I am very opinionated about the politics of the educational system. In that i was really harmed by it, and when i eventually got pulled out and put into a private school, i left realizing that "even though I'm going to be getting a better education, the kids i left behind won't". There is something cathartic about this episode, but at the same time, it's really something that shouldn't have been on this show, or with these characters. The kids in Dewey's class are meant to be hurtful stereotypes of those with mental illness. But outside that notion, is the fact this show accurately depicts everything that i experienced while in that same situation. We take for granted that just because life on tv seems to have everything figured out to a t, in that everything that goes on tv is some how true to real life and we should expect that. Imagine if you're a gay person who can't be themselves because media reminds you that being gay is something to be ashamed of and hide at all times, and that people who are openly gay will be treated with hatred, ridicule, scorn, jeer, and humiliation. I used to think that the jokes on Fox network shows were meant to be a response to how i was supposed to treat people. Growing up it taught me that being gay is something to make fun of and laugh at, or that being black means people who aren't like you will fear you. To this day i cannot believe i was that gullible and stupid. I also was kind of being a hypocrite, because at the time this episode aired, i still didn't know i was on the autism spectrum, and i didn't know i was being mistreated. This episode is right up there as reminder of the real-life horrors that people in my circle were facing. Because in school all i ever wanted to learn about was science. I didn't have a science class until i was in middle school. I was given nothing but packets of topics i knew nothing about. I was not only being mistreated, but so were the other kids. Because this episode propels this message, "if you are mentally ill or have learning disabilities, then there is no reason to teach anything because you are unable to learn, and for the rest of your life you will be nothing but a worker and a slave to the demands of those who did get to learn, did get a chance to succeed". I like that they do expose the corruption and slave labor in this episode, but i wanted the people behind it to go to jail. The public school system is a broken system that is built on nothing but prestige with no room for hope, expression, freedom, opportunity or individuality. It's already hard on those who aren't on the autism spectrum, but for those who are it's a living hell. It's why i hate this show, it's seriously in poor taste and it's not in anyway redeeming or clever, it's this episode and all the ones featuring the Busey kids that basically say the same thing, "special need kids, or children in serious or obvious need of help and intervention, shouldn't get help because their crazy and crazy people are simply that. Crazy. We shouldn't treat them like people but like animals and abuse and neglect them and feel glad because "well at least i'm not like the". This is the fatal flaw with this show. When you make the characters less human you suck out the humanity, meaning people are going to confused and ignorant of rule world problems and situations.
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