Bob Dylan once said that you don’t have to be a weatherman to tell which way the wind is blowing. Seeing that there is a concerted campaign of harassment against private education in Moscow is about as difficult as one of those test-your-smarts questions in kids’ magazines. Three triangles and a circle in a row. Which one is different?
Consider what has happened in the last year, and what is happening now:
1. A complaint about tax exempt status is made against New St. Andrews College. The Latah commissioners upheld the complaint, and the case is currently on appeal.
2. A complaint about tax exempt status is made against Christ Church’s office building downtown. A significant part of the first floor is dedicated to Greyfriars Hall, the ministerial training seminary for Christ Church. The Latah commissioners upheld the complaint, and the case is currently on appeal.
3. A zoning complaint was brought against New St. Andrews College. The city decided in favor of the college, and those bringing the complaint have appealed.
4. St. Mary’s had the rug pulled out from under them when their request for a (most) reasonable variance on a new building was denied.
5. A complaint about tax exempt status was filed this last week against Logos School — a thriving private school, and leader in education reform around the nation.
6. A complaint about tax exempt status was filed this last week against the Nuart, which is an inter-denominational Christian ministry downtown that houses, among other things, Atlas School, a small Christian boys’ academy.
7. In addition, an anonymous (ah, courage) zoning complaint has just been made within the last few days against Atlas School.
8. Remember that these complaints are not being made in a general way that would indicate concern (however misguided) over the principle of the thing. No complaints against the Unitarian church for their rental policies, for example. These complaints are all precision-guided, and are clearly part of a larger strategy.
Now, here is the effrontery part. So then, in the midst of all this vindictive and petty harassment of private educators, across the board, the Moscow School District wants us all to pony up 45 million clams (real cost) for their new Boondoggle High. Additional real costs will pop up later, and astonish everybody but Jack Wenders. Now the case for the new high school assumes (big word) sturdy enrollment growth for the district when what they have actually had over the last number of years is enrollment decline. The reason for the decline (since the school age population of Latah County is steadily growing) is that more and more parents are seeking out private alternatives for education. The strategy in response to this is clear. If you can’t persuade them, coerce them.
What this all amounts to is that I am being asked to vote to increase my taxes, so that we can set in place even stronger economic incentives for illegal and discriminatory actions against private schools. So in a roundabout way, I am being asked to fund my own continued harassment. The vote is next Tuesday, and I think that when I vote, I will demur.