Trouble is, many of the weapons that Congress would use to fight for reform are about as archaic as the B-29 bomber and as clumsy and slow as the Sherman tank. Most of the parents, teachers and community leaders who testified in Orange County seemed to understand and touted that fact. This is what it has come to. Most people in education hope the federal government can work miracles. But education, like welfare and state-run industries, shows that the federal government does not solve problems, it makes them worse.
Education needs freedom, accountability and a serious study of what works.
Most everyone agrees that the single most important influence on children is their parents. But too many American parents think that the government can do what parents can't. The education establishment knows this, and has exploited that fact, which is why it has become so powerful. Two-income families have arisen just so parents can stay one step ahead of a tax man that takes nearly half of what they earn. For people like Silverman, this is an argument for Head Start and universal pre-school.