Nose Jobs !

What If a Teacher Told a Child to - "Shut Up!"?

What a Wonderful Wiz He is !

AND lest we forget:

(1)    $400M in Fed Ed aid that was lost (then he stuck it all on Schlinder)

(2)    $12M spend on unnecessary election (so he wouldn't be on the ballot with Booker)

(3)    doled out $10M as a parting gift to a Sandy aid relief distribution company (Hammerman & Gainer which was fired for poor performance)

(4)    Spent $7M for legal costs to his bud Mastro (the GWB problem and it’s still not over)

(5)    Lost $350M repayment to the Federal government when he reneged on the Arc Tunnel Project (lost the 3,000 construction jobs the tunnel was projected to generate for the next decade and also cost N.Y. and N.J. 44,000 jobs and $4 billion in additional income through economic growth, according to a 2008 study by New Jersey Transit)

(6)    Lost $7.7M for refusing to participate in the health care exchange program (and could have insured 95,000 additional uninsured New Jerseyans and would have cost the State nothing)

Conservative - Not With Our Money He Ain't !

This article speaks for itself. There is nothing more that I can add!
Oh! Wait a minute!
Let me add this - The man is definitely a scumbag!!

Math 6,500,000

A great calculation but not too great for the taxpayers of N.J.

The New $200K Tee Shirt

I'm sure all you Latin scholars know what "fregit" means?

Dog Fights

Here is my comment which I have posted -

There are plenty of reasons teachers are under attack - the most notable is because they  are easy targets and don't fight back. If Albert Shanker was still alive politicians wouldn't find teachers so easy to accuse and abuse. Alas, he and those like him seem to no longer exist. Current union officials chose to cower instead to confront! Until teacher mentality reverts back to the days of the 1970s be prepared for more and more degradation and condemnation.
I have always remembered the sign on the wall of the football locker room when I was in high school.
"It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog that wins!"
Walt S.
http://teachersdontsuck.blogspot.com/
http://wsautter.com/

“The Governor” - A "No New Taxes" Kind of Guy ???

“No pain, no gain” – No pain for New Jersey’s wealthy and plenty for the middle class, the old and the disabled.

First “The Governor” reneges on the pension funding which  he so vehemently touted and claims that he will never sign a millionaire’s tax bill to help balance the budget. He is a “no new taxes” kind of guy!

Well, now if withholding the Homestead Rebate again from families earning $150,000 or less isn’t a tax increase then what is it?

 I am sure the Governor’s will come up with a newspeak term that will avoid calling it what it is - A TAX INCREASE.

Wait a minute!

Now, in retrospect, I suppose it really isn’t a tax increase; not on the wealthy anyway, since those earning in excess of $150,000 never qualified for the rebate in the first place. Again, only common folks and public employees * will be obliged to participate in the Governor’s “No pain, no gain” scheme.

With this TAX INCREASE “The Governor’s” fear of the rich leaving the State in droves need not even be considered and I suspect he certainly has no concern about the middle class and poor leaving. As a matter of fact I think he might even welcome their loss!

*Public employees who have been subjected to the pension “reform” will suffer double the “pain” since most fall under the $150,000 income level and now will also be denied (have postponed?) their Homestead Rebate.

Oh - And Make Sure the Window Shades are Straight Too!

Mr. Fletcher’s article hits the nail right on the head but he fails to mention even more burdens currently placed on public education. Career awareness, dental exams, financial literacy, individualized special education programs, work study programs, drug alcohol and smoking prevention, obesity prevention, scoliosis testing, diversity training and preparation for a myriad of standardized testing all of  which are foisted on public schools throughout the year.

Then, to add insult to injury, public officials chose to malign, vilify, punish and attempt to turn the public away from the teachers who are assigned these herculean tasks.  

P.S.

I have started a petition pertaining to one of my pet peeves. You can see it at the top of the right hand sidebar. Please take a look and if you agree please sign it and pass it on to a friend or relative of like mindedness. Thanks.

New Jersey Education Ain't That Good!

The New Jersey education system certainly has failed if 44% of the population still believes Christie is doing a good job!

During his administration:

*New Jersey’s credit rating has been reduced six times

*A $400M federal education grant was lost

*“The Governor” signs and promotes a law regarding pensions and then reneges on it a year later (then  he proclaims at a Town Hall Meeting – “A deal is a deal” – what BS!)

*An unnecessary election costing $24M was held for his political benefit

*The New Jersey unemployment rate has lagged the national average

*Millions of dollars of tax relief was given to corporations while no notable increase in jobs has occurred

*Sandy relief funds were mishandled by a 'good old boy' corporation selected by him

*The GWB debacle continues

*The shady handling of the Hunterdon County Sheriff’s situation has yet to be resolved

*“No new taxes” except for those who had their Homestead Rebate “postponed”!

*“The Governor” wormed his way into a Sandy ad spot (including his family) by paying the ad company an inflated price

*“The Governor’s” brother gets a cushy deal resulting from the renovation of the PATH station in Harrison.

*“The Governor” parcels out $3M (taxpayer money) for his lawyers to write him an excuse for the GWB  issue.

*And now he’s going on 14 “field trips” out of state attempting to become a presidential candidate! 

God help us but I guess in a country that elected George Bush twice – anything is possible!

If “The Governor” was a teacher I think he would certainly be rated “ineffective” and that’s being kind!

PS I am sure that you can think of more screw-ups. Please feel free to contribute.

An Old School Teacher - Gone But Not Forgotten

Would you please send out an e-mail to all retirees that Tom Gallucci, Athletic Director at Nutley High School for many years, passed away.  He will be laid out at Shooks Funeral Home in Cedar Grove.  Details to follow.

Thank you.

Sue Peters

Living Life in a Bubble

In a recent conversation with my son's friend I was surprised when he told me that he was still paying a student loan debt of $600 per month. I was surprised because he is 38 years old and I assumed that student loans would be long paid off by this age - 15 years after graduation that is!

Well, my assumption was obviously wrong and then a short time later I saw the article below. It appears that the plight of my son's friend is far from unusual.

After reading the article I began to think about the recent housing market bubble. It was kind of the same thing in that people were loaned vast sums of money without regard as to whether they could really handle the debt. But then I began to realize maybe the student loan problem is even worse! The housing debacle at least had some collateral behind it even if it was poor collateral it was better than none. What collateral do student loans have?

You might say that the projected income after graduation is the collateral but my further reading on the subject revealed that only 16% of the degrees obtained are in the highly employable STEM areas.  A large portion of the rest is in fields that have poor employment prospects and are likely to leave those graduates unable to pay off their loans. Additionally, only two kinds of debt are immune from discharge in bankruptcy, taxes and student loans and therefore I  wonder if they can even be legally written off by the issuer? This means that these loans will follow individuals for a lifetime (continually accumulating interest) until they are fully paid.

If the housing problem was called a "bubble" what term can be used to accurately describe this? I don't think "bubble" will do! How about "economic Armageddon"?

After thinking about all this for a while it occurred to me that maybe all my dread is unwarranted. The advent of on line learning could come to the rescue. College costs should surely plummet when students can take course at home with no classroom or actual instructor required.

Well, I'm wrong again!

Look at the article below this one describing the cost of on line course at SNHU, a highly advertised New England college.

Say It Isn't So Joe - Why Joe D Got in Bed With "The Governor"

And he gets to collect his pension while still working the same job !!

So much for Christie's "Pension Reform" !!

A Deal Okay - A Raw Deal

The man is a cheat and a sneak. I am sure that he knew when he signed the bill in 2012 that he would not come up with the money to fund the pension when the time came in spite of his promises. 
By not honoring the agreement which he touted, he created another opportunity to demonstrate to all his conservative buds how tough he is on unions and how willing he is to piss on public workers. He could  show how firmly he stands behind the wealthy and his donor interests. He could clearly show how his outreached hand was really there to give a slap in the face to hard working, middle class public employees rather than it being an indication of cooperation and honesty.

A Deal is a Deal ? Oh Really "

A Little Good News - Finally!

At least there is a little good news interspersed amongst all the bad (the recent Supreme Court decisions).

It's As Plain As The Nose on His Face

Have a Nice Trip!

Duh!

Here is the editorial in yesterday's Star Ledger filled again with absurdity and fuzzy thinking.

It begins by claiming that the current actions by politicians and “educrats” are to "reform" seniority and tenure. Why do they refuse to call it what it is - ELIMINATION. Since when does reform = elimination?

They go on to claim that elimination of these rights, which have endured for over one hundred years, will make teaching more attractive and will help to recruit more highly qualified people.

Duh!

The editorial writer seems to think that academically talented people will flock to colleges and universities, dole out hundreds of thousands of dollars and devote countless hours of study to become a teacher. They will do this to get a job where they will become an "at will employee", can accrue no seniority, must work until 65 in order to retire, will pay an ever increasing portion of their health benefits costs, can look forward to a bankrupt pension system, be evaluated by the test taking skills of children on tests which may or may not be appropriate or accurate and endure constant criticism and degradation by the media and the public.

The editorial goes on to say "teachers must earn respect". Just exactly how can that be done in a situation where everything about your job comes from on high and often from those who have never taught or if they did it was decades ago in a private school for only four or five years at most. To make things even more difficult every new administration comes with a new educational scheme, new "experts" and plethoras of mandates and paperwork. 

These people tell you what to teach, when to teach it, how to teach it and then hold you responsible when it doesn't work.

How can someone earn respect when he is held as the scapegoat for high taxes and the "failing schools" that exist in impoverished communities?

How can teachers earn respect when they are held responsible for poor student performance but are given no tools to correct it? If a child refuses to study and cooperate no teacher, not even Socrates can make them learn.

The constant cry from the "educrats" and the media is the teacher is required to make it interesting - engage the student. So in other words, the teacher must be a teacher and an entertainer and a constant cajoler or else he is a poor teacher.

And what about disruptive behavior? How is he/she to deal with that?

Certainly corporal punishment is out as well it should be but now even raising one's voice might be considered "bullying". How about continually asking a student to pay attention or act appropriately? Could that be "bullying" or "singling out"?

If students do poorly on State testing is it because of a "poor" teacher? Is "poor student" participation in the learning process ever considered? And how about a poor attitude fostered at home?

I must assume that the writer of this editorial is a product of the American educational system. Considering that, I would have to agree that there must be some poor teachers in the system and those that taught him logic and reasoning must be among them.

PS

The article extols the virtues of Finish education. I have posted information about that system directly underneath the editorial and underlined some key ideas. It is interesting how it compares with our approach to education and educators. The key factor in their successful educational system is attitude which is exactly what American education lacks.

Americans seem to be saying - "We send them to school and it's your job to make them smart and if you can't do it you're a poor teacher!"

Finns seem to be saying - "Let's work together and do whatever we can to educate our children". They avoid finger pointing and name calling and constantly invoking the new schemes dreamed up the "education experts" year in and year out.

The Best and the Brightest ?????

"We want the 'Best and the Brightest' teachers in our classrooms!"
"Teachers Matter!"
"We are reaffirming our commitment to advancing teacher talent."
"I think teacher quality is really important."
The BS runs wide and deep.
I have some questions for those who continually spew this hollow rhetoric and phony accolades.
How bright can a person be who would willingly enter a profession which is constantly degraded and demeaned by politicians and the media throughout the land? 

How bright can a person be who would willingly enter a profession which has seen its seniority rights eliminated?

How bright can a person be who would willingly enter a profession which has seen a hundred year old tenure law stripped away in the blink of an eye?

How bright can a person be who would willingly enter a profession which has seen the retirement age increased by ten years over night?

How bright can a person be who would willingly enter a profession which reads daily about the inevitable collapse of the pension fund to which he must contribute throughout his entire working life?

 How bright can a person be who would willingly enter a profession which sees its bargaining rights threatened or eliminated?

How bright can a person be who would willingly enter a profession which sees a Governor break a promise and the law which he instituted and praised by refusing to properly fund the pension?

How bright can a person be who would willingly enter a profession which sees the C.O.L.A stripped from the pension of current retirees by a wave of the hand?

How bright can a person be who will willingly enter a profession which in the defined benefit pension will soon be replaced by a defined contribution plan (401K plan)?

Considering all the aforementioned, anyone entering teaching today can't possibly be that bright! 

**************************************************************************************************

Christie "celebrates" teachers - What a hypocrite!

Defined Benefits - Going, going, gone !

New Jersey has already eliminated tenure - 

They just use Orwellian Newspeak and call it "Reformed"

Seniority goes next - 

Even if you've taught your heart out for 25 years if someone's niece needs a job or you're just too expensive - 

As Ray Charles used to say - 'Hit the road Jack!" 

Just because the voters want fairness that doesn't mean it's going to happen!