Common Core--is it really as bad as everyone says?

I homeschool, so I don't focus on the common core for educating my kids.  I do think having some education standards are important in the school systems, more for the kids sake since so many move from state to state throughout their school years.  And four year colleges have a minimum set of requirements.  So some common standards at the high school level may not be so bad either. So, how bad could common core really be?

I don't like the government having control over too many things.  This is, after all, the land of the free, right?  And everyone in politics always seems to have a hidden agenda.  Very few are actually looking out for the individual's best interests.  That is the first problem with common core (and any other standards sent down from the top).  But I really wanted to make an informed decision if I was going to speak out against it here.  I needed to get my ducks in a row and do my research.

After doing much reading and researching, these are some of the things I have learned.

1. Testing costs a lot of money.  What if that money were put somewhere else?
2. Training everyone on the new standards and making more new and relevant materials and textbooks also costs money.  What if that money was spent on real professional development instead of the next great idea that the next president wants to try?
3. How we compare to other countries on tests has little to do with our individual future successes as described in this Washington Post article: Why It Never Matters That America 'Lags' Other Nations On Global Test Scores
4. We are lowering the age that kids learn certain skills based on incomplete evidence.  Take a look at two normal kids and put one in preschool.  By second or third grade, they are both at the same IQ level (Intellectual Performance ).  So, while a temporary advantages seemed to be gained, it did not last.  There is example after example supporting this concept in reading, math, and writing. 
5. Kids who do not get the early advantage of preschool get left behind and put into remedial classes or get labeled as having mental deficits when all it really is they were not ready to learn a certain thing yet. Common core pushes kids to learn some things earlier than a lot of kids are ready for.
6. Common core tells me one more thing I have to do with my kids, taking away a little bit more of my freedom, especially if it somehow trickles down into homeschool.
7. Common core limits us to a standard rather than encouraging us to strive for greatness and innovation.
8. In order to get the special federal funding, states must follow the common core requirements, so support for the program could have been bought.

I am sure there are plenty more.  In an ideal world, I get the idea of supporting concepts like common core.  However, teachers spend a lot of time in school learning how to be great teachers, and all this other junk interferes with them being able to become great.  Many of them give up after just a few years, and not because they make bad teachers. Education decisions should be made a the school level with teacher input.  And at the higher levels, they should be made by each department within the school. 

Kids need to be given the time and space to develop without being ostracized.  They need time to be creative and imaginative.  They need to get the basics down without rushing on in order to cover all the material in the allotted time.  What point is the rest if you miss the basic building blocks?  They also need time to unwind and chill out after school without tons of homework, especially in the elementary ages.  This gives their brains time to process and decompress so they can come back refreshed and ready for more learning.  Most importantly, they need time to be able to build strong family bonds, which will have more impact on future success than anything else.  And that does not cost the taxpayer a dime.
 
Now you have to ask yourself, what does this mean for my child specifically, and what can this mean for this country in general 20 years from now?  Are national standards what we really need?  And if you disagree with my perspective, why do you support common core (or any national standards)?