JaBbA's Hut

This is completely horrible. A message from my minister:

Recently, some well-produced DVD's were included with the ad inserts in papers throughout Ohio. The Plain Dealer refused them, so now I have discovered they will be mailed out to all of us in the Cleveland area. These are malicious, anti-Islamic messages and have been characterized by some as hate speech. They are targeting swing states.

More information is on the Ohio Meadville UU District website.

Friends,

A recent Sunday edition of the Akron Beacon Journal included an obviously expensive, professionally-produced anti-Islamic DVD titled "Obsession." One of our OMD ministers who viewed the DVD frankly called it "hate-filled" and "lie-filled." It was also included in newspapers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Columbus, Canton, Toledo and other cities in Ohio; and, apparently, in still more cities in "battleground" states in the presidential election. The Cleveland Plain Dealer did not carry the DVD.

Many Unitarian Univeralists in the OMD have already expressed outrage that something which blatantly violates the principles of religious freedom and tolerance could be distributed in our community, and put into the hands of our children, under the label of "advertising". They are writing the newspapers which distributed the DVDs to let them know how they feel.

This is a non-partisan issue. Our congregations and the district are able to express their disgust with this kind of reactive messaging without any risk to their non-profit status. I believe that we are called by our values and principles as Unitarian Universalists to speak out against those who would promote intolerance and fear in our communities.

With blessings,

Rev. Joan VanBecelaere
District Executive
Ohio-Meadville District of the UUA

Information on the DVD is at Obsession With Hate.

I'll update here if I hear anything else. I know this kind of hatred exists out there, but people need to fight it whenever it comes out of the shadows.

This should have been an easy decision for ANY newspaper - well done to the PD for refusing the insert, but some investigative reporter needs to explore why other papers accepted this and where the money came from to pay for it.

JaBbA says get involved, let the world see that America stands against this kind of filth.

(Yes, I know, I've been quiet. Maybe I'll get started again)

I attended Antioch College my freshman year. Why only one year is a long and not pretty story, but my year at Antioch was a good year.

This is the 4th time - it closed during the Civil War, in the 1880's for financial reasons, 1917-1918 and now.

Antioch is a unique place. In the 50s it was a place where professors blackballed for "anti-american" activities could find work. There are no letter grades, unless you request them. (All classes end up with a narrative evaluation).

from WOHIO TV:

Antioch College To Suspend Operations In 2008

YELLOW SPRINGS, Ohio -- Officials at Antioch College said it will close after the 2007-2008 school year while it searches for enough money to reopen.

The small school in Ohio has a history of social activism and civil disobedience.

It counts Coretta Scott King, "Twilight Zone" creator Rod Serling and evolutionary scientist Stephen Jay Gould among its graduates.

The college has a small, $30 million endowment and depends heavily on tuition revenue. But a student body that was 2,000 strong in the 1960s has dropped to around 400.

School spokeswoman Linda Sirk said the college hopes to find enough money to reopen in about 2012.

They missed Jorma Koukonen (Jefferson Airplane guitarist) and Leonard Nimoy.

Interview with Antioch's president at NPR

New Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner is taking Voting Rights seriously. And she's not letting the status quo get in the way of creating a voting system that people might actually trust:

Brunner Calls For Clean Slate In Cuyahoga County

Columbus, OH – March 19, 2007 – Pledging to restore trust to elections in Ohio amidst the myriad of challenges facing the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections, the state's chief election officer, Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, has asked for the resignation of the four-member board, two Democrats and two Republicans, effective the close of business March 21, 2007.

“Cuyahoga County has historically faced challenges with its board of elections, but we are at a time when these challenges are so great that extraordinary measures are needed to improve the election process in the state's most populous county,� said Brunner.

[...]

“With maximum 18-month prison sentences being handed down to two Cuyahoga County election workers last week for their roles in the 2004 Presidential recount, the tremendous problems that surfaced in the May 2006 primary that delayed even the unofficial vote count for 5 days, and the uncertain future of this board as another Presidential election looms on the near horizon, it is incumbent on me as Secretary of State to provide the direction needed to get this troubled board on track. The voters of Cuyahoga County deserve it, the citizens of Ohio expect it, and the rest of the nation will be watching,� said Brunner.

[...]

Those who do not resign by Wednesday will face a complaint and public hearing to be conducted in Cleveland by the Secretary of State's office at a time and date to be determined. Under state law the Secretary of State may “summarily remove� board members for cause.

I love the phrase "summarily remove" when it comes to Bill Bennett. This is long overdue, and would NEVER have happened under Blackwell.

Check out Magnatune. Basically, Open Source music. Good open source music. Artists get 50%. You get high-quality downloads, with album art, guilt-free. And you are encouraged to give away 3 copies.

WAV for burning to CD. MP3/Ogg/AAC/Whatever for playing on your media player. All of it 100% up front, legal, no DRM.

What a concept. Support them. The more they sell, the more artists will try a new way, and the more great music we'll have available.

Also, I wonder what Courtney Love could have done if she hadn't gotten so into drugs. Because she can write amazingly well when she needs to. Well worth a read about just how screwed up the music industry really is.

Cleveland resident and Blues legend Robert Lockwood, Jr. died yesterday at 91.

Lockwood was our last direct connection to the great Robert Johnson. He learned to play from Johnson, who had moved in with Lockwood's mother, and was the only person left who played in Johnson's unique style - everyone else who plays Johnson's music had to learn it after learning guitar another way. Lockwood's guitar playing was Johnson's style.

Lockwood has been playing Wade Oval Wednesdays here in Cleveland the last couple of years. Two years ago, a storm blew in as he was starting. Last year, I was stuck doing something else. Now he's gone.

Blues fans have lost a treasure.

I attended, and spoke at, the Cleveland Hts-University Hts school board meeting last night. If you live in this area, I'll actually be on local cable access TV soon!

The issue was that the board has to close an elementary school, and we are trying to save our local school. It happens that our local school has the best academic performance, but is top of the cutting block because of some odd intra-district boundaries. Our argument is that you don't close the only school that is gaining attendance because of it's academic performance. We'll see if the board comes around.

Anyway, I sent the following email to as many members of the board as I could:

Dear Board Members:

Mr. Phillips stated last night that people in Cleveland heights send their children to private schools for only 3 reasons - Religion, Tradition and Racism.

I know many parents who have moved either their families (to Solon, Orange, pepper pike) or their children (To Beaumont, Laurel, Hawken, etc) for 2 perceived reasons: School failure academically, and school discipline problems.

Many of these families lived on my street when their children were small. NONE of them ever bothered to actually set foot in our schools, but it was NOT tradition or religion that drove their decision. Whether racism was a factor is more difficult to determine, but they didn't even bother to set foot in the schools - they had "heard" that the schools were failing and would be in academic watch, or they had "heard" that there were discipline problems in the classrooms. Add to that one family that got so disgusted with the problems with the board and the superintendents that they wouldn't even consider CHUH schools.

So denying that there is a problem of perception in this community by claiming that the factors that drive a private school decision are out of the control of the school district is a clear case of ducking the issue. Academic performance, which is unfortunately drive by the federally mandated test scores, is absolutely an issue driving people away from our schools.

If our district was Excellent across the board, don't you think people would be asking to come to our schools????

On another issue, Mr. Phillips made it very clear by his body language and demeanor last night during the presentations that he has no interest in what the citizens of this district have to say. While every other board member paid attention to the speakers, Mr. Phillips spent the entire time reading some papers and making notes, never once looking up. It struck me so strongly that I watched his behavior during every presentation.

Mr. Phillips, I'm sorry to say I voted for you. Your rudeness to the people who were counting on you is an embarrassment to our city.

Justin Alcorn

I'll be sending a letter to the editor of our local weekly this evening. It'll be a little shorter than this

UPDATE Mr. Phillips replied to me. He says he was paying attention and was reviewing the scenarios. Maybe, but I have been told by other people that they have felt that he has done things during these meetings such as turn his back to the speaker, etc. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt on that. But he's still ducking the issue of academic performance. It DOES impact whether we can attract people to our schools.

An email was forwarded to me, with a personal request for help. Apparently, the truck referenced here will be leaving from somewhere in the northeast -- the email came from a peron in Buffalo, NY, and was sent to people involved with the Cleveland Hts schools. Use the Contact Me in the sidebar (which will require you to confirm your email address), or put a comment here, and I'll get you the contact information. Or, of course, if you know me just email me.

Slidell High School is part of the St. Tammany's Parish public schools. I got confused for a short time with a Seventh-Day Adventist school also called "Slidell School", but the call for help is from the public school system. We've all dug deep to help, but there's always more that needs to be done.

TO ALL:

I have received several emails with lists of needs at Slidell Schools in
Louisiana. You will notice the lists are extensive. It is not a list to fill
completely. But it is a complete list of items needed immediately. This will
give some direction to any others who may have items on the list they can
donate. Please pass this information on to them.
As it stands, the donation cut-off date is Tuesday, November 1, 2005. I will
help coordinate packing the truck on that date.

SLIDELL HIGH SCHOOL:

School Supplies:
Book bags - 1,000
spiral notebooks - 2000
Binders - 2000
Packages of looseleaf paper 2000
Pencils - 6,000
Pens - blue ink - 2,000
Pens - black ink - 2, 000
Calculators - TI84 Plus Silver - 250
Calculators - TI-30X IIS - 500
Copy paper - Premium No 4 Xerographic
paper 8 1/2 x 11, White 20 lb.
Spectrum DP Xerographic Bond -
400 cases
Dry erase markers - various colors - 500

Personal Items:
We need school uniforms. Until our students return on October 3 and
thereafter, it is difficult to provide specifics on this information. Our
student uniforms are khaki slacks; white, grey or hunter green collared polo
shirts; white, grey or hunter green sweatshirts or jackets. It costs about
$25.00 for a shirt and pants for a uniform. You can donate cash, checks, or
gift cards for Walmart, Target or Sears and the students can pick out their
own uniform.
We will accept donations of personal hygiene and toiletrie items. Special
needs are feminine hygiene and shaving products.

Desks/Chairs/Computers:
Computers - Windows XP - 50
Laser printers - 20
Presentation Projectors - 25
ELMOs - 25
Switches - 10
27 inch TV's with carts - 50
Overhead projectors - 25
CD's - rewritable - 500
Blank VHS videotapes - 50
Mini DV videotapes - 50
Mini DV camcorder - 2
Digital cameras - 3
Student desks - 1 piece - 50
Folding tables - 60 inch - 50
File cabinet - 4 drawer, locking - 25
Teacher desks - 15
Teacher chairs - 15
Computer tables - 15

Textbooks/Curriculum Materials:
Until our students return on October 3 it is difficult to determine
specifics.
If possible, we will post this later. We have a large influx of new students
from other parishes and the Mississippi Gulf Coast and many of our students
lost their homes and all their belongings.

Counseling:
Following resources would be helpful when counseling students. Many would be
beneficial in the group setting, others could be shown on the school tv
site. Materials are available at School Counslelor Resources, P.O. Box 802,
Culver City, CA 90232-0802/ www.counselorresources.com
1- BX120V-56, Lifesteps: Building Character, Resiliency, and Emotional
Intelligence in Youth (12 series video set) $799.00
1- TMW180V-56- Real Life Teens (21 videos, guides, $945)
1-JAG190V-56-Character in Action 6 video set ($370.00)
1- EUF152V-56 Bullying, Fear, and Depression Video, $99.95
1-JAG150-V-56- Teen Suicide: Finding the will to live (2 video set), $149.00
1-PBS176V-56- The Silent Epidemic: Teen Suicide, $39.95
100-DR102-56-Helping Teens Cope with Death ($9.95each)
2-JAL103-56- The tough stuff series: Immediate guidance for troubled
students ($90.OO each)
2- RPC119-56- Passport Program: A journey through emotional, social,
cognitive, and self-development ($37.95 each).
2-IN128-56 Anger Workout Book For Teens ($23.00 each)

Other Items:
Avery mailing labels 5160 - 5 boxes
White No. 10 regular envelopes -10boxes
9x12 Catalogue envelopes 28 lbs -3boxes
Manila 1/3 cut folders - letter -10boxes
Manila 1/3 cut folders - legal - 10boxes

SLIDELL HEAD START:

School Supplies:
We need bulletin board paper and borders. We also need sleeping mats for
preschoolers (150) We also need outdoor equipment such as a swing set. We
need 150 composition notebooks. 180 book sacs

Personal Items:
Children's underwear for approximately 200 Children's socks for
approximately 200/Similac Isomil Baby Items

Desks/Chairs/Computers:
10 computers for classrooms

Other Items:
We would like for a red cross representative to come to Slidell Head Start
and help out staff and parents apply for the Red Cross finanancial
assistance. We have not been able to send our staff to apply in person since
they have been working with assisting children in shelters and in our
center. We have attempted to call the 1800 number given but we have not been
successful. It is always busy or we get the recording letting us know that
we must keep trying. Many of our staff members have lost either homes or
personal belongings. They are also facing financial difficulties as a result
of Katrina. Please help us!

There's been a spate of good news about the Cleveland Hts-University Hts schools lately.

It's been a year, but the courts have finally ruled that RIVA truly did fail in their attempt to repeal the levy last year. Not only that, but they have to pay the costs incurred by the School Board in defending against their constant court challenges.

And what happens when you fund a school system?

Well, you get national recognition as a school system that provides "What Parents Want". About 16% of the public education systems in this country qualify for this award - less than 1 in 6. The award criteria include:

Criteria used for award selection include:

- A close match to what SchoolMatch users most often request. Compilation of over 97,000 parent questionnaires completed by SchoolMatch clients reveals parents most often look for school systems that are:

1. competitive in academic test scores and academically solid, but not so rigorous as to intimidate their children
2. accredited
3. recognized for excellence by a national foundation or by the U.S. Department of Education
4. competitive in teacher salaries
5. above average in instructional expenditures on a national percentile basis
6. above average in expenditures for library/media services on a national percentile basis
7. known for small class size

- Availability of programs at the secondary level.
Since relocating parents often focus upon finding a school system that produces a certain quality of "end product" (a high school graduate), only school systems that provide secondary school programs are eligible for the award.

And then the all-important test scores go up. What makes this all the more remarkable is that scores across the region went DOWN - CH-UH was one of the few bright spots in the report.

The district made pretty deep cuts, even with the levy. But they're showing that given the opportunity, the kids are getting a first-class education.


UPDATE Here's the Schoolmatch report for CHUH

Anne Bancroft died yesterday.

The Graduate was released in 1967. I was 3 years old, and if I've seen the whole movie, I can't remember sitting through it.

But I, and anyone else who has been around even a little while, know what Mrs. Robinson represents. Forbidden fruit. Lust. Opportunity

There are very few people who get that kind of iconographic role.

My condolences, Mr. Robinson (Mel Brooks).

Cleveland Hts has this nice new utility for doing your city taxes. Use the PIN number sent on your tax forms, log into the city website, click the link (which goes to a service bureau of some kind - 'citytaxtools.com'. you didn't think they'd actually do this on their own, did you?), fill out some info, and presto! A completely filled out city tax form to send in.

Pretty nice, really.

Except they made an amateur mistake. Used floating numbers internally, displayed decimals to the hundredths, and ended up telling me that $.79 minus $.45 = $.35.

That's pretty basic coding practices that are being forgotten here. Always check the rounding error.

I don't know how widespread this is.

I just got the word that the local ISP that my company uses for web hosting and DNS pulled the plug on their network when a hacker planted a Trojan and threatened to set it off if he wasn't paid.

The ISP did the right thing and pulled the plug on their network before the bomb went off (at least, that's what we're being told).

I called the Local FBI Ingragard contact to ask if he was aware of the case, and he told me that he was working on a case....but the ISPs name was different.

So either our ISP reported the incident under a different name, or more than one local ISP has been hit.

A new phishing email is targeting KeyBank, headquartered here in lovely Cleveland, OH.

This one is low-key, just telling you their doing maintenance and you need to update your information.

Danger, Will Robinson!

Well, I just heard a sample of "Sinner's Prayer" off Ray Charles' Genuis Loves Company.

Ray's piano and Lucille. Chills are still running up and down my spine. Whoa.

JaBbA says sit back, relax, and check it out.

The Census Bureau's 2003 poverty report identified Cleveland as having the highest poverty rate among US big cities.

Nearly 1/3 of households in Cleveland are in poverty. That's higher than New York, Chicago, LA.

Clearly, the "end of the recession" hasn't reached us yet.

Help!

In case you haven't noticed - I've been on vacation. Only read email twice!