if we value education why do we spend billions on war and a school teacher only makes 45k ayear?

Question

and sports figures like terrell owens 26 million a year.

Answer 1

I'm sorry did you say we value education? Who is we? The educators? Certainly not the politicians. The stupider that we stay the more powerful that they can be. I have been teaching 25 years and make 52K. A beginning teacher in my state makes $42K. WOW! I have an extra degree and 25 more years and make only $10K more. That is not just unfair; it's criminal. I stay for the kids. I pray that they will have at least a substantial life and stay out of trouble, but take off the rose colored glasses and what do you see? A bunch of drop outs, high school only graduates, kids who can't afford college and end up in a low paying job or in a gang and later in jail. Thanks George Bush. We love you, too.

Answer 2

Good question, and I also wonder why sports and entertainment celebrities make 100's of times the salaries of educators. It reveals where our priorities truly are as a society.

One could argue that it does not take 100 million per teacher to educate a class of students, but I would argue that it does not take 100 million to act or hit a baseball either!

I can see how military technology can get expensive, but if the whole world (even the "third world") was educated (and educated well) then we might not even need to spend so much on weapons and defense. Who knows, maybe we wouldn't worship celebrities either?

I think that we should put our efforts and resources into medicine, science, the environment and our children. Then, once the "work" is taken care of, we can "play" and put what's left on movies, music and sports... just my take: Work before Play.

Answer 3

There is a saying... " A cynic knows the price of everything and value of nothing"...
It almost explains the question...
Education is indeed of great value, and true education (not just literacy, information, job-oriented-training etc) can even avert a war ! But right now avoiding a war or even defending costs much more than the cost of providing education... Cost and value are different things. Air and water still does not cost anything (at least at the countryside, though not crowded cities !), but its value is yet to be calculated... so great !

Answer 4

We do value education, but we value natural resources, such as oil, even more. All war is motivated by economics, but usually justified by religion and self-righteousness. In comparing teachers to athletes, the disparity in salary is due to the fact that we pay people by how much revenue they generate, not by how essential their role is to the functioning of society. If all professional athletes went on strike, it would be a pretty big hit to the economy and make TV less entertaining. But if all teachers went on strike, we would have pandemonium due to the large number of unoccupied and unsupervised juvenile delinquents, and the economic fallout in the long run too.

Answer 5

Because we think we should value educating our children, but we think that someone else should pay for it. We also consider public school teachers our employees, which is, incorrect. Teachers are not politicians.

Of course, a stupid child never invaded Poland or Kuwait. So the war thing has something going for it after all.

Answer 6

No one truly values our education.. take the rich children of the politicians... they use the money they KNOW they dont need to invest in their education.. we waste what we take for granted.. if we consider out education something that always will be there why pay? We spend billions on war because we can! We spend it so we can make other countries fear us.. its all pointless.. we also spend it for our freedom our independance our rights.. but thats not wahte everyone says

Answer 7

We also value freedom and life. The war is our effort to help others gain what we have in America. HOWEVER; I am so tired of hearing how little teachers make. Police officers and fire fighters make much less and they don't get a vacation on holidays! Teachers are paid a salary that is comparable to many many others.

Answer 8

It's a good question. But where do you live that teachers are making that much? Most teachers that make that much have tenure. Teachers just starting out make much less. Although I will say that it is important ot defend our country, I think it is very important that we as a nation start think about and putting effort into the problems we have here on American soil. What good are we as a country when we put ourselves last?

Answer 9

Because in America we don't value education nor our children (look at the minimum wage our daycare providers earn!) It is pathetic. I don't know how to make a major change like this in our country, but think how wonderful it would be if we REALLY valued the important things in life!

Answer 10

A teacher has to be someone who wants to make a difference in the lives of children. If they are in it for the money guess what. they wasted four years of college. But if you take hours worked divided by annual salary it comes out to about thirty bucks an hour.