Are you kidding me? $20K for two weeks? Guys, seriously, I'll do it for half that, honest. Neck tattoos and piercings are apparently all that are needed to rake in five-figure speaking fees. Now, don't get me wrong - my hat's off to Mr. Guy for finding a way to make obscene amounts of money while looking, for all intents and purposes, like a circus sideshow.Austin, Minnesota (CNN) -- Schools worldwide book him to put a stop to bullying. One Minnesota community promised him $20,000 to get him to come to town for two weeks last fall.
He calls himself The Scary Guy, and his price tag can run as much as $6,500 a day. The Scary Guy is his legal name -- we checked. It's safe to say his presentation is unlike anything most students have ever seen. The kids love him, and many school officials sing his praises. But CNN learned not every past customer believes he offers a real solution to the difficult problem of bullying in America's schools.
What gets me is this, though:
Scary visited Juntunen's middle school last year. The cost was covered by a federal grant.Got that? At least $6.5K to have someone with no education credentials come into the school for a one-time presentation, covered by a Federal grant. See? FREE MONEY! I'll bet you $20 that comes next year, that same school district will be calling for yet another tax override to pay for more improvements to the school/whining about low teacher salaries/complaining about not having enough money for copy paper. But six large on a sideshow freak to talk to the kids? No problem - it's not our money!
Except, of course, that it *is* our money, it's not growing on trees. I'd really like to see the grant that paid for this visit - specifically, I'd like to see why the grant was issued, who reviewed the terms of the grant, and who decided that this was an appropriate expenditure of cash given these lean financial times. I'd also love to know how much the school superintendent makes in this district, and how many times they've had to have the teachers send home a "tell your parents to vote for the [insert dire language about more taxes needed] project" notices.
Sorry. I may be projecting here. I stopped into the elementary school Friday night to help out with the PTA event, and noticed the update on the school's building project. It was just started a few months ago, is already hideously over budget, and will not add a single classroom to the school. It's going to move the gym to a different side of the building, but other than that, nothing. And for this we're paying an extra $250 a year in taxes for the next, oh, forever.
Money's real easy to spend when you don't have to pay the bill - there's a metaphor for the current (and previous) administration there...
That is all.
3 comments:
Your comment is apt about the school not having monies for, you know, education. But the can give some guy $6500 for a couple hours work for something parents should be doing?
Note that our hero is a little behind(seven years!) in HIS taxes.
Not that he probably actually pays through his "non profit" corporation anyway.
Sigh....this crap goes on all the time in this nannified state...
Is a joke amongst LEOs I talk to...
As is all our tax dollars and putting up with the Teachers Union..
Whom refuse to really "teach" anymore.
And refuse to let people "parent" anymore...
I have one more year and my youngest will be free!!
At least $6.5K to have someone with no education credentials come into the school for a one-time presentation, covered by a Federal grant
I view it as a plus; if he'd had "education credentials" they would
a) not change a damn thing, since they're worthless
and
b) let him charge twice as much, minimum.
Post a Comment