George Clooney Helps Brazil?

Several days ago, I read an article by Nicholas Kristof on his travels with George Clooney to Darfur. In case you didn't know already, Mr. Clooney volunteers as an emissary for the United Nations. His celebrity status helps draw attention to issues of genocide, poverty, and refugee conditions in parts of the world that so many of us ignore. If we don't ignore them, we feel powerless at times to do anything about them. It seems so far away and unreal to us at times, even though technology has brought it right to our computer screens if we take the time to look. Mr. Kristof writes of his frustration of not being able to get governments to step in to try to stop some of what is going on over there. While I am far from being an expert on the subject of African politics and social structure, the stories he has told along with the various full length movies about some of the similar situations in other African countries like Rwanda, South Africa, and Kenya leave me with the powerless feeling I just mentioned.

So, in desperation Mr. Kristof promised to add any tidbits of movie star gossip to his column in order to grab the attention of his readers. He even alluded to some information about something Mr. Clooney did that caused the United Nations to remove his official UN escort. I will put that information at the end of this blog for the same reason... to keep you reading what I have to say.

I too am frustrated. Not so much by the lack of concern we have for our fellow men, women, and children on another continent, but about the lack of concern we have for them right here in Clay County. While we have a number of citizens who invest time into improving the welfare of others, we have too many who are wearing blinders to the needs of those around them, especially when it comes to the area of education and the direct effect the quality of education our students receive has on the health and economy of our entire community. When one is a part of a community one agrees to share its burdens, especially when the help is needed.

I am tired of listening to fellow Clay Countians saying that taxes are too high when we don't have enough money to lower crime (yes lower, not fight as with a better education, fewer will turn to drugs and crime), to keep roads and water pipes in good repair, or to keep class sizes down to more reasonable levels. I am tired of being one of only 2-3 other tax payers at school board meetings unless it's a sports related issue or an issue that ONLY involves an individual's own child. I am tired of the local fire company having to have benefit breakfasts in order to stay afloat instead of using that time to either undergo further training or spend time with their families because we aren't supporting them sufficiently with our taxes. I'm tired of children not having access to a library so more can be addicted to books instead of drugs, even if their parents can't read. The rest of us let this happen because the good ole boys don't want to invest an additional few dollarsa year to help raise the level of literacy in this county. Most of all I'm tired of those who complain about having to pay taxes and then turn around and can't seem to figure out why our community can't do the things it needs to maintain a decent economic level of stability, as well as growth. These are the same people who wonder why a house in Clay County is worth only about $70,000 when the same one in Vigo County may be worth over $100,000. Maybe it's because the people in Vigo pay more for schools, for roads, to fight crime? To help raise the chances of their citizens being more literate? Maybe their level of education offered brings more people into the county who truly care about education to put their money where their mouths are?

Let's talk about education. While a graduate from Clay County can succeed, we have had to cut so many corners due to lack of funding that the individual is going to have [or his parents are going to have] more self motivation in order to be aware of what he needs and to "fight" to get it. If the parents NOR the student are aware that the voting, taxpaying community on the whole does not feel we need to continually strive to be better than we are, they are only going to get a mediocre education and be unable to compete for careers of today, never mind the ones of tomorrow. You see, many other communities throughout Indiana, throughout the United States, and yes, throughout the world are competing with all of us here in Clay County Indiana for jobs. It's not only the Mexican farm worker who picks cucumbers in North Carolina. It's not only the day labor construction worker in the larger cities. It's for accounting positions, engineers, doctors and even teachers. These other students are competing for those spots in colleges and universities, trade schools and technical schools. They are competing for scholarships and loans.

We as a community need to compete as if we were in a race with the entire world as well...for we are. It may start out a little more subtle than the graduate who goes out to compete for the job, but it's a race none the less. We know now that those coveted car factories are shrinking due to the economy. Less trailers being built by Great Dane as diesel fuel goes up and up and shipping costs rise prices of certain products right off the market. If our county can't afford to invest back into its infrastructure, including schools, libraries, roads, water, and yes even some zoning to assure others who are looking to move here that their investment will be protected, we will not be able to compete for those others we need to invest in our county in the future. Sure some in our community have lived here a long while. The decline has been slow so not easily seen, but compare our 6 period day in the high school. Compare our lack of higher level course availability. Compare our roads. Compare our development at I70 interchange with those to other exits in other counties that have more reliable water and sewer sources, more access maintenance.

Each person here needs to start thinking about the bigger picture with their pocketbook, with their vote, and with the time they invest to speak out in order that we invest in giving our students the best education they can get so they AND our county with its school system can also be competitive. Each parent needs to know or find out what courses their child needs to take in order to achieve a better goal than simply to graduate. A high school diploma alone will not get you very far in today's job market. Finishing high school is now only a beginning where it used to be the culmination of many individuals' educational career. Being top in the class is not the goal as that only shows that you are the big fish in quite a small pond. After high school you are thrown into an ocean so large that your 4.00 GPA is the same as scores of others and your 2.00 will have you competing with billions. While keeping taxes low is to our community like keeping one's money in the mattress when their roof needs to be fixed. It's plain foolish to let our community loose its worth because people don't want to pay to keep it maintained.

Time for people to wake up. Time for taxpayers to pay for needed maintenance and improvements to keep our community healthy and competitive in today's world. Time for voters to vote so our community can again thrive as it once did before and not let it decay because we think it will be maintained on yesterday's achievements. Time for parents to realize that their children's schooling is one of the most important things they are doing and should be their main responsibility and job during those years in order that they get the most that they possibly can out of it. Not the part time job to support the car, not the Wii's, not the foot ball team. No not even the band. Band and football are great but if your child cannot handle excellent grades in chemistry, English and math, while putting time into band, which does a parent choose? Which is going to enable them to go on to college and make a decent living when you are not there to take care of him? You are his parent. Not his buddy. He will have plenty of buddies who don't give a darn about his grades and his ability to provide for a family. He has only two parents. Sometimes only one. Step up and be there when he makes out his schedule. Email or call his teachers to KNOW if his homework is turned in and he is on task and understanding. Learning takes time in and outside of the classroom. Whether it's practicing those spelling words with third grader EVERY night ad nauseum [I know. I did it and fell asleep between words sometimes] or asking to look at homework sets, even if you don't understand them, to see that work was done and then asking if they understood it and THEN dialing homework hotline at Rose-Hulman to get him help even if he says he's "too embarrassed " or it's "not cool." Parents are NEVER going to be cool anyhow so why try.

If we don't step up people, we will continue to slide down. Our houses will be worth less and less (imagine if your house had no running water when pipes get so bad or so much crime that insurance rates went sky high but no market for your house due to these things). The education our kids leave high school will leave them less able to compete for jobs and positions in colleges to further their education.

Some of us would like to be isolationists; content to ignore the outside world. The rest of the world however is not ignoring us, but passing us by. We were once the hare and a good deal ahead in the race but we stopped to take a nap...and slept too long. The millions of tortoises in the world have already passed us by. We have become disengaged. We are losing. We are in it deep. Get on the phone. Read the paper;call your child's teacher. Vote. Speak with the community in mind, not just your own pocketbook. Doing that will in turn increase the value of your own personal assets whether it isthe value of your house or the quality of your water. The salary of your neighbor due to a company investing in the county, or the fact that he can buy more at your store. We all need TO BE engaged. We all need to be involved. We will get what we pay for in money and in time invested. Someone the other day told me that they thought they couldn't go to school board meetings because they didn't have kids in school. WRONG. We all have a vested interest in the successes and failings of our schools.

As I promised, here is the website for that article so you can learn what George Clooney did that causedthe UN to remove his official escort. Have fun with it. Thank you Mr. Clooney and Mr. Kristof.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/19/opinio...