Richter, Please Fasten Your Seatbelt and Observe the No-Smoking Signs.

[Doktor Howl]

It was announced today that 50 school districts nation-wide, including two in Arizona will be going to a four-day school week.  Days will not be lengthened, nor will the school year be extended.  The long, slow slide into the slime continues.

How did it happen, Richter?  How did we go from being the last, best hope for mankind, to a slow shuffle into third-world status?  Sure, I know about the banking crisis, and two endless, meaningless wars that are transferring what's left of the treasury into the pockets of a few fat oligarchs...But why are we putting up with it?

I'd like to think we used to be a bit smarter than this.

And it's not like we weren't warned, right?  Ben Franklin was amused and pessimistic, Patrick Henry screamed and hollered, and no matter how long they beat Thomas Paine, he kept yelling until they tipped him into his grave.  They even stole his bones, because nobody likes a smartass.

So I'm wondering, Richter, as we continue our slow downward spiral, what Nathan Hale would say today.  Was it worth getting hanged over?  For that matter, what would John Jay or Curly or Thomas Jefferson say?

Please return your seat to its fully upright position.

[Richter]

Franklin was a hopeless gamer, which should tell us soemthign right form the start.  He was a quirky dude too, refusing to dress up fancy, tinkering constantly, and turning out the prose and the good advice. 

OK, quick thought back on our all knowing, wise and venerated, noveau enlightenment, altruistic equality hardon founding fathers.

Plantation owners, Merchants, BUISINESSMEN.  Like all noveau riche, they stride into the country club, and when faced with somethign they don't GET, holler (none to genteel) "WELL WHEY IN THE HELL DO YOU DO THAT?  IT'S SILLY!"
(I'm surpirsed half of them even put on the aprons.)

The teaxes, (I meant to do that.), the troops, they got in their way. 
It shat on the people too, sure, but it shat on their bottom line most of all.  Maybe things were different, maybe they were still close enough to "Off the boat, let's all survive together or DIE" mentality to see someone having a problem as a problem for them too.  I doubt it though.  Men are baloney, they will go bad in an HOUR if not properly handled, much less a few generations.

So, they get together.  Paine, their pet provocateaur extrordinaire, is all fired up on the cause, and gives them the spin they need. (laugh behind the back, don't let him know the joke.)
...And Franklin gets in on the shit.

He was GOOD, I can't deny that, or dismiss him as a wealthy asshole like the others.  So they sent him to France to make nice.  Quirky charm, when in the hands of a person who KNOWS how to work it, and network, is a force to eb reconed with.  Such a person will onyl work with reason and SOLID logic, and be friends with everyone in the process.  They do this by not caring about or being derailed by the personal bit that would make a regular joe kick over the table and leave.  They are metagaming people with the ever - changing sourcebooks memorized, and the tenacity to brute force human nature.  Reading his stuff, I'm convinced Franklin was this kind of guy.
They HAD to keep him busy enough to not notice the other agenda though.

Maybe I'm being charitable, bt the overal point is the FF's, or most of them, were opportunistic assholes too.  No stock market to tank and get rich off back then, so they had to take a peice out of a wealthy Imperialist scheme instead.

[Richter]

Anyways, off the tangent.

You told me once that people don't see long term, and you're right. 

They say "Be fruitful and multiply" in church so their collection paltes will swell in 30 years.  They don't see populations out of hand in 100 years.  The roads can go to shit if the industrial park that gets them rich in 5 will get built instead.  The schools can grind to a screechign stop as long as we fund a private contract for a shiny new special purpose uber - bunker - fucker for terrorists who will NEVER be able to strike this country again as badly as they already have. 

(THAT'S RIGHT JACKHOLES!  NO MORE FUCKIGN THREAT.  THE TALIBAN IS IN A FUCKING HOLE IN THE HIGH COLD ASS OF ASIA.  WE CAN WALK AWAY FROM THEM NOW.  THEY HAD TO JACK OUR STUFF TO DO ANYTHIGN TO US, AND WE'RE NOT EVEN LETTING OUR OWN GOOD GUYS HAVE IT ANYMORE.)

Crisis sell, crisis secures elections.  If the miltary keeps blowing away sand dunes, the guys up top keep getting the handouts.

Even pop music assholes realized what we could do if our miltary was repurposed to patching up the USA.  All the Apaches and Harriers they have could have plugged New Orleans up in a DAY.

The message I think will carry it?  US FIRST.

NO playing Commando Jimminy Cricket to the world.
NO propping up new nations in our image.
NO obtuse ventures to build tech that no one else will counter for at least 30 years.

Infrastructure (Roads, utilities, production capability)
Education (k-12 through Bachelors)
Service (Fire / Med / Police / clinics)

[-Kel-]

It was announced today that 50 school districts nation-wide, including two in Arizona will be going to a four-day school week.  Days will not be lengthened, nor will the school year be extended.  The long, slow slide into the slime continues.

you made me shit myself! i had to look up if SLC school district was going to pull that, thank god they're not. We have this asshat trying to take away the 12th grade here.

i have everyone. 

[Doktor Howl]

It was announced today that 50 school districts nation-wide, including two in Arizona will be going to a four-day school week.  Days will not be lengthened, nor will the school year be extended.  The long, slow slide into the slime continues.

you made me shit myself! i had to look up if SLC school district was going to pull that, thank god they're not. We have this asshat trying to take away the 12th grade here.

i have everyone. 

Illinois is considering removing the junior and senior year both.

RICHTER:  It's going to take a while to respond to those.  Wow.

[Juana]

It was announced today that 50 school districts nation-wide, including two in Arizona will be going to a four-day school week.  Days will not be lengthened, nor will the school year be extended.  The long, slow slide into the slime continues.

you made me shit myself! i had to look up if SLC school district was going to pull that, thank god they're not. We have this asshat trying to take away the 12th grade here.

i have everyone. 

Illinois is considering removing the junior and senior year both.

WHAT
What the hell are these kids going to do? Getting into college is going to be such a bitch for these kids.

[Doktor Howl]

It was announced today that 50 school districts nation-wide, including two in Arizona will be going to a four-day school week.  Days will not be lengthened, nor will the school year be extended.  The long, slow slide into the slime continues.

you made me shit myself! i had to look up if SLC school district was going to pull that, thank god they're not. We have this asshat trying to take away the 12th grade here.

i have everyone. 

Illinois is considering removing the junior and senior year both.

WHAT
What the hell are these kids going to do? Getting into college is going to be such a bitch for these kids.

There's always the cannonfodder option.

[Jenne]

Anyways, off the tangent.

You told me once that people don't see long term, and you're right. 

They say "Be fruitful and multiply" in church so their collection paltes will swell in 30 years.  They don't see populations out of hand in 100 years.  The roads can go to shit if the industrial park that gets them rich in 5 will get built instead.  The schools can grind to a screechign stop as long as we fund a private contract for a shiny new special purpose uber - bunker - fucker for terrorists who will NEVER be able to strike this country again as badly as they already have. 

(THAT'S RIGHT JACKHOLES!  NO MORE FUCKIGN THREAT.  THE TALIBAN IS IN A FUCKING HOLE IN THE HIGH COLD ASS OF ASIA.  WE CAN WALK AWAY FROM THEM NOW.  THEY HAD TO JACK OUR STUFF TO DO ANYTHIGN TO US, AND WE'RE NOT EVEN LETTING OUR OWN GOOD GUYS HAVE IT ANYMORE.)

Crisis sell, crisis secures elections.  If the miltary keeps blowing away sand dunes, the guys up top keep getting the handouts.

Even pop music assholes realized what we could do if our miltary was repurposed to patching up the USA.  All the Apaches and Harriers they have could have plugged New Orleans up in a DAY.

The message I think will carry it?  US FIRST.

NO playing Commando Jimminy Cricket to the world.
NO propping up new nations in our image.
NO obtuse ventures to build tech that no one else will counter for at least 30 years.

Infrastructure (Roads, utilities, production capability)
Education (k-12 through Bachelors)
Service (Fire / Med / Police / clinics)

  Isolationist, yes.  But also sort of a "Survival Guide for the Endtimes American" as well.

[Richter]

I'm not saying isolation in the "Only USA for ever and ever", mindset.  We're overextended, and ought to pull back for awhile to get our own house in order. 
Humanitarian aid, by all means should still happen, but who's the priority?

[Cainad (dec.)]

I learned that my second high school has already started this process. Two Fridays a month are "Furlough Days".

I think I'm gonna barf.

[Doktor Howl]

I learned that my second high school has already started this process. Two Fridays a month are "Furlough Days".

I think I'm gonna barf.

*sploosh*

[Juana]

My old school district is just slashing jobs. Seventeen positions from my high school alone.

Dok--link for Illinois?

_{Edited because I'm developing OCD about word choice}

[Freeky]

I'm gonna homeschool.

[Richter]

This, and all the bullshit people get for parenting like PARENTS makes me think twice about spawning.

[Jasper]

I'm gonna homeschool.

I totally agree.  Ive got a pretty good idea how well public schooling works, and I think I (and maybe tutors here and there) can do better.  Not only can I do better than most algebra teachers (partly due to their split attention), but homeschooling would be a good way to bond with my kid (in theory; no existing contingencies exist).