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ijustcantshutup-blog · 7 years ago

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Tune in to FM

Frequency module? Funny man? Furry mutt? The definitions could go on for days. What I mean when I say FM is, Futures Matter.

Did you know in the USA any teen over the age of 16 charged with a drug crime is ineligible for financial aid for college? Did you know these kids can't get any form of grant or loan from the FAFSA? Did you know these kids who can't attend college often end up on the street, dealing drugs, on public assistance or in jail?

I don't know how much this costs to stay on top of the crimes these children are likely to commit or the lifestyle they are likely to lead. I do know that housing one inmate for four years costs more than a four year tuition, room and board at a public university, and well more than a 2 year community college degree or certificate.

We need to do something. These are not bad kids with no futures. We sentence them to lives on the edge by taking away that ray of hope; education. I don't believe any teenager wakes up dreaming of going to prison, selling drugs, prostitution, living on the streets or so many more horrible things. I believe ever single child, every single one matters. I believe that futures matter.

We as a nation need to take a strong stance on drug crimes for teens and young adults up to 25 with no prior degree or certificate.

These kids deserve a chance. Just because Jeffy had marijuana in his backpack at school does not mean it was his. Maybe Jeffy is a bit nerdy, he's been helping the star football player, Tony with homework. Jeffy is an outstanding student. The star football player has a full ride scholarship lined up, things are coming up roses. Things are great, until the day the drug dogs come to the school. Tony knows he will get busted for that bag of weed in his backpack, he sits next to Jeffy and drops it in his backpack. Jeffy gets caught. Jeffy comes from the projects, his parents barely scrape by, they can't afford a lawyer, they can't afford the court fees, they can't afford the court ordered drug tests, they can't afford the fees and fines. Jeffy suffers. Jeffy now has the light out of his life because he was 17 and just caught drug charges. No one has his back.

Later on Jeffy wants to go to school to become a computer programmer, he's filling out the FAFSA, then he hits the line where they ask about drug crimes. Just drug crimes. Not rape, not assault, nothing violent. Only drug charges are covered. Jeffy realizes he has no future and gives up. Jeffy now costs the tax payers thousands of dollars per month. Why not let Jeffy get a grant or a scholarship, invest in Jeffy. Let Jeffy become part of the working class, let Jeffy feel his worth.

I think we need to start a movement to remove that verbiage from the FAFSA. I think all people under the age of 25 who are not serious repeat offenders deserve a chance. I would rather my tax dollars to to get Jeffy a diploma or certificate for a good career. I would rather Jeffy have self worth, be a tax payer and feel pride that his past didn't hold him back.

True, some of these kids do buy, sell and use drugs, but not all of them do. Some of them are victims of convenience and circumstance. Some of them may have had one weak moment, or maybe they gave a ride home to the wrong person, with this person planting drugs in the car out of spite. This happens. We need reform for things that matter. We need reform for the future of our children, who are the future of our nation. Too many people are in jail for drug crimes, because that's all they've ever had, they couldn't break out. Too many young people lose it all in one stupid moment.

If we can keep kids in school, off the streets and out of the welfare cycle, doesn't it benefit all of us?

#kids education #Kids failing #all lives matter #Do black lives even matter to black people #change in education #drugs

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ijustcantshutup-blog · 7 years ago

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Are liberals the new slave traders?

I have had a really difficult time the past two years trying to rectify in my mind what liberals can possibly mean by not wanting to have immigrants become legal citizens. I, and my family, have lived in some very immigrant heavy areas. None of us ever had any problem at all with neighbors from other countries, ethnic backgrounds or religious differences. Living in any immigrant area will simply blow the "immigrants are lazy" argument out of the water. I watched those immigrants work so much harder than most people I knew. Some of them lived next door and spoke no English. I didn't care, we figured out how to talk to each other. A big smile and a happy "Hello" in any language will let a person know that they are appreciated and recognized. What a big happy hello won't do is let people know exactly how much you value them, how very appreciative people are of the work that is done, or any other things that we might want to convey.

The next door neighbors paid roughly 2 times what their house was worth. It was in poor repair when they bought it. Oh, and did they work. That house was so clean on the inside, the yard was swept and raked, yes I said swept. Four people bought and lived in a 3 bedroom house, about 1100 square feet. They were always working, they worked on different shifts so there were always people at home and always people working. When we were moving we had a home inspector by. He was appalled at the structural condition. When he found out they were not here legally, I was clued in; usurious loans

Hellos and smiles only go so far. Living in the USA only goes so far when the chips are down or people want to get ahead. Being in the United States will not put a roof over anyone's head or put food on the table. It will not guarantee your child is afforded the same education, help or guidance. I personally witnessed elementary school children who were in the ESL classes prK-3 being excluded from state mandated testing. I was heavily into volunteering from the time my son started Kindergarten through 2nd grade. K-1 were horrible years. I volunteered for 8 hours/day 5 days/week. I volunteered in the library because they needed the help. I worked with a lot of children and parents who spoke no English. Most of the teachers liked me. One first grade teacher detested me and my son because he could read before Kindergarten. She was angry with me for showing the first graders in her ESL class where the older child bilingual books were located. She got angry with me for helping them check out very basic books in all English to compare with the same book in Spanish. Their parents liked this. Their parents came in to check out books to read to their kids. I worked on the parents and pretty soon they were getting those books. The next obstacle was the PTA. Two white women ran the PTA devoid of any Hispanic officers, influence or input. I'm white. I wasn't standing for it. I was elected President. I didn't want to be President of the PTA, but I was. I did some things that were not 100% altruistic. I was opposed to no changes. I got rid of the other 2 officers who were elected with me, and put in place the vice President and Treasurer who were on board with the changes. Changes were made, the vice President was fully and truly bilingual. All meetings were conducted bilingually, all flyers were bilingual aside from the one time my devious little mind sent home all Spanish flyers.

We moved to another state, also with a very high immigrant population. Ethnic make-up has never been important to us when relocating. Crime rates, proximity to the things we need, affordability and other important issues are what have always driven our relocation choices. I was not in the least concerned by a very high Sikh population or a high Hispanic population. We're all just people doing the best we can for our children and family. I figured my son would branch out from Mexican food, slang, attire and vocal affectations to explore other cultures and learn new things. He kind of did, but old roots run deep. I saw a lot of the same issues, but as he aged, his friends aged and we all talked more. I found out a lot more. I learned that migrant field workers aren't given the same rights and privileges at work that US citizens are. I also learned that they don't complain because they have no recourse.

We moved where we are currently. This is the first time, since I was 15 years old, that I've lived in an area that's almost all white. My son came home after the first day or so of school totally confused because he'd never seen that many white children in his life. Third grade was the first time he was not the extreme minority in a school system or neighborhood. Being here, we've learned that liberals just need to stop this crazy crap.

If any liberal or democrat truly cared about immigrants it seems to me that they'd want what would be most beneficial to immigrants and that's equality. How on Earth in anyone's addled mind can they believe that it's in any way beneficial to an immigrant to be denied treatment, fair representation, be denied a good safe affordable home, have their children be ostracized in class or be treated like they are intellectually inferior when it comes to reading? How is preventing people who came here for a better life helping anyone? It seems that those who employ them may benefit, so might those who have hazardous or damaged property to rent or sell at ridiculously high prices and others who prey on people who just don't know better or don't have the right to appeal.

I want people to come here. I want immigrants to feel welcome. I am excited when people become citizens. I want neighborhood diversity. I want my son to experience other cultures here at home. I fully support education programs and initial aid programs. A good well rounded citizenship program would have access to classes in citizenship a safe place to stay during the learning process, it would ideally be staffed with recent college graduates in a work/ loan payoff program. Student debt is too high, so why not allow immigrants, volunteers, and new graduates in debt work together to ensure brighter futures for all. Teachers, doctors, lawyers, social workers, finance specialists, dentists, nutritionists, agriculture workers, job placement specialists... at least some of these people have loans and may be more than happy to work off all or part of that debt. Many new graduates can't get a job without experience, this would be that experience to help them get a leg up and a job offer. The new immigrants would emerge as newly minted citizens. They would ideally have secured jobs, housing, bank accounts, voter cards and transportation.

There are so many places where this could be done. Old vacant military bases have dorms, hospitals, grounds and all the amenities for a small community., empty hospitals, old schools, empty auditoriums, any old but structurally sound building will do. I'm sure carpenters, masons, electricians, architects and plumbers have loans that they can't afford too, It would be so much more cost effective to implement this training program than what is currently being done. I have no facts or figures, just my own thoughts.

If we want a better world, it we want a better USA, we have to find solutions not divisions.

#liberals #slavetraders #ignorant #illegalimmigrants

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