Keith Olbermann Suspended For Donating To Dems: Updated Again, And, He's Back

Huffington Post is reporting that Keith Olbermann has been suspended without pay for donating $2400 each to 3 Democrats--Reps. Raul Grijalva and Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona, and to Kentucky Senate candidate Jack Conway.

The MSNBC rules state that on-air folks must get prior approval to donate money before an interview with the recipient. Some are saying that the donation was made post-interview (Grijalva was interviewed on Thursday, October 28).

I like Keith, though he has been less seen by me the last year or so because Rachel is so much better. But Keith paved the way for Rachel. Hell, he insisted she get her own show! He paved the way for Ed Schultz and now Lawrence O'Donnell.

Keith made a statement:

"One week ago, on the night of Thursday October 28 2010, after a discussion with a friend about the state of politics in Arizona, I donated $2,400 each to the re-election campaigns of Democratic Representatives Raul Grijalva and Gabrielle Giffords. I also donated the same amount to the campaign of Democratic Senatorial candidate Jack Conway in Kentucky...I did not privately or publicly encourage anyone else to donate to these campaigns nor to any others in this election or any previous ones, nor have I previously donated to any political campaign at any level."

I think suspending him is ridiculous, especially given Citizens United and Fox have perverted our elections in ways Keith's donations never could. This is stupid.

Michael Moore has a petition up. Sign it if you feel like it.

Update:  Bernie Sanders chimes in:

WASHINGTON - November 5 - “It is outrageous that General Electric/MSNBC would suspend Keith Olbermann for exercising his constitutional rights to contribute to a candidate of his choice. This is a real threat to political discourse in America and will have a chilling impact on every commentator for MSNBC.

“We live in a time when 90 percent of talk radio is dominated by right-wing extremists, when the Republican Party has its own cable network (Fox) and when progressive voices are few and far between.

“At a time when the ownership of Fox news contributed millions of dollars to the Republican Party, when a number of Fox commentators are using the network as a launching pad for their presidential campaigns and are raising money right off the air, it is absolutely unacceptable that MSNBC suspended one of the most popular progressive commentators in the country.

“Is Rachel Maddow or Ed Schultz next? Is this simply a ‘personality conflict’ within MSNBC or is one of America’s major corporations cracking down on a viewpoint they may not like? Whatever the answer may be, Keith Olbermann should be reinstated immediately and allowed to present his point of view."

Update II:

Network sources tell Playbook that Keith Olbermann was suspended because he refused to deliver an on-camera mea culpa, which would have allowed him to continue anchoring "Countdown." Olbermann told his bosses he didn't know he was barred from making campaign contributions, although he is resisting saying that publicly. Olbermann may not hold as many cards as he thinks. He makes $7 million a year and MSNBC's prime time is not as dependent on him as it was before the addition of Rachel Maddow and Lawrence O'Donnell, who make considerably less.

Politico

Update III:

From Phil Griffin, President of MSNBC:

After several days of deliberation and discussion, I have determined that suspending Keith through and including Monday night’s program is an appropriate punishment for his violation of our policy. We look forward to having him back on the air Tuesday night.

Thursday Cartoon Fun: The Anarchist Edition

Schools Are Not Businesses. Stop With The Stupid Analogy!

Anthony Cody received an email from a reader, Elizabeth Knox, who shared some thoughts in response to last week's post, A Declaration of Professional Conscience for Teachers. I have decided to take her piece point by point and show why she should be ignored.

E.K.  What you outlined in your opening comments is what successful businesses have realized they must do to keep and attract the best associates and to keep and attract clients.

I am tired of people saying education is not a business or cannot learn from the business community on how to do things better. Look around at successful businesses in your community...ask them what they do to be successful and to stay successful...you will find they do exactly what you outlined. How many teachers will take this upon yourself and do this?

Education is not a business because businesses exist to make money and schools don't. They are dissimilar. What they have in common is the fact that they are run by humans. The similarities stop there.

E.K.  Successful businesses listen to their associates, their clients and their shareholders. Education has all three of these groups. Can you identify which is which? Do you truly ask for feedback, value suggestions and act upon them?

Schools don't really have these groups. Yes, they have associates (teachers) and shareholders (Americans) but they don't really have clients (students). Students are not clients because there is a law that says kids must go to school and America has chosen to publicly educate its kids. Therefore students are simply citizens taking advantage of one of the greatest things America provides its citizens--a free education.

E.K.  Successful businesses act on what their associates, clients and shareholders say and the results show. Do all things get acted upon? No, but everyone knows their voice has been heard and appreciated. Does this happen in education? Rarely if ever have I truly seen it.

The reason this is nonsense is that schools are not in operation to make money which is what shareholders want from the companies they own shares of. And remember, very few Americans own shares in public companies. It is the rich and powerful that own most of the shares and make most of the business decisions. And you see how they fucked us, right?

E.K.  Successful businesses regularly survey their associates, clients and shareholders to see how they are doing and what they need to do better. Then they act on those results and every associate has a role. This is not done in education.

First you must decide what you want education to be for in America, then you can check to see how things are going. We can't even agree on what education is! Is it a good test score? Acceptance to college? Getting a job? Keeping the job? Being happy and informed? What is it?

E.K.  If you want to be treated as professionals you need to look around you and see what other successful organizations are doing and see what you can incorporate. Educators think they are special, that they are unique, that no one understands their plight. In my opinion that cannot be further from the truth. Educators have an incredible job to do...they are educating the future of the country...but you are not unique in the challenges you face to be treated as professionals or be the best your can be.

Educators think they are special? Really? How do you know this? Have you asked all the educators? No, you haven't. So shut up. Your comment here exposes the fact that you think too many teachers suck and have a life-long job due to tenure--which is plainly untrue.

E.K.  Business clients have real choice. If the product is not up to snuff, the value not in line with the price, they can leave. This is a big problem with government schools...the students and families are stuck and educators know it...it is the biggest weakness to true reform in education. What if you had to work to attract every student? I am so waiting for total choice to come to government schools...are you ready?

Can you quit your police department? Your fire department? Your garbage collection? No, you can't, because they aren't businesses either. Besides, the product (an educated student, I assume you mean) is subject to the vagaries of the market (things like poverty, ill health, hunger...) in ways unlike product-based businesses.

E.K.  Come out from your self imposed isolation and monopoly and you will be astounded. Remember you are given every dime you have to operate your schools and systems...the money is literally taken from the people by law. This is not reality...successful businesses earn every dime of revenue, the value the client...if this attitude could be adopted in education...watch out...the revolution would be mind blowing...

You make it sound as if teachers/schools should be thankful they are "given" the money to do their work. The money is not so much given to us as it is spent by America on something America has decided is important to provide for its citizens. Just like America has decided having a huge military is good.

E.K.  My approach is more for educators to look around to what they consider to be successful organizations and ask what makes them successful and the other ideas I threw out. I have no clue how to break up the monopoly with closing down the DOE and returning the responsibility of education to the states. I think it is too late for that. The Feds only provide 10% of education funding. If states weren't totally dependent on those dollars this would a whole different conversation. Now that ten percent has basically give the Feds majority control. What am I missing?

Your approach seems incredibly vapid. You want educators to look at what they think are successful organizations--regardless of the actual success of those organizations, and without defining that success--and model schools after said organizations? Am I the only one confused about this one?

E.K.  Real change to education needs to come from within but not in a vacuum. Educators have historically told me if you are not a teacher or educator you don't have a voice in change. I may not know how to manage 30 kids in a classroom but I and others have perfectly good, successful solutions for other parts of the school that could help that teacher be more effective and have a much more manageable classroom Why are educators fearful/reluctant to look around and see what others (outside of education) do to be successful and adopt/modify those practices for their classroom, school, etc?
Elizabeth Knox

Your solutions are not solutions, and they do nothing to illuminate problems. They are the same tired nonsense that emanates from those who think they know, but actually don't know.

Please, stop making suggestions. Why don't you fight for more teachers to be involved in education reform? We know a little something about it, yet we are maligned, marginalized, and belittled. Don't you think we deserve a shot before those with no experience get theirs?

Tuesday Cartoon Fun: Hate And Apathy Edition

California Dreaming? Vote Yes On Prop 19

Pictures Of The Sun

Ted Sorensen, R.I.P.

Theodore Chaikin Sorensen, whose prose mingled with the thoughts and words of his close friend John F. Kennedy to create some of the most memorable presidential speeches of the 20th century, died in New York City today, a week after suffering a stroke.

The Boston Globe

When Did You Choose To Be Straight?

This may be the best question you could ask those who think people choose their sexuality. (h/t Sully)

Saturday Cartoon Fun: Psycho Edition

Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor, And We'll Make Them Pay!!

...Of course, we all know that our tax dollars fund our public schools, and most of us know that state and local revenue is the primary source of this funding (about 90 percent; on average, about half state and half local). Less commonly-known, however, is who pays these bills – who bears the largest share of the tax burden, relative to their income? At the federal level, taxation is largely progressive, which means that, on the whole, higher-income families pay a larger percentage of their earned income to the federal government than lower-income families. This is, very simply, due to the fact that higher income brackets are taxed at higher rates.

But when it comes to state and local taxes, the picture is different. The poorest families pay far more of their income than the richest (i.e., taxes are regressive). In other words, the money that funds public education is a burden disproportionately borne by poor and middle-income Americans. And the lower your income, the more of it you pay. Given this situation, combined with a fiscal crisis that threatens to linger for several years, the best solution – raising revenue through a more equitable system – may be the only one not on the table.

Let’s take a very quick and easy look at how much families at different income levels are taxed, and what it means for education. Every few years, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy releases a wonderful report that breaks down these “tax burdens” for every state (and overall). States (and localities) vary widely in their tax policies and rates, but most generate the same structure of burden.

The graph below (which I recreated using data from the report) shows the percentage of family income that is paid to the three major types of state/local taxes – income, property, and sales – by how much families earn....

Matthew Di Carlo

Wednesday Bonus Cartoon Bonus Fun: Do You Mind?! Edition

Wednesday Bonus Cartoon Fun: Confusion Prince Edition

Wednesday Cartoon Fun: Follow The Money Edition

I've Been Obsessing

One's genealogy is a fun thing to research.  I have been interested in it for a long time because I come from a marriage between a European Jew (my dad) and ancient Welsh royalty (my mom).  I found out about Wales yesterday.

I went on one of those family tree sites years ago and plugged in most of the family I could remember.  I have many living relatives, and remembering everyone was hard.  I felt it was worth all the work because I was always interested as a kid in seeing the family tree, but we didn't have any way to produce one, and I now could by simply entering the data.  It would also be cool for the Frustrated Son at some point.

I went back a few days ago to the site, Ancestry.com, and now they hook you up with people you have in common with other users.  It's easier.  And searching is more robust now--I guess more people have input more data so the database is just bigger than the last time I checked in.  There are pictures and stories and scans of newspaper clippings.

So, I have spent a few days immersed in the tree.  I have gone back 1200 years.  I am related to kings.  I think I am related to slave owners, too.  That's pretty fucked up.  I am also related to lots of dead Jews.

But it has been fascinating.  I found some names that surprised my mom, and she is now next to the phone when I need a question answered, or choices narrowed down.  I am even going to try to talk to mom's sister, my aunt, who is really old and crazy.  It will be fun, and probably informative.

That's why I haven't been posting.

Monday Cartoon Fun: We Haven't Read It, Actually Edition