Do you think Rhee would stay under Gray?

[Anonymous]

Gray's road to the Mayorship is pretty obvious: convince disgruntled "old timers" that he'll stick it to the newcomers, convince "good goverment fundamentalists" that a vote for him is a vote for transparency, and convince a minority of disgruntled Rhee-haters that Rhee's changes will be rolled back.

The trick is to imply this stuff without stating it aloud, because there's almost no one in the city who shares all three of these interests. In fact, if he were to state his "assumed" positions plainly, he'd draw maybe 5% of the vote.

Fenty's got a record, and a number of appointees to run on. Gray's got a collection of assorted resentments that, if made plain, are essentially irreconcilable.

[Anonymous]

Fenty's got a record, and a number of appointees to run on

I want to know how I can get one of those contracts with the 300% mark up on work I subcontract [and get away with it]. That's SWEEEEEET!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

More seriously, I remember the Barry years and I don't understand why Fenty is being given credit for the turnaround that Anthony Williams orchestrated. From my point of view, Fenty's cronyism is a return to the bad old days, and is the chief reason I want him out.

Absolutely - Williams would get my vote over either Fenty or Gray in a second, although I suspect that sentiment isn't shared in other parts of the city (those that are less well-represented on DCUM). And I am troubled by the cronyism exhibited by the Fenty administration, as well as his obvious arrogance and that of his chief hatchet man, Peter Nickles. (I have a generally favorable impression of Rhee.)

Having said that, as this moment I'm inclined to vote for Fenty (again). Why? Because I have not heard any reason to vote for Gray other than "he's not Fenty." As far as I can see, that's his entire platform thus far - run against Fenty, not for anything. While that's understandable, to a point, you have to be for SOMETHING. Maybe I've just missed it (and if so, I'd appreciate it if someone could educate me), or maybe it's coming in the near future, but until Gray gives me a reason to vote FOR him, and not just against Fenty, I'll stick with the devil I know.

Exactly!! This is my problem. I'm not crazy about Fenty, but I'll be damned if I am going to vote for someone just because they're not him. I don't know enough about Gray's views, other than he's been really vocal in his opposition to all things Fenty, but he's running for office. Of course he would be. This is going to be a tough one for me. I wish Mayor Bow Tie could come back.

[Anonymous]

Gray is a step backwards.......no thank you! Rhee and Fenty have shaken up a sorry school system. Yep, they were harsh. But when your school system is the bottom of the nation - it takes drastic action.

[Anonymous]

To all of the people yearning for the halcyon days of Tony williams, remember that in his last couple of years in office he was accused of many of the same things as fenty is--lack of sunshine in his operations, being out of touch, arrogance--plus taking lots of expensive junkets.

I say this as someone who voted for him enthusiastically, including writing him in when he screwed up and didn't get his name on the ballot the second time around (seriously, how much shit would fenty get if he screwed up in a similar way?). He, like fenty, was a flawed politician who got a lot done. I have concerns about fenty and wish (like others) that gray would give me a reason to consider him. But if he doesn't, I will vote for fenty again without hesitation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Fenty's got a record, and a number of appointees to run on. Gray's got a collection of assorted resentments that, if made plain, are essentially irreconcilable.

I'd LOVE to get a piece of the Fenty profitabiity pie. Here's the thing: I'm not one of his fraternity brothers, nor do I have a "Development" connection.

In fact, I'm actually opposed to taking historical city property and trying to get developers to make boutique hotels from them. Isn't that the very last thing DC residents would have a reason to visit?? A local hotel?

It's criminal to abrogate the ownership of DC public property into the Mayor's private fiefdom. It's obvious that he does it in order to hand out expensive public lands to private personal friends for cheap. Why should he care that you are making his friends rich? After all, without his friends... how is he supposed to get rich?!

Fenty is all about getting (personally) rich. Yes, this is at your expense, and if you don't understand that then you need to get out of the way so that you don't get run over by the FENTY green machine.

F*CK education and school innovation. FENTY and DEVELOPERS have money to make. Get out of their F*cking way. You loser.

[Anonymous]

My god, you're bitter.

[Anonymous]

Your aspirations for what our school system could be are rather low. All you want is higher test scores. In that case, Rhee and Fenty are perfect for you.

Some of us have higher aspirations for our school system.

I would like to see schools that offer a stellar curriculum, one that offers both world and US history and geography starting in kindergarten.

I would like to see emphasis on good literature, not just basal anthologies. A strong writing program would be nice. I would like to see Latin offered at the middle and high school level.

I would like to see teachers that are not just certified to teach, but actually educated people, intellectuals, because there's a decidedly anti-intellectual bent to many of our teachers.

I would like to see schools that have some stability, where good teachers and administrators are not in constant fear of RIFs, school closings, and restructuring.

I would like see a school calendar that isn't dominated by testing. I would like to see students taking advantage of the incredible cultural offerings in this city, as part of integrated humanities units that include geography, history, literature, art, and music. I would like to see strong, hands-on science programs in every school. I would like a school system where no teacher feels obligated to engage in test-prep.

I would like to see an excellent vocational program that is available to students who want to be able to train for a career rather than prepare for college. I would like to have a school system that values all careers and work that is honorable.

I would like to have a school system that has the goal of offering high-quality educational opportunities to all students, regardless of their ability, background, SES, or address. I would like to see schools that are evaluated based on the quality of educational opportunities that they offer rather than on test scores of dubious validity and reliability.

In short, I would like to have a school system that offers educational opportunities to all students that are comparable or superior in quality to those that were available to my child in his private school.

You want a charter school!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So now we're just cave dwellers?

I can understand how Fenty would make you feel nostalgic about Tony.

But Tony had his limitations. His only solution to lousy schools was charter schools. He also had something of a tin ear regarding politics. Remember his plans to move UDC and Ellington to Southeast?

Um, Rhee and Fenty also considered moving Ellington to SE. The good folks in Ward 3 and the Cafritz family put a stop to that. And, if you have not heard, UDC is quiet;y moving to SE and NE. The school now have official locations in the old Patricia R Harris and Bertie Backus schools.

[Anonymous]

Not. Charter schools are like jumping out of the frying pan into the fire.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So now we're just cave dwellers?

I can understand how Fenty would make you feel nostalgic about Tony.

But Tony had his limitations. His only solution to lousy schools was charter schools. He also had something of a tin ear regarding politics. Remember his plans to move UDC and Ellington to Southeast?

Um, Rhee and Fenty also considered moving Ellington to SE. The good folks in Ward 3 and the Cafritz family put a stop to that. And, if you have not heard, UDC is quiet;y moving to SE and NE. The school now have official locations in the old Patricia R Harris and Bertie Backus schools.

I'm no fan of Fenty/Rhee. But you are referring to satellite campuses of the new Community College, a offshoot of UDC, and a development that I applaud. UDC is still located in Van Ness.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I certainly don't think Fenty is perfect--Nickles and the cronyism particularly bug me--but I think Gray would not be a good mayor. It sounds like Gray has been a good council chairman and has a talent for building consensus, but I think that quality would actually be bad in a mayor--this city needs an executive who can make tough decisions and is not afraid to piss people off. I also generally approve of Rhee and hope that she'll be around for at least a few more years.

How come no one ever talks about the millions of dollars the city has paid out in law suits because Nickles and Fenty flaunt the laws, or think that they can do what they want. The attorneys Nickles fired because they were not young and energetic (his words upon firing them); the fire fighter personnel they were forced to rehire and pay attonrey fees and back pay (Nickles words upon firing, I don't care if thy sue I"m sure they can find an attorney in this city); the decision to appeal Heller when city mayor's around the country (NYC and Chicago) beseeched Adrian not to appeal; the future return of those 200+ so called RIFFed teachers; the unconsitutional stops of individuals desiring to travel on public streets in the Trinidad neighborhood. The list keeps growing. MPD now has more EEOC complaints than ever before.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Gray's road to the Mayorship is pretty obvious: convince disgruntled "old timers" that he'll stick it to the newcomers, convince "good goverment fundamentalists" that a vote for him is a vote for transparency, and convince a minority of disgruntled Rhee-haters that Rhee's changes will be rolled back.

The trick is to imply this stuff without stating it aloud, because there's almost no one in the city who shares all three of these interests. In fact, if he were to state his "assumed" positions plainly, he'd draw maybe 5% of the vote.

Fenty's got a record, and a number of appointees to run on. Gray's got a collection of assorted resentments that, if made plain, are essentially irreconcilable.

Wow, that was one of President Obama's platforms as well. It worked for Obama, do you think it would work for Gray

[Anonymous]

Wow, that was one of President Obama's platforms as well. It worked for Obama, do you think it would work for Gray

OP here: if you think that anyone voting for Obama was "confused" about whether his policies would be more liberal than those of a McCain/Palin administration, you're absolutely delusional.

Gray, on the other hand, is trying to sell middle class DC on the idea that he'll be an exact continuation of Fenty's policies with the addition of "transparency" and "collaboration"...while simultaneously trying to sell poor DC on the idea that he'll be a return to the Barry years.

If Gray pulls it off, one of those constituencies is going to be disappointed.

[Anonymous]

How come no one ever talks about the millions of dollars the city has paid out in law suits...

Sorry, that's part of running a large city. I'm assuming that since you can't cite any increase in lawsuit payouts, you've got no hard numbers.

... the future return of those 200+ so called RIFFed teachers...

Gotta love this one, though. Talk about counting one's chickens...