Comstock's Pre-School Robbery Slapped Down!!!!

I've been doing a lot of (well deserved) Senate bashing recently, but it looks like the budget that came out of conference tonight had a number of key wins for the Senate, including wins on education, mental health and other key progressive priorities.  Good work to the budget conferees!

Most importantly, Barbara Comstock's budget amendment to rob at risk, poor four year olds to fund all day kindergarten for five year olds was rejected and not passed into law. Yay!

Now hopefully voters will do the same with her political career this November!

Comments

[kelly]

Um, maybe you need to go back because it's kindergarten not garden.

[Not Larry Sabato]

Kelly, yes it is! Sorry about that, spell check doesn't work in hyperlinks. Go Kindergarten!

[Gnarly]

Why wait to hand "at risk" kids over to the state at only four years old? Heck, why not take them in as infants......so they can be in the arms of the government from cradle to grave. Now THAT would be a "progressive" victory.

[Loudoun Lady]

Pre-school for at risk kids is called tax payer funded day care. All day kindergarten is the same, they are both a waste of time.

[jack]

This article highlights the backward thinking of the typical liberals -- that once you start giving someone something, then to discontinue that giving is TAKING.

[truthteller]

wow Jack and Loudoun lady, thanks for reminding us about how compassionless conservatives are to families where both parents have to work long hours to put food on the table. Y'all simply just don't get how the other half lives...

[TJ]

Liberals will always phrase these things in terms of "taking." They are incapable of seeing that some people do not see this type of thing as a legitimate role of government. And that is the crux of most arguments. Most liberals believe that anything is a legitimate role of government.

[GretchenLaskas]

My son loved being in preschool and when we moved to VA, we were disappointed that kindergarten (making sure to spell it correctly!) was only half a day. I'm glad to know that my daughter's kindergarten will be full day. I prefer that all children, from all economic backgrounds have the option to choose what works best for them, their child, and their family.

[Brian W. Schoeneman]

I agree with Gretchen. I find it hard to believe that FCPS can't find $8 million to cover all day kindergarten for all students.

[The Curious Case of Ben]

Just curious, NLS.

Were you part of VA education? FX, ARL, or...?

Did you have public pre-school?

Did you go through full day public Kindergarten?

Did you go to public HS? Which one? Did you graduate?

If yes (or GED..which in my book is ver respectable), did you attend college in VA? Private or Public? Did you graduate? If so, what was your degree in?

Did you go on to Grad school, if applicable? Private/public, graduate, and what field?

Do you teach, or have you taught?

Do you have any children that will, is, or have gone through VA public education -- particularly pre-K and K?

Just curious, as it is always good to know the background of someone who opines on public education (I don't disagree with you on the above post, but I also wonder how you came to your opinions through life experiences).

[change]

tt,
You seem to admit the truth in LL’s “day care” comment, as you disparage the term “compassionate conservative”.
Many parents chose to live on less when they started a family. My wife give up her job (which was half of our pay at that time) and decided to stay at home to raise the kids. There were difficult times, but we never counted on the taxpayer to raise our children for us. Sure, we might not have had the “big house” others had, or the new cars but we made it on our own.

Most conservatives are very compassionate and giving to those “truly” in need. Many liberals talk a good game on being “compassionate” giving as long as it’s someone else’s money. Check the studies on conservative vs liberal donations to charity. However, many conservatives also hold a belief that there is too much reliance on gov’t to take care of issues that are better left to family.
Giving up an internet cell phone for every family member, or cable tv, or a new car or house is a small price to pay for rearing children yourself.
I, for one, know how “the other half lives” because for much of my childhood and in the early stages of beginning my family we were “the other half”.
Subsequently, we have been blessed, so we give back willingly; we don’t need liberals to tell us how or what is right.

If you give of your time and/or money freely that is a good thing. However I remember an article about the famous liberal, Al Gore, donating a whopping 350 bucks to charity in one year, while he was out telling others how they should pay more in taxes for gov’t programs.

Maybe you might consider that you may be the one with no clue on how “the other half lives" if you have never walked in their shoes.

Jealousy is like a cancer that will eat you alive if you can’t control it.

[Del. Jim LeMunyon]

The Comstock budget amendment only gave local school boards the flexibility to redirect funds if they desired and considered it prudent. This was no state mandate.....it helps to read the fine print.

[Hoya Boy]

Hey Change,
I work 40 plus hours a week, pay my taxes, vote and am a good citizen. Will you pay for the kidney transplant I need because I have a pre-existing condition and can't afford health insurance? Or will you take care of my family after I bite the dust because the insurance company won't pay for my transplant and I can't get life insurance due to the pre-existing condition?

[CARTER]

tHE PURPOSE BEHIND ALL DAY KINDERGARTEN IS TO HELP OUR KIDS GET READFY FOR THE WORLD AT AN EARLY AGE AND TO STAY AHEAD OF THE REST OF THE WORLD.ALL STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT EDUCATING KIDS AGT AN EARLY AGE IS BENEFICIAL TO THE CHILDREN AND EVERYONE AROUND THEM.

[Valley Indie]

Hoya said that he "can't afford health insurance."

I'd love to see your bank statement, and look at how many charges you have for iTunes, movies, restaurants, cable TV, and so on. Wish I had dollar for every time I heard somebody in a bar, sipping on their $7 cocktail, waiting to sit down so they can spend $50 on dinner, complain about how they "can't afford health insurance."

[Jack]

"thanks for reminding us about how compassionless conservatives are to families where both parents have to work long hours"

And thank you for showing us yet ANOTHER logical failing of liberals -- looking at only one side of the equation. In this case, you look only at the pre-schoolers' parents, but do not consider that kindergarteners' parents may also need to work the same hours.

[change]

Hoya Boy,

I strongly question the truth of your statements. But assuming you are being truthful, it highlights the point that you believe it to be somebody else’s “responsibility” to take care of you.

Since I don’t know your situation, I would only wonder if you were responsible enough to have insurance “before” you were ill, or did you choose to spend your money on desires instead of planning for contingencies? Also, did you purchase life insurance at 21 (like I did, well before starting a family), so that your family was taken care of if something should happen to you?
You said you work 40 hrs per week, maybe you should have worked 60-70 hours a week (like I did) to make sure you covered your family. Surely, you are not proposing that those of us who worked 12-15 hour days (for years) to take care of our responsibilities while you were putting in your 8 and going home are now responsible for your decisions.
You see, everything is not as simple as “my current situation sucks therefore someone else should take care of it”. Life is full of choices, one should prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

No matter.
You question if I (or I assume anyone else) would pay for your operation; would you rather some compassionate person pay for your operation or spend that money feeding starving children? Is it for you (or anyone else) to decide?

Finally, assuming you are telling the truth I would first suggest prayer.
Next, I would go to family for help, that is a great benefit of keeping families close and intact; and something that is discouraged by government nannyism. I would go to my church and friends for assistance, I would take out loans (only if the benefit was of more value than the alternative).

But most importantly, keep in mind that we all “bite the dust” and we should be prepared by being good with our God

[DCCyclone]

So Ben, any word on who HD-34 Dems have in mind? I still haven't heard myself, as a lot of recent family obligations have kept me from being able to stay in the local loop.

Glad to see her stupid idea was shot down. And the couple conservative comments I bothered to read here only reaffirmed, as always, why I despise conservatives.

[Not Larry Sabato]

The A+ candidate I was describing before was at John Foust's kickoff, listening to people on whether she should run. I expect an announcement soon.

[change]

DCC,
I thought liberals were decrying negative commentary and you guys were trying to move towards more “civil” interaction. In that vein, you might reconsider despising conservatives as individuals and instead “despise” their views.

For me “conservative” is mainly defined by the following:
Personal responsibility, limited government, living within one’s means, community outreach, believing that the individual knows better how to use the fruits of their labor than government and providing for our own family/state/nation.

Which of those do you “despise”?

[Hoya Boy]

Yes, I'm telling the truth. I applied for a life insurance policy after the birth of my first child, only to be declined. It was then that I found out I had kidney disease. I don't go to bars, have basic cable, and use every nickel my wife and I have on raising our kids. I don't want the government to take care of me. I don't want the government to buy me a house or a car. I am simply saying there have to be "safety nets" for folks. If that makes me a "socialist" then give me the hammer and sickle. We already have socialized education (public schools), socialized security (police)socialized public safety (fire and rescue) socialized roads, etc., etc. I pay federal taxes for government employees and military retirement, roads I will never drive on, and social security I may never see. I pay state taxes and local taxes for services I have never used... never will. I've never been arrested so I don't need a public defender or commonwealth attorney, but I pay for their salaries. I don't want you folks to "take care of me". Health care seems to me like something basic that everyone needs. Again, if that makes me a liberal/socialist then so be it.

[DCCyclone]

change, I normally skip over the mindless drivel you type altogether, but since you chose to address a comment specifically to me, I did you the courtesy of reading your comment just this one time.

I don't care about your political philosophy, you are, indeed, one example of a conservative I despise. Nothing you ever type is remotely thoughtful, it's always poorly informed, and those things combined with your ad hominem name-calling of Democrats make you a complete waste of space and time.

Now I will return to ignoring your comments going forward.

[Jack]

"I am simply saying there have to be 'safety nets' for folks."

There are. We call them "families."

[Hoya Boy]

Hey "Jack" do you have a sister? If so send me her number so I can marry into your "family" Let's get real. I'm not as blessed as you to have a family that can afford the typical triple digit cost of a kidney transplant. So much for "family values" conservatives love to chat about. A few comments above, in reacting to my initial post, Valley Indie stated they wanted to see my bank statement because it's probably filled with IPad and DirectTV bills. Laughable, considering it is not true. I would ask this in closing? If I went to a lilly white, baptist church where all the parishioners had "Bush/Cheney" stickers on their bumpers, would they treat me differently? So much for "family values"?

[change]

Hoya,
I appreciate the position you put forth.
After a little investigation it seems that medicare currently will pay for transplants, unfortunately this government run system is so screwed up that one must wait for ESRF before they pay (not a positive note for increasing dependence on gov’t run systems)

I also found that in some countries the cost is much lower than in the USA; our costs are high due largely to tort and gov’t intervention. For example, India currently has a thriving “medical tourism” industry, which might be something to consider.
However, ultimately the responsibility for our personal needs fall on the individual (hopefully with help from family/friends/community).
I agree that much of the money you pay in taxes goes to places where the government should not be involved (or at least where the state has primary responsibility). Were you not mandated to pay these excesses you probably could afford to take care of this issue yourself as you seem to be managing your finances in a prudent manner.
But creating another failed system is not the answer. “Taking” money from another for our own benefit leaves less for people to take care of their individual issues.
I agree you should look to family, friends, your church and your neighbors for help. If families were able to keep more of their wages and there were not so much government intervention (not to mention trial lawyers) these type of issues would be limited as people would have more funds with which to care for themselves.

We hear much from “compassionate” liberals about how interested they are in helping others, why not attempt to find support from some of these people? In fairness, as a “compassionate” conservative, I will donate to any fund set up for your operation so long as it is real and verifiable and I can do so anonymously. I am sure that some of the outspoken folks on here will also be willing to put their own desires aside for your benefit.

I continue to pray for you and your family.

On a side note regarding your question to jack, I believe that any good church you belonged to would attempt to assist you. Goodness and generosity is not defined by an R,D,I or Tea. Don't give up.

[change]

dcc,
I am sure your intent to ignore any of my comments is due less to your stated reasoning and more to the fact that you have no intelligent position from which to debate.

In typical fashion you accuse me of that which you yourself perform. You choose to “despise” me and my “political philosophy” but you base it on nothing, as you might look foolish in your attempt.
You lay out no rebuttal nor any example of my accused “ad hominem name-calling” (you might wish to look up the phrase as it is better defined by your post).

I don’t expect a response as most “weak-kneed bullies” tend to run away when confronted.

[Hoya Boy]

Well, thank you Change. I appreciate your caring and not slamming me for being "liberal" on this issue. Seems like you are heartfelt and I appreciate that. I would only argue that since I'm not an expert on healthcare, I can't form any other opinion other than supporting anything that will "change" the system. (No pun intended) I would like to think that regardless of party health care is an important issue. In other words, a McCain presidency would not even have tackled the issue. I could be wrong, but don't think so. All politics aside, I appreciate the kind words.

[Jack]

"I'm not as blessed as you to have a family that can afford the typical triple digit cost of a kidney transplant."

Let's do a little math, shall we? You have four great grandmothers. On average, each probably had 3 children, 9 grandchildren, and 27 great-grandchildren. So, just in your generation alone, there are probably 100 people who are your second cousins or closer. They cannot or will not pony up $1000 each -- on average -- to save your life?

So much for your "family values."

If your family is not willing to pay for your kidney transplant (have you even asked them?) why do you expect others to?

[change]

Hoya,

Thanks, Stay strong.

Be careful wishing for "anything" as a change; it, more often than not, turns out worse than it was.

[Hoya Boy]

Hey Jack, both of my great grandmother and grandfathers are dead. I have one living grandmother who is 97 and lives off of social security with my disabled, cancer survivor mom. I don't have many relatives outside of that to speak of. Having said that, it's a shame that even though I pay taxes for things I will never use, me supporting Obamacare means everyone is paying for my health isurance. By that defination I pay for bridges in California, roads in Alaska, social security or federal retirement benefits, and lots of other things I will never use. And before you accuse me of being so poor that I don't pay taxes, I am self employed and even with child tax credits I still owe taxes at the end of the year. Still waiting for that phone number....

[Jack]

As I said, ~100 in YOUR generation. I'm not counting the dozens in the previous generations.

"By that defination I pay for bridges in California, roads in Alaska, social security or federal retirement benefits, and lots of other things I will never use."

Two wrongs do not make a right. Still, even if you never even drive, you use the Interstate Highway System every time you buy food. And you do use social security -- otherwise you'd be feeding your grandmother, not I.

Send me YOUR number, and I'll pass it on. But be warned, she's 50 years old and weighs about 300#.