The Ultimate Oxymoron
I was flummoxed as-to-what I should post for this Sun-Date: did I want to follow-up on Uncle Pete (who announced his resignation from ‘SC right after I wrote last week’s article); or did I want to discuss my new revelation that the Brits may very well have “let” the fledgling U.S. win that Revolutionary War that spawned that Star-spangled fandango; or, did I want to discuss the new legislation in California that gives parents of California public schoolchildren a say in the governance of the schools their children attend? I chose the latter – because, not only is this piece of legislation a bigger joke than Pete Carroll’s rhetoric – but it is also of more immediate relevance than the U.S. military being in Her Majesty’s service (particularly if you have read my draconian recommendations of giving the power of en loco parentis to the schools from 8:00am to 5:00pm).
Talk about the-blind-leading-the-blind…in what bizarre imagination; on what strange level of consciousness – did someone think that Californian parents should (or even could) determine whether a school was succeeding or failing, and whether a teacher was good or bad?! Even though I think this is just another bourgiose attempt at union busting (not by the newly-enlisted parents mind you) – I am offended by the paradoxically sick suggestion that the actual problem inherited by American public schools – is proferred as the solution to the “ills” of American public schools. Anyone who understands systemic analysis realizes that American public schools are fucked up for one reason and one reason only: that the American Family is very fucked up – and California has the market share in this department (that parents no longer parent, and that ‘families’ are simply blood, and non-blood, illusions).
When endeavoring to render some meaningful sociological analyses – the first order of business for the sociologist is to specify his/her concepts and terms, i.e., to explain exactly the nature of the structures that are to be analyzed in a coherent and consistent fashion. When we embark on analyses of American (and in this case, Californian) public schools – we have to precisely define: the School; what constitutes an education; good teaching vs. bad teaching and how one goes about measuring this; what constitutes a ‘parent’; good parenting vs. bad parenting; a good parent from a bad parent; a healthy family from a dysfunctional one; and, are any significant players (the teacher(s), the parent(s) and/or the student — under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol (prescription or street) – because believe-it-or-not folks – very few people in our wonderful State are in a sober state of mind.
What did the foregoing have to do with the price of tea in China? Well, basically – it suggests that the forever American, knee-jerk reaction to “conditions” is: to either throw money at the problem (which NEVER works; or (in this case), to come up with a solution that doesn’t even come close to addressing the symptoms of the problem: BECAUSE EVERYONE IS TOO CHICKEN-SHIT to even IDENTIFY (and specify) the symptoms!!
Over the years I’ve watched dwindling attendance at Back-to-School Nights (unless single parents were shopping for some parental help; or a spouse — bored with marriage was looking for a convenient affair [even teachers are open to this]; or, even kinkier ‘parents’ — were looking for a ‘youngin’ to break-in [such dynamics actually tended to boost Back to School Night attendance]). Family configurations have changed drastically!
Basically, American public schools have become one, big Peyton Place – that would be: one big soap opera: we are weak-in-the-knees as a culture, and will continuously produce weak-kneed prodigy. Let’s put those Scheffian measures in place! Let’s put schools in a more militaristic arena! Let’s cut out the fluff bred by Hollyweird and create a brave new world!