From Kathleen Kosobud:
It was all over in an instant: a couple of clicks of the mouse, and I had the “too late—oops” reaction when I realized I’d made a truly regrettable error. The innocent subject line was something in the vein of “kittens and puppies”, and so I clicked… and confirmed that I supported “kittens and puppies”. Another window opened asking if I’d support some other worthy “kittens and puppies” cause (click), and another (click)…and another (click). And suddenly, there it was…the wolf in sheep’s clothing, the Trojan horse of all Trojan horses: Join the Fight to Save Great Teachers, a petition initiated by Students First, the education policy lobby run by faux education expert, Michele Rhee. Remember her? The mythologized Bee Eater who got results in the Washington, D.C. schools, and then quickly
ducked out when her mayoral patron was evicted from office? The role model for superintendents of urban schools everywhere, featured in “Waiting for Superman”, as she brags about firing bad teachers with her Machiavellian teacher
evaluation system?
So Rhee’s using all that seed money she got to promote bogus support for her agenda. Not desiring to defend her brand of education policy in the open, she’s chosen to rely on slick and misleading marketing. This unseemly brand of activist merchandising is acceptable for extreme political fringe groups or maybe to create some bullet points for a PR flyer to get on Oprah. Not so much for someone who presumes to impose her beliefs on the nation’s entire education apparatus.
As Rhee’s crusade is one which marches along with an air of moral authority, it’s worth wondering why she felt the need or justification to use such a blatant bait and switch.
H/T: Nancy Flanagan
