Teaching racial grievance in your kids’ school
You can believe that Mike Gableman was on the verge of proving Wisconsin’s 2020 presidential election stolen. You can testify that Hunter Biden didn’t peddle daddy’s influence. Swear that Alex Jones was right about Sandy Hook. Free country, and all.
But you’re a Loony Toons cartoon if you believe critical race theory is not taught in the public schools (as does WI State Journal education reporter Elizabeth Beyer). The unionized teachers in Madison WI are obsessed with corrosive identity politics and taxpayers are helping pay for it!
Their militant-left labor union, Madison Teachers Inc., has seeded over 60 “equity-centered leadership positions” through the Madison Metropolitan School District. They’ve posted a “guaranteed representative for staff of color” at each of the four main high schools. All part of MTI’s jihad for “education justice.” You’ve heard of “economic justice” (the politically correct term for socialism). MTI explains that “Education justice is racial justice.”
MTI Education Justice Center coordinator Natasha Sullivan. Logo at upper left on her T-shirt reads “Madison Metropolitan School District.”
‘Her activism began in college …’
… and continued in the classroom.’ The labor union’s progressive political activism is housed in its “Education Justice Center.” It pays tuition for its K-12 member teachers to study critical race theory at seminars like “Justice for Breonna Taylor,” “Black Lives Matter at School,” and an exploration of black feminist organizations. The MTI Education Justice Center is now celebrating the hiring of a full-time coordinator:
Natasha Sullivan comes from La Follette high school where she worked as an English teacher. Her activism began at UW-Madison where she secured her bachelor’s and master’s degrees and continued throughout her career with her students in the classroom. A devoted advocate for our public schools, Natasha brings an intersectional * lens to the work and strives to continually support fellow educators in their own personal journeys toward education equity • and justice.
MTI reports Ms. Sullivan’s salary “is co-funded in partnership with MMSD.” The Werkes has requested what portion of her tab taxpayers are paying. UPDATE 08-16-22: The district’s most excellent public information director tells the Werkes: “$175K for LTE [limited term employment], Extended Employment, etc. to cover fall and spring cohorts. Part of this amount also includes the previous year’s cohorts with ongoing professional development and project development over the course of the school year.”
Gender, race, and class — oh my!
Critical Race Theory terminology
As defined by Pacific University, located west of Portland OR.
* Intersectionality — An approach largely advanced by women of color, arguing that classifications such as gender, race, class, and others cannot be examined in isolation from one another; they interact and intersect in individuals’ lives, in society, in social systems, and are mutually constitutive. Exposing [one’s] multiple identities can help clarify the ways in which a person can simultaneously experience privilege and oppression.
• Equity — Takes into consideration the fact that the social identifiers (race, gender, socioeconomic status, etc.) do, in fact, affect equality. In an equitable environment, an individual or a group would be given what was needed to give them equal advantage. This would not necessarily be equal to what others were receiving. It could be more or different. Equity is an ideal and a goal, not a process. It insures that everyone has the resources they need to succeed.
Critical race theory in education challenges the dominant discourse on race and racism as they relate to education by examining how educational theory, policy, and practice are used to subordinate certain racial and ethnic groups.
Blaska’s Bottom Line: In other words, we’re all institutionally racist or just plain stupid for letting our kids be brainwashed with this neo-Marxist propaganda.
Education
Blaska Policy Werkes 
Sometimes when I work as a bartender I work with people who are in their early 20’s who I have to teach them on how to make change. Not kidding.
Guy came in one time and had a bill for $63.50. Handed my co-worker $100.00 dollar bill. She did not know how to make change for that. I had to show her how. From that point on I ran the register and she handed out the beer.
She went to Memorial High School right here in Madison. She is not the only young person coming out of Madison’s school system that I have had to train on how to count backwards.
BTW- Without doing anything on a calculator I knew that the correct change for the $100.00 dollar bill is $36.50
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That’s change you can believe in!
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Bill, let us know when she gets handed a $2 bill and calls the cops on the patron for passing fake currency. I’ve heard of that happening more than once, but not nearly as much as high school graduate cashiers that can’t make change without a machine doing it for them. Makes my head hurt.
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“high school graduate cashiers that can’t make change without a machine doing it for them.”
You mean it’s NOT enough that they know that bLack LIES Matter and Oppressor-Oppressed grievance ladder victimhoodie is determined by melanin content…?
The Gotch
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Haven’t you heard? Math is racist. Now that schools have succeeded in making students math-illiterate, their next goal is to do away with cursive writing. How are students expected to sign their names to legal documents? Oh well, the time that was once used to teach those toxic subjects can now be used for nobler goals such as making up pronouns like “themself” and other grammatical abominations. Oh wait, grammar is racist–unless it’s the made-up kind. Pretty soon kids will be saying and writing (or printing) “dem,” “dese,” “dose,” and “y’all.” Another small step for social justice–i.e., catering to the least common denominator (more math, sorry).
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It saddens me to think how illiterate in Math today’s youth are besides reading at below grade level more often than not. And the fact that many kids today are atrocious spellers, don’t know proper grammar, and have illegible handwriting. I was stunned several years ago when I was at a fast food drive through (or is it thru?) with a bill of $9.26. I gave the cashier girl $10.26. Not only could she not make the change of a $1 bill (very simple math that one should be able to be do in one’s head in 2 or less seconds) she wasn’t sure how to punch it into the cash register keyboard (probably used to just handling paper bills only without coins or credit cards). The girl couldn’t think critically / logically! I think that she had to ask a co-worker how to handle this situation.
Our schools are now interested in turning out ideological zombies for the lefty / marxist cause that make good antifa storm troopers who can cause mayhem in the streets for those on the right or those who are neutral (their lefty motto: If you aren’t with us, you are against us) who can’t think their way out of a paper bag versus someone who can think for themselves, who are not afraid to voice an opinion contrarian to lefties, vote their conscious, and survive on their own.
Scotty
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I just pay with bills if cash now. Too frustrating trying to explain how much change I should get back when added change. Reminds me of years ago when I was at Disney and the person in front of me was from England and didn’t know what the coins were worth. He had a good reason.
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My point in my earlier post is that if we don’t teach these kids the simple things and concentrate their attention on things like social justice we will all be losers at the end of the day.
I have worked as a bartender, a carpenter, a painter, and a maintenance person. You have to know how to do math in order to figure out square footage, calculate approximately how many glasses of beer you have poured based on the number of 1/2 barrels you drained, how many board feet of lumber you will use to replace the deck boards on a deck and so on.
In addition, when you work for a private individual you have to figure out how much money it will cost to purchase materials and what kind of money you will have to charge to do the job and make money while doing it. Otherwise, if your bid is too low, you end up eating the job.
And the stuff I do at work is simple in comparison to the critical thinking skills that you need to fly an airplane, make wise investments for your clients, engage in international affairs with heads of different states and so on.
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“ ‘Justice for Breonna Taylor,’ ”
Justice for a criminally insane POS? You gotta be phuquin’ kidding!
She was as innocent as Michael Pants Up-Don’t Loot Brown, George Floyd, Jacob Blake, Althea Bernstein, et al.
Detect a pattern linking Taylor with those names?
The Gotch does too; guilty PsOS who White Guilt-Sodden despicable Lefties were gulled into supporting because…welp…just because.
To wit: Breonna Taylor THE TRUE STORY Of A BLM Hero
Ah Lefty; so MUCH hypocrisy, so little time!
The Gotch
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You really are a sad, angry, bitter little man. I really am glad you can vent on this blog and not take you problems out on the citizens of Wisconsin.
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The usual Liberal response – attack the messenger; never engage in debating the facts or engage in real discussion.
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And just how would you engage in discussion with a post like that?
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All “Social Justice” is “Hate America”. Remove their smart phones and most 20 year olds can’t do math(arithmetic), spell without spell checker and don’t know which way is east or west let alone north or south. Look at how they teach kids K-5 with word pads and chrome books. I went to a MMSD meeting this year on how to make schools better and the first 5 minutes was about how many awards their students had received. Then they wanted ideas on social equity in the schools. I got up and left but on the way out I told the greeters they should be more concerned about the 20% to 30% students doing at grade level work. How many MMSD graduates can do simple English and math? Tommy Thompson had an article in the paper about how unprepared college freshman are yet the woke want everyone to go to college.
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I does agre wth yu totaly.
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‘Nother school year in the On Deck Circle, Bob; whaddya think the focus/discussions/priorities of the School Board might be?
Want a real Eye Opener? Have a chat with any current/former MMSD Teachers Off_The_Record.
The Gotch’s pal Thuy Pham-Remmele brought up decades ago how a…um…statistically significant number of children (disproportionately belonging to a certain…er…demographic) were woefully ill-prepared to begin the school year.
And, how was this accurate, albeit waaaaaah Waaaaaaaaaah WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH….make that real REAL mean Inconvenient Truth go away…JUST_GO_AWAY, observation received?
She was branded a RAYcist, despite the fact that we’ve been told repeatedly that minorities can’t be RAYcist; must be something else to it, am I right?
Perhaps despicable Lefties made an exception….tarring her as a White Asian…with a George Zimmerman quotient factored in?
Anywho, back to the fast-approaching School Year; think the situation has improved, stayed the same, or gotten worse?
The Gotch
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As I said above….proof positive.
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The sad, angry, bitter, little, lonely, septuagenarian, shut-in Blogge Idiot TROLT looks in the mirror and promptly proceeds to pathetically PROJECT?
Priceless!
The Gotch
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Can I believe that Jordan Love is a very capable backup to Aaron Rodgers?
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nope. ‘da BEARS beat KC today which was great.
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How do you keep bears off your property? Set up Goal Posts.
Whaddya call 50 guys sitting around watching the playoffs? The BiPolar bares
Anywho, you see the Tribune News Service ratings for starting NFL QBs for the upcoming season?
#25 is CURRENT BiPolar bares QB Justin Fields & #31 is FORMER midgets of the midway QB Mitchy Trubisky.
It get worse.
The kicker? Heh! Both were 1st round picks by the BiPolar bares Front Office Brain Trust.
BBBWWWWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAA
FUN FACT: BiPolar bare fans up this way were VERY unpopular as kids and roundly shunned as adults!
One more thing:
After Further Review, THE bares STILL SUCK!!!
GO PACKERS!!
The Gotch
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How does J. Love stay injury free? Give the other team the ball.
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Q: What’s the difference between the Chicago Bears and cigarettes?
A: Aaron Rodgers doesn’t smoke cigarettes.
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Bi-Polar bares Have Used 35 STARTING QBs During 13 Time World Champion Green Bay Packers Favre/Rodgers Era
The only more ‘nadlessly enfeebled than the midgettes of the midway are their fans…’specially the ones that live in America’s Dairyland.
One more thing.
After Further Review The bares STILL SUCK
GO PACKERS!!
The Gotch
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Despicable Lefties have dominated public education since pert-near forever; how’s that been working…?
From the inimitable, regrettably late, Walter E. Williams: Blind To REAL PROBLEMS
The Gotch
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Hey State government workers have to come from somewhere. MMSD is just doing it’s part. Also like to point out it’s just a fact that white women know what is best for the black and brown “communities” (not including Indian immigrants who are somehow thriving on their own).
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In the future smart machines will do our thinking for us, so we won’t need to know reading, writing, and arithmetic. No doubt the machines will create a just society.
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Ok, so what do you all want to do about it?
If a business owner is not happy with the quality of applicants to a posted job they have to figure out what to change in the posting.
Why don’t more conservatives take jobs in teaching?
Is the answer attracting more diversity to the profession or muzzling and controlling the liberals that currently accept these jobs? Maybe just have robots teach your kids, I think that’s where online charters are heading.
I thought the Supreme Court just ruled that teachers and coaches could “invite” their students to participate in any opinion-based perforative display they want. Conservatives cheered because it was a Christian in the case, but couldn’t that apply to these ideas just as well?
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One more thought –
Remember this is the Madison School District. Perhaps if we are going to allow any measure of local control over our schools we have to accept some variety across districts. Sure, make fun all you want but what do you expect?
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I expect public school students to be taught marketable skills that prepare them to take living-wage jobs after they graduate.
I expect our educators to do the job I’m paying them to do and not grant passing grades or diplomas to students who can’t show a decent command of those same skills.
I expect public school students to be taught critical thinking where they are challenged to develop their own opinions and seek the truth after examining facts from a broad range of sources instead of being steeped in poisonous CRT claptrap.
I expect our public schools to focus on STEM field curricula that prepares those who take it to compete with their Asian and Indian counterparts in a global market.
I expect my increasing tax dollars that go towards public education to be spent on efforts like the ones I’ve mentioned instead of feeling like they’re being flushed down the damned toilet.
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VERY well put, MTR!
The Gotch
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I’m pretty well on board with what Mordecai wants, but don’t think D or R thinking will get us there. Other thoughts:
“CRT claptrap” is critical thinking – it’s a critique of the dominant traditional discourse. Rather than ban the idea, teaching it within a context of multiple viewpoints doesn’t seem bad to me. I imagine that you might be open to that, but the broader conservative movement clearly is aiming to shut it up, not contextualize it or engage in reasoned debate. Perhaps CRT is ok so long as it’s contextualized as a viewpoint among many viewpoints? I do agree that this idea can’t be the only one presented and don’t want educators to do that.
Conservatives seem to me to be upset because people are using their critical thinking skills to disagree with traditional thought. “I want people to think critically and agree with traditional beliefs” seems strange to me. Throw in the conservative position that we need more Christianity and it’s even more odd – I’m not insulting religion, but it’s a fact that religion demands the opposite of critical thinking, it demands faith. So while I accept that you yourself do want more critical thinking in the US, I do not think the conservative movement agrees.
If all our high school grads were prepared to take “living wage jobs” our economy as we know it would collapse. Our entire system is built on a large supply of people willing to work for poverty wages. I’m cool with changing that, but I guarantee that the rich do not want every American 18 year old to be as educated as you describe. They will fight any effort to make that happen – Let’s go for it anyway.
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““CRT claptrap” is critical thinking – it’s a critique of the dominant traditional discourse. Rather than ban the idea, teaching it within a context of multiple viewpoints doesn’t seem bad to me. I imagine that you might be open to that, but the broader conservative movement clearly is aiming to shut it up, not contextualize it or engage in reasoned debate. Perhaps CRT is ok so long as it’s contextualized as a viewpoint among many viewpoints? I do agree that this idea can’t be the only one presented and don’t want educators to do that.”
I never called for CRT to be banned—if it’s going to show up in public schools, I want it taught on equal footing as other alternate viewpoints, which clearly isn’t happening now. As I’ve said before, what makes my blood boil is when it’s written into education policy, and I am never going to support that. As for calling it claptrap, I stand by that assertion. Those pushing CRT treat it as the ultimate, unvarnished truth and demand the same for everyone else that consumes it, and I want nothing to do with anyone with that sort of mindset. I read a lot of political commentary with a wide range of viewpoints and an increasing number of traditional liberals are getting uneasy and fed up with CRT and its hustlers.
“… it’s a fact that religion demands the opposite of critical thinking, it demands faith.”
I attend Mass regularly and can tell you that this is not true, at least not from what I’ve heard most clergy members tell me over the course of my life. One example that has stuck with me since I was a lot younger was when I attended Confirmation Mass at a local church many years ago, presided by the Bishop (Bullock I believe, who was no Pope Francis in his political views). In his homily, the Bishop addressed the Confirmation candidates and said something to this effect:
“Even though you are here today to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation, many of you may be questioning your faith. I do not discourage you from questioning your faith. In fact, I encourage it. Because when you question your faith, you are seeking the truth. And when you are seeking the truth, you are seeking God.”
I have other similar examples, but I know for certain that critical thought is practiced and encouraged in the Church far more than its detractors want to admit or would have everyone believe. Tolerance for it may vary by priest and religion, but that’s what freedom of choice is for. I would rather have someone shop around for a priest or religion that spiritually satisfies and brings out the best in them than have none at all. I have family members that are stauncher Catholics than I am and even they agree with this.
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And a couple final thoughts on this:
“If all our high school grads were prepared to take “living wage jobs” our economy as we know it would collapse. Our entire system is built on a large supply of people willing to work for poverty wages. I’m cool with changing that, but I guarantee that the rich do not want every American 18 year old to be as educated as you describe. They will fight any effort to make that happen – Let’s go for it anyway.”
Yes, let’s. Just because someone can take a living-wage job doesn’t mean they will, but I’d rather they did so I don’t have to subsidize them. There are plenty of people out there that are content to do menial work day in and day out, collect a paycheck, and never go farther than that—I’ve known a number of them in my own field and they serve a purpose too. I don’t fit that mold and probably never will. But those who are willing to take low-skill and less than living-wage jobs should stay alert—the machines are absorbing more and more of this labor all the time. Machines are figuring out tasks in my own field that I thought they wouldn’t grasp until years down the road. If people want to take low-wage jobs, that’s their option, but my experience says that our education system had best be preparing them for something better.
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There you go talking sense again. The problem is most conservatives would rather post angry, bitter, threatening comments than think of solutions. Classrooms are ful of kids from many backgrounds. If left alone they do fine. The problems start when these so-called Douch bag adults get involved.
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I worked in a public high school for over a decade and I can tell you that the notion that kids do fine if left alone is flat out wrong. There are occasional exceptions to this, but they were dwindling even back when I was there to see it, and I can’t imagine it’s better now with the increasing accessibility to bad influences and the outflux of frustrated teachers who actually care. The majority of kids, especially the boys, need structure, direction, discipline, challenge, tough love when the situation warrants it, and to be made to feel important and that their instructors care about them. That was the formula that I and my peers used and it gave many of those we instructed a foundation for becoming well-adjusted adults—more than a few of them have told me this when I ran into them in later life. There were a few that we couldn’t help despite our best efforts, but I’ve had to learn to live with it. But that formula works best when it’s set as a foundation at home and reinforced in the classroom.
Slightly related, a friend of mine who works in a different school district told me that one of their new policies for the upcoming year is no cell phones in the classroom. That friend isn’t thrilled about having to enforce this, but sees the value in it. I’m curious to see the results.
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“I worked in a public high school for over a decade and I can tell you that the notion that kids do fine if left alone is flat out wrong.”
The Blogge Idiot doesn’t know his over-sized @$$ from a hole-in-the-ground, but you, and the known Universe, already knew that.
“The majority of kids, especially the boys, need structure, direction, discipline, challenge, tough love when the situation warrants it, and to be made to feel important and that their instructors care about them.”
Bravo Indigo November Golf Oscar, and what Blaska specifically, and Conservatives generally have been talking about forever.
But despicable Lefty’d rather preach the Oppressor/Oppressed paradigm, because it appeals to the weak-minded, lowest common denominator victimhoodied.
The inimitable Dr. Thomas Sowell NAILS IT in SEDUCTIVE BELIEFS Part I and Part II
The Gotch
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Cornelius:
Our American Revolution wouldn’t have happened if they weren’t viewing the world through the oppressor/oppressed lens. Modern Trump conservatism is a grievance orgy relying on the idea that we are being oppressed by oppressors (deep state, the media, elites, and what-have-you). It’s not just the left. When “they” do it it’s bad, when “we” do it it’s good. Fun Fun.
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Please, call me Gotch, I’ll call you Rollie.
“Our American Revolution wouldn’t have happened if they weren’t viewing the world through the oppressor/oppressed lens.”
You’re equating/conflating “Our American Revolution” with Post-Modern-Neo-Lefty victimhoodie?
Oy gevalt! The Gotch ain’t buyin’ that on SO MANY levels & you ought not be sellin’ it!
The Gotch
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Well Gotch, yet you give no rational retort. The oppressors and their minions always, throughout history, deny that the oppressed are truly so. “They” now say the rich oppress the poor and “we” say it isn’t so. C’est la vie.
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Just riffin’ on your example.
Anywho, colonists, most who made great sacrifices to get/stay here, were making it on their own.
Many (not all) of today’s Post-Modern-Neo-Lefty victimhoodied are lying back in comfortable hammocks and living off’n the leave of others while awaiting the 3rd of the month.
Whaddya say we switch ’em up?
How do you think the latter would fare ANYWHERE there weren’t others toting their considerable lard?
Le Gotch ne réfléchit pas très longtemps…
The Gotch
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Ha! You are going to go far in the ministry of truth! Propaganda techniques exquisite. And the fancy text formatting is simply icing on the cake. I swear you must be professional 🙂
“How about those liberals always obsessed with oppressors/oppressed?”
Actually it’s not just liberals, that’s common throughout history and even in todays US right.
“Ha, what a bunch of phooey!”
Calling something phooey isn’t an actual refutation of what was said.
“How about those welfare recipients getting all that money and just laying around?”
What? That doesn’t even relate… oh, we’re not having a rational conversation, it’s is just NewSpeak one-liners to keep the Party line in focus. How dedicated.
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Huh?
Can’t determine who it is you’re quoting…is it those voices…?
The Gotch
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Pingback: We’re going to blow this yet! | Blaska Policy Werkes
Pingback: We’re going to blow this yet! | Blaska Policy Werkes
Blaska. You had to ask for those budget/salary figures? They weren’t publicly available on a website?
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You are correct, sir or madame!
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Thanks. No wonder I’m not finding much ammo about bureaucracy posed as developmental growth. This is an opportunity. Folks don’t really want this, the message or related bureaucracy. Free feel good is one thing. Taking to finance someone else’s lifestyle is something else. Peeps need to understand this.
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“No wonder I’m not finding much ammo”
That’s not because the IRS butted in line………
The Gotch
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