College: for every - er, ah, - rich people only

This article was in the NYTimes today. This is a really blatant example of the reproduction of a class system through education - openly saying that they aren't letting poor people into college but will accept rich folks who can pay. Doesn't that go against the "American belief" that if you work hard you can achieve anything? I think it establishes a counter argument that - if you have enough money you can buy into anything.

Now, this is not new - wealthy people have had an advantage in going to college all along. Not only are they more able to pay for schooling, but they also had advantages in admissions (legacy awards, etc).

But this story goes further - it blatantly says that poor people are not wanted. The 'bad' economy is no excuse for such action. The president of the University of Minnesota is making over 700,000 a year. Our tax dollars are going to 'bail out' rich people on the backs of hard working tax-payers. I think I know where some cuts can be made and some redistribution can occur.

My favorite part of this story is that they go on to blame poor people for bad education. This quote may tell all:

“You can’t say someone should be need-blind unless they have the resources to fund it,” said Dr. Schapiro, at Williams. “It sounds immoral to replace really talented low-income kids with less talented richer kids, but unless you’re a Williams or an Amherst, the alternative is the quality of the education declines for everyone.”

So, not it is the fault of poor people that education in this nation sucks.

Hm... I think not.

Anyway, I thought the article may be useful for mobilizing people, opening the eyes of others to the erroneous economic system we find ourselves in, and teaching about the replication of class structure and inequality in higher education.

Treatment of People with Disabilities

I was reading the paper today, and came across these articles...

1) "Cameras Installed after School 'Fight Club' Scandal". At first, I figured it was a high school that some kids had organized a fight club in. Oh, no, it is far worse. Rather, the Texas Agency of Aging and Disabilities Services - at Corpus Christi - a school for people with disabilities - was found to have a fight club, organized by staff. This club involved staff members forcing their clients - people with mental and physical disabilities - to fight, a process on which they bet. (http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/03/11/texas.school.fight.club/index.html) I can't even tell you how mad that makes me. People who are trusted to care for and assist others are knowingly putting them in harms way and betting on it! What kind of a sick, twisted world do we live in?

Not surprisingly, there was also an article about how we get a "D" as a nation, in caring for people with mental disabilities. (http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/mentalhealth/03/11/mental.illness/index.html)