Local educational activist and antagonist of the 1% Mychael Obowen made the effort to show up at School #45 and tell Meryl Tisch, Grandpa Bennett and Sean Ryan they should all resign and are a disgrace for selling out our kids to corporate interests. Was it just too much to ask that BTF and NYSUT get up off their self serving, politically expedient asses and match this guy's efforts? I think we all know the answer to that question.
Our BTF/NYSUT union leadership took Thursday off, allowing possibly the most prominent enemy of public education - Regent Meryl Tisch - in New York State a free pass to waltz into Buffalo Schools and lecture us on the antics of our Board of Education. In spite of numerous inquiries from the membership, aka classroom teachers, "our member driven union on the march" marched to its own tune and REFUSED to send anyone out to greet Tisch with the kinds of messages union members have for people who try to ruin their careers and break their unions. See, we plebians weren't privy to the machinations of the Sean Ryan orchestrated visit. We had to find out about it through the teacher driven barking chain and inter-building gossip. Oh the NYSUTTERS and BTMFers all knew about it ahead of time, they were quite cavalier in their response to those of us members who were foolish enough to think that we might actually DRIVE our union to do something on our behalf. The talking points stated that Ryan was doing us a favor by bringing Tisch and that odious shuffleboarder in training Robert Bennett to B-Lo schools. Yeah, as Jon Lovitz's pathological liar character used to say on SNL, "that's the ticket..." their visit is a GOOD thing... And I have some really cool chalkboards in the basement I can sell you at a great price...
Problem is folks we are too used to being bullshitted by people like AFT's Weingarten and NEA's Van Roekel. They support Common Core because not supporting it would be a slap in the face to their dear friend and ally Bill Gates who drops millions into their coffers, millions that teachers simply can't compete with. They lie so badly and so often it's as if we don't even hear them any more. And why should it be any different at a state or local level when the AFT President Weingarten can lie and lie and lie, support merit pay schemes in Newark, VAM everywhere else, Common Core for all and then be backed up by her dear friend Diane Ravitch whom we are all told we need to obey because she is Diane Ravitch. She used to be a big deal in the Bush administration after all. She had a revelation on the road to Damascus and realized the ed reform scam was a scam. My question is how did she ever get sucked into going along with it in the first place? As Ricky of Trailer Park Boys will tell you It ain't rocket surgery, folks. As long as you get the right people to stick up for you and mop up after you, you never have to come clean and deal with the people who've elected you to office and trusted you to do right by them.
We were all expected to swallow the line that Ryan was doing us a solid by bringing Tisch and Bennett to our schools. A bunch of us weren't buying and I hope more people join us as this NYSUT "march" continues. Do Nothing Dick Ianuzzi got kicked out of office because he lost touch with the people who voted him in and essentially did nothing for us while trying to talk us out of doing anything for ourselves. (Remember him at UB exhorting us to stand pat and do nothing and warning us "we will do ourselves no good dying on the barricades..") Dick would have preferred for us to cower behind the barricades while he and King and Cuomo enjoyed cocktails and made deals to screw teachers. I seriously hope the days of this top down patriarchal unionism are grinding to a halt. Getting rid of Dick Dolittle was a great start but replacing him with Mulgarten and UFT -Unity's stooge Karen Magoo is no step forward simply a lateral two step that keeps power in the hands of a self interested minority and keeps teachers from getting a damned dime's worth of representation for the millions we are dinged in union dues. If these fuckers are going to continue on the cocktail and collaboration circuit they do so at their own career peril.
Our BTF/NYSUT union leadership took Thursday off, allowing possibly the most prominent enemy of public education - Regent Meryl Tisch - in New York State a free pass to waltz into Buffalo Schools and lecture us on the antics of our Board of Education. In spite of numerous inquiries from the membership, aka classroom teachers, "our member driven union on the march" marched to its own tune and REFUSED to send anyone out to greet Tisch with the kinds of messages union members have for people who try to ruin their careers and break their unions. See, we plebians weren't privy to the machinations of the Sean Ryan orchestrated visit. We had to find out about it through the teacher driven barking chain and inter-building gossip. Oh the NYSUTTERS and BTMFers all knew about it ahead of time, they were quite cavalier in their response to those of us members who were foolish enough to think that we might actually DRIVE our union to do something on our behalf. The talking points stated that Ryan was doing us a favor by bringing Tisch and that odious shuffleboarder in training Robert Bennett to B-Lo schools. Yeah, as Jon Lovitz's pathological liar character used to say on SNL, "that's the ticket..." their visit is a GOOD thing... And I have some really cool chalkboards in the basement I can sell you at a great price...
Problem is folks we are too used to being bullshitted by people like AFT's Weingarten and NEA's Van Roekel. They support Common Core because not supporting it would be a slap in the face to their dear friend and ally Bill Gates who drops millions into their coffers, millions that teachers simply can't compete with. They lie so badly and so often it's as if we don't even hear them any more. And why should it be any different at a state or local level when the AFT President Weingarten can lie and lie and lie, support merit pay schemes in Newark, VAM everywhere else, Common Core for all and then be backed up by her dear friend Diane Ravitch whom we are all told we need to obey because she is Diane Ravitch. She used to be a big deal in the Bush administration after all. She had a revelation on the road to Damascus and realized the ed reform scam was a scam. My question is how did she ever get sucked into going along with it in the first place? As Ricky of Trailer Park Boys will tell you It ain't rocket surgery, folks. As long as you get the right people to stick up for you and mop up after you, you never have to come clean and deal with the people who've elected you to office and trusted you to do right by them.
We were all expected to swallow the line that Ryan was doing us a solid by bringing Tisch and Bennett to our schools. A bunch of us weren't buying and I hope more people join us as this NYSUT "march" continues. Do Nothing Dick Ianuzzi got kicked out of office because he lost touch with the people who voted him in and essentially did nothing for us while trying to talk us out of doing anything for ourselves. (Remember him at UB exhorting us to stand pat and do nothing and warning us "we will do ourselves no good dying on the barricades..") Dick would have preferred for us to cower behind the barricades while he and King and Cuomo enjoyed cocktails and made deals to screw teachers. I seriously hope the days of this top down patriarchal unionism are grinding to a halt. Getting rid of Dick Dolittle was a great start but replacing him with Mulgarten and UFT -Unity's stooge Karen Magoo is no step forward simply a lateral two step that keeps power in the hands of a self interested minority and keeps teachers from getting a damned dime's worth of representation for the millions we are dinged in union dues. If these fuckers are going to continue on the cocktail and collaboration circuit they do so at their own career peril.
Randi was in Newark twice last week. She endorsed Baraka and she visited a closing school that has produced more growth than the charter slated to replace it. On the road to victory, Baraka confided in the author of the New Yorker expose that he supports ending tenure and other reformy gifts. Friday Anderson announced 500 positions will be eliminated, but that does not necessarily mean 500 people will be laid off. In the meantime, all her BFFs are earning 175K minimum. So what do you think? Should I give up the teaching gig and apply to be a royal ass kisser? Or do I have too much experience as an "educator"?
ReplyDeleteIt makes me sick to hear of her showing her ugly mug and throwing her weight to support these reformy Trojan Horse candidates but I am always glad to hear from others who are onto her and not having any of her Quisling Vichy bullshit. Interesting too that Baraka is up for Sainthood on naison and company's batass pages. I wonder if they realize or care that he'll give away tenure rights and play footsie with the reform scum. So sick of these politician scumbags.
ReplyDeleteWe need to be out at the barricades, in the streets, at their houses, protesting, heckling, asking the tough questions, holding them accountable, educating the public. It's the only way to beat their scripted forums and speakings, and the only way around Warren Buffett's 30 television stations and 80 newspapers. Is this a union or is this a triage?
ReplyDeleteIt is a corporate outpost for Microsoft and Pearson. Teachers play the pawns on the chessboard. Many, many teachers are clueless as they navigate the shark filled waters.
DeleteSean,
ReplyDeleteEvery time I think you've reached your Zenith you blast it even farther into outer space!!!
"Rock on..."