Ruminations

So here am I just a couple of weeks out from receiving the big diploma, and I find that I have turned into an education snob. I can’t honestly say that I’m sorry about it either.

In this country, we are given, yes, GIVEN 12 years of education.  It is expected, in these twelve years of gratis education, that we should learn to read, write and do some basic math – you know, add, subtract, multiply and divide?  We get some extras on top of all that including the chance to play some games, cut up some frogs or other poor animals, make some friends and so forth.  After all this time and money invested, those that have paid the bill expect that people who have spent time in our schools can speak as if they have more than the average couple of hundred word vocabulary of a Senegal parrot, perhaps even be able speak for a minute or two without profanity, be able to tell time on an analog clock, and be able to make change when the electricity goes out at their McDonald’s job.  But can they?

These initial twelve years are paid for by taxpayers – not the government as so many of the aforementioned uneducated seem to think.  Guess what folks, the government is not a producer of anything, except for a lot of aggravation, so it does not have any money that it does not take from the governed and redistribute as it sees fit.  The PEOPLE that pay for your education cover costs such as teacher’s, administrative and support person’s salaries (does anyone think that the janitor works for free?). There are also costs for buildings and the associated costs such as maintenance of the building and grounds, and supplies like computers, paper, etc.  All this is paid for by taxpayers – people that we know, who live all around us, but are not recognized for paying for this great opportunity for us.  As a taxpayer, myself, I wonder what I am getting for my money.

Not only do many of us not appreciate the free education we are given, we are downright foolish not to take advantage of it!  Some of us spend 12 years (less if we drop out) trying to avoid learning anything at all.  After spending all this time doing the “avoid learning” dance, we end up knowing absolutely nothing.  It is abundantly clear that we have made ourselves into ignorant fools the moment we open our mouths and subject our listeners to some drivel that is not even understandable.  Then, to add insult to injury, we have the unmitigated gall to complain about the fact that we have no opportunities.  Can anyone explain the rationale behind this stupidity?

So, here is the bottom line for me:  I have no tolerance for those people who purposefully wasted the opportunity of a free education.  If you have not taken advantage of the opportunity that I paid for, then don’t come crying to me.  I gave you years of opportunity to learn and grow.  If you can’t even speak like you have a brain and not a glob of oatmeal between your ears, TOUGH.  Figure it out yourself, because I’m done carrying you.