Wednesday, January 12, 2005
Armstrong Williams Follow Up
Well that was fast. Through the Freedom Of Information Act I have already received a PDF file from the Department of Education on the Armstrong Williams matter. They "redacted" some information and only included documents specifically related to Williams interviews with former Secretary of Education Rod Paige, even though my request did not mention Paige at all. It appears that I only received documents covering $139 thousand of contracts in which Williams benefited. I have to read through the 46 pages and try to figure it all out. I expect that Education was hit with lots of FOIA requests on this. Hopefully that may effect future decisions to bribe journalists in order to have them promote administration policies.
I'll have more on this later.
Well that was fast. Through the Freedom Of Information Act I have already received a PDF file from the Department of Education on the Armstrong Williams matter. They "redacted" some information and only included documents specifically related to Williams interviews with former Secretary of Education Rod Paige, even though my request did not mention Paige at all. It appears that I only received documents covering $139 thousand of contracts in which Williams benefited. I have to read through the 46 pages and try to figure it all out. I expect that Education was hit with lots of FOIA requests on this. Hopefully that may effect future decisions to bribe journalists in order to have them promote administration policies.
I'll have more on this later.
Monday, January 10, 2005
Every Child Left Behind
The conservative commentator Armstrong Williams was paid, under a Department of Education contract, $241,000 to promote the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). Of course he did not reveal this to his readers and listeners as he promoted the President and his other policies. A very good article in The Nation explores the controversy.
After reading the article at The Nation several questions occurred to me.
First was, How do I file a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to learn the specifics of this contract with Williams rather than waiting for the Inspector General to ask the right questions?
I learned how to do this and actually filed my request with the Department of Education by going to this website. A big thank you to Ralph Nader for fighting so hard for this valuable citizen's tool, especially now that we know that the nation's journalists are on the take from the government and are not likely to investigate themselves!
Secondly, how many children were left behind by the choice to allocate valuable educational resources to Armstrong Williams rather than to struggling students through the Federal government's Title I program?
As I have mentioned before, my wife is an elementary school teacher in a rural (poor) school district that she commutes to outside of Portland. I was curious what the average Title I grant per student was in Oregon so I just looked it up. My rough guess is that conservatively it is about $1,700 based on a cursory glance at the long list of figures for every district in Oregon. Title I is the federal program which supplements state and local spending for funding supplemental programs for low achieving k-12 kids, the ones in danger of being "left behind".
Apparently in order to promote the NCLB act, Williams was worthy of allocation of funds equivalent to Title I funding of 141 Oregon kids for one year. I am certain that my wife's fellow dedicated teachers could have put that money to better use!
To make matters worse while "googling" this story I learned through a Washington Post article that this is only the tip of the iceberg.
"The (Education) department already has paid Ketchum (public relations firm) $700,000 to rate journalists on how positively or negatively they report on No Child Left Behind, and to produce a video release on the law that was used by some television stations as if it were real news."
That represents Title I funding for another 412 struggling kids down the toilet in a political scheme which does nothing for our struggling schools!
Now I know that some would point out that such figures when compared to the massive amounts of money spent by the Federal Government are statistically insignificant. That is part of the problem. The larger the organization the more wasteful since larger and larger amounts of wasteful spending become "insignificant". At my wife's school the water from the water fountains in the school is undrinkable. After further drastic budget cuts from the state the teachers voted on whether or not to allocate dwindling resources for teacher supplies to pay for coffee or bottled water (5 gallon jug type) for staff since the district could not afford to provide both. (They chose water, the kids are simply out of luck). The school commonly runs out of all paper by the middle of March and teachers - all of whom are required to get Masters degrees and are paid very poorly - purchase their own paper, and countless other classroom necessities, for the remaining school year out of their own pockets.
As I wrote late last year I am now nearly convinced that we should abolish the Federal Department of Education and give all education dollars directly to the states with no strings attached.
This is an outrage on so many levels I don't even know where to start! When I receive the requested FOIA documents (I'm sure it will be a while!) I will report back.
The conservative commentator Armstrong Williams was paid, under a Department of Education contract, $241,000 to promote the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). Of course he did not reveal this to his readers and listeners as he promoted the President and his other policies. A very good article in The Nation explores the controversy.
After reading the article at The Nation several questions occurred to me.
First was, How do I file a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to learn the specifics of this contract with Williams rather than waiting for the Inspector General to ask the right questions?
I learned how to do this and actually filed my request with the Department of Education by going to this website. A big thank you to Ralph Nader for fighting so hard for this valuable citizen's tool, especially now that we know that the nation's journalists are on the take from the government and are not likely to investigate themselves!
Secondly, how many children were left behind by the choice to allocate valuable educational resources to Armstrong Williams rather than to struggling students through the Federal government's Title I program?
As I have mentioned before, my wife is an elementary school teacher in a rural (poor) school district that she commutes to outside of Portland. I was curious what the average Title I grant per student was in Oregon so I just looked it up. My rough guess is that conservatively it is about $1,700 based on a cursory glance at the long list of figures for every district in Oregon. Title I is the federal program which supplements state and local spending for funding supplemental programs for low achieving k-12 kids, the ones in danger of being "left behind".
Apparently in order to promote the NCLB act, Williams was worthy of allocation of funds equivalent to Title I funding of 141 Oregon kids for one year. I am certain that my wife's fellow dedicated teachers could have put that money to better use!
To make matters worse while "googling" this story I learned through a Washington Post article that this is only the tip of the iceberg.
"The (Education) department already has paid Ketchum (public relations firm) $700,000 to rate journalists on how positively or negatively they report on No Child Left Behind, and to produce a video release on the law that was used by some television stations as if it were real news."
That represents Title I funding for another 412 struggling kids down the toilet in a political scheme which does nothing for our struggling schools!
Now I know that some would point out that such figures when compared to the massive amounts of money spent by the Federal Government are statistically insignificant. That is part of the problem. The larger the organization the more wasteful since larger and larger amounts of wasteful spending become "insignificant". At my wife's school the water from the water fountains in the school is undrinkable. After further drastic budget cuts from the state the teachers voted on whether or not to allocate dwindling resources for teacher supplies to pay for coffee or bottled water (5 gallon jug type) for staff since the district could not afford to provide both. (They chose water, the kids are simply out of luck). The school commonly runs out of all paper by the middle of March and teachers - all of whom are required to get Masters degrees and are paid very poorly - purchase their own paper, and countless other classroom necessities, for the remaining school year out of their own pockets.
As I wrote late last year I am now nearly convinced that we should abolish the Federal Department of Education and give all education dollars directly to the states with no strings attached.
This is an outrage on so many levels I don't even know where to start! When I receive the requested FOIA documents (I'm sure it will be a while!) I will report back.
Wednesday, January 05, 2005
Divine Intervention
Idea for a short film:
Scene: Near midfield shortly after the conclusion of a professional football game. Stands are still packed with cheering fans, some just beginning to head for the exits. TV cameras and sportscasters surround several players and both head coaches.
Sportscaster: JT, let me get you over here for a minute. What a game, you had a personal best 140 yards rushing, 3 touchdowns and you made a key block to enable the winning score to put your team into the playoffs. Can you tell us how your team overcame such a strong defense today?
JT: Yea, I just want to say that I give all credit to God! (thumps his left chest firmly twice with his right fist and then lifts his right arm and points his right index finger at the sky)
(As he does, JT's teammates pour an icy bucket of Gatorade over his head and he is swept up in a crowd of jubilant fans and teammates.)
(Sportscaster walks five paces to his right to speak with the losing coach who had just shaken JT's hand.)
Sportscaster: (In a low comforting tone) Marty, boy it was a tough loss. What do you think went wrong this afternoon?
Marty: Well I think it's pretty clear what happened. JT pretty much said it all. You know, you work hard and sacrifice, overcome injuries, plan, prepare and sweat and bleed and then the lord picks the other team.
Sportscaster: (Surprised) What!?
Marty: Oh come on Frank! Everyone knows we're the better team. JT just admitted they won because God chose to help him. Well, we've had it. We plan to lodge a formal complaint with the league. How in the world are mere mortals expected to compete against the hand of the almighty? I tell you, no disrespect intended, (Coach Marty thumps his left chest firmly twice with his right fist and then lifts his right arm and points his right index finger at the sky) but I for one wish that God would just allow these fine athletes to compete fair and square on the field rather than constantly showing favoritism. It just isn't fair! Isn't he supposed to be resting on Sundays anyway? (Coach Marty looks down sheepishly, kicks the ground with his right foot and trudges off in the direction of the end zone)
Sportscaster: (Stands momentarily with mouth agape, then recovers. Not looking into the camera but at the retreating losing coach) Well I must say this has to be the most unusual end-of-game interview I have ever been a p---- (At this point, for no apparent reason one of the goal posts falls and severs the head of Coach Marty and Sportscaster drops his microphone)
(Fade to Black)
Idea for a short film:
Scene: Near midfield shortly after the conclusion of a professional football game. Stands are still packed with cheering fans, some just beginning to head for the exits. TV cameras and sportscasters surround several players and both head coaches.
Sportscaster: JT, let me get you over here for a minute. What a game, you had a personal best 140 yards rushing, 3 touchdowns and you made a key block to enable the winning score to put your team into the playoffs. Can you tell us how your team overcame such a strong defense today?
JT: Yea, I just want to say that I give all credit to God! (thumps his left chest firmly twice with his right fist and then lifts his right arm and points his right index finger at the sky)
(As he does, JT's teammates pour an icy bucket of Gatorade over his head and he is swept up in a crowd of jubilant fans and teammates.)
(Sportscaster walks five paces to his right to speak with the losing coach who had just shaken JT's hand.)
Sportscaster: (In a low comforting tone) Marty, boy it was a tough loss. What do you think went wrong this afternoon?
Marty: Well I think it's pretty clear what happened. JT pretty much said it all. You know, you work hard and sacrifice, overcome injuries, plan, prepare and sweat and bleed and then the lord picks the other team.
Sportscaster: (Surprised) What!?
Marty: Oh come on Frank! Everyone knows we're the better team. JT just admitted they won because God chose to help him. Well, we've had it. We plan to lodge a formal complaint with the league. How in the world are mere mortals expected to compete against the hand of the almighty? I tell you, no disrespect intended, (Coach Marty thumps his left chest firmly twice with his right fist and then lifts his right arm and points his right index finger at the sky) but I for one wish that God would just allow these fine athletes to compete fair and square on the field rather than constantly showing favoritism. It just isn't fair! Isn't he supposed to be resting on Sundays anyway? (Coach Marty looks down sheepishly, kicks the ground with his right foot and trudges off in the direction of the end zone)
Sportscaster: (Stands momentarily with mouth agape, then recovers. Not looking into the camera but at the retreating losing coach) Well I must say this has to be the most unusual end-of-game interview I have ever been a p---- (At this point, for no apparent reason one of the goal posts falls and severs the head of Coach Marty and Sportscaster drops his microphone)
(Fade to Black)
