Please Don't Tell Me That You're Surprised - (repost with addendum)

I just happened to read this in a column by Glen Ford of Black Agenda Report and have decided to add it to my most recent post because of its relevance.

"Al Sharpton, the MSNBC host and presidential pit bull, reciprocated the University of Phoenix’s sponsorship of his TV special Advancing the Dream with a puff piece on the for-profit giant’s online offerings, featuring the NFL’s Larry Fitzgerald, a Phoenix student and booster. Phoenix University excels all others in funneling Black people’s educational dollars directly to Wall Street via the Apollo Group, a $5.36 billion corporation with ties to the super-predatory Carlyle Group."

The Carlyle Group is one of the hedge funds in which NJ pensions are invested and to which Robert Gardy (the Christie appointed  manager of NJ pension funds)  has long standing ties.

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Additionally, Mr. Ford reports -

"The Obama administration may abhor the chaos in which players like the University of Phoenix and Ashford University have become the top producers of baccalaureate degrees among Blacks. But the administration – and the Democratic Party, as an institution – also worships at the alter of privatization. Rather than eliminate the felonious educational enterprises root and branch – and spend the money on a nationalized system of free education – Obama will continue to provide tens of billions to nourish the poisoned tree."

Every year we spend $32 billion on these for-profit institutions. Why not use that money for tuition-free colleges for students who need higher education--and bypass Wall Street?"

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Ain't that sweet? It appears that every politician and government official - left, right and center - is intent on stealing taxpayer and retiree monies in whatever ways possible.