Hope and Chains
"The argument for liberty is not an argument against organization, which is one of the most powerful tools human reason can employ, but an argument against all exclusive, privileged, monopolistic organization, against the use of coercion to prevent others from doing better." Friedrich August von Hayek
Meet Kelley Williams-Bolar, the latest in what appears to be a growing criminal class from Massachusetts to Ohio, from Missouri to California. Parents across the country are becoming criminals for simply taking their children's education in their own hands and, well, we can't have that now can we? Using her father's address, Ms. Williams-Bolar enrolled her children in a superior public school in a neighboring district. This woman, with a heretofore unblemished record, was arrested, charged with lying about her address and falsifying records, convicted and jailed on two felony counts. Ohio Governor Kasich granted clemency, thereby reducing her convictions from felonies down to misdemeanors (thereby allowing her to continue working on her own teaching license.) Similar arrests have been carried out in Connecticut, Kentucky, and Missouri, where parents await sentencing for skipping their school zone boundaries. Meanwhile, in California and Massachusetts, school districts are hiring investigators to follow children home from school to see whether or not they actually reside in the district. Florida, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania have enacted new address-verification systems to keep "illegal students," out.
Seems to me that what we have are not "illegal students," but rather, "undocumented scholars." If the left has no problem with open borders, free schooling and in-state tuition for those who are here illegally, it boggles this imagination why an American parent can't enjoy similar approbation of educational alternatives. I wonder, in passing, where Gov. Perry's heart resides on this topic? If reality finally prevailed over Mr. Gorbachev and his henchmen, thereby allowing freedom to overcome the concrete and weaponry of the Berlin Wall, why can't the apparatchiks of the educational establishment see that parents are desperate to overcome the bureaucratic wall to a quality education for their children? The answer of course, is power and privilege; …the monopolistic power of the teachers' unions and the privileges which that power grants at taxpayer expense. Liberals searched the emanations of the penumbra of the Constitution and found a heretofore unknown right to dismember the unborn, but can't find any right of a parent to choose their children's school. Evidently, the unborn don't enjoy union protection, so they're out of luck as are children who are being locked into school systems that fail them and fail the nation.
Of course, the President's children attend a fine private institution in the Washington DC area, the same school that the Clintons' daughter attended. But when it came time to continue the voucher program that allowed other DC parents to send their children to high performing schools, the President's party voted a big Soviet-style "Nyet." Last week, the President counseled folks to "stop complainin'." In an interview a few days ago, the man who can't seem to pass a golf course without playing a few rounds, who jets from one vacation spot to the next, who lectures taxpayers to drive smaller cars while he tours about in a bus with an entourage of 40 SUVs, said that America is becoming "soft."
No, Mr. President, the American people are not soft. You are. It is you who does not believe in the robust and strong stuff of human freedom and individual liberty. It is you who is taking us down the road to a "soft tyranny" where we become mired and bogged down in the muck of ever-growing and overlapping regulations that choke the life out of industry and entrepreneurs. It is you who is soft on liberty, soft on the rule of law, soft on the Constitution, and soft on the defense of this country physically, intellectually, and morally.
You won't find "soft," in the small businesses who have to make gut-wrenching decisions just to be able to survive. You won't find "soft," on the part of small business owners who put in 14 hour days, 7 days a week, in order to meet payroll, meet their customers needs, meet the regulatory requirements of an out of control government, pay onerous and punishing taxes and fees, and hopefully have enough left over to provide for their own families only to be castigated and vilified by the class warfare rhetoric of an economically illiterate ideologue. And "soft," isn't a word to be used to describe parents like Kelly Williams-Bolar, who risk everything in going against a corrupt system to provide for their children. These people are strong, sir. Stronger than you'll ever understand. Take the chains off of them. Let them enjoy the freedom you enjoy, through vigorous and empowering initiatives to help their kids to a better future. They have the strength to pursue and enjoy the American dream, if only you and your comrades will remove the heavy boot of government and it's unions from their throat. Until then, don't tell me we're soft. And don't tell me that anything you do is, "for the children." We know better.
(Note: Photo is from the Akron Beacon Journal, through AP)
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Comments:
Apr '11
Re: Hope and Chains
Alright! Dave!
I felt as though I were reading a Declaration of Independence.
A call to shed the shackles of tyranny:
"No, Mr. President, the American people are not soft. You are. It is you who does not believe in the robust and strong stuff of human freedom and individual liberty. It is you who is taking us down the road to a "soft tyranny" where we become mired and bogged down in the muck of ever-growing and overlapping regulations that choke the life out of industry and entrepreneurs. It is you who is soft on liberty, soft on the rule of law, soft on the Constitution, and soft on the defense of this country physically, intellectually, and morally."
Re: Hope and Chains
Well Trink, this is the sort of nonsense that, quite frankly, torques me off. Who really thinks that our armed forces are fighting and dying in order to preserve the power of school districts to imprison parents for trying to find safe and good schools for their children? This is outrageous. But thanks for the kind words. I'm just calling 'em like I see 'em.
Jul '10
Re: Hope and Chains
"I decided against going into law enforcement after I retired from active duty largely because I could not bring myself to be the enforcement arm of an increasingly aggressive state that is intruding into virtually every aspect of a citizen's life. I would have to resign before I enforced some of these lunacies, so I stayed away."
My thoughts exactly.
How could any decent Human Being actually arrest Someone for this "crime[?]"
This absolutely sickens Me.
Felonies!
Apr '11
Re: Hope and Chains
Atta boy Dave! As Howard Kosell used to say, "telling it like it is."
Heard an interview by David Horowitz with Dennis Miller on his radio show and he stated, unequivocally, that President Obama is a Marxist. He said that he knew all the people that have schooled and mentored him into the "hopey, changey one we have come to know and love.
We need to have a march on Washington to take back our children's education system and our government.
Re: Hope and Chains
Jimmy Carter: "I decided against going into law enforcement after I retired from active duty largely because I could not bring myself to be the enforcement arm of an increasingly aggressive state that is intruding into virtually every aspect of a citizen's life. I would have to resign before I enforced some of these lunacies, so I stayed away."
Oct 1 at 4:51pm
I read that someplace... But you are right of course,...the whole thing is sickening.
Apr '11
Re: Hope and Chains
Bravo, Bravo, Bravo ... wonderfully stated. Dave, you have a standing ovation from me, and that means a lot, I have really bad knees!
Apr '11
Re: Hope and Chains
It is disgraceful what our education system has declined too, and the only way to fix it is competition. All our schools need to compete as business needs to compete. Vouchers will save our schools, not the teachers unions.
Sep '10
Re: Hope and Chains
Education of children is the responsibility of parents. This responsibility has been assumed by government and is not a proper function of government. The concept of government run public education has long been accepted by both conservatives and liberals. When government is given responsibility to do things that are not within its proper scope absurdities like the ones you have pointed out are inevitable.
Jul '10
Re: Hope and Chains
I can't quit thinking about it.
How about Us Here at Ricochet start a legal defense fund for such Parents? It may be small at first, but a mention from a Recipient may generate interest from other Liberty Loving Citizens and They may contribute and increase Ricochet's Membership. It could be the start of dismantling Our educational penitentiary. Who knows? Even an avalanche starts with a single snowflake.
Re: Hope and Chains
Sorry to hear about the knees. I have kidney stones. Anybody wanna do a one-up on us on that?
Re: Hope and Chains
Jimmy Carter: I can't quit thinking about it.
How about Us Here at Ricochet start a legal defense fund for such Parents? It may be small at first, but a mention from a Recipient may generate interest from other Liberty Loving Citizens and They may contribute and increase Ricochet's Membership. It could be the start of dismantling Our educational penitentiary. Who knows? Even an avalanche starts with a single snowflake. · Oct 1 at 5:57pm
That's an interesting idea...
Sep '10
Re: Hope and Chains
"Undocumented scholars" is not only hilarious, it is also completely logical. They should get together and start a lobby. Perhaps Eric Holder will sue Ohio and other states for not allowing the "undocumented scholars" to "do the studying local students won't do."
Jun '10
Re: Hope and Chains
Dave Carter
Sorry to hear about the knees. I have kidney stones. Anybody wanna do a one-up on us on that? · Oct 1 at 5:57pm
I got force tents last week. Hmmm...how 'bout I give 'em to you to keep your stones in?
Re: Hope and Chains
Robert E. Lee
Dave Carter
Sorry to hear about the knees. I have kidney stones. Anybody wanna do a one-up on us on that? · Oct 1 at 5:57pm
I got force tents last week. Hmmm...how 'bout I give 'em to you to keep your stones in? · Oct 1 at 6:06pm
Okay, ladies and gents, we have bad knees, stones, and heart surgery. Next?
Dec '10
Re: Hope and Chains
Ditto Jimmy's idea. I was going to ask if this woman has a legal defense fund already. Anyone know?
I'm off to Google.
UPDATE: Here's a link, but we should check it out to make sure it is legit.
Apparently she is being represented by The Ohio Justice and Policy Center in Cincinnati. It might be good to contact the reporters at The Beacon Journal to determine her status.
Edited on October 2, 2011 at 3:18amJun '10
Re: Hope and Chains
If this woman renounced her citizenship, would, after her conviction, they deport her to her homeland...say Cleveland? Would she be force to teach only legal immigrants because of her "convictions"?
Ordinarily these would be silly questions. Unfortunately, we are talking about our government here and silly seems to be their stock and trade.
Re: Hope and Chains
Robert E. Lee: If this woman renounced her citizenship, would, after her conviction, they deport her to her homeland...say Cleveland? Would she be force to teach only legal immigrants because of her "convictions"?
Ordinarily these would be silly questions. Unfortunately, we are talking about our government here and silly seems to be their stock and trade. · Oct 1 at 6:11pm
I get the impression that she would have been better off had she renounced her citizenship, fled south of the border, then come back illegally.
Jul '10
Re: Hope and Chains
Dave Carter
Robert E. Lee
Dave Carter
Sorry to hear about the knees. I have kidney stones. Anybody wanna do a one-up on us on that? · Oct 1 at 5:57pm
I got force tents last week. Hmmm...how 'bout I give 'em to you to keep your stones in? · Oct 1 at 6:06pm
Okay, ladies and gents, we have bad knees, stones, and heart surgery. Next? · Oct 1 at 6:08pm
I had a nightmare that some second-rate Chicago machine-pol was our President.
That was pretty bad.
Re: Hope and Chains
Palaeologus
Dave Carter
Robert E. Lee
Dave Carter
Sorry to hear about the knees. I have kidney stones. Anybody wanna do a one-up on us on that? · Oct 1 at 5:57pm
I got force tents last week. Hmmm...how 'bout I give 'em to you to keep your stones in? · Oct 1 at 6:06pm
Okay, ladies and gents, we have bad knees, stones, and heart surgery. Next? · Oct 1 at 6:08pm
I had a nightmare that some second-rate Chicago machine-pol was our President.
That was pretty bad. · Oct 1 at 6:17pm
No need to get morbid on us...
Nov '10
Re: Hope and Chains