[Rhodes22-list] Has The World Gone Mad?

[Brad Haslett]

Hank,

I don't know what the issues are in Galveston and I don't care - not my
backyard.  I call whoever filed the lawsuit an A-hole.  She (the website
owner) may be a crank but looking at her website and the comments posted
look mild compared to some of the blog postings on the Memphis
Commercial-Appeal's website blogs on the local school district.  Being a
public official means you get scrutinized and criticized. If you can't
handle that I suggest you find another line of work.  One of the great
things about this list is that you get honest, open debate from people of
diverse backgrounds with a common link, they all like sailing. Imagine if
some politician tried to stifle us because they didn't like something we
said.  That's my real beef with the issue at hand.  If a school district in
Galveston is successful in shutting down a website they disagree with, the
future of the net suddenly doesn't look so bright. Go read Daily Kos or
Democratic Underground any given day.  I think those folks are loons but
they have their say.  So far the BushHitlerHaliburtonCheney 'dictatorship'
(their words) hasn't made a single effort to shut them down.  We do still
have freedom of speech, don't we?

Brad

On Nov 8, 2007 7:49 AM, Hank <hnw555 at gmail.com> wrote:

> Brad,
>
> I'm not sure who you are calling a-holes, the school administration or the
> lady posting crap on her weblog?  My opinion is that she is a cry baby who
> lost her battle in the proper forum and is not trying to cause as much
> strife as possible.  People like her cost school districts and gov't
> administrations tons of money dealing with her unfounded nuisance.
>
> Hank
>
>
> On 11/8/07, Brad Haslett <flybrad at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > Rummy,
> >
> > Perhaps this could be part of the problem (see attached article).  Some
> of
> > the trouble with public schools is that the administrators have become
> > beholden to too many outside entities other than the people who "own"
> the
> > school in the first place, ie, the local taxpayers. Show me a public
> > school
> > where the parents and locals have an interest in the local school board
> > and
> > I'll show you a school that works. Public schools are supposed to be
> > locally
> > funded and controlled, perhaps these A-holes in Galveston don't think
> > they're accountable.  I hope the idiot principal in Illinois gets tossed
> > by
> > the locals.
> >
> > Brad
> >
> > -------------------
> >
> > GISD moves ahead with threat to sue parent
> >
> > By Rhiannon Meyers<
> >
> http://blogs.galvnews.com/contact.lasso?ewcd=d3b50f42b8a6ebaa14db3521c84fef258a570c787301de7e2c826107fc48e676
> > >
> > The Daily News
> >
> > Published October 31, 2007
> > GALVESTON — The public school district has officially demanded that
> parent
> > Sandra Tetley remove what it says is libelous material from her Web site
> > or
> > face a lawsuit for defamation.
> >
> > Tetley received a letter Monday from the district's law firm demanding
> she
> > remove what it termed libelous statements and other "legally offensive"
> > statements posted by her or anonymous users, and refrain from allowing
> > such
> > postings in the future. If she refuses, the district plans to sue her,
> the
> > demand letter states.
> >
> > Tetley said she'll review the postings cited by David Feldman of the
> > district's firm Feldman and Rogers. She'll consider the context of the
> > postings and consult attorneys before deciding what to delete.
> >
> > "If it's not worth keeping in there, I'll take it out," she said. "If in
> > fact it is libelous, I have no problem taking it down."
> >
> > Libel Or Opinion?
> >
> > Feldman said Tetley's Web site — www.gisdwatch.com — contained the most
> > "personal, libelous invective directed toward a school administrator"
> he's
> > seen in his 31-year career.
> >
> > "It is not the desire of the School District, the Board, or this Firm to
> > stifle free expression or inhibit robust debate regarding matters
> > pertaining
> > to the operation of the public schools," Feldman wrote in the demand
> > letter.
> > "This is solely about the publication of materials that clearly go
> beyond
> > that which is legally and constitutionally encouraged and permitted, and
> > into the realm of what is legally offensive and actionable."
> >
> > Feldman cited 16 examples of what he says are libelous postings. Half
> were
> > posted by Tetley; the other half were posted by anonymous users.
> >
> > The postings accuse Superintendent Lynne Cleveland, trustees and
> > administrators of lying, manipulation, falsifying budget numbers, using
> > their positions for "personal gain," violating the Open Meetings Act and
> > spying on employees, among other things.
> >
> > Tetley said the postings were opinions only.
> >
> > "Everyone deserves to have their opinion," she said. "I don't think they
> > have a right to make me, or anyone else, take down criticisms of them
> off
> > the Web site. They're not going to force us to take off our opinions
> > because
> > we have no other place to go."
> >
> > Tetley said she had not removed any of the postings as of late Tuesday.
> >
> > Rare Move
> >
> > One legal expert said the district's move to sue Tetley is rare and
> > unlawful. Under the 1964 Supreme Court case New York Times v. Sullivan,
> > government entities cannot sue for libel — any court would toss out the
> > "threatening" suit as being inconsistent with U.S. law, said Sandra
> Baron,
> > executive director of New-York based Media Law Resource Center. She
> called
> > the district's potential lawsuit an intimidation tactic and a waste of
> > taxpayer dollars.
> >
> > Feldman said the district is only asking Tetley to remove a small
> > percentage
> > of postings on her site that he says accuse trustees and administrators
> of
> > breaking the law. They're not trying to shut down the blog or eliminate
> > postings, he said.
> >
> > "How can that be threatening or initmidating?" he said. "There's a
> > tremendous amount of dialogue, if you will, on that Web log that we're
> not
> > touching with a pole ... What we leave is this huge field of free
> > expression
> > and discourse. There's debate and then there's libel. Debate all you
> want,
> > criticize all you want, but don't accuse people of committing crimes
> when
> > you have absolutely no evidence to support that."
> >
> > More than 130 registered users post on Tetley's site. Since trustees
> > threatened legal action, more people have been visiting the site and
> > posting, Tetley said. She said she planned to post Feldman's letter on
> the
> > site.
> >
> > "People are very tired of what this type of government is doing," Tetley
> > said. "They are using our money to silence us."
> >
> > The law firm monitored the site for months before trustees took action.
> > Board President David O'Neal said the postings deter potential employees
> > from working at the district.
> >
> > Tetley and her group, Galveston Alliance for Neighborhood schools, has
> > long
> > criticized the district for reconfiguring its middle schools, closing
> > elementary schools, meeting in executive sessions some claimed were
> > illegal,
> > refusing to divulge the contents of a letter from a civil rights
> > consultant
> > and for issuing a budget forecast that was off by $10 million.
> >
> > The district's controversial reconfiguration, to go into effect in
> > 2008-09,
> > prompted Tetley to start the site.
> >
> > It's often difficult to prove a public official has been libeled. Aside
> > from
> > proving the libelous statements are damaging, public officials must also
> > prove actual malice. Actual malice means knowing a statement is false or
> > having reckless disregard for the truth.
> > ------------------------------
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > On Nov 8, 2007 7:18 AM, <R22RumRunner at aol.com> wrote:
> >
> > > Brad,
> > > Obviously this girl has a real social problem that should probably
> only
> > be
> > > addressed by the hugging police. Only they will know how to deal with
> > such
> > > a
> > > hardened criminal.
> > >
> > > Rummy
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > ************************************** See what's new at
> > > http://www.aol.com
> > > __________________________________________________
> > > Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
> > >
> > __________________________________________________
> > Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
> >
> __________________________________________________
> Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
>