Intercepts
A listening post monitoring public education and teachers’ unions.

After the original list of bizarre ideas was trimmed, it appears the California Teachers Association settled for traditional rallies, sit-ins and sing-alongs. Oakland, of course, is the outlier, with a flash mob planned for Thursday, along with an exhortation for people to close their Wells Fargo bank accounts.

The CTA protesters and the Sheehan protesters are co-existing – a little uneasily, as a silent CTA march to the Capitol turned into noisy chanting from the Sheehan crowd. And the group that occupied the rotunda apparently had a few differences of opinion as well, as this video from the San Francisco Chronicle shows:

Sixty-five protesters were arrested after repeatedly refusing to leave the building. During the arrests, the crowd chanted in tribute to Rick Hess:

The Orange County Register added these details:

Dozens of college students, apparently protesting in solidarity with teachers, have crowded into the first floor hallway outside Gov. Jerry Brown’s office, where it’s a bit cramped and clearly starting to get smelly.

Among the college students was a hostile and paranoid group from Santa Cruz, some of whom wore red arm bands. An Orange County Register reporter tried to ask them what the arm bands stood for, but they accused him of being “very sketchy” and of being a spy for the government despite his clearly visible press credentials.

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1) Talk Among Yourselves

2) Last Week’s Intercepts

3) Quote of the Week

Of course it was inevitable that the National Education Association would endorse President Obama for reelection. Who else? But the timing caused some overinterpretation and I’ve been answering questions about it this week.

If you’ll remember, in 2007 NEA hosted all the Democratic presidential candidates at its convention, and ended up finding them all “acceptable” (except for Mike Huckabee). Certainly the union would have like to endorsed a candidate earlier than the summer of 2008, but it – like the rest of the Democratic Party – was split between Obama and Hillary Clinton. Unwilling to take the plunge and expose any rifts over the choice, NEA punted until Obama had sewn up the nomination.

This time around, there is no reason to wait. There will be no primary challenge to Obama, and even if there were, NEA would back the incumbent. There is never a chance that NEA will endorse a Republican for President – not just because of ideology, but because the union’s decision-makers are invariably Democrats – active, involved party Democrats.

Why the rush? Technically, NEA’s PAC can’t spend any money on the 2012 Presidential race until the endorsement is ratified by the delegates at the annual representative assembly in July. With campaigns now lasting 18-24 months, NEA doesn’t want to be on the sidelines until July 2012.

Still, I suspect that even dyed-in-the-wool Democrats among the delegates will take the opportunity of the early endorsement to point out the President’s first-term flaws on the issues of education and labor. But Obama defeated his toughest opposition in 2008 (Hillary) without NEA’s help, and he won’t need its help to defeat the weak GOP field in 2012. So I expect the relations between NEA and the President will remain essentially the same during his second term.

Both the California Teachers Assocation and anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan were quick to announce yesterday that their plans to occupy the state Capitol on the same day had nothing to do with each other.

Sheehan called it “pure coincidence,” making it only the second-most ridiculous thing she’s said this week.

CTA stated that Sheehan’s actions and the union’s had “no connection.” This claim was much more believable since the last thing CTA wants is a bunch of fringe liberal special interest groups hogging the spotlight from a mainstream liberal special interest group.

But don’t worry that Sheehan and her supporters will be dwarfed by the $5 million CTA turnout. She’s mustering the militia for occupation duties:

We’re also meeting and working with a lot of coalitions of homeless Sacramentans, who were hoping to come out and join us. I mean, why should you go camp by the river? Why should you camp under bridges? Don’t hide from the people who are causing this problem. Come here to Sacramento, come right here on our State Capitol grounds.

It might provide only a minimal boost to the disastrous California economy, but some enterprising individual could probably make a few bucks opening a popcorn stand near the Capitol.

May 9th marks the beginning of the “state of emergency” protests organized by the California Teachers Association. But when you have guaranteed crowds and media coverage for street theater, what’s to stop the bandwagon-jumpers from hijacking your message?

Enter noted anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan (“I am sorry, but if you believe the newest death of OBL, you’re stupid.”), who chose May 9 to stage her “Occupy Sacramento!” protest in conjunction with groups such as the Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian Universalists, Breasts Not Bombs, Canadians for Action on Climate Change, and the ever-popular Stop Smart Meters!

In a press release, Sheehan announced a “prolonged occupation” of the state Capitol “in support of the scheduled presence of California Teachers Association next week.” And as long as they’re hanging around, they might as well demand to end state funding for National Guard Units leaving California, ”drastically alter Criminalization Codes,” enact single-payer health care, and “create a zero carbon economy.”

I’ve been checking all of CTA’s web and social media outlets, and I don’t see any mention of this extraordinary public relations coup. Are the CTA protesters going to occupy the Capitol in conjunction with Sheehan’s crew or are they going to have to occupy them, too? Will they collectively bargain a jurisdictional agreement over who gets to occupy what? Will Osama make an appearance to prove once and for all that we are, in fact, stupid? Or will we all be destroyed by smart meters?

Tune in next week for the cliffhanging conclusion!

Ten years ago, the teachers of Hawaii, from kindergarten to graduate school, went on strike for three weeks. When it was over, and the unions had won salary increases totaling 18.5 percent, the executive director of the Hawaii State Teachers Association said, “I think the ones who won in negotiations were the kids in Hawaii.”

Honolulu magazine decided to look at that victory in an article titled, “The Death of Public School: Ten Years Later.” The result is “a decade’s worth of reform and rhetoric that hasn’t made much of a dent.” Even worse, the ostensible improvement seems to be the result of dumbing down standardized tests and altering the wording of parent satisfaction surveys.

“I don’t see where public education in Hawaii has progressed at all in the past 10 years,” said University of Hawaii law professor Randy Roth, adding, “When politicians had to pick between children and the union, the winner was clear.”

The HSTA president isn’t worried about the state’s poor performance, saying “We’re not like any other state.” Unfortunately, he’s wrong. There are quite a few states that have been ginning up “reform” efforts for years that disappear down the memory hole in favor of the next one. Kudos to Honolulu for shining a spotlight on the state’s track record.

New Jersey Education Association president Barbara Keshishian looks stylish in floral prints…

…or bold colors…

…while NJEA vice president Wendell Steinhauer is equally comfortable in the urban businessman look…

…and a casual polo shirt…

but secretary-treasurer Marie Blistan seems to take the fashion lead, with coordinated outfits…

…of various bright colors.

You’re probably wondering why I would bother with this stuff, but it’s all part of EIA’s commitment to examining union finances. It seems each of these officers receives a $1,000 annual clothing allowance, courtesy of NJEA member dues. Sure, a $200,000 salary will keep you clothed, but it won’t qualify you for “best dressed” on Fashion Police.