Bye Bye Olmert

Israeli P.M. Olmert will step down. This is a long time coming. Sen. Obama or Sen. McCain may be dealing with Benjamin Netanyahu. It looks like Bibi can come back and watch out you Palestinian hooligans if he does. Am Yisroel Chai!

Vive Sarkozy!

People criticize French President Sarkozy for liking Sen. Obama. We should be grateful that we finally have a French president who is pro-Israel. Maybe, this will cut down on the anti-semitic acts in France.

Ludacrous is Ludicrous

What kind of jerk is this Ludacrous? Spell it correctly fool, especially since you are ridiculous. How dare you say that John McCain should be paralyzed. What kind of moron are you? If you don't like McCain, don't vote for him. Idiotic remarks like this will only help Sen. McCain as people are edgy regarding Sen. Obama. It has been said that this is Mr. Obama's election to lose. Having people such as this imbecile Ludacrous talk out will accomplish this. Ludacrous, shut your stupid mouth. You'll set back civil rights by 50 years if you keep this up.

Troops to Start Coming Home

Happy to hear that the troops may start coming home from Iraq. Despite this week's bombing, the President announces this. Is this another ploy to elect John McCain president? You have to wonder.

New Way to Go

This 2008 presidential election may very well produce Vice Presidential nominees who are better qualified than their respective candidates at the top of the ticket.
The tickets of both Truman-Barkley in 1948, and Clinton-Gore in '92 and '96 both proved that geographic balancing of the ticket may no longer be the thing to do.
Let's see how it all plays out in November.

Fiscal Irresponsibility

Everyone is praising N.Y. Gov. Paterson for his fiscal responsibility. If our governor is as sincere as he claims to be, he would immediately impose a freeze on both commercial and apartment rents.
Everyone was woefully quiet when the Rent Guidelines Board approved the increases this past June. These increases were excessive.
Remember when President Nixon imposed his wage and price freeze in 1971? Mr. Nixon also froze rents. None of our current crop of politicians will do this as they're in the pockets of the real estate industry. Shame.

Gas Explosion In Queens Apt. Building

You're doing a fabulous job, Kevin Burke of Con Ed. Have you met former FEMA director Michael Brown? The both of you would have so much to talk about in the field of mismanagement and incompetence. Of course, our N.Y.C. mayor insists that you're doing a good job.
Everyone was at that building. There has been no gas there since June 11th. 15 minutes after Con Edison left the building, boom! What goes on here? Who is running Con Edison? The Key Stone Cops? The nerve of this utility collecting an additional 22% increase from its subscribers. We ought to get back 50% forwhat we have to put up with. Could you imagine if this were the school system? Bloomy and the rest of the gang would be jumping all over teachers demanding accountability.
Mr. Burke should submit his resignation. With his probable stock options, he'd make out like a bandit. Joel Klein should be made the CEO at Con Edison. He'd literally be in the dark regarding what to do, but at least we'd get him out of the school system.

Let Me Be Fair

Sen. Obama, in all fairness to Sen. McCain, you could have gone to visit the injured troops. You could have circumvented Pentagon regulations. This would have gone a long way instead of another photo op sesssion.
Vice President choices: evergreenspan predictions:
McCain-Romney or McCain-Lieberman longshot:McCain-Mrs. Dole
Obama-Clinton, Obama-Biden, or Obama-Bayh longshot: Obama-Dodd, Obama-Edwards

Those Republican Nominees and Eastern Europe

While I'm not an ardent fan of Sen. Obama, it appears that Sen. McCain is looking to throw the election. Didn't the Arizona senator know that Czechoslovakia is now the Czech Republic and the Republic of Slovakia? If I hadn't retired from the N.Y.C. school system, I'd suggest that he take my social studies class.
This reminded me when President Ford said during a 1976 debate with Jimmy Carter that the Soviet Union exerts little influence in Eastern Europe. My students couldn't believe that gaffe!
Of course, President Bush must be happy that Czechoslovakia broke up. Imagine him trying to spell that country?

Let's Get Serious

The traffic reporter on WINS radio could not pronounce the name of certain bridges. She made mention of this during her report. She didn't even try to say the names. Some help to motorists. Who is putting a letter in her file?

Arabic Studies In, No, No to Hebrew Studies

Where is the fairness here? Debbie Almontaser's School for Arab Studies is allowed to exist but a similar proposal for a school concentrating on Hebraic studies is condemned? Why not? If you're going to allow this for the Arabs, we Jews want our schools as well.
What are we afraid of? A school where there will be discipline? Teachers will be lining up as the place will be a desirable one to teach in.
Naturally, all this started in defiance of the idea of separation of church and state. Looks like Atlantic Ave. has more power than Borough Park. Shame.

Oy, My Dear Israel

We allowed the Palestinian "animals" to control Gaza and has this brought us peace? The Palestinian idea of peace is exactly the same as the late scum Hitler. His idea of peace was a piece of this country and a piece of that country before gobbling everything up.
How can we even deal with so called people who bomb buses and use tractors to kill people? Could you imagine if the Israelis did this? We would be condemned universe wide.
How can we deal with people who glorified the animal recently released by Israel? He killed a man in front of the latter's 4 year old daughter and then bashed the head in of the daughter. This is what we release? Defecating on this piece of garbage would be about the only worthy thing to do this misery. They shoot horses, don't they?
The Palestinians advocate the extinction of our beloved Israel. May their hands come off before they can do further damage. Amen.

OOPS! What Was I Thinking?

What a mistake I made. I meant the national league west. Nevertheless, mistake or no mistake, Arizona, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Colorado and San Diego are all having a miserable season. Are the other teams that much superior? Again, if you can't finish at .500, you don't deserve to be in the playoffs. Ridiculous, if you think otherwise.

American League West A Disgrace for This Season

We're heading to the end of July and the western division of the national league is a disgrace beyond belief. Not one team in that league is playing .500 ball. This is ridiculous.
If this continues, by the end of the season the head of the division should not be allowed to participate in the playoffs. Imagine making it to the series with such a poor record! What's going on here?

Holding Back Tenure from Teachers

The city is so happy that more teachers are being denied tenure. What will this accomplish? More people will exit from this decaying system. Since the city is so happy to list this, how about listing the number of suspensions of unruly pupils this year as well as the number of students going to alternative schools ?. It's because of the lack of student behavior that teachers can't teach. Let's be fair on all accounts.

Mayor B on Education

Mayor Bloomberg testified in Washington today.
He spoke about the great strides made in education in N.Y.C. and attributed these improvements to the gains that the city made in their recent contracts with the Principals' Union and UFT.
The principals gave up tenure to get a hefty raise. Why did they do this? Many voted for this as they knew they were retiring. As a result, they left their colleagues holding the bag. The mayor and Mr. Klein would love to do the same with teachers.
As for the UFT, they gave up plenty in the 2005 contract which I have discussed in a previous blog. Suffice to say that the teaching staff in the city is and will always be suffering from the contract gains that the city made in '05.

Where the 29% Comes From

N.Y.C. Mayor Michael Bloomberg has a 71% favorable rating in the latest polls conducted. Believe me, the 29% who don't think this way are definitely members of the New York City school sytem.

Don't Take Me Out to the Baseball Game

Anyone paying to see the outrageous prices at the all-star game deserve to be labeled suckers of the year. Why pay for men to stand with a stick and hit the ball?
As far as the nostalgia being created by the demise of Yankee Stadium,the taxpayers are paying for this new stadium whether you like it or not. Why glorify George Steinbrenner? Didn't President Nixon pardon him? No wonder Mr. S donated plenty when Nixon ran for the presidency.
The Congressional area where the stadium is located is one of the poorest in the nation. In reality, will the people living there benefit from a new stadium? Methinks not. Ditto for the demise of Shea Stadium.

The New Allies

How interesting. Al Sharpton and Joel Klein are going to team up to try to improve inner city schools. I couldn't think of 2 people who know less about our schools than these 2 jokers.
I've heard that Al was quite a character in his days at Tilden H.S. Everyone at the school knew to give him a 65 in their course so as just to pass him on.
As for the current chancellor, what he has done in his years in the system, Gen. Sherman did not accomplish with his march through Georgia.
If you really want to see improvements in these so called schools, it's time to restore the 600 school concept for the unruly. Longer days and longer years? For what? The current student population is literally bouncing off the walls by the middle of the day. There is no discipline in far too many of our schools. Children run amok through the halls. The best part of this battered system is that it is being run by people who never taught one day.
Our schools will never improve until we allow corporal punishment for the unruly, and that teachers are given the upperhand. Teachers are on the front lines. Give them the needed respect they so richly deserve. Teachers must be allowed to suspended the chronically disruptive recalcitrants.
Of course, this nonsense that school is for everyone needs to stop. Attending school must be regarded as a privilege, not a right.
You know who the people are who know about this city? Police, fireman and teachers. Teachers in this town have a lot in common with the sanitation department. While we have some great children out there, teachers are also dealing with plenty of garbage each day.
By the way, what has been the productivity of our uniformed service members? It's the teachers in this town who have been scapegoated by working longer for more pay. Ms. Weingarten, that's not a raise!
Has Chancellor Klein ordered his principals to bring up the parents of the chronically disruptive child and read to them the riot act before school begins?
No, we'll just have another year of full test preparation as children run wild, teachers retire or quit en masse and those in the classroom pray for another June to come as quickly as possible.

A Trade to Forget

Imagine, Israel had to give up 5 animals to get back two deceased soldiers. The "chaledias" from Hezbollah certainly pulled off a fast one. One of the animals that Israel gave back to them killed a man 29 years ago in front of his small child. The animal then killed the girl by crushing her skull.
How could eretz Yisroel conclude such a trade? Something is terribly wrong with Olmert to allow this. Was Olmert pressured into such an agreement?
The Horrible Hezbollah should be wiped from the face of the earth. They should only join Hitler in hell. I'd love to hear our presidential candidates comment on this swap. How can anyone justify this? Sad day for sure in Israel.

A New Thought for Education

I knew a doctor who almost didn't become one because of the foreign language requirement that he had to face. This physician was brilliant and a terrific doctor as well. Had he not been able to practice medicine, the profession would have really suffered. Dr. Max was my doctor for many years. When he told me the story, I was shocked. Of course, having excelled in foreign languages in high school and college, I found this hard to fathom.
My weakness was in chemistry. To put it mildly folks, I was a chemical retardant. The teacher that I had for chemistry at Erasmus Hall High School was a nightmare for me. She spoke way above my head and I knew little of what she was talking about. Instead of having some compassion for me, she went after yours truly and others who were weak in her discipline. This is what she accomplished. I walked out of chemistry despising her as well as the subject. Luckily, I had a more normal person the following term and in college I had the chemistry instructor of my dreams. He brought the material down to my level.
This is what is basically wrong with education in this country. You can be ruined by being weak in one particular subject. This is wrong. I wound up teaching English and social studies for 32 years prior to my 2001 retirement. Of course, there are people out there who shall answer me by saying that you need to have a well-rounded education. Nonsense! Not everyone is excellent in all subjects. I proved that so many years ago.
The horrible teacher I had won all kinds of accolades at Columbia University for excellence in teaching chemistry. What excellence? Lord only knows the damage she did to others as well as the potential careers she may have ruined.

The Horrible Lady

How do you like that horrible woman who ripped off the system by adopting 11 children and abusing them? What a stiff this is! How could this poor imitation of a human being be allowed to adopt 11 children? Wasn't the CAS watching over these children? Why weren't there periodic visits? The judge was more than justified to give her a stiff sentence. This hag should be caged in the same way that she caged a handicapped child.
Will the Civil Liberties Union come to her defense? This woman needs a whipping.

Charley and Rent Stabilization

While I have always been a proponent of rent control and rent stabilization, what Rep. Charles Rangel has pulled is absolutely ridiculous. For one, how could he use one apartment as a commercial establishment? Doesn't that violate rent rules? I knew a dentist who had an office in a rent controlled building and that apartment was not covered under rent control. This is correct.
By having these apartments, Rep. Rangel was denying other people the right to secure them at the rent stabilization level. This is most unfair. I understand that Rep. Rangel will be facing an ethics probe. Glad to hear that he is giving up the commercial establishment or campaign office.
Mr. Rangel, it may very well be time to join Joe Bruno, an arch foe of rent control and rent stabilization, in retirement.

Let's Zing it to the Teacher

As weak as the UFT has become, we realize its importance when we read the article about the teacher being banished to the rubber room for reporting his principal for not providing appropriate educational services for special education children.
For reporting this, this principal, an apparent poor imitation of a human being, went after the teacher. If all this is true, what will be done to the principal? Rubber room for her? No! She ought to be shown the door.
Was this principal from the infamous Principals' Academy? What a joke that is. I heard of one principal from that institution of lower learning that walks around with their handbook in a similar manner to the late Chairman Mao Tse-Tung of China.
We need principals and assistants who actually taught. Anyone else knows absolutely nothing.

Our NYC Mayor, A Sociologist is Born

Well, our mayor in New York City is doing research on the poverty problem here. How nice. Has he now become a sociologist?
Let him look to his pals known as the real estate group in this city. They virtually have a stranglehold over tenants. Thanks to these greedy landlords, they are helping to push middle class people out. New York is fast becoming a city for upper or lower class people. The squeeze is on middle class New Yorkers.
During the last increase by the Rent Guidelines Board, the mayor was woefully quiet as tenants got walloped with a 4 1/2 and 8 1/2 percentage increases for renewals on 1-2 year leases respectively. Look what the landlords pushed through. If your lease is expiring and you've lived in your apartment for more than 6 years, the increase is automatically $45.00 or $85.00 depending upon how long you sign for your lease renewal. What a rip-off! How much more can tenants take? It is way past the time for New Yorkers to become members of The United Tenants Party!
Tenants should be made aware that they are entitled to a free paint job every 3 years. This applies to rent controlled tenants as well as rent stabilized people. The landlords are getting away with murder. Too many of our senior citizens are not up to painting their apartments. Others, have to work to pay for the rent and don't have the time to pay. When was the last time that your hallways were painted? When were the fire escapes done? There are rules about this that are routinely forgotten or just ignored.

Jesse Dearest

Jesse Jackson's latest comment will just show you how low this guy can really go. Remember his Hymie Town remark? That was quickly forgotten. The man is nothing more than an absolute bigot.
I would have had more respect for Sen. Obama if he would have totally cut ties with the Reverend Jackson.
Is Sen. Obama really talking down to black people when he tells them about paternal responsibility? Methinks not. The senator should be applauded for that. As for Rev. Jackson, he continues the myth of George Kingfish Stevens of Amos and Andy fame. By his actions, he continues the myth of African Americans as shiftless, lazy people. The black community ought to retire the Rev. Jackson from public life. Perhaps, he could write a book or go on a lecture circuit with Louis Farrahkhan. The two of them richly deserve each other.

Optimum Online Webmail

The greatest laugh is hearing that new commercial for our children to seek out free lunches during the summer. I wonder if the person in the commercial has children in the New York City school system. The lunch food is absolutely atrocious. The odor especially from frankfurters and beans can knock you out.
You're much better off bringing your own food.
How do I know this? As a retired N.Y.C. schoolteacher, I spent many an hour on cafeteria duty thanks to our lovely UFT contract that allowed this. For those of you who say so what,? let me explain: Do doctors patrol the hallways of hospitals? Do lawyers patrol the corridors in the courts? You want the teaching profession to be regarded as just that- a profession! Great, now treat pedagogues in a professional manner.
Getting back to the food in the cafeteria, as I stated, it's absolutely awful. Perhaps, if it were kosher, we'd be far better off. No wonder there have always been food fights in the cafeteria.
How nice if our UFT leadership as well as the CSA spent some time in the cafeteria to get a first hand view of conditions there. The mayor and the chancellor could do the same thing. Snow will probably fall in August first.

No Supervisory Exams

Teachers are required to be duly licensed. This is correct.
Why not the same for assistant and principals? Why should they get these cushy jobs and enjoy a lifetime out of the classroom without taking an examination for it? Isn't that unfair?
When was the last time that the UFT and CSA hierarchies were actually in the classroom teaching?
All supervisory personnel should be required to teach. This means not taking the best classes and leaving regular teachers all the leftovers. This applies to Chancellor Klein, Kathleen Grimm and others at the board. I would love to see their classroom skills, or lack of them. When they leave their current cushy jobs, let them start teaching in one of our many SURR schools under the current unbearable conditions that they have helped to create.

The Academy for Principals

What a school system! It just gets worse and worse.
For years we had assistant principals and principals supervising teachers in subject areas that they themselves never taught. How can you fairly evaluate a teacher if you never taught that subject?
It tales between 5-10 years to develop as a good classroom teacher. Nowadays, we make you an instant supervisor. You attend the Academy for Principals and presto you become a supervisor. There are no exams to take. Go to the academy and make the right contacts and you're heading a school. What a disgrace.
Thank the Lord that I retired. I would resent taking orders from someone who never or rarely taught. What could I and others possibly learn from such a person?
I heard of one story where a 24 year old person was made a principal of a high school. This person was asking teachers in the school what a shelter drill is.
The UFT should encourage teachers to challenge unsatisfactory observations if it can be shown that the person who observed you never taught that particular subject. Mr. Klein and his fellow gang of incompetents want accountability. This is a perfect example.

Klein Time

It's time for Chancellor Klein to return to classroom teaching. After all, the Chancellor taught for 6 months before fleeing to a career in law. How did he do as a teacher? Did anyone ever bother to see his file?
The Chancellor and those who agree with what he has done to the New York City school system, they should be made to teach in one of our many SURR schools.
The 2005 UFT contract is the biggest disaster. In 1968 and 1975 teachers struck for improvements in their working conditions and for the right to be treated as professionals. We can never forget the one day strike in 1961 when teachers walked for dignity as well.
In 2005 the union gave up extremely hard fought gains. It was my pleasure to have been on the picket lines in 1975 and as a student teacher observer in the 1968 walkout.
How do you give up seniority rights? How do you give up the right to grieve letters? How do you allow pedagogues to be made to return to cafeteria and hallway duty? Former Chancellor Crew could not get over the fact that teachers were subjected to this demeaning form of work. Teachers are there to teach. It's bad enough that teachers have to be social workers, psychiatrists and psychologists since parents do not do their jobs.

The School System's Dirty Little Secret

The public is not being made aware of the treacherous conditions created by those in charge of the New York City school system.
As a result of their school population decreasing, too many teachers have been excessed. This is not the fault of the teachers. This has happened to dedicated teachers teaching for many years. The newspapers and Chancellor Joel Klein are trying to blame these people for incompetence and threatening to terminate their employment all together. Currently, under the present UFT contract, this can't be done. Who knows what will happen when this contract expires?
Instead of using these teachers in classrooms to lower class registers, the teachers are being relegated to substitute status. This is demeaning to the teacher. These people did not get master's degrees to do substitute teaching.
Why did this happen? The city is taking advantage of the miserable 2005 teachers' contract that did away with seniority.
Parents should be demanding that these teachers be returned to regular duty and not harassed by school officials for being unable to find teaching positions. The system created this problem. Now, it's time to remedy it fairly.

Victory for the Landlords

Look how quiet it has become since the Rent Guidelines Board socked it to tenants last week. What a sneaky thing to do with that guaranteed $45 or $85 increase for so called lower-paying tenants.
How much more do tenants have to endure in cockroach infested buildings? No landlord should receive any increase whatsoever if he or she has violations in his or her building.
Both landlords and tenants must be required to open their books for inspection. Increases should not be automatic.
As always, our mayor remains silent in this matter. Is this to placate his real estate cronies?
The city council yells and screams and then is very quiet.
The Rent is Too Damn High Party needs to be replaced with a more vigorous group. Tenants could conceivably form an important voting block in the next mayoral election.
At least there is some good news for tenants. Gov. Paterson has a rent controlled apartment and Joe Bruno, a pro-landlord, anti-tenant State Senator is retiring. It's about time. Remember how Sen. Bruno and former Gov. Pataki were screaming that rent control and rent stabilization were dead in 1998?
Fair market rents? Nonsense. Look what happened in Boston when there was rent deregulation. Within a period of time, rents had to be regulated due to the ever greedy landlord.
By the way, tenants in rent controlled and rent stabilized buildings should take advantage of the law that allows for a free paint job every 3 years. Most tenants don't take advantage of this and our landlords are saving plenty of money.
The time has long gone when we used to read of landlords abandoning their buildings. Nonsense. The real estate market is very lucrative today and our greedy landlords know this. They're still making money despite their protests.
Years ago city workers were asked to have 0% increases in their contracts. Landlords should step up to the plate and do the same.

Dogs in Apartment Buildings

Here we go putting dogs ahead of tenants in apartment buildings. People in buildings don't have to be subjected to barking dogs along with their feces in elevators, stairwells and hallway areas.

It is grossly unfair for a dog to be locked up in an apartment.

Dogs belong in private houses, not apartment buildings. Of course, there should be exceptions. Small dogs and people needing seeing eye dogs should be allowed to continue.

The Terrible NYC School System

Our naive public is being fooled into thinking that the NYC school system is improving. Test scores are supposedly up. Let's get the real score on the system.
Teachers can't wait to retire. Thanks to 55/25 hordes of teachers are leaving the system. Others just quit or transfer to other systems.
Discipline just gets worse and worse. Teachers are routinely blamed for everything. The idea is that they are not motivating the recalcitrants.
It's long overdue that we reestablish the 600 school concept for the unruly. A longer day and longer year are ridiculous. Children run amok through the halls creating havoc. The disruptive child has his own agenda. That agenda is that no one learns anything while he or she is around.
We have supervisors out there who never taught one day in their lives. How can they supervise a teacher fairly? At least teach the subject that you are observing the classroom teacher teach!
Chancellor Klein should commit to teaching in one of our many SURR schools once he leaves the chancellor's position.
How could the UFT have allowed seniority to be done away with? We have teachers teaching over 20 years who have been excessed and now relegated to the substitute status. What an insult this is. You can't grieve a letter? You're back in the trenches supervising cafeterias and monitoring hallways? Teachers are there to teach. Do doctors patrol the corridors of hallways? Do lawyers monitor the corridors of the courts? Of course not. Only teachers are dumped on by uncaring administrators and a mayor who will never understand what a teacher goes through from September until June.
I look forward to replies. To all my fellow teachers still teaching, have a wonderful summer. You've earned it. To all of us who have retired: Thank the Lord that we made it!