Jersey Jazzman Jammin' All Week
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UPDATE: I posted this about 12 hours ago on a late Saturday night, and already it has over 30K hits. I've never seen blog traffic like this, especially on a weekend. Is it not obvious that there has been an enormous amount of frustration and anger building up over Chris Christie's condescension toward teachers, parents, and students? And that all it took was one brave act by one brave teacher, Melissa Tomlinson, to finally break the dam?I, and many others, have not given up. I proudly support Barbara Buono for Governor of NJ, because she would never engage in this thuggish, bullying behavior t
UPDATE: I have an exclusive interview with the teacher in the picture below:I asked him: "Why do you portray our schools as failure factories?" His reply: "Because they are!" He said: "I am tired of you people. What do you want?"Christie just can't keep his loathing of teachers to himself, can he?I figured that Chris Christie's handlers had told him he's got the gubernatorial election in the bag, so he should just lay low. Keep himself in check; don't make waves; just coast to victory...The problem is that Chris Christie HATES teachers. So when a teacher - especi
When Chris Christie isn't yelling at individual teachers, he's busy bashing their unions (11/3/13, Newton, NJ):(5:26) I will tell you, there are the forces that will always fight against us. You see it on TV every day. The folks who believe that the government and your tax dollars are their personal piggy bank to play with and to social engineer. We've got to send a strong message in the last three days, especially to the New Jersey Education Association. It is time to send a strong message.Here the rubes who are actually working for this man applaud him. Poor suckers: they actually think he's
YESTERDAY
The REAL Christie Legacy: "We Deserve Better!"
In the largest high school in Trenton - New Jersey's capitol - the beautiful, brilliant children of this state are forced to learn in a building that is unsafe and disgusting. This terrific piece of citizen journalism, courtesy of Rebecca Burr, details what is happening in a school that is almost literally under Chris Christie's nose. We Deserve Better, Part One: Begging In Paradise from Princeton
When "Reform" Is Really Union Busting
Once again, here's NJ Education Commissioner Chris Cerf on teachers unions:I always look forward to this event and I'm really delighted. And I want to extend my appreciation particularly to the leadership of the NJEA, with whom I feel that we've had a sometimes spirited discussion, but always a positive and a respectful one.As I documented in that post, Cerf's words in no way match the actions of
NOV 28
Thank You
I love this song by John Mellencamp, someone who I think sometimes doesn't always get his due. IMHO, he's an important musician and an even more important songwriter.And it's great to think about all those who serve and keep us safe on a day like today. God bless them all.As for me: thanks to all of you for reading. Let's keep it going...Let me say thank-you to those who love manyLet me say thank-
NJ Teachers: Your Chance To Speak Out About New Evaluation System!
Regular readers know what I think about AchieveNJ, the new teacher evaluation system here in New Jersey:AchieveNJ: aka "Operation Hindenburg"This rushed, poorly-researched, based-on-a-mistruth, innumerate, anti-collaborative, inappropriately norm-based, waste-of-time system is a disaster in the making. NJ teachers, you're already dealing with the intrusive SGO regime - just wait until we
Dumb Things White People Say About Schools: Frank Bruni
Let me start by apologizing to Tom Friedman. You see, for years I've thought that the Mustache of Understanding was the silliest, most wankeriffic pontificator within in the NY Times's Op-Ed Page hierarchy of mandarins. But it's clear to me now I was completely wrong. The proof?Frank Bruni's latest column, in which he jumps into the pool of education policy unencumbered by the water wings of knowl
NOV 23
Dumb Things White People Say About Schools: Cami Anderson
Veteran journaliust Bob Braun is off the chain - and New Jersey, and the nation, are better for it. In a terrific series of posts (here, here, here, and here ), Braun has been skewering the state-appointed superintendent of Newark's schools, Cami Anderson, for what can only be described as an offensive and racist comment - one mailed to the parents of Newark, no less:Cami Anderson, the Christie-ap