Plunging Into Local Politics

[H2O Man]

“Wisdom and knowledge, as well as virtue, diffused generally among the body of the people, being necessary for the preservation of their rights and liberties; and as these depend on spreading the opportunities and advantages of education in the various parts of the country, and among the different orders of the people, it shall be the duty of the legislatures and magistrates, in all future periods of this commonwealth, to cherish the interests of literature and the sciences, and all seminaries of them.”
John Adams

One of my friends, aware that I am running for a seat on the local school board, provided me with a copy of University of Texas Law School Professor Sanford Levinson's letter, which was published in the 10-11-10 edition of “The New Yorker.” An alarming number of right-wing republicans, including the Tea Partiers, are invested in pointing out that the US Constitution does not specifically mention “education.” Yet, as Professor Levinson points out, each of the fifty states' constitution does. The oldest of these is the Constitution of Massachusetts; the author, John Adams, included the above quote in the 1780 document.

The first documented advocate of federal aid to states' educational programs was US Senator Daniel Dickinson. He was among those who was considered as the best replacement for his friend, Abraham Lincoln, after the President was assassinated.

Before becoming a US Senator, Dickinson had served in several state offices, including the senate, and as attorney general. Before that, both he and his wife taught in a local “university,” located about two miles from where I now sit. Dickinson's father-in-law was a doctor, who lived and practiced in this house. And, as a teenager, Dickinson was employed in a “cloth and carding factory,” which was located to the right of the above photo of me jumping off the water falls that powered it.

[OHdem10]

1. May you win the seat. This is exactly what our younger Dems

need to do. Start at School Board and work your way
into higher positions. My best wishes for you. I
am sure you will see more "eye opening" things.

Sounds like "keep 'em dumb" might be more reality
than any of us really believed.

[druidity33]

4. I'm sure Mr Waterman is happy to note...

that you consider him a "younger Dem".

:)

[H2O Man]

5. In theory,

I tell my children, there could be someone younger than me. Of course, they laugh at the very idea.

[xchrom]

2. i see winning in your future! nt

[malaise]

3. Very cool

K & R

:hi: