Not What You Know....Economic Theory?

 What the heck, while I am on an economics roll, let's go here. 

I think it has happened to us all, we've gotten a job because of someone we knew.....Or in many of our cases, didn't get a job because, well,we didn't have the " right name" or the person who got the job was "known by someone else. "

Never mind you had the actual qualifications for the position, or experience, or would actually stay in that job for, well, a longer period of time.

And small towns seem to be more inclined to " help out" people. 

The old, " It's not what you know, it's who you know." 

I know some of you would say " Clique" which some people will swear up and down does not exist. 

And it happens in large towns, not just small communities. 

I know I've seen teachers give kids "breaks" because of who their parents were. Or who the kid's last name / other family members are/were at one time. 

And it may seem bitter in my case, I know I did not get a job in my hometown because of my last name and well, I wasn't in the 'Clique" was never in the elite. And I so wanted the job. So wanted. 

Not going to lie, it hurt when I did not get the job. I almost cried, and in typical school district fashion, you're never told you didn't get the job. 

I know I moved on and took another job in another school district because the high school outside of Fort Worth, I had interviewed for for an Economics/ AP European History / AP World History job dawdled and waited a week to tell me I had gotten the position. ( I had called and they told me, we'll call you right back.)In the meantime, a high school near Houston had offered me a contract, and I had signed.   

The principal at the Fort Worth school was incensed, I mean really upset I did not just wait. ( Well, I needed a job, and couldn't wait.)

But, I digress.

Politics, and "knowing people" has been the norm, good, or bad....

I know there was a time there were 2 people in the running for a social studies job in Buna ISD and they asked me which person would you rather have for the department.  I told them which one, and told them the other one would one teach in Buna a short period of time, my choice would be a there for life.....They of course picked the one I did not recommend. That other person had more "juice" in the community. They were gone from Buna Schools within 3 years. Nice person, it just wasn't their profession....It let me see just what they thought of me. But then again, I wasn't from Buna, I didn't have the "juice." Another reason I have no love for the actual Buna ISD. ( I saw retirement for me, and wanted a good teacher step into the gov/eco position....and that's all we will say on that subject.....today....)

This is not the only time Buna has done this, I have seen people with degrees in the subject, experience in CTE( Real world experience) get passed over for people who knew people.....In my mind, it made no sense. 

I often wonder if quality people were hired instead of people who know people was done in Buna if it would be better for the kids? 

I used to get so upset about kids getting second class treatment by the district. 

I tried to fair to all the kids, and I got more flak from that than almost anything else. ( You don't know, you really don't.)

When I retired, I worried about those kids whose parents were not in the upper echelons. And I was talking about it with a long time resident of Buna and the treatment of certain people, and their actions, and how they were able to do certain things, and people were afraid to say anything about what those people were doing for fear it would come back on them, even though they had not done anything. They'd be punished for doing the right thing. 

Every job I've gotten has been a fluke, or foreordained in my mind.....It makes you wonder how stuff gets done in this country?