Rush Limbaugh spoke about Apple CEO Steve Jobs take on U.S. public education and unions today with quotes from April Castro’s article for the Associated Press:
In Austin, Texas, last week, “Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs lambasted teacher unions Friday, claiming no amount of technology in the classroom would improve public schools until principals could fire bad teachers.” He compared skrools to businesses with principals serving as CEOs. “’What kind of person could you get to run a small business if you told them that when they came in they couldn’t get rid of people that they thought weren’t any good?’ he asked to loud applause during an education reform conference.”
The bottom line here is when he says, “I believe what’s wrong with our schools in this nation is that they’ve become unionized in the worst possible way,” conservatives and just plain people with any common sense have been saying this for decades, but could they get put into the headlines of a story? No. Only if you’re a big lib, only if you’re a big Democrat, do you get applauded for this kind of talk.
I am happy and proud to be on the same page with Steve Jobs. The way to put it is, I’m happy and proud he’s on the same page with me. If he finds out I agree with him, he might change his mind. But I mean this is classic. This is an AP story. Do you know how many average, ordinary American people have been saying this? Do you know how many political candidates on the Republican side have been saying this, and when they say it, they get tarred and feathered and the NEA comes after ’em? Jobs says it, “Wow, why, we must really think about this. Why, there might be something here that we haven’t considered before,” blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
Full transcript here.
Related articles:
Apple CEO blasts teacher unions, says US schools are ‘unionized in the worst possible way’ – February 16, 2007
Apple CEO Steve Jobs: ‘I’m going to just stay away from all that political stuff’ – August 25, 2004
Rush Limbaugh and Apple Computer to intro new podcast service via iTunes – March 08, 2006
Rush Limbaugh announces video podcasts for Apple iPod starting December 12th – November 30, 2005
Rush Limbaugh: ‘I am the hottest thing in podcasting’ – June 09, 2005
Rush Limbaugh and Apple Computer working to bring podcasts of radio show to iTunes Music Store – May 17, 2005
Rush Limbaugh says ‘Mac OS X Tiger Rocks,’ posts link to free Rush advertisement for Mac – April 30, 2005
The Hill: Put Rush Limbaugh on Apple’s board of directors; he could sell tons of Macs – January 26, 2005
Rush Limbaugh calls for Apple iCal to Sidekick solution – November 12, 2004
Rush Limbaugh: Why does Apple put politics first? – June 27, 2003
Rush Limbaugh comments on Gored Apple – March 21, 2003
Yeah, teachers have it rough. They work (at my school) from 8 AM til 3:30 PM (7-1/2 hour days) nine months a year, with a week off in the fall for a break, two weeks off at Christmas, a week off in the Spring for a break, and anytime snow is forecast. They work a 180 day calendar, compared to a 260 day calendar for most of the rest of the business world. Hmmmm. lets see, 180 is 70% of 260. Looks like the pay is just about equal to the work output.
They work a 180 day calendar, compared to a 260 day calendar for most of the rest of the business world. Hmmmm. lets see, 180 is 70% of 260. Looks like the pay is just about equal to the work output.
Yes, because, as we all know, pay is always commensurate with productivity. Just look at the US Congress. Or pro baseball players.
@ Eric:
Overpaid, unionized workers are one reason (not all) our factory jobs are overseas. American factory workers performing unskilled labor all day, demanded to make near the same money as those of us with a 4 year degree or with a skilled trade. But those same people as consumers want their Walmart prices on goods and vehicles. So all our manufacturing has left for foreign places who pay less so they can have “low, low prices.”
Unionized auto workers getting paid high prices to put the same part on ALL day long, are the reason cars cost nearly as much as houses. (Not by California standards but middle america where houses range from the $50,000 for cheapies to $80,000 for average honest workers, and $150,000 for a really nice one.
The liberal union people arguing everyone should make near degree level wages has put the very people out of jobs that they were trying to boost the pay on. There was a time in this country when things were made here, were affordable, and ONE income could support a family very adequately. My dad did it AND put us through college with no loans on a trademen’s salary. Now with 2 people working you can just get by because of tax and spend and welfare and high prices. It’s a mess.
I was going to be a teacher until I experienced how out of control the classrooms were with the new liberal ways where kids do what they want and the teachers aren’t allowed to take control and make kids accountable for their actions. No wonder the good ones don’t stay, and the crap ones are there because they are too lazy to teach and too lazy to find another job and can’t be fired.
If Rush Limbaugh ever had an intellgent thought in his head it would perish from loneliness.
Yes, because, as we all know, pay is always commensurate with productivity. Just look at the US Congress. Or pro baseball players.
Yes, you’re right, it is.
Congressmen don’t make a whole lot of money, and baseball players make what the market bares. For instance, if player A gets traded to team B, and team B can now sell 2000 more tickets per game then they will effectively make an extra $8,000,000 in ticket sales and probably another $300,000 in concessions. Therefore, if he is paid $4,000,000 per year, the team profits $4,000,000 and is therefore worth the salary. It may seem unfair, but that’s business.
1. A key problem nobody has mentioned much is the kids:
Schools needs to adopt a fundamental, iron clad rule, with the wise (notice the weasel word here) teacher as the sole judge: students do not have the right to disrupt the class.
Teachers have a RESPONSIBILITY to enforce this, but wisely. That is, recognize that they’re dealing with exhuberant, often dubiously behaving students, but have “lines of disruption” that, when crossed, result in immediate removal, with escalation, with ironclad support from administration (none of this “thats your problem, don’t send your problems to us” B.S.).
A big problem today is that teacher penalties have been removed, and disruptive students get time off. Yes, teachers got carried away in the past, sometimes, but the pendulum has swung too far the other way.
2. Obviously parents are a big part of why the students are misbehaving, but the schools are pandering to the students and the parents by not being tough on this.
And, yes, integration of a variety of kids of variable skill levels is important (its the real world, after all), but only if the class is not disrupted.
And, yes, what to do with the problem kids is a hard problem, but, you cannot back down: students do NOT have the right to disrupt the class, even ‘special’ kids.
3. And its high time that parents were held accountable for failing to provide the essentials of life to their children. If a kid breaks the law, the police should be checking out the parent – did the parent damage the child by misproviding? Parents do not have the right to emotionally, psychologically and physically damage their children.
There, hows that for incendiary?
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(its seemed like the discussion was winding down, so time to toss in some fuel)
@ admin
“Yeah, teachers have it rough. They work (at my school) from 8 AM til 3:30 PM (7-1/2 hour days) nine months a year, with a week off in the fall for a break, two weeks off at Christmas, a week off in the Spring for a break, and anytime snow is forecast. They work a 180 day calendar, compared to a 260 day calendar for most of the rest of the business world. Hmmmm. lets see, 180 is 70% of 260. Looks like the pay is just about equal to the work output.”
I guess you are forgetting that teachers also have to create lesson plans for multiple classes, do administrative paperwork, mark papers and tests for multiple classes, volunteer for extracurricular activities at their particular school, etc. Don’t forget that during the summer many teachers do teach and also many do take extra courses, etc.
I really like morons like you who think that the teaching profession is so damned easy. You are a bloody idiot – there is no simpler way of stating your obvious lack of intelligence.
I have news for parents of any child that I will be teaching in my future Math classes… If any child of yours disrupts my classes, so the other students that want to learn cannot do so, I will simply kick your child out of my classes. No hesitation. That child will not re-enter the class until a meeting between parents and myself is arranged to discuss the reason why your child thinks it is bloody hillarious to disrupt a class. I don’t plan on putting up with your problem child, not even as a Substitute Teacher (the position I am in presently).
It is time for teachers to stand up to administrators and parents who think it’s the teacher’s responsibility to have to deal with problem students.
“Mike
I don’t see where paying someone their value is considered a liberal point of view. Seems more like common sense, which should transcend idology, and is the reason Rush and Jobs agree on this.”
Well we don’t know Steve and Rush’s commentary on this… but I was saying by paying them MORE, you would attract higher quality candidates. It’s not a free market solution, so I know Rush wouldn’t agree…
“Increase teacher pay and education will improve.”
Bullshit. Microsoft has some the highest paid executives and their high salaries hasn’t seemed to improve the quality of Microsoft products.
“Vouchers.”
Also known as “freedom”, “choice”, and “preference by performance”. People want it, NEA is dead set against it.
” (Teachers) are no longer allowed to teach, because (teachers) have to follow some curriculum to prepare students for standardized testing.”
No testing means no way to measure intelligence and academic aptitude. It astounds me that some people actually think that quality cannot be measured quantitatively and objectively.
If public schools were working well why are most universities and colleges needing to provide remedial courses for freshmen? If public schools are working well why are many businesses recruiting foreign workers? The facts are obvious, the public school system is a failing miserably.
Congressmen don’t make a whole lot of money, and baseball players make what the market bares.
Neither of which addresses the issue raised: that *productivity* determines wages. Learn to pay attention.
James:
1. Administration (the people who HIRE teachers), in most cases (my spouse is a teacher), strongly prefer that classroom issues stay in the classroom. When the administration is broken, the teacher sends the student out and the admin sends the student back, with no consequences, with the unspoken message “keep this in the classroom, we don’t want it”.
In other words, the administration, in so doing, UNDERMINES the teacher. Needless to say, the student is then emboldened and the problem gets worse, and other kids start emulating.
Of course there are some excellent administrators. And tough, good administration can quickly turn things around if tough but fair rules are applied consistently and fairly.
Standing up to the administration tends to be, ahem, a career limiting move…
2 Administration hates to go up against the parents, where, almost invariably, the inappropriate behaviour of the problem student was learned. So, the school just sucks it up and tries to ignore it.
Why does the administration hate to go up against the parents? Because the parents can easily make a huge fuss and get the school board/superintendent to lean on the administration.
So, after getting their head beat in a couple of times, the administration, except in the most extreme, obvious, well documented cases, goes really easy on parents.
Standing up to parents, except in extreme, obvious, well documented cases tends to be even more career limiting… For both admin and teachers.
3 I urge you to maintain your integrity and passion, and don’t let the system wear you down and force you to compromise unreasonably. But, the administration is not really on your side to the extent that they should be, and, parents of problem kids most emphatically aren’t on your side – in most cases, the parents of problem kids are simply grown up versions of the problem you’re encountering.
That said, education is the primary tool society has, today, to repair screwed up parenting, as well as train kids for the life in general and the workforce beyond what the parent do. And, amazingly, it works in most cases. Children are, after all, quite resilient, and a lot of dubious behaviour is about finding out what the rules really are.
4. As others have said bad teachers are part of the problem, but so is bad administration, bad oversight (school boards), bad parenting/poor school preparation, poor funding (school books, physical school buldings), inappropriate expectations (students don’t appreciate education) – there are a lot of problems.
I think firing bad teachers is a good idea if it goes along with firing bad administration, firing bad oversight (when did an elected official last get fired, say, for lying?). These 3 things would solve most of the problems, in fact.
5. The fact that society still allows schools to degrade physically, be ill equipped, teachers salaries be low suggests that society doesn’t value education as much as it should, however – there is a message there…
6. My nose is still out of joint over the fact that parents can, effectively damage their children; we may need more laws here and certainly more enforcement. This would help with problem children, although it is more of a longer term solution.
I hasten to add that if a parent is having trouble handling a child, and they ask for help (say, call a social worker), that is ok. Much better if the parent had better parenting skills and didn’t run into the problem in the first place, but that is a separate, parent training issue (where is parent training, anyway?).
What angers me is parents who damage their children and won’t listen (say, the school calls the social worker and the social worker is told to get lost).
7. A skilled teacher can spot future criminals in kindergarten, in most cases – something to think about….
Rush is such a buffoon. He’s saying that the solution to our educational system problems is to abolish unions and fire teachers – he’s clearly not kicked his prescription drug addiction. Jesus, he looks just like Boss Hog in that photo, all he needs is a white suit.
Way to razz people to get clicks, MDN…
“Neither of which addresses the issue raised: that *productivity* determines wages. Learn to pay attention.”
It addresses the point he made which was incorrect. Perhaps YOU should pay attention!
It addresses the point he made which was incorrect.
Yes, the point he made was incorrect.
wankers
Let’s examine Noble Laurate Milton Friedman’s approach – vouchers. His point was simple, education today is pure socialism – nothing more, nothing less. The government owns and operates over 95% of all k-12 schools. Worse yet, most all school districts are independent government agencies which have no realistic oversight. Worse, the boards are typically elected in off year cycles (e.g. low voter turn out), which allows the union members to dominate. Come on folks, this is a recipe for disaster. Parents have no input, no control. If you don’t believe this, try and complain about cirriculum or poor management. Schools have no Inspector General functions, no rules concerning neoptism, no process to collect the inputs of stake holders. NOTHING. Basically, the system is nothing more than a self licking ice cream cone.
As for teacher pay. Give us the facts. Average salary my ass, give us the average, the mean, and the max/mins. Let’s look at this honestly and systemically! I worked with an Air Force 2Lt would got out of the military after a year because of the pay cut he took from his former job – a shop teacher from Texas with a mere 5 years of experience – and nearly 4 months off a year. Plus, if your education college had the same reputations the one at my school had, you had to know it had very low standards. Low standards or easy ussually means low pay. Reality man. As for you folks that thinks teaching is a breeze, get over it, it is not! If you are good you will spend many hours of preparation and many more hours of grading.
Final note. Would all of you people who use personal attacks, please get a life. Actually, get an education, learn how to argue, learn how to debate honestly – personal attacks, calls to higher authorities, etc wastes everyones time.
NOT a majority of teachers in MOST states are members of ANY effective union.
Jobs and Limpbaugh have different moitvations for saying the same thing, and neither did their homework.