Book Review: Unintended Consequences, by John Ross (Accurate Press)

retroman@mail.turbont.net
Sat, 28 Aug 1999 11:06:55 EDT

Bryan Moss wrote:
>
> Michael S. Lorrey wrote:
>
> > I have often thought that if any part of our world should be in any way
> > socialist, it should be in the area of child rearing. Children are to
> > varying degrees not responsible for their ability to afford education,
> > health care, and basic housing/nutrition, and should not be penalized
> > for the stupidity of their parents.
> >
> > The question is: How?
>
> As I recently said, "The solution would be corporate sponsorship."
>
> If you value life, *value* life!

Imagine the following:

Welcome to Union Carbide High School, home of the UCHS Gassers... because we care.
Tonite our team is playing the boys of the Mighty Lockheed Bombers, visiting from Ground Zero Stadium...

I am all for competition and merit in student acheivement, and no mainstreaming. I am especially for competition and merit among teachers (break the NEA monopoly), but pasting a corporate logo on my kid so he can go to school? Thats the kind of irresponsible idea that the morons I talk of in my prior post would be all for...

My personal favorite is to fund education with taxes on stupid behavior: drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, pollution, gambling, logging... etc. Thus its a negative feedback effect: the smarter the kids become, the less need there is for more education... This to me is the optimum way to have 'price' signalling in education.

Mike Lorrey