SmashMouth

I think they are still searching for a "better deal". Looking for a more proven coach while keeping McDonald on the line by giving him the interim title.

On 3/9/2024 at 12:18 PM, AggiesAreWe said:

Was just told that the DC does not have his masters and some want that to be a requirement for the position.

While I'm not satisfied that McDonald is the best hire for the job (although he may be a decent choice), I can't see why a Master's is a pre-requisite. Something doesn't sound right....

Good job Tigers! Keep it going!

15 hours ago, CardinalBacker said:

Because she still can’t. A voucher won’t cover rides to school (wherever that may be), uniforms, the entirety of tuition, they don’t have free lunch programs, etc, etc… 

A voucher won’t help a mom in a rough place get her genius into a a private school that doesn’t exist in that area. But it will help that guy in river oaks with the tuition bill on his three kids that he’s already paying. 
 

You just have to ask yourself “why?” Why are they fighting so hard for this program? What’s the motivation? We all agree that anything that strips money from public schools is a bad thing, right? If the schools lose 5% of their students to private schools, they’re going to have their funding cut, right? But their expenses won’t go down. The only way for this to work is if we raise local taxes to subsidize them for the funds that the state is redirecting to the voucher program… that’s what no one wants to explain. 
 

You just have to ask yourself “why are they fighting so hard,” and the answer is this… everybody complains “why should I have to pay school taxes? I don’t even have kids in school!” The fat cats got somebody to listen, and “school choice” became the cause that politicians have to get done. 

Agreed from start to finish.

18 hours ago, LumRaiderFan said:

True, but if a school district is failing to provide a proper education, the option to take that funding to provide a better opportunity for your kids is not a bad idea.  

Well, Lumberton is not failing to provide a proper education. Neither are the majority of the schools in our area where I live.

This is a political move with the ruse of being used to keep liberal indoctrination away from our kids. While I agree with keeping our kids from being led down the happy blue path, I don't agree with the way they are trying to do it. Texas Conservatives (of which I am) are simply doing this to garner support from the right. If you think they really give two craps about your kids, my kids, any kids, then you are gullible (which I don't believe you are). You're a smart guy. I agree with the vast majority of things you post.

We are being given a poor solution which will raise taxes in the end and could possibly be harmful to a lot of middle class families on down to the lower class. There can be other ways to do it than school vouchers. From a guy that doesn't like paying any more taxes than I have to, I am definitely against it. I am also against fixing one problem by causing many more problems.

15 hours ago, CardinalBacker said:

The problem with us today is that we’re all convinced that we are right and everybody else is wrong.

I posted this same example in another post.

On 3/5/2024 at 11:57 PM, CardinalBacker said:

46-43 Covey and headed to a runoff. 
 

The Radical Right is in full control. The rep that won District 18 had 0.03% of her last 30 days worth of donations coming from inside the district.  The four-term incumbent that beat her soundly last time made two mistakes. He didn’t back school choice (nobody calls it a voucher program anymore) and he voted to impeach Paxton…. That’s enough to get you run off in Texas in 2024. 
 

Both races were competitive because a tsunami of MAGA money flowed in, along with endorsements from Abbott, Paxton, Cruz, Patrick and even Trump himself… despite the fact that Trump has no idea who either candidate is, other than somebody saying “sir, could you say something nice about ______, please?” Do you remember when Presidents and former presidents kept their noses out of the primaries? Not anymore. Nobody will argue that both districts are taking massive hits in the quality of leadership in the House, and guys like yourself who are smarter than the average bear know it. It’s what Dr Parigi used to call “The Great Unwashed” being led around by their noses and it’s killing us. At least the radical few got their way. 
 

Dr. Parigi used to put me to sleep. Lol.

30 minutes ago, LumRaiderFan said:

We'll probably have to agree to disagree and that's ok.

 

I can agree with that. Discussion is a way to learn. One or both of us may learn something from it. That's what's wrong these days. We have an "all or none" concept. If Reagan and Tip O'Neil hadn't learned to reach across the aisle, Reagan would have been a much less effective President.

1 minute ago, LumRaiderFan said:

Texas is the last stand at the moment, but there will come a day when the garbage that is taught in public schools will make lots of folks rethink the idea of vouchers.

So legislate what can/can't be taught in schools instead of trying to set-up an overpriced education system that ignores middle and lower class. I don't like what's being taught in some of our public schools either. I'm just not for paying even more than I already should be in school taxes.

7 minutes ago, LumRaiderFan said:

I would rather take MY money and put it in my school of choice that's better for my kid.  We're coming at this from two different directions, your concern seems to be protect an ISD while mine is not.  I also think that school taxes should have an expectation of a decent return on investment and if not, customers can take their business, and their money, elsewhere.

 

 

Once again, I understand your point. But it’s a flawed system. It’s probably not going to pass in Texas anyway, but the way they have it set up, it’s bound to fail. 
By the way, my last child graduated from public school almost 3 years ago. Where’s my return on investment now? Should I be exempt from school tax?

The average annual tuition for a private school lands between $10,000 and $12,000. The proposed voucher would give a kid approx. $8,000 dollars toward that tuition. The family still has to come up with the balance.

Let's say you have a kid that goes to a private. Dad's a lawyer, banker, businessman, etc. and pays the full tuition to send his kid to the private school. With the voucher system in place, the Dad will now get $8,000 towards the kid's tuition. A net savings of let's say $2,000 on the low side. No problem, right?

Meanwhile, another family who is not so fortunate who sends their kid to public school has the same opportunity to send their child to private school and pay the $2,000 difference. Awesome, right? Only problem is they can't afford it, so that kid stays in public school that is now getting less funding.

Net sum, the better off family gets a break on sending their kid to a private school for a helluva lot less, and the lesser off family is stuck in the same place they were to begin with. All to pay a privatized for profit institution and have the quality of the public school fall even further behind.

22 minutes ago, LumRaiderFan said:

We will have to respectfully disagree, I can't see taking any option off the table that could place a kid in a better learning environment when the option to move is not possible.

You don't have to move. Go to another district of your liking. Folks do it all the time.

16 hours ago, LumRaiderFan said:

I realize there are issues, both ways, but it is also "their" money if they are a taxpayer.  I think the only thing that would improve a poorly managed school district is competition.

I think it's an option to consider if someone needs one, at the end of the day, it's about the kids, not an ISD.

We will have to respectfully disagree. Because at the end of the day, I think the school vouchers will do more harm than good. If you really want to go point by point, I can do that. But it's a lot. I'm not saying school vouchers don't have some merit. Just not enough in my opinion.

20 minutes ago, LumRaiderFan said:

What do you tell someone that lives a poorly managed school district and moving wasn't an option?  

You're right. And it's unfortunate. If moving isn't an option, then go to another district possibly that has an open campus? There are plenty of open school districts. There's not usually a school bus to service private schools at this point, so the child already has to get picked up / dropped off.

Regardless, there are plenty of reasons against it. A voucher program that allows any Texas student to use public money (I like to think of it as "my money") to offset the cost of private-school tuition would divert dollars from public schools, tightening already tight public school budgets, without a proportionate reduction in public school costs - possibly to the point of raising taxes to keep them afloat. I also think it will incentivize the private schools to raise price of tuition (to put in their own back pockets) because they are getting subsidized by, that's right, my money.

I am a pretty conservative guy, but I am against school vouchers. Who pays for the public schools (several of which were just built in my town of Lumberton)?

I have yet to hear a comprehensive argument that pushes me to the school voucher system, and I've read quite a few.

And I really have issues with taxpayer money being given to private "for profit" schools.

18 hours ago, UT alum said:

I’m votin’ Republican in the Primary, ya’ll.  We libs can use our vote where it will count. Right now that’s not the Democratic Primary. I’m going to vote against Janice Holt. How a trustee of a public school system can support vouchers is incomprehensible to me. I don’t want my school tax dollars going to fund any private school. That position is untenable for someone elected to govern a public school. Vote Bailes.

I haven't looked yet. How did that work out?

5 hours ago, baddog said:

 

He is one of my favorites!

On 3/5/2024 at 12:03 PM, dme1111 said:

1. The band and band parents are very important. Having them seated so far away completely 2. takes them out of the view of the parents who care very much. 

1. Band maybe. Band parents, not so much.

2. I think I'm gonna cry...

One of my favorite memories playing high school football was hearing the band marching from the band hall to the field to a cadence by the drum corps during pre-game. It gave me goosebumps. I think the band plays a definite role as a part of the Friday night experience.

However, "the parents who care very much" (🤮) can watch them at halftime and at band competitions. Maybe they can stay for the whole game too.

4 hours ago, longball24 said:

Overly Zealous yes, I do have great enthusiasm for our team. Merit on the other hand is based on past accomplishments hence 2 rounds deep in the playoffs. Remember it is just bragging until you can back it up.

Not really sure what you're trying to convey, I can just tell you that not a single player or coach was content. No matter the improvement, winners want to win.

13 hours ago, longball24 said:

No excuses. We are content with 2 rounds in the playoffs. If you are interested in seeing what is in the cards. Go to Texas A&M recruiting forum and see who is ranked their #1 recruit for the class of 2027.

No one is content with being eliminated. Except maybe excuse making over zealous fans who can't win an argument on merit.

13 hours ago, AggiesAreWe said:

My vote

Offense

Dre'lon Miller

 

Defense

Ty'Anthony Smith

That's who I would've picked.

Congrats to the winners though. All finalists represented our area very well.

9 hours ago, Dirty_but_Dazzling said:

that's for you to do Remora.

That makes sense. No name calling btw, check forum rules. 

5 hours ago, Reagan said:

Well, you are not wrong.  We can only hope this judge is honest.  The evidence against these two clowns are overwhelming.  I understand that the Georgia Bar has started an investigation to possibly dis-bar them due to their lack of ethical behavior. 

Mere pawns. The machine will find another lawsuit against Trump. And another. And another. (Picture the phrase “And another” fading out into infinity…).

We shall see. Just like Bill was toast.  Just like Hillary was toast. Just like Biden (take your pick) is toast. Just like Pelosi was toast. All above had reason to be criminally charged and prosecuted. Nothing. 
 

I have lost so much respect and confidence in our “system”. I’ll believe it when I see it. 

On 3/1/2024 at 4:46 PM, Dirty_but_Dazzling said:

lol, at least the Dawgs did somewhat better.  if nothing else we at least scored   on the first string Varsity instead of the Freshmen that were in the last minute of the game. SMH.  LOL

A loss is a loss. Both Jasper and Silsbee lost to Bellville. You could’ve just as easily replied “Check with Jasper” in your first post.