Incendiary Quote of the Year?

Holy cow:

As Bradford spoke, his main reinforcement came through the door to slight applause – Booker.

A version of the Opportunity Scholarship Act (OSA) that “took no money from the districts at all” was voted down by the teachers’ union, Bradford said.

The union – and entrenched opposition like Epps – only “talk about one thing: money,” he said. Can’t afford it.

“Our kids can’t afford it,” Bradford said. “They can’t afford to wait another moment.”

Before Booker took the floor, another opponent to the OSA wooed the crowd.

“We have in the past and in the future continue to believe that every child deserves a high-quality education in the public schools,” said New Jersey NAACP President James Harris.

Right off the bat, Harris challenged Bradford for commenting that a scholarship saved his life: “Public schools are not detrimental to your health.”

“It’s rich white men who are funding this (program),” he said, motioning to Booker sitting in the front row. “In 2011, we can put a black face on anything.”

O.M.G. Read the whole thing - it's hysterical. Like this:

“If every black person screaming and yelling came out and voted, we wouldn’t have Gov. Christie right now,” said Booker, who has a close relationship with the governor.

"... we wouldn't have Gov. Christie right now!"

Or this:

In the failing schools, he said, “Time is an obsession and achievement is a variable.” In the successful schools, the opposite is true: “Time is the variable and achievement is the constant.” What that means is longer school days, weeks, and years, Booker said.

“Newark is getting out of the business of being time-obsessed,” he said, and in three years they hope to lengthen the aforementioned school periods.

So, the solution to helping kids in failing schools is to have them spend more time in those schools. OK...

Folks, when it comes to schools, we should be less worried about bad teachers and more worried about bad politicians.

ADDING: If this is any indication, the war between the cities and the 'burbs is really going to get ugly. Hunker down.