Do You Know a Sociopath? I Bet You Do

Recent observed and often bizarre behavior by some people we know have caused some of us to look for diagnostic signs of what is driving

this behavior. Sociopathy is more widespread than we think. I consider Randi and Bill Clinton have many elements. Watch the behavior of some people and check that off against some of the information below.

They are masters at turning one group of people against another group while proclaiming themselves to be the one true savior ....they never feel guilt because they can justify anything they do -- you will often hear them say they can sleep at night - because to them lying -- well, not as much lying - but telling half-truths and parsing language to give the impression they want is justified. They often paint themselves a victims or persecuted. 

All sociopaths are narcissists, but not all narcissists are sociopaths. Because of this, all sociopaths have a huge ego. When you meet, they will tell you a huge list of things that make them sound absolutely remarkable... It is important to the sociopath to play victim... Most people feel uncomfortable telling a lie, and usually need to confess the lie and have a need to be honest. A sociopath is opposite to this... When caught in a lie a sociopath will always

·         Change the subject
·         Blame someone else
·         If pushed will become angry, and point out your shortcomings, but rarely will he ever admit to the lie.

The last point made an impression on me since I saw it happen so often recently. Bring up a point of vulnerability to them and you find yourself responding to an entirely different point and the original point gets buried. I will get into the specific details of this behavior in a follow-up.
 
Some more key points:

Sociopaths are more spontaneous and intense than other people. They tend to do bizarre, sometimes erratic things that most regular people wouldn't do. They are unbound by normal social contracts. Their behavior often seems irrational or extremely risky.

Sociopaths are masters are presenting themselves as heroes with high morals and philosophy, yet underneath it they... undermine, deceive, and often incite emotional chaos among entire communities. They are masters at turning one group of people against another group while proclaiming themselves to be the one true savior. Wherever they go, they create strife, argument and hatred, yet they utterly fail to see their own role in creating it. They are delusional at so many levels that their brains defy logical reasoning. You cannot reason with a sociopath. Attempting to do so only wastes your time and annoys the sociopath. 

One of the more offensive duties of being an investigative journalist is taking out the trash -- exposing liars, fraudsters, con artists and scammers for the people they truly are. Each time we investigate a sociopath, we find that they always have a little cult group following of spellbound worshippers who consider that particular sociopath to be a "guru" or "prophet."... Mike Adams (NaturalNews)

Do you know any sociopaths? Adams estimates that 4% of the population are SPs.

A friend tells me she has known many people with sociopathic tendencies and they often accomplish a lot. They are very convincing and often charismatic - and it often takes years of dealing with them to realize you are being manipulated - and used - and I am very gullible. I think my years of friendly contact with Randi taught me a lesson - she has many elements of sociopathy -- ...they never feel guilt because they can justify anything they do -- you will often hear them say they can sleep at night - because to them lying -- well, not as much lying - but telling half-truths and parsing language to give the impression they want is justified. They often paint themselves a victims or persecuted.

Sometimes it takes years to figure this out and then you smack yourself in the head and say, "of course." That happened to me with Randi when she slipped out of her usual mode with an email in which she said How dare I talk to a union president that way? The smack in the head that I had been played. I am an easy mark to play it seems - even recently someone I believed in and trusted and defended has opened my eyes.

To me a sociopath is an outgrowth of what I would term spoiled bratism as a child - or the opposite - denied being a spoiled brat and making up for it as an adult. It is a high form of selfishness - the person has to get his or her way - actually, it is mostly men it seems - though I have heard some women described as sociopaths - and think I even ran across one or two. You can never convince them they are wrong and if you disagree they cannot understand it and will never stop badgering you about it and will consider your refusal to agree as a personal slight and a badge of disloyalty - even when it might be the slightest of issues.

I was a spoiled brat and at times in my life I felt I was on the edge of being so selfish as to verge on sociopathy - or sociopathic behavior. I have to fight against such tendencies. My saving grace is self-critical analysis and a lot of Jewish guilt. Sociopaths never feel guilt and often proclaim how they can sleep at night.

How to spot a sociopath - 10 red flags that could save you from being swept under the influence of a charismatic nut job

Why cover this subject? I've seen a lot of people get hoodwinked, scammed or even harmed by sociopaths, and it bewilders me that people are so easily sucked into their destructive influence. I want to share with Natural News readers the warning signs of sociopaths so that you can spot them, avoid them, and save yourself the trouble of being unduly influenced by them.

Much of this information is derived from the fascinating book, The Sociopath Next Door, which says that 4% of the population are sociopaths. The book is a fascinating read.

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/036112_sociopaths_cults_influence.html#ixzz3eqAwi9fz

10 signs for spotting a sociopath

#1) Sociopaths are charming. Sociopaths have high charisma and tend to attract a following just because people want to be around them. They have a "glow" about them that attracts people who typically seek guidance or direction. They often appear to be sexy or have a strong sexual attraction. Not all sexy people are sociopaths, obviously, but watch out for over-the-top sexual appetites and weird fetishes.

#2) Sociopaths are more spontaneous and intense than other people. They tend to do bizarre, sometimes erratic things that most regular people wouldn't do. They are unbound by normal social contracts. Their behavior often seems irrational or extremely risky.

#3) Sociopaths are incapable of feeling shame, guilt or remorse. Their brains simply lack the circuitry to process such emotions. This allows them to betray people, threaten people or harm people without giving it a second thought. They pursue any action that serves their own self interest even if it seriously harms others. This is why you will find many very "successful" sociopaths in high levels of government, in any nation.

#4) Sociopaths ... wildly exaggerate things to the point of absurdity, but when they describe it to you in a storytelling format, for some reason it sounds believable at the time.

#5) Sociopaths seek to dominate others and "win" at all costs. They hate to lose any argument or fight and will viciously defend their web of lies, even to the point of logical absurdity.

#6) Sociopaths tend to be highly intelligent, but they use their brainpower to deceive others rather than empower them. Their high IQs often makes them dangerous.

#7) Sociopaths are incapable of love and are entirely self-serving. They may feign love or compassion in order to get what they want, but they don't actually FEEL love in the way that you or I do.

#8) Sociopaths speak poetically. They are master wordsmiths, able to deliver a running "stream of consciousness" monologue that is both intriguing and hypnotic.

#9) Sociopaths never apologize. They are never wrong. They never feel guilt. They can never apologize. Even if shown proof that they were wrong, they will refuse to apologize and instead go on the attack.

#10) Sociopaths are delusional and literally believe that what they say becomes truth merely because they say it!

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/036112_sociopaths_cults_influence.html#ixzz3epo95AEP

MORE 15,000 hits re AFT Hillary Endorsement, Roseanne Response to Leo Casey, Email to Colleagues

BREAKING: Ed Notes has learned that Hillary will keynote AFT convention in Minneapolis in July 2016. Expect some dissent from the ranks.

Well, actually I'm just guessing but I think it is a pretty good guess. Getting into to see this will cause long lines at security, like they did at the Biden appearance in LA last year. Better pee early.

Note the flurry and fury the endorsement has stirred up a hornet's nest but Randi/Mikey are expecting that to go away by next year and Bernie to go away too after the primaries are over. So by next year the fait accompli will be over.

MORE if as expected will run in the UFT 2016 elections (despite my advice) will also be contending for some of those 800 AFT convention positions which go to Unity en masse. If MORE got 49% of the vote - the 800 Unity slugs go to support Randi anyway. Shanker knew what he was doing when he set up this structure. I don't think the Hillary issue per se will resonate next March/April during the campaign as much as it is indicative of the way the union operates.

Our pal Roseanne McCosh has not sat back silently. Roseanne is on the AFT/Randi/Hillary/Leo case after MORE shared Leo's petulant tweets: No Weekend at Bernie's for AFT - Leo Casey Gets MAD at MORE

Mr. Casey: I read your tweets re: AFT/Hilary and MORE’s response. Try some humility for a change instead of acting like a high-school mean-girl who claims she’s way cooler because she has more friends than MORE. BTW…. You forgot to count the 60+ people from PS 8 in the Bronx who joined ST. Your arrogant, ‘Unity knows what’s good for you’ tweets will surely inspire them to now support MORE as well. Keep alienating the rank and file and watch your opposition grow. MORE won’t have to do a damn thing to gain additional support. They’ll just have to sit back and wait for the blowback set in motion by Unity blowhards who make decisions FOR us instead of WITH us....... Roseanne McCosh – PS 8x

Roseanne is helping organize her school to support MORE as she did to support Stronger Together (Sixty One Members (and counting).

Roseanne sent this out to her colleagues (if more anti-Unity people did the kind of work Roseanne does in her school Unity would have reason to be nervous.)

The American Federation of Teachers led by Randi Weingarten endorsed Hilary Clinton without fully vetting her on the issues that affect our careers. The AFT endorsed her without getting any guarantee that she would change the teacher-hate climate and testing mania created by Bush and perpetuated by Obama. The MORE caucus of the UFT expressed concern over the unearned endorsement which resulted in a series of arrogant, snarky tweets from Leo Casey who works for the UFT. This email has nothing to do with who we should endorse. This email is about calling out our union leaders who always claim they know what's best for us and acting like we should just shut up and do as we're told and accept whatever they say we should accept. One of the snarky tweets from Leo Casey prompted my response below (I emailed it to Leo Casey and Mulgrew.) In September I will ask that we join MORE to show support for a NYC Caucus within the UFT who are fighting for the working teachers of NYC. We took the first step by joining the ST (NY STATE) Caucus. MORE is a NYC Caucus who is doing similar work for us, the working teachers, right in our backyard. Please share this email with anyone you like. I will have additional info on the MORE Caucus in September. In the meantime you can check them out on Facebook (MORE UFT) or follow them on Twitter. My email to Casey/Mulgrew is below:...
Roseanne

You know it is not about the question of whether to endorse Hillary or not but the undemocratic process that totally shuts out the potential Bernie supporters to make their case. Remember the 2008 support for Hillary and how pissed the Obama supporters were -- and where are they now? And watch Hillary waffle on the ed deform issues making similar vague promises like Obama did.

MORE posts on facebook have gotten a major response with over 15,000 hits in 24 hours.

Here is the MORE official statement on the MORE blog written by my adopted political son - I'm leaving Mike all my back issues of ed notes in my will. Mike connects the upcoming Supreme Court case on agency shop dues - which could cripple the AFT/UFT/NUYSUT -- hard to make a case for paying union dues to such an undemocratic organization -- see ICE and NYCEducator blog for commentary on this point.

morecaucusnyc

Clinton Endorsement, Wrong For Our Union - By Mike Schirtzer Teacher/UFT Delegate- Leon M. Goldstein High School Brooklyn

Over a year before the 2016 Presidential election our AFT union leadership has already endorsed Hillary Clinton. The political move comes after phone polls and one town hall meeting which supposedly included the input of 1,150 members. Our AFT is made up of over 1.6 million members. This is not a very scientific study or a good sample size.

With the recent decision to by the Supreme Court to hear a case that may mean the end of public sector unions as we know it and the continued anti worker, union-busting policies from elected officials on both sides of the aisle from Scott Walker to Rahm Emanuel, now is the wrong time to be making back-room political deals that further distance our union from its members. This is the moment to engage our members, to make them feel like active participants in our union.

For far too long UFT/AFT leadership has been overly complacent and has allowed member interest in the union to wither away. With this critical election coming soon and the continued attacks on our unions, this should be the perfect moment to work to get all our members involved. We could have done that by offering more than a phone poll and website questionnaire. We could have used this election to galvanize our members, to remind prospective nominees that anti-worker, anti-union, and anti-public education policies are not in the best interest of our nation. In fact these very policies have widened the income gap and led our country to near financial ruin. We need to properly vet each candidate to know where they stand on testing, common core, union rights, tenure, charter schools, and then share that information with each and every AFT member. Our members can make informed decisions that will help our students, our schools, and our union.

It is fine if AFT President Weingarten is personal friends with Mrs. Clinton, but that is not a reason to give away our endorsement. The last twenty-five years of political endorsements has not helped our union or our schools, in fact we could argue it has done further harm. They could have engaged the membership in a vibrant discussion on strategies and whether political endorsements are in the best interest of those we serve.

None of this was done, instead another top down decision made in some backroom during the middle of the summer. We all understand that this endorsement really holds no weight due to the lack of organizing and mobilizing by  our union leadership which has led to the disinterest in union endorsements. But we could have used this election to change that. This could have been the very moment when our union leadership decided to change strategy, make our union more democratic, listen to voices within the union, even dissenters like ourselves who may disagree, but offer educated insights. Instead they chose to do what they always do, which is another top-down failure to engage the membership and then make a decision on our behalf.

It is time for new union leadership, one that is made up of members who are in the classroom, who speak with and speak for classroom teachers and school based educators. A leadership that has new ideas, new voices, and actively seeks member participation. While we are upset at this endorsement, it is just another example of the systematic failed leadership that has allowed our union to become weak, our members to become disinterested, and public schools to be attacked.

Mark Naison had an interesting point:

The same Randi Weingarten who pushed through the endorsement of Hillary Clinton by the AFT is single most important person responsible for the appointment of Mary Ellen Elia as Education Commissioner of New York State. Without AFT and UFT support, Elia would never have been appointed, much less unanimously appointed, in an "emergency meeting" In both instances, the public was blindsided because the process was closed and there was no debate. But this says a lot about how Randi Weingarten works. She likes to cut deals with people in power rather than mobilize her membership to be an active force in the public life of the communities they live in and to promote democratic decision making in her union. In that sense, she has much in common with the two most powerful people shaping education policy in New York State- Governor Andrew Cuomo and Regents Chair Merryl Tisch, both of whom think that policy is best made by "negotiations between CEO's" to quote Regent Tisch's favorite term.

No Weekend at Bernie's for AFT - Leo Casey Gets MAD at MORE

He's baaaack. Leo Casey (and apparently most of the Unity Caucus leaders) pay a lot of attention to MORE. Leo is upset that MORE is critical of the AFT Hillary endorsement and argues that a democratic poll took place, though apparently they managed to leave out people who might disagree - like the so-called 25 members Leo claims MORE has. Arthur has a good piece at NYC Educator -- Hillary and Randi.

And let's look soon at our pals in Chicago/CORE/CTU which has 2 members of the AFT Exec Council that voted this endorsement. Wonder how they voted.

The Great Discipline Debate Goes On: Coddle or Club Them are not the only choices

What If Everything You Knew About Disciplining Kids Was Wrong? | Mother Jones --- Negative consequences, timeouts, and punishment just make bad behavior worse. But a new approach really works.

Since I got involved in organized teacher groups 45 years ago, this age-old debate has flared its head. Just read the comments in the recent Restorative Justice piece on Ed Notes: Can Restorative Justice Be the Key to School Discipline?

Under Greene's philosophy, you'd no more punish a child for yelling out in class or jumping out of his seat repeatedly than you would if he bombed a spelling test. You'd talk with the kid to figure out the reasons for the outburst (was he worried he would forget what he wanted to say?), then brainstorm alternative strategies for the next time he felt that way. The goal is to get to the root of the problem, not to discipline a kid for the way his brain is wired.

What if it is not about talking out in class but beating the shit out of other kids and creating a climate of fear in your class?

It is clear that a slug school admin that doesn't hold itself accountable is a major problem. But also what about schools overloaded with difficult to manage kids that are so under resourced that they cannot manage to manage. My school had a massive special ed component --  the kids with the most problems with discipline - emotional - were placed in small specEd classes with a teacher and a para - at that time 12-1-1. My principal - who supported teachers 100% - claimed that 60% of her time was spent on a relatively few kids.

There are schools where teachers feel under siege when it comes to discipline and the lack of administration support. But this is also a 2-way street. Teachers must use some judgement in managing their kids. Other than the relatively few socio/psychopath students I had, I was able to reason with kids to get their behavior to work within the bounds of how I ran my classroom - admittedly, fairly liberally - I wanted to build an inviting classroom environment, feeling that having kids want to be there - and with each other - made the rest relatively easy.

But I had my share of kids who could act like hoods - years later I got a call one Thanksgiving from a former student serving 15-life for murder - it could have been from Dannemora, where he did serve some of his time - and he put me on with another former student who told me there were 9 of them from the projects across the street from my school in the same cell block.

I was able to work with most of the kids in this category when they were 12 - I'm not sure what I would do if they were 17. I had to treat the very hard core cases in ways that are not described below --

What If Everything You Knew About Disciplining Kids Was Wrong? | Mother Jones

—Katherine Reynolds Lewis | July/August 2015 Issue

http://m.motherjones.com/politics/2015/05/schools-behavior-discipline-collaborative-proactive-solutions-ross-greene

My Quote in Chalkbeat on John Dewey HS Elvin Firing - They didn't include my hammering of Farina for Covering up

Why does it take a year for OSI to issue a report? And why are teachers pulled immediatly while OSI investigates while principals like Elvin are allowed to stay  in their jobs and continue to destroy teachers and students lives? If not for the publicity, Elvin would have been kicked upstairs to run some DOE program instead of being fired. The press should look at how many slugs who were disasters as principals who are in high end positions today at the DOE.

(I posted the complete 22 page OSI report in google docs.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8qnFCTQLOqoUXNNMTdhUGRINTQ/view).

I'm glad that MORE got some credit for the behind the scenes support for the struggle at John Dewey - I was the point man and the CL Michael Solo who was a main cog in the battle is a MORE member. We used Ed Notes to bludgeon Elvin - the Dewey stories get numerous hits every day. Taking the story public in this way moved things along. Michael filled me in all along and we had to keep most of what was going on behind the scenes private. And I'm still not at liberty to tell the entire story.

Cover up

I do know that Michael put his career at risk since Elvin and her crew were monsters at retaliation. Michael was not an activist until they tried to close Dewey 4 years ago. At that time we were in a pre-MORE stage of GEM and we went down to support them and Michael got involved in GEM as it morphed into MORE.

But the story here is that Farina covered up - and the NY Times indicates so when she said recently there was nothing there. I made that clear in the interview - and the UFT was informing Farina and her people about what Elvin was doing on a number of issues at the school.

Chalkbeat seems to think that Farina acted quickly by firing Elvin instead of bumping her to another position as they do with principals. But the Marcia Kramer pieces on TV forced Farina's hand -- the publicity of reassignment would have been too damaging -- but if there was no pub they Elvin would be running something at the DOE for sure.

 I challenged Farina at a PEP meeting. https://youtu.be/eH8YblzFbSM

Norm Scott, an activist with the Movement of Rank and File Educators, a caucus of the city teachers union that waged a public campaign to remove Elvin, said the city’s actions were long overdue. He said Fariña — who has said for months that she was awaiting the results of the investigation — was informed about problems at John Dewey by teachers there in her first months on the job.
“A year too late,” Scott said. “Kids and teachers have suffered enormously.”
He didn't include the part where I hammered Farina for duplicity and gave him background info on how she knew what was going on for almost a year but protected Elvin while teachers were being hammered.
http://ny.chalkbeat.org/2015/07/08/principal-tapped-by-bloomberg-to-turn-around-john-dewey-hs-yanked-after-probe/#.VZ5krkV0G_B

The UFT deserves credit for their work behind the scenes with MORE member Michael Solo. A real cooperative effort.

GRADE-FIXING PROBE

The principal of John Dewey High School who was tasked with turning around the troubled Brooklyn school is in the process of being fired after a city investigation found that she allowed students to receive credits toward graduation with no instruction from teachers.

• Chalkbeat,
• New York Times,
• NY1,
• SchoolBook,
• New York Daily News,
• New York Post,
• Capital Pro

The grade-fixing scandal at John Dewey High School “may be just the tip of the iceberg,” writes the Post editorial board, and the only way to hold schools more accountable is to have more school choice.

• New York Post

Ding Dong - Finally, an End to our National Nightmare: Elvin is Gone From John Dewey HS - It takes a lifetime to remove a principal

Congrats to the staff of John Dewey HS, many of whom fought a great battle to rid the school of Elvin.

I posted the complete 22 page OSI report in google docs.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8qnFCTQLOqoUXNNMTdhUGRINTQ/view

We've been on the case here at Ed Notes for over a year. Finally, Kathleen Elvin is gone - the worst thing she did was not the cheating - it was how she treated teachers. Does that single parent veteran she discontinued last year as a way to retaliate against the union get her job back?

At a PEP I challenged Farina directly in this issue of pulling teachers for anything while leaving charged principals in power to harass people and end their careers.
A contact connected to Dewey emailed this was about to go down.
I told him from they will get a worse principal in retaliation for their embarrassing Farina. So have your party and get ready for the next slug.

Here is a report from Farina's office.

Today, we are releasing the Office of Special Investigations report on allegations surrounding credit recovery and grading/credit improprieties at John Dewey High School (21K540). The report is attached, and a statement attributable to Chancellor Carmen Fariña and background information is below.

Statement attributable to Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña:

“The results of the investigation are disturbing and show there was a failure to follow the DOE’s protocol during the 2013-2014 school year. We have begun the process to have Ms. Elvin’s employment terminated, and she will be removed from payroll shortly. Ensuring every New York City student is meeting the high-quality standards necessary to graduate is an imperative and we are retraining principals across the City to ensure these standards are upheld.”

On background:

*During the summer, there will be a training for superintendents and principals on credit recovery protocol to ensure this does not occur again.

*This investigation concerned allegations related to credit recovery and credit/grading improprieties during the 13-14 school year. Any allegations of similar misconduct during the 14-15 school year should be reported to Special Commissioner of Investigation.

*The new principal at John Dewey High School will be a Master principal as part of our Ambassador program, Connie Hamilton. She is the current principal of Kingsborough Early College School.

Thanks,

Devora

Devora Kaye

Press Secretary, NYC Department of Education

@dskaye

NY Post:
http://nypost.com/2015/07/08/principal-behind-grade-fixing-scheme-fired/

NEW Caucus Answers Slanders of NTU leadership

Typical attacks by Unity style leaders when threatened. Unfortunately these attacks seemed to work and NEW Caucus did not win the recent union elections though I don't have any details of the results - if you have them send along.

http://us8.campaign-archive1.com/?u=1746ba16f98cc36943b131766&id=a21f63fc42

Members of the Newark Teachers Union: (And the Wider Newark Community) This letter is in response to the slanderous piece recently published by members of the NTU leadership, particularly Director of Organization John Abeigon and his Secretary Treasurer candidate Michael Iovino.

Are UFT Elections a Joke?

Many of us are having a lot of fun with the "pet for president" UFT election campaign (UFT Presidential Race Heats Up, Julio 2016, Julio for UFT President, Bernice and Penny Lane for UFT Secretary and Treasurer.).
On Facebook people keep tossing their pets into the ring. So far Julie Cavanagh has not entered her dog and I think that's too bad. In the age of monarchical candidates ala Bush and Clinton, what makes more sense than to have the dog of a former presidential candidate running?

In response a well-respected member of MORE sent this email:

The whole elect my pet thing is super cute and funny, but it also sends a message that UFT elections are a joke. That may be the case, but I think it is worth asking if this is strategically the best move. The pet campaign wars may be seen and branded as MORE... Is it wise to have MORE seen as seeing and treating the UFT elections as a joke?  If MORE is going to put up a candidate, I fear this side business will be a hurdle to that person/people being taken seriously.

The writer makes a point. But MORE has not even addressed the UFT elections in any formal manner, though I believe it will at its July 14 retreat. The pet for president is a response to the current candidate options. When there is a serious candidate in the race, the pet campaign will go away.

The pet caucus election is a fun summer project but there is a point to it.

In so many ways the UFT elections are a joke -- a farce -- an exercise in futility since most regular people actually think they are winnable - if only one slate ran or if we advertized or ran a better campaign.

The real elections just took place. There were hundreds of CLs up for grabs - and Unity grabs most of them historically. I think their people had more challenges than ever - I heard one of them talking at the DA.

We can't go around lying to people that a UFT election can be "won" - in the classic sense. We need to use the election to teach people why these elections are set up the way they are and what changes need to be made in the union to make them meaningful -- people don't vote because the elections are so meaningless with so little to win (other than the 7 high school exec bd seats) and for us to tell them they are doing anything more than helping us make a statement that people want change is misleading.

Since the only thing we can "win" are the 7 high school seats -- if we think it is valuable to do so - we need to say that and also focus on that - and even if we "win" all we win is showing a sign we have gotten back to where New Action was in 2001, the last time an opposition beat Unity head to head in the high schools.

Still I think it is worth trying to do that but not much more than that other than to use the campaign to reach and activate more people at the school level.

But it has to be with the understanding about what we are doing -- building a bottom up movement and we see the elections as a tool to do that.
But most people don't want to hear that it can take a decade to reach a critical mass.

The animal campaign works for now because it de-emphasizes the elections as the major thing a caucus does.

Not that we don't want to get as many votes as possible to demonstrate that something is growing in the union.

We proved last time that where we have respected people in the schools the people will vote for us.

When that base has expanded our votes will go up. But let's not fool ourselves that even if we win a majority of the classroom teacher votes we can win the election - due to the preponderance of at-large voting -- at most winning the classroom teachers at the high, middle and elem school levels would give us 23 Ex bd seats out of 100.

Where's Julie?

People ask me what has happened to Julie Cavanagh who figured so prominently in just about everything but has not been around and about much.

On Sunday Carol and I attended the 3rd birthday party of Jack Cavanagh in Prospect Park (how great to see Lisa Donlan and JC). Julie has made a choice about the important things in life. But that hasn't stopped her from wearing her Wonder Woman outfit. To me she will always be Wonder Woman.

Julie, Jack and Glenn

I'm Joining Yelena and Kit in Presenting at MORE's "The Nuts and Bolts of Leading Your Chapter" This Thursday

I am honored to join Yelena Siwinski, long-time elementary CL and Kit Wainer, one of the deans of CLs at MORE's upcoming summer series event from 4-6PM. I was one of the people pushing for MORE to do this training as soon as possible early in the summer since so many new chapter leaders were elected and might have some anxiety over the task they have undertaken. We will do another at the end of August to help people get ready for the new school year.  Mike Schirtzer will moderate. And then we drink and party

I was only CL for 4 years, one of which was a sabbatical. And that was near the end of my career. So I had a long view of that role and thought long and hard about how to build a chapter in a school with a domineering my way or highway, though not abusive, principal. And also as a CL who is critical, yet often dependent, on the union hierarchy. Yelena will talk about working with them from that perspective, especially since she is one of the few, if any, opposition people who has a part-time staff position at the Brooklyn Office.

I think I did a lot of interesting and innovative things as CL - which I will share on Thursday. I hope there is room as the response had been large. If you are a current or former CL come on down and provide support for these new CLs who have taken on quite a task.


The Nuts and Bolts of Leading Your Chapter

Open to all newly elected or veteran chapter leaders, delegates, consultation/SLT committee members, para-reps, and anyone interested in getting more involved in their chapter.

This Thursday July 9th 4pm-7pm

The Dark Horse Pub

17 Murray St. NYC (downstairs)

Near City Hall, Chambers St., WTC

 Experienced chapter leaders will provide workshops on:

Getting your members involved

Enforcing contractual rights

Planning chapter and consultation meetings

Fighting back against administration

Building allies in PTA/SLT

Filing grievances

Working with your District/Borough Representatives

Facebook link here

For those that can not make this session we will have another one on August 20th, same time and location

Can Unity Caucus Take Over the NEA? Over Their Dead Body - Plus - What Role for Stronger Together?

July 5, 2015, 9AM

Control of NYSUT could be even bigger than you think. It doesn't look likely to pass, but NEA will vote on a constitutional amendment that would give NYSUT (and the other merged affiliates) full representation at the NEA convention. Were that to happen, NYSUT could send twice as many delegates as California - and California wags the NEA dog on a lot of things currently. NYSUT would gain a huge amount of influence in NEA - which explains why they're low-keying their involvement in this and why there will be a big campaign to vote it down... Mike Antonucci in email to Ed Notes, June 21, 2015

Mike A will be reporting today or tomorrow on this AFT attempt to embed the NYC Unity machine in the NEA. Don't bet that the larger NEA will allow the smaller AFT shark to chew them up.

With the NEA convention wrapping up in New Orleans we hear words of the Lilly/Randi lovefest. Lilly spoke at the AFT convention last year and Randi did the same this year at the NEA. But don't look for a merger of the two national unions. Maybe more cooperation, but merger, no. Remember - Lilly is term-limited as all NEA presidents are. Randi is a monarchical system of NYC Unity Caucus controlling NY State Unity Caucus (over 650 thousand of the 1.5 million member AFT) which controls the national version of Unity, Progressive Caucus (unlike Unity NYC in that there is no loyalty oath - even I'm a member for $25.)

But the almost 100 year war between the NEA and AFT has underlying reasons and the NEA will never accept the AFT distorted version of democracy. Shanker's idea of merger at the state level as a way to force Unity troops into the NEA was thwarted by poison pill like restrictions on merged state unions. Thus the merged NYSUT cannot just pile in its 800 Unity NYC delegates to take control. There is a limited formula.

Apparently Randi and Mulgrew are trying another end run at the NEA convention to create the Unity machine there and it will fail once again.

The wrinkle Mike didn't report on was the revolt inside NYSUT by Stronger Together in 2014 with many small locals signing on to ST - many of them pre-merger NEA locals - the historic divide between the AFT big city vs the NEA smaller towns. None of the big city teacher unions in NY State have deserted state Unity - which was briefly known as Revive - or Revile as we prefer to call them.

Funny stories emerging from inside NYC Unity about how annoyed they are about ST and actually blame MORE for it - Mike Schirtzer was elected to the ST Exec Board as a MORE rep -- but the reality is that the people who began ST contacted MORE first in the fall of 2013 - and since then a strong alliance has grown. At Monday's ICE meeting we informed people of the backroom stuff we can't talk about in public - in fact I had to ask certain people to leave temporarily due to concerns about leaking to Unity.

I posted commentary on June 21 EIA's Mike Antonucci's piece The Growing National Teacher Union Militancy Movement (earlier today I posted sections of another piece he wrote at Ed Next Teacher Unions and The War Within.)

I emailed Mike because he didn't cover the Stronger Together and he wrote back.

I had actually written several paragraphs about the last NYSUT election, but I cut them before posting because it was too much of a tangent to explain about Iannuzzi and Mulgrew and Magee. It doesn't fit neatly into the box I created, though I think NYSUT is ripe for a similar contest between establishmentarians and militants.

The hurdle, as you well know, is UFT. It's hard to imagine anyone upending Unity under the rules in place. Probably would take a corruption scandal involving Mulgrew and his entourage to topple the structure.

Or maybe a Supreme Court decision abolishing the agency fees.

[See Arthur Goldstein July 4th special: Baby, Baby, Where Did Our Union Go?]

Antonucci on Teacher Unions and The War Within Plus NEA Convention Coverage

When union challengers upset incumbents, however, it is almost always because the challenger successfully painted the incumbent as too accommodating to the education powers that be.

The problem for the unions’ establishment wing is that the internal message leads their devotees to believe that such compromises, collaborations, and accommodations are selling out the movement. They are not always wrong about that.

One faction, existing in both unions [AFT and NEA], wants to man the barricades, fight over every inch of territory, and take no prisoners. It sees education reformers outside of the union sphere as either corporate privatizers seeking to grasp some of the $640 billion this country spends annually on public schools, or their tools. The most identifiable leaders of this militant faction are Karen Lewis, president of the Chicago Teachers Union, Alex Caputo-Pearl of United Teachers Los Angeles, Bob Peterson of the Milwaukee Teachers’ Education Association, and Barbara Madeloni of the Massachusetts Teachers Association.....

The militant wing is mostly hostile to CCSS, seeing the standards as part and parcel of the corporate education-reform agenda. The establishment wing has been forced to triangulate by defending the standards but attacking the way they have been implemented.
The split between the two factions was illustrated at the 2014 AFT Convention. The delegation from Chicago introduced a resolution to place the AFT in full opposition to CCSS, but it was handily defeated in committee, a committee dominated by New York City’s United Federation of Teachers, the backbone of the AFT’s establishment wing.

Instead, AFT delegates passed a resolution stating the union would “continue to support the promise of CCSS, provided that a set of essential conditions, structures and resources are in place.”
Antonucci in Ed Week, Winter 2015

Mike is on his annual jaunt to cover the NEA convention and issued the a bunch of reports so far:

• NEA Representative Assembly 2015: Compared to What, When? 

---

• NEA Representative Assembly 2015: What Happened to Playing the Long Game?
• NEA Representative Assembly 2015: There’s No Business Like New Business
• NEA Representative Assembly 2015: Membership Math, One More Time
• NEA Representative Assembly 2015: “You Are the Future of Everything”

Embedded in one was a link to an in depth article he wrote for ed deform mouthpiece Ed Next. As always read him with the understanding that he is not a friend of teacher unions -- and backed by ed deform and anti-union elements. But I'm still a fan due to his level of analysis and good reporting. In fact he is the only one to report on the various factions in the unions.

As the Supreme Court takes up the issue of agency fee dues next year, this chart included in Mike's Ed Week piece is worth checking out. Imagine what it will look like if the Court rules against us.

Here is a pertinent section getting into the weeds of why Randi speaks from both sides of her mouth - and making a rational reason for her doing so. Read it all at: http://educationnext.org/teachers-unions-war-within/

Karen Lewis, president of the Chicago Teachers Union, addresses a crowd during a rally in September 2012

To avoid becoming losers in the game of “more teacher-protective than thou,” the leaders of the national teachers unions have to co-opt the militant message without alienating the education world at large, or the general public. This is a tricky dance, and it’s not uncommon for NEA and AFT executive officers to make conflicting, if not contrary, statements depending on which ears are listening.

When union officers address an audience of union activists, the world is described in Manichaean terms. Standardized testing is not just misused, it is “toxic.” Opponents are not just opponents, they are adversaries “who want to destroy our democracy and our public schools”—for money. These enemies are identified by name: the Koch Brothers, the Cato Institute, Americans for Prosperity, Pearson, Inc., Democrats for Education Reform, Michelle Rhee, and Arne Duncan.

The only force standing in their way is the teachers union—“the champions of equity,” who “define solutions that drive excellence and success for all students,” as described by former NEA president Dennis Van Roekel in his keynote address to the Representative Assembly in July 2014. Union activists, in the words of John Stocks, spoken two years earlier, are “social justice patriots” who “put the power of our soul to work to defend democracy, to fight for equal opportunity, and to create a more just society.”

That plays well with the troops, whose enthusiasm and commitment are needed to advance the agenda. Unfortunately for the teachers unions, the wider world is not an echo chamber of their beliefs. To the general public, many of whom have little idea what the NEA and the AFT actually do, it sounds more than a little hyperbolic and self-congratulatory.

The external message cannot be so bellicose. Both the NEA and the AFT need allies, including those who might not sign on to the totality of the unions’ vision for public education and American politics. Even with their opponents, they cannot escalate every confrontation to Armageddon. Compromises occur.

Union officers are also aware that it is detrimental to their cause to be constantly saying “no” to so many proposals for school reform. Thus the external message is devoted to depicting an organization that is forward-thinking and innovative when it comes to operating the nation’s schools.

The problem for the unions’ establishment wing is that the internal message leads their devotees to believe that such compromises, collaborations, and accommodations are selling out the movement. They are not always wrong about that.

While both national unions decry the corporate influence on education, they have partnerships with large corporations on many levels: sponsorships of union events, discount arrangements and credit cards as part of member benefits packages, funding for joint projects, etc. The NEA even went so far as to team up with Walden Media on a book-buying initiative for needy children. Walden Media produced Waiting for Superman, a documentary about families trying to get their kids into charter schools. It was especially critical of teachers unions.

Union activists often depict the Gates Foundation as the mastermind behind corporate education reform. But in 2009, when the foundation announced it would award $335 million to a number of school districts and charter schools to promote teacher effectiveness, the union response was a far cry from the anticorporate rhetoric it regularly delivers to its internal audience.
“These districts, working with their unions and parents, were willing to think out of the box, and were awarded millions of dollars to create transparent, fair, and sustainable teacher effectiveness models,” said AFT president Randi Weingarten.
“Collaboration and multilevel integration are important when it comes to transforming the teaching profession,” said then NEA president Van Roekel. “These grants will go far in providing resources to help raise student achievement and improve teacher effectiveness.”

The NEA’s own foundation received $550,000 from the Gates Foundation to “improve labor-management collaboration.” The AFT accrued more than $10 million from the Gates Foundation, until internal pressures forced the union to end some of the grants. And of course, the Gates Foundation helped bankroll the development of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), which both unions continue to officially support (see “Teachers Unions and the Common Core,” features, Winter 2015).

Is the Public School System Toast? - Norm in the Wave

My final School Scope column of the school year for The Wave.

Is the Public School System Toast?

By Norm Scott
Published July 3, 2015

http://www.rockawave.com/node/211668?pk_campaign=Newsletter

I hate to close the school year on a down note, but the long-term prospects for the survival of publicly run and managed urban public school systems is not good. Oh it will not happen overnight but the concept of putting the education of our nation’s students in the hands of private interests is trending up. The new state law was a win-win for the charter lobby, more non-unionized charters under private management, charters increasingly allowed to cream the highest performing kids or push out those not performing. And they will be allowed even more uncertified and unqualified teachers, even allowing up to 15% of the students to come from the faculty – a major incentive to keep teachers from jumping off the charter ship due to lousy working conditions – just check the attrition rate in charter, not only of the kids, but the teachers too. Yes, Virginia, having unionized teachers in schools actually protects kids in addition to teachers.

But not all the blame must go to the privatizers. Public schools have been run in an authoritarian top-down manner forever, leaving teachers and parents out of the loop in terms of essential decision making. Giving the mayor control only makes the situation worse.  Thus the Cuomo chop at de Blasio by giving him only one year of control is not a bad thing. The privatizers loved mayoral control under Bloomberg. Not so much under deB. But they are just waiting for deB to be gone to go back to it full blast. It is easy to privatize when the mayor is running the system in ways that undermine public education and cause the public to lose confidence in the schools and clamor for charters or vouchers or ed tax credits.

Donavan Richards pointed out that Bloomberg had starved the public schools and de Blasio was attempting to reverse course at the recent meeting with parents from Arverne-by-the sea who were clambering for a charter school of their own so their kids would not have to go to the Hammel Houses loaded PS 193. That meeting was a stark reminder of how we are headed for a dual system. One parent told me – “let the Hammels have their school.” When I suggested that if the ABTS people put their kids in that school it would turn it around. “Why should I have to sacrifice to help people who won’t help themselves,” she replied. I get that people should not feel they are sacrificing their kids.

But the idea of schools for different students was the essence of segregation in the south. Now we have social/economic segregation.

Strong neighborhood public schools are the essence of a strong democratic society. We are heading in the other direction.

Norm blogs at ednotesonline.com

WTF: Is Baraka a Naive Pup or Selling Out Education in Newark?

[Baraka] had made a deal–he called it a “settlement” or an “agreement”–with Gov. Christie in which the mayor agreed to allow Cerf to become the Newark superintendent if Christie would agree to help bring about  eventual local control. “It wasn’t a quid pro quo. It was more like us coming to a settlement, an agreement that they’d pick a superintendent and help us get local control,” Baraka is quoted as saying....Cerf has promoted the privatization of public education for decades and has worked for and maintained ties with American and foreign corporations seeking to make a profit from privatization–in Newark and elsewhere.
Just before he was named to be Newark superintendent, Cerf was named to the board of directors of national organization promoting charter schools. He later quit.  He was part of an effort to help former Mayor Cory Booker make Newark the charter capital of the nation.
..... Has Christie divided Newark opposition to Cerf and state control?, Bob Braun's Ledger

Wait, let me get this straight. Baraka made a deal with CHRISTIE? To accept that crook Cerf as Newark Supt because Cerf will help get local control back? Give me a break. Privatizers like Cerf take direct aim at local control. If Cerf helps get control of Newark schools for an independent school board I'll eat his hat.

Is there something under the table going on here?

The mayor’s comments in his interview might surprise some critics of state control who, like Rice, are demanding that the state school board reject Cerf because Cerf himself hired Andserson and determined the policies under which she closed public schools and opened new charter schools.  The Alliance for Newark Public Schools, an organization that has worked hard against state control for more than a year, has called for a rally at City Hall Tuesday to protest Cerf’s appointment and to demand immediate local control of the state’s largest school district. The alliance called for a “`March of Dignity’ to restore full local control of the Newark Public Schools and reject the appointment of Christopher Cerf as the next Superintendent.

So, is Baraka turning out to be a JUSP - just another sleazy politician? Sadly, methinks YES.

Before the agreement between Baraka and Christie, the opposition to Anderson and state control had been building and unified. Now that Baraka has accepted Cerf as superintendent, it’s difficult to know how that opposition could continue at the level it had been in the last two years.
Christie, who just announced a presidential bid, may have managed with his alliance with Baraka to quiet Newark as he tries to portray himself as someone who can reach agreements with opponents. The agreement indicates it will be at least a year before a date can be set for local control–and that’s a year Christie can use to run for  president without major controversies in the state’s largest city.

So, let's make a deal with Christie to assist his campaign for president. Oy, Ras!

The elected school board last week voted to choose assistant superintendent Roger Leon as  the next Newark superintendent. Baraka was present at this meeting but he has insisted he won’t focus on anything but local control, a position he repeated in his interview.
The board’s action rejecting Cerf’s appointment in favor of Leon—along with the continued opposition of the alliance and Rice to Cerf’s appointment—creates a potentially awkward and divisive situation in what had been for years a solid front of opposition to state control. In his interview with NJSpotlight, Baraka would not criticize either Cerf or the governor.

Baraka repeated his criticism of those who disagreed with his decision to reach an agreement with Christie and create a 9-member “Newark Board of Education Success” that would play some sort of role in bringing local control back to Newark after 20 years. Christie appointed a majority of the members and rejected some members recommended by Baraka. The mayor has criticized this site specifically for its opposition to Cerf’s appointment and blamed that opposition on “paternalism” which he called “pathetic.”
It’s unlikely Rice would consider his own consistent opposition to Cerf’s nomination a matter of “paternalism.”  The senator attached to his letter a long history of the legal and ethical problems Cerf created for himself both as a private entrepreneur, a New York City official,  and as New Jersey commissioner of education. Cerf has promoted the privatization of public education for decades and has worked for and maintained ties with American and foreign corporations seeking to make a profit from privatization–in Newark and elsewhere.
Just before he was named to be Newark superintendent, Cerf was named to the board of directors of national organization promoting charter schools. He later quit.  He was part of an effort to help former Mayor Cory Booker make Newark the charter capital of the nation.

Right Ras, paternalism. I call it sell-out.

Analogies to Ed Deform - Greece is the Word 2: Krugman, Galbreath -- If the left falls, can neo-nazis be far behind?

8. A “Yes” vote will save Europe. “Yes” would mean more austerity and social destruction, and the government that implements it cannot last long. The one that follows will not be led by Alexis Tsipras and Yanis Varoufakis – the last leaders, perhaps anywhere in Europe, of an authentic pro-European left. If they fall, the anti-Europeans will come next, possibly including ultra-right elements such as the Greek Nazi party, Golden Dawn. And the anti-European fire will spread, to France, the UK and Spain, among other countries..... James Galbreath, Politico

If you think the world is a dangerous place now, just wait. When Michael Fiorillo sent around a Galbreath piece on  9 myths, I noticed 8 - which makes this exact point.

Tomorrow is the referendum in Greece and the rest of the world has tried every means to force a YES vote, which would lead to the fall of the Tsipras party. I've been thinking about what that would mean and went back into post WWI history for an analogy. Germany was saddled with such horrific reparations that a crippled unstable economy was guaranteed. And we know where that led.

Greece argues that imposed drastic austerity - like blood letting until you die - is unsustainable without debt relief (Yes screw those hedge funds). Europe says no -- keep paying us those billions and eat out of garbage cans. In fact they finally admitted that the plan they offer to Greece  will never remove the debt. So this is in perpetuity. Greece might as well bite the bullet now.

What does Greece have to do with the assault on public education? Well, given that this assault is taking place world-wide by some of the same forces - note the hedge fund involvement in both Greece and Puerto Rico as just one chip in the attack -- I see analogies. Starve the public schools to degrade them to the point where privatization - the removal of controls over public monies - becomes the only option.

Austerity for schools, removal of unions (or buying them off, alla Gates and the AFT and NEA) as an obstacle - which they haven't been too  much of -- "freeing" teachers to be contract workers, etc. -- and why we need a more activist union - and sorry you guys, a social justice oriented leadership has the political analysis that leads to activism - especially in its core value of bottom vs top down of the current leadership.

Take Greece under a leftist government that fights more for the common man than the bankers (again an analogy to the UFT) and make a decision it must be smashed and that government removed (also an analogy to Chicago where a left-leaning union must be undermined - see the 1400 layoffs a year before the Chicago union election). They do this by using an economic squeeze play since they can't do it externally - well they can just by having America invade -- or use the CIA to overthrow the government -- and by the way, there is some history of America instigation in Greece since WWII.

I wrote about Greece and the Paul Krugman column last Monday: Greece is the Word = Ed Deform Agenda, Krugman Endorses Leaving Euro, Why We Need Tsipras Party Running UFT.

On Friday, Krugman once again touched on Greece and the general austerity "solution" imposed by European leaders - and advocated by the conservative/tea party wing here in the states.  See: Europe’s Many Economic Disasters which opens with:

It’s depressing thinking about Greece these days, so let’s talk about something else, O.K.? Let’s talk, for starters, about Finland, which couldn’t be more different from that corrupt, irresponsible country to the south. Finland is a model European citizen; it has honest government, sound finances and a solid credit rating, which lets it borrow money at incredibly low interest rates. It’s also in the eighth year of a slump that has cut real gross domestic product per capita by 10 percent and shows no sign of ending. In fact, if it weren’t for the nightmare in southern Europe, the troubles facing the Finnish economy might well be seen as an epic disaster.

Holy shit: Finland too? The bastion of education nirvana?

Why are there so many economic disasters in Europe? Actually, what’s striking at this point is how much the origin stories of European crises differ. Yes, the Greek government borrowed too much. But the Spanish government didn’t — Spain’s story is all about private lending and a housing bubble. And Finland’s story doesn’t involve debt at all. It is, instead, about weak demand for forest products, still a major national export, and the stumbles of Finnish manufacturing, in particular of its erstwhile national champion Nokia. What all of these economies have in common, however, is that by joining the eurozone they put themselves into an economic straitjacket.

Krugman feels the Euro was a major mistake, given that there was no political alignment to go with it.

Given that today is July 4th, let's think about the 13 original states in 1781 from 1787-9. The same kind of debates took place - the US could have been separate states and we would be like Europe -- and there still might be slavery in the south. Imagine New Jersey money - Christie could be president of New Jersey. Oh, what a world we missed out on.

I am a Krugman fan, and he is proved right so often - like his call in 2009 for much higher spending not austerity to kill the depression -- and Obama went only halfway which is why things are taking so long. An interesting piece yesterday by The Daily Howler pointed out how mainstream media acts like Krugman doesn't exist as they feign ignorance -- I'll do a follow-up later with the points The Howler makes as he castigates so-called commentators like Chris Matthews.

.....there are many European officials and politicians who are opposed to anything and everything that might make the euro workable, who still believe that all would be well if everyone exhibited sufficient discipline. And that’s why there is even more at stake in Sunday’s Greek referendum than most observers realize.

One of the great risks if the Greek public votes yes — that is, votes to accept the demands of the creditors, and hence repudiates the Greek government’s position and probably brings the government down — is that it will empower and encourage the architects of European failure. The creditors will have demonstrated their strength, their ability to humiliate anyone who challenges demands for austerity without end. And they will continue to claim that imposing mass unemployment is the only responsible course of action.

Krugman is the possibly the only mainstream commenter urging a NO vote.

What if Greece votes no? This will lead to scary, unknown terrain. Greece might well leave the euro, which would be hugely disruptive in the short run. But it will also offer Greece itself a chance for real recovery. And it will serve as a salutary shock to the complacency of Europe’s elites.

Or to put it a bit differently, it’s reasonable to fear the consequences of a “no” vote, because nobody knows what would come next. But you should be even more afraid of the consequences of a “yes,” because in that case we do know what comes next — more austerity, more disasters and eventually a crisis much worse than anything we’ve seen so far.

Now on to the Galbreath piece, which does a little wiffle waffle.

http://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2015/07/9-myths-about-the-greek-crisis-000131

The citizens of Greece face a referendum Sunday that could decide the survival of their elected government and the fate of the country in the Eurozone and Europe. Narrowly, they’re voting on whether to accept or reject the terms dictated by their creditors last week. But what's really at stake? The answers aren’t what you’d think.

I have had a close view of the process, both from the US and Athens, after working for the past four years with Yanis Varoufakis, now the Greek finance minister. I've come to realize that there are many myths in circulation about this crisis; here are nine that Americans should see through.

1. The referendum is about the Euro. As soon as Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras announced the referendum, François Hollande, David Cameron, Matteo Renzi, and the German Deputy Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel told the Greeks that a “no” vote would amount to Greece leaving the Euro. Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission, went further: he said “no” means leaving the European Union. In fact the Greek government has stated many times that – yes or no – it is irrevocably committed to the Union and the Euro. And legally, according to the treaties, Greece cannot be expelled from either.

2. The IMF has been flexible. IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde claims that her institution has shown “flexibility” in negotiations with the Greeks. In fact, the IMF has conceded almost nothing over four months: not on taxes, pensions, wages, collective bargaining or the amount of Greece’s debt. Greek chief negotiator Euclid Tsakalatos circulated a briefing on the breakdown that gives details, and concludes: “So what does the Greek government think of the proposed flexibility of the Institutions? It would be a great idea.”

3. The creditors have been generous. Angela Merkel has called the terms offered by the creditors “very generous” to Greece. But in fact the creditors have continued to insist on a crushing austerity program, predicated on a target for a budget surplus that Greece cannot possibly meet, and on the continuation of draconian policies that have already cost the Greeks more than a quarter of their income and plunged the country into depression. Debt restructuring, which is obviously necessary, has also been refused.

4. The European Central Bank has protected Greek financial stability. A central bank is supposed to protect the financial stability of solvent banks. But from early February, the ECB cut off direct financing of Greek banks, instead drip-feeding them expensive liquidity on special “emergency” terms. This promoted a slow run on the banks and paralyzed economic activity. When the negotiations broke down, the ECB capped the assistance, prompting a fast bank run and giving them an excuse to impose capital controls and effectively shut them down.

5. The Greek government is imperiling its American alliance. This is a particular worry of some US conservatives, who see a leftist government in power and assume it is pro-Russian and anti-NATO. It is true that the Greek Left has historic complaints against the US, notably for CIA support of the military junta that ruled from 1967 to 1974. But in fact, attitudes on the Greek Left have changed, thanks partly to experience with the Germans. This government is pro-American and firmly a member of NATO.

6. Alexis Tsipras called the IMF a “criminal” organization. That was, charitably, an overheated headline slapped by Bloomberg onto a very moderate parliamentary speech, which correctly pointed out that the IMF's economic and debt projections for Greece back when austerity was first imposed in 2010 were catastrophically optimistic. In fact, every letter from Tsipras to the creditors has been couched in formal and respectful language.

7. The Greek government is playing games. Because Finance Minister Varoufakis knows the economic field of game theory, lazy pundits have for months opined that he is playing “chicken” or “poker” or some other game. In Heraklion two weeks ago, Varoufakis denied this as he has done many times: “We're not bluffing. We're not even meta-bluffing.” Indeed there are no hidden cards. The Greek red lines – the points of principle on which this government refuses to budge – on labor rights, against cuts in poverty-level pensions and fire-sale privatizations – have been in plain view from day one.

 8. A “Yes” vote will save Europe. “Yes” would mean more austerity and social destruction, and the government that implements it cannot last long. The one that follows will not be led by Alexis Tsipras and Yanis Varoufakis – the last leaders, perhaps anywhere in Europe, of an authentic pro-European left. If they fall, the anti-Europeans will come next, possibly including ultra-right elements such as the Greek Nazi party, Golden Dawn. And the anti-European fire will spread, to France, the UK and Spain, among other countries.

 9. A “No” vote will destroy Europe. In fact, only the “No” can save Greece – and by saving Greece, save Europe. A “No” means that the Greek people will not bend, that their government will not fall, and that the creditors need, finally, to come to terms with the failures of European policy so far. Negotiations can then resume – or more correctly, proper negotiations can then start. This is vital, if Europe is to be saved. If there ever was a moment when the United States should speak for decency and democratic values – as well as our national interest – it is right now.
 James K. Galbraith holds the Lloyd M. Bentsen Jr. Chair in Government/Business Relations at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs, the University of Texas at Austin. He has followed the Greek drama in Greece, Brussels, Paris and Berlin since January. His most recent book is “The End of Normal: The Great Crisis and the Future of Growth.”

Can Restorative Justice Be the Key to School Discipline Reform?

In January, I facilitated a 90-minute post-suspension circle to repair the harm following a fight involving three Bronx Lab students. Community-building sometimes involves restoring relationships through conflict resolution. Participants in this circle included six staff members, three students, and four parents, and it delivered as promised. By the end, one parent expressed that she felt like she'd "been to church," and the parents told all three students that any of the kids could reach out to any of them for support.... by Sarah Marcy, principal of South Bronx Lab School May 18, 2015, Gotham Gazette

This is written by a principal, so I am always wary. And I imagine the

school is a small high school. I want to see how this would work in a large high school. But through my long-term connections to Teachers Unite I am a supporter of the concept of restorative justice. 

At the recent ICE meeting the subject of restorative justice came up. Yes discipline in schools is often chaotic and the only choice seems suspension - but those kids don't change and they come back. Some admins just blame the teacher - well, maybe most admins. There is little support for teachers and often defense of students. Some use phony restorative justice to make it look like they are trying something but in reality don't put any real resources into it.

Teachers Unite helps set up real and functioning RJ systems where the issues that create friction between teachers and students are worked out in some orderly fashion.

Mike Schirtzer who was at the meeting gave a passionate defense of RJ - he is even leading a Teachers Unite workshop in a few weeks. He cited stats in schools that had high suspension rates and saw them drop drastically. He also pointed out that there is punishment for transgressions - some of it meted out by decisions of peers.

I know that in my own classrooms I was pretty good at discipline and one of the reasons was that I held no grudges - a kid did something, was punished and we start over. I also used peer pressure and even trials with witnesses. I like the idea of a circle better than a trial and would be an advocate of RJ today.

I was being fairly reasonable - I never had a child suspended or asked to have one suspended. I tried not to call admin for help as I thought it showed me to be weak - as an activist I was engaged in a struggle with admin so why give them something to hold over me? I think most of my kids would say I was fair -- in fact I can think of maybe 4 or 5 that I felt I lost - and probably due as much to my actions -- though some of them seemed to be sociopathic and no matter what you do it won't help.

I get that things have changed. But when I heard someone at the ICE meeting who I won't mercifully name, go after RJ because it "coddles" kids I was disgusted - and not the first time at this individual who has used his travails as a teacher over the past decade to engage in bombast verbal attacks on students - despite that some people say he was once a good teacher. How many times did I hear people come into the teacher room and say "they're animals?" I get the frustration but to me that attitude is revealing. What I miss about teaching is the kids and that will never change for me.

Restorative Justice is Key to School Discipline Reform

http://www.gothamgazette.com/index.php/opinion/5729-restorative-justice-is-key-to-school-discipline-reform

Since the founding of Bronx Lab School in 2004, "student discipline" has been an ongoing topic of discussion. Students, staff, and parents are continually debating the merits and efficacy of suspensions, detentions, and mediations in addressing the realities of student conflict and non-adherence to school policies and values. What we know for sure after more than a decade of these conversations is that there are no simple answers. What we have learned is, though, is that Restorative Justice supports our community's mission and values, and offers a humanizing approach to the ever-present "discipline" question.