What the heck is going on?

A number of years ago while living in Bothell my personal doctor and I became close friends. When I moved there, our clinic had about half a dozen doctors, and I chose the youngest as the one I wanted to go to. When my visit to see him came to a close, he would always take about five minutes to learn what I was interested in. It probably was not the best thing to allow, by either of us.

One time, at the close of my visit, he said he intended to go to the Pavarotti concert and wondered if my wife and I would be interested in going.

He got tickets and I paid for two of them. He gave us the two tickets close to the stage and took the seat a ways away. I got ticket shock because it was $90 a pop. It was my first experience to the real world. The three of us went to concerts, plays together several times. Prices have escalated to go anywhere or to do anything. When it costs hundreds of dollars to go to events, maybe something is out of balance.

We now live in a world where people can tell you how many points players make, how big a contract they have, and many personal things about them, while they can’t tell you who is president of the United States. Professional athletes, actors and performers of song have taken over our society while things that really matter are left on the sidelines. And on the flip side we are just a match away from the old book-burning days. Our teachers in some quarters are told what they can teach, and in one state they can’t teach anything about the Civil War. Racism isn’t hidden there. There have been efforts to take over school boards so people can control what is being taught. Efforts are being made to control what books can be placed in school libraries. No wonder that many fine teachers are taking other jobs. Teaching world, national and state history seem to be lost causes in our curriculum, and cutting our schools to four days a week is being considered.

Teachers are underpaid, bring a lot more to the table than actors, sports figures and singers and the like.

It is well past the time to support these people by high ticket prices while our teachers are denied living wages.

That’s what is going on.