The only thing we have to fear...

Yes, my daughter attended her final swim lesson at Amherst College. Living in fear is no way to live. One of the great advantages of living in the greatest county on earth is that when we declare war on something, we win.

Sent: Fri, 1 May 2009 2:52 pm

Subject: Saturday Swim Lessons

Greetings from the Amherst Pool!

We will be having the final Saturday lessons as scheduled tomorrow. We are aware of the cases of swine flu on the Amherst campus but after speaking with administrators who have been in constant communication with medical personnel, we are comfortable conducting lessons as usual since none of our instructors have been affected. We are encouraging them to take all necessary precautions and to find a substitute instructor if they are not feeling well.

If you and your children are healthy we encourage you to come for the last day but if you have doubts about your health we ask that you please do not attend your lesson.

We hope to see you healthy tomorrow!

Thank you again for participating in our swim lesson program!

Sincerely,

Karin Brown
Assistant Men's and Women's Swimming Coach
Amherst College


Well I guess not everyone showed up:
Monday, May 4:

Thank you for your notification. As I'm sure with other parents, we decided
to keep our children home. We were not comfortable sending our kids after
reading all the precautions that are being taken to protect other AC
students from infection. The swimming classes have been great and it was
unfortunate that you could not have postpone the lesson for the following
Saturday.

We also were not comfortable with your statement, "We are encouraging
them to take all necessary precautions and to find a substitute
instructor if they are not feeling well."  It would have felt better if you
said something like, "Any staff who is not feeling well will not teach."
Parents need clear supportive statements.  Thank you.

I've got a secret

Click to enlarge/read

UPDATE: Friday afternoon
So the Gazette, finally, caught up with this fascinating behind-the-scenes soap opera on the hiring of the new Super. And they even allowed me attribution for breaking the story but describe me as a "town meeting member."

But today's Amherst Bulletin has a mention of my 'Trespass Order' getting lifted (on highly read page 3) where I'm described as a "town meeting member and local blogger." Out of those two, I of course prefer the latter.
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UPDATE Thurdsay: 1:45 PM
So I had to change a stinky diaper and other daddy duties thus did not add any comments. I wanted to get this up fast (not that I was worried about the Gazette getting around to it) and I think the document and vote speaks volumes.

But you gotta wonder...on this most important symbolic issue (and politically savvy PR folks know well it is the little things that matter to voters)one-third of the Regional School Committee could not be bothered to show up and vote? Yikes! But hey that's what you get with unpaid volunteers.
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ORIGINAL POST: 12:30 PM Picture only (15 minutes after receiving the document)

More hats than a haberdashery

Click to read the coalition

Vince O’Connor has created more front organizations than the Mafia. The Zoning groups Alisa refers to during her cross-examination were all created by Vince over a particular issue. All of his “coalitions” are one trick ponies designed to give the cause more gravitas. And since it only takes 10 signatures to get on the warrant he has a small but dedicated following of ‘The Usual Suspects’.

The ban is lifted

I had a very nice meeting this morning with Superintendent Geryk. The Trespass Notice is vacated. And I made the same deal with her that I made with BIG Al the former Super (who is still getting paid): That anytime I visit a school I will announce myself at the main office.

Of course BIG Al enacted the Trespass Notice anyway, even though I honored my end of the deal.

Wow...now I can attend Town Meeting. Kind of like the Governor giving a death row inmate a stay of execution but sentencing them to hard labor breaking rocks in the desert sun.

A stirring symbol

Click to enlarge/read

Adhering to that antiquated bricks-and-mortar media custom “never apologize, never explain” today’s Gazette editorial hits the perfect, hard-to-reach high note of the Star Spangled Banner.

Too bad they did not sound off last year.

Note to all you folks outside the Happy Valley: the Amherst Bulletin is the 30+-year-old (red headed lesbian bastard stepchild) sister publication of the venerable 220+-year-old Daily Hampshire Gazette.

Bully Editorial last year

A simple symbol

Borrowing from the Air Force "missing man formation" to honor the fallen, the Child Welfare League of America designed a hard-to-miss Children's Memorial Flag. The town put it up Friday in solidarity with National Child Abuse Prevention Month (April.)

Nice gesture. (Now if we could just lose the UN Flag)

Blogger reprieve with update (at least I asked)

UPDATE 10:00 PM:
From: Debbie Westmoreland
To: amherstac@aol.com
Cc: Maria Geryk

Sent: Mon, 27 Apr 2009 1:16 pm
Subject: Appointment w/Superintendent
Dear Mr. Kelley:

Thank you for contacting me to set up the meeting Superintendent Geryk
requested. She is available at 9:00 a.m. this Wednesday, April 29th, which I
understand is also a convenient time for you to meet. If your availability has
changed, please let me know. Otherwise, she will plan to meet with you here in
the Superintendent's Office on Wednesday.

Thank you,

Deb

amherstac@aol.com> 4/27/2009 1:38 PM

Hey Deb,

Works for me. May I record the meeting?

Larry


From: Debbie Westmoreland
To: amherstac@aol.com
Sent: Mon, 27 Apr 2009 4:05 pm
Subject: Re: Appointment w/Superintendent

Hi Mr. Kelley:

I'm glad the meeting time is still O.K. for you. I checked with Maria and she
does not want the meeting recorded.

Thanks,

Deb

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ORIGINAL POST: 10:00 AM
Damn, now I don't have a good excuse to miss Town Meeting next week--although in mid-June I'll be in Korea (the good half) so if they are still droning on...

So what is the interim Super going to do, make me write 100 times "I will not criticize the venerable Amherst School system", or as the Sisters of St. Joseph used to do--make me hold out my hand and WHAM with a wooden ruler???????

The original notice