East Precinct dedication

I attended the dedication of the new Police Precinct building for East Nashville last evening. The event was very well attended with politicos, two former chiefs of police, and lots, I mean lots, of neighbors who were obviously happy to see the facility done. The community room was standing room only.










East Precinct officers have been living in very cramped and outdated quarters. They've done an outstanding job nonetheless. Imagine what they can do when they've actually got the room and equipment. None of it looked extravagant or unnecessary.

Here are some shots of the facility you helped pay for. Thank you.

The Roll Call Room














Basic cubicle:










An upgrade:
















Rank has it's privileges (and responsibilities) as they say. Here's one of the offices.


















And this six feet of cubbies with various forms gave me pause. No job is finished until the paperwork is done to be sure. Police officers certainly aren't exempt from that. But blank drawings of bodies and children to map harm done was an unexpected reality check on a happy day. It all looked so fresh and clean yet it was impossible to ignore the fact that all too soon it would be filled with the gritty realities of a harder side of our neighborhood.




















Hopefully, we'll also fill that new community room with people connecting, taking back their neighborhoods and turning around some lives in an effort to prevent visits to the other side of the facility.

Thanks again, Nashville.

Do they not talk to one another?

Am I the only one who reads both the Living and the Business section of the Tennessean? 'Cause it sure looks like their editors don't.

I'm finally getting around to reading this morning's paper and discover that both sections have printed the Margarita Bauza article from the Detroit Free Press. Looks word for word to me, though we're told "Wendy Lee of The Tennessean contributed" to the Living article.

"Living" version
"Business" version

Perhaps they could have used that space for more election coverage instead. Maybe Charlie Tygard will let them reprint his 'getting to know Nashville's candidates for mayor' article in today's campaign mailer from him. At least I learned that Briley and Dozier read the same book (though Dozier mis-identifies the book) and 3 out of 6 call Noshville the best restaurant for breakfast.

See if you can match the car to the candidate:

Befuddled by Nanny Press

With no offense intended toward Mark Silverman, he fails to make his case regarding the value of his paper's political endorsements. In an editorial titled "Befuddled by Ballot? Here's help" he writes:

"Generally, the [editorial] board has access to more information about the candidates and the issues than do most voters. That's why many newspapers believe endorsement equip readers and Web visitors with additional insight and that is valuable as voters make up their minds."

How is this really equipping voters? Why is it that the newspaper hasn't provided the public with that 'more information'? Isn't that what we're paying them to do? You may not like Fox but "We report, you decide" is a great mission statement. We're adults--let us decide. We're not paying them to keep secrets so that we can 'trust' them to make our decisions for us. If they've got more information than they're sharing---what legitimate 'additional insight' have they really provided?

The City Paper and AC Kleinheider bring up some important points regarding candidate information. (I don't agree with buying someone else's name URL but Ronnie Steine could have prevented it by ensuring his name was owned by him if he had any inkling that he was going to be a public figure again.) The point being: Is it appropriate for others to take drastic measures to get the information out there? If the local paper of record won't go there---what else can be done?

Somewhere along the way we decided that our public debates about candidates would be very controlled and legitimate questions about the conduct of candidates was not going to be publicly discussed. That isn't nice. As if politics is a polite parlor game. But character does count. Conduct counts.

Neighbors whisper about the current councilman who decided after the withdrawal date to not run for reelection and fails to inform the neighborhood of his current status, despite being asked several times to do so. It comes off as his being reluctant to campaign but hoping that he falls into the job much like he did when he inherited his father's council seat four years ago. The employment status of another, who touts his job as a qualifier, is unknown for certain and one television report that aired isn't available online so folks can verify it. Further there are candidates who pressure their Metro co-workers to provide lawn space for their signs but these folks say they have absolutely no intention of voting for the fellow, they're just trying to keep peace in their office. Another has significant financial help from folks across town. What's their real interest in our section of town? Folks who haven't been here long are shocked to hear that a former Vice-Mayor caught shoplifting twice thinks he deserves another chance to get near our tax dollars. The consensus: Forgiveness, yes. Trust again, no.

Finally, if that Tennessean editorial board treats candidates like they treated me---hearing the truth from the candidate but choosing not to print it--their endorsements are of even less value. What they know but don't tell us can make or break a campaign. I suggest that's the goal.

MPASSa goes underground

The MPASSa group, presumably in preparation for their upcoming SSA battle, has gone underground. Their Yahoo group, which used to be public is member only now. Don't guess they'll approve my subscription--but you can try.

They've gotten some blowback from the community after being profiled, again. Community comments are generally in the vein of these:

The standard doesn’t sound too stifling to me, but of course I attended Metro schools at a time when girls could not even wear pants. When would Neade Forsythe’s mom draw the line? Bikini? Strapless ball gown? Tube top? Pajamas? Tennessean

and

Parents have a right to object to the school dress code; however, to instruct their children not to comply is to enable them to accept the notion that rules do not apply to them. Tennessean

and

...the message that Ms. Crownover has sent to her daughter is that it is OK to violate a board policy and make her own decision regarding what she should wear.

What about Metro’s zero tolerance policy regarding bringing weapons into our public schools? Is it OK, Ms. Crownover, for your daughter to violate this policy? Tennessean

Recently, MPASSa has been up-in-arms about the hiring of Benjamin Wright. Not sure what that has to do with SSA but lack of focus on the core mission (something MNPS has a problem with) will only weaken the effort. But after reading via their RSS some of the astonishing comments made it was probably best for their cause that their comments were not available for public judgment.

I really like what Martin Kennedy had to say several days ago:

She [a mother of a Meigs Magnet school student] does accept that the state tells her that her child must go to school, where to go to school, at what time, chooses the curriculum, and chooses the teachers. It is just the collared shirts and khaki pants she finds objectionable. I would bet dollars to donuts that this woman is opposed to school vouchers that offer an opportunity for genuine choice.

This is a great point. Government run schools dictate so much of a child's life, and a family's life. Why is what they wear the hill to die on? Why isn't it freedom of school choice? Freedom of curriculum? Freedom of calendar choice? Why clothing? What you wear comes and goes. You may look back on 20 year old pictures and cringe but what can really handicap you is what you did and didn't learn 20 years ago.

Curious photo switch

This morning's CP online article titled "Campaign donations made as convention center vote nears" looked like what Mike Keeny put on his blog and featured Metro Nashville Councilman Mike Jameson's (East Nashville) photo :







Now (3:55 p.m. 7/17/07) it features Metro Nashville Councilman Rip Ryman (Goodlettsville) :










The E-paper, and I assume print, version doesn't have a photo at all. But does highlight Metro Nashville Councilman Mike Jameson's (East Nashville) quote I wrote about below.











Now isn't that special? ;-)

When is a donation not a bribe?

In the light of recent Tennessee Waltz arrests, pleas, and convictions it just seems astonishing to me that Metro Nashville Councilman Mike Jameson (East Nashville) would say the following and expect us to swallow it.

Jameson dismissed the idea the timing of the contributions could create an appearance of a conflict of interest.

“I think you’ve got to take every Council member individually. … I certainly did not do [Gaylord’s] bidding in this past term, although they made a contribution to me in 2003,” Jameson said. “And anybody who thinks any Council member is going to abdicate his responsibility because of a contribution of a couple of hundred bucks I think needs to think seriously about who their Council members are.” (City Paper--it's OK this link is normal.)

"...take every Council member individually..." So who, in the opinion of CM Jameson, isn't as special as he is? And how does he define that special quality of trustworthiness that shouldn't be held accountable to the citizens of this city? And if we define that specialness by merely being reelected (for Jameson this time 'round unopposed) how do we account for Newton, Bowers, Dixon, Ford, and Crutchfield? Those weren't tremendous sums of money either. I was amazed at how cheaply they could be bought.

Fiscal Wake Up Call

This morning's City Paper (when are they going to allow normal linking????) opines this morning about the federal budget.

...David Walker, the U.S. Comptroller General and head of the Government Accountability Office.
“It’s getting worse every second, every minute, every day,” Walker told the crowd plainly.
Put simply, America’s spending is on a trajectory to far outpace its collected governmental revenues. (snip)

What is needed is a cultural reversal in the way our government looks at its own budget and the benefits promised to too many Americans for our actual tax base to sustain.

What we need is a cultural reversal in the way our CITIZENS look at the government budgets. We've got politicians trying to pander to various interest groups---the CP has got that right. When anyone dares to speak the truth about the limits of government and suggest personal responsibility the speaker isn't congratulated for clear, common sense thinking, he is vilified instead. The mob will have their way.

"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can
only exist until a majority of voters discover that they can vote
themselves largess out of the public treasury."
     - Alexander Tytler 

SSA on the Cheap

There's been a lot of hand wringing by advocates of the poor who insist that the poor won't be able to find affordable SSA. Well, let the wringing cease. Ms. Cheap does what she does and provides some practical information for parents as they gear up for the new school year and complying with SSA.

She begins with:

I've heard some grousing from parents about having to pay for new school uniforms and from people predicting that already-strapped nonprofits around town will be called on to fill closets with the prescribed dress code outfits so that disadvantaged children can be dressed properly when school starts.

Well, give me a break — and let me introduce you to the world of thrift shopping, where just about any enterprising parent could put together complying outfits for just a few dollars.

And then she tells you exactly what local thrift stores are doing to meet the demand.

Ms. Cheap says it's 'pretty easy pickin's' and stores have been stockpiling in anticipation. She even shares that the Goodwill outlet will have pieces for 50 cents a piece!

Of course, if you've got a bona fide religious objection to thrift store shopping---this won't help.


MNPS provides a slide show for parents about what is and what is not acceptable SSA. They're also broadcasting it on Channel 3, if you've got cable.

Symbolism over substance

The Pittsburgh public school system has decided that the word public is a problem.

Under the policy, the district simply will call itself the "Pittsburgh Schools." (snip)

By dropping "public" from its name, Randall Taylor said, the district might be able to avoid the negative attitude often associated with public schools. Post-Gazette

I predict this will be a trend. The systems don't really want public input or accountability--they can hardly accept parental input and accountability. They really only want public dollars. It's inconvenient for them to be reminded that the public owns these systems so let's change the name and hope the public forgets who is boss.

Did she mean it or not?

Understandably, MNPS BOE Chair Marsha Warden is a bit peeved with Councilman Eric Crafton over the mailer Crafton sent out recently. Quoting from the City Paper (I HATE their new site. How DO you get a decent URL to link to?)

Warden said she believed the postcard was dishonest.
“… Certainly, to do this without asking, without permission appears to be a violation of honesty and integrity.”

When she thanked him for his commitment to public education did she mean it or not? And if she meant it--why can't he point to her comments as validation of that commitment? It seems she used a stock phrase in routine official correspondence and while I've no doubt Crafton knows she never intended to support his candidacy the question is still: did she mean what she wrote? If he has been a supporter of public education in her opinion, it's not completely out of line for him to point that out.

There may also still be some hurt feelings regarding Crafton's Save Our Students effort which clearly pointed out that MNPS was not doing as well as we were being lead to believe.

Likely, the biggest reason for all the consternation is because his opponent Julie Lamb is Ms Warden's preferred candidate. Ms Lamb, some may know, has been the Chairman of MNPS Director of Schools Dr. Pedro Garcia's Parent Advisory Council. She was the elected chair. She was also voluntary member of the Standard School Attire study committee.

Julie Lamb, PAC president said that she had joined the SSA Study Committee when she realized that the two parents already on the committee were against the suggestion. SSA passes

Anyone considering voting for Ms Lamb should take some time to review her record of effectiveness as leader of the PAC. I believe that speaks directly to how effective she'll be as a councilman. You may want to read through the PAC minutes (there are several gaps, btw) of those meetings and ask her specifically what was accomplished and what assurance she can provide that she'll be able to accomplish anything in a much larger political pond.

Here's the entire letter from Ms Warden:

May 15, 2007

Councilman Eric Crafton
7557 Oakhaven Trace
Nashville, TN 37209

Dear Councilman Crafton:

Thank you for your commitment to the city of Nashville and to public education. As an elected Metro Council Member, you know firsthand the importance of public education. Whether it is an educated work force, an educated voting public, workforce development, or the Arts; economic development is dependent on strong public education. Funding for public education is paramount in achieving academic success.

Your presence yesterday was deeply appreciated. The joined forces of the Metro Council, School Board, the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce and others shows a strongly united city. Together, we can truly make a difference for the future of Nashville,

With Deep Appreciation,

/s/

Marsha H. Warden

Chair

MHW/mrb

cc: Board of Education Members

Needing salvation

Al Gore's Save OurSelves worldwide concert has been on my mind these few weeks as a clear contrast to the solemn assembly event called The Call being held in Nashville Saturday. Seemed to me Gore's whole event went off the rails with the assumption we could save ourselves and the Nashville connections seemed interesting to me.

The weekend is likely to be busier than Gore expected though as his son was arrested last evening. He was pulled over for speeding, drugs were found and so he's in the Santa Ana jail for the 4th of July. At least he was driving a Prius.

I didn't know that Al Gore, III was an associate publisher for a magazine called "Good" out of West Hollywood, CA and typical of our black-is-white and up-is-down world much of what is contained isn't really good but it is politically correct which is, apparently, good enough.

I hope Gore, III gets the help he needs and this time it takes. I can't imagine being the third generation male of a political family with such high expectations. That's a lot of baggage. But in situations like this, and some his father is trying to address, we can rarely do these big jobs alone.

Wonder if they ever long for a legitimately simple life in Carthage.

UPDATE: The Tennessean covers the story but despite being the Gore's hometown paper, and his former employer, adds no original content to the story.

City Paper redo over

I came home Sunday evening to discover my dozens of Firefox tabs had been closed. Further it was apparently caused when or because my DSL connection died while I was out. So when I finally got my DSL back on Tuesday about noon I couldn't recover all the City Paper articles I had had open because in the redo of the City Paper website they'd apparently gone bad.

Then to add to the frustration their search feature is less than helpful. The problem is there are no dates and no way to search by date. So searching on keywords like SCHOOL and MNPS brings up dozens of articles but no dates to help me sort through and find the articles I intended to keep and/or blog about. In fact dates seem to be missing from the articles themselves when you do call them up. Further, I noticed when saving the article regarding LEAD Academy (blogged about below) no date was included with that current article either. Seems to me if you want to be a paper of record and a cited source--dates should be required.

And, since I'm apparently in a critical mood, does anyone else have a feeling the e-paper headlines were typed on a manual that needs its ribbon replaced?

I'm a bigger fan of the CP than the Tennessean for sure so these changes are disappointing. I suggest a bit of tweaking before considering this site redo done.

Christian Charity

The School Board approved LEAD’s charter in December, but requests for space from Metro Public Schools fell through in February.

St. Vincent leaders have offered not only space, but the use of the cafeteria and gymnasium as well. City Paper

Fell through is generous. It came off as being as protectionist and as fearful of free enterprise as Pat Buchanan. Too many running the system don't recognize that these ARE MNPS students and still under our watchcare.

If it was really about the children MNPS would have stepped up as fully as St. Vincent de Paul and found room for the LEAD Academy (other than the very same substandard space grudgingly provided to KIPP Academy). Kudos to St. Vincent for doing the right thing by not being constrained by fear of competition but going above and beyond the bare minimum and extending Christian charity to these students.

Dorothy Gupton is excited to be sharing space with the charter school and is encouraged by the team’s enthusiasm. She has been the liaison between the school and LEAD after meeting Kane several months ago.

“We’re looking forward to a wonderful relationship,” she said. “The LEAD Academy program is an excellent program. We can only strengthen each other by working together and we’ve already decided that each of us is an extended family of the other.”

I think they'll both prosper as a result of the partnership. It's to MNPS's shame that they don't have this same attitude.

NEA Convention coverage

The 4th of July means a lot of things to different people. To the NEA it means convention time. No better coverage available than from our man on site Mike Antonucci of the Education Intelligence Agency.

Day Zero coverage can be found here, and this year, for the first time I can recall, there are pictures!

Here's the NEA's website for the Representative Assembly.

The resolutions, which always contain controversial, non-education specific items, seem to be unavailable online at this moment. I think that's normal as they hash out at the last minute what to actually present to the assembly attendees.

UPDATE: Mike updates the day's activities.

"For 2007-08, 11 state affiliates will receive media money from NEA: Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, Tennessee and Texas."

Best Quote: "I also discovered that NEA spent some of its media campaign fund money placing print ads in NASCAR event programs. It would make more sense to sponsor the pace car - ensuring that everyone moves at the same slow speed."

Before we shuffle the staff

Before we shuffle the teaching staffs in preparation for the new school year we should take a look at this 7 page March 2007 report from the Tn Department of Education called "Tennessee's Most Effective Teachers Are they assigned to the schools that need them most?" The answer is no.

"These comparisons find that students in Tennessee's high poverty/high minority schools have less access to the state's most effective teachers and more access to the state's least effective teachers. They suggest that while many of the beginning teachers in high poverty/high minority schools are among the state's most effective, many of them do not stay in these schools or lose their effectiveness over time.

The analyses also validate that Tennessee's efforts to ensure an equitable distribution of teachers to low-income children and minority children must be focused on teacher effectiveness as well as teacher qualifications such as experience and education. "

That last part needs highlighting:

"equitable distribution...must be focused on teacher effectiveness as well as teacher qualifications."

The public school system defaults to pay based on qualifications (parchment and time = pay rate) despite the fact that what parents and taxpayers want is effective teachers. And, I dare say again, they're willing to pay for them. If the union would allow the public to see those TVAAS ratings for teachers we'd know who was effective. I'd love to see outside each and every classroom the teacher's qualifications and effectiveness listed for all to see. Consider it a form of informed consent that ought to be the right of every parent leaving their child in the care of strangers.

Hat tip: Eduwonk

BEP bummer

State Rep. Suan Lynn (R-Lebanon) provides some much needed context to the BEP funding conversation in her recent blog post called "Choosing Performance". She's right, the legislature failed to take advantage of some opportunities that could have made a real difference in children's lives.

Tennessee lost a great opportunity for education this Session. While school choice is producing results in other areas, Tennessee’s plan is to pour $500 million more dollars into the BEP; the same’ol bureaucratic system of government monopoly of education believing it does things more fairly and produces a better outcome than anything else.

(snip)

Inside legislative plaza, it’s pretty well understood that the plan to increase the state share of paying teacher's salaries covers-up the fact that due to the new distribution formula many districts (over 70 counties) are actually losing money on the new plan.

Nashville got more from the state BUT what could easily have been predicted was the Council's vote last evening to remove some funding from the MNPS budget using the excuse of the extra funding the system will now get from the State of Tennessee.

Councilmembers, however, may have felt that the schools had some funds to spare — the state recently made available $13.5 million in BEP funds to the system, a number higher than originally anticipated — that will sit atop a roughly $578 million base budget. City Paper

MNPS BOE Chair Marsha Warden is quoted in that same City Paper article saying:

...she would be cautious about taking from the reserve at a time when property tax increases are uncertain. “A reserve fund is to be offset for periods where you know new money’s not coming in. It’s been close to four years now since we’ve raised property taxes,” she said.

Without some of that real accountability that Rep. Lynn speaks of in her article I wouldn't even begin to count on persuading taxpayers to accept a property tax increase. And remember it's going to take persuading voters, not just councilmen, to do that from now on.

Buck's Buzz

It's not often you open your mailbox, shuffle through the bills and junk mail and get a surprise chuckle. It was a nice break from the seriousness of debating the issues, platforms and what ifs of the campaign.

Thanks for the laugh, Buck.

Public Service Announcement

Heads up MNPS parents---I passed racks of SSA at the Rivergate Wal-Mart this afternoon. Or buy online at: Walmart.com

Here's the SSA page and here's the final policy for parental review so you'll know what's allowed. It also enumerates penalties for failure to comply.

Some parents "fixin' to get religion" may want to bone up on what bona fide means before August:

BONA FIDE - Lat. In good faith; without fraud or deceit.

UPDATE:

Target.com
Land's End and bargains in the overstock section
Google search for local vendors

Almost a debate

Finally, we're getting closer to a debate between the mayoral candidates thanks to WSMV. I'm tired of the polite exchange of prepared statements between these guys. I'm not learning anything substantive that way. I don't get to see how they act under even this little bit of pressure. I didn't learn much this evening but as Dan Miller said several times about the candidates challenging candidates: "That was fun."

I was dealing with some family stuff so I had to step out now and then.

Where was Kenneth Eaton?

Were only members of good standing from the Chamber of Commerce allowed to ask questions? I know they were co-sponsors of the event but come on--they couldn't put in a couple of regular citizens? Well, we have a Chamber Board of Education I guess a Chamber picked mayor seems the next step. They're no doubt working on the council too.

Briley came off as pessimist prophesying a couple of times of hard financial times that will come. * Of course downtimes do come. But it seems he could have presented this as a wise thing to do and not left a fearful impression of the future. The most surprising comment came from Briley when he stated in an exchange with Buck Dozier that:

...he disagrees with his fellow councilman’s proposal for the next mayor to lead a private-sector effort to build a $1 billion endowment for the public school system. Rather, he asked Dozier to commit to helping him build a $50 million endowment for Fisk University. Dozier answered affirmatively and suggested Briley reconsider helping with the $1 billion endowment. City Paper

Does Briley really think that creating an endowment for Fisk University is more important than creating one for Metro Nashville Public Schools? Why is it good for one but not the other? Maybe he will need a "Deputy Mayor of Education".

"Regarding vocational education, he said he has a problem with that term and that education in technology should be a priority — “We cannot pretend like there are going to be jobs running lathes in this community in 20 years.” Tennessean

I think he's wrong. I think there will be machinists, and plumbers, car mechanics and plumbers for a good long time. It comes across as a bit snobbish to not want to call training in these vocations vocational training. These are all honest and necessary skills. We can discuss whether the public should be paying for the training in our high schools but I don't think we should accept Briley's assertion that there will be no need for lathe operators in Nashville in 2027.

Gentry, who is Metro's vice mayor, asked Briley how he would reassure voters that he has "the depth of experience" to be mayor.

Briley, 43, alluded to his late grandfather, Beverly Briley, saying he had learned "from a mayor who's not around anymore" that being mayor is about making hard decisions every day. Tennessean

Briley is 43. His grandfather and former Metro Mayor Beverly Briley left office in 1975 and died in 1980. I'm not putting much confidence in his understanding of his grandfather's job at 11 or even 16 years of age and don't consider this response a strong one to the very important "depth of experience" question.

Clement and Gentry seemed pretty light weight and both had a hard time with enunciation and while that may seem a small thing to those born and raised here--it won't come off very well to those who've moved here from elsewhere and will be voting. I cringed several times wondering how they would appear to the rest of the world.

The City Paper rightly reports on Clement's previous mass transit record:

Mass transit is perhaps a sensitive topic for Clement given that two mass transit projects in Nashville he helped secure federal money for during his Congressional terms — the Clement Landport and the Music City Star — are presently facing some difficulties.

They're being kind. I just don't see Clement as a real leader for the community. He kept falling back on his talking points and just didn't seem comfortable speaking off the cuff. I have no confidence that he'll be able to bring in any cash for such projects from his, as we speak, aging contacts in Washington DC. Further, it's still tax money and I'm concerned about that.

And his response to Briley's question about his voting against employee verification wasn't strong at all. He didn't even address that specific vote directly throwing down some smoke instead by saying he'd voted on thousands of bills/amendments and he was for legal, not illegal, immigration.

Dean was polished, well spoken and there wasn't much to criticize. He's right. If we get public education and safety down cold a lot of other issues will be taken care of. He didn't have a very forceful answer to the question about his support for public education when his own children were privately educated. Obviously, I think you can support public education and still not have your children in the system. Would Gentry have questioned former Mayor (current Governor) Phil Bredesen about his son's attendance at the University School?

Dozier still seems at ease, good humored and knowledgeable. He stood firmly by his vote against the "English First" bill with a strong phrase saying it was: "redundant and anemic and illegal" (OK, in the end it was anemic). He gets credit for sticking to his guns. Oddly he seemed to give Howard Gentry a soft question regarding the homeless acknowledging Gentry probably had more experience than the rest on this question.

*Update: Sean Braisted disagrees in the comments section. I don't have time to double check all the tape but I will insert here for now that in Part 5 Briley says at 1:28: "I'm incredibly optimistic about the future of this community and I, frankly, don't believe we're going to have a major budget crisis in the future...if..., if..., if....' I'll check later and see where I got the impression that he was the Eor of the candidates.

Library funding

We're pretty frequent library users around here. Frankly, though, a lot of our usage occurs online---we order books, have them dropped off at the local branch and run in and pick them up. We'll occasionally spend some time in the branch and several times a year end up at the downtown branch, but not often.

Today's Tennessean reports that currently 20 branches could be closed on Sundays. I don't really have a problem with that. I'm still trying to figure out why they're closed on Friday, frankly. What makes that day better than say, Tuesday? What I am concerned about, though, is preferring the downtown facility over any neighborhood branch. (Yes, I know with more people living downtown it is fast becoming a neighborhood branch.) My point being that with the finite funds we have I'd like to see us support the branches more.

If you want to be the green mayor--encourage folks to walk and bike to their closest branch instead of climbing into their cars for the trip downtown further polluting our air and clogging those streets and parking garages.

If you want to be the neighborhood mayor--ensure that local branches become neighborhood hubs of all sorts--not just library stuff, but community meetings and events also.

If you want to be the fiscally conservative mayor consider that keeping the "Bredesen Memorial Library" open is going to be much more expensive than the one in Antioch, Inglewood or Bellevue. Double check that rate of return per patron number and don't go wobbly. We really only have so much money.


An aside: we are also members of the Hamilton County library because they provide online access to Power Glide language software for $25.00 a year. That's money Metro could have easily gotten from me but they don't want to replicate that service here.

I'm #14!

What a great way to begin a Monday morning.

Cruising through the blogs this morning before beginning the morning's activities I ran into A.C. Kleinheider's post about the BlogNetNew.com's new ranking of blogs. I'm #14. How I got ahead of Bill Hobbs is a mystery to us all, I'm sure. Regardless, it's a a very nice surprise to make the list at all.

BNN explains:

BNN's Tennessee Blogosphere Influence Rating combines a variety of data sets to determine which blogs are most powerfully influencing the direction of the Tennessee political blogosphere.

It's good to know I'm influencing the blogosphere. I blog to influence policy and help folks know what's going on so they can influence policy. If influencing blog conversations gets me closer to that...great.

Summer schedule

Well the Tennessee legislature decided that out of the $1.7 billion in excess revenue they could only spare about $5.00 for the Brooks family in the form of a half percent tax reduction. I was really looking forward to having all of the sales tax removed from food and putting that $1,000 toward some car repairs--but I'm sure they know best how to spend our money.

And so, lacking that $1,000, I'll be spending some time on a paying gig to make up the difference while 'school' and the legislature isn't in session. I'll also spend some time updating and cleaning up the TnHomeEd.com website in preparation for the fall rush.

It looks like Ben Cunningham and Martin Kennedy are doing an outstanding job of commenting on education issues. If you haven't visited them and added them to your feed reader, you really should. I'll still be posting during the summer but it'll be lighter than usual. Go out and enjoy the season while I toil away at the mundane necessity of providing for hearth and home.

Black armbands for fall

MNPS has updated their website to include a chart of the permitted colors for shirts for the various schools.

Here's their main standard school attire page for the rest of the details.

The fervor among the MPSSa parents seems to have wained but isn't entirely gone. They stand in the field after battle weaponless except for angry words and name-calling. Instead of accepting defeat and admitting they failed to make their case they create conspiracies and demand the public system conform to their private needs. A few still talk about civil disobedience when the school year starts. Black armbands on one side of the spectrum with a few longing for the '60's apparently, almost looking forward to shutting the entire system down with scores and scores of non-conforming children at the other far end. They parse the recent legal opinion, Google for other legal opinions and are disappointed their ACLU memberships has failed to bring forth their champion.

A couple sincerely believe that their children will be harmed by this clothing choice. I can't help but wonder what sort of parenting takes place that being fully and appropriately clothed could damage the child's health and well-being.

It's an interesting battle to fight, as I've mentioned before. Where is their outrage over the condition, physical and academic, of the schools they've left behind? Where is their sense of justice over the fact that some children don't have clean clothing choices in good condition? Or food? Or parents at all?

It's interesting to see parents who brag about their support for public education completely fail to understand the reality of it being publicly controlled.

Life outside of politics

Former Mt. Juliet City Manager Rob Schearer has always been an interesting person with valuable insights. I first met him via the homeschooling community when as Greenleaf Press publisher he talked about the twaddle in curriculum such as "the fireman is your friend". He's always encouraged the chronological study of history and eventually created the Frances Schaefer Study Center.

From November of 2000 to May of 2007, I was the City Manager of Mt. Juliet, TN. Because of my obligations as City Manager, I chose not to start a blog and refrained from making political, cultural, and religious comments on the internet.

But, its now June of 2007, and I’ve been set free.

He's letting us in on his opinions and knowledge via his newly created blog at http://redhatrob.wordpress.com/. You're going to want to check out his first week's offerings. Be prepared to think, learn and don't be shy about disagreeing. He can take it.

Snips to whet your appetite:

News from ancient Egypt: In particular, the chronology of Ancient Egypt is still very much a speculative exercise. The evidence that establishes firm dates in the history of Israel is much more complete than it is for Egypt.

Review of book "Team of Rivals": Its also a study in political wisdom. Lincoln’s magnanimity is what eventually led to his nomination and election as president - and successful conduct of the war. Finally, it is a study in management principles with applications even now to how leaders should choose key lieutenants and manage them.

Commit an act of rebellion. Read Bush’s [Prague] speech for yourself.

There's more and much more to come.

Cut the food tax!

I was downtown in front of the capitol before 7 this morning along with about 8 other people waiting to trade a grocery receipt for a Kroger gift card courtesy of the Republican House Caucus. It didn't take but an hour for them to hand out all their $5.00 Kroger gift cards.

The state has got some $1.7 BILLION in unexpected additional revenue (thanks to a tremendous economy) and yet we've got to beg our legislature to return to the citizens even a portion of this overage. There is $83 million for property on the Cumberland Plateau but families are supposed to be content with maybe a 1/2% reduction in the food tax??? I've provided over $1,000.00 in food tax money to the state. Too many of the legislators think I should be happy getting a $5.00 break. Shoot--at least the Republican caucus was able to double that to $10.

There wasn't much drive by traffic but a good number of horns were honked in support.

There was, however, a steady stream of what appeared to be office workers passing by on their way to work. Apparently they got to work and bragged about the free money they'd gotten and their office mates realized this 'stunt' was the real deal. And so shortly after the first wave of 'going to work' folks here came their officemates, likely taking an early coffee break, climbing the hill with a receipt in hand to collect their share.




There were several moms, with children in tow, that found a parking place and made the hike up the hill. I can't think of a better illustration of what's at stake than the one at the left. Rep. Matthew Hill (R-Jonesborough) and Rep. Glen Casada (R-College Grove) speak with a mom and her daughters who've come to exchange a receipt for $10.00 worth of gift cards.

The folks I chatted with seemed to appreciate the effort. Some were kicking themselves for cleaning out their purses/wallets and not having a receipt.






Rep. Susan Lynn (R-Lebanon) was there along with Rep. Jason Mumpower (R-Bristol), Rep. Glen Casada (R-College Grove), Rep. Mike Bell (R-Riceville), Rep. Matthew Hill (R-Jonesborough) and a couple of others that I couldn't recognize from my position down the hill at 6th and Charlotte.

I appreciate the effort these legislators made on behalf of families across the state. I'm glad to support them in their effort to support my family.

I understand the argument that the sales tax is a stable source of revenue but that doesn't give the legislature the right to abuse that source by making big plans to spend this gargantuan excess on personal pet projects. We've got families who could really use their $1,000 in grocery taxes back.

One final question---where are all those advocates for the poor who were so vocal in their assertions that the grocery tax had to go back when we were on the cusp of an income tax? Why haven't they been around making a fuss and demanding refunds for these families? There still wouldn't be a better, more immediate benefit for them than to have the tax on groceries disappear.

You have GOT to be kidding

It's almost unbelievable. A woman is a great match for a kidney donation but her boss won't hold her job for her if she goes through with it.

Dave Roberts, Tennessee Apparel's vice president of manufacturing, said he's not trying to discourage Melson from going through with the donation. But, he said, the Tullahoma-based company won't hold her job for her. Tennessean

If knowing you have to exchange your job for doing the right thing isn't discouragement--just what exactly is discouragement? This is an incredibly short sighted decision. A heartless thing to do and a stain on the company name to boot.

It's almost as if Roberts is auditioning for the role of Mr. Potter in "It's a Wonderful Life" or Scrooge in "A Christmas Carol". What could possibly be more important than than providing a kidney? She works for a uniform factory. Yes, they have contracts with the military but you've got a long way to go before you'll persuade me that she's so essential to the War on Terror that she can't take a leave and be assured her job will be there when she's recovered.

Even if she was the worst employee on the planet, even if she lied about the children being ill every time she took off of work, even if she'd only been employed for 10 minutes instead of four years--this company should allow her the leave she needs to make this donation. From what's in the paper, this woman is taking a huge gamble herself and certainly a financial hit to make the donation.

Let's hope these aren't words he'll personally regret uttering:

"It's not a family member," Roberts said. "This is an elective surgery based on her own decision. She doesn't have to do this."

I'm not going to go as far as to say there ought to be a law--but some old fashioned shame is certainly in order. I'm glad the Tennessean has administered the first dose.

Accurate test scores

Today's must read is from the Gannet newspaper syndicate via the Tennessean--and not just because I'm quoted. It's not that "test scores don't help" it's inaccurate test scores that don't help. And when the rules, tests, formats, content change regularly--the excuse that we're comparing apples to oranges allows enough room for a Mack truck to drive through. And sure enough...just as we're reviewing all of this the state is, again, revising the curriculum and tests. It's a moving target.

Tennessee has one of the largest gaps in the nation between how well students score on federal and state standardized tests, a new analysis of testing data has found.

and

'Cheap tricks' vary

States use a number of "cheap tricks" to create the illusion that students are doing better than they really are, said Dan Koretz, a Harvard University testing expert.

Those include designing tests easy enough for almost all students to pass or lowering passing scores to make sure most students make the grade.

Yet, somehow that isn't working well either.

I think the authors cut my quote awkwardly before printing it.

"Because taxpayer money is being taken, there must be accountability."

I actually started by saying until we have actual choice, where the free market can decide (which schools to utilize) and because we're using taxpayer money and educating other people's children some sort of accountability is required. This is a standard phrase of mine--as some of you will know. To me, it's always been more about the children than about the money. Both are important but children only get one childhood--somehow the legislature always manages to find more money for the things that are first on it's agenda.

Here's the link to the Gannet interactive map. Click on the map and then the mouse rollover feature will let you slide around from state to state to view the differences between their state scores and the national NAEP test.

To save you some time here are the differences for surrounding states in 8th grade Math Scores from 2005.

13 Kentucky
10 Missouri
11 Arkansas
39 Mississippi
48 Alabama
46 Georgia
52 North Carolina
48 Virginia
60 Tennessee

No other state in the nation has as much difference between state and national scores as Tennessee in math. The next three other states, NC, WV and NE all score in the low 50's.

And here 4th grade Reading.

37 Kentucky
2 Missouri
22 Arkansas
71 Mississippi
61 Alabama
61 Georgia
53 North Carolina
55 Virginia
66 Tennessee



The Tennessean provides a graphic of all the states in order for 8th grade math but not for reading. Wonder why they only show the one where we're not at the bottom.

Sifting through the data

It's still tough to get a handle on just what the children are learning, if anything at all. A recent study done by the Center for Education Policy and reported on by the NY Times brings that all back to mind with this conclusion.

Merely collecting the test data from 50 states proved to be a complex and frustrating task because many states’ education departments are overworked and their test archives are flawed by missing or inconsistent data, the report said. “The house of data on which N.C.L.B. is built is at times a rickety structure,” it said.

Here's the actual report. (It's not downloading for me currently.)

My own experience with Tennessee is a good example. Not only have tests changed over time, but also the way the information is reported to the public. Take a look yourself. I know it's a lot of data and I know it's a huge undertaking just to get it on the web, but your average parent or taxpayer will have a good bit of trouble following along. That's why tools like the Schools Performance Charts from the Education-Consumers Clearinghouse are valuable. It's why groups like Save Our Schools with their local focus are necessary. We're all quite busy. Few of us are statisticians. It's almost as if the system is designed to obfuscate. I'm among the first to encourage folks to go to the source documents and not just trust information filters. But sometimes the information is so massive, collecting is such a full time job and sifting through it so enormous that none of us can afford to do it and so we've no choice but to rely on others.

But as long as parents are not direct consumers of their children's education we'll have these imperfect accountability tools to deal with.

Who does his grocery shopping?

Tennessee State House Majority Leader Gary Odom (D-Nashville) is quoted in this morning's City Paper as saying:

“We’re not going to some gimmick in December where wealthy people can fill up their freezers with steak, which is what the Republicans want to do.”

Gimmick?! It's obvious to me that Mr. Odom has no idea what a benefit even just a November/December amnesty from grocery taxes could be for Tennesse families.

Here's your primer Rep. Odom. During the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday season grocery stores are full of sales on staples. They may have steaks on sale also but that's not a normal grocery item for us so I can't say for sure. What I can testify to is that in anticipation of all the family gatherings where the family table is a huge part of the festivities they put basic food on sale---even making them loss leaders and BOGOF in an attempt to get shoppers into the store. When those sales flyers arrive at our house you can count on the following items being added to our grocery list to stock the pantry and the freezer:

turkey
ham
potatoes: regular & sweet
flour
sugars: granulated, brown & powdered
other baking items like: dried fruits, nuts, coconut & baking powder/soda
milk: canned, evaporated, & eggnog
canned yams, sweet potatoes & pumpkin
eggs
cranberries

Those--just off the top of my head. I'm sure others can add to that list.

It's my opinion the sales tax amnesty needs to be for all of November and December, not just a couple of weeks. The holidays celebrated in that season can vary from family to family and it's those holiday that drive the national chains to implement these sales. It's then that families can get the most bang for their grocery buck. And considering people like Rep. Odom seem intent to hang on to as much of that $1.3 billion in overtaxation as possible--taxpaying families could use that extra bang.

Look who is moving

Cute little house for sale in Inglewood on Calvert Street. Call Councilman Jason Hart for details.

He tells me he's working on a formal announcement to the neighborhood.

I wish him well.

Dave Pelton, Council-At Large

Dave Pelton already had my vote for Council-at-Large. Perhaps this paragraph from AC Kleinheider will intrigue you enough to seriously consider voting for Dave also.

He is a strong proponent of charter schools and choice in education, not vouchers or anything, but still choice. I asked him how that could be considering he was endorsed by the MNEA, the teacher’s union. I mean, after all, he is Republican who thinks outside the box on education. He explained that the teacher’s union has lost substantial power recently due to their numbers. They are dangerous close to the 49% teacher membership that would cost them their collective bargaining agreement so they are a little more open to out of the box thinking.

You may want to start by reading all of AC's post, and then heading on over to Dave's web site.


And don't over look that mention of the MNEA membership number. I've heard from other sources that the MNEA is very close to the point where they could lose their right to represent teachers. Being this close to the line may be one of the reasons they absolutely refuse to provide numbers for their last few elections. The truth would out and then they would be also.

News racks and free speech

Mayor Bill Purcell's veto of the news rack legislation makes me wonder if he's trying to ensure that his future ambitions aren't torpedoed by some of the newspapers that are trying the hardest to keep those messy and intruding boxes in the right of way.

This is not a free speech issue. It's a demand by publishers to get free sidewalk rent from the citizens of Nashville in order to advertise and peddle their wares. The least they can do is neaten up this mess and make sure that pedestrians aren't impeded in their use this important public space.

"I strongly disagree with the rationale, and no one can explain to me the suggestion that this in any way is unconstitutional," said [Councilman Mike] Jameson [East Nashville/downtown] , who, like Purcell, is an attorney. "But he did what he did, and as the leader of the city, he's entitled to some discretion." Tennessean

Strongly disagree?? If giving way to the Mayor despite the Council's vote and the opinion of citizens having to dodge these news racks is strong disagreement what exactly is Jameson's weak disagreement? Is the city, once again, expected to bow to the greater and more enlightened wisdom of East Nashville and it's liberal politicians? I hope not.

Now if the papers want to hire a person to stand on the street and hand out those all important apartment guides--that's another story. At least a person would give way when you're trying to navigate what is often a very crowded thoroughfare and might pick up the litter created. But a static box, providing 24/7 advertising of a product that doesn't pay the city for the use of the public space--that's not free speech. That's free advertising.

Let your Metro councilman know you want them to take back the sidewalks and override the veto.

Tracking Metro meetings

If you want to keep a better handle on what the Metro Council, committees, and board are doing you may want to check the Metro agenda subscription page and subscribe to receive their agendas via e-mail.

This service has proven itself to be very handy and I wish the Metro Board of Education would create something similar. As it is you still have to go to the Metro BOE agenda page. While I'm very thankful the full agenda is now appearing there, we're a lazy lot and easily distracted. Sometimes the bureaucracy counts on that. Being willing to step toward accountability by providing this subscription service would convey in a very tangible way that the BOE desires and welcomes citizen participation and accountability.

Sham or Shame?

Gov. Bredesen has responded to the Tennessee Center for Policy Research revelations of his friends in high places benefiting from being his friends with this carefully crafted paragraph.

“Governor Bredesen has proposed a sensible and fiscally responsible balanced budget that includes historic investments in education and savings for our state. The Governor has worked very hard to restore public confidence in state government and to restore fiscal discipline to the budget process by working in a bipartisan fashion with the highest ethical standards. These false accusations are ridiculous and this type of sham analysis is a disservice to Tennesseans.”

He's not working hard enough. If it's a sham---point out where the TCPR facts were inaccurate. Don't just wave your word processor product at taxpayers. This non-response is pitiful and completely unhelpful in the discussion. If TCPR is wrong tell us where. Lacking that, I'll assume they were right again and it's not a TCPR sham, it's an abuse of taxpayers and a gubernatorial shame.

No step back

Despite the sudden and last minute appearance of Gov. Bredesen's $500 million pork package (over and above the legislature's own pork) the Tennessee Center for Policy Research managed to do some investigating and discovered that "nearly every recipient has ties to Bredesen's administration.

“This rash of proposed handouts to campaign contributors and political allies raises the specter of political kickbacks,” said Tennessee Center for Policy Research President Drew Johnson. “This is a step back for Bredesen, who pledged to take steps to reduce patronage and cronyism in his scandal-ridden administration."

It's not a step back...it's exactly the path intended all along. This governor never intended to actually provide tax relief to citizens and families. I'll never forget when he was mayor of Nashville and he told our young family that we could afford a property tax increase. Now he's telling this family (whose grocery budget, car insurance bill and college expenses have increased substantially since then) that we can afford to support the pet projects of his cronies. If these are such worthwhile projects, Governor, fund them yourself. We've had both cars in the shop in the last week--and couldn't afford to get everything done. Why should our money go toward your pet projects instead of ensuring my husband and family are in safe vehicles?

And Lt. Governor Ramsey, I'm counting on you to go to battle for our family and families all across Tennessee and tell the Governor no. Cut out the non-essentials. No more money. We've collected too much as it is and it's time to give it back--or set it aside for real needs during an economic downturn. If you intend to keep that Republican majority in the Senate you're going to need to demonstrate (that's walk not talk) how Republicans are different from Democrats and hold the line on nonsense such as this. He may be governor--but he's not king. Are you his pawn?

"Nobody had any supervisor"

Amazing quote from MNPS Director of Schools Dr. Pedro Garcia this morning that brings into question just who is running the shop and what is Garcia getting paid to do.

The City Paper reviews the fact that Chief Instructional Officer Dr. Sandra Johnson took a job in Glendale, AZ several months back and that Garcia is in no hurry to replace her. And then there is this confession:

“Garcia decided to looking into rearranging the central office after realizing Johnson had been controlling almost all activity under the department of Learning Support Services (LSS). The department controls all subject areas, district assessment and evaluations, special education, magnet schools and most all other aspects of the school district.

The organization that Sandy Johnson had was that all the administrators answered to her,” Garcia said. “And I didn’t realize that. Consequentially when she left, nobody answered to anybody. So nobody had any supervisor.”

Did you catch that? Garcia said: "I didn't realize that." It was his job to realize that. THAT situation was well known to parents, teachers and staff members and was the reason for so much frustration and anger. She was running everything and nothing could get done, changed or even improved without her blessing. And unless it was initiated by her not much got blessed. Conversation after conversation when her name came up the atmosphere would change, voices would lower a bit in preparation for honesty that they didn't want to be overheard, and out would tumble the latest story of how Johnson was impeding learning and that there was no workaround, no appeal process, no way but through her.

How is it that Garcia was so unaware of her control of the system? Will the BOE even blink let alone question or hold him accountable for his hands off attitude? Not likely. He's got his three year contract.

Thank you. Thank you all.

Spc. Benjamin A. Smith

July 5, 1984 - November 2, 2005

BRAVE AND FREE




Previous posts:
John 15:13
Brave & Free

This shouldn't go unnoticed

This exchange is between Tennessee's US Representative Steve Cohen D-Memphis (formerly of the Tn Senate and he who carried and birthed our lottery) and a DOJ employee. The scene is a Senate Judiciary hearing last week regarding the firing of attorney generals. This from the Washington DC Examiner:

Cohen: The mission of the law school you attended, Regent, is to bring to bear upon legal education and the legal profession the will of almighty God, our creator. What is the will of almighty God, our creator, on the legal profession?

[Monica] Goodling: I’m not sure that I could define that question for you.

Cohen: Did you ask people who applied for jobs anything about their religion?

Goodling: No, I certainly did not.

Cohen: Ever had religion discussions come up?

Goodling: Not to the best of my recollection. …

Cohen: Are there a lot of — an inordinate number of people from Regent University Law School that were hired by the Department of Justice while you were there?

Goodling: I think we have a lot more people from Harvard and Yale.

And your point is what, Rep. Cohen? That the DOJ is hiring incompetents or that the DOJ is hiring the wrong kind of people?

Back at it

Life was pretty busy last week and so blogging was nearly non-existent. I finished a formal dress for my daughter---stunning red number with a lace overlay. There was a dustup about a business in the neighborhood that needed tending. Some candidate stuff I was glad to help with. A stint at a booth at the Luis Palau festival that I was happy to man. Attended the Litton Middle School 8th grade graduation (GO LIONS!!). Took the car to the shop. Met with the ladies Bible study team to prepare for the summer session. We celebrated G'ma's birthday. I gave blood for a Mayo Clinic study on Parkinsons (my brother was recently diagnosed). And I re-discovered my desk top. I was shocked a while back to see a picture of my desk in the newspaper and immediately decluttered. Of course, maintenance is always the hard part and I was back to piles again. After seeing Al Gore's desk from a Time Magazine piece, I redoubled my effort and found it again (your turn, Tony). (Apparently, I need to raise the rate I'm willing to pay my 'staff' for filing.)

It was wonderful to step away from blogs for a while, breath different air, wrap my brain around different issues, spend time with IRL people and clear my head of the tyranny of keeping up with current events.

Karl Dean robo call

Following on the heels of David Briley in the mayoral robo calls race is Karl Dean. Don't have audio since I was in the basement sorting laundry and didn't let the answering machine catch it. I was encouraged to check his website for information about his plan for education in Metro Nashville.

Call came from 353-1810 "Tennessee Basic"

What does MNEA know that we don't?

Despite the fact that Councilmen at large David Briley hasn't released the education plank of his mayoral campaign platform the Metro Nashville Education Association has endorsed him for mayor.

“David Briley was the candidate who by far had a better plan for education,” Erick Huth, MNEA President, said. “He was much more forward looking both in terms of education and the future of Nashville. And his record in the council has been very good in supporting teachers, public schools and students.”

I consider it forward looking to create a $1 Billion endowment for the system that would assure money for teachers, facilities and resources and end the yearly begging and battle for bucks between the council and the school board. Forward thinking is recognizing that there is an education renaissance going on in our nation, that the biggest impediment to improving our public schools system has been the MNEA and placating them is like picking up an anchor--not a sail.

CM Briley's comments about public education have been covered here previously.

[Usual disclaimer: MNEA leadership does not equal classroom teachers in my mind.]

They did it to themselves

It seems every day we lose more and more of our freedom because some folks lack self-control and the understanding of what it means to be a considerate sharer of our public facilities and spaces. The next loss comes because the Nashville Public Library is having to crack down on youth loitering as the result of the inconsiderate behavior of some students, many of whom ought to be well able to understand the concept of good manners.

Library administrators told The City Paper this week the new policy was prompted primarily by the frequent, and sometimes rowdy, gathering of teenagers and young adults outside the East Branch Library after the East Literature Magnet School across the street lets out in the afternoons and also by groups of high school students who have been gathering, sometimes rowdily, during after-school hours in the youth section of the downtown library. The situation is starting to appear at other libraries as well. City Paper

To be fair, Hume Fogg Academic Magnet School is closest to the downtown library, but many other students traveling across town to attend their magnet schools do bus transfers not far away.

At some point students will realize that they're shooting themselves in the foot. They insisted on pushing the clothing envelope and they got Standard School Attire. They're now in danger of losing their usage of the library because they forgot to be good guests. Likely, though, many will demand their right to do what they want and we'll hear parents providing excuses for why Susie and Tommy aren't the problem. It's those wound-too-tightly old fogeys that don't understand the needs of the children that are the real problem they'll say. I disagree. The real problem is that these children haven't been taught or don't understand that they are not the center of the universe. Their rights end when it meets my rights. That involves complying with some societal norms like pants at the waist and quiet, polite behavior at the library. In the meantime, instead of the library staff helping actual patrons utilize the facilities their time is wasted by playing hall monitor and truancy officer. This is an abuse of our tax money and facilities and needs to stop. Libraries are not designed to be, and should not become, free aftercare facilities.


One word of caution to the Library Board. Some of those students in the library during school hours may be homeschoolers and private schoolers who are legally allowed to be out and about during 'school hours'. I would suggest remembering that before calling truant officers just because those students are there. They don't get a pass for bad behavior though.

Proper use of a cigar

I love this clip.

Background: Michael Moore's reputation as an honest filmmaker has been in debate for some time. His latest project is examining health care in Cuba. Potential presidential candidate Fred Thompson (former US Senator, practicing lawyer, member of the team that investigated Watergate, helped bring down former Tennessee Governor Ray Blanton and, currently, actor) took exception to Mr. Moore's glowing reports of the Castro's health care system. Michael Moore challenged him to a debate

I feel obligated to forewarn you that I was the winner of the 1971-72 Detroit Free Press Debate Award for the state of Michigan. Drudge Report

Thompson answers with this stinging 40 second piece courtesy Breibart TV.




America is looking for leadership. We're tired of wimpy, go-along-to-get-along, spaghetti spined, policy wonks who are unable to say yes or no and mean it as 'serious' presidential candidates. Fred seems to be using his acting skills every bit as well as Ronald Reagan did with the Iranian's during his 1980 campaign. He knows how to hit back quickly and use Moore's own medium (video) in order to make the point very clear. Additionally, unlike Bill Clinton, Fred knows the proper use of a cigar.