Right-wing Oligarchs and Education
The Unspoken Context of the HB-1 Debate
In response to the HB-1 visa debate, unlike Vivek Ramaswamy, my first thought didn’t turn to “Friends” or sleepovers.
No, my mind went to a different place:
Some of the very oligarchs decrying that our nation does not generate enough home-grown talent to fill high tech jobs are also the ones who have been destroying our system of public education for decades.
And by that I’m primarily referring to the state-level (and soon-to-be nationwide) push for universal private vouchers and low-flying for-profit charter schools, which we know are delivering terrible results while leading to slashed public education budgets:
In most states undertaking these policies, we have no idea HOW the recipient schools are even spending tax dollars. And as we recently saw in Ohio, politicians refuse to allow apples-to-apples comparisons by requiring the schools receiving public funds via vouchers to be subject to the same tests as public schools.
It turns out, in the states that have pushed the full “universal voucher” approach (no income limits), the primary beneficiaries (75% or more in many of these states) are the narrow slice of families who were already attending private schools, and who could already afford those schools. The vast majority of American students attend public schools, which means the vast majority of kids in these states are seeing dollars for their education diminished. (Again, this is about to become national policy).
If oligarchs like Musk and minions like Ramaswamy want far more top-flight, American-educated talent to fill the complex jobs of the 21st century, the education policies they are thrusting on this country accomplish the very opposite of what we need to be doing.
And if you are a national competitor of the US in the global quest for the most talented 21st-century workforce, such reckless American policies must feel like a gift.
Which got me thinking.
What other policies do the right-wing oligarchs push that undermine the goal of generating as much American home-grown talent as possible?
So damn many. Such as:
pushing to repeal child labor laws so that a chunk of America’s young people leave school and do dangerous jobs like work in meat processing plants as opposed to getting the skills they need;
cutting funds to public higher education so that ever higher tuition is borne by students and their families, making higher ed less affordable for middle class or low income families;
opposing student debt relief, which again creates a huge barrier to young Americans educating themselves to be as prepared as possible in this ever more competitive world;
eliminating Head Start and other early childhood interventions—we know what a difference they make;
attacking science and scientific research relentlessly—both in funding it, but also by broadly attacking the higher ed institutions and academics who conduct it.
That’s just to name a few.
Bottom line: to prepare American young people and workers for the 21st century economy, a true strategic national plan would involve investment to lift and improve all this education infrastructure. That could be our 21st century moonshot if we were serious.
But our current political system is dominated by right-wing oligarchs pushing policies that do the exact opposite, who then complain (and some, justify their own hiring practices) that there just aren’t enough top-flight American workers to do these jobs.
All while Ramswamy thinks it’s about sleepovers and “Friends.”
Day 32 — January 1, 2025
A brutal terrorist attack in the opening hours of 2025 killed at least 15 people in New Orleans, while injuring dozens more. Before noon, with details still sparse but with FOX News airing false information that the terrorist had crossed the border days before, President-elect Trump messaged that his prior statement that “the criminals coming in are far worse than the criminals we have in this country…turned out to be true” in New Orleans.
Hours later, the terrorist who committed the act was revealed to be a native of Texas and a military veteran, who said in a video that he was inspired by ISIS.
Fox retracted its original false report. But despite his original statement being exposed as false, Trump later messaged that the attack was due to “open borders,” and blamed the DOJ, FBI and Democratic officials for failing to do their job.
HB-1 scam has been pushed by Big Tech because it is profitable in the short run. All for the benefit of stockholders, pension fund managers, and in the end…American and Global investors.
I just read “Winners Take All.” It’s a scathing analysis of b/millionaires who have meetings like Clinton’s Aspen group which makes the rich feel less guilty but still keeps the rest of us poor or struggling.