Honest to God. Said by a Black Person. Let me start with what a Chicago Teachers Union Person said.
“If charter schools were so good, why didn’t the white folks keep them for themselves?”
I couldn’t make this kind of nonsense up. It’s all here on a video produced by EAGnews.org. It’s breathtaking to watch such ignorance masquerade as professionalism. We can only hope this person is not a teacher and not responsible for educating children in any way.
OK. Some background is in order.
The Chicago Teachers Union, and school employee unions in general, are pulling out all the stops to slow down a school choice and education reform movement that is bowling them over in numerous states and cities.
Bold reform efforts are being pushed by the likes of Republicans like Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Democrats like Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. It’s a bipartisan effort that has Big Labor on its heels.
In Chicago in particular, the teachers union is flailing to stop any meaningful reform it possibly can. In response to the move for a slightly longer school day, the union has demanded an astonishing 30% raise. For weeks, union leaders have been beating the war drums for a teachers’ strike, which could cripple the city.
When Juan Williams and I were invited to appear at an Illinois Policy Institute event featuring our film, “A Tale of Two Missions,” the union attempted to enter the room to confront us. Given that the event was sold out, not to mention the union’s well-documented penchant for grandstanding at school board meetings and with Occupy Chicago, they weren’t let in.
You can read the whole thing for more links.
It seems that education is no longer about product delivery (you know – education) but jobs and pay for union members. The digital economy is in the process of retiring these time servers and replacing them with real time servers that operate at 1/10,000th the cost. Which is to say the profit potential is enormous.
The only thing missing is an adequate way to credential these grads. In my own non educator education I bypassed the credential step by going into at will work. Contracting.
OK. How about a look at contracting from the dark side.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Jobs may be coming back, but they aren’t the same ones workers were used to.
Many of the jobs employers are adding are temporary or contract positions, rather than traditional full-time jobs with benefits. With unemployment remaining near 10%, employers have their pick of workers willing to accept less secure positions.
In 2005, the government estimated that 31% of U.S. workers were already so-called contingent workers. Experts say that number could increase to 40% or more in the next 10 years.
James Stoeckmann, senior practice leader at WorldatWork, a professional association of human resource executives, believes that full-time employees could become the minority of the nation’s workforce within 20 to 30 years, leaving employees without traditional benefits such as health coverage, paid vacations and retirement plans, that most workers take for granted today.
“The traditional job is not doomed. But it will increasingly have competition from other models, the most prominent is the independent contractor model,” he said.
Why is the independent contractor model so good for the self educated? Because like in the old days it is totally at will. If you don’t please your employer you have no claim to a job. Capitalism at its very finest. A continual matching of people to process. Which is to say – the socialist model is dying. The day will come when employees are looked on as drones. In a work oriented society like America that is the kiss of death. The ruination of social status. In America the “what have you done” question is more important that the “what are you doing” question. Which is to say that your accomplishments in improving the world are more important here than who you are partying with. Generally.
OK. Time to bring in a little light for those of you still with me.
Control over your own economic life is valuable, not only in terms of mental health and a feeling of self worth and independence, but also economically. Something as simple as being able to control more of the taxes you pay can have a dramatic impact on your financial well being.
How A Worker Can Pay $0 In Federal Income Taxes
The Wall Street Journal recently did a case study showing how an independent contractor can earn $150,000 in gross earnings in a year, take a few very common tax deductions, and have a federal income tax liability of $0.
The author provides a link to the WSJ article. After going through the financials the author says:
Independent contractors allow workers and firms to share more money between themselves. The government is entitled to much less of the money that flows from firms to independent contractors than employers and employees. Businesses become more profitable, individuals keep more money and everyone increases their privacy. Independent contractors can also have more control over their tax domicile, a more advanced but much more powerful tax saving strategy.
This is only scratching the surface of how to properly take advantage of this powerful strategy. Secrets of Independent Contractors, from HowToVanish.com is a simple and complete guide to help businesses and workers properly structure their relationship so they can take advantage of the huge tax savings.
It is a new world out there. And if you are not ready to join it you should at least warn your kids.
One other thing. I know that as a white person I should be keeping this stuff to myself, so as to avoid disrupting the various scams (unions). But I just can’t help myself. I have been told in other contexts that I’m somewhat of an exhibitionist. It is probably true. I’m sure that is part of the reason that for every blog writer there are 10 commenters and 1,000 readers. Exposing yourself evidently is not a common fetish. Me? I enjoy it. In case you hadn’t noticed.