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Nobody forces you to put your kids in public schools. But just like other taxes you don’t get to opt out of paying and you don’t get to take your money back.

by jgeada 2y ago

slt2021 2y ago
well the voucher system allows me to opt out of supporting this corrupt system with my taxes.
- jgeada 2y ago
  How about the pentagon, or homeland security, or … Why are you picking on the fractional pennies in the budget and letting the millions go out the door? The system is corrupt precisely because people with influence are allowed to opt out & simultaneously benefit.
  - slt2021 2y ago
    School is a local matter, I want tonhave a feedback mechanism of “taking my business elsewhere” in education. If private school offers more competitive product with better teacher, I want it. There is not much sense to force people to pay for local school and pay for private school. And there is a way to opt out of federal taxes: just move out and change tax residence
    - eesmith 2y ago
      School is a local matter, but voucher systems are forced onto local districts by the state. Voucher systems are not set up as “taking my business elsewhere” because a voucher doesn't contain just your money but includes other people's taxes, making it their business too. > If private school offers more competitive product That "competitive" is doing a lot of heavy lifting. If you think more religion in school make the school more competitive, then you can already choose a private religious school. If you think having a lacrosse and water polo team makes the school more competitive, then some expensive private schools have that. These are more expensive, sure, but that's Pareto optimality for you. If you want to choose a school where the graduating class all have high SAT scores, and they do it by ranking the class every year and expelling the bottom 10% as "deadweight", than that's an option at some schools. But if you really want this level of competition, then you'll end up having a lot of smaller schools, and lose out on the economy of scale in a consolidated school system, where you can have a school with 3,000 students like I went to which offered classes in jazz music, Latin, machine shop, and differential equations. > There is not much sense to force people to pay for local school and pay for private school. Your argument seems to be that public tax money should not go to education. After all, if I have no kids, or my kids have graduated, why should I pay taxes which go to the school system? But in that case, why limit it to education? If I don't have a car, why should I pay taxes that go into highways? If I only buy books, why should I pay taxes which go to the library? If I have a private pool memberhip, why should I pay taxes which go to the city pool that I never use? > just move out and change tax residence Such a comedian! That "just" is neither easy not cheap. Why don't you "just" use the feedback mechanism of bringing things up to your school board and convincing your fellow voters to change things?
- eesmith 2y ago
  If it were simply about your taxes, that's one thing. [1] But voucher systems aren't simply that. For example, https://www.woodridge.k12.oh.us/m/news/show_news.jsp?REC_ID=607885&id=0&fbclid=IwAR1VZ6xAdStIii9RSpcCWwvaVVxjIZWa0iNMgPE3O46l508g649_-NbLNbs https://www.woodridge.k12.oh.us/m/news/show_news.jsp?REC_ID=... says the voucher then would be $6000 per student. It is extremely unlikely that your family is paying $6000 in taxes earmarked for the school. If you send your kid to a voucher school then your taxes, plus those of a lot of other people, are directed away from public schools and into private/voucher schools. Including by people who think the voucher system is corrupt, and without the "public audit, public representation, uniform accounting, teacher licensure, public records rules, student testing requirements, or many other mandates that public schools are forced to follow." (Quoting that link.) The voters directly voted for local property tax levies for the school district. They did not vote for these levies to be sent to voucher schools. It was the state which overrode local democracy. [1] Not a good thing, but it is a thing. I don't get to decide to not pay taxes for the new road construction even though I think the road construction system is corrupt.

Nobody forces you to put your kids in public schools. But just like other taxes you don’t get to opt out of paying and you don’t get to take your money back.

by jgeada 2y ago

Nobody forces you to put your kids in public schools. But just like other taxes you don’t get to opt out of paying and you don’t get to take your money back.

slt2021 2y ago

well the voucher system allows me to opt out of supporting this corrupt system with my taxes.

jgeada 2y ago
How about the pentagon, or homeland security, or … Why are you picking on the fractional pennies in the budget and letting the millions go out the door? The system is corrupt precisely because people with influence are allowed to opt out & simultaneously benefit.
- slt2021 2y ago
  School is a local matter, I want tonhave a feedback mechanism of “taking my business elsewhere” in education. If private school offers more competitive product with better teacher, I want it. There is not much sense to force people to pay for local school and pay for private school. And there is a way to opt out of federal taxes: just move out and change tax residence
  - eesmith 2y ago
    School is a local matter, but voucher systems are forced onto local districts by the state. Voucher systems are not set up as “taking my business elsewhere” because a voucher doesn't contain just your money but includes other people's taxes, making it their business too. > If private school offers more competitive product That "competitive" is doing a lot of heavy lifting. If you think more religion in school make the school more competitive, then you can already choose a private religious school. If you think having a lacrosse and water polo team makes the school more competitive, then some expensive private schools have that. These are more expensive, sure, but that's Pareto optimality for you. If you want to choose a school where the graduating class all have high SAT scores, and they do it by ranking the class every year and expelling the bottom 10% as "deadweight", than that's an option at some schools. But if you really want this level of competition, then you'll end up having a lot of smaller schools, and lose out on the economy of scale in a consolidated school system, where you can have a school with 3,000 students like I went to which offered classes in jazz music, Latin, machine shop, and differential equations. > There is not much sense to force people to pay for local school and pay for private school. Your argument seems to be that public tax money should not go to education. After all, if I have no kids, or my kids have graduated, why should I pay taxes which go to the school system? But in that case, why limit it to education? If I don't have a car, why should I pay taxes that go into highways? If I only buy books, why should I pay taxes which go to the library? If I have a private pool memberhip, why should I pay taxes which go to the city pool that I never use? > just move out and change tax residence Such a comedian! That "just" is neither easy not cheap. Why don't you "just" use the feedback mechanism of bringing things up to your school board and convincing your fellow voters to change things?
eesmith 2y ago
If it were simply about your taxes, that's one thing. [1] But voucher systems aren't simply that. For example, https://www.woodridge.k12.oh.us/m/news/show_news.jsp?REC_ID=607885&id=0&fbclid=IwAR1VZ6xAdStIii9RSpcCWwvaVVxjIZWa0iNMgPE3O46l508g649_-NbLNbs https://www.woodridge.k12.oh.us/m/news/show_news.jsp?REC_ID=... says the voucher then would be $6000 per student. It is extremely unlikely that your family is paying $6000 in taxes earmarked for the school. If you send your kid to a voucher school then your taxes, plus those of a lot of other people, are directed away from public schools and into private/voucher schools. Including by people who think the voucher system is corrupt, and without the "public audit, public representation, uniform accounting, teacher licensure, public records rules, student testing requirements, or many other mandates that public schools are forced to follow." (Quoting that link.) The voters directly voted for local property tax levies for the school district. They did not vote for these levies to be sent to voucher schools. It was the state which overrode local democracy. [1] Not a good thing, but it is a thing. I don't get to decide to not pay taxes for the new road construction even though I think the road construction system is corrupt.