be, the Arizona School Boards Association will hold a webinar on details of the settlement on Dec. 2 at 7 p.m. You should join in. There's a lot at stake.

We're nuts, Jeebus is pissed

When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross. — Sinclair Lewis

Dear America,

This has been such an odd and ugly week, so if you don't mind, can we vow to stop losing our minds this weekend? Good.

Rather than bringing out the best in America, the terrorist attacks in Paris last week brought out our worst, and it's your fault . . . unless, of course, you put a French flag over your Facebook profile photo. Then you're solid. It's your fault, America, because you're listening to people like Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz and Donald Trump (and is there a bigger douche bag on the face of the earth than Donald Trump? No. No there is not). It's your fault, America, because you elected idiot governors, and marionettes to congress (and by the way Kirsten Sinema? Please stop pretending to be a Democrat). It's your fault, America, because you have chosen fear over reason. And believe me, Jeebus is pissed about this.

In this country we help people. We don't live in fear of them, especially toddlers and orphans. In this country we choose (or not choose) which faith we wish to follow. We do not apply a religious test to those seeking sanctuary from people who would kill them. We also don't track, mark, or otherwise follow people based on what they choose to believe. This was tried before. It didn't turn out well. And for those of you who missed school the day they taught civics in civics class, freedom of religion is already covered in the First Amendment.

We have nothing to fear in this country . . . except for heavily armed white men who were born and raised here.

So, listen: calm down. Take a breath. Stop being silly. And the next time something ugly happens, can we not go from zero to panic in a Nano second? It makes us look like were living out a Talking Heads song.

Thanks — Jim