Tebow Bill: My Liberal Pals Are Dead Wrong Here

The Virginia legislature killed the "Tebow bill" again this week and it really pisses me off. This is one place where my liberal friends are dead wrong, where we have an opportunity to build a positive bridge with conservatives, and where we are denying Virginia citizens services they're paying for.

The "Tebow bill" is named for Tim Tebow, the former All-American football player who was home-schooled in Florida, but was invited (I won't say "allowed" because that implies somebody was doing him a favor) to play high school football for a public school. The Virginia bill would open up football, forensics, chess and other extracurriculars to home-school students and that is only right.

Regardless of why parents choose to teach their children at home--religion, that they can do it better, that there are too many distractions in public school, whatever--they are paying for public schools. The whole notion that homeschoolers aren't conforming to class schedules, homework assignments and the like in order to remain eligible is bogus.

Home-school students are often far more college-ready than their public school counterparts and would blow the doors off the tests these public school kids struggle with. I know a number of home-schooled kids who are miles ahead of their public school counterparts.

We have teacher lobbies and the Virginia High School League going at this in a self-serving manner and we need to stop it right now. Being inclusive means that we also need to include conservatives. That makes us all better.