DOLLAR DAZE III - THE ART OF INCREASING

 have to admit there is an increase in next year's budget I was glad to see, sort of. That would be in the FINE ARTS department. It seems their budget increased almost $70,000 this year and well as a POET I may not be TOTALLY objective, what made mt heart jump was that salaries remained level while.......

  the money looks like it's going to where the kids are.

DOLLAR DAZE III - TALK JUST GOT CHEAPER

Surely this is covered by the big additions in other lines...

BUT....

$7000 was budgeted last year for IEP translation. this year - 0.

SPED STUDENT SHUFFLE

Listened tp a parent complain at OPEN MIKE about HOW the SPECIAL ED kids' classrooms are shuffled around taking those kids away from their community school. Of course, I am not a lawyer and I don't know the law but she was a MOTHER waving a SPED law book. All I know is that if I was LPS I would be nervous.

LYNN, LYNN CITY OF CRIMSON

DR/ LATHAM announced at Thursday night's LSC meeting that of the 4 students on the North Shore who got accepted into HARVARD/ One from ENGLISH, one from CLASSICAL, and one from ST. MARY'S.

DOLL.AR DAZE III - WANT TO WASTE

Kennedy: Lynn kindergarten busing plan likely to hold

Something needs to be done to reduce crowding but it ain't this. It's a pretty well known fact that JUDY has a pretty definitive track record on WASTE MANAGEMENT. look at how she handled the recent rodent invasion.

OH. she didn't. Not really. Some trash taxes were levied bit the landlords and the rats didn't pay those.

She seems to have a history on imposing solutions on the easiest targets. Those five year old's don't vote, their parents will have a hard tome getting organized to fight it, and the overcrowding problem will APPEAR to be solved when possibly MASSES of parents REFUSE to send their kids on the bus since kindergarten is not MANDATORY.

OF COURSE.....

that could mean scores of first graders woefully unprepared which will translate to lower MCAS scores down the road and we all know how the world revolves around those.

Why are we spending $270,000 busing babies when we have kids more than 5 X'S grades ahead who could walk someplace for FREE!

DON'T WORRY THOUGH OL'JFK HAS THE ANSWER -
JUST FOR NOW

Maybe we should start calling her JFN!

PENSION TENSION

I hear the the retiring principal
was treated out of hand
at that little school
they call CALLAHAN..

A man much admired,
on the verge of being fired.
Now the parents will have their say,
in the end the super will pay.

INGALLS MESMERIZE CROWD

Fans of tonight's NAVIGATOR game were treated to the SWEET sounds of the INGALLS SCHOOL chorus. In the bottom of the 7th we got to hear them.sing  GOD BLESS AMERICA and TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALL GAME. They returned in the 8th to sing an acopella version of SWEET CAROLINE.

OUT-DATED

Somebody please help me out here. I thought I remembered them setting a meeting date for the BOND vote for JUNE 30th . I was there but who knows? Somebody must.

All of this letter writing has got me confused.

BAGS, HOLDINGS, AND A TANK

We learned last night that we DON'T even have access to all of the land necessary yet for the NEW MARSHALL. Yeah the big COMMERCIAL plot has been taken by IMMINENT DOMAIN. Papers have been signed, MONEY has changed hands (and we've been left holding the tank)......

HOWEVER......

there are two residences out there that well we don't got yet. I'm sure we will by the BOND vote. I'm sure they will.

THE IMPORTANT THING IS SOMEBODY GOT PAID!

PARENTS ON THE AGENDA

http://www.lynnschools.org/documents/district/school_committee/2013_notices/school_committee_june_19_2013_7pm.pdf

THE CALVARY COMES FROM CALLAHAN

This sounds like the title to an old JOHN WAYNE movie or some spaghetti western. By using those reference you know that I am not just a poor, disabled poet - I'm old too.

Here I was, the meeting room was semi-packed. Of course I had no trouble getting my customary seat though. SMILE FOR THE CAMERA!

Coming over the ridge from yonder there, waving rolled up budget sheets were at least half a dozen angry mamas making up a posse that meant business. I believe if LPS knows what''s good for them they'll circle the wagons or at least put the tables up front in an oval.

At OPEN-MIKE they covered issues from class size to SPED LAW. One mama was packin a copy of some SPED LAW book. I was a waitin for her to take DR. Latham out in the hall for a legal duel. You know, REGULATIONS at thirty paces.

They also were a little upset about their retiring principal being done wrong by LATHAM. He was one of the ones who didn't get a cut from the stolen ( Okay misappropriated but I had a professor warn me once about mixed metaphors). They're angry and I think they're gonna show it!

 Looks like my little band of OUTLAWS just got a few more recruits

MAMA, DON'T LET YOUR BABIES GROW UP TO BE COWBOYS.....

BE ONE YOURSELF!

LPS IN THE TANK FOR MARSHALL

I've seen it written that this NEW Marshall(with a WOTRING WING) won't be another CLASSICAL Comforting words....

BUT.....

not ALL words are true, Take for example the disclosure tonight that the newly acquired property surprisingly came with 25,000 gallons pf some liquid but I guess they weren't ready to tell us just what it is just yet.

Herr Donovan (don't mind me, just practicing a little freshman German, you don;t use it you lose it you know) appeared to me that we were surprised it was there. I guess maybe they had placed a rug over that spot..

Don't worry, it;s probably not leaking whatever it is, No ut looks like all 25.000 gallons are there. That must have been some rug huh.

I mean the disposal cost is sort of reasonable. They are guesstimating about $120,000. That amount probably varies depending on what the liquid actually is, You could get a few books for that.

DOLLAR DAZE III - SHORT DOLLARS

There is going to be an EXECUTIVE SESSION tonight where they are supposed to suggest bargaining strategies in regards to principals raises. a non-union contract issue.Since they probably won't save me a seat, I thought it best I offer up my opinion here.

THEY CAN'T HAVE ONE!

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for principals being well paid. They have direct contact with our kids and their office is in the same building as where our kids are....

BUT.....

didn't a bunch of princiPALS get raises last year from some CIRCUIT BREAKER SPOILS? Oh that's right they weren't exactly raises, they were structural elevations. I believe our superintendent's was about 25K. I believe all of this activity has led or contributed  to some sort of renegotiation with the TEACHER;S UNION (that probably also has to do with increased demands imposed on them).

DOLLAR DAZE III - OUT OF PLACE, OUT OF MIND BUT STILL IN THE POCKET

Looks like our out of district placement are up about $700.000 this year. I don'y lnpw the number of students served but I would think any increase is just a continued reflection of somebody's failure to make the services available,

We should just do what we need to do unless we like employing bus drivers. In that case, I could use a ride to the grocery store.

On a good note, our OUT OF DISTRICT tutoring costs remained level at 72K. Is this like FOREIGN EXCHANGE?

DOLLAR DAZE III - RISE TO THE OCCASION OR WAS IT AN OCCASION TO RAISE

I admit I was confused. I mean it's common knowledge that I am no darn good in MATH. You see us people from back in the mountains, I mean they have to pipe in the sunshine for goodness sake how can you expect for us to deal with these numbers and keep our shoes on? A fella just gets darn near tuckrtrd out just repeating all of those syllables so how we gonna keep track of all that money?

You see I seem to recollect that not too dad-gum long ago there were all these raises to certain positions you see, one in particular comes to mind. I believe somebody got a 25K dollar raise and I believe some sekect princiPALS got smaller but significant ones. For the life of me I can't find evidence of them.

That's because I think those MATH people are just plumb smarter than me, You see by backdating structural changes to the positions compensation formula, them smarty pants caused an elevation that did show up as happening because it already happened. It required an almost dogmatic belief. You must have faith, my son!

Since we back dated raises with a vote of the committee, I wonder if they made revisions to last year's posted budget?

LET'S THINK ABOUT LEAVING IT TO THE LAWYERS

Here is some food for thought! You see if the vote that sparked the petition drive to force a PUBLIC HEARING was ILLEGAL in the first place.

THEN......

it would seem to me that the legitimacy of the PUBLIC HEARING would be in SERIOUS question because then there would have been no technical vote taken.....

SO....

therefore NO reconsideration vote could be taken because it never happened in the first place Follow that?

Phew! This KINDERGARTEN stuff sure ain't CHILD'S play..

A GAME OF SHADOWS

What if after all of the trouble of causing a public hearing to be held, no vote for reconsideration of the original vote to form the kindergarten center is taken? The city charter only mandates a hearing be held, not a vote be taken. What is required is final action which could be translated as NO ACTION.

If that were to happen , then the original plan would go forth right? Yeah I guess so.....

UNLESS.....

I was right all along and the ORIGINAL vote was an ILLEGAL vote because of improper posting and therefore that vote would be null and VOID. So to proceed with the KINDERGARTEN CENTER would be illegal putting LPS at serious risk of being fined by the ATTORNEY GENERAL

So if I'm wrong and they always say I am, why even have the vote? Let us say our piece because your mandated to do so but then forget about it because we all know you are not going to change your mind. Just let the first vote stand and we'll just ask for a ruling from the AG.

Works for me!

DO I THINK NOW THAT CHARTER SCHOOLS ARE A GOOD IDEA?

It had to happen. I know some of you out ther have been waiting for mme to come around to your way of thinking. Well you don't have to wait any longer. After talking with one if the unpaid consultants in my office, I have done a 180 in my thinking on charter schools, a little MORE than 180 in fact..

Now I think we should expand the business model int other areas of public government. You see I want to start my own semi-private police force with the rest of you picking up the tab. You see I need protection. There are people out there who don't like me. Hey, if rich people get bodyguards and the President has his SECRET SERVICE why can't I?

I encourage other entrepreneural types out there to form their own businesses. I hear the FIRE DEPARTMENT could use a little competition. Why should the MAYOR get to hire all the fireman?

Remember I did say MORE than 180, in fact it was 360. That kind of brings me back to my original position,

HOW DO YOU LIKE ME NOW?

DOLLAR DAZE III - THE LANGUAGE OF COMPLIANCE

Remember how we were told we were compliant with translation and all and that the PLEA DEAL was like an unnecessary formality? Then I found that $97,000 increase in CONTRACTED TRANSLATION services. Now I've found about a $150,000 in the ELL budget. Of course if I read things right we are talking a big uptick in salary costs. You see non-salary costs actually DROPPED $50 K.

DOESN'T SOUND LIKE ABOVE AND BEYOND COMPLIANCE LIKE WE WERE TOLD. DOES IT?

HAS PHELAN FOUND A NEW FRIEND IN ME?

Phelan letter on Marshall vote rankles mayor

Tim, Tim, Tim, you should have came to ME before getting the MAYOR all upset. That is MY job. You see don;t let them kid you, you are right to have questions about the moving of the BOND vote.

I know I have needled you a little in the past but you see it's the poet in me, I couldn't resist. We did have this little disagreement over FACEBOOK  and well I went in a PHONETIC FRENZY. Alliteration is a poet's occupational hazard for us poets.

First lets talk about the SIZE of the BOND. Originally I was reporting we were going to have to borrow the whole amount. But the waters were muddied at the LSC meetings and they kept stressing that it was going to be pay as you go and we were at least given the PERCEPTION that we would not have to put the WHOLE amount at RISK. I began to doubt myself I mean, if you listen to them I have a history of being wrong.

I guess I'm better at HISTORY than MATH, especially the new math and their fancy way of figuring.

Now I have been screaming before that the CITY COUNCIL should have some sort of liaison in the audience at the LSC meeting since the MAYOR chairs the meetings given her an unfair advantage. I mean, half of the CITY'S budget is LPS'S spending. It just seems to me that council would want to know how the money is being spent.

The date was set at the last LSC meeting. A vote was taken. Now I see in the paper JOHN FORD is trying to give the MAYOR wiggle room by saying the language was about INTENTION. Really, do you think Mr, FORD is an expert on language? That my friend is a FOUL idea. Roll the video tape.

You are RIGHT to call for a QUICK BOND vote for a couple, three reasons. You see by delaying the vote it gives me more time to pick apart the fiscal irregularities; there is that 90 day window after the end of the feasibility study and by pushing the date of the vote back ,well that doesn't give you a chance to scramble to find alternative funding if you get a NO vote; and this later date will mean a HIGHER voter turnout which could make it problematic to get the thing passed.

Looks like I have to side with you on this one TIMMY BOY but I'm not sure too many people want me on their side. I mean you can't trust me because I fight for the truth all the time which is not always their version, you know FACTS 2.0.