Thomas L. Friedman The New York Times

November 25, 2010

Thomas L. Friedman
The New York Times
620 Eighth Avenue
New York, New York 10018

RE: “Our Destiny Linked to Better Teachers” – Some comments on your Thanksgiving Day “Woe Is Us” article in the Sun-Sentinel about why our disdain for teachers will have us all swimming to Cuba searching for the good life.

Mr. Friedman,

This country gave Albert Einstein much to be thankful for.

One of the things he marveled at was that he could get tomorrow’s newspaper today.

That was how I found out about Sputnik.

The New York Daily News told us about the Russian moon in Saturday’s paper on Friday night.

This happened because we were deficient in math and science. 12 years later we flew to the moon, walked around, picked up some souvenirs, and flew home. Not a bad result from people deficient in imaginary numbers and arguing about whether or not to renew Avogadro’s Law.

Now you say that “we have been getting out-educated for years”.

What’s to be done?

#1 – Let’s start by sending the Obama girls to public schools in Washington, DC.
Since the elder Obamas have a rent free 4 year lease on their public housing unit the least they can do is send their kids to public school. Any member of Congress with school age children must send them to public schools or they won’t get paid. [Can you believe that the last President to send his children to public school was George W. Bush? Go figure.]

Public education will improve exponentially.

If the flying public continues to demand that they be treated at least as well as the occupants of Gitmo, America’s adult sleep away camp, just make members of Congress run the gauntlet of rubber gloved closet lechers. Watch how quickly that changes.




#2 – Public school teachers should be held to the same high standard as the football and basketball coach are. If Johnny can’t read the teacher winds up as the head of the department. If Johnny can’t tackle or post up the coach is fired. Do you know of any football or basketball coach who has tenure? As a coach?

#3 – It is offensive to Logic that bad teachers are paid as much as good teachers. A simple question, a question that is out there like a turd bobbing insouciantly [How else could they bob?] in a punch bowl, is why are bad teachers paid at all.

At least 63 members of the House of Representatives were fired 3 weeks ago. The Republic has so far survived.

In case you haven’t noticed the economy is in a “non-shovel ready” ditch. There are a lot of multi-degreed, scientifically trained professionals available. Why not give them the chance?

Fire every 10th tenured teacher. Fire every 5th principal. This will, as Napoleon said when he shot 3 randomly selected soldiers for cowardice before every battle, “encourage the others”.

Hang a “Help Wanted” sign out. See who turns up.




Kevin Smith





PS – Why did the oh so smart Chinese, after spending all those decades on getting oh so smart, lend us all that money?