When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time

Alison McDowell with Diane Ravitch at the Free Library of Philadelphia in 2013.

from Wrench in the Gears
August 20, 2017

I am writing this feeling somewhat like a David facing off against a Goliath. It certainly won’t make me popular. There are many of us who keep weighing the evidence. Is Diane Ravitch incredibly wiley or incredibly obtuse? I’ll leave it to you to decide.

It IS clear that there are parts of her narrative that don’t add up. My first sense that something wasn’t right came last February. Then in August, concerns I expressed in comments about the Clinton family’s involvement in the development of digital learning and Joe Ravitch’s venture capital company, Raine Group, were suppressed. You can read about it here and here. The Raine Group information, with its ties to Ari Emmanuel and Parchment, has gotten increasingly interesting as I’ve seen the convergence of education, virtual reality, entertainment, online credentialing and blockchain. Now my comments on her posts are always moderated. Some make it out. Some don’t. These from this afternoon haven’t as of posting time. I didn’t think they would.

 

I know I risk becoming a target for saying what comes next. Nevertheless, it needs to be said so here goes. In the spirit of my inspiration David F. Noble I will just leap out there and do it (thanks Kay).
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So today I had a flashback when a friend forwarded me Ravitch’s testimonial on the wonders of the MacArthur Foundation “This is What Philanthropy Looks Like.”

Click here to read the entire post.  

Also see: Calling Foul: Ravitch is Wrong About MacArthur
Save Maine Schools - September 20, 2017 

Breaking News: Diane Ravitch Supports Clinton

With the main news feed in the U. S. having declared Clinton the Democratic winner on the day before primary elections in California, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, New Mexico, and New Jersey, the media had done its part to suppress the vote in the last six states in the primary cycle.

Glenn Greenwald's headline read,

Perfect End to Democratic Primary: Anonymous Superdelegates Declare Winner Through Media

The use of super-delegates (SDs), as they are called, represent the most undemocratic aspect of the Democratic Party.  In fact, six months before the first Dem primary, Clinton had already taken an insurmountable lead in the delegate count, with 440 pledging support for Hillary a half year before the first ballot was cast.  In fact, Clinton could have narrowly lost every state primary and still have won the delegate battle.  

Sanders will continue the fight to the Convention in July, however, hoping to convince enough SDs to vote with the majority of citizens of their states.  Fat chance. 

Each of the corporate education unions, the NEA and AFT, has an SD--Presidents Lily and Randi.  Elites among elites, they have pledged for Clinton, too.

And now that the suspense is over, it has taken Diane Ravitch several seconds to compose herself enough to declare what no one would have ever doubted--that she is, indeed, a Clinton supporter.

How could it be otherwise:

Readers will say that she is too close to the people who are promoting charters, high-stakes testing, and the destructive policies of the Bush-Obama administrations. That is true. I have fought with all my strength against these terrible policies. I will continue to do so, with redoubled effort. I will do my best to get a one-on-one meeting with Hillary Clinton and to convey what we are fighting for: the improvement of public schools, not their privatization or monetization. The strengthening of the teaching profession, not its elimination. We want for all children what we want for our own. 

Think of it--a meeting with Hillary.  Goosebumps here!  Destructive policies, be gone!

Anticipating the joyous news of Clinton's anointing, Ravitch's NPE has sprung into full battle rhetoric.  They have devised a petition, yes, a petition, to ask the Democratic Party, hold on, to include something in the platform! about education.  Excuse me, I am a little beside myself with excitement.   

Surely, now we will see the torches lit and the pitchforks sharpened to once and for all demand the end of segregated schools, charter schools and school vouchers, and the use of racist and classist standardized tests to label the poor and the disabled. 

But no, something has happened.  The words have taken the shape of Hillary's amorphous corporatism, thus allowing anyone to read anything they want into anything she has said or is likely to say.  Truly masterful word-smithing, NPE.  You are to be congratulated in not failing, once again, to disappoint.

And so, to the petition:

 . . . the platform of the Democratic Party should:

• Require that party candidates support public education in every community and commit to ensuring that every public school has the resources it needs for the children it serves.
• Expect candidates to oppose the oversized role of philanthropic organizations and hedge fund managers in promoting school policies.
• Expect candidates to clearly articulate their support and preference for democratically governed public schools that serve all of the children in their communities.

Snow Days

Snow days are good for lesson plans.

Lesson in Democracy 101.

How can we save our schools if grassroots education activists can't endorse or support candidates running for public office?

This in my in box from Save Our Schools March and National Call to Action. The love fest is over. The high stakes have gotten too high.

If SOS can not support Network for Public Education which has political clout and candidates, it is worthless. Stop wasting your time people and start endorsing candidates who support public education like De Blasio in NY and other in your state, city, county, and town.

"NPE – Network for Public education                      SOS cannot endorse it because of our 501C3 status because it raises money and campaigns for individual people.  However, individuals are free to endorse."