Corporate Fascist Control Comes To Michigan And New Jersey

Via Queens Teacher, here's the Rachel Maddow Show on what the future will look like when the autocratic corporate managers take over cities:



Maddow reports that the Michigan governor plans to have corporate managers take over 23 school districts in the state in addition to the one that has already been taken over.

Here's the rationale:

Mayor Virg Benero: "Billions of dollars at stake, billions of dollars being spent and Wall Street can't wait to sink their fangs into it. They couldn't get a hold of Social Security but by gosh they've got a way to get in. And even with a president and secretary of Education under the guise of "Waiting for Superman", they can come in and look like a savior but dig right into those piles of cash and at the same time help wipe out the public unions that are a part of the public school system."

Meanwhile Schools Matter points out that Governor Chris Christie plans to abolish school boards in New Jersey.

Another part of the corporatization plan for schools.

Take away any vestige of democratic control.

Give one man the power - whether it's the Mayor of Money in NYC or Christie in Jersey or a corporate manager in one of 24 school districts in Michigan.

One man, no democratic say from the community, no democratic say from voters.

This is fascism pure and simple.

Glad to see Maddow taking on this issue.

I WISH she had taken it on when it was Obama and Duncan laying the groundwork for this by demonizing teachers and schools and schools districts as "failing."

You think that the firing of all those teachers in Central Falls, Rhode Island and the codified teacher demonization that is the Obama Race to the Top policy (not to mention his No Child Left Behind blueprint) didn't lay the rationale for all this corporatization and privatization?

I think it absolutely did.

Unfortunately Maddow only seems to care when it's Repubs doing the privatizing.

Until "progressives" like Maddow become willing to take on corporate pols no matter the party, I am afraid the corporate fascism is going to continue.

Yes, Rick Snyder, Scott Walker, Michael Bloomberg and Chris Christie - Republicans all - are a big part of this problem.

But so are "Democrats" like Barack Obama, Andrew Cuomo, Rahm Emanuel, and Arne Duncan.

Take on THEM too, Rachel.

NYPD Ticket Scandal NOT A Union Issue

From the NY Post, no less:

Internal Affairs cops got a big break in their exploding ticket-fixing probe when they caught a Bronx sergeant shamelessly trying to make a traffic violation disappear for an honorary NYPD deputy commissioner, The Post has learned.

The incident shed light on the widespread practice of cops quashing tickets for big shots, sometimes at the orders of their superiors.

Early last year, police-connected businessman Albert Thompson -- who shares his deputy-commish title with celebs like Donald Trump and rubs shoulders with top brass, including Commissioner Ray Kelly -- called his buddy, Sgt. Keshawn Hickman, saying he needed to get rid of a moving violation.

Hickman found out the ticket was already being heard in Bronx traffic court, and allegedly dispatched two rookies to take care of the problem.

"He told them to go down to traffic court and see officer so-and-so and have him take care of the ticket and say it's for the chief so-and-so," a source said.

That officer would then make up an excuse to the judge why the ticket should be voided, and the problem would be solved.

But the plan quickly unraveled when the cops sent to the courtroom started wandering around like lost puppies and drew the attention of a sergeant who was not in on the scheme.

"A sergeant comes up and says, 'Can I help you?' and they say they're there to take care of this ticket, and the sergeant says, 'What?' and he reports them to IAB," the source said.

When the unidentified chief learned of the plot, he said he'd never heard of Thompson -- and Hickman was yanked from his cushy post at Bronx Borough headquarters near Crotona Park to the 41st Precinct near crime-ridden Hunts Point.

It's unclear what happened to the rookies, who spilled details of the plan to the IAB investigators.

Police conversations about this ticket-fix incident were later caught on wiretaps set up as part of the larger probe that began in 2008.

A source said the example proves that the fixing epidemic "is not a union issue, it is a job issue coming from all ranks, even much higher than sergeant."

As many as 400 cops -- most of them assigned to 12 Bronx precincts -- could face departmental charges for allegedly fixing tickets. If found guilty, they could be fired, lose benefits or be reprimanded.

And Bronx DA Robert Johnson has convened a grand jury that is weighing criminal charges against another 40 officers accused of taking bribes for fixing tickets for relatives and friends.

At least one Yankee executive saw his ticket go away, The Post has learned.

"I have been on the job for nearly three decades, and it was never deemed unusual to get calls from high-ranking department members when a summons was given to their family member or friends," said Edward Mullins, head of the Sergeants Benevolent Association.

Thompson, who falsely claims he is the brother of former Comptroller Bill Thompson, played dumb when confronted outside his Harlem brownstone last night.

"Look, people drop my name all the time. I don't know what you're talking about," said the businessman, who was head of the honorary deputy police commissioners foundation.

"Al's always there during the good times and bad, at funerals, fundraisers and celebrations," the source said. "He's on a first-name basis with all police brass."

Honorary deputy police commissioners are civilians who've given money or benefits to the department or its charities. The plum honor includes a badge and ID card.

Bloomberg is going to try and hang this scandal on the union and union reps.

But it certainly looks like it goes up the chain of command much further than that.

It's For The Good Of The Kids

The salary and benefit cuts, I mean:

BRIDGEWATER -- The 1,360-member Bridgewater Raritan Education Association voted to approve $1.4 million in concessions today, a move that will save 16-full time teaching positions and help soften the blow created by millions of dollars in state-aid cuts to the Bridgewater-Raritan School District.

The BREA did not specify how the give-backs will affect teachers' salaries for the coming school year, but said the teachers and maintenance union agreed to waive $403,000 for tuition reimbursement. Teachers will also pay 1.5 percent of their salaries toward the cost of health benefits next year.

BREA President Steve Beatty said the move was necessary to preserve the quality of education in the district, but blasted Gov. Chris Christie for criticizing the union last week when it appeared contract talks had stalled.

“Our members care about our students and our community,” said Beatty. “It’s unfortunate that the governor’s cuts are requiring the people who work in public schools to make even more concessions than they already have in order to preserve as best we can our excellent public schools.”

“We reject the governor’s attempts to deflect blame for his devastating cuts onto our members,” said Beatty. “He could restore districts' funding just by reinstating the tax on millionaires and dedicating those funds to our public schools.”

Governor Christie can't restore the millionaire's tax - that would hurt the kids, specifically the kids of millionaires as well their wealthy parents.

But teachers have to take salary and benefit cuts or be scapegoated as "hurting the kids..."

This story is from Jersey, but it's coming to a school near you in New York State too once the fall-out from Paterson's budget cuts and failure to pay the districts their state aid hits home.

You can be sure UFT members will be asked to pay for health benefits, take salary cuts or 0% "raises," okay the firing of the ATR's and make other concessions to the city and the state or be scapegoated as selfish, mean-spirited grinches who are "hurting the kids."

You'll note that all of this is happening to schools and school staffs even as Bloomberg hands out $700 million dollar no-bid contracts to crooks and bonuses to city managers while the City Council staff get 4% raises.

Not to mention the billion dollar bonuses Wall Street is handing out with either TARP money or money made from the 0% interest loans Uncle Ben Bernanke and President Accountability have made available through the Federal Reserve ATM machine for Too Big To Fail Institutions like Goldman and Chase.

But we have to give out all these bonuses and no-bid contracts and salary increases to politicians and their staffs while cutting school budgets, cutting school staff, and forcing the ones still around take salary and benefit cuts.

Otherwise the terrorists win. Or something like that.

And most importantly, it's for the good of the kids.