Editorials

Our View – Legislation generates money for Bush

While the ineptitude and inadequacies inherent in the “No Child Left Behind” act are readily obvious, the reasons behind the insistence of the Bush administration to continuously pursue such inane legislation were baffling – until recently.

An article in the Oct. 22 issue of the Los Angeles Times revealed that President George W. Bush’s brother Neil Bush, along with the financial backing of former president George H.W. Bush and Barbara Bush, have created a program called “Ignite! Learning” intended for schools that receive funding from the “No Child Left Behind” act.

Although we may have grown accustomed to political nepotism, this is getting out of hand. For those of us who may not remember, the “No Child Left Behind” act allows schools to set the standards to which the students will achieve, giving schools an incentive to make testing standards lower. Teachers are also encouraged to teach what will be on the standardized tests instead of a more in-depth scope of knowledge that their students need, thereby generating more revenue for their schools.

Schools that do not meet self-imposed standards are penalized financially – a totally illogical solution to the problem of poor education. Schools that receive poor scores on these tests need more funding, not less.

And as always, the Bush administration has unapologetically pursued this legislation, despite criticism from naysayers who point out that the program hasn’t received adequate funding and that it’s detrimental to schools that are already at a disadvantage and have few resources.

Now we know why. Former first lady Barbara Bush, who recently gained notoriety with her insensitive comments about the victims of Hurricane Katrina, donated money to a relief effort for Hurricane Katrina victims that had been relocated to Texas on the condition that the money she contributed be used by the Curriculum on Wheels (COW) program that her family had its hand in creating, according to the article published by the L.A. Times.

COWs are learning centers on wheels that resemble the black and white spotted animal and, according to the article, Neil Bush has had an indirect hand in creating the program and he and his family stand to benefit from the purchasing of this program.

The little aid that the “No Child Left Behind” act provides suffering schools with, can be used to purchase COWs, which have even cropped up in Long Beach Unified School District at Hill Classical Middle School.

The usefulness of the cow-resembling learning centers can be contested, but the blatant favoritism the Bush administration is displaying toward the wealthy, especially toward wealthy family members of the Bush administration, isn’t contestable and certainly isn’t acceptable.

As responsible voters, we all need to remember the egregious errors of the Bush administration and this is just another mark on the growing laundry list of problems. Sadly, it seems these COWs are providing more than just milk for the Bush family.

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published.

Daily 49er newsletter

Instagram