tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5318386611584556707.post1345359812371437777..comments2011-01-16T14:13:11.576-08:00Comments on Why I Oppose Charter Schools: Why I Oppose Charter SchoolsDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10076160316071071272noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5318386611584556707.post-24893351839725118032011-01-13T11:43:38.531-08:002011-01-13T11:43:38.531-08:00rented skis for the season-- we've gone a few ...rented skis for the season-- we've gone a few times and i took them out yesterday on the hill in the park, they are getting there . . .Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10076160316071071272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5318386611584556707.post-34825501572881858252011-01-13T07:07:22.021-08:002011-01-13T07:07:22.021-08:00More importantly, when are you coming to Colorado ...More importantly, when are you coming to Colorado so we can yell IDIOT at each other in person? Have the boys been on skis yet?Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01438455479301497460noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5318386611584556707.post-87744762757241648712011-01-13T02:48:31.421-08:002011-01-13T02:48:31.421-08:00and i can't believe i conceded any points to y...and i can't believe i conceded any points to you, no matter how trivial.Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10076160316071071272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5318386611584556707.post-7940879872460677882011-01-13T02:47:59.893-08:002011-01-13T02:47:59.893-08:00also, i've been responding to a million things...also, i've been responding to a million things on this and reading really fast-- i just realized who i was responding to and i wish this wasn't such a serious forum so i could add some of my normal "rhetorical" techniques . . .Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10076160316071071272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5318386611584556707.post-82877748262892783142011-01-13T02:42:48.029-08:002011-01-13T02:42:48.029-08:00Good point, I guess I should have said, "unre...Good point, I guess I should have said, "unregulated," in regards to derivatives.<br /><br />And I switched my language with California-- I was referring to the specific instances where Enron "gamed" the electricity market, closing certain plants to raise prices, and those transcripts where Enron traders are rejoicing about wild-fires because it's going to spike prices for "Grandma Millie."Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10076160316071071272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5318386611584556707.post-82567090192537438502011-01-12T20:36:01.644-08:002011-01-12T20:36:01.644-08:00I have no problem with a robust, tax-payer funded ...I have no problem with a robust, tax-payer funded public school system. It is clearly within the public interest and should be a primary function of local government. <br /><br />I am simply nitpicking your "deregulation" examples, because, in my opinion, they actually show the damage, however well-intentioned, government can inflict upon market efficiencies. California has, for decades, restricted supply of electricity (through regulation) yet imposed price controls as demand for that resource increased. That isn't "a little bit of deregulation", that's command-and-control delusion. Enron committed fraud, which is a question of law, not regulation, which is generally political. <br /><br />If Al Gore had become president, the financial meltdown would have still occurred (unless he would have fired Greenspan, which is unlikely). CDOs and mortgage derivatives are new financial instruments; they were created in response to global capital seeking better returns in our (and other) housing markets because the Fed and other central banks - government institutions - kept interest rates too low for too long. These instruments weren't "deregulated" - which implies that rules were loosened or eliminated - they were never regulated because nobody even understood what they were, including European banks, which are much more regulated than ours. Euro banks were / are much more leveraged and in deeper trouble than US banks despite their additional regulatory requirements.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01438455479301497460noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5318386611584556707.post-79311850635361200742011-01-12T17:11:21.753-08:002011-01-12T17:11:21.753-08:00Aramaic? Do you mean Arabic? The two schools you...Aramaic? Do you mean Arabic? The two schools you mention most certainly teach Aramaic.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18195840481058844665noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5318386611584556707.post-48789796592747198872011-01-12T14:08:03.701-08:002011-01-12T14:08:03.701-08:00I see your points, but I think the analogy holds f...I see your points, but I think the analogy holds for both-- the schools are not going to be completely deregulated, like Freddie and Fannie, they will still be supported by public funds, and like the electricity market, a little bit of deregulation caused a lot of mischief. can you completely deregulate something that can't be stored and is essential for certain things-- hospitals, heat, air-conditioning, etc.-- without potentially killing people?<br /><br />also, most of the crap loans were being tranched and repackaged as CDO's and synthetic CDO's and being resold. that was due to serious deregulation of derivatives-- if it wasn't for people like john paulson and his investment in credit default swaps, even more risk would have been taken. and, like with AIG, and charter schools, if it all fails, the public will bail the schools out.<br /><br />my point is only this: a free market is great for certain things, it offers a quick solution to the proper price and supply, but it is volatile, and there is always the possibility of a black swan or a run on th emarket, and you may have to do without until things adjust. i don't think we want such a system in education, even if it might cut some costs in the end.Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10076160316071071272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5318386611584556707.post-14715968503747128302011-01-12T12:55:50.723-08:002011-01-12T12:55:50.723-08:00Nice article Dave. As a product of a private schoo...Nice article Dave. As a product of a private school married to a smarter public school graduate I won't quibble with the basic concept of your piece but I think your two free-market-is-bad examples don't hold up to scrutiny...<br /><br />Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac hold about half of the residential mortgages in this country. They are government-sponsored institutions, and while not 100% to blame for the housing meltdown, certainly they bear a large responsibility for it by making it easier for banks and other lenders to sell their crap loans and thereby escape risk. Fannie and Freddie distorted the market by allowing lenders to take risks they might not have taken otherwise. Risk is a critical component of any free-market system.<br /><br />The California electricity crisis was caused by a stupid, partial-deregulation system. It was anything but a free-market. Electricity suppliers (after being forced to sell their power generating assets) by law could not sell electricity above a certain amount. That's great until the wholesale price exceeds the retail price. Demand keeps going up (why conserve if the price won't go up?) but supply stays the same (can't build new plants in Cali). Much of California's power comes from out of state (and even some from Mexico). Electricity can't be stored so the utilities, during periods of peak demand, had to buy on the spot market, which is very expensive (and where Enron was able to make most of its mischief). Enron would never have been able to manipulate prices the way they did if there had been a true free market - if the utilities could have raised retail prices, you would have seen a drop in demand and leveled out the supply shortages (think how gasoline use dropped nearly 10% after gas hit $4 / gallon). <br /><br />And the electricity crisis (which happened 7-8 years before this recession) had nothing to do with California's complete inability to keep spending under control. Their current deficit is $40 billion and there are $700 billion in unfunded pension promises to public sector unions - despite (or because of) having the highest, most progressive tax rates in the country.<br /> <br />JasonAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01438455479301497460noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5318386611584556707.post-26991000386077228212011-01-12T11:06:05.001-08:002011-01-12T11:06:05.001-08:00that's whole other issue i didn't even get...that's whole other issue i didn't even get into-- what country is this? it seems as if, in fairness, there should be an Aramaic language school as well.Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10076160316071071272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5318386611584556707.post-15469478798015611512011-01-12T11:03:27.186-08:002011-01-12T11:03:27.186-08:00Great job, Dave. When I read about the push for th...Great job, Dave. When I read about the push for the Hatikvah charter school, I thought, well no way that can happen. How does a Hebrew language school not violate separation of church/state? And now, here we are. I can't imagine...angela mariehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10313599969576233195noreply@blogger.com