The Fall by Albert Camus

The main character in Camus’ novel knows he is a fraud the moment he chooses to ignore the cries of a woman who jumps off a bridge into a river. Though her cries for help as the current pulls her under awaken an awareness of his personal freedom and resultant responsibility, he indicts all of us and shatters our moral complacency.

Some excerpts from the novel:

“I was a lawyer before coming here. Now I am a judge-penitent. But allow me to introduce myself: Jean-Baptiste Clamence, at your service… My profession satisfied most happily that vocation for summits… I lived with impunity. I was concerned in no judgment…

“You have noticed that there are people whose religion consists in forgiving all offenses, and who do in fact forgive them but never forget them. I wasn’t good enough to forgive offenses, but eventually I always forgot them… I never remembered anything but myself… I was considered to have charm. Fancy that! You know what charm is: a way of getting the answer yes without having asked any clear question…

“I could live happily only on condition that all individuals on earth, or the greatest possible number, were turned toward me, eternally in suspense, devoid of independent life and ready to answer my call at any moment, doomed in short to sterility until the day I should deign to favor them…

“Spitefulness is the only possible ostentation. People hasten to judge in order not to be judged themselves… We are all exceptional cases. We all want to appeal against something! Each of us insists on being innocent at all cost, even if he has to accuse the whole human race and heaven itself…

“Don’t believe your friends when they ask you to be sincere with them. They merely hope you will encourage them in the good opinion they have of themselves by providing them with the additional assurance they will find in your promise of sincerity… If you are in that situation, don’t hesitate: promise to tell the truth and then lie as best you can. You will satisfy their hidden desire and doubly prove your affection…

“The obligation I felt to conceal the vicious part of my life gave me a cold look that was confused with the look of virtue; my indifference made me loved; my selfishness wound up in my generosities…

“I always looked with amazement, and a certain suspicion, on those strange creatures who died for money, fell into despair over the loss of a ‘position,’ or sacrificed themselves with a high and mighty manner… I was tormented by the thought that I might not have time to accomplish my task. What task? I had no idea. Frankly, was what I was doing worth continuing? But that was not quite it. A ridiculous fear pursued me, in fact: one could not die without having confessed all one’s lies… I wanted to break open the handsome wax-figure I presented everywhere… But truth, cher ami, is a colossal bore…

“We cannot assert the innocence of anyone, whereas we can state with certainty the guilt of all. Every man testifies to the crime of all others—that is my faith and my hope… God is not needed to create guilt or to punish. Our fellow men suffice, aided by ourselves… Don’t wait for the Last Judgment. It takes place every day…

“There are always reasons for murdering a man. On the contrary, it is impossible to justify his living. That’s why crime always finds lawyers, and innocence only rarely… You have had a chance to observe that I spare nothing, and as for you, I know that you agree in thought. Wherefore, since we are all judges, we are all guilty before one another, all Christs in our mean manner, one by one crucified, always without knowing… The keenest of human torments is to be judged without a law. Yet we are in that torment. Deprived of their natural curb, the judges, loosed at random, are racing through their job. Hence we have to try to go faster than they, don’t we?

“…The portrait I hold out to my contemporaries becomes a mirror… The more I accuse myself, the more I have a right to judge you. Even better, I provoke you into judging yourself, and this relieves me of that much of the burden…”


(1956)

Camus, Albert. The Fall. New York: Vintage Books, 1956.  

Emerald Ash Borer Pesticides: Treatment Worse Than Disease? by Jean-Marie Kauth

"…The emerald ash borer (EAB) is a half-inch, bright green insect that is preying on ash trees (genus Fraxinus) in the Midwest United States.  Emerald ash borers are an invasive species that first came from eastern Russia, northern China, Korea, and Japan in 2002, probably in wood shipping pallets.  Once in a tree, they bore their way through the fleshy layer of living tissue, phloem, just under the outer surface of the bark.  Gradually, they eat away so much of the vascular tissue that the tree’s circulatory system shuts down.  Death follows swiftly, sometimes beginning with just a portion of the tree and eventually manifested in the rest.  Once 50% of the canopy is lost, there is no saving the tree.  Healthy trees can be treated with either injections or soil drenches of a variety of pesticides, though the efficacy of these treatments is notoriously inconsistent…

"The main problem with treating trees in this way is that use of the pesticides is dangerous, both to human health and to the surrounding ecology…"

For the entire article please click here.

Riding Rapunzel

One day a beautiful woman bolted out

of bewildering love,

exited the wider circumference

of her loneliness,

and threw down her golden hair

over her dove-white breasts

for men to climb for trysts.

She galloped into their lives

like the trumpet’s shocking blare

at the starting gate,

built a small fire

in each of their hearts

until one day she broke her stride,

cantered upon the thin ice

of an early thaw of marriage,

and drowned herself in a blue tower –

the mistress of sad, fairy-tale luck.

“Riding Rapunzel” was originally published in Pearl, 1993.

“Can We Get a Real Dialogue Going” about closing schools, teacher evaluations, common core assessments, charter schools…? by Anthony Cody

“…Here are some of the issues and independent experts that ought to be featured in a real dialogue:

“Is closing schools in African American and Latino neighborhoods the path to success? This should include representatives from these communities who can speak about what is happening there. From Chicago, student Asean Johnson, community leaders like Jitu Brown, union leaders like Karen Lewis. Parents, students and educators from Philadelphia, where the governor has cut $1 billion from the schools.

“What is happening to teacher evaluations when they are tied to test scores? How are the systems put in place as a result of Race to the Top working out in places like Hillsborough, Florida, Memphis, Tennessee, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania? How about having Linda Darling-Hammond report on her research. Have teachers speak about their experiences?

“What can we expect from Common Core assessments? Teachers, students and principals from New York should be heard from. The researchers at FairTest have been studying the new Common Core tests, and could share their views. Carol Burris, New York's principal of the year, would be a great choice or Peter DeWitt, another great principal from New York.

“Should special education students be required to take the same standardized tests as others, as Secretary Duncan insists? Should their schools and teachers be evaluated based on their scores?

“What is happening to Early Childhood education? What do the Common Core standards and associated curriculum and tests expect of young children? Nancy Carlsson-Paige could offer some insights, along with kindergarten and first grade teachers who have been implementing the new programs.

“Online Schooling: Innovation or Money Pit? Take a closer look at the virtual charters that are receiving thousands of dollars per student in public funds. Are they delivering results? Interview Gary Miron, who has done the research to find out.

“Challenges for Charters: Are they delivering on their promise? What is the story with attrition and selective admissions? Researchers Julian Vasquez-Heilig, and Bruce Baker could offer some insights on the results they are seeing.

“The School to Prison pipeline: Are schools with "zero-tolerance" discipline policies putting students in jeopardy with the criminal justice system? What is the effect of exit exams and other high stakes tests? What are the alternatives to suspension being explored in some systems?

“A critical look at Teach for America as it enters its 23rd year: This summer a debate opened up within the organization - let's hear from Gary Rubinstein and some of the alumni of the program, as well as researchers who can tease apart the effects of teacher turnover and attrition and the impact of alternative entry programs like TFA.

“Veteran teachers: Treasures or Liabilities? This recent post by Steven Singiser reveals that in many schools, teacher turnover is actually seen as a positive thing, and veteran teachers are viewed with suspicion. Is the veteran teacher a treasured source of expertise or an expensive albatross?

“I would not expect the individuals I mentioned to be the only voices heard. NBC News has promised a dialogue, and that is what we should have. The Department of Education should be represented, as should the Gates Foundation and the many organizations they sponsor. A panel about the challenges facing Teach for America should include that organization's leaders and corps members. Discussions of school closures in Chicago should include representatives of Rahm Emanuel. The debate over the Common Core should include supporters as well as critics.

“Education Nation is a magnificent concept, and always has been. But so long as the very FACTS that guide the discussions are drawn from the Gates Foundation, and Gates grant recipients are the chief experts featured, we do not have a true dialogue, a real debate about the future of education in America. We have instead a showcase for test-driven school reform, with some cameo appearances by real educators who sometimes are allowed to strike a note of skepticism…”

from Education Week Teacher: Living in Dialogue

IEA Wants You to Sign a Petition for a Graduated Income Tax

I first wrote about the issue of unfair taxation on June 8, 2011, 27 months ago. The following excerpts are from a subsequent post on November 20, 2011:


…What is needed to solve the budget problems in Illinois is a better revenue base to pay the state’s self-induced debts. What is easier to do is to evade serious problem solving of the budget issue and to incriminate the state’s public employees.

The issue at hand is the state’s regressive tax rate that no one wants to confront. The public lacks awareness and understanding about the main causes of the state’s budget deficits. Legislators, the Civic Committee, et al. have capitalized on the public's ignorance of the essential causes of the state's financial debacle by calling for budget cuts and radical pension reform as the solutions. They are diversionary, scapegoating tactics that will bring intentional, financial harm to public employees and allow legislators to escape legal and ethical responsibility.

“At the core of the budget ‘crisis’ facing [Illinois] is [its] regressive state tax structure… that is, low-and-middle-income families pay a greater share of their income in taxes than the wealthy… [A regressive tax] disproportionately impacts low-income people because, unlike the wealthy, [low-income people] are forced to spend a majority of their income purchasing basic needs that are subject to sales taxes” (United for a Fair Economy).

Instead of reforming the state's tax system, legislators (and their wealthy subsidizers) have focused on radical pension reform and severe budget cuts to services that the rest of us need. What do the wealthy and their puppet legislators propose? They propose sweeping, radical pension reform that will destroy the public employees’ defined-benefit pension plans, even though they know current unfunded liabilities will not be resolved by pension reform.

…Why can’t the State of Illinois provide a fair and sound tax system (Illinois is one of seven states with a regressive flat-rate tax), one that is “efficient with minimal impact on the economic decisions that taxpayers have to make” (CTBA), one that captures increased revenues in times of economic growth, one that maintains revenue collections during poor economic times, one that is simple and not liable to inconspicuous error, one that is transparent and builds trust with the state’s government officials (CTBA), and one that helps 99 percent of the state’s population?

The answer is most legislators in the State of Illinois prefer the easy way out of a difficult and challenging situation. Illinois legislators will not address the most important causes of the state's budget deficits: the state's flat-rate taxation and pension debt because of their own self-interests and the wealthy one percent that bankrolls them.

For the entire article, click on Tax Reform! Not Pension Reform, Budget Cuts and Tax Breaks for the Wealthy

How about Tax Reform, the Most Important Issue in Illinois? (June 8, 2011)

To Sign the Petition, Click Here.

Ralph Martire for Governor of Illinois!

Hi Ralph,

My name is Todd Mertz, and I am a high school business education teacher at Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville.  As you know, the candidates for the 2014 gubernatorial race are atrocious, and the public knows it. We need someone like you, someone who knows finance and understands how to get Illinois back on fiscal track without breaking constitutional contracts with public employees.

You have made a great name for yourself, and you are very well-respected by many.  We would love to see you run for Governor.  Many of us believe that you would have a good chance of winning.  I am sure the unions would back you and all of the state's public employees and their friends and families – that is a lot of people right there. 

Quinn has no primary challenger.  What do you think?  I believe you would have a lot of support. 

Todd Mertz (and many others)

Thanks for the kind words—I’d actually be happy to do it, however the $ involved is somewhat prohibitive—If you can hook me up with some major donors, I’d be all ears. There’s also the little thing of petition signatures, and time is running out for that as well. Peace.

Ralph M. Martire

Executive Director
Center for Tax and Budget Accountability
70 E. Lake Street, Suite 1700
Chicago, IL 60601
(312) 332-1049
(312) 578-9258 fax
rmartire@ctbaonline.org
www.ctbaonline.org

Cinda and IEA Team:

I contacted Ralph Martire, and he said he would run for Governor if the money was there.

Do the Unions have enough to support a campaign?  Illinois is full of democrats (Chicago helps).  People hate Quinn – teachers, public employees, and everyone else.  No one is challenging Quinn as of right now. 

I see a lot of potential here.  I strongly believe that it is in our best interest to pursue this.  Our profession, our pensions, our schools, and our communities could be in MAJOR trouble should any of the Republicans (or Quinn) win the election. 

We would need money and signatures.

I firmly believe that we need to do everything possible to avoid becoming Wisconsin, Ohio, Michigan, or Indiana, which is what will happen if we don't bring a candidate forward.

Is this something that the IEA could do?

I look forward to hearing from you.

Todd Mertz


“Where is labor’s candidate? Why hasn’t the We Are One coalition of state public employee unions found a candidate who believes in raising revenue rather than cutting workers’ benefits in one of the lowest taxing, lowest spending states in the country? In the spring I suggested that Ralph Martire, head of the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability, be drafted. It is late. But not too late” (Fred Klonsky).

[Contact your associations and tell them what you think]:
(If there is a problem with the links, copy and paste/retype them.../or simply call them...).

Illinois Education Association
100 East Edwards Street
Springfield, IL 62704-1999
(800) 252-8076
(217) 544-0706
cinda.klickna@ieanea.org

Illinois Retired Teachers Association
620 N. Walnut St.
Springfield, IL 62702
Phone: (217) 523-8488
Fax: (217) 523-8493
irta@irtaonline.org

American Federation of State, County, Municipal Employees
205 N. Michigan Ave.

Suite 2100
Chicago, IL 60601
(312) 641-6060
www.afscme31.org

Illinois Federation of Teachers

P.O. Box 390
Westmont, IL 60559
Phone: (630) 468-4080
Toll Free: (800) 942-9242
Fax: (630) 468-4089
info@ift-aft.org

We are One Illinois is an unprecedented labor coalition working on behalf of over 1 million statewide members to protect public employee pensions. We Are One Illinois coalition members include the Illinois AFL-CIO, Illinois Education Association, Illinois Federation of Teachers, Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois, AFSCME Council 31, Illinois Police Benevolent and Protective Association, Fraternal Order of Police, Service Employees International Union, Laborers International Union of North America Midwest Region, Illinois Public Pension Fund Association, National Pension Coalition, United Transportation Union, Laborers International Union of North America - Chicago District Council, AFSCME International Union, National Education Association, Fraternal Order of Police - Lodge 7 Chicago, Fireman's Association of Chicago - Local 2, Illinois Nurses Association and Teamsters Local Union #700.

Email: info@weareoneillinois.org