marybethlee

[marybethlee]

Public Schools Are Community Schools

Parents should be irate with the voucher supporting politicians calling their community schools mediocre. Are there public schools with problems? You bet. We hold them accountable. We can because they are public schools. Years ago I worked in a district with some great private schools. But there were also private schools in the district that did little more than color Sunday School worksheets…

[marybethlee]

Megalomaniacs

One year, a new defense contractor took over the flight line contract at Sheppard AFB. My father-in-law worked in an area that worked with the specialty planes that flew in and some other planes as needed. Their most important job was to respond if there was a crash. Their job was to put the plane back together again and figure out what went wrong and help develop protocols to make sure that…

[marybethlee]

Fake Words Created Chaos

Remember in 2020 when the whole Southlake mess started unraveling with the book bans and that weird guy Cori whatever was screaming about CRT in the schools and everyone actually in schools was like what the heck is he talking about?! But he just kept saying it over and over until Republican moms got mad and flipped out in Southlake and suddenly CRT was everywhere even though no one screaming…

[marybethlee]

Federal Aid is a Lifeline

Trump has ordered a freeze on all federal aid for people in the country except Social Security and Medicare. That’s SNAP benefits, that’s Section 8, free and reduced lunch, PELL grants. That’s the country’s entire social net except Social Security and Medicare. There was a time in my life when social safety nets were my way to the middle class. This is heartbreaking and infuriating on so many…

[marybethlee]

Propaganda Works

It started with Edie and Steve. I loved Edie and Steve. Every morning we’d watch Fox and Friends and Edie and Steve. I didn’t like the other guy. What was his name? Doesn’t matter. But I loved Edie and Steve.  And Neil Cavuto. We watched them while getting ready for the day. They were so real. My husband made fun of the Fox News Girl uniform of the super short skirt and the glass table top…

[marybethlee]

Facts Didn’t Matter Because They Didn’t Care

I naively thought showing people facts about what the current iteration of the Republican Party was doing to public education in Texas would make a difference. Just like I naively thought showing people facts about COVID would make a difference. Just like I thought showing people facts about January 6 would make a difference. Just like I thought showing the people how legislating choice would…

[marybethlee]

Retired Again!

After five months of my seasonal part-time job at the Fruit Stand, I’m retired again. I have a whole new respect for retail workers. That was hard! The people I worked with were all super smart, supportive and nice, and my brain LOVED that challenge, once it figured out how to get grinding again. I’m thankful to be retired again, but I’m also super thankful for that interruption in…

[marybethlee]

TikTok and tick tock

I didn’t do anything with TikTok until last October. I purposefully stayed away from the platform because of the chaos it created for schools in the immediate aftermath of the pandemic. But my brother loved TikTok. And when he ended up in the hospital again, TikTok was the one thing he could do. So I started a TikTok account and I ended up seeing exactly why so many people love the app. It…

[marybethlee]

The Pitchforks

In 2014 I read an article headlined There Will Be Pitchforks in Politico by Nick Hanauer. It was about how we could make things better economically in the US and how, when you study history, you see anytime there’s a huge economic divide, pitchforks follow. It’s like Hanauer had a magic looking glass to the future, and things are definitely getting worse right now. A couple weeks ago, I watched…

[marybethlee]

Your Vote Is Your Voice

Your vote is your voice. It matters every time. And there are always consequences. Senator Mike Rounds of South Dakota has submitted a bill to abolish the Department of Education. He calls his bill the Returning Education To Our States Act. Someone should let Senator Rounds know education is already largely a state responsibility. The Department of Education ensures student rights and equitable…

[marybethlee]

A commitment to remember

I’m committed to being better about sharing facts on my social media pages. More verified news stories from legitimate sources, less righteous indignation and outrage. I’ll still feel what I feel, but I’ll share the facts. It won’t be easy, but I think it’s important for what we’re going to face. Today’s news about yet another woman dying because a doctor wouldn’t perform a D&C was…

[marybethlee]

Today Could Be the Day

Dad’s appointment with his cardiologist today could be the last one of his hands-on recovery. He’s doing great and he’s ready to be released from regular standing appointments. More than anything, I think he’s ready for independence again. I’ve enjoyed the time I’ve spent with my parents during this recovery, but it’s the perfect time to get back to normal! Fingers crossed and lots of prayers!

[marybethlee]

Say It To My Face

My MAGA mom wanted to talk about Kamala. I closed my ears and started saying mom, mom, mom over and over until she stopped talking and then I said, “Mom, it’s going to be real important that we don’t talk about politics the next four years unless you’re calling to tell me you’ve seen the light and are voting Democrat, but I realize that would mean hell has frozen over, so…..” Mom was on her iPad…

[marybethlee]

Public Schools Will Hurt in Texas

Today I’ve seen the “But if my kids don’t go to the public school, why should I pay for public school” talking point. And the answer to that question is a deliberate misunderstanding of public services. I haven’t used the fire department, but I pay for it. I don’t need the public hospital, but I pay for it. I don’t drive on every road, but I pay for them. The public school is a public service.…

[marybethlee]

Speak Up

In two months when the new administration takes over, it’s a purely anti-government group. They hate the things that stand in the way of making money, and their ability to grow rich is the only thing that matters. They whip up hate wars to cover the grift. They get people focused on fear of and anger at others instead of on what’s happening in their own world. We saw a huge price for this…

[marybethlee]

Hate is a Powerful Drug

I absolutely accept the outcome of the election. I accept that the majority of people in my country chose a criminal, a grifter, a violence-inciter, an insurrectionist over a gifted woman who had devoted her life to her community, her state and her nation. I accept that the majority of my country chose a message of a bullet, a message of white Jesus, a message of hate. But I will not quietly…

[marybethlee]

Resistance Continues

If you voted for Trump, skip this. It’s not for you. Friends,This is worse than 2016. It’s a supermajority and they control the Courts. They already control most of the southern states and the Midwest. So if we focus on the awful it will make us crazy. We must resist. We cannot let hate stand.But we can’t focus all energy on resistance because living and loving is essential. So Choose one or…