So that is what clear gets you!

Japanese TV... AWESOME
French TV... worse than American TV.

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Is that the real Chris Gardner he's competing against?

"Gardner's personal struggle of establishing himself as a stockbroker while managing fatherhood and homelessness is portrayed in the 2006 motion picture The Pursuit of Happyness, starring Will Smith."

He must have called on the power of Xenu.

Awww helll no!!

As a personality I love Will Smith, and he seems to have a great sense of humour and talent as an actor.

BUT

Then there are things that give me pause:

* Homeschooling: I'm sorry to anyone who practices this, but MAN is that an arrogant thing to do. It's saying "I know so much about the world and everything in it that I think I can do a better job teaching my kids than people who do it for a living". Or, is it severe insecurity? "I'm so worried that the beliefs I've been teaching my children will not hold up to scrutiny and comparison to others that I must shield them". Really, it just makes your children more insular, less able to handle situations and life in general. You may not like everything that's taught in schools (perhaps you're a *shudder* creationist), but you should be that convinced of your beliefs that you should feel your kids can be taught other things and yet maintain what you think is true because the arguments for doing so are that convincing.

* The rumours that he is/has been/is thinking of being a Scientologist. Now... as much as I dislike religion in general, when you're born into it I can understand people maintaining it, it's what they've been brought up with, it seems normal, comforting etc. etc.... BUT if you come at a 'religion' like Scientology as an adult, with an outsiders eyes on it... HOW can you see it as ANYTHING but an enormous scam and money making enterprise? HOW?

* Seems to have a serious issue with homosexuality... On a talkshow thing we have here called Rove. Now, with every guest he does a silly thing called "20 bucks in 20 seconds", he asks a bunch of silly questions and then pays the person $20 for answering them... Now, he always, always asks at the end 'who would you turn gay for'... it's a silly question, and every guest just gives a funny response, or comes up with some male that they would if they were to... but Will... he won't even list a superhero when given a list to choose from... see for yourself, go to around the 5:05 minute mark to start the 20 questions thing, it's the last question... he never says yes to anything. It gives me pause... makes me think he actually has a real problem with being gay, with being linked to being gay... I mean, come on... it's a stupid question, why the hesitation?

Doesn't stop me liking his movies, but I just... sometimes wouldn't you just like to really know what they're like?

[edit] Ha, you know, just then, looking to see if there were any quotes of his in regards to homosexuality I found there's a gazillion rumours and articles suggesting he is gay... hah, man there's a million hilarious things around.

You know, if he were gay/bisexual/whatever, I wish we lived in a world where it wasn't even cause for rumour or something to be hidden... but it is, something to be hidden away for fear of the damage it could do to box office takings...

I know how he did this.

You know that bionic hand he had in "I, Robot"?

He never gave it back after filming.

Spoco,

A lot of celebrities homeschool their kids because of the safety issues. It's a bit awkward for a kid, especially one who's been in movies, to be followed around by a body guard all day at school.

The rumours about scientology are because he's good friends with Tom Cruise, and probably doesn't want to start any fights by coming out and saying "Yeah that stupid Xenu believin' cult, nah I wouldn't want to join them, JC FTW y'all"

As for the gay thing, a lot of the African American community isn't very accepting of homosexuality, as we saw back in November with all the anti-gay legislation that was passed, with surprisingly high percentages of blacks voting anti-gay.

I just wish he'd stick to the action/comedy movies. Most of his dramatic roles have bored me out of my seat. It's like "Yea, you've got chops, stop pandering to the Academy and fucking blow something up and quip about it already!"

>> ^Smugglarn:
So that is what clear gets you!


Wow I had no idea he had Scientology issues - here's a tidbit I just read in Wikipedia:

After finishing work on the film Hancock, Smith gave crew members gift cards for a Scientology personality test at any Church of Scientology center as a wrap present, despite the fact that initial personality tests given by the organization are usually free.

WTF?

He's still high on the cool-o-meter but he just dropped below the megafonzies line for me.

This clip doesn't start with a random cube - I think there's something before this.

He's turning very slow and he's using the "normal" method of top then middle then bottom with just the basic moves - so even if this is the second minute he's lucky to be finishing in time (likely got some "free stuff" on the middle and bottom layers).

Initially I was quite impressed to have him do it in a minute (which takes a fair bit of practice to be able to do reliably). Barely eking out a solve in two minutes, turning slowly, means that he took a couple hours to learn the steps.

>> ^spoco2:
Homeschooling: I'm sorry to anyone who practices this, but MAN is that an arrogant thing to do. It's saying "I know so much about the world and everything in it that I think I can do a better job teaching my kids than people who do it for a living". Or, is it severe insecurity? "I'm so worried that the beliefs I've been teaching my children will not hold up to scrutiny and comparison to others that I must shield them". Really, it just makes your children more insular, less able to handle situations and life in general. You may not like everything that's taught in schools (perhaps you're a shudder creationist), but you should be that convinced of your beliefs that you should feel your kids can be taught other things and yet maintain what you think is true because the arguments for doing so are that convincing.


My wife and I homeschool our children. You post is simply full of all the public misconceptions concerning homeschooling. Our decision to homeschool is based on none of your assumptions and our children face none of the difficulties that you are assuming. We are not creationists, nor intelligent designer-ists. We don't believe an any religion.

You are also confusing "homeschooling" with "shut-ins" of which my children are not. They are out interacting with other homeschooled kids at various public homeschooling activities throughout the city 3 days of the week.

CrushBug is right, spoco2, you clearly know little about homeschooling or the myriad reasons for it. To assume it's just arrogance is pretty ignorant. There are great networks of homeschoolers for socialization, not to mention that many homeschoolers do extracurricular things like sports and music at public schools or other group settings. And it's honestly not hard to see how a reasonably intelligent set of parents could teach one (or even four) kids better than a professional who is tasked with corralling and instructing 30 kids who are at widely varying levels of ability.

That's not to say that there are some terrible home schooling stories out there, but there's always bad stories about all schools public/private/charter/home notwithstanding. If all you can think of when you hear about homeschoolers is creationists and shut-ins, then you know next to nothing about the subject.

Wow spoco, complete fail with that homeschooling comment. You are the one who should learn something here...

Ok, so tell me the real reasons as to why you've chosen to homeschool? You have said it's none of the reasons I give... so, why do you do so?

[edit]
According to a survey mentioned in the wiki article on homeschooling. 85 percent of homeschooling parents cited "the social environments of other forms of schooling" (including safety, drugs, bullying and negative peer-pressure) as an important reason why they homeschool. 72 percent cited "to provide religious or moral instruction" as an important reason, and 68 percent cited "dissatisfaction with academic instruction at other schools." So, the vast majority of parents are doing this either because they think their children can't handle being around other children, or due to religious reasons. Neither of which I think are doing the kids any favours whatsoever.

Surely the longer that the kids are away from formalized education, the harder they're going to find it to actually move into it eventually (As I'm assuming you aren't accredited to hand our bachelor degrees).

What is so bad about school that makes you feel that your kids won't learn there?

(There are those that do so because their child has learning difficulties or other impairments which makes formal learning, or being around other children difficult, and I can definitely see the case for this. At our children's old kinder they had a few Autistic kids that were hugely disruptive to the sessions for pretty much the entire time, required their own aids to ensure they didn't hurt the other children (which they did) or destroy things (which they did)... and really, to what end? It was hard to see that they were actually benefiting from the time themselves as they seemed to spend the entire time being angry and upset and not actually doing anything in the way of learning or socializing. )

>> ^clanboru15:
Wow spoco, complete fail with that homeschooling comment. You are the one who should learn something here...


Really, that is just a childish comment to make. Really...

As I have said in my comment, the two who took objection didn't actually specify why they homeschool their kids, just said that why I said that people do (which according to large surveys are the MAJOR reasons that people DO do homeschooling) was wrong.

Until they come back with any good reasons why they/the majority of people do homeschooling other than those reasons (and the few exceptions where it is the only real option), my comments stand.

I think you could do with shutting your mouth and not seeming like a little punk in the back of the room shouting 'yeah! yeah! Take that!' at people who you think are being served, without actually reading or listening to the content of the arguments.

>> ^spoco2:
Ok, so tell me the real reasons as to why you've chosen to homeschool? You have said it's none of the reasons I give... so, why do you do so?
[edit]
According to a survey mentioned in the wiki article on homeschooling. 85 percent of homeschooling parents cited "the social environments of other forms of schooling" (including safety, drugs, bullying and negative peer-pressure) as an important reason why they homeschool. 72 percent cited "to provide religious or moral instruction" as an important reason, and 68 percent cited "dissatisfaction with academic instruction at other schools." So, the vast majority of parents are doing this either because they think their children can't handle being around other children, or due to religious reasons. Neither of which I think are doing the kids any favours whatsoever.

Looking at that survey, it seems to be in the United States whereas we are in Canada. Most of those reasons/problems in the US don't exist in Canada and none of those reasons are why we homeschool.

In fact, you are assuming that homeschooling has nothing to do with public education. In Edmonton it does. We are registered with the Edmonton Public School Board and we have EPSB facilitator that we meet with once a month. We are given the choice of following the Alberta Curriculum or following our own, or a blend of both. We are members of two different homeschooling groups in town and most of the educational destinations (science center, art gallery, etc.) offer homeschool events during the day that are far more fascinating than the field trips I went on.

What is so bad about school that makes you feel that your kids won't learn there?

There is nothing bad about school and our kids would absolutely learn there. This has nothing to do with the schooling available, as the Edmonton Public School Board is renowned in many North American education circles and we have many educators that that visit and study the system in Edmonton. This isn't about trying to get away from something bad. This is just an educational choice.

Surely the longer that the kids are away from formalized education, the harder they're going to find it to actually move into it eventually (As I'm assuming you aren't accredited to hand our bachelor degrees).

Amusingly enough, my wife recently attended a homeschooling round table where that exact question always get asked. There were a number of students up there that were attending college and university that were homeschooled. Some of them decided to attend high school, others took a year of college before going into university. Some just challenged the high school finals and went into university never once attending elementary, Jr. or Sr. high. Short answer: there are no problems and its not that hard. And its worth noting that college/university education is nothing like high school.

Why do we homeschool? Because we want to.

^ You've given a lot of interesting information there, and I know that there is a lot of interaction between homeschoolers and the school system in many countries (Australia included, where I am). But other than 'because we want to' you don't give any reason.

I ask, because it's no small thing to decide to do, and it's a huge investment in your time to undertake, so other than the most common reasons of religious differences or concerns about how their children would handle a school environment... I'm just at a loss as to what would make someone choose that path.

I also ask because I find that I can look back on my schooling and remember fondly many teachers, and how their differing outlooks on things have helped shaped me. I can also look back with interest at those teachers I did not like, but that in itself was helpful as it taught one to look critically at those in positions of authority, and also how to learn despite such people... which is a great skill to have for later study/work.

Will no one really come right out and say why they choose homeschooling? It is one of those areas where I fully support the ability to do it (it freaks me out that there are many places where it's illegal), but I am still yet to have someone make me see a reason that I could really identify with.

(ie. I understand the religious/scared of bullying reasons, just think avoiding the school is the wrong solution)

He's an actor.

Actors are on average very stupid people.

>> ^spoco2:
I ask, because it's no small thing to decide to do, and it's a huge investment in your time to undertake, so other than the most common reasons of religious differences or concerns about how their children would handle a school environment... I'm just at a loss as to what would make someone choose that path.

That's very interesting. We actually don't see it as a huge time investment. It certainly doesn't feel like it to us. Our daughter did grade 1 and that was a huge time commitment. I guess in some way, the school schedule and the structure did seem to fit the way she was learning. We always knew that homeschooling was an option and we decided to do it.

I also ask because I find that I can look back on my schooling and remember fondly many teachers, and how their differing outlooks on things have helped shaped me. I can also look back with interest at those teachers I did not like, but that in itself was helpful as it taught one to look critically at those in positions of authority, and also how to learn despite such people... which is a great skill to have for later study/work.

OK. I had good teachers and bad, but its not something that entered into our decision.

Will no one really come right out and say why they choose homeschooling? It is one of those areas where I fully support the ability to do it (it freaks me out that there are many places where it's illegal), but I am still yet to have someone make me see a reason that I could really identify with.

I guess that it was so simple and easy to choose that its not like it was an massively unbalanced choice. We chose homeschooling because we felt it fit our family's life. It certainly works for us and hasn't been a bother at all. Schooling pretty much goes on all year, all the time and allows us great freedom to travel and learn wherever we go.

(ie. I understand the religious/scared of bullying reasons, just think avoiding the school is the wrong solution)

And most homeschoolers agree. The people that homeschool for these reasons usually end up being the shut-in variety.

I always thought there was a difference between being gay, and respecting other people who are gay. Just because you respect other peoples sexual orientation doesn't mean you have to play along like you are gay to make someone happy.

We initially decided to homeschool because the South Carolina public schools were terrible. We also knew we would be moving a few times in the next few years so we thought it would be best.

Now we live in an area where the local schools are good (my daughter even tried them and liked them well enough, but decided to return), but this is our way of life now and we like it.

The first conclusion folks jump to is we're all religious shut ins. Nope. I've been agnostic for years, and I encourage my children to question anything and everything.
We're members of a secular co-op. Funny thing is we've been too busy with school, clubs and the kid's social lives to attend the co-op groups anymore. Home schooling today has sooo many options. The materials available are so vast and rich that it makes it easier than you think. The difficulty is the commitment and time put into it.

I feel for Teachers in public schools. They have no freedom to truly teach anymore in my opinion. I worked briefly in a public school and all I saw was teachers frantically coaching their class to take the standardized tests.

If I were to choose the one thing I like most about my kids being homeschooled I would have to say... They are better socialized individuals. They're not as peer driven than they would be if they were in a class full of the same aged kids all day. My kids can sit and enjoy time conversing comfortably with someone of ANY age.

What I want most for them is that they are both free thinking individuals that make their own decisions based on the values they develop on their own.. not some institution's or government's social agenda.

Sorry if this sounds a bit rambling here.. it's late

I'm by no means a speed cuber, but I can do a fully scrambled cube in about a minute. You can hear him mumbling moves, so he's most likely memorized the algorithms that speed cubers use to get the cube to a certain pattern where it can be solved.

I think the major reason not to homeschool is so that one's children don't miss out on the socialization they get from being around masses of other kids in the institutionalized education environment. That's the most important thing about school: socialization. I suppose you can still have that if your (homeschooled) kids play team sports or whathaveyou, but I'm sending my kids to school (if I ever have any).

/homeschooled_for_two_years

>> ^calvados:
I think the major reason not to homeschool is so that one's children don't miss out on the socialization they get from being around masses of other kids in the institutionalized education environment. That's the most important thing about school: socialization. I suppose you can still have that if your (homeschooled) kids play team sports or whathaveyou, but I'm sending my kids to school (if I ever have any).
/homeschooled_for_two_years

Yeah, that whole "they are not socialized" thing is total crap. We are not shut-ins. My kids are not inside, isolated from the world. Almost every day they are attending homeschool functions including Park Day, Girls Club, Beavers, Brownies, homeschool science camps at the Telus World of Science, art classes at the Edmonton Art Gallery, science day at the SHiNE center, and on and on.

"Homeschooling" does not equal "trapped in the house".

I thank you all for your comments on why you homeschool. I really do appreciate them as we do, for the most part, only see the deeply religious sorts etc.

Personally I still believe that the day in, day out interaction with a class full of kids helps teach you things about people and functioning in the world at large, which I don't think going to events and functions really gives you... but I appreciate that others disagree on this point.

It's possible I might be more inclined to want to homeschool if I were in the States, as their obsession with standardized tests and the like scares me.

In Australia, and especially in the primary school we're starting at this year, 'play based learning' is a huge focus in early school. This sort of learning with a class of other kids has been demonstratively shown to give kids better verbal skills, better conflict resolution, better interactions with others... just a whole host of benefits that seem to last them right through schooling. Plus it triggers more creativity in them also, and a real desire to learn about things.

Look, each to their own, and unless our schools suddenly take some massive dive in quality, I don't think I'll ever want my kids not to go to school, there's just too many experiences that I remember from school that helped form me, that I hope they can have also.

And it's not like we are of the mindset 'right, well, their learning is done at school, that's that then'... Our kid's favourite places to go are the Museum, Zoo and Scienceworks... it's not like we don't teach them things ourselves also... it all just helps for them to have a host of different people teaching them, all of which may get through to them in different ways.

Ear phone: he has one.

Home school = fail.

The only reason anyone who was not a religious nut would choose home schooling is because they think their kids are 'better' than the other kids.

There is no nice way to say it...that's just the way it is. You can try to rationalize it...you can try to explain it away with general empty statements (it just FIT our life), general platitudes (it was about our family), or other BS, but deep down inside you know I'm right.

My boy goes to public school (Junior Kindergarten), and loves every minute of it. And I like the fact that he will encounter other, bigger kids, bullies, girls, and kids of other races, and will have to learn on his own (meaning away from his parents) how to assimilate information about different kids, and learn to understand and accept the other kids for who they are (and learn to deal with bullies on his own). IMHO depriving a kid of that learning experience is selfish and unnecessary.

^Throbbin, you sound insecure. You've fallen into an unfortunate trap here. Why the chip on your shoulder?

Although many parents are biased and think their kids are better than others (a natural prejudice no matter what lifestyle you choose for your child) its pretty stereotypical of you to think we're all snobs.

I run into this sort of prejudice all the time time. Its usually from a totally unnecessary feeling of insecurity of their own parenting.

There is no need to feel this way you know. Believe me, homeschool parents second guess themselves ALL the time. I do sometimes. Are we doing enough?..and all that. When my kids are in high school and are in higher maths and sciences I will do what I need to make sure it's covered... they may wind up going back into the system.. or private school if we can afford it.

But what is right for me and my family is just that.. MY family... no one elses. You know you can be proud of your choices in life without judging someone else's lifestyle. When I defend homeschooling...I do so for opponents to appreciate and accept what it really is, not to accuse them of being inferior.

Ultimately we all parent in our own way right? Don't for a minute think that I judge other parents for their education choices. When I complain about public schools..I'm criticizing the bureaucracy... not the children OR parents.

Can't you just be grateful that we as parents today have so many options for the kids?

On the "socialization" argument:

I once thought that home-schooled kids were missing out on socialization by not being in a large group of children daily, but that was due to my lack of knowledge on the subject.

What is socialization? It is the process of learning about and interacting with the culture in which one lives. Now, who do you think would be more effective at teaching positive methods of interacting with the culture around you... successful adults, or other children? Many problems I've seen in people who have trouble coping with adult life involve having many of the habits of children, and I see this reflected in much of my public education as well. If most of what you learn about the world comes from others as inexperienced as you (at that age) then it isn't surprising that many people don't develop the habits that carry successful people through life.

Something that really opened my eyes to this was my years as a ski instructor during college. Wednesdays were the days that the local homeschooling community chose to bring their children to the mountains. The other days were generally random public school groups of similar ages. The difference in the children was surprising. Not only were the home-schooled children better behaved, but they were much easier to speak with and instruct. They came across as much more well-adjusted than the public school groups that cared more about their own little social structures than what was going on around them.

After speaking with several of the home-schooling parents, I found out that home-schooling is very much like public schooling, only better. The kids are taught in groups, with each parent teaching their particular area of expertise. Who would you want teaching your kids physics, someone with a masters in Computer Science, or someone with a bachelors in education? They get small class sizes (awesome) and they get quality socialization from multiple well-adjusted adults and other kids from the same background.

My work with these groups really reversed much of the ignorance I had towards home-schooling. Most of my previous experience had been creationist parents who didn't want their kids being taught "that evilution crap." I'm sure that many parents who teach their own kids are only doing harm by perpetuating their own ignorance and prejudice, but please do not underestimate the amazing potential of homeschooling when it is done correctly.

Homeschooling for a reasons other than religious, and curriculum?

-The knowledge that teaching is a tenured career and once achieved, a teacher cannot be forced from their job with a hand grenade.
-They stop caring as much after years of abuse from kids, parents, and teaching the same damn thing over and over again.
-Get burnt out on a daily basis from overcrowded classrooms.
-Worry about how the recession is fucking up their Teacher's Retirement Savings Fund instead of how little Timmy isn't using proper grammar, and how little David posts on video rating websites instead of working...

Every minute Will Smith spends playing Rubicks cube is another minute Stevie Wonder's back catalog is safe from plunder. Keep playing, Will.

>> ^spoco2:
I thank you all for your comments on why you homeschool. I really do appreciate them as we do, for the most part, only see the deeply religious sorts etc.

And I thank you for listening and contributing without resorting to attacks. It is appreciated.

Look, each to their own, and unless our schools suddenly take some massive dive in quality, I don't think I'll ever want my kids not to go to school, there's just too many experiences that I remember from school that helped form me, that I hope they can have also.

For sure. And for us, because we have the choice, each of us are allowed to raise our children as we see fit.

And it's not like we are of the mindset 'right, well, their learning is done at school, that's that then'... Our kid's favourite places to go are the Museum, Zoo and Scienceworks... it's not like we don't teach them things ourselves also... it all just helps for them to have a host of different people teaching them, all of which may get through to them in different ways.

Absolutely. We all basically do the same level of interaction with our kids outside of "school time", just that the "school time" for us happens at a different way.

I want to attend home-college. >> ^Payback:
Homeschooling for a reasons other than religious, and curriculum?
-The knowledge that teaching is a tenured career and once achieved, a teacher cannot be forced from their job with a hand grenade.
-They stop caring as much after years of abuse from kids, parents, and teaching the same damn thing over and over again.
-Get burnt out on a daily basis from overcrowded classrooms.
-Worry about how the recession is fucking up their Teacher's Retirement Savings Fund instead of how little Timmy isn't using proper grammar, and how little David posts on video rating websites instead of working...


Presumably, all of these problems would be far worse with non-professional homeschool teachers. Being a parent-teacher is pretty much ultimate tenure, unless you plan to call child protective services every time Timmy fails a test; and I'd also imagine burnout and distraction are much harder for a homeschool teacher to manage than a seasoned professional.

>> ^Psychologic:
Who would you want teaching your kids physics, someone with a masters in Computer Science, or someone with a bachelors in education?


This argument is silly. You are much more likely to find teachers sporting specific high level degrees in your brick and mortar schools than in the home-school variety. Masters degrees are the norm in public education and there are plenty Phd's as well. I'd be willing to wager that this isn't generally the case in home-schooling. Nothing against your Master of Computer Science, but does he also have a degree in English Lit, History and Life Science? It's a double edged sword.

>> ^dystopianfuturetoday:
>> ^Psychologic:
Who would you want teaching your kids physics, someone with a masters in Computer Science, or someone with a bachelors in education?

This argument is silly. You are much more likely to find teachers sporting specific high level degrees in your brick and mortar schools than in the home-school variety. Masters degrees are the norm in public education and there are plenty Phd's as well. I'd be willing to wager that this isn't generally the case in home-schooling. Nothing against your Master of Computer Science, but does he also have a degree in English Lit, History and Life Science? It's a double edged sword.



In high school my physics teacher was the physical education instructor. That was a waste my time. Hell, he'd get confused just reading from the text book. There were very few teachers I met during public schooling that I respect... I'm surprised most of them graduated college. I did not meet a competent math teacher until I got to college.

If the children are being taught everything by one person then that is not the way to do home-schooling. Proper homeschooling communities have people who teach their specialties, and when done right it is far better than public schooling. Maybe that's because my state was ranked 48th in public school funding, but home-schooling can be done very well (very often it isn't though).

^Why do people shut off their ability to reason when discussing teachers? Could it be that right-wing think tanks have been at the throat of every social service that doesn't directly benefit the super-rich for 3 decades now? Probably, and apparently they've been successful, since it is generally acceptable to bash an entire profession without any empirical evidence or even basic logic.

So let me simplify:

More Experience > Less Experience
Professional > Non-Professional
More Competition > Less Competition

Do you disagree with this?

Logically, here is how teachers would be ranked in terms of general quality based on this (hopefully) uncontroversial logic.

1. High level Prep Schools
2. Public Schools/Charter Schools
3. Private Schools/Catholic Schools
4. Home-school

That's not to say that there aren't good home-school teachers and terrible prep school teachers, but generally, the more you pay a position, the more competitive that position becomes. Major League baseball players > minor league baseball players. No controversy there, right?

I have no doubt that swampgirl is a great teacher. She has all of the qualities that make a teacher great: smart, thoughtful, inquisitive, confident, principled, good with words, quirky and funny. I would guess that she has probably grown to respect teachers more, rather than less over the course of her own teaching. Teaching just a handful of kids poses plenty of challenges, let alone dealing with hundreds. I'm thankful to have read her writings on home-schooling, as I'd only been familiar with the 'religious shut in' variety before.

Anyway, I didn't really want to jump into this conversation until I saw the teacher bashing. It's a noble profession that is under assault from the same people that brought you the Iraq War, Wiretapping, torture and the biggest national debt in history. Whether they teach home-school or school-school, teachers are the good guys.