for your consideration:

Combine growing costs, decreasing revenues, and high debt loads, and you can't dig out. Then what happens? "If you've accumulated any reserve over time," an executive at a major local hospital says, "the first thing you do is eat it up. Then you cut costs on staffing and support services, sometimes below levels you know are safe. Then you stop spending money to keep your physical plant and equipment up to date. The condition of the physical plants of many New York City hospitals is staggering. Then, when there's nothing else you can do, you declare bankruptcy.

The bottom line is sobering: In 2008, local hospitals spent $3 billion more delivering care than they took in. Overall, they operated at a 6 percent loss--an average that masks much deeper red ink at the worst-performing places. In contrast, hospitals nationwide have earned average profits of about 4 percent over the past decade. Within the hospital industry, a 3 percent surplus is considered necessary just to keep a hospital in decent working order.

Why do you think hospitals fought so hard against the public option?  Contrary to what some believe, the docs did this same thing.  Did you at any time hear of maintaining reimbursment rates?  Did doctor's go for the so-called Medicare Rates+5 proposal?  No.  Why?  They've got a business to support, employees to pay, lifestyle to maintain.  I don't have a problem w/that.  The public however needs to be better informed so they can determine if they don't have a problem w/it also.  Too many on our side live in the echo chamber and are either unwilling or unable to hear alternative, valid, perspectives.

Mass teacher firings in Washington, DC

Mass firings at R.I. school may signal a trend

Race to the Top? Just Another Race to the Bottom - Winners of Race

Not sure how well the links give both sides of the issue. Personally, as I stated in my previous post public education does not fail in wealthy neighborhoods. It fails in the most economically depressed areas. Even in the same districts, schools from more affluent neighborhoods do better than those in the poorest sections.

IMO the Race to the Top is No Child Left Behind on steroids with the ultimate goal of privatizing all education through charter schools and a voucher system. The charter schools that succeed such as the Harlem Promise School are heavily subsidized with outside money.

He has raised a lot of money to try to do that. The budget of the Harlem Children's Zone is $36 million a year -- and growing. Only a third of it comes from the government; the rest comes from private donations. That money made it possible for Canada to open his own charter school in a new $42 million building. It's called "The Promise Academy."

Classes have a ratio of one adult for every six kids as well as state-of-the-art science labs, a first-class gym, and a cafeteria that looks more like a restaurant. Only healthy food is served here, to help fight obesity. link

IMO, teachers in economically disadvantaged schools should overcome challenges regarding resources through creativity, hard work perseverence and team work.

Somehow, many of them do overcome the challenges -- but if spent even a day in their shoes, you would be so embarrassed by this comment as to what it takes.