Defamation
Dear Defamed:
I wrote in the last issue of themail about Chancellor Michelle Rhee’s
recent slander of those teachers whom she fired in a reduction of force
last October. Rhee’s apologists continue to defend her, even as her
remarks turn out to be less and less defensible. Examiner columnist
Harry Jaffe makes the inaccurate claim (http://tinyurl.com/yzfg7y7)
that Rhee made the same accusations against teachers months ago in her
council testimony about the RIF. She didn’t; she never alleged that
fired teachers had sex with students. And he claims that Rhee has
substantiated her charges against teachers, when any fair reading of her
letter to Council Chairman Vincent Gray (http://www.dcpswatch.com/dcps/100126.htm)
shows that it doesn’t come close to supporting her broad-brush,
expansive charges.
Here’s what Rhee’s letter to Gray really says. When Rhee said
that she fired “teachers who had hit children, who had sex with
children, who had missed 78 days of school,” she was implying that
many, or at least several, of the fired teachers had hit children or had
sex with children. She’s an educator; she knows the English language
well enough to know what she was saying. But her letter, if what she
alleges in it is factual and to be trusted, says that only “[o]ne
teacher had been accused of sexual misconduct.” Sexual misconduct is
not the same as sex, and an accusation is far from proof; the allegation
was being investigated when that teacher was fired. “Six of the
employees terminated through the RIF had served suspensions for corporal
punishment,” Rhee wrote. Again, this is slippery. First, corporal
punishment is not the same as hitting a student. As Washington Teachers
Union Vice-President Nathan Saunders has pointed out, breaking up a
fight between students is considered corporal punishment Yelling at an
out-of-control student can be considered corporal punishment. And,
again, just as a teacher who is accused of sexual misconduct is
suspended while the accusation is investigated, a teacher who is accused
of corporal punishment is suspended until the truth of that accusation
is proven. Rhee says that six teachers were suspended, not what exactly
what the accusations against them were or whether the accusations were
proven.
But again in her letter to Council Chairman Gray, as in her Fast
Company quote, Rhee phases everything in the way that will most
discredit her opponents — teachers. From the ease with which she
defames them, my guess is that she has practiced this kind of slur, and
probably used exactly this slur before; that she has used it in her
speeches around the nation. My suspicion is that Rhee has been
badmouthing DC’s teaching corps as a whole, all around the nation, to
puff up her self-created image as a white knight fighting against the
forces of evil — the sex-abusing, child-beating, absent-without-leave
teachers whom she battles every day. You bet that she owes DC teachers
an apology, and you can also bet that Mayor Fenty and she will not give
that apology as long as they find it politically advantageous to
demonize schoolteachers.
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
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Intersection of FOSS Movement and Civil Rights
Movement
Phil Shapiro, pshapiro@his.com
For those who might be interested, here are some thoughts on the
intersection of the Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) movement and
the civil rights movement (http://www.pcworld.com/article/187568/article.html).
When you choose to use free software, you are making the world more
free. That’s why I use OpenOffice word processor, Firefox web browser.
and Ubuntu Linux operating system. Please be mindful in making such
choices. Mindfulness begets more mindfulness.
To be truthful, I also use the Windows and Macintosh operating
systems, but those operating systems don’t belong to me. They belong
to companies whose interests sometimes diverge strongly from mine. I
take actions to make myself less beholden to them — and I hope you do,
too.
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Bogged Down by Patton Boggs: Betty Noel vs.
Vicki Beasley
Peter Tucker, pete10506@yahoo.com
If the DC city council approves the mayor’s nomination of Vicki
Beasley to head of the Office of the People’s Counsel, another Patton
Boggs employee will fill a top DC government position. Since 1975, the
Office of the People’s Counsel (OPC) has been “the advocate for
consumers of natural gas, electric and telephone services in the
District” (http://www.opc-dc.gov/about/mission).
Utility companies like Pepco, Verizon, and Washington Gas are given
near-monopoly status by the District government. When a consumer has a
problem with a utility, there is likely to be no government agency to
turn to for help, aside from OPC. At the head of OPC is the consumer
oriented Betty Noel, who is completing her unprecedented sixth
three-year term as People’s Counsel. At a Saturday hearing on the
District’s utilities, witness after witness, from all over the city,
criticized the performance of the utility companies (especially Pepco).
They praised Ms. Noel’s experience, professionalism, and willingness
to stand up to — and, if need be, sue — the utility companies on
behalf of consumers. There was an overwhelming consensus that Betty Noel
should be renominated for a seventh term, and that Vicki Beasley wasn’t
qualified for the position.
While Vicki Beasley possesses minimal experience with utility
regulation or consumer issues, she has experience of another kind:
according to Patton Boggs’ web site, “Ms. Beasley’s clients
include telecommunications entities [and] quasi-governmental agencies”
(http://www.PattonBoggs.com/VBeasley).
Unlike Betty Noel, who has made a career of fighting against greedy
utility companies, Vicki Beasley apparently fights for them. I called
Ms. Beasley and asked her to specify which clients she serves, but she
declined to say and asked that I direct any questions for her to the
Office of Boards and Commissions (which then referred me to the Mayor’s
spokeswoman, Mafara Hobson, who has yet to respond to my questions).
District residents have experience with Patton Boggs employees in top
government posts. Aside from the mayor and the chair of the city
council, DC’s third most powerful elected official may be the chair of
the committee on finance and revenue. This position is currently held by
Councilman Jack Evans, an employee of Patton Boggs (http://www.PattonBoggs.com/JEvans).
As chair of the finance committee, Mr. Evans has been instrumental in
placing huge amounts of precious taxpayer dollars and public land into
private hands, with little public benefit to show for it: Examples
include the baseball stadium (more than $725 million), the Convention
Center ($850 million), and now the Convention Center Hotel ($272
million), to name a few publicly funded, Evans-inspired projects. There
is a great deal at stake in who fills the position of People’s
Counsel. The OPC is the only thing standing in the way of the utility
companies getting the ever-higher rates they covet. If the council votes
to confirm Vicki Beasley, a Patton Boggs employee whose clients include
“telecommunications entities” and “quasi-governmental agencies,”
OPC may head in a radically different direction; a move that utility
companies will surely cheer.
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The only responses that I’ve seen to criticisms of the bag tax are
that everyone should stop whining and get over it. I can think of no
surer sign that the people who love it really aren’t interested in
discussing or understanding its effects. It’s really a shame that so
many people are willing to write laws without really thinking about
their consequences, and simply respond to critics by saying “get over
it.” It seems that “The Fenty Effect” has spread beyond the
government of DC. Even the citizens are now on board with the “legislate
first, ask questions later” method of rule.
I honestly couldn’t care less about the effects on my life of this
tax in isolation. If I paid for every one of the estimated 350 bags I
got every year it would be under twenty bucks a year. I already used
reusable bags sometimes anyway. The point is that many people seem
interested in legislating the details of everyone’s life, regardless
of the minimal value of each little law, while the big picture remains
unchanged. I really want the trash situation in DC to be better, which
is why I am so disappointed that we wasted an opportunity to do
something substantial on a nuisance tax that won’t likely have much
impact on trash or generate much money. Every little thing like this
contributes to a death by a thousand cuts. But whatever, I’ll just get
over it, like the speed bumps that appear everywhere without any design
or placement standards, and the extended meter enforcement, and the
desire to make it impossible for nonresidents to park in our
neighborhoods, and the annual property tax battle, and every other
little thing that DC does to make life annoying for its visitors and
residents. It’s what makes DC feel like a podunk town where the
sheriff tickets you for a broken taillight when you cross the border.
People do get over it, believe me. At the margin, some people will
“get over it” by choosing to live outside of DC. This is not the
straw that broke the camel’s back, of course, and I’m not going
anywhere, but every little annoying thing like this registers in the
minds of people when they decide whether or not to live and shop in DC.
Each little thing doesn’t matter much, but taken together these things
make DC a less desirable place than it could be, and that affects
everyone who lives and pays taxes here in a very real way. I know: get
over it. Boss Hogg in Hazzard County couldn’t have said it better.
###############
Dotti Love-Wade Appointed to NASBE
Governmental Affairs Committee
Beverley Wheeler, beverley.wheeler@dc.gov
The following announcement was released by the National Association
of State Boards of Education: “The National Association of State
Boards of Education (NASBE) is pleased to announce that Dotti Love-Wade
of Washington, DC, who is a member of the District of Columbia State
Board of Education, has been chosen to serve on the NASBE Governmental
Affairs Committee (GAC), the entity responsible for developing federal
policy recommendations and communicating with Congress and federal
officials about the education reform priorities of state boards of
education.
“The Governmental Affairs Committee helps state board members
understand, influence, and plan for federal education policies. In its
efforts to affect national education policymaking, NASBE works to ensure
that it represents the views of its members to the executive and
legislative branches of the federal government, as well as to
associations representing governors, state legislators, school
administrators, principals, local school boards, teachers, and parents.
“As a member of the twenty-member panel, Ms. Love-Wade will meet
with other state education leaders, national policymakers, federal
lawmakers, and education reform experts during a series of meetings,
events, and communications during the course of this year to share their
state’s experiences and perspective, analyze federal education
initiatives, promote state board of education priorities, and serve as a
state education resource to congressional offices and staff.”
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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS
The 2011 Budget Is Coming, January 28-29
Tina Marshall, marshall@cbpp.org
Yes, it’s that time of year again. You might already be slipping in
your pledge to go to the gym or eat healthier. But there are still two
great opportunities to make good on one of your top New Year’s
resolutions: understanding the District’s budget and how to fund it in
these tough times. Next Thursday and Friday mornings, January 28 and 29,
national and local budget experts will cover what you need to know when
it comes to DC’s budget in two important forums. What is the process
to fund this $10 billion government? Are other states tapping into
sources of revenue we aren’t?
Budget 101: Everything You Want To Know (And We Want You To Ask!),
Thursday, January 28, 9:30-11:00 a.m., John A. Wilson Building, 1350
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Room 123. Learn the nuts and bolts of the DC
budget process from budget experts and Wilson Building veterans. Find
out how you can get involved to protect and improve the programs you
care about.
Budgeting With Balance: An In-Depth Discussion of How DC Can Raise
Revenue, sponsored by the Fair Budget Coalition, Friday, January 29,
9:30-11:30 a.m., John A. Wilson Building, First Floor What are other
states doing to raise revenue in these tough times? Is there an
alternative to a cuts-only approach? (Yes. Definitely.)
Even though economists say the Great Recession ended last year, the
economic impact of the downturn continues to shrink government resources
at precisely the time when they’re most needed. DC’s Chief Financial
Officer projects a $400 million shortfall for next year. Jon Shure of
the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and several national experts
will explain how leaders across the country are taking a balanced
approach to this budget crisis by finding ways to add revenue. Specific
topics will include use of the rainy day fund, reforming income taxes,
and bringing equity to sales taxes. Please RSVP to Tina Marshall at marshall@cbpp.org
or 408-1080. These events are sponsored by the Fair Budget Coalition and
the DC Fiscal Policy Institute.
##############
National Building Museum Events, January 30,
February 2
Johanna Weber, jweber@nbm.org
January 30, 10:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. and 1:30-4:30 p.m., Cub Scout Day.
Join the National Building Museum for this activity day designed
especially for Cub Scouts. Explore the world we build for ourselves and
work on Badge requirements! Enjoy tours of the Museum’s historic
building led by Junior Docents. For full descriptions of activities
visit our web site. $12 per scout; $5 for non-scout children. Prepaid
registration required. Ages 6 and up.
February 2, 10:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m., Book of the Month: Building a
House. Join us in The Building Zone for an interactive reading of Byron
Barton’s Building a House and learn how a house is built from
start to finish. Readings at 10:30 and 11:30 a.m. Free. Drop-in program.
Recommended for ages 3 to 5.
February 2, 6:30-8:00 p.m., Spotlight on Design: Lake | Flato
Architects. The modern vernacular buildings of Lake / Flato Architects
combine ingenuity and craftsmanship with new technologies. In 2004, the
San Antonio-based firm was chosen as the “Firm of the Year” by the
American Institute of Architects. Hear Ted Flato, FAIA, one of the
founding principals, share the studio’s work and design philosophy.
$12 Museum and AIA members, $12 students, $20 nonmembers. Prepaid
registration required. Walk-in registration based on availability. All
events at the National Building Museum, 401 F Street, NW, Judiciary
Square Metro station. Register for events at http://www.nbm.org.
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Department of Parks and Recreation Events,
January 31
John Stokes, john.astokes@dc.gov
January 31, 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m., Show Place Arena, Upper Marlboro
Maryland. Maryland Cup Cheer Competition. DC Scorpions from Thurgood
Marshall Recreation Center will compete in a cheer competition. For more
information, call K’Yanna Blackwell at 258-6328.
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CLASSIFIEDS — APARTMENT WANTED
One-Bed Apartment on Capitol Hill
Ted Knutson, dcreporter1@yahoo.com
I’m a longtime Hill resident, but literally want to move up in the
world. From a basement apartment to first floor or higher.
Other musts: bedroom large enough for a queen sized bed and one
(preferably two) dressers; must allow two small, very quiet, clean,
etc., dogs; laundry in building or at least no more than four blocks
away; maximum of eight blocks from Eastern Market (hopefully closer);
$1500 max with a little wiggle room higher for an exceptional place. I’m
a late 50s, quiet professional. If you have or know of a place, please
E-mail me at dcreporter1@yahoo.com.
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