Dear Random North Florida Republican Representative

Dear Representative,


As a resident of this fine state for over 35 years, I have come to accept certain political maneuvers as universal truths rather than as exceptions to the rule. Lying, for example, has been accepted as merely part of the political game. Basically, if you are a politician, at some point you will make promises that you will fail to keep or statements that simply do not bear any resemblance to what one would consider to be the truth. And while this is wrong on many levels, it is unfortunately a modern day fact of life. I bring this up only as a reference to the many campaign promises regarding education and the well being of the children of Florida that you undoubtedly made at some point in your career. If you are reading this and thinking to yourself, “I’ve never lied on the campaign trail or made promises to improve the well-being of the public schools”, then you are simply lying to yourself.

Though I do not expect the lying in politics to suddenly come to a screeching stop, or to witness a true “Mr. Smith Goes to Tallahassee” moment in my lifetime, I do want to remind you—a public servant—as to what exactly your job is. Now normally, I would never seek to tell a professional how to conduct his or her business. In fact, I used to believe that someone deemed a professional, who had years of college and training and experience, would be best to determine the changes and strategies necessary in that particular career field. But as a public school teacher, I have recently been told that that is not always the case. Apparently, it is far wiser to have inexperienced and untrained people determine what is in fact best for a particular field. Since you feel qualified to dictate what occurs in my area of expertise, let me expound on my ideas about the world of state politics.

First of all, you are a representative. You are in Tallahassee to represent the people in your gerrymandered district. More importantly, however, is your responsibility to represent what is in the best interest of the people of Florida. In other words, you need to fulfill the wishes of your constituents to the best of your ability. Let’s take HB 7189 as an example. Every single teacher’s union in the state is against this bill. Every single PTA and PTSA in the state is against this bill. The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards is against this bill. That’s a lot of people. Did you poll the good citizens of Florida to determine if this is what they truly wanted? Did you ask parents if they felt the changes you are planning to make are in the best interests of their children? Did you even once consult a legitimate group of public school teachers (not Senator Thrasher’s daughter who at one point was a teacher but is now a stay-at-home mom who will not be affected by the bill at all)? Can you honestly say that this bill fulfills the wishes of a majority of your constituents, or more importantly, a majority of the residents of the Sunshine State? Be truthful, this is not a campaign.

I also believe your status in the state of Florida puts you on the level of role model. After all, you are in Tallahassee to uphold the laws of the land and to defend the rights and privileges of the people of Florida that are provided in the state constitution. What a fantastic person for today’s youth to place on a pedestal! But I fear that your ability to be considered a role model is falling faster than the values of our homes. And the reason can be summed up in one word: hypocrite. How can someone be looked up to when he or she is dripping with hypocrisy? Let me explain. For the past year, we the people have been bombarded with the hate and venom that was the national healthcare debate. When it came to a vote, the Republican Party cried foul at a completely partisan vote. All Democrats, no Republicans. The Republicans were horrified that a vote of such importance, on a topic that would affect so many people, could be decided down party lines. But, my dear representative who serves the people and not the party, I challenge you to find me a Democrat who supported Bill 6 in the Senate. Will the House hold true to party lines? Will the same Republicans who were appalled at party line voting speak up in the House and actually vote for the people and not the party? You know the answer to that. Hypocrisy rears its ugly head again.

Again, I don’t wish to tell you how to do your job. I am not a politician and my degree is not in political science. I haven’t been in the State House since I was a kid on a field trip, and even then it was just for a tour. I probably shouldn’t be explaining to you the details of your job. But then again, are you a teacher? Is your degree in education? Have you taught in a public school? Better yet, have you been to a public school for a significant amount of time (not a public appearance or campaign stop) to truly gain an understanding of what goes on in each of the classrooms? You know the answer to that as well.

I think that if you truly had an understanding of education, you would also have an understanding of why so many teachers in the state are outraged at HB 7189. But therein lies the rub: you do not understand what we do. More importantly, you do not understand what we need. Or what the children need. If you did, this bill would never have made it out of committee. It would have been laughed off. It would have been labeled exactly what it is—a slap in the face to public school teachers and a turning of the screws on the thumbs of the unions that represent them.

So I ask you, humble employee of the taxpayers, to seek out the truth. Take a cold, hard, non-partisan look at the details of this bill. Gain an understanding of what it means to educate the whole child. Accept the idea that although teachers did not go into the education profession for vast wealth that we do deserve the right to earn a decent living—and that that right should not be based on the whims of a child or the facets of his or her life that are well beyond our control. More importantly I ask you to set aside the lying and hypocrisy that plague the modern political spectrum and to do what you were hired to do: represent the people of Florida.