South Korean minister quits as education row swirls

Yahoo – AFP, October 14, 2019

Protesters have rallied in South Korea both in support of and against the
appointment of Cho Kuk as justice minister (AFP Photo/Ed JONES)

Embattled South Korean justice minister Cho Kuk resigned Monday as a scandal swirled over academic privileges allegedly given to his children.

Huge crowds have taken to the streets recently -- both against and in support of the former law professor -- following his appointment by liberal President Moon Jae-in.

Cho's relatives have been at the centre of probes involving educational privileges allegedly granted to his children, and also investments in an equity fund suspected of dubious operations.

Cho's wife Chung Kyung-sim, a university professor, has been indicted for allegedly forging a college award for their daughter, with a trial slated to begin on Friday.

His two children have also been questioned by prosecutors.

Supporters say Cho's family has been unfairly targeted by prosecutors because of his promise to reform the investigative agency.

"I have endured day after day trying to fulfil my duty to reform the prosecution," Cho said in a statement, noting his "heavy heart".

President Moon accepted Cho's resignation and said he was "sorry for division" his appointment had caused.

But he noted Cho had dutifully carried out his mission during his 35-day stint and stressed the importance of following up on Cho's unfinished work.

"His whole-hearted reform drive... has sparked consensus on its needs," he said.

Education is South Korea is intensely competitive and top schools are frequently criticised for elitism -- including by Cho, who said they create an "unfair society".

He was accused of hypocrisy when it emerged he had sent his daughter to an elite institution, and that she had appeared to have benefitted from family connections.

Analysts say the scandal has laid bare worsening class divisions in South Korea, the world's 11th largest economy.

Cho made a note of this Monday, saying he was "deeply sorry" for disappointing young people.

Actress Huffman gets two weeks jail in US college admissions scandal

Yahoo – AFP, Joseph Prezioso with Peter Hutchison in New York, September 14, 2019

Fans wait for actress Felicity Huffman to leave the John Joseph Moakley
United States Courthouse in Boston, where she was sentenced for her role
in the college admissions scandal (AFP Photo/Joseph Prezioso)

Boston (AFP) - Actress Felicity Huffman was given two weeks jail time Friday for paying bribes to help her daughter gain admission to a prestigious American university, the first high-profile figure to be sentenced in a cheating scandal that rocked America.

The "Desperate Housewives" actress, wearing a navy blue dress and cardigan, looked ashen-faced as she left the federal courthouse in Boston, Massachusetts, clutching the hand of her husband, actor William H. Macy.

Huffman, 56, was the first parent to be sentenced among 50 people indicted in an elaborate and wide-ranging scam to help children of the elite secure places in top US colleges.

The Oscar nominee pleaded guilty in May during a tearful court appearance to paying $15,000 to boost her daughter's SAT college entrance exam score.

Judge Indira Talwani told Huffman it was important to send a message to other parents that they can't use their wealth to cheat more deserving students.

"I think without this sentence you would be looking at a future with the community around you asking why you had gotten away with this," she said, according to media outlets in the courtroom.

The judge said Huffman can rebuild her life after serving the sentence, which also includes a fine of $30,000 and 250 hours of community service.

"After this, you've paid your dues," she said.

Huffman must report for prison on October 25.

The actress apologized to students and parents and said she accepted the judge's decision.

"I broke the law. There are no excuses or justifications for my actions. Period," the actress said in a statement.

"My hope now is that my family, my friends and my community will forgive me for my actions," Huffman added.

Federal prosecutors had asked that Huffman be given a month in jail.

Her defense team recommended a sentence of a year's probation and a $20,000 fine.

Her guilty plea avoided what would have been a well-publicized trial and potentially lengthier jail sentence.

The crime is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a fine of as much as $250,000.

Huffman announced her intention to plead guilty in April, saying she was "ashamed" of what she had done.

Lori Loughlin

The scandal erupted in March when the ringleader behind the scam, William "Rick" Singer, admitted running the elaborate system which ranged from cheating in entrance exams to bribing coaches to help non-athletic students get scholarships.

Authorities say he was paid about $25 million to bribe coaches and university administrators. He has pleaded guilty and is cooperating with authorities.

His sentencing will take place on September 19.

In June, a former Stanford University sailing coach was the first to be sentenced, receiving two years of supervised release.

John Vandemoer, 41, had pleaded guilty in March for accepting payments to the program totaling $610,000 "in exchange for corrupting the admissions process of a major university," prosecutors said.

A Chinese family admitted to paying Singer $6.5 million to guarantee their daughter admission to Stanford, with Vandemoer's help, though the mother said she was duped into believing the sum was a charitable donation.

Besides Stanford, some of the universities targeted in the elaborate cheating scam include University of Southern California, Yale, Georgetown and UCLA. None of the schools or the students have been charged in the case.

Actress Lori Loughlin from 1980s-90s sitcom "Full House" has also been accused. She and her husband have pleaded not guilty and are awaiting trial.

S. Korea lawmaker grills official nominee for not giving birth

France24-AFP, 2 September 2019

Seoul (AFP) - A South Korean lawmaker provoked outrage Monday when he berated a female economics professor nominated as the country's antitrust chief for not "fulfilling her duty to the nation" by having a child.

Despite its economic advances, South Korean society remains highly patriarchal and is facing a demographic crisis with women increasingly reluctant to have babies for reasons ranging from the expense of child-rearing to career setbacks.

The government has spent billions of dollars since 2005 to try to boost the birth rate -- one of the world's lowest -- by providing child subsidies and expanding daycare services, without success.

Jeong Kab-yoon, a five-time lawmaker from the conservative opposition Liberty Korea Party, sparked an outcry when he scolded Joh Sung-wook, an unmarried academic who is in her mid-50s, for not having children.

"I'm aware that you are still single and the biggest problem in South Korea is that (women) are not giving birth," Jeong said at Joh's confirmation hearing to head the Fair Trade Commission, according to Yonhap news agency.

"You have a great resume but please fulfil your duties to the nation," Jeong added.

Joh appeared taken aback but did not react to his remark.

Social media users, though, were furious.

"This is an outright sexual assault and a violation of women's rights," one wrote.

Another asked: "Would a male nominee have faced this question?"

The country's total fertility rate -- the number of children a woman is expected to have in her lifetime -- dropped to 0.98 in 2018, far short of the 2.1 needed to maintain population stability.

Related Article:

"Recalibration of Free Choice"–  Mar 3, 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - (Subjects: (Old) Souls, Midpoint on 21-12-2012, Shift of Human Consciousness, Black & White vs. Color, 1 - Spirituality (Religions) shifting, Loose a Pope “soon”, 2 - Humans will change react to drama, 3 - Civilizations/Population on Earth,  4 - Alternate energy sources (Geothermal, Tidal (Paddle wheels), Wind), 5 – Financials Institutes/concepts will change (Integrity – Ethical) , 6 - News/Media/TV to change, 7 – Big Pharmaceutical company will collapse “soon”, (Keep people sick), (Integrity – Ethical)  8 – Wars will be over on Earth, Global Unity, … etc.) - (Text version)

“…  3 - Longer Life is Going to Happen, But…

Here is one that is a review. We keep bringing it up because Humans don't believe it. If you're going to start living longer, there are those who are frightened that there will be overpopulation. You've seen the way it is so far, and the geometric progression of mathematics is absolute and you cannot change it. So if you look at the population of the earth and how much it has shifted in the last two decades, it's frightening to you. What would change that progression?

The answer is simple, but requires a change in thinking. The answer is a civilization on the planet who understands a new survival scenario. Instead of a basic population who has been told to have a lot of children to enhance the race [old survival], they begin to understand the logic of a new scenario. The Akashic wisdom of the ages will start to creep in with a basic survival scenario shift. Not every single woman will look at herself and say, "The clock is ticking," but instead can say, "I have been a mother 14 times in a row. I'm going to sit this one out." It's a woman who understands that there is no loss or guilt in this, and actually feels that the new survival attribute is to keep the family small or not at all! Also, as we have said before, even those who are currently ignorant of population control will figure out what is causing babies to be born [Kryon joke].

Part of the new Africa will be education and healing, and eventually a zero population growth, just like some of the first-world nations currently have. Those who are currently tied to a spiritual doctrine will actually have that doctrine changed (watch for it) regarding Human birth. Then they will be able to make free choice that is appropriate even within the establishment of organized religion. You see, things are going to change where common sense will say, "Perhaps it would help the planet if I didn't have children or perhaps just one child." Then the obvious, "Perhaps I can exist economically better and be wiser with just one. It will help the one!" Watch for these changes. For those of you who are steeped in the tradition of the doctrines and would say that sounds outrageously impossible, I give you the new coming pope [Kryon smile]. For those of you who feel that uncontrolled procreation is inevitable, I encourage you to see statistics you haven't seen or didn't care to look at yet about what first-world countries have already accomplished on their own, without any mandates. It's already happening. That was number three.….”

Makeup giant Sephora to close for training over racial profiling

Yahoo – AFP, June 3, 2019

R&B star SZA tweeted she was in one of the beauty chain's shops when
security was called on her (AFP Photo/Brian Ach)

Los Angeles (AFP) - High street makeup powerhouse Sephora has announced it will close all its US stores, distribution centres and corporate office for employee training after a racial profiling incident involving Grammy-nominated singer SZA.

The black R&B star earlier tweeted she was in one of the beauty chain's shops when security was called on her.

In a statement posted to social media on May 24, Sephora said it would close on Wednesday morning to "host inclusion workshops for our employees."

"These values have always been at the heart of Sephora, and we're excited to welcome everyone when we reopen," the company added.

SZA had tweeted that security was called "to make sure I wasn't stealing", while she was at a Sephora store northwest of Los Angeles.

She added: "We had a long talk. U have a blessed day Sandy," referring to an employee.

SZA has been nominated for several Grammy awards, including this year for best new artist and best R&B song.

Sephora responded directly with its own tweet, saying the firm "take complaints like this very seriously and are actively working with our teams to address the situation immediately."

The company is owned by Paris-based Luxury giant LVMH, whose 70 brands range from Louis Vuitton, Hennessy and Givenchy to Celine, Dior and Guerlain.

It is not the first time a well-known firm in the US has had accusations of racial profiling made against their staff.

Starbucks last year closed for an afternoon of nationwide racial-bias training, after two black men were arrested in a Philadelphia store in April.

It is estimated the move cost the coffee giant at least $12 million in lost sales.

Actress Felicity Huffman pleads guilty in college admissions scandal

Yahoo – AFP, May 14, 2019

Actress Felicity Huffman arrives at court in Boston (AFP Photo/Joseph Prezioso)

New York (AFP) - American actress Felicity Huffman pleaded guilty on Monday for paying bribes to help her daughter gain admission to a prestigious university, avoiding what was sure to be a well-publicized trial and probably also dodging jail time.

The former "Desperate Housewives" star was the latest celebrity brought down by the wide-ranging college bribery scandal that's snared a slew of wealthy American parents.

In a tearful appearance before federal judge Indira Talwani in Boston, Huffman pled guilty to paying $15,000 to boost her daughter's SAT college entrance exam score.

The crime is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a fine of as much as $250,000, but by admitting guilt Huffman will likely avoid those penalties.

Federal prosecutors have recommended a sentence of a year's probation and a $20,000 fine, though the judge can modify the penalty if she pleases.

Huffman announced her intention to plead guilty last month, saying she was "ashamed" of what she had done. Sentencing is scheduled for September 13, US attorney for Massachusetts Andrew Lelling said.

Among the 50 people charged in the admissions scandal -- a group that includes CEOs and partners at major law firms -- 10 have already pled guilty, including five parents.

Another 10 parents have said they will also plead guilty in the scandal that saw some of the accused pay as much as $400,000 to get their children into their chosen college.

The ringleader behind the scam, William "Rick" Singer, who authorities say was paid about $25 million dollars to bribe coaches and university administrators, has pleaded guilty and is cooperating with authorities.

Chinese family say they were scammed over $6.5mn Stanford payment

Yahoo – AFP, 3 May 2019

Stanford was among the prestigious universities targeted in the elaborate
cheating scheme

The mother of a Chinese student admitted Friday she paid $6.5 million to the man at the heart of a US college admission scandal but said she was duped into believing the sum was a charitable donation.

American academia has been rocked by a colossal bribery scandal run by William "Rick" Singer who has pleaded guilty to working with corrupt coaches, university administrators and exam monitors to get the children of wealthy families into prestigious colleges.

The $25 million scam, which was revealed by US prosecutors earlier this year, has seen some 50 people charged including Hollywood actors and industry CEOs.

Most of the cases that have come to light through indictments or guilty pleas have involved parents paying anywhere between $15,000 and $600,000 to ensure their children got into college.

But earlier this week US media reported that Singer received a huge payment of $6.5 million from a wealthy Chinese family whose daughter Yusi Zhao got into Stanford in 2017.

On Friday, Hong Kong-based lawyers for Zhao's mother released a statement on her behalf in which she said the payment was made but that Singer had led her to believe it was a legitimate donation that would go towards Stanford's staff salaries and scholarship programme.

"The donation is in the same nature as those that many affluent parents have been doing openly to prestigious universities," the statement read, adding they had made it a month after their daughter was accepted into Stanford.

"Since the matters concerning Mr Singer and his foundation have been widely reported, Mrs Zhao has come to realise she has been misled, her generosity has been taken advantage of, and her daughter has fallen victim to the scam," it added.

Law firm Mayer Brown declined to give the mother's full name or say whether Yusi Zhao is still at the prestigious Ivy League college.

The New York Times said her father is a wealthy businessman who made his fortune in traditional Chinese medicine and health supplements.

A reporter from the paper who visited the family's home in an ultra-wealthy district on the outskirts of Beijing this week said a Ferrari, a Tesla, a Bentley and a Land Rover could be seen parked outside a California-style mansion.

Prosecutors in the US have not filed any charges against the Zhao family.

American colleges are highly sought after among Chinese families and a booming industry has flourished offering consulting and test preparation advice. Chinese students have also become a hugely lucrative demographic for those colleges.

US media have reported only one other family paid Singer a seven figure sum -- a Chinese family who allegedly paid $1.2 million to get their daughter into Yale.

Related Articles:

Behind the bribery: US university admissions favor the rich

Hollywood stars among dozens charged over college entrance scam

"Desperate Housewives" star Felicity Huffman (L) and fellow Hollywood actress

Lori Loughlin are among 50 people indicted in a nationwide university admissions

scam, court records showed (AFP Photo/LISA O'CONNOR, Tommaso Boddi)

Starbucks to educate staff against racial bias, set example

Yahoo – AFP, Catherine TRIOMPHE, 27 May 2018

Starbucks has sought to contain outrage after the arrest of two young black
men at one of its outlets in Philadelphia

Can you teach employees not to be racist? Coffee giant Starbucks will shut stores around the United States on Tuesday to conduct an unprecedented training exercise at its more than 8,000 American outlets.

The initiative, which is expected to last four hours and reach 175,000 employees, was announced by Starbucks management on April 17, as it sought to contain outrage over the arrest of two young black men at one of its cafes in Philadelphia.

The incident five days earlier sparked outrage, protests and anguished soul-searching about America's lingering problems of discrimination and racial tensions that have deteriorated under the presidency of Donald Trump.

After the two black men arrived at the Starbucks one of them asked to use the bathroom but was told it was for paying customers only. The pair then sat down to wait for a third person before ordering drinks.

The manager called police.

A video that went viral showed uniformed officers questioning then handcuffing the two men, who put up no resistance, while a white client repeatedly asks an officer, "What'd they do? What'd they do?"

"Whether in stores, on trains, implicit or explicit bias, you see it all the time," says James Bell, 47, a counsellor in a mostly black school in Brooklyn and a Starbucks customer.

"As a black male, you have workers in the stores excessively asking, 'Do you need anything, may I help you?'" he tells AFP. "You see a young black man and you immediately think crime."

Bell points to other recent examples of discrimination broadcast on social networks, such a student calling the police in May when a black graduate student at Yale University fell asleep in a common room.

'Historic'

Then there are instances of police brutality toward, and killings of, black male suspects, also often captured by witnesses armed with smartphones, that in recent years have spawned protests.

Given the context, Bell isn't convinced that the Starbucks initiative will change much, but says it's "good they are trying." "At least they make the effort," he said.

Camille Hymes (C), a Starbucks regional vice-president, addresses media and 

protestors in a Philadelphia outlet of the coffee chain on April 15, 2018 after the 

police arrest of two black men sparked outrage and the company apologized

Like him, there has been a cautious welcome from black officials and activists, who are nonetheless waiting to see what happens and whether anything actually changes as a result.

"I do think this is historic," Sherrilyn Ifill, president of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, America's first civil and human rights law firm, has said.

"I don't know of another company as ubiquitous as Starbucks... that has stated their willingness to directly confront racism and bias within their own company."

In taking responsibility, she said, Starbucks has "created an important window for retail corporations in America to begin to honestly and forthrightly tackle racial inequality."

Ifill is one of those from whom Starbucks sought advice in drawing up the curriculum. As with the others, it was conditional assistance.

"We've made it clear that we wont be a rubber stamp to validate their programming if we don't believe it's not effectively delivering," said Heather McGhee, president of Demos, a public policy organization that works to reduce political and economic inequality.

"We are going to be issuing a report later on at the beginning part of this summer about a more comprehensive set of items that we think they need to address to really lead on this issue," she said.

Starbucks seems to have heeded concerns.

'First step'

"May 29 isn't a solution, it's a first step," says the company on its website.

"This first training will focus on understanding racial bias and the history of public accommodations in the United States, with future trainings addressing all aspects of bias and experiences," it added.

So what will employees actually be taught on Tuesday? Starbucks has refused to grant media access to the training sessions, but has released a short video ahead of time.

They are due to watch a film from documentary maker Stanley Nelson on the history of African Americans, and discuss in small groups their experience of racial discrimination.

There will also be taped addresses from Howard Schultz and Kevin Johnson, the chairman and CEO of Starbucks respectively.

Sharon Rush, a law professor and expert in race relations at the University of Florida, is another of those who is uncertain -- even if she applauds Starbuck's initiative.

Jewish school refused to report teacher abuse until pressured by minister

DutchNews, March 6, 2018

Photo: Depositphotos.com 

An orthodox Jewish school in Amsterdam refused to bring charges against a teacher accused of sexually abusing five pupils until pressured by the then education minister, the NRC reported on Tuesday. 

Ephraim S will appear in court next month, almost six years after the offences were committed and two years after his extradition from Israel to face the charges. 

The NRC says that parents first reported their suspicions about S to the Cheider school in June 2012 but it was not until October, following the intervention of the minister and school inspectors, that the school made an official complaint. 

Schools are required by law to report abuse to the police, but the school’s board wanted to deal with the case internally and in line with Jewish laws, the paper said. 

S who was in his mid 20s at the time of the offences, moved to Tel Aviv after he was sacked for ‘inappropriate behaviour’. Reports at the time said he had been sexually involved with a 16-year-old pupil. 

The Cheider school in Amsterdam caters for children aged two to 18 and has some 200 pupils. Children have to obey a strict dress code and there are separate lessons for girls and boys.

Zero to hero: Egypt schoolgirl becomes anti-corruption icon

Yahoo – AFP, Mona Salem, September 9, 2015

Mariam Malak talks to the media outside the Forensic Medical Authority

headquarters in Cairo on September 8, 2015 (AFP Photo/Khaled Desouki)

Cairo (AFP) - Schoolgirl Mariam Malak has become an unlikely symbol of the fight against corruption in Egypt after scoring the sum total of zero in her final exams.

The 19-year-old top student, a teacher's daughter in a small village in the poor southern province of Minya, dreams of becoming a doctor like her two brothers.

In previous years she aced her exams, and had expected a similar result in her final year.

Now nicknamed the "zero schoolgirl" in the local press, Malak had scored 97 percent in her previous two years.

But Malak was shocked to find that she had been failed in her finals, and says her answers had been replaced with someone else's -- clearly not in her handwriting.

"Since the results came out I've been living a nightmare," Malak told AFP after coming to Cairo from her home in southern Egypt.

"When I was shown the so-called copy of my answers, I couldn't believe my eyes," she said.

Malak said she had written page after page in the exams, and what she was shown consisted of a few lines.

In highly bureaucratic Egypt with its confusing legal system, challenging rampant corruption or wrongs suffered by the average citizen can be a formidable task.

Mariam Malak (centre), her lawyer Nabil Sadik (centre left) and brother Mina 

Malak (right), outside the Forensic Medical Authority headquarters in Cairo, on 

September 8, 2015 (AFP Photo/Khaled Desouki)

Were her papers swapped?

But Malak, who wears thick glasses and has her hair in a simple ponytail, is standing up for her rights and challenging the exam results.

Her lawyers believe Malak's exam papers could have been swapped with those submitted by the child of a person of influence.

When the final result first came out, a disbelieving Malak appealed to the education authority in the southern city of Assiut, which dismissed the complaint.

So she appealed to the prosecution service, which tasked a forensics team in Assiut to determine if the answers were in her handwriting.

Malak was again stunned when the experts ruled that the answers were indeed in her handwriting, and the prosecution closed the case.

So she again appealed against the decision.

"When she first heard of the forensic report she fainted," said her brother Mina, a doctor in his thirties who accompanied his sister to Cairo.

Malak was hospitalised briefly, and then appeared in tears on a television show, a catheter for a drip still inserted in her hand.

"I know I'm fighting corruption because the way my results were announced and forged means that corruption exists," she said.

'I believe Mariam Malak'

By the time Malak lodged her second appeal, her story had become a mainstay of television talk shows and in the newspapers, with people taking to Twitter with the hashtag "I believe Mariam Malak".

Mariam Malak (centre) a teacher's daughter in a small village in the poor southern

 province of Minya, dreams of becoming a doctor like her two brothers (AFP Photo/

Khaled Desouki)

Her case finally came to the attention of Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab, who invited Malak to the capital for a meeting and issued a statement backing her.

Mahlab said he would "support the student in her appeal as if she were his daughter".

The Coptic Pope Tawadros II also asked to meet her, but Malak, a Christian, declined lest it appear a sectarian issue, saying her case was "that of an Egyptian citizen".

The prosecution service has now reopened the case, this time appointing a forensics team in the capital to study the handwriting in the answers attributed to her.

Malak's case has seized the public imagination as Egypt reels from a corruption scandal that led this week to the arrest of the agriculture minister immediately after he was told to quit.

There are also rumours in the press of a pending cabinet reshuffle.

At the education ministry, a senior official insisted that justice would be upheld in Malak's case.

"We are not with anyone or against anyone, and we respect justice," said Mohamed Saad, adding that the prosecution findings would be implemented.

"If you respect my rights in my country, all those who live in injustice will know they can claim theirs as well," Malak told AFP.

Major teacher strike in Chicago: Thousands to hit streets

RT.com, 10 September, 2012

Thousands of Chicago Public School teachers march to the Board
 of Education's headquarters during a protest in Chicago, May 23,
2012. (Reuters/Jim Tanner)

A massive teacher strike has kicked off in Chicago; 29,000 teachers and staff are expected to hit the streets. As some 350,000 students are left behind, parents worry over their kids’ safety without proper supervision in potentially dangerous areas.

After more than 100 meetings and over 400 hours in negotiations, the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) declared they would strike after 11th-hour talks failed late Sunday night. Although both sides claimed to have made strides towards reaching an agreement, CTU President Karen Lewis said there were still issues upon which the two sides could not reach a consensus.

"We have failed to reach an agreement that will prevent a labor strike," she said Sunday night at a press conference. "In the morning, no CTU members will be inside our schools."

"This is a difficult decision and one we hoped we could have avoided," she said. "We must do things differently in this city if we are to provide our students with the education they so rightfully deserve."

The sticking points in negotiations were a new method of teacher evaluation based on student performance which they feared would lead to layoffs, and rising costs of pensions already promised to retired teachers. Also at stake was a rezoning of school districts that teachers felt would damage the system, and an extension of the Chicago school day, reportedly one of the shortest in the nation.

The Chicago School Board and Mayor Rahm Emanuel had already agreed to a 16 per cent wage increase over four years, countering the CTU’s original demand of 30 per cent. The School Board also offered multiple benefit proposals and a rehiring system for teachers from schools that might be closed due to rezoning.

Chicago School Board President David Vitale said the city had made its "best offer" to the Union.

"This is about as much as we can do," Vitale said. "There is only so much money in the system."

"This is not a small commitment we're handing out at a time when our fiscal situation is really challenged," he added.

The Chicago Public School system is facing a projected budget deficit of $3 billion over the next three years, a number complicated even further by teacher retirement pensions.

Mayor Emmanuel called the strike an unnecessary and painful move, especially since the two sides had come close to an agreement.

“This is totally unnecessary, it is avoidable and our kids do not deserve this," Emmanuel said at a press conference Sunday night.

The city’s contingency plans include $25 million of funding for 144 out of 675 schools to open for a half day of supervision, including breakfast and lunch. The schools are not allowed to hold classes without certified teachers under state law. The plan also asks for community centers and churches to aid in sheltering children.

Union officials are concerned over the plan, calling it a “train-wreck”, according to a Reuters report, worried that many of the people supervising children are without proper training, CTU said.  Parents are also uneasy about putting students from different schools together in neighborhoods which have suffered from gang-related shootings this summer.

"This is not a strike I wanted," Emanuel said. "It was a strike of choice … it's unnecessary, it's avoidable and it's wrong."

The Chicago debate echoes national education concerns as public school systems in many states are introducing new teacher evaluation models that include using student test scores to determine performance in 2012. The list includes Arizona, Louisiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Colorado, and Florida. Teachers unions have traditionally been opposed to such measures.

Probe: Bad judgment in military school Islam class

Associated Press, by Pauline Jelinek, Jun. 20, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) — Poor judgment and poor oversight led to the teaching of anti-Islamic material at a military school for officers, the Pentagon said Wednesday

Though an Army lieutenant colonel who taught the class has been relieved of his teaching duties, investigators recommended reviewing the actions of two civilian officials at the school to see if they also should face discipline, the Defense Department said in a statement. A second military officer will receive counseling.

Materials in a course for military officers at Joint Forces Staff College in Norfolk, Va., portrayed the U.S. as at war with Islam. That's an idea counter to repeated assertions by U.S. officials that the war being fought by America is one against terrorists.

Some of the material suggested the U.S. ultimately might have to obliterate the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia without regard for civilian deaths, following World War II precedents of the nuclear attack on Hiroshima, Japan, or the allied firebombing of Dresden, Germany.

The teacher, Lt. Col. Matthew Dooley, also suggested that the Geneva Convention, which guides behavior toward prisoners, was "no longer relevant" and that Muslims "hate everything you stand for."

The Pentagon suspended the course in late April when a student objected to the material. The FBI also changed some agent training last year after discovering that its curriculum, too, was critical of Islam.

The new findings come from a report sought by chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, Gen. Martin Dempsey. He had ordered all service branches to review their training to ensure that other courses don't use anti-Islamic material and that procedures are in place to screen course content. The report itself has not been released, but the conclusions were described by Dempsey's spokesman, Marine Col. Dave Lapan, in a written statement to the media and later in a conversation with Pentagon reporters.

Lapan said the intent of the inflammatory material was to be provocative — "to be something to stimulate discussion and challenge people's beliefs and generate academic discussion," he said. But briefing slides used in the class, for instance, did not explain that.

"The flaw was that it didn't clearly define that it was meant to be provocative," Lapan said.

The recently completed review found that issues with approving curricula, presentations and guest lecturers only existed at Joint Forces Staff College, and only in that particular course, Lapan.

The inquiry into the elective course, called "Perspectives on Islam and Islamic Radicalism," found there were "institutional failures in oversight and judgment" that allowed the course to be modified over time in a way that left out instruction on U.S. counterterrorism strategy and policy. Somewhere along the line, it adopted "a teaching methodology that portrayed Islam almost entirely in a negative way," Lapan said.

Guest lecturers were increased, materials were added and that inadvertently created the problem, Lapan said. He stressed that it "was not purposeful," adding that a better system of student feedback might have caught the problem sooner.

Dooley was removed from his teaching job this year. Lapan said he is due for a routine transfer to another assignment in August.

Among other recommendations are that the course should be redesigned to include aspects of U.S. policy, and that the course should rely less on outside instruction. The report suggested changing the school's system for reviewing and approving course curricula.

Related Articles:

Senators blast FBI's anti-Muslim

manuals (RT.com)

Senators blast FBI's anti-Muslim manuals

'Mohammed was a cult leader': FBI teaches agents that 'mainstream’ Muslims are violent and radical

"Healing the Military Energies in our family Tree" – Jun 13, 2011 (Kryon channelled by David Brown)

“ … There’s much violence and anger throughout the world; when we look at the Middle East, we can see that changes are coming there. The West has a lot of power over the Middle East, but that power will begin to dissolve. The Muslim people of this world will begin to have their own power, and their own prosperity, and they will begin to disconnect from the Western World. This disconnection doesn’t have to be violent as violence only happens when somebody hangs onto what doesn’t belong to them....

... What Military Energy means if we use an analogy: it would be like putting grinding paste into the oil of your motor car. Once you release these energies you will begin to feel lighter as you disconnect from this reality, and, you will find it easier and easier to release any other negative emotions. Military Energies are the core of all your problems...."

"The End of History" – Nov 20, 2010 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Abraham, Isaac, Ishmael, Muhammad, Jesus, God, Jews, Arabs, EU, US, Israel, Iran, Russia, Africa, South America, Global Unity,..... etc.) (Text version)

".... If an Arab and a Jew can look at one another and see the Akashic lineage and see the one family, there is hope. If they can see that their differences no longer require that they kill one another, then there is a beginning of a change in history. And that's what is happening now. All of humanity, no matter what the spiritual belief, has been guilty of falling into the historic trap of separating instead of unifying. Now it's starting to change. There's a shift happening...."

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