My Superintendent, The Hero

ROCHESTER - I am no fan of the Democrat and Chronicle's wishy-washy editorials. They tend to state both sides of issues and offer no actual solutions, but often criticize solutions others have offered. When they took on the hot topic of the Rochester City School District's new Code of Discipline, I chose to read wondering what insight they would offer. Instead of taking on the actual code, however, I was surprised to read that they were not taking issue with the actual content of the code, but rather the manner it was created, or maybe stolen from New York City! Gasp! The piece even admits that there was a reference to the source, but it wasn't clear enough. Considering the issues surrounding our city district and the issues going on in the world at large, I couldn't believe my eyes that this was somehow deemed newsworthy. Why is it not?

1. Our Superintendent, Jean-Claude Brizard, was previously employed in New York City.

2. Brizard was employed in the New York City School District. In fact, he was there when it was developed and enacted.

3. If it worked in NYC, it may work here. Their district faces many similar challenges as ours.

4. Oh, yeah. THEY DID REFERENCE THE FACT THEY TOOK IDEAS FROM NEW YORK!!!

So, to my delight, SUPER-Intendent Brizard (as he done admirably all along) stood up and said something. He called out the D and C (to their credit, I guess, they printed it) and did so wonderfully and with just a little sarcasm. He pointed out some of the obvious points I made above and then some. Thus, Brizard is my new hero. Brizard has taken this job and ran with it, and I think we are all going to see what a great job he is doing. We are lucky to have Brizard running our schools and I wish him continued success.

While We're Spending....

ROCHESTER - The federal government has become the parents to deadbeat adult children. Between the airline industry, the financial sector, and, now, the auto industry, they just can't find a way to leave the nest. Under our wonderful free market and global economy, our American (and crappy) companies can't stay solvent. They offer inferior products, services and advice and consumers avoid them. They respond with absolute greed, and naturally, that doesn't help either. So they ask for bailouts. Ma and Pa Fed give a lecture about straightening up and flying right, but in the end hand over the cash. So they don't learn. They eat for a day and for another fish tomorrow. In the new economy, America has become bi-polar. We give money to the airlines because we need to travel. We don't give money to the auto industry because they are in their own mess. We give money to the banks so our economy won't collapse. We don't give money to taxpayers because they can borrow from the newly monied banks. Does anyone else notice a logical disconnect?

I do and it tears me apart. My tendency is to tell all private companies to go screw. If you aren't making money it is your own fault. Business people say that all the time. Or they say that if the government was run more like a business, it would be better. Oh, really? Who is more bankrupt, General Motors or the Office of General Services? As a capitalist, I don't like giving public money to some private companies. That is cronyism and bordering on fascism. I would prefer giving public money to all private companies, but that is communism. But if we are to bail out one industry, why not another? We should bail out all or none, it is only fair.

Since we already bailed out others, why not bail out the auto industry? If we are going to fight wars, we need to have some factories open somewhere with bosses that owe us a favor, just in case we need it. And while we are cashing in favors, we can demand that they provide better gas mileage and better value, so the American companies can compete with foreign ones. We can give them a fish and teach them to fish and solve long term and short term goals at the same time. In addition, the auto industry offers real jobs that have real effect on communities. Bailing out the banks in a sense rewards the jerks that used pyramid schemes with our money. The auto bailout will benefit the auto worker actually produces something.

If we are going to bail people out, bail everyone out. It is not fair to pick and choose who deserves to be bailed out, because in the end, none of them do.

The feds are already up to their eyes in debt. Why not throw a little more on the pile?

Long Island is Upstate

ROCHESTER - The worst use of my ears by candidates this year was Senator Joe Robach telling my neighborhood association that if we flip the State Senate to Democrat, downstaters will control everything. Guess what? They do already! I am not sure what map Robach, the Democrat and Chronicle, and other Republican toadies are using, but Dean Skelos is from Long Island, which to me, is considered downstate. In fact, downstaters consider Long Island downstate. So if Senate Republicans buy their influence back, the Senate will be left with Long Islander Dean Skelos ruling. On my map, Long Island is further away from Rochester than Harlem, Lower Manhattan and Queens. To sum up, flip, no flip, downstate holds the power. Which has a certain logic to it anyway considering that is where a great majority of our fellow New Yorkers live. Monroe County wouldn't let Chili run the County, would they?