School districts have handed out more than 25,000 pink slips statewide in the face of about $11 billion in state cuts to education funding, according to the California Teachers Association.

The notices are “precautionary.” Under the State Education Code, schools must notify employees who might be laid off by March 15, but that does not necessarily mean all of them will lose their jobs.

The state Legislature approved deep budget cuts — including to education — and raised taxes last month to cope with a budget gap of nearly $42 billion over the next 18 months.

With budget shortfalls reaching $718 million for the 2009-10 school year, the Los Angeles Unified School District announced possible layoffs for 8,846 teachers and administrative staff.

The California Teachers Association initiated Pink Friday, an event that took place on March 13th asking people to wear pink in solidarity with teachers.

In Santa Maria, protesters – wearing pink in commiseration with the 26,000 California teachers handed pink slips Friday – lined Broadway and marched several blocks from Santa Maria High School’s Ethel Pope Auditorium to the city library and back.

“Education is the glue that holds together the threads of our American way of life,” said Nancy Iarossi, president of the union that represents teachers in the Santa Maria-Bonita School District. “Education and its availability is the soul of what makes America.”

A few days later, students got involved.

Hundreds of students from five downtown high schools walked out of class on March 16 to protest teacher layoffs. They marched to the LA Unified School District administration building in response to 8,800 “reduction in force” letters that were delivered on Friday to teachers and other school employees.

The protest was initiated and organized by students at the various campuses, who spread the word through text messages. The rally was spirited and energetic; students held signs and homemade posters to support their teachers and demand a decent education. Chants of “No pink slips!” and “Don’t lay off our teachers!” rang out.

These high school students know that laying off teachers will affect them as well. Student/Teacher Achievement Ratio (STAR), a four-year class-size study, found:

*Students in small classes are more likely to pursue college
*Small classes lead to higher graduation rates
*Students in small classes achieve at higher levels

It isn’t just high school students who walked out. San Francisco college students got involved, too.

Under the blaze of a hot California sun, several hundred college students walked out of their schools to protest the state’s cuts to the education budget. Their chants echoed those of student marches in the late 1960′s that ushered in a new era of student power.

Their banners proclaimed “Education for liberation, not for profit,” “Bailout students, not bankers” and “Shut it down like ’68.” San Francisco State University (SFSU) president Robert Corrigan with his annual salary of some $280,000 drew special attention from the crowd.

While Corrigan gets rich, his administration is carrying out the education cuts, such as fee hikes for students.

I have written previously about the fiscal crisis in California and how it is affecting the school system. If you have read that article, you will recall that one high school in California was selling ad space on tests to be able to afford to print the test for students.

If you are interested in helping, check out the Pink Friday website for upcoming events and other information. Alternately, you can contact the California Teachers Association.

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A document compiled by the Missouri Information Analysis Center for Missouri law enforcement agencies had some sketchy information about warning signs for domestic terrorists.

The Feb. 20 report called “The Modern Militia Movement” mentions such red flags as political bumper stickers for third-party candidates, such as U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, who ran for president last year; talk of conspiracy theories, such as the plan for a superhighway linking Canada to Mexico; and possession of subversive literature.

The document was leaked by Infowars.com which is generally a conspiracy website and easy to discount.

It might be easy to discount if a spokesman for the Missouri law enforcement, Lt. John Hotz, hadn’t come forward to defend the document and downplay its importance.

“All this is an educational thing,” Hotz said of the report. “Troopers have been shot by members of groups, so it’s our job to let law enforcement officers know what the trends are in the modern militia movement.”…

…But Hotz said using factors in the report to determine whether someone could be a terrorist is not profiling. He said people who display signs or bumper stickers from third-party groups are not in danger of harassment from police.

“It’s giving the makeup of militia members and their political beliefs,” Hotz said of the report. “It’s not saying that everybody who supports these candidates is involved in a militia. It’s not even saying that all militias are bad.”

So a document released to law enforcement specifically states that support of third parties is a red flag for potential domestic terrorism and to look out for said red flags…but acting on that information wouldn’t be profiling. No. Not at all.

So who exactly is this organization that compiled the document?

Lt. John Hotz of the Missouri State Highway Patrol said the report comes from publicly available, trend data on militias. It was compiled by the Missouri Information Analysis Center, a “fusion center” in Jefferson City that combines resources from the federal Department of Homeland Security and other agencies. The center, which opened in 2005, was set up to collect local intelligence to better combat terrorism and other criminal activity, he said.

A “fusion center”. In February the ACLU released information about a Texas “fusion center” that they claimed was an example of inappropriate police intelligence operations targeting political, religious and social activists for investigation.

The North Central Texas Fusion System bulletin states that it is “imperative for law enforcement officers to report” the activities of lobbying groups, Muslim civil rights organizations and anti-war protest groups in their areas.

“This memo is not a plea for legitimate intelligence, and seems to endorse discrimination against Muslims,” said Caroline Fredrickson, Director of the ACLU Washington Legislative Office. “The idea that the tolerance advocated by the groups being targeted would be treated as a menace to American security demonstrates a disregard for civil liberties and a disdain for democracy itself. The kind of indiscriminate and unlawful investigations this bulletin calls for always results in a chilling effect on free speech and association.”

So don’t support third parties in Missouri, and if you are Muslim and/or anti-war…stay the hell out of Texas.

Actually, you might not be safe in other states. The ACLU release notes that there are currently 70 fusion centers across the United States. That gives a comforting thought don’t you think?

I’m not a Libertarian. Not by a long shot. Nor am I in any way right-wing. But this is America. People should be allowed to believe whatever political philosophy they want to believe…without government harassment.

To be honest, these “fusion centers” would probably have a field day with most of the blogs on the internet, and many posts from this one. I’ve made it clear that I am anti-war…should I be profiled for that?

Would you think it fair to be pulled over because of something you wrote on a blog? For a bumper sticker? Because you wore a political T-Shirt that was critical of the government?

America shouldn’t be policing people’s political views. That’s not freedom. That’s not right at all.

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In Ohio, as of January unemployment was at 8.8 percent. That’s the highest level in two decades. Ohio is also ranked 10th of all states in foreclosures.

In Massillon, Ohio, population 31,325 as of the 2000 census, Edison Junior High School advertised a job opening for a janitor…and received 700 applications.

Officials at Perry Local Schools near Canton in northeast Ohio say they’ve extended the deadline until Monday to accommodate the overwhelming response to the week-old posting.

The full-time position at Edison Junior High School pays $15 to $16 an hour plus benefits.

Superintendent John Richard says many applicants are laid-off workers with heart-wrenching stories about the tough economic times.

Forty-nine-year-old Donna Croston says she applied after losing jobs at two nearby factories that closed.

Nearby in Canton, there are more layoffs.

Canton, Ohio-based Timken Co., the supplier of bearings to the world’s top five carmakers, said March 2 it would eliminate as many as 400 salaried jobs this year.

Nationally, it is the same story.

Sears last week said it would shutter 24 stores, on top of eight closings announced earlier…

…Slumping sales have caused recent Chapter 11 filings by retailers such as Everything But Water LLC, the largest U.S. retailer of women’s swimwear, and Ritz Camera Centers Inc., the largest chain of camera stores.

With the passage of a recent bill, at least some of these people are now less at risk of losing their homes.

The U.S. House of Representatives voted 234-191 to pass H.R.1106, which allows bankruptcy judges to cram down mortgages for homeowners facing foreclosure…

…Lawmakers added provisions that seek to make filing for bankruptcy a last resort for struggling homeowners. In its current form, HR1106 calls on bankruptcy judges to decide whether all other foreclosure prevention options were exhausted and whether loan modifications offered by loan servicers adequately reduced mortgage payments. Borrowers must show they reached out to servicers for a modification prior to filing for bankruptcy.

The Congressional Budget Office in a February report said at least 1 million borrowers may benefit from the allowance of cramdowns.

Maintaining their say-no-to-everything strategy, only seven Republicans voted for the bill. One of those seven, however, was Ohio Congressman Mike Turner. Even before the vote, he had broken with the GOP on this bill.

Turner breaks from GOP to support mortgage bill. He’s the only Republican sponsor of the bill Boehner called ‘the worst idea in the world.’…

Turner, R-Centerville, has supported similar provisions in the past, and last year supported one along with U.S. Rep. Steve Chabot, R-Cincinnati, who lost his 2008 re-election bid. This year he’s the lone Republican cosponsor of the bill.

And how. This week, House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-West Chester, called the proposal “just the worst idea in the world.”

It is rare that I get to say something nice about a Republican here at TML…but I salute Turner for having the courage to break from the GOP and do what was best for his constituents.

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But then the administration backpeddled a little and it became less of a priority.

As we all know, Obama was sworn in as President in January (two times!). That same month, the army fired eleven soldiers for being gay.

The Army fired 11 soldiers in January for violating the military’s policy that gay service members must keep their sexuality hidden, according to a Virginia congressman.

Democratic Rep. Jim Moran said he has requested monthly updates from the Pentagon on the impact of the policy until it is repealed. In a statement released on Thursday, Moran said the discharged soldiers included an intelligence collector, a military police officer, four infantry personnel, a health care specialist, a motor-transport operator and a water-treatment specialist.

“How many more good soldiers are we willing to lose due to a bad policy that makes us less safe and secure?” asked Moran, a member of the House panel that oversees military spending.

Last November, it was reported that more than 100 retired generals and admirals have called for the repeal of the policy. Earlier than that in July an ABC News poll showed the same trend with average citizens.

An ABC poll in July found that three-quarters of Americans supported allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military compared to 44 percent of Americans who expressed the same support in 1993, when President Bill Clinton approved “don’t ask, don’t tell” as what he called an “honorable compromise” that nevertheless bitterly disappointed his supporters in the gay community.

Moran is correct. This policy is terrible. Always was, always will be. It prevents American citizens from joining the military based on outdated and bigoted reasoning. Being gay isn’t a crime. It isn’t illegal. It shouldn’t be a roadblock to being in the military. Or anything else, for that matter.

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Kevin Dolan and his son, Sean, created a website to tell Tim’s story and provide a venue for visitors to give donations to help Tim and others like him.

Some might find this to be a touching thing for two people to do for another man who is down on his luck…but there are many who disagree.

The problem? It’s called Pimp This Bum!.

Some homeless advocates find the whole thing distasteful.

Some homeless advocates say the Web site does little to address the underlying issues of homelessness. Even the name makes Anthony Love bristle.

“He is a person. His name is Tim. And to pimp anyone is not something I would endorse,” said Love, president of the Coalition for the Homeless of Houston/Harris County.

The Web site also stirred up an Internet debate over the merits of the Dolans’ approach. One blogger named KatDish commented: “Your impassioned pleas for helping Tim get off the street don’t hold much weight when you ask him to hold up a sign that says “Pimp this Bum” and let people know he needs a Sharpie and a cheeseburger.”

The Dolans, however, claim that is isn’t, and never was, their intention to exploit or demean Tim. Quite the contrary.

“We wanted to insult people’s sensitivities so that they would go to the site and see Tim, and people seem to have fallen in love with him. He’s funny and doesn’t blame the world for his situation,” said Kevin Dolan, 55, a marketing specialist from the Houston suburb of Katy who started the Web site with his 24-year-old son, Sean.

If the site had been called “Help the Homeless,” many Web surfers might just have clicked on past, says Sean.

Here is the first interview with Tim:

I can see Anthony Love’s concern about the possible exploitation of the homeless. The Associated Press article linked above notes that the Dolans intended to test an advertising campaign and create publicity for their new Internet marketing business. It was son Sean who suggested doing some good and helping the homeless. So I can understand Love’s concern that maybe the Dolan’s don’t have completely altruistic intentions.

That being said, it isn’t as though this is Bum Fights or something similarly demeaning and unethical. I agree with Love that this site isn’t doing anything to address the underlying issues and causes of homelessness. But…the publicity has caused Seattle-based Sunray Treatment and Recovery to give Tim a spot in their alcohol detox program free of charge. The program normally costs $13,800 and lasts 35 days.

The donor’s list is rather long at the time of this writing and the Associated Press article will surely bring forth more donations.

With another website title, maybe this wouldn’t be newsworthy…and that kind of adds credence to Kevin and Sean Dolan’s point about the name not being exploitative, but instead was designed to get attention.

When AOL ran this story the comments were…less than kind. Of course, this is somehow Obama’s fault. Not that it should be surprising that AOL users can be ignoramuses.

On the first two pages of comments I saw, for every one comment that was sympathetic to homelessness, there were three that either slammed the homeless, or discovered a way to make political attacks in the guise of commenting on the story.

What really disturbed me is that this first one received a three star rating from other readers.

This next guy decided to use the opportunity to call all Democrats bums. How witty.

This next fine human being found a way to both slam Obama as well as attack immigrants. Note, no mention was made of the homeless situation. One track bigot, I suppose.

This is another that received a three star rating from other readers.

This next person is just…well, filled with hate and anger. And an inability to release the caps lock.

This fine human being just wants to know why anyone should care. Sadly, this one got a four star rating.

“Nookiecat” regurgitates the same tired rhetoric about how everyone that is homeless got there through their own mistakes…and therefore fuck them. Three and a half stars for this level of inhumanity.

While, as noted above, I see the Dolan’s point about being controversial to attract visitors…based on the AOL comments I don’t know if it is really working. Whether you try to be low key in your aims to assist others or you are more outrageous with your presentation…you can’t make people care that choose not to care. The comments above illustrate how hardened many people can be. How many people refuse to care about others.

So what do you think? Is it a good thing or is is exploitation?

And if you are as ignorant as some of the AOL users listed above, you need not bother commenting. Find somewhere else to spread your ignorance.

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Obama is convening a summit this afternoon with about 150 elected officials and representatives of groups that have much at stake in the outcome — and that helped kill the last attempt at an overhaul during the Clinton administration 16 years ago.

“The Forum will bring together the people who have a stake in our health care system and the people who have the ability to change it; those who worked to pass health care reform a decade ago and those who worked to defeat it,” the White House says in a background paper.

To counter Obama’s plans, Rep. Zach Wamp (R-TN) appeared on MSNBC to reiterate that Republican claims that a national health insurance plan is “…a fast march towards socialism…”

But he went further.

“Listen, health care a privilege…For some people it’s a right, but for everyone, frankly, it’s not necessarily a right…”

No kidding.

Let’s look at some of Rep. Zach Wamp’s claims:

“Half the people that are uninsured today choose to remain uninsured. Half of them don’t have any choice, but half of them choose to, what’s called, ‘Go naked.’ And just take a risk of getting sick. They end up in the emergency room, costing you and me a whole lot more money. How many illegal immigrants are in this country today, getting our health care? Gobs of ‘em.”

Let’s say for the sake of argument that Wamp is correct (even though he refused to back this up with anything at all) that would still leave half, that by his own admission, “don’t have any choice”. They are just screwed.

As for the ones that do choose to go without, it is generally because they are so poor that the choice is between health insurance…or eating. It’s pretty understandable why some would choose to go without. Which is why the government should provide health insurance for all.

Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) was quite astute with his reaction:

“Well my reaction is that it was said by somebody who has a really good health [insurance] plan as a member of the House of Representatives.”

Indeed. Members of Congress need only serve for five years to be fully vested in the Federal programs. Once vested, they receive lifetime retirement and health benefits. Yep. Wamp has served since 1995 so he is fully vested. He has health benefits forever. Yet he wants to stand in the way of others getting health benefits.

If there is anyone at least twenty-five years old in the 3rd Congressional district of Tennessee that is without health insurance…just run against this asshole. If you beat him, you will have nice Federal health insurance. Just like Wamp.

Contrary to what Wamp claims, health insurance is not a privilege. It is a human right. For everyone. Not just Congressmen.

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“Too often over the past decade, the fight against terrorism has been viewed as a zero-sum battle with our civil liberties,” Attorney General Eric Holder said in a speech a few hours before the documents were released. “Not only is that school of thought misguided, I fear that in actuality it does more harm than good.”

The newly released documents illustrate just how far off the reservation the Bush team went to violate Constitutional rights in the name of fighting terror.

The legal memos written by the Bush administration’s Office of Legal Counsel show a government grappling with how to wage war on terrorism in a fast-changing world. The conclusion, reiterated in page after page of documents, was that the president had broad authority to set aside constitutional rights.

Fourth Amendment protections against unwarranted search and seizure, for instance, did not apply in the United States as long as the president was combatting terrorism, the Justice Department said in an Oct. 23, 2001, memo.

“First Amendment speech and press rights may also be subordinated to the overriding need to wage war successfully,” Deputy Assistant Attorney General John Yoo wrote, adding later: “The current campaign against terrorism may require even broader exercises of federal power domestically.”

Yep. Those same Republicans that preach the sanctity of the U.S. Constitution, willfully violated it.

Just earlier this week, Rush Limbaugh proclaimed:

We want every American to be the best he or she chooses to be. We recognize that we are all individuals. We love and revere our founding documents, the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.

Of course, Limbaugh apparently doesn’t know the difference between the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution…but whatever, right?

He further stated:

Well, the Constitution doesn’t need to be redefined.

Oops. Bush did exactly that, Mr. Limbaugh. Are you going to chastise him? Is Bush Un-American? Is he a criminal?

Just wondering.

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