America's Smartest Man

Is apparently a school supervisor in New Jersey named John Fenimore, who wrote a letter containing some well-needed logic:

The editorial “High marks” (Sept. 12) regarding 75 percent of likely voters favoring merit pay for teachers misses an essential point. No one seems to be asking how much more it will cost to pay teachers based on merit. As a supervisor in a New Jersey public school district in the early 2000s, the school board insisted supervisors’ contract language include salary increases based on merit rather than a pay guide. As supervisors continued to attain the predetermined goals set by the superintendent, the cost to the district increased much more than anticipated. After two contracts, with the salaries of supervisors in this district far surpassing any in adjacent counties, the board eliminated merit pay for supervisors and returned to a pay guide, where costs could be more adequately contained.[emphasis mine]

You mean, there actually might be a cost to paying teachers on merit? Even though "we're all out of money"?!?! (that's a lie, by the way)

It is a source of continual amazement to me that the most basic questions about the corporate "reformers'" plans have not been asked: not by politicians, not by pundits, not by pollsters, not by think-tanky types...

Apparently, only people who write letters to the editor and a few smart-mouthed bloggers have decided to think this through.