Besides the biased and untrue Jim Trageser opinion piece referred to in the last few posts on this blog, Jim Trageser had another infamous North County Times printed propaganda hit piece. It attacked our good VUSD teachers role in the 192-94 recall. It was published in August 2008 before the last school board election. The intent of the hit piece clearly was to bloody the school board candidate recommendation of the Vista Teachers.
This 2008 Trageser hit piece contained five factually wrong assertions about the 1992-94 recall of the extremist board majority. In that hit piece, Jim Trageser wrongly and falsely accused VUSD teachers of organizing the recall the night of the election in order to get better salaries among other outrageous fabrications. He wrote five lies in all. The five lies of Trageser are refuted below. His 2008 hit piece can be found here:
http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2008/08/10/opinion/trageser/z354f6144e8d0282d8825749f0060debd.txt
Sadly the North County Times editorial staff requires no fact checking of primary sources in its editorial standards if the editors agree with the opinions expressed. This editorial double standard allows Jim Trageser to use hearsay, gossip and his own fevered imagination as '"credible" fact checks for the "facts" in his opinion pieces. In other words there are no fact checks for Jim Trageser at all.
The existence of this blogspot is in large part a result of Jim Trageser's August 2008 opinion piece coupled with the total lack of objectivity and fairness of the North County Times editorial staff. Jim Trageser and the North County Times editorial bias and double standards were among the primary motivating factors that launched this blogspot on September 4, 2008.
The infamous double standards of the North County Times editorial staff come into play when commentary that does not fit their political bias is submitted. Those who write forums about politicians that Jim and the editors of the North County Times favor (e.g. Dr. Stephen Guffanti) are subjected to line by line grillings about sources.
Jim Wickstrom wrote a fact based brilliant expose of Dr. Stephen Guffanti in October of 2008 and according to Wickstrom his piece was delayed and gone over with a fine tooth comb line by line by J. Stryker Meyer. Before Wickstrom could publish he had to have factually justification for each and every line.
Read Jim Wickstrom's brilliant piece here:
http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2008/10/14/opinion/commentary/zc35553852f93f223882574c9005e9dea.txt
Jim Trageser can write anything he dreams up. Below are five easily disproved inflammatory charges he has made about the good teachers of VUSD in his opinion piece he wrote in August of 2008 before the last school board election. His charges were written as though they were fact. They exactly match the propaganda of the ANTI public education crowd here in VUSD. Jim Gibson and Dr. Stephen Guffanti have said all five of these lies on many occasions.
Trageser old lie (1) The New York Times devoted a front page story to the 1992-94 VUSD school board because VUSD teachers were chanting and disrupting board meetings. There are audio tape recordings of each of those board meeting available at VUSD district office. There was no chanting. I attended those meetings. I will give $100 to the favorite charity of anyone who can find one instance of chanting teachers disrupting any board meeting during the 1992-1994 time.
The real reasons that the national media covered that VUSD Board majority had to do with inserting creationism into the public school curriculum, weakening the teaching of real science, and denying life saving information to our students in our VUSD sex ed classes. URL of the New York Times articles is found below.*
Trageser old lie (2) The VTA organized the 1992-1994 recall. The truth is that the VTA did not join the recall of the 92-94 board until months after a broad based community group launched it. There was a lot of discussion and disagreement at the Executive Board and Rep Assembly meetings about the VTA becoming politically involved. The disagreements had to do with was it right for the VTA, for the first time ever, to have a role in local elections and a concern about what might happen if the VTA does get involved andthe recall fails.
The first time the idea of joining the recall was brought to the Executive Board in March of 2002, it was voted down. Executive Board and Rep Assembly minutes are on file at the VTA office which prove we joined late and only after much disagreement and discussion.
Trageser old lie (3) The VTA lead the recall to get more salary. No, it was about sex ed. The Executive Board only recommended that the VTA join the existing recall when the 92-94 extremist board voted to remove life saving information from our VUSD sex education courses. Executive Board and Rep Assembly Minutes on file at the VTA office prove the issue was sex ed not salary. Salary was never mentioned in the discussion either at Ex.Bd. or Rep Assembly.
Trageser old lie (4) The recall was organized the night the 92-94 majority was elected so it was unfair since the new board majority had done nothing yet to deserve a recall. The truth is that no one I know heard any talk of organizing a recall that night. If a few sour grape types did, so what? After every election there are a few angry people, their anger goes no where unless an opening is provided. The 92-94 board provided lots of openings and lots of national headlines that embarrassed VUSD and the City of Vista. Those actions and those headlines are why the recall was successful. By the way Jim Trageser has never provided any evidence other than he heard it "somewhere" that there really was any talk of a recall that night.
Trageser old lie (5) The 1992-94 recall was part of a "part of a national campaign against Christian conservatives on school boards". This lie is found in the comment section following his article. Those comments have been erased from the North County archives but I have a copy of them. The truth about VUSD school board members is that the vast vast majority of them in the sixty year history of VUSD were Christians. I know, I know there were a couple of Jews elected over the years. One has to wonder, were they part of this 'conspiracy' as well?
* http://query.nytimes.com/search/query?frow=0&n=10&srcht=s&query=creationism+Vista&srchst=nyt&submit.x=13&submit.y=7&submit=sub&hdlquery=&bylquery=&daterange=full&mon1=01&day1=01&year1=1981&mon2=01&day2=26&year2=2010
New York Times headlines about VUSD from 1992 to 1994 includes the following:
1.A School Board in California Makes Room for Creationism
2.Political Proving Ground For the Christian Right
3.A City Pulls Its School Board Back to the Center
4.TELEVISION REVIEW; Exploring the Crusade Of the Anti-Darwinians
Read more about that 92-94 VUSD board's actions at the Los Angeles Times Archives:
http://articles.latimes.com/keyword/vista-ca-schools
A few headlines about the 1992- 94 VUSD school board majority found at the Los Angeles Times site above:
1. New Vision for Vista Schools: After Recall of Religious Conservatives on School Board, Moderates Are Casting Off Many of Its Policies.
2. Bibles and the Board--a Skirmish Brews : Education: A new religious fundamentalist majority of school trustees in the San Diego County community of Vista raises fears about its agenda.
3. Christian Bloc Ousted From Board : Education: Two members of Vista school panel are recalled after seeking to impose a religiously oriented approach to teaching students about sex.
4. School Board's Creationist Trend Causes Stir in Vista : Education: Members to vote on forbidding 'dogmatic' teaching of science. Test of Christian right's strength seen.
5. Vista Schools OK Sex Education Program With Religious Theme
6. Vista Board OKs Teaching of Creationism
More commentary on the double standards at the North County Times:
http://vistaschools.blogspot.com/2008/10/questions-for-nctimes-blog-editor.html
http://vistaschools.blogspot.com/2008/10/north-county-times-blog-editor-bias.html
http://vistaschools.blogspot.com/2008/10/nctimes-ends-pro-letter-embargo-keep-up.html
http://vistaschools.blogspot.com/2008/10/nctimes-not-playin-fair.html
http://vistaschools.blogspot.com/2008/10/nctimes-publishes-only-pro-guffanti.html
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