Quotes of the day
posted at 10:43 pm on October 26, 2010 by Allahpundit
“I think that this video makes the distinction better than I ever could. This is their leadership conference where they’re in a hotel, having this leadership conference, singing songs together about kicking the governor in his tool box. I wonder what they mean by that? But I can tell you I sense it would hurt…
“They have a teacher, leadership of the union, playing arcade games at this leadership conference and laughing and saying ‘isn’t this great? I get to play arcade games on your dime.’
“I don’t care, candidly, that they chant and sing about me in a not very nice way. I’m the Governor of New Jersey, there are gonna be people who say bad things about me every day. That’s fine, I don’t care, I really don’t. This video is not about the things they say about me, this video is about the things they say about themselves. About themselves. And if you need an example of what I’ve been talking about for the last nine months about how the teachers’ union leadership is out of touch with the people and out of control, go watch this video. It’s enlightening, it’s enraging.”
***
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love the O’Keefe “girls gone wild” angle on that video…
ted c on October 26, 2010 at 10:48 PM
Not surprising, but stunning.
massrighty on October 26, 2010 at 10:48 PM
Now THOSE people are truly “unwashed”
picklesgap on October 26, 2010 at 10:50 PM
Take it and like it, unions. You’re going down. You did this to yourselves.
rrpjr on October 26, 2010 at 10:50 PM
Human garbage. There are some good people in these unions but they are being swamped by the scum surrounding them, the unions are a blight on this nation.
Bishop on October 26, 2010 at 10:53 PM
BAILOUT MONEY TO THEM FOR SURE……..
PappyD61 on October 26, 2010 at 10:53 PM
WOW! The 3rd video is the one that got my attention…
Yellowdog12 on October 26, 2010 at 10:54 PM
As a professor, all I can say is it’s time to abolish tenure and teacher’s unions! These idiots are disgusting.
anXdem on October 26, 2010 at 10:55 PM
Not going away without a fight.
Let’s scrap!
Kini on October 26, 2010 at 10:56 PM
I laugh at the notion of “tenure” for elementary educators. Tenure for what?
MeatHeadinCA on October 26, 2010 at 10:57 PM
Isn’t the one filming doing the “HAHAHAHAHA!”? Adding subtitles of “HAHAHAHAHA!” is sort of defeating his purpose. You don’t have to “help” them.
Marcus on October 26, 2010 at 11:01 PM
Ha. And I thought California Teacher’s Unions were bad.
FlatFoot on October 26, 2010 at 11:02 PM
2nd that…
cmsinaz on October 26, 2010 at 11:04 PM
So, that last one is the most disturbing. But was it done before or after James O’Keefe lost his marbles?
AshleyTKing on October 26, 2010 at 11:04 PM
Despicable, really. It’s going to be a lot of fun watching the unions get hit in NY as well. There will be blood.
ernesto on October 26, 2010 at 11:04 PM
Admit it, Meaty, you’re a life-er./
Tenure, so they can teach the same old lib-laden hogwash day after day, and to do and say whatever they please with impunity.
anXdem on October 26, 2010 at 11:06 PM
Prosecute Dibofsky. This is scandalous.
John the Libertarian on October 26, 2010 at 11:07 PM
Outsource teachers to India. Every child gets their own phone tutor.
PrezHussein on October 26, 2010 at 11:09 PM
You cannot spell ‘incompetent urban parasites’ without unions.
GnuBreed on October 26, 2010 at 11:09 PM
Teachers unions destroying our schools, auto unions destroying the auto industry, public employee unions have government workers making TWICE what their bosses, the taxpayers, make
it’s time for a national “right to work” law.
American Elephant on October 26, 2010 at 11:09 PM
There is a lot to like about Christie — and this is not a “your governor is so fat” joke. Believe me, I would be thrilled too have him as governor of California. But I think he is not conservative enough to be the GOP presidential candidate in 2012. He is like Giuliani with better self-discipline and without the personal baggage. We all remember how Rudy’s 2008 campaign stalled even with a weak field of competitors.
Terrie on October 26, 2010 at 11:11 PM
If you can play arcade games, thank a teacher.
Terrie on October 26, 2010 at 11:12 PM
Uh. You know what gets me is lazy, worthless profs that still get paid … even though they can’t do jack. That doesn’t even cover school teachers.
No tenure for school teachers. That’s ridiculous.
Give profs tenure only for their research. Make them earn the rest of their salary through teaching (well). If they don’t perform, cut their teaching salary.
MeatHeadinCA on October 26, 2010 at 11:12 PM
Holy crap.
I need a shower after watching these videos.
tru2tx on October 26, 2010 at 11:13 PM
Oops! I posted too soon.
Terrie on October 26, 2010 at 11:15 PM
That is the answer. Likewise, better contract negotiators in the Sates. However, sate contract negotiators are union, which turns out to be no help there anyway.
However, if tenure and the unions were to be removed from the money stream, then property taxes would decline precipitately and college level graduation rates will increase dramatically.
Just like the economy, once the inefficiencies are removed, the natural growth pattens will flourish. Analysis supported by fact.
Kini on October 26, 2010 at 11:15 PM
OT: oopsie in chicago
cmsinaz on October 26, 2010 at 11:17 PM
it’s time for a national “right to work” law.
American Elephant on October 26, 2010 at 11:09 PM
+1 million.
annoyinglittletwerp on October 26, 2010 at 11:18 PM
Union thugs, plain and simple.
One guy in that first clip talking about “taking out Christie, one way or the other.” Shouldn’t there be an investigation into this? “One way or the other” sure sounds like a death threat against an elected official to me.
These are a bunch of infantile PUKES who all deserve to get fired. What a bunch of freaking morons. If I were a parent in N.J., I’d have yanked my kid out of that public school system long ago. Those degenerates would never get near my kid. May they all burn in hell.
OneVision on October 26, 2010 at 11:19 PM
Smart parents have the ability to homeschool their kids at least through 6th grade. Smarter parents can keep their kids out entirely.
Connie on October 26, 2010 at 11:27 PM
Right To Work linky
I really don’t blame the teachers, I blame the Unions. They’re pricing themselves out of their market. Pensions simply cannot be sustained. The mismanagement by the Teachers Unions are going find their classroom sises shrinking. But they get paid whether their is a child in the seat, or not.
Remember that Obama did away with Wash DC school vouchers, but charter schools are private and successful. Just outnumbered.
Funny, this is what they’re not teaching in school.
Kini on October 26, 2010 at 11:29 PM
A law needs to be passed to outlaw Public employees at any level belonging to Unions. No one in the Public Sector should be allowed to be a part of them as Unions are apparently corrupting our government systems.
theguardianii on October 26, 2010 at 11:33 PM
You do know I was just joshin’ ya in my previous comment, right?
As for tenured profs, yes there are many lazy, good-for-nothings in colleges and universities everywhere.
As you know, tenure was created to prevent any government, political, or social entity from dictating what can be taught and how subjects should be approached. The problem is, the privilege had been abused ad nauseum for decades by professors and teachers like the ones featured in the videos. The other problem is tenure promotes laziness and fosters partisan approaches to discussing virtually any subject matter.
In a perfect world, teachers would be graded/evaluated by students and colleagues based on their performance as instructional designers and researchers. Their grades would determine salary increases and/or job retention. This is my perfect-world wish.
anXdem on October 26, 2010 at 11:35 PM
If we don’t stop this and now we are going to lose our democracy… Welcome to Iran, Afghanistan or Venezuela everyone…
CCRWM on October 26, 2010 at 11:38 PM
“That’s Hudson County.”
No, sir; that’s the Democrat Party, and it’s happening again as we speak in one form or another.
Midas on October 26, 2010 at 11:41 PM
As I watched the last part, about the fixed election, it made me realize that there is a political party, in this country, that has always been willing to fix elections. The jokes about Chicago, “vote early, vote often” aren’t just jokes. Everyone talks about the Dailey machine and what goes on.
I’m beginning to believe that, the same politicians who love to do these things in local elections, are trying to carry the same techniques nationwide. Why would an ACORN, deluge an elections office with applications from Mickey Mouse and other false names, knowing they’re going to be caught? Because they can slip through others and hopefully not be caught.
If one political party proves itself to be untrustworthy, it will be the end of them. The Democrats, IMHO, are rapidly heading that way. They’ve already proven they can’t govern, all they need to do is to have people become convinced they’re dishonest too, and they might as well close up shop and watch as a 3rd party takes over.
One of the reasons we’ve never had another revolution is peoples trust that the system is ultimately fair and the right person gets elected by the people. If they ever find out it’s fixed………………….
bflat879 on October 26, 2010 at 11:44 PM
I get what you’re saying, Kini. You’re right, if schools and universities abolished tenure, there would be plenty of tenured faculty on the unemployment rolls– a good thing, especially because so many are ineffective liberal dolts. However, I’m not certain the graduation rates would necessarily increase if we purged the lazy teachers because the standards for instruction and grading would improve exponentially.
anXdem on October 26, 2010 at 11:48 PM
Crazy stuff. Call me naive but I can’t believe this type of correction goes on in America.
terryannonline on October 26, 2010 at 11:48 PM
Oy. It is time for me to go to asleep. I meant corruption…not correction.
terryannonline on October 26, 2010 at 11:50 PM
A noble goal. Unfortunately, the perhaps easily foreseen consequence is that now the government, political and social entities simply dictate who gets tenure.
At least in the humanities. In the sciences (except for AGW creep) it’s better.
Missy on October 26, 2010 at 11:51 PM
Believe it. It is that bad.
Missy on October 26, 2010 at 11:52 PM
It is so sad.
terryannonline on October 26, 2010 at 11:53 PM
How right you are. Tenure has long been a favorites game and the favorites nearly always are like-minded liberal kiss a$$es.
anXdem on October 26, 2010 at 11:57 PM
Of course the graduation rates will increase! K-12 entry level students into institutions of higher indoctrination needs much balance.
I think when you level the playing field, you can spread the wealth around, fairly, and earned individually.
Kini on October 27, 2010 at 12:04 AM
As much as the first video pssed me off, it’s actually the third one that just enrages me. HEre you are an NJEA higher-up describing matter-of-factly how an election was stolen. The fact is that it wasn’t a one time thing, this is how Democrats dominate blue states.
Apologetic California on October 27, 2010 at 12:15 AM
http://www.draftchristie2012.com/
Grunt on October 27, 2010 at 12:15 AM
Umm, I think the real problem is public school monopolies. The unions just exploit the taxpayers and the teachers.
AshleyTKing on October 27, 2010 at 12:38 AM
Hey, this is Katie Couric’s Middle Earth!
Kini on October 27, 2010 at 12:41 AM
OT: Some things never change as Obama votes absentee. Well, I guess he use to vote Present, so some things do change a little.
WoosterOh on October 27, 2010 at 12:44 AM
Fraud is what worries me about this election. I don’t think some of the slim leads for the GOP are not enough to overcome the corruption of the Dems. No wonder some of them are still confident about the results.
HellCat on October 27, 2010 at 12:47 AM
Nice to see James O’Keefe back on the right track, mostly.
And I’m just mad over Christie, we need someone like that here in California
Defector01 on October 27, 2010 at 12:49 AM
The third video illustrates just another hole in the process. You can come up with a perfect voting machine, manage the voting precincts perfectly, but if someone is inventive enough to create a non-existent voting location where they can tinker with machines all day, it is all for naught. There’s no technology that can substitute for honest citizens.
We can measure the extent of cheating by statistical techniques, like comparing turnout rates vs census, but judges don’t accept that as evidence. The system will not change until enough honest people are convinced that it is broken.
slickwillie2001 on October 27, 2010 at 12:50 AM
Was just released today per Andrew Breitbart.
SgtSVJones on October 27, 2010 at 12:54 AM
O’Keefe’s done some great public service, give him some credit.
slickwillie2001 on October 27, 2010 at 12:57 AM
More info here
SgtSVJones on October 27, 2010 at 12:59 AM
I wish James would stick to this stuff instead of trying to prank media types.
WoosterOh on October 27, 2010 at 1:05 AM
I LOL’d.
John the Libertarian on October 27, 2010 at 1:08 AM
Hint: what Reagan did with the flight controllers.
Shy Guy on October 27, 2010 at 1:11 AM
It’s becoming clear that these public sector unions are going to have to be broken.
It’s also clear that the federal government has become one large social welfare program seeking to employ as many people as possible (especially minorities) to empower them via government unions.
It may well be that the private sector may have to themselves “unionize” in order to confront the IRS head on in order to choke the source of funds feeding this incestuous marriage between the public employee Unions and the Federal government.
rickyricardo on October 27, 2010 at 1:36 AM
That would make a GREAT bumper sticker.
UltimateBob on October 27, 2010 at 2:05 AM
The only thing left is to link this crap with all the union endorsements of Democrats across the country…
… Rush, I hope you are watching.
Seven Percent Solution on October 27, 2010 at 2:10 AM
Listen I am all for these exposes by O’Keefe but I do have a couple of questions.
First on the voter fraud. Neapolitano is no friend to democrats and I would think he would be fairly easy to contact. If he was an attorney involved in this election they should have got him on record before releasing this. The NJEA guy may be talking out his as* to look good here or something. Why wasn’t Neapolitano part of this tape?
Second on the n-word allegations. Perhaps even this teacher’s colleagues believed it happened but that doesn’t mean it did. With the phone call to the superintendent there seems to be the suggestion that the mere allegation by a student should be enough. Sorry but BS. Nobody should lose their job simply because someone says something happened. There has to be proof. Is there any proof at all this even happened?
Rocks on October 27, 2010 at 2:21 AM
I HEART Christie.
Security Mom on October 27, 2010 at 2:27 AM
Oh, and let’s agree to stop calling them “Public” employee unions. Who decides this stuff? They are GOVERNMENT employee unions. Or even better, Government employee lobbies. Stop calling them “public”, because the public doesn’t fear the “public”– however, they DO fear the government.
Security Mom on October 27, 2010 at 2:36 AM
CRIMINALS!
TheAlamos on October 27, 2010 at 2:36 AM
According to Wikipedia (yeah, yeah I know but who would make this stuff up?):
The 1997 election is the one in which the NJEA official alleges fraud. In a reelection campaign for a very popular mayor they are rigging machines? He won by a substantial margin. I don’t see people going out on a limb and breaking the law for a hopeless cause. The official is trying to throw blame on someone else to divert attention from something else he is accused of IMHO.
Rocks on October 27, 2010 at 2:37 AM
TheAlamos on October 27, 2010 at 2:38 AM
One thing that has always bugged me about teachers; They are supposed to be professionals, all are college graduates, many have advanced degrees. Then why do they belong to a union. You would think they would be embarrassed to be under the thumb of a union. Instead they embrace it.
Dasher on October 27, 2010 at 4:00 AM
OFF TOPIC:
WHY IS THERE NO THREAD ABOUT CLIMATE FOOLS DAY (just google it!) HERE IN HOTAIR?
TO EVERYONE, HAPPY CLIMATE FOOLS DAY!
TheAlamos on October 27, 2010 at 4:13 AM
Just proves the old saying; “Those who can’t, teach.” That video is the reason I spent so much money on private schools. My advice to parents would be, keep your children far away from these people; “Home School.”
Done That on October 27, 2010 at 5:59 AM
Strange that the public schools can pass kids who can’t read or write and the military can take them in and get them reading and writing in months… if not weeks. Jerry Pournelle’s wife made a computerized system to teach english to adults, and the self-paced instruction was and is very successful. That was first made in the early 1990′s, and has been updated continuously for newer operating systems since then.
When the military and computer programs do a better job of teaching the basics than teachers do, then it is time for the teachers to be replaced or demonstrate that they can do it faster, better and cheaper than computers or the military can. Teaching must be automated for those things that we have good knowledge about and have good training software packages for…my guess is that ‘class size’ will soon be a thing of the past, as self-directed, self-paced instruction changes the face of learning and teaching. It is coming time to disintermediate learning from government, and do it better and more cheaply without its help… or with the help of dedicated professionals like the military does, not union apparatchiks as is currently the case.
ajacksonian on October 27, 2010 at 6:50 AM
Disturbing.
We are no more than a banana republic.
Our founders weep from their graves. And the boys and girls who have died on foreign soil for our right to vote. It makes me sick to my stomach.
stenwin77 on October 27, 2010 at 7:36 AM
Lake Tawakoni
Longtime beloved Texas Police Chief Jack Schultz (20 years on the force) and Sergeant John Beckett fired by small town Mayor Pete Yoho for being in the Tea Party.
maverick muse on October 27, 2010 at 7:39 AM
Hey, you know what’s a good idea? Letting the SEIU “maintain”
voting machines.
H/T: Drudge.
Barnestormer on October 27, 2010 at 7:40 AM
ajacksonian on October 27, 2010 at 6:50 AM
You good point provides that a formal education properly attained requires DISCIPLINE.
In the examples of success that you provide, either the adult students have their own self discipline learning through computerized coursework, or the juveniles require discipline from authority figures in order to exert the necessary effort themselves to LEARN as taught.
“Good” teachers denied authority can’t force a student to “learn” no matter how well lessons are “taught”.
In order to succeed, the students must have the will to learn, the motivation to learn in order to gain the desired goal.
The art of pedagogy contends that learning takes place within the student’s brain not simply by listening to lessons, reading assignments, but through PRACTICE. Lessons do not become one’s own knowledge until they’ve been properly practiced through real experience. Exams provide one source of “proof” whether or not a student has learned how to use lessons taught. But multiple choice testing proves nothing.
maverick muse on October 27, 2010 at 7:49 AM
getting a little antsy with what I’m seeing on drudge…
cmsinaz on October 27, 2010 at 7:54 AM
Barnestormer on October 27, 2010 at 7:40 AM
EXACTLY why I’ve been against voting machines all along.
All the easier to corrupt election results.
To prove fraud, there must be a paper trail. Paper Ballots!
In early elementary school, students ALL LEARN how to fill in the “correct answer” blank with the proper pencil/marker. The point of computerization is the scanning of those paper ballots.
Beyond that mechanization, every other sort of poked paper ballot with chads or computer touch screen voting machine is just an attempt to achieve voter fraud with a government contract to voter machine producers complete with kickback to those who legislated machines for voting booths.
Beyond the election fraud already occurring, acknowledged by poll watchers, don’t tell me that the logging in per voter does not provide feedback opportunity linking how you voted for those who program the computers to retrieve.
maverick muse on October 27, 2010 at 7:58 AM
cmsinaz on October 27, 2010 at 7:54 AM
Yeah, The Savage Nation took a lot of calls from Nevadan early voters, angry that their ballot computer refused to log in their DESIRED vote no matter how many times attempted, no matter who tried to vote for Angel.
maverick muse on October 27, 2010 at 8:01 AM
*shudder*
can’t report to the doj, they’ll just fluff it off…
cmsinaz on October 27, 2010 at 8:04 AM
Bing. Time to abolish unions altogether.
Jaibones on October 27, 2010 at 8:07 AM
I don’t like the Teachers Gone Wild shtick… this is serious stuff and needs to be approached as such.
This approach gives the already-converted a few giggles, but turns off everybody else. It’s not serious. The last piece about the voter fraud is far more effective.
mankai on October 27, 2010 at 8:14 AM
They probably like to compare themselves to Supreme Court justices – their jobs are just too darned important to let politics interfere with them.
Unless we’re talking about a conservative teacher, of course.
Do you think teachers in NJ could get fired for praying aloud in the classroom? I’ll bet they could. That’s much worse than calling a student the n word.
disa on October 27, 2010 at 8:15 AM
I wish there was an edited version of these 3 vids. Very repetitive in parts, and O’Keefe’s commentary should be more serious. Stop with the shtick already.
Buy Danish on October 27, 2010 at 8:32 AM
Aw that’s a shame….
Not a looker in the bunch.
jeffn21 on October 27, 2010 at 8:37 AM
As a prof, I disagree with this, and here’s why:
1. I generally get great student evaluations (although I have one class this semester that I agreed to take because no one else would teach it–it is filled with slackers who never should have been admitted and will absolutely trash me in evals, as well as a handful of good students). Nevertheless, students are not in a position of evaluating my work and my material–they don’t know what they will need in the future (I once had a graduate student in a research methods class complain that she would never need to know how to do research, even though her career goals were in a research field–I guess she thought she’d have an assistant to do the “icky” work).
2. I’m a conservative libertarian, and my colleagues are all raging lefties. Although I get along with them on a personal level, professionally I have no doubt they would rather replace me with someone who doesn’t contradict the indoctrination they ceaselessly attempt.
In a perfect world, students would come to college prepared to work hard and learn from professors with a devotion to intellectual honesty and a recognition that classrooms (and research, for that matter) are not their own political soapboxes. Unfortunately, as you know, this is far from a perfect world.
I wish I had the answer. I don’t believe in student evaluations. I don’t believe in tenure. I think the whole system is bereft of integrity born of “educational romanticism” (Charles Murray’s phrase). Despite the fact that it will probably destroy my job, Glenn Reynolds’ predicted burst of the education bubble can’t come too soon for me.
DrMagnolias on October 27, 2010 at 9:00 AM
That third video is chilling. A friend of mine ran Bret Schundler’s campaign in 1997 and we all knew there was massive fraud, but nobody could prove it. Bret and his campaign manager received numerous death threats as well. The unions, including the NJEA, are so mobbed-up in New Jersey that they break anything and anyone who threatens their control.
I was always surprised that “The Sopranos” never touched political activity by the Jersey mob. It’s how they stay in power.
rockmom on October 27, 2010 at 9:00 AM
You’d think supposedly educated people would get tired of supporting thugs who live large off their dimes and lie to them in their face. I mean the union leaders not dem politicians, but either way it fits.
Kissmygrits on October 27, 2010 at 9:18 AM
This will just open the door to further “legitimate” investigations. Imagine how well an audit and public airing of their financial records is going to go over! Just the knowledge that most of the “Stimulus” money went to bail these people out is going to come into sharp focus. This needs to be kept in the public eye.
Cindy Munford on October 27, 2010 at 9:24 AM
Crazy stuff. Call me naive but I can’t believe this type of correction goes on in America.
terryannonline on October 26, 2010 at 11:48 PM
Honestly, your comment doesn’t doesn’t suprise me at all. These are things that Rush, Glenn, Laura, and many of the other voices you don’t care for have BEEN SAYING FOR A LONG TIME.
I can’t wait to hear your SCHOCK about 0bamacare after all the dirty pesky facts come out.
Harry S on October 27, 2010 at 9:51 AM
that would be *shock*
Harry S on October 27, 2010 at 9:51 AM
Agreed, the shtick kind of irritates me as well. I really wish O’Keefe would lay off the gimmicks and present his reporting a little more seriously. Maybe he’s aiming to convert young audiences but that Girls Gone Wild theme wound me up after about 30 seconds. His heart is in the right place and he’s got a lot of bottle but he just needs to work on his tone because it comes across as a little immature.
Sharke on October 27, 2010 at 11:03 AM
Agreed. I just realized after reading your post that my perfect world of higher ed involving the instruments through which faculty are evaluated isn’t all that perfect.
Student assessments and perceptions of effectiveness are often based on personality and teaching style rather than curriculum substance and instructional design. Assessments of faculty by department chairs are also subjective and can be motivated by ideology rather than performance.
I don’t have the answer to the tenure dilemma either. Like you, I wish I did.
anXdem on October 27, 2010 at 11:18 AM
Nope!
No good and earnest man is in a union.
Good men have scruples and will never contribute to a union.
esnap on October 27, 2010 at 11:54 AM
Meanwhile, we can fantasize about the perfect world. :)
DrMagnolias on October 27, 2010 at 12:46 PM
WNRT the NY PBS station that is legally in NJ is stuffed with advertising, and yes Public Television carries advertising, for the New Jersey teacher’s union.
Leave aside for a moment all the questions about a taxpayer supported group lobbying to increase support for higher taxes and higher wages for government employees by spending tax exempt dollars on a publicly owned broadcaster. Leave aside all the questions about any government agency or employee seeking to lobby for their personal benefit or distribute propaganda regarding policy. Forgetting that in WW-II the Democratic Party forced the Democratic President to curtail OWI activities because it was seen as undemocratic.
Just look at The NJEA spending money on PBS the same way you looked at NPR using taxpayer dollars to coerce Juan Williams’ freedom of association and speech. Look at the PBS, NPR, NJEA, etc. as gigantic shell games moving taxpayer or tax exempt “member fees” between government owned units and government employee unions and outside contracting agencies. The sums involved are significant.
LifeofTheMind on October 29, 2010 at 4:04 AM