Shouldn't all schools be ‘significantly disciplined'?
6/15/2003
Nine bite-sized Lemmon Drops to hold you over until the end of the U.S. Open:
Dr. Eugene Sanders, superintendent of Toledo Public Schools, says having two single-sex elementary schools will be attractive to parents “who are looking for a traditional, structured education with a significantly disciplined environment.” Apparently, it's asking too much for every school in the district to operate in this manner. Speaking of discipline, or lack thereof, in Toledo schools, I guess we shouldn't be surprised that the Toledo-Lucas County health department reported problems with student restrooms in half of the 28 buildings that were inspected. Standard vandalism, such as broken toilet seats and missing soap dispensers, is one thing. But finding feces in a urinal? Wow. If students are responsible for the vandalism, which is a safe assumption, then why not require students — all students — to perform “latrine duty” until the restrooms are sparkling clean? Not only would it give them a sense of ownership in their school, but they would be far less likely to look the other way when they see over-the-line behavior. The Associated Press says at least 3,240 Iraqi civilians died in the first month of the U.S.-led invasion. That's more than were killed on 9/11. Shame on us if we don't find weapons of mass destruction, let alone account for the whereabouts of Saddam Hussein. If the situation was reversed, we would demand the same accountability. Sorry, my union brothers and sisters, but I've always taken a ho-hum attitude toward the “Buy American” concept. So I want to thank Nike for providing me with a “light-bulb moment” on this issue. The sweatshoplike conditions at Nike's overseas factories are well documented. (More than 95 percent of its shoes are made in China, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam.) No wonder Nike is able to shell out $90 million for an endorsement deal with basketball wunderkind LeBron James, who graduated from high school eight days ago. Memo to CNN's Larry King: Enough with the Laci Peterson coverage. Let's see, BAX Global overpaid its taxes by $400,000 and $104,000 in taxes that should have been billed to two other firms was not. I smell one of those self-congratulatory “national” awards, from some obscure magazine or organization, coming to the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority. Given that accounting shenanigans played a major role in Enron employees losing more than $1 billion in retirement savings, you'd think federal investigators would be just as diligent in pursuing charges against former chairman Ken Lay as they were with Martha Stewart. Oh, wait. I forgot that Enron and Mr. Lay have donated more than $550,000 to George W. Bush's political campaigns since 1993. According to the Center for Public Integrity, no company has donated more than Enron. Will someone please explain — without using the word “greed” — why last weekend I paid $1.57 a gallon for gas in Ohio and $1.33 per gallon in Indiana? NASCAR's Sirius 400 is today at Michigan International Speedway. That means the parking lot at the restaurant where my wife and I go for breakfast each Sunday will be filled with vehicles from all over Ohio. Happens every year. More NASCAR dollars flow into Toledo than we probably think.----------
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