Many admirers of Ayn Rand’s writings are also admirers of the Montessori method of teaching. In that vein, some readers of this site may be interested in a new initiative that would deeply threaten the viability of Montessori schools in California.
It is called the “Reiner Initiative,” and you can learn more about it at stopreiner.org:
Hollywood actor/director Rob Reiner wants to change California’s constitution to create a new $2.4 billion government-run preschool program, funded by a massive tax hike.
In the subscribers-only article “Meathead Is at It Again,” the Wall Street Journal had this to say on the subject:
Celebrities with a social conscience are a growing breed in Hollywood. But it would be nice if they’d stick to whales and landmines and leave our children alone.
Unfortunately, California parents have no such luck.
Movie-director-turned-child-advocate Rob Reiner recently acquired a million signatures to put his Preschool for All initiative on the California ballot next June, his second attempt to launch a “universal” preschool program. The initiative would impose a 1.7% income tax on couples making over $800,000 a year ($400,000 for individuals) to offer three hours of free preschool for all the state’s 4-year-olds.
This soak-the-rich scheme would put $2.3 billion into the state’s coffers that Mr. Reiner might himself control if he unseats Arnold Schwarzenegger as the next governor of California. (The gubernatorial ambitions of Mr. Reiner — who once played Meathead alongside Archie Bunker in “All in the Family” — are an open secret in the Golden State).
The stopreiner.org web site is a good place to start learning more.
If you care about the Montessori method, please take time to bring this to the attention of your friends and colleagues.