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4A ♦ TUESDAY, AUGUST 29, 2006 OPINION Daniel F. Evans Editor and Publisher Julie B. Evans Vice President Don Moncrief Foy S. Evans Managing Editor Editor Emeritus Polls not always reliable We enjoy reading the results of polls as much as anyone, but we often wonder about their accu racy. Or, worse yet, we worry about the people who respond to the polls. As reported in this newspaper last Thursday, only 40 percent of respon dents to a poll said that President Bush is handling the economy well. This result comes in the face of the fact that the economy, for a couple of years, has been growing at a healthy rate. The fact that the Federal Reserve has raised interest rates each time it met for more than two years, until last week, reflects the econo my’s robust ness. Yet more than half of Americans do not believe that the economy is in good shape. Can this be a result of false informa tion that has been fed to them by the mainstream media? Truth of the matter, most people have no way of knowing the answer, unless they rely on sources that often are slanted. Polls on most subjects are merely a way for some organization to make news. When potential voters say how they will vote, polls are more likely to be accurate. Polls asking opinions on the economy or how the war is being fought lack cred ibility because most people questioned do not have first hand knowledge of the subjects. None of us know as much as we would like to know and our opinions on many subjects are a result of information we have received through the media. We believe that it is wise to take the results of most polls with a grain of salt. Kyoto treaty a trap The Kyoto Treaty would require the United States to cut back on indus trial growth in order to reduce the release of pollutants into the ozone. It would tie the hands of industries in this country. President Bush and the Senate have rejected the treaty, because it exempts from these stringent requirements such growing economies as China and South Korea. If provisions of the Kyoto Treaty are imposed on this country’s industries it would hasten the time when the United States would become a second rate nation. We are concerned that one of the lead ing Republican candidates for President in 2008 Sen. John McCain has come out in favor of adoption of this treaty by the United States. We have trouble believing that anyone concerned about our country’s competi tiveness in the global economy would want to put us at such a disadvantage. We hope that Georgia’s Senators and our Representatives in Congress will use their influence to abort any efforts to change our present stance on this issue. Send your Letters to the Editor to: The Houston Home Journal P.O. Box 1910 • Perry, Ga 31069 or Email: hhj@evansnewspapers.com This result comes In the face of the fact that the economy, for a couple of years, has been growing at a healthy rate. The fact that the Federal Reserve has raised interest rates each time it met for more than two years, until last week, reflects the economy's robustness. NCLB based on flawed concept The federal No Child Left Behind law was adopted with good intentions. Much of the law makes sense. Some of the assump tions, demands and expectations are unrealistic. The Houston County Board of Education can point to examples where NCLB’s rigid rules result in inaccurate assessments of a school’s performance. Personally, I have trouble with point ing fingers at schools as “underperform ing”, rather than saying that students at a school are underperforming. A basic concept of NCLB is that all young people, regardless of their cul ture, family backgrounds, economic status and even mental capacity should all perform at the same level. It is a fallacy that all children are equal and that they all will perform at the same level, unless you strive for mediocrity rather than excellence. Many government education pro grams have failed because they are short of reality. School Board Member Skip Dawkins said last week, “We’re all for No Child Left Behind and AYE It has enabled us to emphasize things not done before, but it has its pitfalls.” One part of No Child Left Behind assumes that it is the fault of a school when students, as a whole, fail to meet certain test levels. Students are permit ted to ask for a transfer from a failing school to another. Some people believe that vouchers, which are permitted on a limited scale now, could solve all edu cation problems, when using them on a large scale would be disastrous. An example of NCLB’s flaws is that T^ssesn Political indoctrination seeping Into private Many of my friends in the world of talk radio extol the virtues of private school education versus what at least one national star, Neal Boortz, refers to as a “govern ment education.” I’ve often agreed. But every year when my kids return to private school - the same one dad attended, along with other dinosaurs - some new hor ror story surfaces about the school’s wacky liberal slant. Last year it was the otherwise good history teacher who right away informed my son’s class that Ronald Reagan was the worst president in history. Wonder of wonders, my once lib ertarian son is now a proud liberal Democrat. (As he’s a great kid, I’ll respect his political leanings.) This year began with a bizarre mis sive from the upper-school principal. She’s likable, if a bit obsessed with East Coast prep-school perceptions. Unfortunately, her views appear to be symbolic of a disturbing trend creep ing from “government schools” into private academies and prep schools. Parents of these children are writing bigger and fatter checks every year in hopes that their children will receive a solid education, minus political indoc trination to the left or right. Worse, this rambling “welcome back” letter was addressed to parents as well as the students. Its deep-thinking, intellectual author tries to disarm readers with the pream ble of, “Whatever your political lean ings,” - uh oh, here it comes - “you should all make a point of seeing the film of A 1 Gore’s lecture on global warming, “An Inconvenient Truth.’” She also recommends a reading of Tom Friedman’s “The World Is Flat.” Gee, wasn’t that yesteryear’s liter ary sensation? Could it be that this school letter seeks to enlighten parents OPINION an outstanding school, which is show ing improvement each year, can be considered underperforming because some students lack the background and capacity to score high when tested. You can’t throw a blanket over a whole school system and expect good results unless there are provisions for students who might never perform well under any circumstances. Asking teachers to perform miracles is unre alistic. All children are not like peas in a pod. NCLB assumes that the children with disabilities, those from a minority or dysfunctional families are capable of learning as much and at the same speed as other children. They aren’t. Some parents get out of sorts when reminded of this, but facts are facts. Sometimes members of Congress (probably most of the time) pass laws with good intentions but without fully understanding what they are doing. A bill is under consideration in Congress that would make some revi sions in the No Child Left Behind Law. Before making changes in NCLB it would be wise for members of Congress to receive input from classroom teach ers, as well as administrators, to learn what is practical and realistic. - most of whom hold advanced degrees in subjects far beyond education peda gogy - when its author may herself be behind the learning curve? Anyway, let’s read our letter in a sincere mood. Gore’s controversial film and Friedman’s widely studied book are quickly presented as works that, “taken together, lay out an argument for curriculum in schools, for corporate and political decision-making in public life, and for personal choices each indi vidual must make on a daily basis.” If these works of ideas are theories, I’m thinking, why should they become school curriculum, much less personal choices? Couldn’t this educator’s attempt to challenge our deficient intellectual capabilities at least be an impartial one? Let’s read on. On Friedman: “The flattening of the world has and will have a profound effect on all of us, and the reality of globalization has and will affect curriculum in schools like ours.” I may not agree with her opinion or Friedman’s judgments, but at least I know now that she considers his well tread theories to be facts. Apparently, Gore’s work is no mere hypothesis either. By the second para graph of the letter, the writer is ponder ing the “most characteristically human ability (necessity?) to deny truths we just don’t want to face.” Then comes this admonition: “We Foy Evans Columnist foyevansl9@cox.net £pMH|& l Matt Towery Columnist Morris News Service HOUSTON DAILY JOURNAL That would be a simple, intelligent approach to improving public educa tion. ■ ■■ I received some feedback when I asked last week why celebrities are permitted to surround themselves with gun-toting thugs called bodyguards, who have a tendency to rough up ordinary citizens. All of my e-mail condemned the practice and one per son pointed out the celebrities want bodyguards to protect them with guns so that the celebrities can campaign for gun control. Sounds about right. ■ ■■ Some of the excitement in the foot ball rivalry between Warner Robins High and Northside High will be miss ing this year. A region championship cannot be at stake. They are in dif ferent classifications, at least for this year. WRHS is Class 5-A. Northside is Class 4-A. School classifications are based on average daily attendance. The assump tion is that Northside’s attendance this year will put it in 5-A next year. Still, the rivalry is fierce. Better get there early for a seat. * * * Something we all should remem ber. The United States gave a reactor, which can be used to make a nuclear bomb, to Iran during the Cold War. In a foolish attempt to bribe North Korea, our country gave it our nuclear tech nology. ‘Nuff said. all must work hard to face some of the inevitability of the truths we don’t like, and change our choices to reflect our deeper understanding.” I’ve paid a king’s ransom for this rubbish. Something tells me that “intellectual ly challenging theories” posed by some one such as conservative Pat Buchanan in his new book somehow aren’t going to make it onto this administrator’s reading list. And clearly we need not consider alternative concepts to Gore’s theory. But action is louder than words. This second-in-command of my son’s school has created a committee at the institu tion to be known as the “Flat World’s Society.” Why stop there? How about anoth er group, the “Pseudo-Intellectual Subliminal Liberalism Conversion Association of Educators Society?” To repeat, I’d be just as appalled if my kids were steered by their school to watch Dan Quayle lecture on the value of nuclear energy, or to an assignment to read Newt Gingrich’s book “Lessons Learned the Hard Way.” So if anyone thinks public schools have a monopoly on agenda-pushing rubbish, just give me a call. I’ll get you a front row seat at the next meet ing of the “Melting Polar Ice Caps Association.” It meets just down the hall from my old locker room. Matt Towery served as the chairman of former Speaker Newt Gingrich’s political organization from 1992 until Gingrich left Congress. He is a former Georgia state representative, the author of several books and currently heads the polling and political information firm Insider Advantage. To find out more about Matthew Towery and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and car toonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.