loving art, science and creative kids

 Nurturing

43 in. by 84”/ gold frame/ acrylic/mixed media / $ 1,100

Just as we need to care for the environment, we must nurture our citizens. Societies that do not value all lose freedoms and become ripe for autocratic control.  They spawn violence, vulgarity and criminal behavior. 

Politics of the Uneducated

Do you wonder why so many angry, cursing, ready to fight people are jumping into the political arena this year?   What is happening and where does this impolite behavior come from?  I never believed it was such a prevalent part of our culture.   Donald Trump said proudly after one of his rallies, “Don’t you just love the uneducated!”  Though in context he implied that he loves everyone, his comment made me think about the uneducated making decisions for me and I don’t like the thought.  

According to Ruth Marcus syndicated  Washington writer, Trump’s backers tend to be less well-educated and less affluent.  In the past they were apathetic about politics yet this year they run in droves to join Trump’s bandwagon. He primarily appeals to those who are white,  dislike African-Americans and Muslims, want a hands-off government and a country that practices isolationism.  Like those who who join with Bernie they complain of trade treaties that take jobs overseas.   They want  manufacturing to return to American soil and expect to be hired for a fair wage.  I am not so sure about that wish, and imagine frugal entrepreneurs will substitute automation for labor if they do return.  The poorly educated would like to rid the country of illegal immigrants,  yet I question their willingness to go into the fields to pick strawberries and apples.

What happens when a society has an overabundance of uneducated people and not enough available jobs for laborers?  How should our politicians address this situation?  You be the judge.  Bear with me as we wade through a few statistics.

The nation’s graduation rate is currently at 82.3 percent. This is an improvement from the 72 percent rate in 2001 yet the statistic is misleading. Some communities still have 50 percent of their students never graduate from high school. Race and poverty are the most significant factors influencing drop outs.  Oregon is one of the worst states with 31 percent of students leaving before getting a degree. 15 other states are nearly as bad.  1000 schools in the U.S. are labeled drop out factories  representing one million failing students.  

According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (known as the Nation’s Report Card), though graduation rates are higher, performance is lower.  The Huffington Post reports that the U.S. illiteracy rate hasn’t change in ten years.  32 million adults in the U.S. cannot read.  That number represents 14 percent of the population.  19 percent of high school graduates are functionally illiterate.   What future is there for these youth?  What kind of employment opportunities do they have?  Would you hire them?  Does a high school diploma have the same benefits as it did years ago?

Those without a degree cannot serve in the military.  They cannot fill the skilled jobs that our economy depends on.  US News predicts that, “the manufacturing labor market, which supported a vibrant middle class at the end of World War II, is never coming back.”   Jobs in health care, social assistance and technology will grow, construction stay the same, and mining, manufacturing, and logging will continue to decrease.  So what happens to the uneducated?

The Department of Justice states that, "The link between academic failure and delinquency, violence, and crime is welded to reading failure.”  The uneducated are more likely to engage in criminal behavior, require social services, live on the streets, have poor health and die younger.   Much of their current situation has to do with traumatic childhood experiences.  They grew up in poverty with inadequate food and neglectful caretakers.  They were subjected to verbal abuse and put-downs (You’ll never amount to anything!), violence, and early exposure to  drugs and alcohol.  They may have been sexually molested, treated as slaves, become pregnant as a teen or thrown out of the house because of LGBT affiliation.

Research I have read about trauma and its effect on the brain shows that youth raised in stressful environments often exhibit signs of impaired brain development.   These young people suffer from a lack of trust, have problems regulating emotions and feel the world to be unsafe. In the classroom they are the spaced-out, daydreamers who don’t pay attention. They lose track of time and have little interest in learning, occupying seats until graduation gives them freedom.  Impulsive behavior replaces rational thought and their actions are unpredictable, volatile and extreme.  They grow up feeling powerless in the face of adversity and act defensively and aggressively.   These are the uneducated.  Do they seem like characters in “Lord of the Flies,” rather than kind compassionate citizens?  It is these men and women who are attending political rallies in record numbers.  They heed the call to punch those who oppose their viewpoint.  And yet though they act poorly, they are also crying out for a better future.  Their actions are making Americans pay attention.  But how do we respond with jobs and housing for so many disaffected citizens who live in poverty?

There are consequences to neglecting this group of citizens, and election speeches are raising many issues that have not come to the forefront of past campaigns.   Let’s look at them.

Should wealth  be in the hands of a few or many?  Do we need to increase our defense budget?  Should we pay more attention to education or get rid of the Department of Education?  ( remember that more kids are graduating now.) Should cursing, violent movies and videos continue to be plastered on TV and Internet without concern for morality?  Is it OK to supersede the  melting pot ideal by hatred and isolation? Are guns and drugs the norm for all time in the future? Is the environment as important as the economy?  Should we applaud efficiency and let robots replace the uneducated or are jobs more important?  Do we limit population so we can afford to care for those who exist?  Do we want beggars and the homeless on or off the streets if it costs tax payers money?  Do we continue to put record numbers of the mentally ill and those who commit crimes in prison for long years without rehabilitation?  Do we keep out those with whom we disagree or do we bring them into our country to teach them our ways?

You decide!!!!

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References:

         http://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2015/12/15/459821708/u-s-high-school-graduation-rate-hits-new-record-high-  NPR Education      Report. 

         http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/06/illiteracy-rate_n_3880355.html - Literacy rates 

http://money.usnews.com/money/careers/articles/2012/09/10/the-future-workforce -workforce of the future.                                       __________

The True Story of Streetwise by Marilynne Eichinger is a personal and poignant tale of one man's struggle to overcome homelessness after living on the streets for four years.   It can be purchased as an e book on AMAZON.