We have observed the troubling presence of “helicopter parents.” They have to constantly butt in on the lives of their children, whether their kids are two or 22, whether they are in the sandbox with a red pail or in the dean’s office with a red slip.  Most Copter Parents also believe in putting their children inside of bullet-proof bubbles and placing that inside an invisible Force Shield straight out of He Man, Defender of the Universe and Marvel Comics.

We are all only too familiar with the “every kid gets a trophy” syndrome. In reinforcing to children their fragility in a rapaciously hostile world, in true Frankenstinian fashion, they have created monsters who are being deprived of some of life’s greatest lessons, which come in the school of Hard Knox, Failure 101. Those not familiar with the old tale, in the end, the Creature always turns on his Creator (see “Frankenstein”, dir. James Whale 1931; the Book of Genesis, story of Adam and Eve; and many other such stories).

Success and failure are individual visions. If a mother cannot see the humor in the gentle ribbing of a child long on excuses and short on homework, perhaps she should start paying more attention.

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As for the libeling, so called, of THE PLANET on Topix, we have little to say and not much interest. By any loose definition and most skin-tight ones, we are, like it or not, a public figure. It is our lot to receive adulation and arrows, sometimes indiscriminately and without just cause or apparent reason.

In fact, we take more shots that probably any other public figure in Berkshire County. In the true spirit of Edgar Poe (thinking here of his criticism), Ambrose Bierce, and H.L. Mencken, such is the coin of the realm when your “truthing” targets  the “right people.” You get our drift.

The nastier and more rabid slings and arrows directed our way miss their mark by their own pathetic futility, motivated as they are by the quiver of desperation.  Accepting them as an occupational hazard comes with the turf of being an essayist in the Bierce-Mencken tradition. As Richard Boone once put it: “You gotta have a hard bark on you, mister.”

We will make the following points and be done with this dyspeptic subject:

— We don’t read Topix.

— We therefore did not read the alleged injurious remarks. They might have claimed we are Mitt Romney‘s speech writer for all we know, or worse, some vicious smear like: “Dan Valenti is a Yale graduate.”

— We have no interest in reading the posts on that forum. They will say what they say.

— We have been informed that the comments were quickly taken down, which would be the typical sufficient remedy as far as we are concerned.

— We have no need to draw defensive perimeters to protect ourselves from words. The false accusations about THE PLANET — which can grow to grand proportions with fantastic tales that would rival H.P. Lovecraft —  that sometimes get aimed our way are as BBs to a battleship. They have no effect.

— We believe strongly in free speech. Public discourse, especially involving public figures, should be unbridled and untamed — even when we are on the receiving end. Words can be injurious and untrue. In the end, they are just words.

— We have no control in what people say or think about us. We don’t get  high when we receive praise nor low when we receive criticism.

— We rest securely and snugly in who we are, what we do, and in the truth of our identity.

Case closed.

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Getting back to public schools, THE PLANET is proud to have forced an urgent and much-needed discussion of the worthiness of the Pittsfield Public School system. When you match up the PPS’ dismal performance statewide with the nearly $90,000,000 being spent by taxpayers on 6072 students, it doesn’t appear that Mary Jane and Joe Kapanski are receiving good value for the dollar.

We also note the dank, dark atmosphere in Mercer, where it is always late November, with skies a steely gray and the winds that chill the bones. The School Department’s headquarters at First and Orchard streets — based on information we’ve received from various sources — seems stuck in a cultural vortex seems straight out of Soviet Russia, circa 1980.

If we can believe the testimony of brave souls who risk their jobs to sneak messages to the outside, any employee who dares question anything right now in the school department risks ostracization or worse. Free speech is quelled, questioning is discouraged, and free thinking is crushed. It’s an odd disposition for a department with a lame duck superintendent whose departure has been, to phrase it kindly, odd indeed.

Mayor Dan Bianchi will soon be submitting his first budget, the FY13 spending plan. What he proposes in terms of the school will be much anticipated. We have not seen the figures, but with bobbyd, we have great interest in seeing them.

As part of our discussion on public education, we submit this guest column by T. Baughers, a distant third cousin twice removed from THE STOOLEY. In this piece, Baughers identifies the most urgent problems facing public schools in America. As you read through this list of 10, ask yourselves: Which ones apply to the Pittsfield Public Schools, the department with the nearly $90 million price tag.

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(1) Teacher’s Unions – This is the biggie, so it belongs at the beginning.  Teacher’s Unions are just as bad as all the other unions out there.  They shelter the lazy and incompetent and at the same time discourage and beat down the eager and hard-working.  Kick the unions out of the schools, move to merit- and performance-based wages like most other private business, and you’d quickly separate the good teachers from the bad.  Then get rid of the bad and hire new teachers who have plenty of ambition and energy.

(2) Lack of discipline  – Look, I  don’t like the idea of someone spanking my kids without me knowing about it either.  But, you have to admit, there was a lot more respect and learning happening back when the kids all thought that paddle in the principal’s office could start swinging at any time.  Looking back, I can’t remember that paddle or the one on our bus ever getting used, but we THOUGHT they could, and that’s all that mattered.  Somewhere along the way we not only took away the ability for teachers to punish our kids, but we opened our big mouths and told our kids they were untouchable.  We were supposed to handle the punishment ourselves in exchange – too many of us didn’t.  It’s time to make our kids behave.

(3) Focus on the basics – Kid’s reading, writing and arithmetic skills are just pathetic.  Yet, they can tell you all about being “green” and saving the planet.  We’ve lost focus on the building blocks of our education.  I found out this week that my 8-year-old is doing pilates and yoga at school.  Between that and various assemblies and Covey skills, not a whole lot of time is left over to make sure kids can read and write well.

(4) Social programs intertwined with school – Some of the schools in our area have gotten involved in programs where kids can get breakfast at school.  The idea is that kids aren’t getting fed at home, so let’s feed them at school, right?  Seems like a good idea on the surface, until it backfires, like all socialist programs do.  In this case, the program makes it EASIER for the parents to NOT feed (neglect) their child, and have them eat at school instead.  Of course, the more kids in the program, the better for the school running it, as social programs are typically funded by participation counts.  Most people don’t realize this, but many sources of funding in a typical public school are directly determined by free and reduced lunch counts.  Schools actually benefit by trying to get as many kids onto the free and reduced lists as possible, because the state gives the most funding to the schools that appear to be the poorest.

(5) Rules have gone by the wayside – Teachers are letting kids chew gum in class, get up and walk around without asking, talk to their friends in class, goof around in the hallways…  Dress codes have loosened so that boys can walk around with their pants halfway down their butt and girls can look like crack-whores from COPS.

(6) Incorrect stratification — The public school system is far to focused on student’s age. Kids are put into rooms based on how old they are, with usually no bearing on ability or skill level.  Yes, some schools have limited gifted programs and pretty much all have “special ed” for the challenged, but more need to forget the emphasis on age and group by learning level.  Teachers would find teaching easier, kids would learn faster.

(7) Non-competition — Public schools are falling into the non-competition trap.  No-one wants any kid to feel “bad” about themselves because they didn’t win the race, or game, or contest.  Smart kids are made to feel guilty and ostracized, while the average kid is held up as the model for the rest.  Well, guess what?  The real world doesn’t reward average, it rewards the best and the brightest.  Who’s going to explain to the average kids why they aren’t getting the promotions?

(8 ) It’s OK to fail — Public schools are teaching our kids that it’s okay to fail.  A few years ago, our system implemented a new policy that allowed any kid to re-take any test once.  All they had to do was ask, sit through a study session after school, and then take the test after school.  Again, seems reasonable, right?  Give the kid a second chance in case they blow it, right?  Well, tell me what incentive any kid has now to work hard and study for the first test?  Why should they?  They’ve always got the safety blanket waiting for them.  “I think I know the material, I’ll take the test and see what happens.  If I fail, THEN I’ll spend time studying.”  Sorry, real life doesn’t usually offer us second chances, do-overs or rewinds.

(9) Laziness — Public schools are teaching our kids to be lazy.  Teachers accept late assignments without penalty.  I know a kid that has 15 missing assignments in one class.  They just needed to be turned in before the end of the semester.  There was no penalty at all for being late.

(10) Non-historical history — Public schools push one-sided revisionist history, IF they teach any real history at all.  Critical information is conveniently glossed-over to emphasize other points.  In public school history, there were no violent indians, only the South had slaves, and all slave-traders were white.  Yes, this country has some tough history to explain, but overall we’ve had a positive impact on the world and THAT should be the emphasis.

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We thank T. Baugher for the column, first posted in SCHOOL. THE PLANET welcomes guest columns on any topic. Are only requirements are originality, intelligence, and insight.

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THE TIGER IS BURNING BRIGHT IN THE STARLIGHT, AND WE SEE THE SUN THIS DAY, WHERE EVERYTHING FALLS RIGHT. LATER.

“OPEN THE WINDOW, AUNT MILLIE.”

LOVE TO ALL.