Great article Tammy. I’m so tired of people like Sam making nonsensical arguments and not getting called on them.

I’m also glad that Sam no longer will be my one-flawed-issue state rep. His mantra of replacing the school property tax with a regressive sales tax which won’t raise nearly as much revenue as the property tax, thus requiring massive cutbacks in the number of teachers and the quality of education is nauseating.

No matter how often a nonpartisan educational group or good government organization provides hard data proving that his plan won’t raise nearly enough revenue to maintain our public schools, his “convincing” response is the ever popular “yes it will”.

In reality, his goal is to damage the public school sytem so that his favored fundamentalist private schools will become more influential as students are driven out of the public system and into the private ones.

Based on the job the current public schools are doing perhaps they shouldn’t be receiving so much tax money. Also, the all powerful teachers union needs to dismantled. We would have much better quality teachers………..

Actually, the best performing schools, teachers and students, both in this country and abroad, tend to be in those areas with the highest percentages of unionized teachers. In this country, that would be the state of Maryland. Abroad, some of the northern European nations qualify on both counts. Teachers unions, much like the catch-all “government,” have just become another scapegoat, an easy soundbite, and a convenint outlet for blame and frustration amongst those with many complaints, but few workable solutions to real-world problems.

BTW, it’s nice to see your name here again, Lee. I thought you’d given up on me!

Never, Tammy, never. I will disappear for a few days, though. Just became a grandpop again and am heading to western PA to meet her for the first time.

The fact is that Rohrer can scream about this as much as he wants, but it does not matter if its only on Youtube. The media does not care about his antics and he does not have the cash to buy the TV airtime to broadcast it.

Tammy and Lee bring up some good points about teachers unions and funding, but I think the attacks on school performance can be boiled down to parents not carrying in some areas while they care in others. I lived in Greene County for awhile and the schools are generally pathetic because the parents do not have high expectations. This contrasts with Radnor Twp. where I live now. The parents care and it is shown in the results.

Come on now, is anyone that comes to this website even the least bit surprised that Mr. Rohrer can’t get his story straight. I mean this is a politician who was at the center of fleecing taxpayers out of money with the 2005 pay raise grab, taking the per diem without a budget being passed many months pass the deadline last fall, and helped contribute to the pension mess we’re facing in this state. A fiscal conservative? Please don’t get me started.

Lee –

Congratulations! And thanks.

Enjoy your trip to our little corner of the world.

Sam Rohrer’s preaching makes me sick. Voting himself a pay raise and going to enjoy a fat pension checks after his loss and retirement. This guy has lived on the taxpayer dole for 18 years and wants to claim to be a fiscal conservative. Glad to see he’ll be out of the State House!

I read this article and actually did not know this Sam Rohner. After reading the article and the comments. Pleassssse! He is not fiscal conservative. Teachers work very hard and while their union may not be as strong as others would like. I am very proud of them. They work very hard. I have relatives who are teachers and maybe some people should spend sometime in the classroom to see how they perform. They would be amazed at how hard it is

tammy, you and your ilk spout the same nonsense, but most of the “arguments” presented by your camp tend to be; irrational and often half truths that paint people into a corner. you clam to be “academic” but continue to only build straw men that YOU can easily tear down-attempting to make people look foolish. example, “So which is it, Sam? Majority rules, or majority doesn’t rule?” maybe you should take a course in constitutional law or maybe that would be to “academic” for you? if you put in the hard work before spouting off with your “academic” opinions maybe you would learn something other than talking points from the kook fringe.

Now to the other straw man you so wonderfully crafted-”unelected judges”. Mr. Rohrer was speaking of the United States constitution and not Pennsylvania’s, again maybe in your “academic” world his rhetoric is hard to pick up on, but please at least let the man speak for himself without your words in his mouth.

I could go on and set all of your straw men aflame but I will save you the embarrassment. When you “write” something it should be thought provoking, but sadly you seem to only want to lob silly “academic” attacks. Finally i would like to see those studies you speak of regarding union teachers, because i am assuming they are paid for by the nea or a group of like minds. whoops i just assumed….but i would like to see those little studies you have.

good day madam

p.s. so teachers unions foster education according to your logic? hmm that is interesting i guess i need to get into your “academic” world and find myself a union so i can be educated too.

This sounds like a room full of teachers who are afraid of loosing their jobs. Can’t handle a little competition? What are you afraid of? Sam speaks for most conservatives who feel Choice is a good thing. If I don’t like my school district school’s performance/teachers/agenda, why can’t I put my kids in a private school where vertue and morales are taught or homeschool them and get a tax credit because they are out of the public system? Are you teachers afraid of Choice? Do you only like Choice when it comes to Abortion?

I hadn’t heard of Sam Rohrer until just recently. After reading your article, I performed some additional research to better understand this candidate – and I’m so glad that I did. This article clearly mischaracterizes Mr Rorher’s positions. And the ‘me too’ comments from the teachers union members only serves to additionally reinforce my new found support for this candidate. Thanks for bringing this true fiscal conservative him to my attention.

Tammy,
I do not know much about Sam Rohrer, but after reading your article from last year, I want to know more about him. You talk about hate speech…your article tells me a lot about YOU! Does it make you feel good to berate a person the way you did him? Your choice of words were so demeaning…like some would talk to a dog. No person deserves that. It only tends to bring you down to low levels. It only proves you have absolutely no respect for a person’s feelings.
I know people who attend his church, and they have nothing but good to say about Sam. I have since talked to others who know him personally, who praise him highly. He is a man of honor and intregrity, has good moral values, and is a good husband and father. Just from what I have heard about him makes me wonder about the “academics” of others who berate him. One thing for sure, you can be the most intelligent person in the universe, but lack good morals and good character!
I believe you ought to get your facts straight before you start tearing someone’s views and character down.
I intend, this election year, to do all I can to help get this man elected to the U.S. Senate, and I trust there will be some “Academics” out there who can think for themselves, listen intently to the man and consider what he says…investigate the “true” facts, and vote for the man. We need more people like him to stand up for the people of this country, and work for us to reconstruct a nation under God that will once again take the position as the greatest nation on earth!
Thank you for listening.

Pat

Good for you, Jim, for researching the accusations and facts. I commend you, and feel if we all would stop taking people at THEIR word, and find out if what they are saying is true, we would not see our country deteriorating like it is. Some of our politicians just feel that telling the truth just isn’t the American way anymore. WELL, IT IS THE AMERICAN WAY, THE TRUE AMERICAN WAY! It is those who just do not believe in the American Way who are destroying all that is noble and good in this United States of America! Thank you, Jim.