Why does everyone want to put their hands in our pockets, but no one will reach into their own?
If all of B.C. was sitting at a table at a restaurant, this is what I see: Christy Clark is at the head of the table, gorging herself on the biggest steak, with a side of very expensive seafood. She’s drinking the most wine, and heartily enjoying herself. She isn’t sharing with anyone, other than her government, doing the same.
The BCTF is also at the table, trying to get a bite of her steak, and maybe managing to grab a couple of the big fat prawns on her plate. They don’t really want to share their food, either.
At the other end of the table, B.C.’s parents are handing our credit cards to the waiters. We are paying. But you know what’s in front of us at the table? Absolutely nothing. We are sitting in front of empty plates, and we’re paying for all the action at the other end. Our kids are there, too. They can’t read the menu. They can’t add up the prices of the meals. No one is teaching them to, because there’s no public school.
How much longer does the government think this can continue? How many free meals can they eat, before their benefactors leave the table and never come back? How about the BCTF? They certainly aren’t as fat as the government, but at least they can order.
That’s how I feel, right now, as a parent. Totally powerless. It’s a lot like a dictatorship right now, with government appealing the Supreme Court’s decisions on class composition. I tried to hire a teacher to come and teach my kids a couple of times a week, since there is no longer any public education in this province, but she can’t come.
Teachers are not allowed to teach children privately until after 5 p.m., a time the unions know is too late for a young child to start the only schooling that is now available to them. So there simply isn’t any school, and we can’t hire a qualified professional with our own money (which we have already paid to the government in taxes), because teachers aren’t allowed to teach anymore.
What on earth is this province going to look like in 10 years? The government’s job plan will need to scale back a little, because I can’t think of a single job right now that can be done by someone with less than a Kindergarten education.
Sharon Todd
Parksville
