Oh, Look Who's Here for the Protest...

So the Picket in the Pines scared away Sheriff Andy Cuomo, the student's lobbyist, and reduced him to sending a video greeting to all of his hedge fund pals from Dempublicans for Ed Reform. They all got together in the Adirondacks to philososchmooze about new and different ways to redirect federal funds away from kids and classrooms and into their greedy bulging pockets. They'd even named Sheriff Andy the Honorary Chairman of the Ball. Give them credit for knowing to appeal to his Rabelaisian ego by naming him The Alpha Screwjob. Ahh but Sheriff Andy was wary of the coverage he'd get being picketed by hundreds of union teachers, a group Dumbocrats are always assumed to have eating from their filthy hands come election time. The spectacle of working people marching sodden and bedraggled with their correctly spelled hand made signs in the rain while billionaires toasted Andy's reign by cozy crackling fires with mulled wine and martinis might have been more than Andy's sensibilities and poll numbers could have handled. So he chickened out, no surprise really. It's about what we've come to expect from our spineless commodified politicians these days. No courage, no leadership, no brains, balls or presence. Just whatever is politically expedient, a few outrageous cases of scandal and nepotism and nothing more.

Excuse Me Randi But Give Me that Goddamned Mic and STFU

Which brings me to the real burr in my saddle. I was looking at various pics on social network sites and lo and behold whose grizzled mug keeps popping up but the Quisling/Vichy Collaborator in Chief of AFT herself Randi Weingarten. Yes, the so called union president who takes millions from Bill Gates, who defends Common Core, APPR's and VAM evaluations, who strode into Newark and lobbied for merit pay and got it sending Chris Christie out of negotiations proclaiming it was the most gratifying day that he's ever had in office. THAT Randi Weingarten. And what's more is I see her holding a little bullhorn mic and making speeches to people who earn 1/8 of what she makes, people she has committed her career to selling out while she sniffs around Gates and Murdoch and stamps her imprimatur on all of their get rich quick and screw the teacher's unions schemes. In her twitter feed I see her telling people to read up on ALEC and DFER. She also tweeted that DFER doesn't want to allow teachers inside. Yeah no shit Randi, we all knew that and we all know about ALEC and DFER. We also know every time you open your trap to defend Common Core that you're putting your friend Bill Gates ahead of the teachers who foolishly elected you to represent them. Just today you can read an article by her on Ravitch's site talking about "fixing Common Core."  As if it's a matter of a few commas here and a decimal point there. Only a crony and a sell out would ever suggest it can be fixed while pretending to represent teachers. In a perfect world someone should have walked up to her and said give me that goddamned mic and get your ass inside where you belong or just get the hell out of here. You haven't done a damned thing except pay feeble lip service to teacher's concerns while working yourself ragged to forward Gates' agenda. You have no business speaking to anyone here unless it's an apology that precedes your resignation announcement. Oh I am being hard on poor Randi, I know. I wonder if she noticed her fellow NYSUT invertebrate Dick Ianuzzi was nowhere in sight since his Randi-like failure to represent his constituents caused him to be thrown out by the members. Oh wait of course she knows because Karen Magee is the puppet of her other great sellout friend in UFT Mikey-Sellout- Mulgrew. Point is she had to have noticed how Ianuzzi got sent packing and she damn well knows why. I think it's probably a good thing I don't attend these gatherings as there is no way in hell I would have allowed her to stand there and hector us on taking back the dream or whatever hideous hackneyed clod of junior high prose she belched up at the sodden pedagogues who were unlucky enough to be caught within earshot of her ridiculous prattle. 

And as long as we're on the subject who at BTF thought endorsing Wreck it Ralph Hernandez and Barbara Seals Nevergold was a bright idea? Nevergold is the lynchpin of the Sorority Majority who canned a competent, energized, long term Buffalo Schools Pro Amber Dixon without apology because she is white and hired Pamela Pearls Brown because she isn't. And lest we forget Old Ralphie Boy, he's the clown who after all the years he battled former Superintendent from Hell Jimmy Dubz Williams, decided to to go the route of the Afghan warlord and throw his support to J.Dubz. When he was questioned about the integrity of switching sides and linking himself to such an odious turd as Williams Hernandez seemed baffled by the question. "If you want to get elected you go where the votes are," he said as if the question was posed by an imbecile. How is it I remember this but the great chalkdust and pencil shaving encrusted cerebral cortex located at 271 Porter Ave doesn't seem to think it's worthy of remembrance? Let me answer that, in a word : politics. And if Machiavelli got anything right I think he nailed it when he said Politics have no relation to morals.