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Education
Posted Jul 29th, 2008

The first thing we must all understand is the following:
1. We are not created equal.
a. Some of us are born smarter
b. Some of us are born physically better
c. Some of us are born with either mental or physical disabilities
2. We are all born with brain cells. No college or school can create brain cells, but they can help you fill them.
3. Education is a lifelong process.

The joke in this country is how much we spend on education and what little we get for our money, I’m sad to say. Most of the problems are caused by politicians and the educated elite.

How public schools should work

Let’s look at the public school system across the country. The first thing we should understand is that sending children to huge schools is a joke. Kids are only a number. Forget how many students to a room, more importantly it is how big the school is. This always affects the parents. Most parents, like children, are intimidated by huge groups. Therefore, all schools should go from kindergarten to 12th grade, with a maximum of 25 students to each classroom and never more than 350 children per school.

Schools should teach the following subjects only: reading, math, writing, English, U.S. and world history and world geography. That’s it. If the school would like to teach other subjects, it could be done via the Internet. Then the parents who want Johnny or Jane to learn a foreign language or other subject can pay for it.

In these small schools, every child must play sports. In the 1996 Presidential campaign I ran for the Republican Nomination. I didn’t get too many votes—I don’t think my wife even voted for me—but I mentioned Steve Forbes who ran also. Steve is not a jock, but we all would need him on our team because we needed everyone to play basketball and football. It is so important to get every child involved in sports. Today, only the best athletes can play in the huge schools. That, folks, is wrong, even if it may be a great thrill for the high price professionals who run these huge non-learning institutions.

No school should ever have a superintendent who does not teach at least one class. This local superintendent should run the school for the local school board, and we should also exempt them from malpractice lawsuits. If your child is a hell raiser then he or she should get a spanking in private. Yes, for all you intellectual elite, a few smacks will help a child, not ruin them for life. In fact it might save them. Once we have small schools across the country, we should use these facilities at night for special Associates Degree programs, so that anyone could get a degree in whatever discipline they wish. The Internet has made the world of education open to anyone. We should also set teacher pay by how their students perform. And the great elite should understand the bottom line: 100% of this country needs to know how to read, write and perform math. I have a BSME degree, the only subject that I’ve used from my engineering degree has been accounting, which I took as an elective.

If you stop and think about it, money talks and B.S. walks. How many people understand interest charges, the real discount? Accounting is a course I would make mandatory for graduation, because you can see how much you pay in taxes and understand there’s no such thing as “tax the rich.” It’s you they get, not the rich.

College

The first thing is to understand is that college is set up to open doors. If you go to Harvard, Yale, Princeton or any other American elite school, you will get a good job. Not because you are smart, but because they have a strong employment network. Most assume that graduates of such schools must be smart. This is where Wall Street, the Federal government, state governments and big business hire their future presidents and CEOs. It is funny to me because if you look at America, Congress has a single digit approval rating, big business leaders and every level of government—Federal, state, county and local—have little of Americans’ confidence.

Look at the Presidential race. There are two good Senators running, but if you had your real choice, wouldn’t you rather see someone like a Roger Penske—a man who not only raced cars, but also built a business and is the American success story? He would tell you the truth and we wouldn’t care about some ego starved Senator or Congressman who has no clue what is going on.

A history lesson

But that is not going to happen and our government has always run this way. My favorite Congressman was Davy Crockett. With just six weeks of formal education he became a three-term Congressman from eastern Tennessee. He quit Congress because he couldn’t stand the crooks there and all the B.S. Davy was a straight talker and straight shot, so he decided that enough was enough and left Congress. He received a letter from his old friend Jim Bowie, who with Sam Houston was fighting Mexico for Texas’ independence. So Davy bid farewell to his wife and sons, got on a horse and rode from eastern Tennessee to San Antonio, Texas. The men who fought in the Battle of the Alamo killed over 2,000 Mexican soldiers before they ran out of ammunition and were executed.

You know there are no Davys left in Washington. Read what he said in Congress and while you are at it, also look up Lincoln. They prove my point. They had little formal education, but were very smart Americans, because as I said, you are born with brain cells and are always learning. Colleges are great marketing machines. They are over priced because they don’t look at true cost. No college should pay a professor who doesn’t teach three hours per day. The fact is that most professors don’t teach, and why give tenure to these teachers?

What really matters

At Titan we are the best because we try to promote the best in our organization, and what degree you have does not mean a whole lot. How fair you are with people, how well you know the business, how much risk you will take to keep the company moving forward, and how honest you are with yourself and others means more.

These are a few of my ideas, now lets hear yours. Leave me a comment and I'll respond Thursday, July 31, at 1 p.m. Central.

I would also like to say that before the November election I will point out the Senators and Congressmen or women who have voted not to drill offshore Alaska, mine oil shale, etc. These will be Republicans and Democrats. If you are smart you will throw them out of office. Let’s face it; giving our money to the Middle East is killing America. Those who vote against nuclear power should be thrown out as well. It is the only way you will see action, and they will get the point because they want the job.

Schools also need to teach a few things about Mother Earth:
1. The Earth spins on its own axis at 1,000 mph
2. The moon moves in orbit around Earth, that causing the tide to lower and rise
3. Earth and moon go around the sun at 64,000 mph
4. All this motion through space is what affects Earth's weather patterns, plus the cosmic rays from sun bursts
5. When a three-foot meteor hits Earth, there will be instant climate change for a while
6. There's also climate change from Earth's own volcanoes

In short, it's like six guys in a house drinking beer, eating tacos and refried beans. The odd smell can be overbearing, until you open a window or door.

Man really doesn't mean much to this Earth or universe. The more we read the more we'll understand it.

The Grizz