From the comments section of the Washington Post, from a Wisconsin teacher:

[the rookie]

It seems obvious form reading the posts of some readers that ignorance is bliss. Unfortunately your arguments are both morally and logically wrong.

Here are the facts, as an educator I am required by the state DPI to complete certification every five years. This year I borrowed $8,000 to take the college courses require for the 316 license necessary to keep my job as a reading teacher.

I make less per hour than my sister-in-law who works at Wal-Mart distribution loading trucks. She has no job related expenses required by her employer.

Last year I spent $1,586 on classroom supplies because the school district refused to buy copier paper, books, and pencils. This does not include the personal funds spent on attending mandatory teacher conventions and workshops.

Go ahead and bash the teacher's union and the millions of educators raising your children. That's right WE RAISE YOUR CHILDREN. NOT YOU. Children spend more time per week in the classroom then with their parents. Over 43 percent of the children in my school have parents who don't even bother to attend parent/teacher conferences.

So think long and hard before you attack the people paying to take care of your children - teachers.

Emphasis mine. The crux of the issue, in their own words.

Here's the link.

[Quickened]

I wouldn't brag about "Raising" or "teaching" our children. Our educational system is a joke.

[RabbiKnife]

If my chosen career couldn't pay for my economic desires, then I would keep working, borrow 2x by annual salary to go back to school, get an advanced degree, THEN quit the job I didn't like and enter a new job career that I did like that paid 2x what I was making before as starting pay.

Oh, wait. I did that already.

Choices, folks, choices. Teacher's unions have liked the fact that they weren't field hands but instead house slaves, but now that Massa is running out of money and can't keep feeding the house slaves, now the house slaves are mad that Massa ain't gwine take them to the movie picture shows on Saturday night, and instead is going to stop feeding them fried chicken and instead they are going to be eating the same as the field slaves.

Funny thing is, they are still slaves and don't even know it.

[the rookie]

And you can't serve two masters. You're going to love one and hate the other. Guess which category kids and their parents fall into...?

[RabbiKnife]

And you can't serve two masters. You're going to love one and hate the other. Guess which category kids and their parents fall into...?

They ain't Massa.

[the rookie]

They ain't Massa.

Which leaves tens of thousands of kids in the care of teachers, many of whom inwardly despise them and their parents. Yikes. The public education system needs reform that runs deeper than "better resources and more money".

[teddyv]

Next thing we'll start doing is posting comments from Youtube.

[Fenris]

Next thing we'll start doing is posting comments from Youtube.

I do this already.

[the rookie]

Next thing we'll start doing is posting comments from Youtube.

So which comments are legitimate to post and discuss? Are these ideas non-representative of a larger "group-think" and an anomaly in public education?

[teddyv]

So which comments are legitimate to post and discuss? Are these ideas non-representative of a larger "group-think" and an anomaly in public education?

It's fine to discuss it if you want, but an anonymous comment on a blog or article is not exactly the most credible source to speak for the issue at hand.

[the rookie]

It's fine to discuss it if you want, but an anonymous comment on a blog or article is not exactly the most credible source to speak for the issue at hand.

Maybe. But I think it gives interesting insight into the psyche of a public educator. It's rare to find one that will state those sentiments publicly.