I am not involved in the issue, but I think it is good news. The right wingers have
been undermining funding for and public commitment to the public schools with voucher
programs. These have been upheld, e.g., in Cleveland and Milwaukee. They are attacked
on 1st amend., establishment clause grounds, which is right, because they provide an
excuse to channel lots of government money mainly to Catholic schools--which are,
incidentally, in big financial trouble.
However, the real problem with these programs is that they are bad on policy rather
than constitutional grounds. They suggest that the solution to the problem sof inner
city schools ius to write off those schools, privatize the system, and give poor kids
money to go to Catholic school. Also connected with vouchers is the charter school
movement, if possible an even worse idea, but one giving no purchase for
constitutional attack.
There have been a few setbacks for vouchers, mostly on establishment clause grounds.
What is surprising here is that this setback came from a presumably elected state
court judge. We will see if he is affirmed or reversed on appeal.
--jks
> Any one involved in this issue that can give a overview of what this
> means?
>
>
> A Florida judge has ruled that it is a violation of the state's
> constitution for students to use taxpayer money for private school
> tuition, curtailing the nation's boldest experiment at using market
> pressure
> to improve failing schools.
>
> The decision, which the state says it will appeal, is the second major
> legal
> setback for voucher proponents in recent months, following a federal
> judge's ruling that Cleveland's voucher program contravenes the First
> Amendment's separation of church and state,
>
> Florida's was the first statewide voucher program and the first to tie
> voucher eligibility to schools' performance on standardized tests. It
> serves
> as a model for a national voucher plan proposed by Gov. George W.
> Bush of Texas, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, and has
>
> been copied by several of the 25 state legislatures currently
> considering
> new voucher initiatives.
>
> rest of article at
>
> http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/late/14cnd-vouchers.html
>
> --
> Rod Hay
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> The History of Economic Thought Archive
> http://socserv2.mcmaster.ca/~econ/ugcm/3ll3/index.html
> Batoche Books
> http://Batoche.co-ltd.net/
> 52 Eby Street South
> Kitchener, Ontario
> N2G 3L1
> Canada
