Article:
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11119/1142669-192.stm
"...these tough financial times require school board members who are determined to deliver good education while keeping a lid on taxes. If Pittsburgh is to flourish as a city and attract new residents, it deserves nothing less."
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This was the part of that that I liked: "that economies can be found to balance the budget in other ways, starting by reducing the number of administrators."
Amen. I'm not against ever raising any taxes, but we're paying for more administrators for fewer kids. And then we're paying the top echelons of those administrators more money, too.
IF more people want to send their kids to the city schools, more people will live in the city and tax revenues will increase -- at least a little.
It's sad that even with the Promise "incentive" people are still leaving. It gives you an idea of how unhappy people are with their child's experiences.
I am pleasantly surprised by the PG today! Assumed they would go w/ incumbent establishment.
I wonder why Holley did not cross register. Now, even if she loses the primary, Allen will be guaranteed a spot on the November ballot.
It would be unusual in Pittsburgh, though, for a Republican candidate to defeat a Democratic candidate.
That's not a good answer; perhaps she needs to strategize a little as a serious candidate.
She is quite serious about accountablity, student achievement and fiscal responsibility. In fact, it is difficult to think of someone more serious about these issues.
That is not the point. Strategizing well will ensure being elected. It is not a reflection of her qualifications.
Ware Allen's most serious flaw was that she took on the role of "consensus builder" as the priority when what was needed was a really strong advocacy for student achievement. That is the priority that will keep people in the city. Ranking 496th out of 500 districts in PA does not build confidence. PPS ranking continued to drop during the last five years.
ALL kids can be educated at much higher levels. Regina Holley will stand her ground in that struggle. Consensus has not moved us forward; it has hastened the decline under the current Broad/Gates commitments.
Pitttsburgh needs people who will stand their ground against creating default systems and "dumping grounds' to stem the tide of white flight. Solutions will come from those who are true educators working to improve education and life for ALL students.
Mark Brentley has never failed to question, to challenge,to fight for what is right. Without such a voice, the issues would be covered over.
Hopefully, Regina Holley, as a true educator, will pursue and persist in questioning the current state of affairs and not accept vacuous responses.
The R race does NOT need to be won by the only person on the ballot. If she was smarter, she'd be on the ballot for both. But, NOW is the time to call upon the Rs of the district and ask them to do a write in for the candidate of your desire.
The other thing to do is to suppress the vote. If Rs do NOT know the candidate and ALL THE OPTIONS, then ask them to NOT vote. I might be easier to get some Rs to skip that question on the ballot than to do a write in. Others who care a great deal, you'll have to get them to do the write in efforts.
Poll workers are needed. And, the ground work has to happen ASAP.
"The other thing to do is to suppress the vote. If Rs do NOT know the candidate and ALL THE OPTIONS, then ask them to NOT vote."
Wow, that's a bit overboard, to say the least. It's almost to the point of being unintentionally insulting.
I know you have good intentions, but think about it. How would you respond if someone said this to you:
If you don't know all the issues (as I define them), you really shouldn't vote. Stay home and let us experts decide things.
Winning elections, by definition is going over board, or over the opponent. And to win the day with both Ds and Rs while not being on the ballot in one side is going to take some extra heavy lifting.
This happens all the time with R voters and with cross party elections.
To keep a R vote out of a D side, as is the case here, educate the voters.
One needs to turn off the automatic R votes to win the write in with the other Rs who can carry the day.
Winning takes addition and subtraction. And ignorance at the voting booth is nothing new. Some just are not going to make a write in, no way, not happening. But they help by not voting.
Many judge elections give voters, especially on the R side, instructions to plunk. Advocates make that ask and it works. Under voting is huge in Allegheny County too.
Think again.
I only kinda trust the Tribune. Post Gazette is so far up PPS PR's rear end it amazes me that nobody seems to notice.
I hate the Tribune Review because I hate republicans/traitors and let's face it, this publication supported Bush/Cheney and their treasonous dealings for 8 years.
That said, the PG has supported everything Roosevelt enacted. Just what can an endorsement from this newspaper mean, anyway? I wish Dr.Holley well and salute her efforts but she needs to pound the pavement herself and forget about "news entities" that are clueless.
Hate is a very strong emotion. One cannot think rationally when one's emotions take over.
Should not the most qualified person win? It is the children who suffer when politics is involved. There is a reason that politicking is not permitted on school campuses. It is the duty of public education to encourage free thinking; not to indoctrinate!
Therefore, curriculum should not provide only one side and use one resource. Assignments should include readings from numerous resources of opposing opinions to encourage critical and free thinking. One cannot grow physically or intellectually when starved of nutrients.
Mark,
What does 'plunk' mean when voting? How do you know that republicans instruct voters to 'plunk?' Are you a republican who has witnessed such acts? Or are you making accusations based on hearsay?
These political tactics are petty and distract from the serious issues that the District is facing.
I for one would like to ask the incumbents who are running for re-election, including Isler who is unopposed, to explain how the tax money, approved by them, was spent. They need to be held accountable for bankrupting the District. They did a poor job of overseeing the spending. They did not ask the appropriate questions and accepted vaccuous responses to the few questions asked. They did not hold Roosevelt accountable. How do you expect them to hold Lane accountable?
I say get rid of the 'rubber stampers' before we are completely soaked with red ink!
"Vacuous" is spelled correctly in 11:06 and the comments of that writer should not be confused with the writer of 8:13.
Hate is a word that marginalizes what follows and dichotomously renders the subsequent comments less than philosophically sound.
Who is being referenced by the word "hate" ? The writer or the candidate or other?
Let's stay factual, sound and "encourage critical and free thinking" as the writer states.
Plunk, FWIWn and it aint much now here except to prove a voter tactic, is when a voter is given a ballot that permits votes for multiple candidates and only plunks on ONE. Exampple: Judge race may allow voters to pick 3, or 4, or 5 candidates out of a longer list (hope). The voter who wants to best aid a specific friend, or causen can Tand be told about) PLUNK on 1 specific name.
And the hate mention seemed to go to the Trib. ??
Whatever.
what areas of city pgh is dist. 2
thank you,maybe we can use this strategy to get more people in other dist. like DR. Holley to move
PPS forward right now we are going backwards.the way the strategy can we use it in all the DIST.we need to start looking at candidates who has a serious EDUCATIONAL background can we all agree on that
if not we will never have BOARD MEMBERS with EDUCATIONAL
A few posts up there ware a number of questions that were pitched to me that are going to be ignored, now.
They ARE a distraction as was written -- by the one who goes ahead an writes all the questions. Go figure.
Trust me when I say I know something about political tactics, (details to some and perhaps petty to others).
Of course there are more serious issues, and of course, they should be fully discussed and debated among all, even candidates and voters.
Off to see the musical from Schenley -- at 8 pm curtin at Pgh Peabody on Highland Ave.
Show is tonight (Saturday) as well as at 8 pm next week on Thur, Fri and Sat.
"I hate the Tribune Review because I hate republicans/traitors and let's face it, this publication supported Bush/Cheney and their treasonous dealings for 8 years."
I have only lived here 5 years and I am Really not a Republican!. I have always viewed the Post Gazette as more foxish. Maybe because they do not report what is really going on, and they present PR fluff as facts.
I have read articles that have been more critical of PPS on the Trib vs PG.
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