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Chadmartigan t1_jckedb8 wrote

Reply to comment by DarthLysergis in Pilot program begins for bulletproof shelter inside Alabama classroom by Picture-unrelated

A tale as old as time. People say that we don't fund education in America, but the fact is that we dump money into our schools. The problem is that so much of that money is gobbled up by private enterprise before it can ever hit the classroom (or, God forbid, the teachers' bank accounts). Training, security, software licenses, etc. etc. etc.--schools are an absolute cash cow for private enterprise. And legislatures and districts both are eager to foster these relationships.

So it's no wonder that we see a pilot program for a potentially massive public outlay to solve a problem that shouldn't exist in the first place. Why undertake measures to address gun access and mental health when you can address the problem by committing the schools to funding an open-ended arms race against some prospective school shooter?

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DarthLysergis t1_jckiefa wrote

I worked in the next school district over from Newtown. It is a very wealthy district and the money they spent on security after that was insane. I am sure security contractors were cashing in on it heavily.

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certainlyforgetful t1_jckpku8 wrote

I volunteer at the school where my spouse works.

They’re more than willing to drop $10-20k a year on random equipment from a big name corporation for my “club” without so much as even a review by more than one person. We can get the same stuff 2nd hand for about $500, but we’re not allowed to do that.

she’s making <$2k/month and a raise is “in the works” but she won’t see it until spring 2024. It’ll probably be less than 10%.

Approving actual classroom expenses, or raises takes years. But if they’ve got a budget for “student enrichment” the district can just spend the money on whatever the fuck they want as long as a corporation is selling it.

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