Reply to Thread

Message:: [QUOTE="mlov43, post: 2637265, member: 16729"]Or we could just not appease corporate-welfare interests (zinc lobby) that, with the rapid changes in the world (technology), are going keep the USA from being competitive. I don't think I have to tell you that this is only going to get worse now.  Tell me, what is the difference between interests like the "zinc lobby" and the Chinese "State-owned industries?"  As to the actual effect they have, not much. Just to list a simple example of the backwardness of bending to such interests:  The "holiday" and "vacation" lobby keeps my state from shortening the three-month summer vacation for schools and shifting that time off somewhere else in the school year.   Three months in a row off from school is the worst thing for students:  Many students spend the first three months of every school year re-learning everything that they lost over the summer.  Other countries don't have to deal with this wasted time re-learning.  Australia has a rotating schedule of six weeks of school, two weeks off.  Many east Asian countries have only a month-and-a-half of summer break, and a longer winter break.  And all of them have MORE time off in their school year than U.S. schools(!), yet perform better than U.S. schools in some measures.[/QUOTE]