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Hey, Guess Who’s Not Going to a Washington D.C. Public School?

November 21, 2008
Evil Beet
Barack Obama
110 Comments

Why, the Obama girls, of course!

Despite pleas from the community for President-elect Obama to send his girls to one of the (god-awful) Washington D.C. public schools, in hopes that his daughters’ attendance there would help the schools improve, Barack has opted to send Sasha and Malia to the presitigious Sidwell Friends school, a private Quaker school that Chelsea Clinton also attended.

What do you think of Obama’s choice? Should he have sent the girls to a public school?

110 CommentsLeave a comment

  • The Obama should send their girls to school where they will be safest. Period. They need a school that’s experienced with high profile kids and Secret Service protection. Choosing D.C. public schools would’ve been ridiculous.

  • his girls should go wherever they will get the best education – all kids should. lucky for them their parents can afford it.

  • The Obamas should send their girls to school where they will be safest. Period. They need a school that’s experienced with high profile kids and Secret Service protection. Choosing D.C. public schools would’ve been ridiculous.

  • um hell no. why hurt your children to try to prove a point?

    I would have totally looked down on him if he had. and if you guys disagree, you probably don’t know much about DC.

  • They should go to school that has the most experience with high-profile kids that need a lot of security. I would not expect Barack to send his girls to some public school with all those nutsos out there who can harm them more easily – God forbid. Their safety is of utmost importance.

  • his daughters shouldn’t be part of anything political, as much as possible. of course he should put them in the best school his money can buy. their well-being isn’t worth the pleas of a bunch of people who wish they weren’t ghetto and sending their kids to the ghetto schools they’ve let get rundown. i’m not a fan of obama for the most part, but at least he seems to be trying to take care of his kids.

  • hell to the N-O! not unless you wanna see it turn into the fuckin’ o-key corral between secret service agents and the students! no way, man.

  • His choice is perfectly understandable. Why wouldn’t he send his children to the best possible school? He can afford it. I would have done the same in his place.

  • Sending his kids to a public school in hopes it improves? Somewhat like sending $700 billion to financial institutions and hoping they improve. Doesn’t work that way.

  • I lived in DC for 5 years… and unless things have changed dramatically in the past decade, there are not a lot of bright spots in the public school system.

  • ditto thatlisa.
    you don’t hurt your children for the sake of a symbolic gesture.
    a good public servant doesn’t need to put his children in the middle of a problem to give himself motivation to work on it.

  • by the way, did we ever consider that the girls themselves might have had preferences about where they wanted to go to school? they’re people, not accessories.

  • I think they made the right decision. It’s not about politics, it’s about the girls and their safety and getting the best education they possibly can.

  • why the hell not? let’s not confuse them now! the last time those kids were near another black kid in school was when the janitor had to watch his kids while his wife met with her probation officer. plus, as they get older the china white is way better quality when you buy it from kids at private school instead of public. good call, bro.

  • i’m not american so i don’t have an inside view (bet you don’t either though)
    but these are kids, and he is a big change in your/the worlds politics, i would be almost scared he will be targeted in a nasty way, death styles
    apart from that the obama family seems really collected and down to earth for a (god it seems like a crime to say change too often) but change
    and he is a very intelligent man, his wife is also smart, wtf should their kids be used for anything?
    america may have fucked up systems but that is no reason to put the new president and his family at risk. purely because the thought he might be attacked is disturbing enough..let the kids be safe..hopefully without distroying their sense of normality

  • censorthis, you obviously know a ton about this school–40% of the students of students of color

    oh and:

    “Sidwell Friends School is committed as an institution to the ideal of diversity with regard to age, economic background, ethnicity, gender, physical disability, political affiliation, race and sexual orientation in its student body, faculty and staff. ”

    Well that sounds like a wonderful school to me.

    hmm.. speaking from someone who went to private school… censorthis… I am assuming you went to public, yes? I was taught to do my research before I make disgusting comments.

    Don’t be jealous because these two little black girls are already getting a better education than you ever did.

  • it’s pretty much up to them as to where they send there kids. they have their best interests in mind, so i don’t really care. i think they know what they are doing

  • Who cares? Why is the media making such a big deal out of this. Whether he sends his children to private school or public, it doesn’t change or negate the positions he has on public education. I don’t get the obsession with the topic.

    On another note, I think it’s peculiar that his eldest daughter has his face but Michelle’s smile, while his youngest has Michelle’s face but Obama’s smile. It’s cute.

  • I would just like to talk to the idiots that had the balls to say that the girls should go to DC public schools. Really, who is that ignorant to think that it would ever even be an option?

  • issue number 1: not all DC public schools suck. Just like not all urban public schools suck. Yes, the majority of public schools have disproportionate failure rates – and DC tops that list. But there are exceptions in every city, at every stage of education, that are producing tremendous results under exceptional pressure. I have every confidence that the discerning, involved parent can find a good public education for their child anywhere. And even in the failing schools – there are students who buck the trend in their classes every day (and teachers who put in extra hours to help them make it happen). Education, like so many other things, is not so binary.

    issue number 2: I agree with pretty much everyone here that these kids are having their world thrown upside down in every way/shape/form – picking the environment that makes them safest and where people ar least likely to look at them like aliens… makes sense to me. Politicize Obama’s choices, not his choices for his kids. If you want to talk about public schools, focus on Obama attending all private universities and teaching at one? Not that I find anything wrong with that, but it’s far more relevant than the choices made by a man who just made his daughters the most over-exposed children in the world.

  • Sandy:

    Excuse me, but “peculiar”? Sorry, but I think that word may be a little inappropriate. Suffice it to say, that they are both lovely, cute children and leave it at that.

  • I went to Sidwell for primary school (Go Fighting Quakers!!!!!) and moved to GDS, whic is another school the Obamas looked at, and I finally settled at Madeira, a girls’ boarding school. I had a wonderful experience at Sidwell nursery through 6th, and I know the Obama kids will have an amazing time there!!!!!

  • They definitely shouldn’t go to a public school… there’s not a lot of safety there for high profile kids. I’m glad he’s sending them somewhere where they will be watched after more.

  • ThatLisa, don’t confuse censorthis with facts and reality. He is living in his conservative fantasy world of hate.

  • Wow, what a bunch of elitists! I went to public school for my K-12 education in New York. For K-8 I went to school in the Bronx and 9-12 I went to school in Harlem and I got a pretty darn good education. So good in fact that me and quite a number of my classmates ended up some of the nation’s top colleges. The bottom line is, not every urban area school is bad by default. And schools that have a bad reputation do have their fair share of Cinderella stories, you know, that one kid who got into Harvard a few years back (and I imagine the kid who get into Harvard didn’t have all the advantages the Obama’s have). How are we supposed to put faith in our schools and the education our children are receiving if our own president doesn’t have any faith in them? And don’t give me that security reasons bs. Get it out of your heads that urban public schools are packed and overcrowded. Even the schools I went to in New York (a school district infamous for its overcrowding) I had some classes with as few as 15 other students. Find a small public school. DC is bound to have at least one small public school.

  • wait a minute. how old are these girls again? isn’t sasha 7? gees, my 8 year old cousin would just barely be able to point out who obama, and now not only is she expected to recognize him, but his entire family as well? sorry, 7 years olds don’t care all that much about politics. and i feel like i have to address this diversity issue. sidwell says 40% of their students are of color. i go to a school where allegedly 37% of our student body is of color (not quite 40%, i know, but pretty close) and my friends and i have determined the school must be lying because we barely ever see any students of color. it turns out, the percentage of students of color at my school varies from as low as 10% to as high as 37% depending on what you qualify as being of minority descent just like the percentage of hispanics in the US varies depending if you include people who consider themselves to be white or black but of hispanic descent.

  • @ jennifer re: ” How are we supposed to put faith in our schools and the education our children are receiving if our own president doesn’t have any faith in them?”

    Um who is putting faith in those schools? I’m not. Most parents who pay to have their kids go to private schools aren’t. I’m sure some public school are fine, and some are great, but if given the choice, I would definitely go private.

    Seriously, find one president whose little children went to a friggin inner-city public school. And how on earth is SAFETY not an issue? The president’s family is always well protected for a reason, and sadly because they are black, there is an even stronger reason. Why the hell would the President put his children at a greater risk than ever?

    And if you work really hard and have a lot of money, why the hell would you send your children to public schools? That’s (kind of sort of) like accepting welfare that you don’t even need.

    oh and DC schools ARE that bad.. look into it. here’s one article

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/09/AR2007060901415.html

  • >:C
    Private doesn’t mean better schooling..
    The people that approved prop 8? Religious. Here in Australia, private = religious.
    Thus, public is better.

  • I lived in DC for almost 20 years…The public schools are crap…everyone in DC knows this…however when we are putting millions of dollars into a baseball stadium and the gentrification of bad areas of DC, how can they not be? I have never been to nationals Park and really never want to go when I see the state of these schools on the news I went to Holy Child in Potomac, MD and received a wonderful education, no one is slamming public schools in general, but DC has some pretty bad ones….

  • hell no! these girls need to not only be protected, but they need & deserve the best educations they can get…public schools can be great, but if the ones near them arent so wonderful or safe then why should they settle?

  • @ThatLisa re: “Um who is putting faith in those schools? I’m not. Most parents who pay to have their kids go to private schools aren’t. I’m sure some public school are fine, and some are great, but if given the choice, I would definitely go private.”

    So basically all of America is paying taxes for no good reason, since the school systems we are all paying for are all awful. Let’s be realistic here. Considering the average household income in the US is about $50k and the average private school costs anywhere from around $10k-$30k+ at some of the country’s larger cities (NYC, LA, Chicago, etc.) the average American cannot afford to send their kid to private school. And that’s just the average income, meaning there are people that make below that. Even the US Census Bureau estimates only 11% of all students are enrolled at private schools. That means 89%, a whopping majority, of students go to public school. So yeah, it’s safe to say an overwhelming majority of parents are putting their faith in public schooling. Rather than offering the solution of just sending your kid to private school, why not work at fixing a problem that affects a large portion of families?

    And no, I don’t believe safety is an issue for a 7 and 10 year old. Sorry, but as another poster already wrote, you honestly expect 7 year olds to know they go to school with the president’s daughter? Or for them to even care? They’re just as likely to know or care at private school. And by saying a private school is safer, you’re assuming all urban public schools are rowdy by default. Again, using my high school experience as an example, I went to school in one of the worst neighborhoods in NYC yet I survived without a scratch. And I had to ride the subway every day to get to school, without my own personal body guards. If they could get hurt at a public school, they could certainly get hurt at a private school. If someone wants to hurt you, they’ll find a way.

  • Why draw on personal examples? Amy Carter went to public school during her father’s years in office and would you look at that, nothing happened to her! And if they really wanted to keep the children safe, why not home school them? Private one-on-one tutors, the best education money can buy, right? And surely the girls couldn’t be safer anywhere else but at the White House?

  • Jennifer, honey, we’re not assuming anything about ‘all public schools’ – I went to public school a short distance away from DC in Virginia and the schools there are excellent.

    What we are speaking about, specifically, is the state of DC public schools – go visit one and then let’s see. If you have any kind of heart, you wouldn’t want a dog that bit you to spend a day there.

    And your comments about safety don’t make sense. It’s not the 7 – 10 year olds who are going to put the girls in danger – it’s the fact that these two girls’ welfare is an issue of national security and it’s a lot easier to abduct children from public schools that are so desperately underfunded they can’t keep track of truancy as it is. It would be unfair and wrong to task them with the safety of the Obama girls and by extension the safety of our nation.

  • Meggie- what? lol… do you know what ghetto even means? it dosent mean ‘poor’ or ‘broke’ or anything like that.

    anyways the girls are lucky to be able to go to a private school. yes, it sucks that public schools arent that great… but it is good that our future prez understands that.

  • I am finding it freakin hilarious that so many people seem to think that when others refer to the safety of the President’s daughters they are talking about their safety from other 7-year-olds.

    I believe what is being referred to is safety from outside nut jobs, like the kind of people who have already been caught making assassination attempts on the President-elect. The kind of people who would kidnap or harm his daughters because they are in possession fo a very special kind of crazy. The kind of people who could walk right into a public school because there is little or no security.

    Yeah…that’s what Obama is concerned about when it comes to the safety of his daughters…the other 7-year-olds and whatever they might be plotting. Sheesh.

  • It’s just another commentary on the sad state affairs with the U.S’s educational system. I can’t blame him one bit. However, he better try and make it better, because after 8 years of the Clinton administration, it didn’t get any better. Then W’s ridiculous No Child Left Behind program just created more bureaucracy and resulted in no long-term improvement. Private schools are the way to go, so let’s hear it for the voucher system. The government sucks in this department. Either create a voucher program or find a way to get corporations to subsidize school systems, perhaps through a tax break or something.

  • I think it would be nice if the American media didn’t make celebrities out of politicians and their families.

    And the safety issue stems from a public school is accessible and those girls are now targets. They can’t be kept safe in a public school. They can’t even keep regular kids safe.

    As for little kids that don’t understand politics, that’s true but how many people here have a professional sports franchise in their city? Kids of players and coaches get teased all the time at their schools. Mainly because their asshole parents tell them to “go to school tomorrow and tell Coach – – – – – – ‘s kid that his dad sucks.”

  • @ Jennifer just because you went to public school dosent mean shit. If you had the opportunity, why wouldnt you send your kids to private school? whooooo I am elitist because my dad wanted me to have a better life than he did. because he worked his ass off to get to the United States and make a life for his family. yeah. we’re elitist. on a salary of 1700 a month.

    Dmarie- are you delusional? not all private schools are religious. I dont know how it is down under, but up here religious dosent equal bad either. I grew up in a religion that is very conservative… I mean we wont even touch pork or wear jewelry- but when it comes to politics most of us are liberal. That is because we believe in a separation of church and state. I am tired of people saying that religious people are bad because they believe differently than much of the world- I hold the fundamental beliefs of my church AND protest Prop 8. Dont be so narrow minded.

  • @ Jennifer just because you went to public school dosent mean shit. If you had the opportunity, why wouldnt you send your kids to private school? whooooo I am elitist because my dad wanted me to have a better life than he did. because he worked his ass off to get to the United States and make a life for his family. yeah. we’re elitist. on a salary of 1700 a month.

    Dmarie- are you delusional? not all private schools are religious. I dont know how it is down under, but up here religious dosent equal bad either. I grew up in a religion that is very conservative… I mean we wont even touch pork or wear jewelry- but when it comes to politics most of us are liberal. That is because we believe in a separation of church and state. I am tired of people saying that religious people are bad because they believe differently than much of the world- I hold the fundamental beliefs of my church AND protest Prop 8. Dont be so narrow minded.

  • Like it or not, the fact that he is the first black president puts him and his family on many minority hating hit lists.. no doubt they would love to use those girls against him or just torture and kill them out of spite. I agree with the Obama’s 100%, their daughters safety means more then someone’s else political agenda.

  • @ jennifer.. I don’t seem to have much to respond to- So… and Lee pretty much already said everything I wanted to.

    I do not think all public schools are bad. I think many inner-city pubic schools are bad. I think, depending on where I would raise my children, I might feel that they would be better off in a private school. Not all private schools are the best, and not all public schools are the worst.

    With people who are surprised he wouldn’t go public, I think a lot more are surprised that he would even consider it. I’m sorry, I think it’s messed up if you have the best education yourself, and attend Ivy League schools, then don’t try to do the same for your children. Why not give them every advantage you could?

    I’m sorry you thought I meant that the kids were not safe around other kids… I was more worried about the security and environment of the school to an outside threat. No, I don’t think a little kid would be attacking them.

    oh but to ” So yeah, it’s safe to say an overwhelming majority of parents are putting their faith in public schooling”

    >> Just because someone does not have enough money to send their children to private school, doesn’t mean that they don’t want to. I wouldn’t say they are necessarily putting their faith into anything… it’s more like, their only choice.

    But don’t get me wrong. I definitely think the public school system should be revamped. I just think it’s silly to expect the President to risk his daughters’ safety to draw attention to the problem.

  • Oh and @ Persistent Cat re “I think it would be nice if the American media didn’t make celebrities out of politicians and their families.”

    Don’t most countries do this? Off the top of my head, I would say that England definitely covers the royal family as celebrities, in tabloids constantly… and France.. I think it’s just a natural thing for people who have very important jobs to be reported on a lot. I wouldn’t say it’s necessarily an America thing.

  • yeah beefy i’m sure you knew that, you didn’t just read that in one of the many obama articles that mentions it.

    how on earth would me not knowing that make me a retard? I wasn’t even alive yet during his term.

    Oh and since I know how to look up stuff too, I also read that it was hard for her to make friends there and that she wasn’t allowed outside at recess, because it was too dangerous.

    Oh and also– it seems at Carter was doing it to prove a point… at his daughter’s expense. How sad– from Washington Post article–

    The last president to send a child to a D.C. public school was Jimmy Carter. He was so hot on the subject that he had a line in his 1976 Democratic convention acceptance speech about the political and economic elite who “when the public schools are inferior or torn by strife” send their children “to exclusive private schools.”

  • According to the secret service, Obama has had more threats against him than any other president-elect. This is not a matter of the quality of public school education vs. the quality of private education, this is a matter of safety for those two girls.

    If you were in his place, and you knew there were crazies out their who would target you and your family specifically, wouldn’t you want your children in the safest place possible? And this is coming from a person who is a huge proponent of public schools.

    And, Beebec, your comment makes absolutely no sense. Technically speaking, this isn’t a change for those in power. People in power have always had the means to send their children to private school. You might want to connect your brain to your fingers.

    As for Amy Carter, yes she went to public school, but she wasn’t allowed out for recess because the playground was too close to the street.

  • You can assume anything you want about how I know that, and you’d still be wrong.

    “I also read that it was hard for her to make friends there and that she wasn’t allowed outside at recess, because it was too dangerous.”

    Yes, I did know that, and this would be the only reason why I would really consider private v public. Their ability to just fit in.

    Not safety. Not some STUPID gumption that public schools are some “sort of kind of” welfare; which by extension also invalidates those same people who make a lot of money from collecting disability or social security. Not quality of education. Not that they are black.

    Just simply they attended private schools in Chicago, and they will make a better transition into what they already know–private schooling.

  • You beat me to it, Lisa. Let me also add that Amy Carter was the first presidential child to go to public school since Teddy Roosevelt’s boy in 1904.

  • whatever. public school is still a form of public assistance. that’s where my analogy came from, and I stand by it.

    With public schools, are you directly paying for your child’s education? No. The government is. You pay taxes whether or not you are using public schools. With private schools, you are directly paying for your child’s education. Your tuition money is what is paying for the school, the teachers, everything, you know?

    I am not saying that is it wrong to go to public schools, or wrong to send your children there. I went to private schools and my sister went to public. We didn’t turn out differently academically… but we were also raised in an area with good public schools. I’m just saying, if I have enough money if/when I decide to have children, I would definitely look into private schools.. especially if I lived in an area that was very well-known for shitty schools.

    And I don’t think that what you pay= quality of education always, but in some circumstances, it can play a role. Why punish your children because you want to live in a big city? Seriously. And the parents went to expensive private colleges… what on earth is the point of years of good education and good jobs if it can’t benefit your family?

  • With public schools, are you directly paying for your child’s education?

    Yes. In federal state and local taxes. The gov is a representative of you.

  • With private schools, you are directly paying for your child’s education.

    No. Private schools are not only funded by your tuition but through fund raising, donations, private grants ect. (“public assistance”)

  • he’s doing what’s best for their children. he’d be wrong to make an example of the, just to save face

  • No, because they tax people who aren’t using schools too. You are not directly paying for it. DIRECTLY. Paying taxes is not a direct way to pay for anything. You do not hand the school a check. See, you may be paying for it INDIRECTLY, through taxes, but not directly. When you pay taxes, it doesn’t say “And we took out $100 of this paycheck to pay for your kid’s tuition at the public school.”

    I don’t think a school using fund raising and donations is consider public assistance. The public isn’t forced to donate the money to the schools, like the general population HAS to pay their taxes for the local public schools. People can chose to donate, but they have no choice when it comes to paying their taxes.

    Does this make sense?

    I think it comes down to that my parents had to cut a check to my high school, whereas they did not have to do it for my sister’s high school. I mean… yeah. But again, I didn’t go to private schools because the public ones were necessarily bad.. I had been born near a large city, and the public schools were awful, so I was put into private. When we moved to a safer, more suburb area, I continued at private just because it was easier transition for me as a kid. My sister was older, so she just ended up going to public.

  • oh, wait I see. Maybe I should have said “government assistance” to be more clear. Sorry about that. I could see how you would argue the use of the term “public assistance.” I was using the more classical definition of the term, instead of meaning merely funding from other sources.

  • “so….”–as Rose says, the fear is not other 7-year-olds, for chrissake. It’s adults. Who even knows–foreign states, terrorism, lone wackos like the type that assassinated JFK. Most public schools are not that secure and there are a lot of freaky-ass Obama haters out there. Don’t forget he was assigned a security detail earlier than any other candidate, and with good reason.

    The question can’t be separated from security. He should send them wherever they’re safest.

  • Lisa, when you have kids, and they end up in public school I hope you will become interested in that school’s daily going-ons *because your money directly funds it*

    Lisa, when you have kids, and they go to a private school I hope you will become interested in that school’s daily going-ons *because your money directly funds it.*

    Whether private financing or public financing, your money is being directly invested in the school. One is mandated, the other elected. That’s the only difference.

    Public schools are funded from your taxes, and the taxes of others; meaning your money with other peoples money ( which is the distinction you are trying to make WRONGFULLY). Private schools are funded by your tuition, ALONG with the tuition of others, fundraisers, donations, private grants; meaning your money and other peoples money. (BTW private schools are more expensive and your tuition alone does not cover all expenses.)

    I went to both public and private schools. To inner-city with the highest murder rate in the country, and to the sub-urbs

    Public education is not welfare. If it were well-fare people who make a lot of money would be banned from taking part in it based on their well to do socio-economical status. Instead they pay taxes and have the option of taking up the gov on their offer of education that their own money (through taxes) directly funds, or they can purchase private education (more expensive) that suits their particular needs; still funded by their money.

  • The DC public schools are harldy god awful, thank you very much. As a graduate I’m offended. I agree that safety is an issue but I still think its hypocritical to run on a campaign of change and then to avoid the problem instead of solving it. 30,000 dollars a year on 7th grade tuition is ridiculous, no matter how you slice it. And when the cost of sending your daughters to school is more than the average per capita income of District residents (lawyers, lobbyists, and senators included) in a city where 15% live below the poverty line…well that just seems to contradict his message. A message 93% of DC believed in.

  • @ L. – you and I are agreeing. Reread my post, I was responding to dear
    ‘jennifer’ who seemed to be concerned that we were all misinterpreting the intentions and motivations of the 7 & 10 year olds sent to DC public schools.

    Ridiculous, I agree.

  • I don’t think they are being hypocritical at all. I would make the same decision the Obamas did with my son. It is the best choice for everyone involved. They would be a huge distraction at a regular public school and they are much, much safer at the private school.
    Listen, those of you who are not parents, really don’t have anything to say in this discussion. Until you have your own kids you have absolutely no f*cking clue about what it’s like to make these kinds of decisions. Period.

  • Anna – so then, a campaign of change = his daughters have to go to schools where the testing results are among the worst in the nation?

    Obama ran for President, his girls did not, and they should be afforded a sound educational experience. The man is already serving his nation. He doesn’t need to compromise his kids’ safety or educational opportunities.

  • if a school is religious then so much the better, whether private or public, but i dont know about australian schools in great detail. Ideally the rug rats should go to the local public school, but that never happens does it?! Think of the blairs in GB etc. Not sure why ever keeps banging on about race, you yanks should let it go pluease!!

  • Beefy

    I would be interested in the goings-on of any school, not because my money was helping to pay for it, but because my child was there. I wouldn’t care about money, just that my child was getting a good education.

    I don’t understand how you are using the word “direct.” Direct means having no middle man. The government is the middle man. You pay taxes to the government then the government decides where that money goes. This is not direct. Definition: “Having no intervening persons, conditions, or agencies; immediate.” Paying taxes is not directly paying tuition. I can’t argue this point anymore because what you are saying doesn’t make sense to me. I understand that people are paying for schools indirectly, but that is not what you are saying. Ugh and again, you can’t choose to pay your taxes, or decide where your taxes go, but you can choose to pay tuition at a private school. Also, since I went to private school, my parents pay for that, but still paid the same taxes that everyone paid, some of which ended up at the public schools. So, it’s like, public schools are things that people have to pay for, and private are things that people can decide to pay for.

    For the record, I think a lot more money SHOULD be going to public schools. I would hope that one day they are properly funded, safe, and attentive to all children. I think it’s sad that families in some areas feel that they really have to send their children to private schools just because the public schools are doing so poorly.

  • @ Anna RE: ” I agree that safety is an issue but I still think its hypocritical to run on a campaign of change and then to avoid the problem instead of solving it.”

    I had no idea that his campaign about “change” meant “my daughters will go from expensive private schools to shitty public schools.” I never heard about that change.

    How do you expect a president to completely change the school system the second he steps into office? Especially with our economy the way it is? His daughters should suffer so he can seem like an “everyday American?” F*ck that. That’s ridiculous. And you even agree that safety for those little girls is a concern, yet STILL think they should be put where they are less safe? What the hell is wrong with you? They are not just little kids anymore, now they are little walking targets.

  • You know the golden rule.
    “Better be safe then sorry”

    Private school would be safer, plus the discreetion for the family.

  • Paying taxes is a direct way to pay for things. The governments is an extension by law of you. Gov is of the people by the people for the people. Gov is not the middle man. The reason why I said “when you have kids I hope” is to show you that your way of disowning taxes, prevents public school parents from standing up before education boards and complaining, as they often do, I’m paying for this education (my taxes are paying for this). Paying taxes is a direct taxation a on a person or organization to pay for common services, indirect taxation is taxation on goods and services (sale tax) to pay for services.

    Taxation, for the purposes of funding many “common” services not just public schools, is you cutting a direct check to pay for something directly. When your parents cut a check for 100 dollars to pay for your private school, they also DIRECTLY cut a check each year to guarantee you and your sister a seat in a public school, the only difference is that check is being cut in increments. Over time, in taxes, you can shell out the exact amount you payed for your seat in private school if not more to pay for public school.

    So yes, over time, you are directly paying for public school, or for the gov to be able to guarantee your child a seat in public school, directly through taxation. That is what your taxes amongst other charges break down to. You are being taxed (billed) for these services (public education, street cleaning) your representative (gov) provides. You are directly cutting a check to the gov. In the same way a private individual cuts a check for a private institution. The only difference is that the “middle man”(gov) is mandate to bill and collect, and the other “middle man” (gov) can elect to bill and collect.

    AND to define “directly” by pointing to other people or the gov is still wrong. If you piss a cent into the common pot, it doesn’t concern you if other people piss in but don’t use the pot. You are still directly pissing at least a cent in. You can claim direct. If you are pissing a cent into the common pot it, just because a body is organized to collect it doesn’t disown that it is your cent from your check book to the government’s(represents you) check book to the public school. You are still directly pissing a cent in whole way through. You have at least a cents ownership (more over time) directly the whole entire time which allows you to also claim ownership of a school board, just like private schools.

    If I typoed I apologize. I was in a hurry.

  • *The only difference is that the “middle man”(gov) is mandated to bill and collect, and the other “middle man” (school) can elect to bill and collect.

  • @ThatLisa: I was assuming you meant they wouldn’t be safe around other children because of Amy Carter’s experience. She wasn’t hurt (physically) by any terrorists or idiots looking to make the headlines. In fact, I’d like to see some data on how many murder/assault attempts there have been on White House kids while their fathers were in office. The only trouble Amy Carter had was within the school itself because the other kids treated her differently. Washington D.C. is a rough city. Regardless of where you go to school, the outside world will always be there. That’s what I meant when I said that if someone’s looking to hurt you, they’ll find a way. If the school itself is the problem, as in they fear someone inside the school will hurt the girls, then they are being prejudiced in choosing a private school over a public because they are assuming all public schools are violent by default. But if the issue is someone from the outside hurting them, then this could happen anywhere. D.C. is still D.C. regardless of where they go to school. There will always be criminals and violence. Someone could just as easily be hiding in the bushes at Sidwell waiting to shoot them than a public school (God forbid such a thing were to happen at either school, for the sake of the students at both). And actually, considering it is more common for public schools to have metal detectors in the post-Columbine era than for private schools, security at some public schools is a lot tighter than at private schools. And between the school’s security, the D.C. police department, and secret service, I honestly believe the girls would be just as safe at either a public or private school. I mean, all the president has is secret service and the assassination rate for American presidents is still really low.

    And although some people who send their kids to public schools can’t afford private school, you always have an option. If they really had absolutely no faith (as in 0%) in their local public schools, people could choose to give up a few things to come up with the money to send their kids to private school. I know quite a few parents who have done some pretty drastic, at least in my opinion, things to ensure their kids get the best education: move to a new neighborhood or use someone else’s address(where the schools are better), get rid of the car if they could really get by without it, take out another mortgage, sell the house and move into an apartment, and the list goes on. People always have the option to live more modestly in order to afford private school in order to cover the gap between what the school gives them in scholarships and grants and what the school actually costs. But the overwhelming majority of the population chooses not to do so meaning they do have to have at least some faith in public schools or else why bother sending their kids there? Why bother paying taxes for public schooling?

    And @jk: How many school aged children have their been in the White House since 1904? The only three presidencies I can recall since that time are Nixon (who chose private school), Carter (public), Clinton (private), and now the Obamas. I think the Kennedy kids were not enrolled in school yet when they lived in the White House. So it’s pretty much been 50-50 split in the past century.

  • I have friends, graduates of DC public schools, at Stanford, Princeton, Yale, Harvard, Brown, UNC, Berkeley, UMichigan (including myself), Columbia, NYU, Smith, Dartmouth and almost all of the top 20 schools in the country.Many got in early, have had full acadmic scholarships or are part of honors programs.
    My parents considered sending me to DC private schools under the impression that public schools were so terrible. Sidwell wasn’t on the top of my list because I am not fond of lacrosse and designer clothes.
    I agree that safety is an issue. I understand sending their kids to Sidwell. I also know that the decision is a security one, not one based on academics. I understand security threats, I am a child of state department officials and lived in Kenya months after the embassy bombings there.
    BUT as a resident of DC my feelings are still hurt by the argument that DC public schools are terrible. There are great schools in DC, amazing teachers, and extremely gifted students.

  • who the fuck actually cares where these girls go, really? i don’t know about you but all i care about is when i can buy my collectible plate (only 65 firing days) with their images on it? hurry, cause i’ve got a place on the mantle next to my obama bobble headed doll (it only nods yes) that’s just perrrfect!

  • “Direct means having no middle man. The government is the middle man. You pay taxes to the government then the government decides where that money goes. This is not direct. Definition: “Having no intervening persons, conditions, or agencies; immediate.”

    Hi, I’m baaaaaaaaccccccckkkkkk.

    Who is the middle man if the gov is the one that provides the services, Lisa?

    Look it is very simple.

    You pay the government to pay for a government service, gov education—gov owned and gov run public school.

    You pay a private institution for a private service, private education–private owned and private run private school.

    Really, there is no middle man in either case, and if there is middle man he is apparent in both.

    You pay taxes to the government then the government decides where that money goes (or level of actual distribution; it’s not a free for all; if you are taxed two dollars for school your two dollars will more than likey be spent in a school related capacity).

    You pay money to the private institution then that institution decides where that money goes (or level of actual distribution).

    To cut out a middle man or gov out of schooling is to cut out public education or public schools.

    To cut out the a middle man or the private institution is to cut out private education or private schools.

    I can’t get clearer than that.
    ————————-

  • @ ummm: obviously it’s not the other students that pose a threat, it’s adults. sidwell is where white house kids traditionally go. i believe ibecause t is smaller and therefore the environment is more controlled. the secret service are thinking of safety first, as they should be. not a surprise.

  • @quirkygirlkitten: and what makes you think adults can’t attack at a private school? because that’s where the rich(er) kids go? sorry, don’t buy it. look, washington d.c. is a rough city. that’s a fact that i am not denying. but the girls are just as likely to get hurt by an adult at sidwell than at any public school. if anything (according to everyone’s logic that public schools are more rowdy), security would be tighter at a public school since they are more prone to violence therefore they would be safer at a public school. and actually, there have been only 4 presidents who have had to decide where to send their children for school. and as noted above, roosevelt and carter chose public while nixon and clinton chose sidwell. not so traditional after all.

  • @ ummm: i am pointing out that sidwell is a smaller school with a smaller amount of people, which makes it easier for the secret service to do their job. don’t be so obtuse. and please don’t lecture me about DC and the school system there – i know about it as it is where i am from. thanks.

  • direct payment of tuition:

    I write a check to school.

    indirect payment of tuition:

    I pay taxes to the government. it does not say specifically where this money is going to on my check (it may say refer to a more local tax, it surely doesn’t say public school tax). the government takes all the tax money than allocates it into different services. like public schools.

    I can’t argue this point anymore. Clearly we have two different ideas of the word direct and we are getting absolutely nowhere.

  • @ jennifer-

    No, I don’t think they would be safe/not safe based off of Amy Carter. I also think it sounds like her father was using her to prove a point though, which I think is sad.

    I think everyone would want their children to get the best education possible, and sometimes people think that means choosing a private school. Sometimes people think this means choosing a public school. I don’t think this makes anyone right or wrong. I have a great experience with a private school, so I like private. My sister had a great experience with a public school, so maybe she would say public. It would probably mainly depend on where we lived and how much money we had.

    I am especially worried for the Obama girls because of the racist attitude of some people. I have personally heard people joke about killing the president. It is not insane to think of someone wanting to hurt or kill his children as well. If I were them, I would be so worried that I would probably just home-school my children.

    And, although I agree that some people are able to live more frugally and pay for private education, I wouldn’t say that everyone could do that. Some people are already living paycheck to paycheck. I don’t think it’s 100% possible for everyone. But I understand what you mean. You had a lot of very good points, and I respect your opinion and insight.

  • @ Anna “Sidwell wasn’t on the top of my list because I am not fond of lacrosse and designer clothes.”

    hahhaha :) And dang, you sure do have a lot of impressive friends!! I am guessing you guys came from high schools all around DC? That is really great. Obviously you are an example of that either it doesn’t matter what kind of school you go to if you are smart or that DC schools aren’t that bad?

    How was your school in DC?

  • You still didn’t answer the question.

    Who is the middle man when the gov is providing the service?

    No middle man. Not “indirect.”

    It is direct tuition collected in increments by a public mandate based on the total cost of what it will take to educate divided cost per person. You can look us what it cost you by contacting your governments. They can break it down.

    PUBLIC SCHOOL: LOOKS like YOU pay GOV, GOV pay SCHOOL However, a simple ability to describe how money changes hands is not enough to conclude if it is direct or indirect v. private schools as you guide.

    YOU pay GOV (represents YOU), GOV (represents YOU) pays SCHOOL ( represents GOV). Public schools are under the umbrella of gov. It is long form for you pay the school.

    You are directly paying the gov for the schooling they provide.
    The same way you directly pay the private institution for the schooling they provide.

  • A direct form of tuition for public education? I couldn’t think of any. Even with public universities, you pay some tuition, but it still gets a lot of money from the government and other agencies.

    I don’t think people should have to pay out of pocket for public grade/high schools. I don’t have an example of direct form of tuition for a public education. If I had an example, we wouldn’t be having this ridiculous argument. And I don’t see the taxes as directly paying for one’s education, because a lot of people are paying those taxes that are not using the schools.

    I already explained where I thought the middle man would be.
    your money in taxes–> government–> allocates money out (including to schools).

    You explained that you didn’t see that middle man AS a middle man. I get it. Seriously. Neither one of us is going to win this argument against the other person, because we clearly just see things differently. I don’t even know why we started this. Oh, I think it’s because I said public schools are in the same vein as welfare. Fine. I wasn’t trying to make a huge point with that. I obviously do not think they are the same as welfare. I just saw them both as form of government assistance.

  • I came this far so there is no use in turning back. It doesn’t cost me much to TRY to understand where you are coming from, so I don’t mind the extra effort that will require. Unless, you are satisfied if I walk away convinced you a complete juvenile numb nut. Why?

    For one, daring other people to name one president who sent their kids to public school, and then claiming some cockamamie story about how were you, of all people, supposed to know. (Makes me trust you on the direct and indirect so much more….) Anyway, if you didn’t know, don’t expect others to know.

    Two, for coming oh so close to the STUPID gumption that public schools are sort of kind or like welfare, and implying if you are wealthy enough you shouldn’t really take part in it. I know what a welfare state is, but I would never actually call public education welfare if I know rich people can use it too, and they should if they like. Public schools unlike real welfare are not NEED BASED. I think ever state has baisc public education in their constitution. Besides, there’s enough of things they tax us for, and we should be able to use the services our money directly funds.

    Then, you are trying to somehow make a distinction between directly paying for public school and directly paying for private school. You pay directly in each case to the institution that provides the service. That is why you can’t come up with a direct form of tuition for public schools. Taxes are the only and main direct way for paying public tuition. If you cut a check directly to a public institution it would no longer be a public institution. It would private.

    Gov is considered a middle man when people refer to the actual bureaucracy. Somehow the fact they represent not only you but every one who pays in may frustrate people. The gov has more leeway with their redistribution, but they redistribute just like private schools, only on a large scale. That doesn’t, in the large scheme of things, make gov a middleman, or somehow direct charge and direct payment of services (named taxes) indirect charge and indirect payment for services the GOV provides. That just defines them as public v private, not indirect v direct. I guess in short form public doesn’t always equal indirect, and private doesn’t necessarily always mean direct.

    So you have an open floor, or did. I read your last response. No need. I got it. Up to this point. I got it now.

    Last but not least. For my own understanding, to add to what you already wrote.

    Do you have some bias against public schools? The way they are funded? If someone came up to you and said I payed for my kids public schooling. You’d say they didn’t pay “directly” and that’s somehow different. Different because other people pay in too. (Even if the system has others pay in to have a big amount short, but over time you pay for your cost of services.)

    Is that what you are saying.

  • @ThatLisa
    Most of those people were from my school but that’s just because those were my friends. My school was amazing. I mean, it is what you make of it. Amy Carter went to my school. Kids with drive did well. Kids who didn’t care, both rich and poor, did poorly.
    Sidwell wanted more parking spaces so they literally tore up their soccer field, built a parking lot 1/2 under ground in its place, and then put a soccer field back on top of it. My school had a paper shortage for the whole time I was there…as in teachers payed for copier paper themselves. Oh ya, and we had 1/3 the number of textbooks we needed. But it was amazing. You don’t need a parking lot to have a good school. We used the public library instead of the school library. The the Gates foundation paid for our AP exams. I loved most every minute of it!

  • Okay, fine. You think I’m stupid. I can live with that. I do not have anything against public schools. I go to a public university- U.C. Berkeley. I chose it because it is a great school, and because it is a lot cheaper for me, out of pocket.

    I don’t think that if you are rich, you have to send your kids to private schools. Sorry if I was misunderstood. I just think if you have money, and live in an area where the public schools are markedly bad, I would definitely consider private.

    I actually began going to private schools when I lived in inner-city Cleveland. The public school that I was supposed to go to was in a dangerous neighborhood, so my parents wanted to send me to private. It wasn’t necessarily about how bad/good the schools were, it was more about safety. Then I moved to the suburbs. I could have easily gone to either; no safety issues were present. I continued at private just because it was an easier transition for me. My sister went into private, but then ended up transferring to public. She was older than me, and didn’t like the private school as much as I did. When I ended up in high school, it was more natural for me to just go to the private high school, as did the vast majority of my fellow classmates.

    I don’t necessarily think I received a better education than my sister. We are both currently at good schools, and doing very well. If I was older, and lived in safe area, I would probably consider both private and public schools for my children. If I lived in an area where I considered the public schools to be particularly unsafe, or if they had a reputation of being severely underfunded and poorly run, I would most likely opt to put my children into private schools or just move to an area with better public schools.

    I am sorry that I came off so anti-public. That was not my intent, although I can see how it may appear that way. I think my argument just ended up being focused on bouncing off of other arguments, and my original idea was lost. That was my fault.

    How I feel about this actual article, was that, I feel the Obama girls are a unique case of having your children go to school in DC. I do not live in DC and haven’t attended schools there, but it is different for those two specific girls to attend public school than it would be for girls whose father wasn’t the leader of the country. Furthermore, I see Obama as a unique safety issue; such as, I have never personally overhead people saying how they want to kill a president, and I am worried at any sort of white power or racist backlash. I hope to God nothing happens to their family. If they feel their children are safer at a private school, so be it. I think a family’s decision on where to send their children should be their own. The children were already in pricey private schools; I don’t see why anyone would think they would change this at this point. I know I would never spend $30,000 on my 7 year-olds education, but I am not going to judge others that do. But I am sorry if I came off sounding like I would judge people who use public schools. I don’t. My parents used both for their children. I just, from my own experience, prefer private.

    I was using welfare in the sense as money for both programs comes from the government. I can see how this sounds bad. Welfare is a very loaded term. I apologize for making it sound like people who attend public schools are ripping off our country, or whatever any other poor connotations of welfare are. I should have been less obtuse with my example.

  • I actually went back and re-read your posts to other people. (It feels like it was sooo long ago.) Yup, you sounded very anti-public, and elitists. Poor censorthis.

    Your frantic zest to defend the Obama’s definitely hurt your messages.

    I said walk away thinking you’re a juvenile numb nut. That wasn’t a closed invitation. After reading your last post, no I don’t think you are a juvenile numb nut.

    (Although, I swear you wrote EB’s latest post on Taylor Swift if you look at you comments to one of EB’s posts on proposition 8. The whole teeny popper cheerleading overkill. Yah. You guys sound like one and the same sometimes.)

    BESIDES WE HAVE SUCH A COMPLETELY CRAZY COMMON HISTORY NOW CONSISTING OF FAT PEOPLE AND PUBLIC SCHOOLS. whoo hooo. :) Seriously you, and any of your cohorts totally deserved that retards comment looking back at what you wrote. At the same time…many post into this thing….I was like I don’t hate this girl. I just didn’t see what you were trying to get at public v private. I got it.

  • I am not sure exactly what you are referring to, but that’s okay. I don’t mind being put in the same category of EB. I like her, her views, and her writing, which is why I like this blog.

    i responded harshly to censorthis because his comment was rude. I obviously get rude too when I am offended. saying that obama’s kids aren’t used to being around other black children is mean. I took that as, oh only white kids can afford private schools, and a very few privileged black kids. The whole janitor comment pissed me off.

    I am not good at separating my emotions from my thoughts when I get upset over something, which usually just hurts my case. That’s something that I have to work on. but yeah, my comment to him was full of bitchy. It didn’t hurt my case in that argument horribly, but it hurt my credibility elsewhere. I understand that.

    I don’t care if I am labeled a cheerleader for gay rights (I am assuming that is what you meant?). I think it’s a great cause, and I do what I can to support it. I don’t care about Taylor Swift (but you were probably relating to the tone of the post?), but that’s neither here nor there. I think I tend to go overboard when discussing any of my hot button topics… things that include aspects of racism, gay rights, women rights, etc. Hopefully I will get better at staying calm. But I think I did better than I thought. Although we see things differently, I don’t think I ever referred to you as dumb… or a “retard.” (Oh and actually, you’re right, the previous comments seem so long ago. Now I understand why we started fighting. I didn’t like being called a retard. I got pissed and it all went down hill). Regardless, I don’t care if you think I am stupid or juvenile. All you are seeing is a little part of me, comments on a blog. You don’t know me or my life. All you know is that sometimes I like arguing with strangers on the internet. So I guess we at least have that one thing in common.

  • Yes tone to tone, and I said sometimes.. Very cheerleader. I don’t mean anything by it other than that.

    Phrases like……”I was taught to do my research,” followed by several posts later, “seriously, find one president whose little children went to a friggin inner-city public school.” Lead to the original retard comment. Has nothing to do with who you are as a person in real life. Other phrases like, “I am assuming you went to public, yes?….getting a better education than you ever did,” amongst others, in other posts, made it look worse. You don’t have to come at me to get a retort, in much the same way censorthis, who is being now being mentioned way too many times now, didn’t come at you specifically. Anyway, it’s censorthis come on. His easy baits are entertaining.

    Like I said I don’t think you are a juvenile numb nut. I get the whole “passion” thing, but, like you say, with time hopefully you will be able to make a point, and not at the expense of something unrelated, unless this was how you felt abut public education. I got that, no need to elaborate who you really feel.

    I understand what you meant with the public and private, and I’d even go back and correct my last post…but I think we have officially expired this topic unless you want to debate something else concerning his choice? No? I didn’t think so either. I could, but THAT would take us into J+K territory.

    Enjoy your week, and turkey if we don’t argue before then.

  • Like I said I don’t think you are a juvenile numb nut. I get the whole “passion” thing, but, like you say, with time hopefully you will be able to make a point, and not at the expense of something unrelated, unless this was how you felt abut public education. I got that, no need to elaborate who you really feel.

  • The aim of Washington public schools is to provide accelerated and safe atmosphere. They prepare girls to meet future challenges. Girl schools offer several career making courses in affordable cost. courses offered by girls institutes are such as culinary, nursing, medical billing, interior design, and computer courses. Critical thinking and love of learning are the two main base point of girls academies the teachings offered by the school to the students expect more maturity in return from the students. They want the students must be mature enough to set their goals in their life and start flourishing them.

  • So not really on the same topic as your post, but I found this today and I just can’t resist sharing. Mrs. Agathe’s dishwasher quit working so she called a repairman. Since she had to go to work the next day, she told him, “I’ll leave the key under the mat. Fix the dishwasher, leave the bill on the counter, and I’ll mail you the check. Oh, and by the way…don’t worry about my Doberman. He won’t bother you. But, whatever you do, do NOT under ANY circumstances talk to my parrot!” When the repairman arrived at Mrs. Agathe’s apartment the next day, he discovered the biggest and meanest looking Doberman he had ever seen. But just as she had said, the dog simply laid there on the carpet, watching the repairman go about his business. However, the whole time the parrot drove him nuts with his incessant cursing, yelling and name-calling. Finally the repairman couldn’t contain himself any longer and yelled, “Shut up, you stupid ugly bird!” To which the parrot replied, “Get him, Spike!”