The Education Spiral

Growing up (and to this day) my father's credo has marched in step with that of the Republican Party.  I heard my father's words coming out of the mouths of speakers at the RNC over the last few days as they insist, to great applause, that the American people ought to be allowed to succeed...or fail...by their own merits.  That, they contend, is what freedom means.  It is not the government's responsibility to take care of us; it is our own, for better or for worse.

My friend and the owner of Asbury Park's Twisted Tree Cafe, Clark Mitchel, an ardent liberal, admits that, in his high school and college years, he was a Republican.  He put it best when he told me that Republicans give overly simplified solutions to complex problems that, on the surface, are very appealing to an uninformed and undiscerning mind; their doctrine is superficially empowering.  His words continue coming back to me this week, as I continuously hear my father's rhetoric coming from the parade of speakers.

In a perfect world, people would be responsible for their own success and failure, as the Republicans insist John McCain will allow.  In principal, I agree with them, as I would imagine many of you do, as well.  The idea is that our own potential and hard work, and not government programs, will decide who succeeds and who does not.  But how can the American people believe that everyone among us is provided the same opportunity to utilize that potential?

Men and women are not equally offered jobs commensurate with ability and are not paid an equal wage for the same job.  Children from different areas aren't provided with equal education to help realize their potential.  Nepotism, legacies and inheritances skew who gets a better job (Bush's cronies), who gets into a better school (Bush's grandfather on Yale's admissions board) and who gets to be born on top of a big pile of money, never worrying about where their next meal will come from (Bush...and the fortunate Americans he has saved from being taxed on inheritances of over $1M).

My father is always quick to use a small sampling as a fair litmus to generalize.  In the instance of race, he'll point to Colin Powell or Condoleezza Rice as examples of why any African American can succeed, and as proof that any failings, as a minority race in America, are their own doing.  This is typical Republican.  It doesn't account for the fact that black G.I.s were not covered by the G.I. Bill and were, therefore, not granted great mortgages in the suburbs or college scholarships like their white counterparts were.  Property and education are the two main routes to long-reaching fiscal success.

Just as I explained "The Economic Spiral" in my last blog post, so must I now explain "The Educational Spiral":

The Upward Spiral
Better public schools educate and send more students to college (and better colleges).  Colleges (and better colleges) educate and lead graduates to better jobs.  Better jobs pay more money.  More money buys better homes in more affluent areas.  More affluent areas provide better public schools.  Rinse, lather, repeat.

CONVERSELY

The Downward Spiral:
Lesser public schools send fewer students to college (more likely lesser colleges).  Without a college degree (or with a degree from a less-reputable school), a person is more likely to encounter difficulty getting or keeping a job.  Without adequate wages or job stability, people are forced to live in poor areas where the frustration of persisting poverty leads to an increase of crime and, inevitably, lesser public schools.  

The rich get richer and the poor get poorer.

Every year, my local newspaper, The Asbury Park Press, publishes a list that ranks all the public schools in our county by SAT score.  They might as well change the heading to "Richest Towns, Per Capita" because the two are nearly identical.  

It is a wonderful idea the Republicans have to allow people to succeed or fail on their own merit.  But in America, those who succeed generally have more advantages than those who fail.  The Democrats seek to level that playing field and provide everyone with the same opportunity to succeed.  Barack Obama wants to provide better federal programs to make a college education affordable and attainable for everyone.  He understands that education for everyone means more productive members of society and a more robust economy.

In sharp contrast, George W. Bush's "No Child Left Behind" bill cut funding for college education grants and financial aid.  He took with him to the White House his Secretary of Education from Texas, who oversaw a state ranked 49 in education, and made her secretary of education for the nation.  Schools in his own home-state made the phrase "push-outs" famous.  See, kids weren't scoring well enough on his new bill's required tests, so they just "pushed" those students out in order to increase the test averages (they didn't drop-out of their own volition, and they weren't expelled, on paper, but they were "asked" to leave).

I want a president who understands the complex nature of what drives the overarching success of our citizens and, to a larger extent, our country.  I want a president who values his education because he knows he earned it, spending two years at a state college before transferring to an ivy league school, working hard to maintain his scholarship (in contrast to a candidate whose party brags about how many demerits he received while attending West Point, squandering time at one of America's top colleges while daddy footed the bill).  On November 4th, I'm voting for Barack Obama because he's right on education.

5:06 PM - 3 Comments - 6 Kudos - Add Comment

The Economic Spiral

Economics can be a hard thing to grasp.  Trust me; I've taken ECO-101 twice.  But I wanted to break down some very basic truths for you with a simple explanation.

The downward spiral:
Fewer jobs means fewer earners.  Fewer earners means less spending.  Less spending means less business income.  Less business income means fewer jobs.

CONVERSELY

The upward spiral:
More jobs means more earners.  More earners means more spending.  More spending means more business income.  More business income means more jobs.

You can affect either of those spirals at any stage and it will act as a catalyst for the next stage and will proliferate, moving forward.

Increasing the number of American jobs will create an upward spiral for our economy.  Giving tax rebates to people at the bottom of the economic ladder, who live hand-to-mouth and will surely put the money right back into our economy will create an upward spiral.

Sending American jobs overseas contributes to a downward economic spiral.  Preventing legal immigration for Latin American workers means their families must stay behind, forcing them to send much of what little money they make outside the U.S. to be spent abroad, which pushes our economy downward.  Providing tax relief for the richest among us, in the hope that they will share the wealth is a grave miscalculation, as people with the most money have a greater propensity to save excess money, rather than reinvest into the economy.

My step-father's biggest gripe about the Democrats' push to repeal Bush's upper-class tax cuts is that he and my mother have benefited from them - that they "are defined as upper class by the Democrats because of where the Democrats draw the middle class line."

My mother and I watched Barack Obama's address at the DNC last week.  He promised to lower taxes for 95% of American families.  I brought this to her attention, contrasting it with the fear she and my step-father share that an Obama presidency will mean higher taxes for them.  She asserted that, they way the Democrats would draw the line, the two of them would fall into that 5%.

In disbelief, I asserted, "Okay, so let's say, hypothetically, that the two of you do, in fact, make more money than 95% of Americans.  Would you put yourself ahead of over 300 million of your fellow Americans?"  Her response?  "I work hard for my money."  She doesn't understand the spiral or how that tax cut for 95% of American families will benefit all American families.

I want to vote for a presidential candidate who will create more American jobs and not reward or bail-out American companies that send jobs overseas.

I want to vote for the nominee who will give tax relief to Americans who are more likely to put that money right back into the economy, which will create more jobs, more earners, more spenders, and therefore even more jobs, rather than to people who will hoard it so their children's children never have to work a day in their lives.

This November, I am casting my vote for the presidential hopeful who will reunite foreign families with their domestically employed relatives, keeping their hard-earned dollars here, to be spent in America.

Nine weeks from today, I'm voting for Barack Obama, because he is right on the economy.

8:53 PM - 4 Comments - 6 Kudos - Add Comment

An open letter to the DNC

Every now and again I read stuff, and then I think about that stuff, and when that stuff gets me good and mad, I write stuff.  The front page of HillaryClinton.com has a petition to get Florida and Michigan's primary votes counted.  Currently, she trails Obama by 198 delegates (according to cnn.com), so she is, as NY Governor Patterson said, "desperate".  To count the delegates of those two states, both of which Clinton won, would narrow the margin by which she trails Obama by 89 delegates, still leaving her 109 delegates behind him (according to respective Wikipedia articles, linked above).  However, if we are to count her delegates, we must also count Obama's, as neither contest was winner-take-all.  The irony?  If we count those delegates pledged to Obama between those two states (he wasn't even on the ballot in Michigan), it would actually push him over the 2026 delegates needed to secure the Democratic nomination.  So, she's kind of trying really hard to shoot herself in the foot.  That aside, this is the letter I wrote to Howard Dean, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee:


Dear Gov. Dean,

    Before the start of the 2008 presidential nomination process, the Democratic National Committee laid out specific rules regarding the dates on which primary elections were to be held.  However, the Democratic leaderships in Michigan and Florida disregarded those regulations.

    In reaction to this misconduct, and in accordance with DNC precepts, delegates from those states lost their seating/voting privileges at the convention and individuals seeking the Democratic nomination were instructed not to campaign there, as well.  Abiding by the rules, Senators Obama and Edwards did not expend their time, energy or funds in either state.  However, with deliberate disregard for the clearly specified instructions of the DNC, Senator Clinton allowed her campaign to pursue primary votes in both Michigan and Florida - including the instance where other contenders for the nomination weren't even on the ballot.

    It is obvious that this perversion was executed so that Senator Clinton could later machinate not merely to bypass but to unilaterally rewrite the rules of our party.  So blatant was this contrivance that, upon the closing of those states' respective polls, Senator Clinton brazenly addressed audiences in both states, with cameras rolling, and promised those voters that she and her campaign would collude by any means to overturn the rules of the very party which she aspires to represent.

    I do not want a conniving, surreptitious and dissolute individual such as Senator Clinton as the President of my country.  For the DNC to condone the aforementioned tactics by allowing Senator Clinton to hijack our primary system (one which she herself had previously agreed to be fair and just) would abrogate my belief in and allegiance to this party - the irony that a success in these efforts on the part of Senator Clinton would inadvertently secure the Democratic presidential nomination for Barack Obama by increasing his delegate count to over 2026, notwithstanding.

    On May 31st, at the RBC meeting, I sincerely urge you to uphold your earlier ruling regarding the applicability of primary votes cast in Michigan and Florida.  As an American voter and as a member of the Democratic party, I implore you to disallow Senator Clinton's licentiousness from denigrating the validity of our primary election and from belittling the work of those 48 states and 5 United States territories and protectorates, as well as the Democratic voters in Washington D.C. and abroad, all of whom did, in good faith, abide by the terms set forth for this electoral process.  Maintain the integrity of our system.  Do the right thing.

                                                                                              Sincerely,
                                                                                              Eric Ginsberg

Update: I just submitted this letter to Gov. Dean's contact page on the DNC website.

5:19 PM - 5 Comments - 6 Kudos - Add Comment

You are cordially invited...

Eric Ginsberg & The New Originals' BBQ and Band Debut:

First we BBQ at Cheesequake Park, then we caravan over to Keyport Twilight Concert Series for the debut of Eric Ginsberg & The New Originals!

It's Memorial Day Potluck BBQ, hosted by Eric Ginsberg, Graham Schumann, David DiGioia, Andrew Kolbenschlag, Chris Smith and Darryll Meter.

• Bring a pack of your favorite burgers or dogs to be grilled up and we'll take care of the rest.
• We have picnic tables, but the grass is gorgeous, so you may like to bring a blanket to sit on the ground.
• Oh! And there's a beach there, so if it's warm, wear a bathing suit and bring a towel!

10:04 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

In Asbury Park Saturday night, w/ David DiGioia, Alex Biese’s Enter 77 and Chris Brown

Yes, you read right! Eric Ginsberg & The New Originals will be performing an acoustic show for your listening pleasure TOMORROW night, at the Twisted Tree Cafe, 609 Cookman Ave., Asbury Park, NJ.

As a very special Mother's Day treat, come enjoy the acoustic musical stylings of David DiGioia, Chris Brown (of Emory St.) (home from NYC just for this show...and for some mom-related holiday or other), Alex Biese's new acoustic band Enter 77 and, of course, Eric Ginsberg (THE Eric Ginsberg? Yes, THE Eric Ginsberg).

Also featuring a rare set of tunes to which you'll sing along by everyone's favorite Graham Schumann (as opposed to all those other sub-par Graham Schumanns out there).

But wait! That's not all! New Originals drummer, Darryll Meter, will also be there to play djembe and look pretty (more of the former than the latter, though).

The Twisted Tree Cafe is by far my favorite restaurant in Asbury Park, and I'm sure you'll love it, too, so be sure to bring a few bucks to have a meal, a smoothy or some homemade snacky snacks. Bring you mother and treat her to a fabulous night out on the town with Eric Ginsberg & The New Originals.

...and it's an early night out on the town, ending at around 9pm, with plenty of Saturday night still ahead of us for other Saturday night things.

HOLY POOP ON A STICK!! I totally almost totally forgot: Eric Ginsberg and The New Original t-shirts are in! YEAH!

My crack team of not-at-all cracked-out helpers and I made 28 shirts in all different colors and sizes last weekend. I'll bring them with me Saturday so you can be quite literally the first to have one! Ummmm, I think they're twelve bucks. The good news? There's no cover for the show. That's right folks...I'm awesome.

6:58 AM - 1 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment