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Staten Island Democratic Association est. 1961 as Staten Island’s reform Democratic Club

www.sidems.org

At our Next Meeting:

John Liu NYC Comptroller

Gary Carsel Candidate 24th

State Senate District

(Gary’s statement was in the April 2012 Newsletter)

Position Paper Oil Consumption Reduction

Endorsement Votes 64th State Senate, 62nd State Assembly

Tuesday, May 15, 2012, 8:00 P.M. ** NOTE LOCATION: Karl’s Klipper**

40 Bay Street - (718) 720-4442

S.I.D.A. President’s Message Upcoming Meetings

2 S.I.D.A., May 2012 S.I.D.A., May 2012 19

May 2012 Confessions of a Political Junkie

admit it. I’m hooked on politics and I suspect many of you who

are reading this are in the same boat. We all want to see positive, progressive change in America and throughout the world. We believe that politics is one of the best ways to achieve this. We affiliate with like-minded organizations and we join groups such as the ACLU, Common Cause, Citizens Union, Democracy For America, Change.org, Move On.org, and countless other politi-cal movements and action groups to influence public policy. We also join multiple environmental causes – too numerous to mention here – because we believe in their phi-losophy and goals. Political campaigns such as Obama for America all the way down to our local candidates attract us because we know without our support and donations, we may not win vital elections and stave off dire consequences of having our oppo-nents elected. All of these organiza-tions, groups and campaigns ask us for monetary support and grassroots involvement, even helping-organizations such as the American Red Cross, the American Cancer Society and all the legion of health-related support groups vie for our hard-earned dollars and our personal efforts to further their causes.

(continued on page 16)

Editorial Policy Items for publication must be submit-ted to the newsletter no later than the last Friday of the month before the meeting. Please send items to:

cmaxbauer@yahoo.com. Unless explicitly stated, the views herein are those of the authors and not of S.I.D.A.

Chris Bauer, Editor (917) 576-9248

Table of Contents NYC Comptroller John Liu ........4 Oil Consumption Reduction

Position Paper.............................6 View from the First Row............8 Lathrope Voorspuy Memorial

Scholarship Fund Brunch .........10 Mark Murphy Fundraiser .........12 Letters.......................................18 Upcoming Meetings .................19 Join/Renewal Form...................19 Executive Committee ...............19

“I hold it, that a little rebellion, now and then, is a good thing, and as necessary in the political world as storms are in the phys-ical.”

- Thomas Jefferson 1787

May 15, 2012 General Meeting

Karl’s Klipper, 40 Bay Street NYC Comptroller John Liu Gary Carsel, Candidate 24th Sen-

ate District Oil Consumption Reduction Posi-

tion Paper

Endorsement Votes, 24th Senate & 62nd Assembly District

June 19, 2012 General Meeting

Location TBD TBD

It’s Time to Join or Renew Your S.I.D.A. Membership! To become a member, renew membership, or make a donation, call Tom Shcher-benko at (718) 420-0252, or complete and return the coupon. Voting privileges begin 45 days after joining.

------------ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2012 DUES DONATION

$15 - Family $5 $10 - Individual $50 $5 - Senior, Student, Unemployed $100 Other

Name

Address Apt #

City State Zip

Phone E-mail

Make checks payable S.I.D.A. to S.I.D.A. and send to: P.O. Box 140371 Staten Island, NY 10314-0371

S.I.D.A. Executive Committee President.........................Dennis Brown Member at-Large.........Roy Moskowitz Vice President .......Rosemary Palladino Member at-Large............Loretta Prisco Executive Secretary........ Mark Herman Ex Officio......................Belinda Dixon Corresponding & Ex Officio...................... Shawn Dwyer Recording Secretary ........ Marie Dwyer Ex Officio..........................Gary Carsel Treasurer ................. Tom Shcherbenko Ex Officio...................... Joann Olbrich Social Secretary...................... Liz Price Ex Officio......................... Nick Popolo Member at-Large Michelle Akyempong Ex Officio.................Richard Reichard Member at-Large.................. Phil Jonas Ex Officio.......................John Sollazzo Member at-Large.............. John Lavelle Ex Officio............................Mark Zink

I

Letters Endorsement Votes/New (Old) Location

18 S.I.D.A., May 2012 S.I.D.A., May 2012 3

We in S.I.D.A. like to make our views known. The following are some of the letters written by S.I.D.A. members that have ap-peared in print. Unless otherwise indicated, all letters were in the Staten Island Advance and/or post-ed on the Advance’s website www.silive.com. Unless explicitly stated, the views herein are those of the authors and are not the views of S.I.D.A. On-line April 10, 2012 Printed April 10, 2012

Future of the Former Prison is in State Agency's Hands he Empire State Development Corp. is going to be closing

applications shortly regarding the future of the Arthur Kill Prison site. It will then make its recommenda-tion for what will become of the site. I, for one, applaud the idea of transforming the site into a full-blown studio for movies or televi-sion, including state-of-the-art fa-cilities for post-production work. It would be a boon to our borough’s pride; it would bring jobs into our borough, it would bring revenue; it might even (finally!) bring a ferry to the South Shore. Having been a playwright, a member of the Dramatists Guild for many years, and being a board member of a Staten Island theater company, I heartily endorse the idea of a movie or television studio on Staten Island, and I will do all I can to make it happen.

Should the site not be made into a movie or television center, I would expect the Empire State De-velopment Corp. to display wisdom in its choice of what will become of the prison site. I, for one, will be watching the Empire State Development Corp. closely to make sure it does the right thing by us.

- Gary Carsel [The writer is the Democratic can-didate for the 24th State Senate Dis-trict.] On-line April 12, 2012 Printed April 13, 2012 EPA Regulations Protect Us and Grimm Should Not Attack Them How dare Michael Grimm accuse the Environmenal Protection Agen-cy of causing high gasoline prices. The EPA exists, just like the Ma-rines, to protect us. EPA regulations keep our air and water clean, pre-venting cancer and other diseases. And EPA regs have little to do with the price of gas, which is mostly the result of crude oil futures. The problem with Grimm is that even if he was telling the truth, Americans would be happy to pay more if it meant less cancer and better health. We’ve seen the re-sults of oil spills, reactor melt-downs and improper hydrofracking. Why is Grimm attacking a government agency established to protect us? According to his letter, his memories of Hurricane Katrina were the inconvenience of long gas

(continued on page 14)

At the May 15 General Meeting we will have endorsement votes for the following offices: NYS Senate, 24th District NYS Assembly, 62nd District

(if Democratic candidate Anthony Mascolo speaks at the meeting)

The May 15 Meeting will bring us back from our wandering to:

T

NYC Comptroller John Liu

4 S.I.D.A., May 2012 S.I.D.A., May 2012 17

New York City Comptroller John Liu will be a guest speaker at our May 15 General Membership Meet-ing. The following was taken from his official New York City website http://www.comptroller.nyc.gov/comptroller/bio.shtm.

ohn C. Liu serves as the 43rd Comptroller of the City of New

York, independently elected and sworn into office on January 1st to protect and enhance the fiscal health of New York. In his first months as the City’s Chief Financial Officer, John Liu has sharpened the tools of the Comptroller’s Office to make gov-ernment more efficient and ac-countable to the people we serve. John Liu restructured the office and elevated his auditors as a sepa-rate bureau to aggressively root out waste and inefficiency. Already, one audit exposed $125 million owed to the City by an entity that had been charged with collecting the monies on behalf of the City. Another audit uncovered $8 million in lost revenues at an agency due to careless accounting practices. Yet another audit has uncovered poor procurement practices that paid out nearly $152 million through non-contracted, unwritten “handshake” agreements. He has also stopped out-of-control “moneypit” contracts like those associated with the CityTime project — the cost of which has mushroomed from an original $68 million dollar estimate to now more than $738 million dollars.

To maximize pension invest-ments for the 700,000 hard-working New Yorkers and retirees, John Liu has proposed far-reaching reforms to the New York City Pen-sion Funds to eliminate pay-to-play and to ensure both best practices and the highest integrity in the in-vestment-making process. To demand accountability to shareholders and to ensure that corporate contributions are aligned with shareholder interests, John Liu successfully negotiated with the Bank of America to disclose and publish its political expenditures online. To promote civil rights and fight discrimination, John Liu and the trustees of the Pension Funds have successfully convinced a number of Fortune 1000 companies to amend their employment policies and include protections based on sexual orientation and gender iden-tity. To get a better deal for taxpay-ers while meeting the infrastructure needs of tomorrow, over $3.9 bil-lion dollars in bonds were sold, including the first-ever competi-tively-bid “Build America Bond” sale. To further save taxpayers money, two refinancings were completed, generating over $60 million in present value savings. To strengthen government ac-countability, John Liu launched “My Money NYC”, a powerful online tool to provide unparalleled access to the City’s finances. One of the most comprehensive

initiatives

of emails and letters I receive from these organizations every week. I’m constantly going into overdrive just to keep up with all these great organizations, ideas and marvelous campaigns to save all that’s good and right, and stave off all that’s evil and wrong in our very complex and troubled world. I remember years ago, becom-ing the Trustee for my elderly aunt and uncle-- wonderful, gracious folks, who served their country for a lifetime. My uncle was a retired Colonel, much-decorated and hav-ing served in every war from World War II through Viet Nam. When I took over their affairs, I found that each month they were sending out hundreds of dollars to over 50 wor-thy groups, social service providers and charities, all of which counted them as their ardent and most-necessary supporters. I find that a similar fate may be visited upon me, if I’m not careful. What to do about all of this, that is the question. I guess the an-swer is we have to prioritize, and support the organizations and pro-grams that we feel the most pas-sionate about. And we have to learn about all the many issues that flood into our consciousness through the internet, the airwaves, letters and advertising. We have to pick and choose wisely so that we can help the various charitable, social, health-related, environmental, re-search and political causes that we feel are most worthy and that we can identify with.

There was an old saying from the great Democratic Speaker of the House, Tip O’Neill, that went like this: “Think globally and act locally.” For me that translates into support of 20 to 30 organizations and causes, plus the political cam-paigns in our local, city and state governments, as well as support for the election campaigns for our President and national leaders in the Senate and House of Represen-tatives. Many of the causes that I support will be enhanced greatly by proper leadership supplied by pro-gressive Democratic office-holders, so supporting them is a no-brainer as well. Every now and then I find I have to step back and re-focus en-ergy into my family, work, spiritual and recreational activities to remain centered on the important things in life before charging out once again into the fray of political action and support for all the above-mentioned causes. This year as we enter into the 2012 election cycle, each one of us can re-examine our personal goals and political philosophy with a view toward supporting good government and sound policies for local, national and world peace and prosperity.

Respectfully submitted, Dennis A. Brown

President

Candidate for the 24th Senate Dis-trict Gary Carsel’s statement was in the April 2012 Newsletter

J

Continuations

16 S.I.D.A., May 2012 S.I.D.A., May 2012 5

(Position Paper, continued from page 7)

supporting an industry that is enjoying record profits and doesn't need the additional tax payer support as an economic incentive.

3. The Club supports increased government subsidies and funding for public transporta-tion because moving people out of automobiles reduces pollu-tion, oil consumption and traf-fic congestion.

4. The Club supports tax credits for building weatherization in order to reduce energy con-sumption and optimize energy efficiency.

5. The Club also supports the government promoting alterna-tives to gasoline, such as elec-tric cars and hydrogen power. The Club also supports the government promotion of al-ternatives to gasoline powered vehicles.

6. The Club supports government funding for research into cellulosic ethanol produced from wood, grasses, or the non-edible parts of plants such as corn stover. However we op-pose government subsidies for corn ethanol due the increase in food prices associated with in-creased corn-based ethanol production.

Since we are years away from a petroleum-free world, we need to take immediate steps to decrease

our reliance on petroleum-based products. We recognize that our nation does not have absolute control over the price we pay for oil, no matter how much we drill, but we can control the amount we consume.

(President’s Message, continued from page 2) It’s all politics, one way or another. We have a particular phi-losophy, and we can agree with these many wonderful organiza-tions, and we get hooked by their advertising and letters and requests for involvement, participation and donations. Just today I received a letter from the Obama For America cam-paign headquarters, telling me that “the Koch brothers and other Rom-ney allies are running millions of dollars in false, negative ads against President Obama….as we speak, the Super PAC that spent an astounding $42 million helping Romney during the Primaries is up with $4 million in ads touting their candidate, and Koch brothers-backed Americans for Prosperity has dropped more than $6.1 million into ads currently on the air against us…..we’re relying on supporters like you.” Bottom line: they want me to chip in $55 or more to make sure everyone hears about the President’s accomplishments today. All this is wonderful if I have an unlimited bank account and enough time to read the hundreds

of its kind in the nation, it will soon allow New Yorkers to view nearly every single City expenditure online. To secure capital funds for public schools, John Liu success-fully argued for a 100% subsidy rate for Qualified School Construc-tion Bonds which will serve as a zero-interest financing tool for the construction, repair and rehabilita-tion of New York City public schools. To examine publicly-subsidized economic development, John Liu has launched a Task Force to draft a framework on a more effective and equitable process to guide such development in New York City. To ensure equal opportunities, John Liu has undertaken a thorough review of City agencies’ perform-ance under Local Law 129, specifi-cally with regard to eliminating significant disparities in govern-ment contracting opportunities for minority- and women-owned busi-ness enterprises. Previously, John Liu served in the New York City Council, repre-senting District 20 in Queens and served as Chair of the Council’s Transportation Committee. His most significant accomplishments as a legislator include exposing financial irregularities at the Met-ropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), shepherding bills through his committee designed to enhance administrative efficiency, and en-acting legislation that ensures equal

access to city services regardless of language ability. Hailed as a “Trailblazer” and “Pio-neer”, John Liu’s historic elections as the first Asian American elected in New York City – both to legisla-tive office in 2001 and citywide in 2009 – were milestones for Asian Americans in New York and across the nation. Although he wishes Asian Americans had been elected long before in New York, he is honored to be the first. He em-braces the responsibilities and op-portunities that come with the dis-tinction to broaden representation and access to government. Prior to joining the City Coun-cil, John Liu managed a team of actuaries working on the largest pension plans in the country. John Liu immigrated to New York at the age of five. He is a proud product of New York City public schools beginning with kin-dergarten at P.S. 20 in Queens and graduation from the Bronx High School of Science. He went on to Binghamton University, where he earned his degree in Mathematical Physics. He lives in Flushing, Queens with his wife, Jenny, and their son, Joseph.

Meeting Location:

Karl’s Klipper 40 Bay Street

Oil Consumption Reduction Position Paper

6 S.I.D.A., May 2012 S.I.D.A., May 2012 15

The Issues Committee is submitting the following position paper for consideration by the club. Reichard Reichard was the primary author, and the other members of the Issues Committee were Chair Loretta Prisco, Steve Harrison, Bonnie Rothman, Rich Florentino, and Phil Jonas. This paper will be intro-duced, discussed, and put for an endorsement vote at the May 15 General Membership Meeting.

Recommendations to Reduce U.S. Oil Consumption

Introduction

That we are having a debate in 2012 about the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline is a sad ac-knowledgment that we as a nation have failed to develop non-carbon based sources of energy to replace crude oil. Building the Keystone XL pipeline to import crude oil from Canada does not offer a long-term solution to meet our transpor-tation energy needs. It only lulls our nation into a false sense of en-ergy security. In addition, we would be derelict as a nation if we fail to factor in the calamitous eco-nomic impact of any spill occurring in America's breadbasket -- the area that the pipeline proposes to trav-erse. This paper establishes the Club’s policy position regarding decreasing our nation’s use of oil. We believe that by decreasing our consumption of oil we lessen the economic impact a spike in oil prices can have on our economy,

decrease pollution and make it eas-ier to oppose environmentally risky projects like the Keystone XL pipe-line.

Background In 1973, the year of the Arab oil embargo, the U.S. consumed 17.3 million barrels of oil a day. In 1975 we attempted to reduce our con-sumption of petroleum products by taking steps that included establish-ing corporate average fuel economy standards. However by 2011 we were consuming over 18.8 million barrels of oil a day. The increase is primarily due to transportation which currently accounts for 70% of our daily consumption. Trans-portation consumed 4 million bar-rels a day more in 2011 than it did in 1973. As of the end of 2008, we had 20.7 trillion barrels of proven re-serves of crude oil. As of 2009 we had another 729 million barrels of crude oil in the strategic reserves. The definition of proven reserves is the estimated quantity of all liquids defined as crude oil, which geo-logical and engineering data dem-onstrate with reasonable certainty to be recoverable in future years from known reservoirs under exist-ing economic and operating condi-tions. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) will release an update on proven crude oil re-serves on June 15, 2012. Even if advanced technologies, new oil fields, and high crude oil prices increase our proven crude oil

The 2001 and 2003 tax cuts are examples of trickle-down econom-ics. However, contrary to the belief of practitioners of this voodoo eco-nomics, tax cuts for the top 1 per-cent do not pay for themselves. The Bush tax cuts for the top 1 percent have added more than $740 billion to the national debt. Now just when the American people thought that trickle-down economics was dead, like a zombie, it has come back to life. Showing his belief in trickle-down economics, on March 29, Congressman Michael Grimm vot-ed to reduce taxes on the top 1 per-cent. Millionaires will receive an average tax cut of $187,000. Since history has shown us that tax cuts on the top 1 percent don’t pay for themselves, the tax cut plan will require eliminating tax deduc-tions. Therefore, the deductions for state and local income taxes, prop-erty taxes and mortgage interest are all under consideration for elimina-tion. Congressman Grimm will nev-er admit it but the middle class will pay for this tax cut.

- Richard Reichard In The Daily News On-line April 25, 2012 Printed April 25, 2012

Drilling for the Fracking Facts Staten Island : Your editorial “Go for the gas” (April 21) left out a few salient details about hydraulic fracturing, aka fracking. Those

millions of gallons of water pumped miles below the surface under high pressure to release the natural gas are full of toxic, cancer-causing chemicals. Once the water-shed has been contaminated by the poisons used in fracking, we never will have clean, safe drinking water again. Is it really worth taking that risk, just so the natural gas industry can make billions in profits?

- Joann Olbrich On-line April 29, 2012 Printed April 29, 2012

Will Grimm Fight to Protect College Kids Saddled with Debt? In July of this year, the cost of stu-dent borrowing for things like Staf-ford Loans will double from 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent. Will Rep. Michael Grimm vote to keep those loans from doubling in cost? If not, with 50 percent of recent graduates unable to find jobs, thanks to a totally uncooperative, uncompromising Congress, how does he expect that these future voters will find the money to pay back these loans and also start fam-ilies or businesses? Glad he’s concerned about the effect of tolls on Staten Island businesses, but how about the af-fect of rate increases on student loans? And here he has direct con-trol; he doesn’t have to wait on a “study.”

- Bonita Rothman

Letters (continued)

14 S.I.D.A., May 2012 S.I.D.A., May 2012 7

(Letters, continued from page 18) lines, while most Americans were devastated by the loss of life and homes. We need a congressman who puts our health and safety first.

Liz Price On-line April 12, 2012 Printed April 13, 2012

Obama is not to Blame for Rising Gas Prices

I can’t believe that an ostensibly intelligent person like Michael Grimm blames the president for the high price of gasoline. Gas prices are the result of worldwide crude oil prices, which began climbing to historic levels in 2006. Grimm also thinks there is a “clean coal” industry. Coal mining and combustion is dirty and dan-gerous. Most likely, Grimm is an-noyed that his own crude oil trans-port company was fined for violat-ing safety regulations in Texas, and looking for more campaign contri-butions from pipeline backers. Government regulations pro-tect our health and safety. Grimm should not be attacking government regulations with distorted nonsense. Unfortunately for Staten Island, he’s not acting as our congressman, but as a shill for oil and gas com-panies. That’s one problem that we can fix in November.

- Tom Shcherbenko On-line April 15, 2012 Printed April 15, 2012

Environmental Laws Keep Our Air and Water Clean

In 2011, Michael Grimm’s Texas oil trucking company was cited with 11 safety violations, he re-ceived $3,000 in campaign contri-butions from gas pipeline backers, and he voted to prevent greenhouse gases from being regulated by the Clean Air Act. Now he’s attacking Environ-mental Protection Agency regula-tions with a falsehood that these are causing the high gas prices and unemployment. Grimm has absolutely no cred-ibility as an environmentalist. Any time he says something about the environment, the first thing we should think about is: What’s in it for him, or his oil and gas company buddies? And environmental regulations aren’t just about saving birds and fish. We need laws to keep our air and water clean to prevent asthma and cancer. Let’s replace Grimm with someone who cares.

- Diana Shcherbenko On-line April 17, 2012 Printed April 17, 2012

Tax Cut for Rich Will Hurt Middle Class

Trickle-down economics, which was once called “voodoo econom-ics” by President George H.W. Bush, is the belief that by cutting taxes on the top 1 percent, the economy will expand, increasing revenues to more than make up for the tax cut.

reserves, we will be still be faced with an ever increasing worldwide demand that will keep prices high. An EIA analysis says that a $20 increase in the cost of a barrel of oil shaves about 0.4 points off GDP growth and increases unemploy-ment by 0.1 percentage points. De-creasing our dependence on crude oil is therefore a move toward eco-nomic freedom and growth and a less oil-driven foreign policy. Although we have reduced our reliance on imported oil from 57% when George Bush left office in 2008 to 45% in 2011 and have in-creased domestic production by over 700,000 barrels a day since then, we have still seen gasoline prices increase dramatically in the last year by over 40 cents a gallon. This is because the price we pay for a gallon of gasoline is de-termined by more than our domes-tic production. Whether a barrel of oil is drilled in Texas or in Saudi Arabia, it all becomes part of a worldwide market in oil that goes to the highest bidder. As the demand for oil increases worldwide, the price we pay for a gallon of gasoline will also con-tinue to increase; and worldwide events, such as the current crisis in Iran, will inevitably result in spikes in crude oil prices. Proponents of the Keystone XL pipeline claim that the added sup-ply of crude oil will result in lower gas prices. However, given the world economic and political situa-tion this is most reasonably seen as a grossly optimistic overstatement.

It may be more accurate to say that the additional supply of crude oil will result in slower price growth.

Policy Position The Staten Island Democratic Association accepts the scientific evidence that man has caused all or most of current global warming. Rising sea levels, one of the adverse consequences of global warming, is a major concern for coastal regions like New York City. The burning of petroleum products is a major contributor to the release of greenhouse gases, a major factor in global warming The Club’s policy position has the dual goals of reducing our consumption of crude oil and reducing the release of greenhouse gases. To accomplish this end the Club supports: 1. Legislation that would establish

the 2025 corporate average fuel economy standards for cars and light trucks at 54.5 miles per gallon. The 2025 standards will reduce our oil consumption by 2.2 million barrels a day. This will reduce by more than half, the increase in transportation related oil consumption since 1973.

2. The Club supports eliminating the multi-billion dollar tax breaks for the oil industry. We do not believe the government should be financially

(continued on page 16)

View from the First Row

8 S.I.D.A., May 2012 S.I.D.A., May 2012 13

View from the First Row is a col-umn about education. Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expect-ing different results… or anyone who doesn't take truth seriously in small matters cannot be trust-ed in large ones either.

-Albert Einstein

everal weeks ago we woke to the sound of loud banging at

our vacation home. Heating sys-tem? New refrigerator? A fox or coyote trying to get in? No, a robin who seated himself on a branch near the bay window and continu-ally, methodically, fiercely and unsuccessfully flew into the same window pane and then flew back to the same branch. For several weekends, we woke to the same sound. Concerned for the bird, we’d walk over to the window, he’d fly away but return. We knocked on the window, de-termined, he’d return. We put my granddaughter’s doll in the win-dow, fearlessly he seemed to stare her down, and come back. Could we teach this robin with a bird brain, that this was danger-ous? No. So we cut the branch down as we left this morning. Will he come back? Made me think about education policy. The New York City Depart-ment of Education (DOE) beats its head against the research that says low class size has a positive impact on learning and continues to raise class size.

The New York State legislature ignores the fact that there is not a city that has improved learning under Mayoral Control and ap-proved its continuance. Flying into the face of the win-dow – oops, research - that clearly shows that holding over a child does nothing to help a child, and as a matter of fact, it is detrimental, the DOE instituted a mandatory holdover policy. Charlotte Danielson, the reign-ing icon of teacher development and author of the Danielson rubric, stated the rubric is not to be used to evaluate and punish teachers, but rather used to develop teachers. Yet, NYC schools use it to evaluate teachers. And the loudest bang of all…although we thought that the bird would never crack the win-dow…the one that is successful at breaking the window…“High Stakes Testing: the Poster Child of Failure” (Peter Henry) and its fa-cilitators: Arnie Duncan, Secretary of Education; John King, NYS Commissioner; and Wal-cott/Bloomberg, Chancellor/Mayor. Diane Ravitch writes to Deb-orah Meirer, “Harvard's Eleanor Duckworth and I were invited to China to discuss promising educa-tional reforms by officials who think that the Chinese exam-based tradition is stifling the kind of crea-tivity and ingenuity that they be-lieve has made America techno-logically and scientifically so out-standing. They are looking for

S

S.I.D.A. Mark Murphy Fundraiser

12 S.I.D.A., May 2012 S.I.D.A., May 2012 9

ways to produce well-educated youth whose ambitions are focused on more than getting the right an-swers on exams.” Donald Campbell, from Dart-mouth, warns "The more any quan-titative social indicator is used for social decision making, the more subject it will be to corruption pres-sures and the more apt it will be to distort and corrupt the social proc-esses it is intended to monitor. Campbell’s Law has proven true for centuries, starting with ancient Chinese civil service exams based on Confucianism.” David Berliner, Regents' Professor Emeritus in the College of Education at ASU is clear on high stakes testing. …“far from producing ‘certainty’ of educa-tional excellence—(tests) are a set-up for schools to forego real learn-ing in favor of the only thing the system truly values: producing an acceptable numerical appearance of learning. The higher the stakes are in testing, the less reliable they are. Yet, we have moved them to a level never before realized.” The National Academy of Sci-ences asserts that “There are no large-scale, peer-reviewed aca-demic studies that prove, or even suggest, that a high-stakes, stan-dardized testing educational pro-gram improves learning, skill-development or achievement for students.” Peter Henry in the Minnesota Journal of English asks us to look at what we all know, “let’s return to the central premise: student effort

will increase when there is ‘more’ riding on a test’s outcome. As-toundingly, there is no research data showing that such ‘high-stakes’ environments actually work to improve effort, achievement or scholarship. None. Nor have long-standing college-entrance exams, like the SAT and ACT, shown any significant change in student achievement over the last decade.” The authors of standardized tests state that their tests are only one measure of a child’s learning and should not be the sole criteria for judging a child’s achievement, yet they are used in this way. The magnificent three (Dun-can, King, and Walcott/Bloomberg) ignore the research, wisdom and warnings. They gave $32 million to Pearson for faulty tests, doubled the number of tests that children take, use scores to rate and reward teachers; rate and holdover chil-dren; and use them as a criteria for admission to programs and place-ment in middle school. Bird brains? I think not. A move to destroy public schools and push the real agenda…the privati-zation of schools? How long before the public cuts the branch of all that is really wrong with public educa-tion?

- Loretta Prisco

We are back at the Klipper!

Lathrope Voorspuy Memorial Scholarship Fund Brunch

10 S.I.D.A., May 2012 S.I.D.A., May 2012 11

You are invited to the Ninth Annual

Lathrope Voorspuy Memorial Scholarship Fund

Awards Brunch

This year at our fundraising brunch we are awarding our scholarship to three out-

standing Staten Islanders:

Jay Weichun Diana Shcherbenko Roy Moskowitz

Come celebrate with us! Sunday May 20, 2011, 11 AM to 3 PM

at the Colonnade Diner, 2001 Hylan Blvd.

Suggested donation $55

The mission of the Lathrope Voorspuy Memorial Scholarship Fund is to encourage grass-roots activism by underwriting students in selected programs that train for community organization or for political candidacies.

Contributions are tax-deductible pursuant to IRC 501(c)(3).

You are also invited to put your ad in our program: ____ $85 – Full Page ____ $45 – ½ Page ____ $25 – ¼ Page ____ $5 – booster (single line) (Please put ad wording on the back of the form or email to Secretary Joy Robins: joyrobins@ si.rr.com.) I/we will be coming ____ I can't come, but here's a contribution ____ Amount enclosed ___________. Thank you! You can pay on-line using PayPal, or make out checks to "LVMSF" and send with the form below to:

LVMSF PO Box 140371 Staten Island, NY 10314-0371.

Name __________________________________ Address ________________________________ ______________________ Zip_______ Phone (H) ______________ (O) ______________ E-mail ___________________________________