Saturday, October 15, 2005

Edgewater School, Point Place

Edgewater School, Point Place
I've been talking to a few of the Point Place residents about the school situation. If ever there was a community that needs a middle school in their neighborhood, Point Place is it. We're going to work together to draw attention to the need and try to model a program similar to Beverly School. It is such a waste of fuel and time to sit children on a bus and drive them over 5 miles to a middle school. I can just see the dollar bills spitting out the exhaust pipe of the school busses! Consider also the amount of time the children spend riding the bus... at least 45 minutes from the first student. It would be time well spent in a classroom or the exercise in walking to school. So many neighbors are upset about this and it is a main cause of so many children attending the charter schools from this area. Wake up TPS and School Board.. listen to the community that is footing the bill... they want there children attending school in their neighborhood!!

Good News / Bad News -- What gets reported?

Today is a sad day for Toledoans and it seems some of the problems were driven by free media exposure provided throughout the past week. As I was driving to work earlier this week, I caught some of the interview with a Nazi protestor on 1370. The comments were inflammatory and disgusting. As I listened (briefly because I couldn't handle many of the comments) I wondered why the news media was providing so much free exposure to a group of out of towners bent on causing a caustic situation. This past Friday night I attended a wonderful free Gospel concert at Friendship Baptist Church with over 700 people attending this motivating, uplifting event. Would we not have been better to spend the time on the air and in the paper providing free exposure to such a magnificent event? As we all look inward to the cause of the events for today, perhaps we need to wonder the cause and effect of the free media exposure. The comments made by the Nazi members are disturbing, irrational and inflammatory and the best I could do was turn off the radio and put down the paper in embarrassment at the comments. As a candidate, I marvel at the multitude of great events available in Toledo and am amazed at how little coverage they receive in the news. But then, a great concert without a riot isn't nearly as exciting.