The Parent Revolution

In 2020 ordinary parents learned an important lesson: the so-called public school system felt perfectly free to ignore the public’s wishes. This set in motion a backlash that’s breathed new life into the school choice cause. Corey DeAngelis has paid close attention, and he joins Rob, Peter and James to explain the political whirlwind as laid out in his new book, The Parent Revolution: Rescuing Your Kids from the Radicals Ruining Our Schools.

The fellas also cover the peculiar controversy surrounding a Catholic commencement speech delivered at a Catholic university; along with the latest instances of an inept Democratic Party which seems determined to help its top opponent.

– Opening sound this week: Kansas City Chiefs PK Harrison Butker delivers the commencement address at Benedictine College

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There are 19 comments.

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  1. Henry Racette Member
    Henry Racette
    @HenryRacette

    Lambda Legal? Someone has made an interestingly… dubious… choice of advertising venue.

    • #1
  2. Samuel Block Staff
    Samuel Block
    @SamuelBlock

    Henry Racette (View Comment):

    Lambda Legal? Someone has made an interestingly… dubious… choice of advertising venue.

    Grrrrrr. I told the hosting site to turn off all political ad categories a long time ago.

    Technically the choice was for Lambda to do an area buy for these dynamic inserts. 

    Thanks for the heads up. I’ll look into how that snuck through the filters.

    • #2
  3. Henry Racette Member
    Henry Racette
    @HenryRacette

    Samuel Block (View Comment):

    Henry Racette (View Comment):

    Lambda Legal? Someone has made an interestingly… dubious… choice of advertising venue.

    Grrrrrr. I told the hosting site to turn off all political ad categories a long time ago.

    Technically the choice was for Lambda to do an area buy for these dynamic inserts.

    Thanks for the heads up. I’ll look into how that snuck through the filters.

    Oh, I don’t think I mind progressive outfits paying Ricochet for ad space, given that (a) Ricochet can undoubtedly use the money, and (b) their ads are likely to fall on deaf ears.

    And, honestly, I’m really looking forward to hearing James doing a clever segue into a spot for an outfit focused on defending the trans community from whatever oppression they imagine the trans community is experiencing. ;)

    • #3
  4. RufusRJones Member
    RufusRJones
    @RufusRJones

    Henry Racette (View Comment):
    Oh, I don’t think I mind progressive outfits paying Ricochet for ad space, given that (a) Ricochet can undoubtedly use the money, and (b) their ads are likely to fall on deaf ears.

    1000%

    • #4
  5. James Lileks Contributor
    James Lileks
    @jameslileks

    I can’t segue into the inserts, but I’d love to come up with something so generic it would be an omni-segue that fit everything. 

    • #5
  6. Henry Racette Member
    Henry Racette
    @HenryRacette

    James Lileks (View Comment):

    I can’t segue into the inserts, but I’d love to come up with something so generic it would be an omni-segue that fit everything.

    “And now for something completely different” has been used with some success….

    • #6
  7. RufusRJones Member
    RufusRJones
    @RufusRJones

    When Butker says that you should suck it up and make money off your talent not your interests, I think that is dead-on for a lot of people. I wasn’t raised that way, and it was the biggest mistake of my life. He’s the second guy I’ve heard say that as well. 

    • #7
  8. Miffed White Male Member
    Miffed White Male
    @MiffedWhiteMale

    James Lileks (View Comment):

    I can’t segue into the inserts, but I’d love to come up with something so generic it would be an omni-segue that fit everything.

    The guys on the Sub Standard Extended Universe podcast just yell “Transition!” before changing topics.

    • #8
  9. Taras Coolidge
    Taras
    @Taras

    Henry Racette (View Comment):

    Samuel Block (View Comment):

    Henry Racette (View Comment):

    Lambda Legal? Someone has made an interestingly… dubious… choice of advertising venue.

    Grrrrrr. I told the hosting site to turn off all political ad categories a long time ago.

    Technically the choice was for Lambda to do an area buy for these dynamic inserts.

    Thanks for the heads up. I’ll look into how that snuck through the filters.

    Oh, I don’t think I mind progressive outfits paying Ricochet for ad space, given that (a) Ricochet can undoubtedly use the money, and (b) their ads are likely to fall on deaf ears.

    And, honestly, I’m really looking forward to hearing James doing a clever segue into a spot for an outfit focused on defending the trans community from whatever oppression they imagine the trans community is experiencing. ;)

    Perhaps advertisers simply assume Ricochet Podcast listeners are RINOs, like the hosts.

    • #9
  10. Samuel Block Staff
    Samuel Block
    @SamuelBlock

    I thought this was an especially good episode as we the recording was happening, but it looks like the auto ad airing for New Yorkers stole the show.

    Critical reception is so hard to predict.

    • #10
  11. Henry Racette Member
    Henry Racette
    @HenryRacette

    Samuel Block (View Comment):

    I thought this was an especially good episode as we the recording was happening, but it looks like the auto ad airing for New Yorkers stole the show.

    Critical reception is so hard to predict.

    Yes, it was a good episode. I care a great deal about primary and secondary education. We home-schooled our six, three all the way through high school, the younger three until they entered a small Catholic high school. I’m enthusiastic about both home-schooling and small private schools. (I forget which famous Catholic priest described Christian home-schools as “the monasteries of the coming Dark Ages,” but the sentiment rings true to me.)

    Public education has been sowing the seeds of societal collapse for decades, ever since US History and Civics courses gave way to squishy indoctrination in cultural relativism and American self-loathing. The genius of the Founders has been replaced with the intellectual and moral bankruptcy of the 1619 Project. To quote Victor Hugo: “They exchanged the stars in the heavens for the footprints of a duck in the mud.”

    Peter Boghossian is out there today asking people if “Academia should be burned to the ground.” In my opinion, the public school conflagration (figuratively speaking) should begin with kindergarten. Otherwise we end up with the disgraces of Harvard and Columbia and the rest of the Marxist romper rooms.

    • #11
  12. Annefy Inactive
    Annefy
    @Annefy

    RufusRJones (View Comment):

    When Butker says that you should suck it up and make money off your talent not your interests, I think that is dead-on for a lot of people. I wasn’t raised that way, and it was the biggest mistake of my life. He’s the second guy I’ve heard say that as well.

    I’ve told my four since they were kids to find something they were good enough at to make enough money to fund their interests. They all appear to have taken my advice; so far it’s working.

    • #12
  13. Full Size Tabby Member
    Full Size Tabby
    @FullSizeTabby

    Today the common accusation against homeschooling (a subset of school choice) is that it’s all “white Christian nationalists” who seek to turn the country into a regressive theocracy. When I was in high school and college in California in the 1970s the people seeking to homeschool their children were the commie hippies who were rebelling against the rigid academic systems of the military-industrial complex. Another of so many topics on which advocates have switched places.

    When our children were in elementary school (1990s) we were still in southern California. Our local government school was very good. The principal and the teachers often mentioned that they were well aware that they were competing against several good private schools in the area, and so had to be good. A large percentage of the families in the school area were wealthy and high income (not us, alas) and so private school tuition was a ready option. I like to cite this experience as a practical example that rich people already have school choice, and that such school choice is not necessarily devastating to the government school, and can motivate the government school to be better. 

     

    • #13
  14. RufusRJones Member
    RufusRJones
    @RufusRJones

    Full Size Tabby (View Comment):
    that rich people already have school choice

    Cut a check to the parents. The government school system is ridiculous. 

    • #14
  15. GlennAmurgis Coolidge
    GlennAmurgis
    @GlennAmurgis

    GOP should make it clear, it is on the side of the citizen/parent. 

    The democrats make it well known they are the part of the bureaucrat and the teachers’ union. 

     

    • #15
  16. Brian J Bergs Coolidge
    Brian J Bergs
    @BrianBergs

    Finally my schedule allowed me to listen to the episode and so glad I did.  Excellent stuff from the hopeful comments of school choice to the general news discussion.

    The kicker though was James’ comments on the debate.  I am still laughing.  The drugs that will be given to Biden…yes we of a more grey haired age want some of that.  James’ description of whatever drugs those are will make Elvis’ Dr. Feelgood look like a Christian Scientist rolled me onto the floor.  So quick on the uptake then able to use it to plug their own sponsor.  That sponsor got a gem with that quip.

    • #16
  17. Headedwest Inactive
    Headedwest
    @Headedwest

    When I returned to my old job after military service in 1973, I observed many more women in the white collar workforce than were there in 1969 when I left. 

    As I dropped back into the business mode (which was much more boring than my military job and also had more pressure) I would see these women on the commuter train line and wonder why they wanted what I had. A worthless prize, except for good pay.

    Eventually, it led me to leave business for academia, which was great until 2015 or so. So it was a relief to retire in 2018. 

    I would have been much happier as a house husband, but that would have imposed all the negatives of my work environment on my wife.

    • #17
  18. kedavis Coolidge
    kedavis
    @kedavis

    Headedwest (View Comment):

    When I returned to my old job after military service in 1973, I observed many more women in the white collar workforce than were there in 1969 when I left.

    As I dropped back into the business mode (which was much more boring than my military job and also had more pressure) I would see these women on the commuter train line and wonder why they wanted what I had. A worthless prize, except for good pay.

    Eventually, it led me to leave business for academia, which was great until 2015 or so. So it was a relief to retire in 2018.

    I would have been much happier as a house husband, but that would have imposed all the negatives of my work environment on my wife.

    A favorite:

     

    • #18
  19. kedavis Coolidge
    kedavis
    @kedavis

    Oh, and regarding James’ bit about women getting bad advice, I made this one a while back:

     

    • #19
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