Friday, February 22, 2008

Park Ranger Bob on leave; flags taken down


.....1. TALK ABOUT YOUR ADMINISTRATIVE INSTABILITY! This morning, Chancellor Mathur announced that ATEP Provost Bob Kopecky is "on leave." Irvine Valley College President Glenn Roquemore will take on Bob’s duties on an interim basis.
.....Something tells me that this "leave" is permanent.



.....2. COMPLAINT ABOUT DISPLAY OF VIETNAM FLAG. Last night, the college took down all those little flags of the world that hung from the 2nd floor atrium (is that what it’s called?) of IVC’s Student Services Center. Evidently, someone of Vietnamese descent took offense to the flag of Vietnam.


.....As you know, the current Vietnamese government is the same government that took over the country not long after we “declared victory” and left back in 1973. They're commies!
.....Either the offended person or some organization—I don’t have the details—threatened to bring in “busloads” of protesters unless the little flag was taken down.
.....Evidently, the college opted to defuse the situation by taking down all of the flags.
.....I’ll miss France especially.

.....UPDATE (2/25): as far as anyone knows, the flags were put up by student government more than a decade ago. I'm told that, indeed, an organization with a history of mobilizing large groups of protesters did threaten to bring busloads of very angry people to campus. Pres. Roquemore acted quickly and solicited advice/input, from, among others, government officials and the cabinet of the Academic Senate. For now at least, the flags are down and the specter of protests is removed. I'm not sure whether that action is intended as final. Naturally, some observers object to this kind of action, pointing to a "slippery slope" of acceding to unreasonable demands. Others emphasize that the objecting organization's intent with regard to protest entailed an unusually serious risk of violence.)


.....3. ONE SMALL STEP FOR FLORIDA. Today, Bob Park reports that “In approving new science standards, the state education board in Florida has for the first time ever used the word 'evolution.' That’s a huge step forward. At the last minute, Southern Baptists on the board insisted that 'evolution' be changed to 'the scientific theory of evolution.' That’s even better. Evolution is, after all, 'only a theory,' as is all of science. Florida teachers can now cite state standards as justification for teaching that science, unlike religion, is open to change as better information becomes available.”

32 comments:

Anonymous said...

They took down all the flags?

Glenn, the former geologist, is now a park ranger? Will he get to wear the uniform? Who will be his BooBoo Bear?

Anonymous said...

Kudos, CW! I like your unbiased coverage of recent events!

Anonymous said...

Glenn will attend tonight's Homecoming Game in full Park Ranger regalia!

Anonymous said...

I heard the official excuse is that they took the flags down to wash them and they plan on re-hanging them next week with, perhaps, one particular flag missing.

Anonymous said...

The local Vietnamese just don't get the point about free expression, and get their panties in a bunch any time they see some political pov that offends them. And to think they bitch and moan about political oppression in the homeland.

What hypocrites.

Anonymous said...

Bob Kopecky did what he could with what he was given and now look what they did to him ---

Typical.

Give ATEP another year or so and it will be history.

Anonymous said...

Isn't this what faculty wanted all along? They must be celebrating!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for all this coverage, Chunk.

Since we lost the student newspaper the only way most of this stuff gets out is through you.

Anonymous said...

HISTORY: The reason we don't have a student newspaper at IVC is that Raghu didn't like what the students wrote and so he destroyed the program. It's better for him if fewer people know what is happening.

Did Glenn send out some announcement explaining the removal of the flags like he usually does when trees are cut down or clock towers disassembled?

Anonymous said...

Why no word still about the threatened Accreditation?

Anonymous said...

Sounds like moves that Raghu learned in that online diploma mill school of management he went to:

1) locate a scapegoat before you're made responsible for your own mismanagement!

2) when busloads of people threaten you, take down all the flags in the middle of the night and hope no one notices!

3) announce all unpopular decisions early on a Friday morning to a small group of people and never say a word about indefensible decisions - if you don't talk, it didn't really happen!

Is it true that Raghu ran a stealth campaign for IVC's secret Homecoming King? Will he be donning his robe and crown tonight and waving his scepter?

You know how he loves to wave his scepter!

torabora said...

A rational flag policy would have a flag for each country of student national representation each semester.

If one of your student is a Vietnamese national then TS.

Of course, trustee Fuentes is going to still have a problem with Spain.

Anyway it makes the flags SAY something, rather than being bunting.

Anonymous said...

What about MEXICO?

Anonymous said...

Mexico?

Que pasa?

Anonymous said...

Did Bob Kopecky have retreat rights? Will he become one of us now?

Anonymous said...

Careful Chunk - with that flag up there, they're likely to come after you!

Anonymous said...

I love this place!

Anonymous said...

Hmm. I wonder what will happen when the would-be protesters discover that we have a model UN on campus...heck, I wonder what will happen when Fuentes discovers that we have a model UN on campus!

Anonymous said...

Gotta love the administration - they don't address OUR concerns (expressed now for over a decade)- but let someone from the outside ask for something and whammo, they get it.

Anonymous said...

Who makes decisions like these? Based on what? When do they plan to tell us the truth about anything around here?

Anonymous said...

Why no pics of Bob Kopecky?

Anonymous said...

Masterful leadership at work!

That's why they get the big money and we don't!

Anonymous said...

What happened to having a spine? Tell the foreign national to bring in the protesters, and leave the flags up.

Anonymous said...

It's so easy to critize when you're not the ones who will have to personally deal with what could potentially be an everyday occurrence of protesters coming to the college about the flags. Whether the protestors are right or wrong, is it really worth anyone's time to deal with that day in and day out? We're an academic institution and people have their jobs to do. So they took down the flags -- is it really worth getting our collective panties in a bunch?

Anonymous said...

I don't know about you but I don't wear panties.

Anonymous said...

Perhaps we can hang panties from the second floor of the student services building...some kind of variation on the panty raid...I mean, now that we have a homecoming king and queen...very collegiate!

Anonymous said...

Such a responsive administration!

One would wish that they would be so quick to repsond to issues of real import to the college!

Anonymous said...

My money is on the flag's quick return minus the Vitenamese flag. In its place, they'll put the new Kosovo flag. Glenn has been knitting it all weekend.

Anonymous said...

let's just hang a white flag in it's place!!

Anonymous said...

A pirate flag!

Arrrgh!

Anonymous said...

Sure, 10:25, but then why give in to the bullies?

Their petty threats should be challenged.

Anonymous said...

But that how the district has been run for 10 years now - by bullies who demand people give in.

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...