Sometimes I wish President Trump would e-mail his preferred policy to Mark Meadows to memorialize it and go out and say he wants the opposite. Reopening schools is no different. Had he gone out and said schools would absolutely need to stay closed, Democrats and the commies in the teachers’ unions would have thrown the doors open without hesitation.
Then he could just come out and thank them for doing what he actually wanted in the first place—waving the e-mail for the entire White House press corps to see. By then, they would have turned themselves into pretzels to advocate for the exact thing the president wanted. It would simultaneously expose their derangement and political calculations.
Reopening Schools… as Daycares?
Instead, we end up with absolute absurdity. director of school choice for the Reason Foundation, Corey DeAngelis, has been following the school reopening debate closely. Today via Twitter he reported the following:
Arizona isn't allowed to reopen public schools yet
So Cave Creek Unified School District is reopening elementary schools as "childcare centers"
They are charging families $200 per child per week.
— Corey A. DeAngelis (@DeAngelisCorey) July 22, 2020
This announcement is from one of three Arizona school districts pulling the same stunt. Mayor de Blasio in New York City is pulling a similar trick. Somehow it is okay for children to arrive in groups in public buildings for child care, but not for schools. This arrangement is absurd on its face.
De Blasio to Replace NYC Schools with ‘Public Childcare Program’
At least Mayor de Blasio is not charging parents for this ridiculousness. The schools in Arizona are. I have a few simple questions. Who is staffing these facilities to care for school-age children inside school buildings? And why should parents who already pay property taxes to fund the schools have to pay one red cent for the privilege?
If it is school teachers who will be staffing the centers, then they need to be giving a full day of instruction, without charging families a dime. If it is other hired staff, the teachers’ salaries and additional district funds should be diverted to pay them. In other words, stop the nonsense and let’s get to reopening schools.
Over 20 industrialized nations have reopened schools without a single identifiable cluster of COVID-19. Every bit of science and data shows that children do not suffer the ill effects of COVID-19 and rarely if ever, pass it on to an adult. This situation may change somewhat in high school as far as transmitting the virus, but not in terms of suffering severe illness.
Betsy DeVos Takes on Dems and COVID-19 Science-Deniers in the Teachers’ Union to Reopen Schools
Advocates for reopening schools have offered lots of wiggle room. As long as a five-day in-person schedule is provided, many modifications can be made. Give terrified parents who can’t understand the extremely low risk a virtual option. Allow teachers to teach behind plexiglass or virtually from home with an in-class procter. The important thing is to get children back in the building.
Some districts are requiring teachers to come in and conduct virtual classes. Teachers are far more likely to pass it among each other than the children are to give it to them. In fact, a study in Germany concluded that children could actually act as a brake on the transmission of the disease. The path of the virus ends with them when they do not pass it on.
Coronavirus and the Young: Science Says They Don’t Spread It, But They Can Help Fight It
It can not be stressed enough how this pause in education will magnify disparities for years to come. Children whose parents have the ability will form micro-schools, hire tutors, and may thrive exponentially in these smaller guided settings. Other children will log into virtual schools once a week and fall behind. The data is clear.
Additionally, children with special needs like speech impediments and autism spectrum disorder, and those in need of academic support will be missing needed services if their parents can not replace them. Because school districts are obligated to provide these services, most insurance programs do not cover them. While many parents can help with math and reading to some degree, very few can replace these specialized services.
What Democrats, the corporate media and the activist teachers’ unions are doing to our children in hopes of an electoral victory is just criminal. Our Health Experts™ should be shaming these groups for ignoring the data and not educating our children. Dr. Scott Atlas has been endlessly advocating this, but his platform is not the same as that of the sainted Dr. Fauci.
And you have to wonder: If they are willing to harm children to grab power, what will they do when they get it?
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