Diane Ravitch, a historian of education and author of the best-seller, “The Death and Life of the Great American School System,” wrote a column for CNN.com last week about the budget battle in Wisconsin and then wrote a really interesting follow-up.
Here is the opening to her second column:
“A few days ago, I wrote an opinion piece for CNN.com explaining why teachers in Wisconsin — and throughout the nation — are angry, and it isn’t just because Gov. Scott Walker asked them to pay more for their pensions and health-care benefits. They are angry because of the unwarranted public vilification that has been heaped on them for the past two years.
The response was unlike anything I have ever seen before, and I’ve been writing about education for 40 years. The column received more than 8,000 comments and more than 38,000 Facebook shares. I personally received scores of emails. The overwhelming majority came from teachers, who simply wanted to say “thank you” for showing them the respect they deserve.
But about one of every 10 that I received came from dissenters complaining that teachers have an easy life, that their benefits are too generous, and that unions are selfish and greedy.”
Then she added this:
“As for pension and health-care envy, it is a sad thing when working Americans complain that someone else has benefits, instead of agreeing that everyone should have coverage for their health and old age. It reminds me of an old Soviet joke where a peasant says, “My neighbor has a cow and I have none, I want his cow to die.” We should not join in this race to the bottom.”
Amen.
