Rant About an Overheard Conversation

The other day, I think it was last Thursday I was in the crew room and overheard a flight attendant talking on his cell phone to one of his friends. Now, I admit, I was eavesdropping, mostly because I was completely devoid of entertainment and he was chatting loudly and it was nearly impossible not to hear him. This man was not much older than me, feet propped up on the table. His eyes were weirdly close together, and a hooked nose. Here is a reconstructed version of what I heard:

"Yeah, man, I tell my five year old to tell his teacher that all this homework is stupid. He comes home and has two hours of crap to do and then it's dinner and then it's his bedtime and he don't have any time to play. I tell him to say to his teacher that it don't make any sense to come home from school and then do more work........

......Yeah, he brings home this bullsh*t that he's never seen before in class. I ask him 'Have you even done this before?' and he says 'No.' So this b*tch is sending him home with crap that he hasn't ever seen before and expects us to teach it to him! WE have to do HER job! I am pissed! He don't need to be spending all his time doing homework, and I don't need to be spending all my time doing her job......"

Now, this one sided conversation made me shudder, not only because I might have to work with this asshole one day, but that his offspring - he already has two (one apparently is in pre-kindergarten) - is our next generation. That is so scary. I was lucky enough to have parents that stressed the importance of a good education; my mother has an AA in Computer Science and my father has a Master's Degree in Education, actually almost a Doctorate. I have a BA in English. I eventually want to further that to a post-graduate degree. I hold teachers in the highest esteem. My dad was a high school teacher and is now a part-time college professor, my mother a teacher's aide.

That being said, homework is something that needs to be done. It is to be expected, and it is a parent's responsibility to help their own children if they need it. And also, this may be a surprise to the idiot on the cell phone, but school is not a daycare and/or prison! It is a place to learn! Sometimes the school day isn't long enough, or the child needs some extra attention to grasp certain concepts, and that's where YOU as a PARENT comes in! You are responsible to teach your child, just as much as a teacher is! It is your responsibility since you brought this child into the world to educate him as well as you possibly can, and that doesn't mean just dropping him off at the nearest public school district and thinking that you are finished. You need to read to him, tutor him, check his homework, take him to the library, be chaperones on field trips, pack healthy lunches, join the PTA, and vote yes to bonds that fund museums, libraries, public education. If you think that is unattainable, idiot on the cell phone, then I think you were an unprepared father, and perhaps you should rethink bringing more children into this world.

Oh, and I am not going to say ANYTHING about your grammar, idiot on the cell phone, "he don't" and "it don't"! Lord!