[Anniee]

"We are not all that far apart"

We're oceans apart.

"but you seem to misunderstand me."

No, really I don't, but you either misunderstand me or are purposely mischaracterizing and leaving out the most important substance.

"Are you angry with me for my opinions?"

No, though I'm getting a bit annoyed with the dodgeball and the bait-and-switch.

"I am going to break this up because I think you may be missing some of what I say in my long paragraphs (I know I have a tendncey to skim that as well)."

I haven't missed anything due to skimming. I've been known to read entire books, even. With paragraphs. No need to condescend me by breaking it up as though I were a child. However your own tendency to skim (and the fact that I am imparting whole, unfragmented, global ideas as opposed to piecemeal bits - and oddly enough fragmentation is the method schools use to teach....) may be the reason that every time you do answer me you leave out the actual SUBSTANCE and what I've actually SAID and instead focus only on the tangential and start up the violins. Or you simply ignore it, like the concrete examples of indoctrination I brought up. Don't bother at this point.

"You get no argument from me that school takes way to long to achieve too little. I agree."

That was really not the point whatsoever. Could you please go back and read the whole post?

"I think anyone who CHOOSES to home school their children should be allowed to do so since I think the expressed desire to do so precludes the population I am concerned with."

Yes, we've established you are not anti-homeschooling, no need to keep saying it. Not for me, anyway.

As I said above, with the population you are concerned with you have expressed a need for education/literacy, screening to prevent abuse/neglect, and day care. Every single one of these needs can be met more efficiently without anything remotely approaching the model of Prussian-style day school for K-12.

As to "buying" our prior literacy rates, if you aren't aware of the staggeringly high literacy we (and England) had prior to your current favored institution, I'm sorry. It's common knowledge, but it is also easily verifiable. I suggest reading up on it. What you failed to note is that it wasn't even the point. You skipped right past the entire substance of my post and instead chose to focus on a tangential and minor point.

You have shown yourself very adept at simply shifting your argument to some new plane/sphere the instant I address any of your points, and you've done it in a variety of ways now (bait/switch, ignore substance, deny your prior points, focus on tangent, etc). Frankly I don't see why I would bother with that nonsense anymore. Write it off as whatever you like, pretend I'm angry at your opinions or that you won't "buy my line"; but as far as I'm concerned you've shown yourself either impaired, willfully ignorant, or devious, and whichever it is I have no desire to continue to engage it.