I heard a California State Senator on the radio this morning saying that he liked many things Arnold Schwarzenegger was doing as California's Governor but that he was disappointed with Arnold's capacity for backing off the hard line and compromising. That's a career politician for you.
Jesus Christ, government needs MORE compromise, not less. No project in the history of the world, political or otherwise, has ever been completed without compromise. Compromise is how you get shit done. It's very telling that politicians view compromise as weakness. That's why they can't write a budget on time, stay under budget, pass useful legislation, nor generally fix problems. They are more interested in sticking to their one and only idea than to compromise a bit and get shit done.
California has legislation in place which will deny H.S. diplomas to graduating students if they can't pass an exit exam, starting with the class of 2006.
I think it's a phenomenally fantastic policy! That way we stop handing diplomas to people who can't read, which this state has been known to do from time to time.
As happens with any phenomenally fantastic idea, the motherfucking liberal democrats are trying to put a stop to it before it even begins. They have submitted 2 bills to the state legislature trying to block/delay the tests from taking place.
To pass the test, students will need to display 7th grade math skills and 10th grade english skills. Graduating 12th graders will be the ones taking the test, and if they can't pass it they don't deserve a fucking diploma.
Never mind that the exam would be painfully easy to pass for 90% of students, but the testing has already been delayed once! It was originally supposed to start for the class of 2004. Which means all schools, teachers, and students have been on notice for at least 2 years about what it will take to pass the test.
I really wish this country and state would stop giving free rides to people who don't do shit. This is why H.S. diplomas are meaningless, pretty much anyone can get one. Imagine if a high school diploma actually MEANT something again, forcing students to actually be able to read, write, add, and subtract.
You can read all about it here (reg. req.).
