Thursday, November 9, 2006

"Yadda-yadda-yadda," he said


1. "I'M DONE." In this morning’s OC Register—Students at odds over Pledge of Allegiance—public rituals—involving mention of "God"—take another hit:
Passions ran high at Orange Coast College on Wednesday after a vote by student government leaders to stop recognizing the Pledge of Allegiance…Three of five Associated Students trustees took the action Monday, with board member Jason Ball calling the flag salute "irrelevant to the business of student government."…"While it's great to be an American, and I'm proud to be an American, yadda-yadda-yadda, and I appreciate all the rituals, I'm done" saluting the flag, Ball said Wednesday.

…[A] dozen students crowded board chambers Wednesday to decry the move…Sophomore Chris Belanger, who accused the board of "radical views and anti-Americanism," waved the American flag at the start of the meeting.

…Concerns about the phrase "under God," central to a 2002 ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, factored in the trustees' move, Ball said before the meeting…In that case – which the Supreme Court ultimately dismissed on procedural grounds – circuit court justices were concerned about a possible church-state conflict….
Recently, the Academic Senates of the South Orange County Community College District passed resolutions objecting to board meeting invocations that are prayers. Naturally, they do not object to prayer per se; rather, they object to prayer as alienating of segments of the community. See Prayer and resolutions

2. BETTER THAN ORLANDO. From this morning’s Inside Higher Ed:
The Maricopa Community College District [in Arizona] has barred administrators from taking all-expenses-aid (by the district) foreign trips, The Arizona Republic reported. The new rules follow the newspaper’s report several weeks ago on numerous trips abroad by officials of Mesa Community College and the expenses on those trips — some of which involved fancy meals or tourism.
According to the Arizona Republic:
…[T]he [trips by teams of administrators] included stays at $250-a-night hotels, meals at choice restaurants and excursions in cities such as Amsterdam, Netherlands; London; Dublin, Ireland; and Hong Kong on paid workdays.

Although the trips were billed as intensive working sessions that involved back-to-back meetings, college records showed officials on some trips spent more days sightseeing, shopping and exploring than they did in meetings.
SOCCCD Trustee John Williams has exploited his position to take junkets to Orlando, FL and elsewhere though similar meetings and conventions are available in CA. See: Closing in on junket abuse?

3. YEAH, BUT HE GOT THOUSANDS OF VOTES. From yesterday’s OC Register: Rocco loses bid for community college district seat:
…Rocco was dubbed "the mystery guy" in 2004 when he won the Orange Unified seat without campaigning…Just like in 2004, Rocco did not show up at candidate forums, put up signs or file a ballot statement for the Rancho Santiago seat.
4. CALL ON ME. Looks like the youth vote really is on the rise. In this morning’s San Francisco Chronicle: Growing youth turnout is good news for Dems: 
Phone calls, handshakes, even text messages encouraged those under 30 to go to polls:
Two million more young people voted Tuesday than in the 2002 midterm elections -- but not because of trendy new campaigning tactics like uploading videos on YouTube or posting candidates' profiles on MySpace. Instead, 18-to-29-year-olds were compelled to vote because of one of the oldest media tactics: Somebody asked them, often in person....
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Roy's obituary in LA Times and Register: "we were lucky to have you while we did"

  This ran in the Sunday December 24, 2023 edition of the Los Angeles Times and the Orange County Register : July 14, 1955 - November 20, 2...