Right on. Could not of said it better myself.
Why don't you run for president???
God Bless the USA!!!!!

Don't assume that the 54% who graduate are getting a good education.

Denny, very well written and didn't come off racist at all. (that was an extreme degree of difficulty to pull off with regards to the topic). Let's face it folks, the black society is not inclined to better themselves, see's itself as a perpetual victim, and frankly, the white society hasn't expected and demanded more from it than we are getting now, so no wonder their community is so fucked up. Google Bill Cosby and read or watch some his tirades against the black community. He knows exactly what he's talking about.

"If you cannot afford college"
No such thing exists in this country. There are umpteen million ways ANY kid of ANY socioeconomic class can go to college if they just put their mind to it and are motivated. This has been a real sore point for me in my community when I ask the residents why their teenagers aren't going to be going to school and they use money as an excuse/crutch. There is more money floating around out there that can be used for school and more programs to borrow the money cheaply that it is one excuse that falls on deaf ears when in my presence.

Great read Denny.

It's the truth. And most can't handle the truth.

I would dearly love to see all races in this country do well and not get hung up on something that holds them back. Little else would make me happier.

Even if we taxed all the "evil rich" into poverty and put it all towards education, with the attitudes being preached to minorities, the minorities would continue to underachieve.

Some white people whallow in their self-pity and claim the world is out to get them and they don't achieve anything, either. This isn't a race problem, it's an attitude problem.

What is Condi Rice's attitude? What is Bill Cosby's? I delight in seeing them do well. I invite everyone else to do well. In this way EVERYONE'S standard of living will rise.

Amen!!! I live in another city not too far north and I have two children, one a freshman in college and another a sophomore in high school. My wife and I have put our kids through a private school for their entire education. We both work to pay for it. It only costs, so far, about $5000.00 per year each! Half of what Atlanta spends, half of what CMS spends here too. My kids have gotten a great eductaion, remained safe, not hassled with gangs, and not been taught a liberal twist to history. Only the real history. Money is not the problem!! If the schools my children attended had double the money to spend the education would not have been better, maybe newer facilities, but not a better education. They have not lacked for school sports and fine arts programs either.

Keep up the great site!

It is a shame, the same social class that protested segregation and demanded equal rights is blowing it. I don't care if you are white or black, you don't even have to be a millionare, but you still should have the drive to at least do a mit better than the median income and that won't happen if you can not stay in school.

When I was growing up (in the GD construction industry) an older friend who had served in WWII told me a story I never forgot.

He and other members of his Marine group were lost and stranded on an island in the So. Pacific.

There was very little to eat so they had to resort to catching and eating monkeys.

They way they did this was to cut a small hole in a coconut, attach the coconut to a tree and put a small amount of fruit or rice in the coconut.

The monkey would reach into the coconut, grab the bait and then not be able to get his hand out because it was in a fist. The monkey would not let go of the food and therefore was unable to escape.

They would just walk up and club the monkey to death.

I'm not sure what this story has to do with the topic, but I bet that at least 54% of the monkeys knew enough to let go.

Well said, Denny.

Countdown until someone posts that Willie is a racist for telling the monkey story... 5... 4... 3... 2... 1...

…Zero. Now now Willie. Monkeys?

Very well put Denny, very well put indeed. The problem is that some people would rather sit in their racist bigoted churches and listen to their racist bigoted pastors bitch, moan and lie about how it's not their fault they're on welfare or stuck with piss-poor jobs or never got a good education or have too many illegitimate babies, but the fault of evil oppressive rich white people who now owe them a living and a paycheck. Typical White People as B. HUSSEIN Obama would put it. Much easier to blame others than except responsibilty for your own actions.

Hard (but true) words for hard times. The only rule I would add to your list to escape poverty would be: Don't have sex until married; marry until death do you part.

That 'old fashioned' notion is the key to a stable society. The leading factor in: dropping out, being in jail, teen pregnancy, drug addiction, and poverty is the dad & mom not being together in the home.

Chipper: The key to curbing divorce rates is requiring the same amount of paperwork to file for divorce as to file your taxes. :)

Don't advocate American values for blacks. Hussein O will call you a bible hugging, gun toting redneck.

Denny....

I`ll bet the farm.....Rev`d Jackson,Honest Al Sharpton & Calypso Louie Farrakand do not agree because it is the white devils fault.After all Bush is POTUS

I,ll bet my Social Security Check the Leaders of the Democratic Party are pissed off you are trying to upset their base. Yes TDO, besides being a successful business owner & evil Republican ,I get a Social Security Check........So does my Wife, probably because I am a member of the RNC! All hail GWB & the Republican Party.

I`ll bet the state`s of Nebraska & Iowa..... TDO thinks it is all Bush`s fault the students in Georgia are so dumb.. Just because it is on his watch!

What are you doing to keep that
extra 4% in school?

Los Angeles Unified is at around 50%

LAUSD says throw money at it.

Mayor Viaragossa says it's a Civil
Rights issue.

Which of the above contenders are
Liberal Demon,,,,Ah Dems?

LAUSD,
The Mayor
Both

Pete

Dudley, sorry but this time you are wrong. It is all due to climate change. As the Earth heats up and more an more of the ozone layer is depleated the solar radiation retards the growth of their still structuring brains. And as everyone knows dark colors absorb more heat than lighter colors.

Damn racist sun.

Quite simply Denny, well said. You won't find anyone to disagree with you, but the kids have to get the message first. Best post I've read anywhere all year. Regards,

This is a brilliant post. For me, the key words are "Get an education/Learn English." This post should be required reading (with a note to implement it) by all school principals, not only in USA but in many countries.

I grew up French, did well at school, mostly 95% in most subjects, except in English. I coudn't get it. It could be that the teachers (nuns) didn't know the language and used uninspiring LPs. My mother was a woman of vision. She never had a chance to go beyond Grade 9 and learn English. She insisted that her five children do better. Everytime I would get below 75% in English, she would lock the piano for a month and reduce my practice, at school, to 3 hours a week. It would kill me and my teacher. My mother would say, "Music is nice. English is better!" Finally, I found an English nun who helped me with the language twice a week. When I finished my nursing training (in French), I knew enough English to find work outside Quebec. From then on, I was set for life anywhere in the world. Never stopped learning. Love the English language. Still speak with a French accent, alas!

I would like to photocopy your post, Denny, for my grandchildren.I'll put it with my will. I also want to send it to some French people in Quebec who are paranoid about their language survival. They're banning English everywhere without seeing that they are destroying the future of their children.

Kudos, Denny.

Of course we all know that the problem is universal. It's not a racial problem. Minds are going to waste all around the world because of lack of discipline and thirst for knowledge. That's why your post is so valuable.

It is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. That's why you will be in so much trouble for saying it. Fantastic rant. That's at your best sir.

I agree. (And it appears I have indeed been assimilated . . . )

I couldn't have said it better myself. I dropped out of high school and after a couple of years of dead end jobs got a GED. Then I joined the military to serve my country and learn some discipline.

Once I got out of the military, I used the G.I. Bill to go to Junior College and then on to a University. I worked odd jobs in between and made my own way. I never asked a soul for anything.

Through a lot of hard work, blood, sweat and tears, I finally after 16 years got a Ph.D.

It's a funny thing. I supposedley have an IQ of 145 (tested multiple times with multiple different tests) and yet I don't feel like I'm the brightest tool in the shed. I worked my ass off for what I have. It did not come easy as some would believe. I think IQ tests are hogshit.

I did not become an SRF because money and riches mean very little to me. I did have the good sense to put away enough and invest wisely so I will be set for life once I retire. I won't be rich but I won't have to count on our ever expanding government to support me and I won't be a burden to my kids, grandkids or the rest of my family.

I grew up on the wrong side of the tracks where all the whiners that blame their upbringing and environment for their failure as a decent human being.

We all start out the same. All it takes is will power and a lot of hard work.

Of course the lazy ass live off the government type will never know that. They would rather blame everyone else for their own stupidity and vote idjuts (that's right idjuts not idiots) into office that will take away my hard earned money and give it to the scumbags that were too lazy to finish or even start their free education and take the job that was handed to them on a silver platter because of their race, gender, religion or sexual orientation.

After all, they deserve it right? Aren't they entitled to the same things I have even though they did absolutely nothing to get these things?

Joe

P.S. - Definition of idjuts: Dimocrats

If you don't know what a Dimocrat is, ask Denny.

O.K.

Maybe 46% knew enough to let go.

BTW, that's a true story.

...could be the other 46% are taking GED classes in prison!?

LOL, Willie and Vicki! I know a kid who deliberately failed a core class in his senior year so that he would not graduate. He realized that that way he could still qualify as a high school student and take classes at the community college under Running Start - and he wouldn't have to pay for them! I don't know if his little scam worked.

Damn straight! Friggin' liberals NEVER propose working solutions that encourage people to embrace personal responsibility! So many always waiting for the gummint to rescue them! Jeez! What a crappy way to live one's life!

"Nother suggestion. Don't spend your education time on learning your own home culture in so called "___Studies classes". You should be absorbing that at home every wakign minute, and trying to grow beyond it. Learn some higher, formal culture, or a foreign culture. And that does not include Spanish if you're already Hispanic.
After you've learned English - but not until, learn a foreign language, and not the every popular Spanish. Learn Chinese, Russian, Japanese or Arabic. ro the foreseeable fuure we will badly need people who can handle Arabic, Farsi and Chinese, and who are still loyal to this country.

Amen.

My head is exploding! These are all great posts!

Now, how do we get the message into the liberal schools, where the kids can get it? We'll have to market it as "illegal" or "immoral" or "x-rated" to get them interested.....

I guess you could cut the $12,000 in half and spend $6,000 per student per year on education, take $3,000 per student per year in highschool and then use the 4 x $3,000 as an incentive if they graduate HS. If it was a scholarship to college it probably wouldn't be much of an incentive for the people dropping out of HS, and cash would probably increase the drug usage. But it would save the taxpayers money.

I tried explaining why blacks tend to be Democrats tonight to my 11 yo son. He has been studying about the Civil War in 5th grade. He is the son that named his new dog Rex Muhhammed and renamed the other dog in the house from Luigi to Luigi Hussein Obama, and it is not meant as an honor.

Mark, Be careful for your son. You start sticking the Muhhamed name on things and there's no telling what kind of irrational, saber jerk reflex you'll get from those animals.

Bravo on the posts! And it was cool to see the Claudia come backs.
School's need to have to compete-but first off this country needs to PARENT. Today's parent wants to be the freind of the child, rather than the disciplinarian-that involves a back bone and hard work. Today's parent and parents of the last twenty years has just disgusted me to no end.
The liberal agenda or social engineering has filtered down from the Clintons and has been harmful toward not only our society, but our military as well. For example, it does not take a village to raise My child. Most of the people in my village are idiots-like public schools for example. Parents are kept out, before you know it, your kid is a vegan, PETA member who has had access to an abortion and worships at the altar of Pope Al Gore's what have you. Animals rule and all people need to be killed in some horrific manner, especially Americans, a plus if they are a christian-didn't you hear of the Crusades or Dan Brown? And all of this by the 5th grade. Not to mention, the lack of sports or competing for anything. We wouldn't want to hurt sweet juniors self-esteem now would we? Ahh yes, the Self-Esteem Myth. Coddle sweet junior and nurse him on breast milk until he's what age? 27? (Childhood Obesity anyone?)
Good Farking God, Self Esteem comes from your own accomplishments and hard work; not from Mommy in the room cheering you on for a high score on Halo or Rock Star Guitar video games on the x-box she went into debt for.
Alot of parents today only rely on the schools to teach morals and values to their kids while they do their own thing. Public schools don't teach, they indoctrinate. The kids end up with no respect for parents or themselves. The lack of discipline early on leads to no self-discipline. It's sad really. I see it around me and in my own family, I have one sis and three sister in-laws. All of their kids need a good swift kick in the Mom. Argh! Sorry for the Rant.

Wow, if I didn't know any better, Denny, I'd think you were BITTER!

I work in the library of a community college. The majority of entering students fail the placement exams, and must take "Developmental" classes - English and Math. These classes are vital if they are to pass the "regular" curriculum. I have seen some of the "essays" these students "write," and it would be shameful if it were not so sad. Just because they graduate high school does not mean they are competent.

The college has now added an "ethics" course into the English curriculum. This is a required course students must take if they are caught submitting plagirized work. They cannot continue in any English class until they have completed the ethics course. They ethics course is constantly full, and there is a waiting list. The majority of these students are white.

It is clearly not about race; it is, as one poster stated, about attitude. And the name of the attitude is "entitlement."

Too many Patricks in here now. I may have to change to TongTong the boy of Love or something.

In Dallas the number was 44%. My town just to the north is 87%. The criteria used to establish this was look to see who entered in 9th grade, eliminate from the equation all those who transfered to other schools, then look at the % that made it to graduation.

As you touched on the big problems seem to be : ability to speak English, pregnancy, and apathy in the family. You can't legislate any of that.

Education is the great equalizer in this country. It needs to be that way. Get an education or suffer the consequences. My kids here that from me every day.

LisaKay -
1- For the Claudia comebacks:see last Saturday Bach.

2- This post is magnificent. Denny speaks like my mother. She was a tough lady. About education, language, discipline, lifestyle. She would say to me, in her very direct French-Canadian way, "You want to learn something and study hard? I'll help you all the way. You want kissey-kissey with a boy? Find a job at the dimestore until you wash the diapers. I'm through with that job. I'll see you once a week, with your kids, at Sunday Dinner". For her, boyfriends and studies didn't match.

This was a long time ago of course. In those days most of the women didn't work outside the home. She wanted something different for me. More opportunities. I hated housework and did a minimum at home. It didn't bother her. As long as I was learning something. As long as I was using my mind. As long as I was studying hard and achieving something worthwhile. As long as I could stand on my own two feet, and not depend on anybody for a living. It didn't turn me into a feminist or a woman lib. What it gave me is a wonderful freedom of choices, self-sufficiency and a great pride about being me. I also never stopped learning something.

That's what Denny is saying with so much eloquence. One life. One mind. It's exciting. Be in charge. Don't let it go to waste. Here is what you do: 1-2-3. The whole world should be listening!

Jane: Your comment about incoming freshmen is just sad, but I know it's true. I've heard this from professors at our local community college as well. Our community college offers remedial classes, which basically amount to the English and math prerequisites students should have acquired in high school. This must be a huge drain on a college's budget! I don't know if the local university has the same problem, or if their admission process screens out students who have not attained this competency. The university's admission is at least in part based on SAT scores, and there is now an essay part to that test. If a person couldn't write or do high school math, I don't know how he could score well on the SAT. I was just wondering if it should be the community college's responsibility to provide this remedial education - or if the burden should fall back on the school that granted the high school diploma or on the student himself to get tutoring?

Peggy U
I am certainly not a qualified person to discuss SAT Tests but I understand they actually teach in accordance to the standardized tests & practice how to take them.

Were I in charge of this type of testing , you could be sure the test Students receive would not consist of pre-conceived standardized questions in a specific format but a general exam covering the subject matter students were supposed to have been taught.This should be implemented for all promotion from grade to grade & most particulary for the awarding of a Graduation diploma.

This would do wonders for the level of Education taught & gained as well as providing a benchmark of whether the teachers were really meeting minimum criteria for the job they were hired to do.......Oh one last thing , no Bell curve or atta boy grading ,just plain old pass or fail based on percentage like it used to be.

Rant...you want a rant...I was a teacher in public schools after I retired from law enforcement.

Working in a prison was easier work!

First, as long as Johnny doesn't learn the 3-Rs in the elementary grades and is promoted to the next grade, the problem will exist and continue.

Many students are achievers, BUT most are being pushed from one grade to another without learning a f'king thing.

What is bad, too, is many of the younger teachers are products of the system and aren't good teachers.

It isn't just the school administration that is to blame...it is the parents, too. Parents were my biggest problem and the schools cave in to parents. Parents blame the school, other students, but never their own child. Discipline in school is next to zero. Dress codes are a joke. Kids come to class high with all kinds of contraband.

So that no student was offended or felt left out, there was the "Gay/Lesbian Club," "Wiggins," "Stop the Hate Week," abortion counseling, not birth control...I said "abortion" w/o parental consent or knowledge, blah...blah...blah...blah. The district hired gay teachers...no one outed them, because they didn't hide it. (Yes, I have a problem with that!)

I was in the 'burbs of a nice area, but the boundary lines were changed so "poor," "underpriveleged" students would have a fair chance at education. Those students didn't give a crap about their education, they came to school because the cops would get 'em if they didn't. They caused trouble.

Please, one of you bleeding hearts don't say: "I'm sure all those kids didn't do that."

Denny....Please give some sort of award to Willie and Patrick!!!!!!!!!

Racist or not, I believe that there is something wrong with black people, on the whole. I don't know if it's lack of intelligence, laziness or exactly what. But world-wide -- not just in Atlanta or the U.S., but WORLD-WIDE -- they fall behind EVERY other race of people in every standard by which progress and success are measured.

I have long seen kids come in for Job interviews and knew right away of successful hire by the way they were dressed...
or just one listen to their way of verbally presenting themselves of a successful hire....
Ebonics indeed...clean the toilets...
baggy pants...no where near moving parts or customers..
High School drop out with a "Girl Friend" preggars with a second child...damn I don't know what to do for society will kill me no matter what I do!!!!
Stay in High School and Teachers....TEACH

Holy crap! This was a throwaway post that I wrote in about ten minutes on Sunday so I could have sumpin' to post on Tuesday. I didn't know it would be so popular. I guess I'll have to do more "Throwaway posts". This is the kind of stuff that I wrote when I started this blog before I mellowed out.

Not to sound like a "Suck-Up" but have you done very many BAD posts!!!!

Denny -

I know about your old posts because I started to read your blog right at the beginning a month ago. I'm at January 2004 now. Your posts are fabulous. I felt many of them should be re-posted. You might have mellowed out but the same spirit is alive in you. When someone expresses frustration and anger very strongly as you did in the past, some of it disappears. It becomes harder to express it the same way again unless something happens to awake those feelings.

Anyhow, what do I know...except that this post is better than anything else you ever posted, and better than anything I have read anywhere in a long time.

PaulB......

It is Racist & wrong, Why you ask?....For starters every minority which came to this country has suffered the indignity of being different thus deficent. The Irish "Micks" were nothing but thieves,drunks& not to be trusted. The Chinese,Japanese were nothing but "chinks,japs" subhuman & would steal us blind, the Germans "Krauts" were blockheads to dumb to have any good job...the same for Polacks, Jews,Slavs,& on & on.

What seperates those of African Ancestry from complete assimilation into our American culture & acceptance? First there is nothing wrong with them, they are not deficent .....many have worked hard & gained success,acceptance & become leaders.The problem is two fold ;

1. There is a lot of white guilt in this country which clouds judgement or expectation with the result we look for failure & do not require the same efforts for learning during the formative years & make excuses not only for them but ourselves when we let white guilt pre-dominate.
2. Only the black segment of our population has been placed in economic & political bondage by both one major political party & the black leadership which is supposed to work on their behalf.Today the fortunes of the Democratic Party rest on the minority & special interest base they have cultivated.Welfare existance has been lavished on those of African ancestory not so much as to lift them up, but to buy their voting allegiance. To this, the black family unit has been destroyed, black youth is expected to fail & in large measure does because the Democratic party leadership for all their rhetoric really does not care, it is the vote that counts & the economic bondage continues.

The leadership of Sharpton,The NAACP, Jackson, Hastings, Farrakahn & others ......they are all there to line their pockets, have their measure of power, influence & really do not want or care for a true multi-cultural society to evolve. If they did care, they would be marching for & demanding exactly what Denny has been preaching on this website & this thread. Do not think for a minute if the the so-called black leadership really gave a damn that this travesty would still exist.They do have the power to effect change, they just do not want to let go of the reins of power & do not care if their people are a permanent underclass.

As far as your opinion world wide those of African Ancestry always fall behind the rest of the world for established standards of success & progress is just that an opinion.Why? because you look at the apparent failures without examination of underlying reasons or look back into history for the achievements of the African people. This is another issue entirely, but while we in Western civilization tend to portray the Egyptians as akin to being a branch of the caucasian race, it is now pretty much accepted that many of the Pharoahs & their courts were African.I kind of think they achieved great success & when the playing field is leveled were giants in their time.

As to the gap which exists in this country it is artificial, disgraceful & is a festering wound which will continue as long as we the people tolerate the political games of the Democratic Party & the greed of the Black leadership. That is my opinion & I am sticking to it.

I think that you know me well enough by now to know that I dont "suck-up" people...

dudley1 - RE: PaulB

I'm so glad that you talked to him. And you did it so well. We can all learn from your thoughtful, serious analysis.

I'm going to stay low key on this subject, Dudley, 'cause it's no secret how I feel about this subject. For many years, I worked with large numbers of Blacks, and it isn't everyone else that makes the situation the way it is. You can't blame the government and Black leaders totally. The race, as a whole, is different that other races. Scientifically, it has been proven there are characterists in each race that make them "different."

Quite frankly, in education, I've seen Asians, Middle Easterners, and East Indians (regardless how rich or poor they were) adapt and learn quicker than Whites, Blacks or Hispanics. (This was true when I was in college a hundred years ago.)

Interestingly, in the prison system, I saw few Asians, Arabs, or East Indians, but huge populations of Blacks that were comfortable and content being in prison. I've witnessed a laziness and acceptance for status quo, by nature, in more Blacks than any other race.

I often wonder how much long-term life experience "bleeding hearts" have really had with the Black community.

I just wish to correct the expression I wrote 3 comments above. "Suck up" people made me sound like a vacuum cleaner! I meant "suck up" to people, of course. I would not say a text is good just to please someone. I say this post is good because, in my opinion, it's truly beneficial and would help a great number of people (not only in USA) if they would pay attention to it and put it in practice.

Denny,

That was an interesting post that brought up a number of compelling topics. The graduation rate is abysmal, and the fact that apparently a large portion come from one racial group is very distressing. On the whole blacks have not done as well as whites and other races in academics. The post and some of the responses were difficult for me to read for obvious reasons, but I would have to say that being able to admit to raw data and to work on those issues would be the greatest thing. Growing up as a black kid in the South, I was troubled by the urge to be "real" as opposed to acting "white". I was called a square, a tom, a mark, a lame, a loser, and other things because of the way I spoke, the classes I chose to take in High School, and believe it or not because of where I lived. I remember when we left military housing for the last time and moved into the house Mom and Dad built I was jealous of kids who lived in apartments? (Can you believe that) I am the son of a retired Chief Warrant Officer in the Army. While we were not rich by any means, I can say that I had all of my needs fulfilled in addition to a pretty good portion of my wants. In addition to this I was raise by no nonsense parents who wanted to show me they loved me, but knew that we could not be "friends" like some parents today attempt. The pressure to conform to the majority is strong, even if you truly believe the majority to be wrong. Had I not had parents that I was scared to disappoint, my life may not be what it is today. My parents were not well off when my oldest sister was born in 58', but they were stable in the fact that my Father was a Soldier and my mother was a school teacher. When my other sister came along in 67, and me in 71, their ability to care for and nurture children was on the continual upswing. Unlike a lot of cases where the birth of a child compounds the living situation because of a lack of money, and a lack of two competent parents. My parents had good moral values which they attempted to pass on, and they grew up knowing the meaning of hard work. The problems you attempted to bring up in your post are not problems, they are just syptoms and the symptoms are legion. The problem is there is a cyclical logic in the Black Community that looks for "cause and effect" for its problems. However, while the effect is apparent a lot of us only look at exterior forces as the "cause". The way that children are raised in the black community is the problem. That, and that alone is the source of all of the issues. No matter what symptom you talk about. Incarceration, academic shortcomings, violence, out-of-wedlock births and anything else comes from the upbringing. There is nothing a black "leader" can do, because I don't think that there are any...nor should there be any. Individual effort and more self-awareness is what is necessary for progress. The black church, which used to be the bastion of unity in the community has gone by the wayside. Either you have powerless enclaves surrounded by poverty, or you have the "mega-churches" that bilk people out of tons of money. I can honestly say that I have no faith in any televangelist out there. The black community is a much younger community simply because of the lifestyle we don't live as long, and we have children much earlier. The black family has gone by the wayside. Moynihan was right in his analysis, but "government intervention" is not necessary. I can tell you what the problem is, but I don't know what the answer is. I can only keep my life raft afloat. I am not sure where the cruise ship is going.

Dkelsmith,

Right or wrong or in between, it is just nice to hear such refreshing honesty from one person's perpective.

That is why we are all so individual.

The way that children are raised in the black community is the problem.

Del, I can't agree with you more. In the school system, I witnessed exactly what you wrote.

There were less than five black parents that I came in contact with over a period of years that showed interest and held their kids accountable...never holding any one but their child accountable when there was an issue.

In fact, one mother kept in contact with me, weekly, and she asked me to call her if her son sagged his pants or tried to act like the little gangsters that attended our school. The young man lives in the 'burbs, Mom is a single-mother and a career woman, but the young man would brag (lie) about drive bys, sag his pants, and act all tough, just to impress his peers.

I'm still in contact with the young man's mother.

The saddest experience was one of my black students was injured playing sports. He came to my classroom and asked to use the phone. His family refused to come pick him up from school, so I offered to give him a ride home. When I dropped him off at home, my student was so embarrassed about the apartment complex where he lived, the trash around the parking lot, the junk piled in front of his apartment, etc. The kid lived in a hell hole...he knew it. I pretended not to notice, but gave him my phone number in case he needed to go to the hospital for his injury and no one would take him. The young man had given me lots of problems until that day...after that, he toned down and didn't give me problems and became one of my favorite students. When he graduated, he gave me a bouquet of roses.

Saw 53 comments, and I thought We can't have that, so Thought I'd make it match the title.
Our schools are screwed. Every time I see a "My (insert breed) is smarter then your honor student", I think yup public education sucks.

Dkelsmith - I was hoping that you would comment on this. I wanted input from a black person who did succeed. And you nailed it. Two parent family. Parents who were involved with their children and raised them properly. I imagine with a military father there was a lot of discipline.

What I was trying to say was that people like John Lewis, rather than living in the past and celebrating getting his ass kicked on the Edmund Pettis Bridge in Selma every year, should spend his time in inner city schools preaching hard work. All the Congressional Black Caucus should do that. They should be looking to the future and not living in the past. Instead they elevate race hustlers like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton as spokesmen for blacks. Then when people like Bill Cosby state obvious truths they are castigated by people like Jesse and Al.

No one wants blacks to succeed more than I do. I think the incarceration rate is a crime (no pun intended). I think the inner city schools are a disgrace. We have multigenerational welfare families. We saw what happened in Nawlins when the gummint failed the poor. Yet the solutions from your party advocate more welfare and more poverty programs. We have been throwing money at the poor for 40 years with little or no success.

We need more Bill Cosbys who will point out that education is the key. And we need more people listening to Bill Cosby.

Thanks for your input.

The way that children are raised in the black community is the problem.

O.K. Well why are they raised this way? Why do black parents raise their children this way? Why weren't the parents cleaning up around the filthy apartment building? Waiting on the government to send somebody to do it?

If they are so piss-poor sorry that they won't even take care of their own child, why would I trust them to work in my place of business?

What is wrong with these parents? Do the parents not know any better? Do they just not care? Are they just that lazy? Can they just not do any better? Is there something WRONG with black people?

I just don't buy all of the excuses -- whitey keepin' us down; the democrats enslaving us by giving us welfare; the democrats not giving us enough welfare; they not spending enough money to educate my babies; they won't let us go to school with white people; they won't give us schools separate from white people; my great great great great granny was an african queen that whitey enslaved; we deserve reparations and ON and ON and ON.

Nobody was persecuted in this country any worse than the Chinese. But they took in laundry and lived 5 families to a house until they had saved up enough to buy a store. Two generations later, their kids are over-running the ivy league schools.

Blacks' problem is that they want success handed to them.

Wow Paul, unless I am misinterpreting the tone and heat of your response it seems you believe I am offering excuses.

I am assuming, (and hoping) that your asking, "Well why are they raised this way?" is a rhetorical question.

As I stated before, looking to the outside for cause and doing nothing to counteract the effect is a symptom. The problem for many underachieving blacks is poor upbringing, and having a dim view of what is possible out of life. Often times it is easier to say what can't be done than to try and do.

Some government programs reinforce, affirm, and subsidize that notion.

"Blacks' problem is that they want success handed to them."

In some cases yes, in other caes no. The cult of victimology, having low expectations of yourself, and other issues are as I said before, a form of cyclical thinking. I am a product of my upbringing and like many people I embraced that as "right" and am in turn passing what I think is "right" onto my children. I am doing best to continue the cycle that I was reared in, if I am successful my children will do the same, and so on and so forth.

The onus is on the individual, I do submit that I had a great advantage in life because of the mindset that my parents have. My mother and father are about 40 years older than I am. A high school acquaintance of mine grew up in a single parent home with a mother who was 14 years older than him. He is incarcerated presently and I am not. Is this an excuse that is the fault of anyone other than himself? No, it most certainly is not. His behavior is not justifiable based upon his upbringing, but it certainly is predictable.

No, Dkelsmith, when I wrote "excuses" I wasn't referring at all to your post. I used excuses in the broad, generic sense. These are the reasons / excuses that are most commonly offered when discussing this subject with most black folks.

As for the question "why are they raised this way?" I didn't mean it rhetorically. Maybe I'm slow on the uptake here, but it seems like we have a vicious cycle of horrible parents making no effort to exercise any parental responsibility; which leads to kids who drop out of school, take drugs, go to prison etc; who then become horrible parents themselves making no effort to exercise any parental responsibility -- thus setting up the circle of poverty, drug use, crime and incarceration.

Not all black people are in this trap tho. How did THEY get out? How did their parents get out? And their parents? Odds are they are descendants of slaves too. Odds are they've experienced discrimination, racism etc. How did THEY manage to succeed?

And Dkel, thank you for your service. I hope you understand that I am generalizing and that no personal disrespect is meant.

Okay, understood Paul. The answer is, I don't have the answer. What caused it? I would say a lot would have a lot to do with the migration northward in expectation of a better life, not knowing that being "poor" in the country is a far cry better than being "poor" in an urban area. Couple that with programs that don't offer anything to make work an incentive, and the cycle starts and continues.

My parents didn't get "out" of the circle, they never were in it. My Mom and Dad were born in 1934 and 1933 respectively. My Grandfather on my Dad's side was a brick Mason, and my Grandfather on my Mom's side worked for the railroad for a while, and then did something at a shipyard in Mobile Alabama for a time. He was married to my grandmother but spent much time away working. My great-grandparents, who I know little about, came out of the Carolinas during the years after the civil war, my Great Grandfather who was named Tobe Coleman Smith was a brick mason and passed that onto my Grandfather. So while there was not a lot of money in my family, there was stability and a strong family unit. As far back as there are records in my family, (and unfortunately there are not many records), you see people who were married and lived together until death. There weren't many limbs in the family tree that just had a woman hanging on it.

Nobody can "fix" this. Only the individuals living their life in such a way can change this by not repeating the mistakes that their parents made, and not repeating their own mistakes time after time after time.

The only government intervention that can help is simply "assistance" that rewards initiative and the will to work and better one's self toward independence rather than simply subsidizing a person's desire to be a sloth. The knee-jerk reaction would be to say, "Cut em off!" But then again, just because Daddy was a dirt bag, and Mommy is irresponsible doesn't mean that a 3 year old should be hungry either. Man, this is just like any other debated subject, I don't know what it will take.

Well I think I have at least a partial solution:

First, ask yourself what it costs the government to 1) Bring these babies into the world -- including hospital costs, prenatal care etc., 2)to raise it -- govt. subsidized day care, govt. subsidized groceries, govt. subsidized housing, govt. subsidized utilites, govt. subsidized schools, etc. 3) To arrest it, give it a trial and then incarcerate it for 10-15 years, post prison release and on and on and on.

Suppose instead of paying these at risk woment TO have babies, we paid them NOT TO. Suppose when an at risk woman turned 18 with no children she would get $25,000 from the government to use any way she chose and another $25,000 when and if she completed a 4 year degree in a useful field of study -- IF she had her tubes irreversibly tied. If she had one child the money would drop to $15,000; if she had two it would drop to $5000; more than 2 she gets nothing.

Now she's got an incentive -- probably more money than she has ever seen at one time -- to make something out of herself.

I think we would still see a net savings.

It's amazing but, when I read this post, I never thought it was addressing an American black problem only. That's why I put my two-cents worth. I didn't think it was only American. I didn't think it was only black. Maybe I should read it again with a different frame of mind.

I guess white children and white parents in USA are doing much better than here if they don't need the brilliant 1-2-3 rules that Denny is offering. I feel quite sad sometimes to witness the lack of achievements and ambition of the younger generation, and the problems their parents are facing in my country.

I also know that I was extremely lucky that my mother, 60 years ago, knew instinctively what Denny is saying today. "One mind. Don't waste it." She encouraged me to dream and to act upon it. In those days, many of my friends did not get the necessary push and support.

I'm so convinced that Denny was addressing a problem which can exist in any family, of any colour, anywhere, that I photocopied the post for my grandchildren. The part with the I-2-3 Rules. They live in Manitoba. They have good, well-educated parents, but children don't always obey. I might not be there for their high-school years. I've added a note with Denny's Rules. I'm leaving them some money, with all my love, to study whatever will lead to good productive work. If they don't want to study anything worthwhile, they don't get Granny's money. Just the love...

We, white people, give far too much to our children. They also feel "entitled"...

I recently heard a program on NPR (yes, I occasionally listen to NPR; we all need a good laugh now and then) and a talk show was discussing the low graduation scores in Detroit (25%). The only question on the table to all the panelists was "What do you think the government should do about this?" and every response involved "more money."

Had they asked me, and of course they never would, I would say, "Money is not the answer. Accountability is. Make parents accountable when there are 2 parent families. Make parents accountable when there is only one parent."

I would also have said, "Why do you think the government should be the one to fix the schools? Where the hell are the parents in this?"

We all know that many parents use TV and video games as babysitters. I think that mentality has extended to public schools. Need to get rid of your kid for the day? Send them to school and let someone else take care of them at government expense. It doesn't matter if they learn anything or not; at least they are out of your hair for a few hours, five days a week.

Jane: Part of the reason we homeschool our kids is that we enjoy watching them learn. It's no different than wanting to be around to see the first step or hear the first word. I don't know why anyone would want to forfeit those experiences.