Interesting Times......
Taxes put me in a bad mood, so beware
My teenagers are late with their taxes. Probably my fault. Well, we are filing 2022 on paper because we are too late to do so online. Just so you know, the 1040-EZ went away in 2018. Have I mentioned how much I hate the IRS and the federal govt? (I’m sure I’ll get a knock at my door on this one.) Needless to say, I’ve just wasted 2 hours of my life and I’m in a bad mood.
This is on the heels of a meeting in Springfield today. I was invited to attend a Robertson County Republican meeting. This particular meeting was discussing campaign strategies. To be honest, I’m not sure that the Boomers and Silent Generation really understand what’s going on with social media and local content. Many of these people are still thinking big campaign donations and rallies and tables with handouts. Not sure about the rest of you GenXers, but I’m not about to talk to anyone at a table or a rally. I’m so soured on politicians, I’m not sure I’ll ever give another dime to a presidential candidate or a congressman. If only the libertarians weren’t quite so crazy, I might be able to get behind them.
That being said, here’s what’s up. The school boards across America need to be changed. Not sure how many of you watched what happened in Loudin County VA, but it was a sh$$show. Sumner County is having issues as well. Big fight over the director of schools in Sumner. It’s all over the nation though. Have you seen any LibsofTikTok on X(Twitter)? Obviously something is going on if we have the state of TN looking to ban all flags except the US and TN flags in schools. (I’m all for that) Crazy that we have to be having this discussion at all.
What are my issues with the school board? Well, first let me say I have not been to a meeting. I have watched a couple online, and it’s crazy how short they are. This is my list of issues.
You can’t speak in front of the school board unless it is an agenda item. If you want to speak on an agenda item, you have to submit your statement in writing before the meeting? WTF??????
The meetings are videoed and uploaded to YouTube. The planning sessions are not. In fact, there is very little information on the planning sessions.
There are no minutes from the meeting or the planning sessions available online. At least if there are, they are not on the website.
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It seems that the “business” of the school board is actually discussed at the planning sessions, and then voted on in the live meetings. The planning sessions start around 5 pm on the meeting days.
The board receives some sort of packet. It was referred to in a meeting as the SharePoint. I cannot find that on their website. There is not public access to the information. I could probably ask for it, but all packets with all reports are available on the City of White House website. It can be made available.
Football, basketball, and a few other sports are a fourth block class. That is one of four classes of the day. That is 1.5 hours of the day in a sport. It’s not all sports, only a select few. Do not begin to tell me you take education seriously until this is somehow addressed.
Now what? Robertson County School board has several seats up for election and re-election in 2024. The primary is in March. Many of these people need to be replaced. The biggest issue I currently have is transparency. Yes, I homeschool, but I pay taxes and my kids play sports with the public school. I should be able to take an issue to the school board and have it in the public record. I can’t, and neither can you. If you have an issue that isn’t on the agenda, you can send an email. Yep, I’ve done that and NOTHING gets done. It doesn’t matter if you vote red or blue, we should all be able to get behind transparency. If the candidate you like doesn’t want public comment, find a new candidate. They are public SERVANTS, we do not work for them. We hire and fire them. Let’s fire all of those that don’t want to hear from us. Ask that candidate why the planning sessions aren’t videoed. If they tell you that they don’t need to be, find a new candidate. Ask the candidate why the packets aren’t up for the public.
Over the last month, I have met several of the candidates running for school board. I hope to meet with them in the coming weeks. Full disclosure, I have no idea who’s running on the democrat ticket, or if they even have a candidate. If they reach out to me, I’ll meet them. Again, if you are pro transparency we can talk. If you are at all interested in the candidates, here is a meeting that the Republicans are holding next week. I’ll be at a wrestling match.
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I think that perhaps you should run for president. I too am sick of all things government. Our country is beyond broken, and I don't even know if there is a way to fix it at this point.
I completely agree with you on transparency and I also think there is some truth to the lack of need for "politics" in local government. On the other hand, I'm a "Boomer" and I don't think it's fair to lump all of us into a single group any more than it's fair to lump any generation into one. This is what bothers me the most about our society right now. It's become so "tribal" that there's very little willingness to talk or listen or negotiate with anyone who has the wrong label. Young and old, left and right should be able to talk to each other respectfully without fear of getting "benched" by their team. In my experience, life is not a team sport, and finding "win-win" solutions is the better way to go. And now, this old boomer is off to take his mid-morning nap. LOL!