Today things are very different. If you want a quotation, Benjamin Franklin, Abraham Lincoln, Winston Churchill, or Harry Truman probably said it. If you want to look for an example of someone who saw "right" and did just that, Truman is the textbook example. The group "Chicago" even found a way in post-Watergate 1975 to plead with Harry to come home.
So what does HST have to do with the Morrisville schools? Two words: Sandy Gibson
Here is a woman who was elected initially as a NSN, along with Angry Al et al four years ago, and was ready to change the school board. But a funny thing happened along the way. She took a look at the evidence. And because she is a thoughtful and analytical person, the new evidence got her thinking. First mistake: thinking and considering.
In a world where "flip-flopping" is a national disgrace and consideration of an item later on with new information and rational thought is labeled as failure, Sandy truly is a flip-flopping failure. But only mindless Republibot-like apologists actually believe that. And maybe die-hard NSN supporters too.
So she went with her amended convictions. There was her second mistake: Action. But be comforted by the words of that noted shrinking violet, Theodore Roosevelt
"...the man who really counts in the world is the doer, not the mere critic-the man who actually does the work, even if roughly and imperfectly, not the man who only talks or writes about how it ought to be done." (1891)
Leadership is an art form. It has been likened to working with cooked spaghetti: You can only push it, not pull it, because pulling will break it. Did she make some mistakes in the way she handled the school board. She certainly did. So did a lot of other board members. So do a lot of other living, breathing humans. Teddy mentioned that as well
"The only man who makes no mistakes is the man who never does anything."
So now, all of those who find it easier to criticize proposed solutions to tough problems than to offer up solutions of their own for criticism are now lining up to give Sandy one more uninformed swift kick before her departure. Let's be happy for Sandy...it's her Independence Day from Angry Al, Ducky, and the rest of the No Sports League. Now they can all line up and gossip about the house she's selling, and why she's leaving town, and how she's just like (insert name of other excoriated ex-Morrisvillian who diasgreed with the NSN's - Ken Junkins comes to mind), she moved into town just long enough to mess things up, then left town with us holding the bag.
What it comes down to is that a very talented, articulate, and dedicated, person gave her all for the children of Morrisville, and we are losing a valuable public servant. She is not the first board member to have received threats against herself and her family. I hope that she is the last.
And what of the NSNs? Our second president, John Adams had a thought about that...
On March 4, 1797, America's first orderly transferal of power occurred in Philadelphia when George Washington stepped down and John Adams took the oath as the second president of the United States. Many spectators were moved to tears during this emotional affair, not only because Washington's departure brought an era to a close, but because the ceremony represented a triumph for the republic. ...He also noted Washington's joy at surrendering the burdens of the presidency. In fact, Adams believed that Washington's countenance seemed to say: "Ay! I am fairly out and you fairly in! See which of us will be the happiest."
7 comments:
*sigh*
"and how she's just like Ken Junkins. Wait...maybe she is."
I'm not too sure I am happy about being equated to Sandy Gibson. I dare say, I don't think she would like to be equated to me.
I did not abandon Morrisville nor the school district. I ran for re-election, though I was fairly defeated. I fought to remain on the Board. It was two years AFTER I lost my Board seat that I moved from town. Sandy is not the only board member who has put a FOR-SALE sign on her lawn before her term is up. I could mention several.
I suppose these comments will seem reactive, and maybe it is only the nasty few in town who would make those types of remarks, but since I have been mentioned in this vein twice in this blog I had to respond.
I still have great love for Morrisville. I support the new development that is going on in town. I hope that at some point in time Morrisville can rise above the pettiness of those who are narrowminded and backwards thinking. There are many in town with the potential to be great leaders toward the prospertity of Morrisville, but I believe they are scared off when they see how their community service and efforts are rewarded.
Apologies to Ken. The only parallel that was meant to be drawn was that both Ken and Sandy have been treated unfairly while only doing what they thought right. I have a great respect for what both of these fine public servants have tried to do, what they did accomplish, and the foolishness they unfairly endured.
While you're comparing Sandy Gibson to Truman, TR, & John Adams, maybe you can compare and contrast the Stop the School candidates to their political counterpart, Joseph McCarthy. His tactics were similar, and it took a while for people to catch on that he was a muck-raking degenerate.
Also, I just read a good book on the Korean War, The Coldest Winter, by David Halberstam, and Gen. Douglas McArthur is another good example, of an authoritarian ideologue who ignored any advice contrary to his own misguided agenda (in his case, pushing the US army all the way to the Chinese border, convinced that China wouldn't enter the war, despite copious evidence otherwise). Of course, he was intelligent and had some talent, so the analogy to STS is somewhat flawed. Ironically, McArthur finally got his long-overdue comeuppance from none other than Harry S. Truman.
Dear 'Save the School',
Thank you for your kind posting. It means a lot to me.
Sandy Gibson
Thank you for your service and your commitment.
[STS, you may want to elevate this to a new blog entry.]
Yesterday (Tuesday, November 28, 2007) a letter from newly elected school board member Marlys Myhock was published on the Courier Times editorial/opinion page.
In essence, it said "Nyah, Nyah. We got elected and you didn't!"
She lays out in detail the history of this election: A November 2006 exit poll, a May 2007 primary and a November 2007 general election whereby the incumbents were ousted by an overwhelming majority of votes while still claiming that a silent majority supported them.
Myhock is (obviously) an oponent of the incumbents and a supporter of a new regime.
~~ Sherman: "Gee Mr. Peabody. Where and when will our time machine take us today?"
~~ Mr. Peabody: "Well Sherman. Today we will take a trip to Morrisville PA. in late November of 2003, just after the general elections."
Marlys Myhock, a vocal opponent of the incumbent candidates for school board, and a strong supporter of school board member elect Dr. Sandra Gibson claims "Nyah, Nyah. We got elected and you didn't! Get over it. You claim that you have a silent majority supporting you, but where are they now? Our newly elected candidates will change everything, get rid of the problems and make our schools better. Mr. School Board President, have you heard the voters now?"
Excellent idea!
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