On Rhetorical Battlegrounds, "Reform" Proves Potent Weapon

The author illustrates the importance of using the "buzz" words that become popular with any issue in politics.  It was interesting to see how both parties lept on the reform bandwagon, using vocabulary such as "the establishment/bureaucracy", "reform", "status quo", and "putting students first" to prove points on wildly opposite spectrums.  The use of rhetoric in politics is nothing new; in fact, since the days mudslinging became popular it is about all they do.  Hiding true agendas beneath shiny catch phrases that snatch public awareness and fire up personal opinions is the basis for most political pandering.  The attack and defense on the current educational system is no different.  While both sides of the arena desperately attempt to make clear their intentions on improving education for students, it is their actions and policies that must be put under the microscope. This is why learning critical thinking while in school is paramount, so that future generations can peer through the haze and search for facts to come to their own conclusions rather than simply gobble down the ego satisfying nuggets tossed at will by their chosen party.  For example: Republicans Tom Luna and C.L. Otter tout their "Students Come First" proposal, which would increase class sizes, limit teachers' collective bargaining rights, institute merit pay and virtual education.  How does this put students first?  Why don't you try increasing funding to urban schools, after school programs, and additional technology in classrooms?  But it sounds pretty, and if you oppose it, then by virtue of its title you are not supporting students.  The Democrats are little better; President Obama's Race to the Top speeches are rife with statements that bemoan our acceptance of "status quo, even when the status quo isn't good."  My guess is neither party really knows what needs to be done to properly "reform" education; they need to speak more with teachers currently in the classroom, and less to their administrators and special interest groups.