“Is public education socialism?”

In defense of a single-payer health care system, possible U.S. Senate candidate and state Rep. Bill Kortz (D-Dravosburg) asked, “Is public education socialism? No. This is the same thing.”

Kortz is certainly right, that single-payer health care is akin to public education. But is he correct about it not being socialism?

An honest look at American “public schooling” reveals that it is indeed the most socialistic institution in our country. Most people are surprised to learn that “free” public schooling is one of the “Ten Planks” (key tenets) of the Communist Manifesto.

Funding for public education is clearly organized around the Marxian principle of “from each according to his ability, to each according to his need” as we take wealth from those who have it (in the form of property, income and consumption taxes at the local, state, and federal levels) and we redistribute it to the schools based upon “need” as determined by Washington, Harrisburg, and District officials.

Of course, the “education” of each public school child — from the teacher training to the curriculum to the standards — is also determined and planned by political agents at those various levels of government. It is not the parents or the students who control their education, it is the “state.” Sure, we give lip-service to parents and students as “customers”, but the reality is that they are at the very bottom of the totem pole…if at all.

Then when these schemes utterly fail, the response from these public education central planners is ALWAYS “we just need more money” to make it work. That’s what Gov. Rendell’s “Tax You More Bus Tour” was all about this past week.

And so it would be with Kortz’s desire to “public educationize” our health care system.

Call it whatever you want, Representative, but the results will be the same — ever-increasing costs, never-increasing quality, and excuses galore from the political officials in charge.