Just catching the news in regards to the frenzy of home auctions going across the US.  No wonder!  Realtors are desperate to sell a house to a person who is qulaified, buyers are despereate to find a home they have saved enough down payment for that they have a high enough credit score to fund a loan, and sellers just want OUT!  I know a new auction method coming in September to our state.  I will keep you posted, but it may be just the ticket we need to get a home at  fair price.  I have requested more information and when I get it, I will share.

If you hear of any other ideas other than short sales, foreclosures, or tin sheds being sold as mansions, post it please.  Here's to surviving the Real Estate economy and high gas prices. HOOAH! to DCB/Army

So here I stand, this lovely morning out in front of the local Home Depot. Yesterday was quite a day for all of us, and I have to say, I was pretty exhausted. There was a lot of tension and a lot of anger from many of you. So, as I stand here, out in front of the good ol' HD, my latte in one hand and my Blackberry in the other, waiting for the big white van to come and take me to some house or site where I can display my extraordinary drywalling skills, as I stand here, I have to ask myself, is it something I said?

 

I have responses for many of you, but before I get to them, there are a few things I would like to address. First things first, with the exception of me knocking on the person who said they voted for Ron Paul, I want you to know that I made a valid effort to address each of you not in a mocking tone, but rather in with an intelligent answer. You had something to say, and I felt that it would have been irresponsible for me to step up and just say "no stupid" and leave it like that. I felt and still feel that this is a forum where if any of us has something to say, we should be able to say it. That being said, for the lady who said she voted for Ron Paul, I do apologize. Not for my stance, but for mocking your choice. This is something you believe in, and I shouldn't discount it.

 

So I meditated on all this business last night, and I decided to take some of the posts, copy and paste them into this post (business is slow at the HD and my Blackberry is AWESOME) and respond. Oh, and this "blaze" character, I swear on all my Mexi-ness, this is not me. I promise you, and I wouldn't lie to you. Have so far, won't in the future.

 

On to the posts!

 

Nativephoenician wrote:

 

"NO EFFIN AMNESTY EVER!!!WE_ALL_SNUCK_IN go back to wence you came. Believe me when I say I dont hate you. How can I hate you when I dont even know you, however that doesnt mean you and your kind get a free ride on my dime. GET OUT"

 

Well, I thought this was a fine way to start out, because this is a person who is clearly somebody who is passionate about immigration laws. Here is the thing, native. Because our government has been relatively lax regarding illegal immigration, you can't really expect them to now be able to regulate it. The fence that the government is so proud of is pretty much a joke. Amnesty combined with a proactive plan to regulate immigrants coming into this country combined with a very strict screening policy is the only way to go at this point. They are here, and if you want them to stop being a "drain on our economy" (I will also address that) and stop "leeching off your taxes" then make them legal. From that point on, create a serious system to monitor immigrants.

 

Justold44 wrote:

 

"All you need to do to get a Legal SS# is be born in the united states to legal parents and fill out a simple one page form!! That's it!! Not so hard after all, is it?"

 

 

Nope, it's that simple. Oh, and the repeated interviews, paperwork, the $5,000.00 per person that is also required. And then there is kind of a cooling off period, all the while you get to live in poverty!

 

Wisegirl wrote:

 

In 1795 English became the official language with German losing by one vote! YOU PEOPLE NEED TO LEARN ENGLISH!
We fought for this country and we are not leaving. If you want to go to war over it, bring it on! I have been saying for years that America needs to take over Mexico and solve the illegal problem. Get rid of your corrupt Gov't, earn a minimum wage and pay taxes.

 

First things first, you are correct. In 1795 English did become the official language. A few other remarkable facts about 1795 were:

 

The French Revolution was occurring.

 

The University of North Carolina opens its doors for the first time.

 

We still lacked states! There was still a Mississippi territory!

 

Look, just because something was a completely valid statement in 1795 doesn't mean it can be considered truly applicable today. If that is the case, then most all the southwest should be given back to Spain, because back in 1795, this was all pretty much Viceroyalty of New Spain, or just Spain. Do you get the point here? Things have to change. We are a society made of immigrants. I am not saying that everything should be in Spanish, but would it really kill you to broaden your horizons and learn one or two new languages? Oh, and America taking over Mexico? That will never happen, because there is no chance for profit. America only goes after places with oil and other various materials that they can profit from. I kind of wish that the US would step in and get rid of the cartel and reset the government, if anything just to give these people who like it in Mexico a valid chance at success, but  honestly, that wont happen. At least not till somebody strikes oil in Mexico.

 

Now if you don't mind, I am going to quote myself, because there are a few things I addressed that you all ignored.

 

We_All_Snuck_In wrote:

 

The United States is one of the largest consumers of ILLEGAL drugs in the world. It is simple economics, supply and demand baby! You need the weed; you need the cocaine, so you keep buying.

 

 

Any takers?

 

 

 

We_All_Snuck_In wrote:

 

 

I guarantee you, my angry little elves, if you somehow managed to remove all the "illegals" from the United States, you would see a serious hit to the economy. They are responsible for the low prices you pay for everything. Cheap labor means less overhead for the man, thus the lower prices. Without the cheap labor, the prices go up and combined with the wonderfully high gas prices... well, you do the math.

 

 

Again, any takers? You all get upset saying that they are mooching off your tax dollars, yet you have no problem with your President spending half his term goofing off building nature trails. You all are upset that they are mooching off your tax dollars, yet, odds are, you have no idea that your Department of Homeland Security is up to. Here is an AP article, so you know it’s on the up and up:

 

 

 

“WASHINGTON - The Homeland Security Department wasted hundreds of thousands of dollars last year on iPods, dog booties, beer-making equipment and designer jackets, congressional investigators have concluded.

 

 

More than 100 laptop computers and a dozen boats also bought by Homeland Security employees are missing, the investigators found.”

 

 

And my source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13924780/

 

 

Now, I can kinda see the dog booties, because nobody wants their little feet to get hurt while searching the mountains of Afghanistan and nobody can disagree that there is nothing cuter than a beagle sliding around a freshly waxed floor wearing a pair of booties, but beer-making equipment and iPods? Designer Jackets?

 

Guys and gals don’t get all up in arms about illegal immigrants eating up your taxes, because if anything, they put back into the economy. Because they are willing to work for low wages, you are paying significantly lower prices for stuff like produce and textiles. I don’t agree with business owners taking advantage of them, but this is the reality of our situation. They are putting back into the economy what they are taking out. Now, your government on the other hand… you tell me, do you really feel that our economy has benefited from the dog booties? Probably not.

 

Again, I realize that you are probably not going to agree with me on this, and again, that is cool. That is what makes this whole thing so great. You can voice your opinion and debate things with one another in a way that you might not have been able to. You can push buttons that need to be pushed that you might not have come near before. If you disagree with me, that is great. That just means that there is one other independent thinker out there with a valuable opinion that should be heard. I will never call you stupid, nor will I levy insults at you. I already apologized for mocking Justold, and I mean that.

 

For now at least, I am going to bow out. There is a guy who just got here who needs to have the ceiling in his house replaced and he is offering to buy lunch too, so that is cool. Take care my people and remember Latinos are not the enemy. Illegal aliens are not the enemy. I say we, because we as Mexicans don’t really believe in the idea of any of us being illegal. We are Latino. Just because somebody else labeled some of us “illegal” doesn’t mean that we are going to separate into two groups. We are Latinos. I’ve got to go, because as you know, the guy in the truck waits for no man.

 

Now that I am back in the technical support arena, I thought it would be good to share computer tips once a week. These will be based on the largest computer problems I have seen the week before. This weeks tip has to do with wireless connectivity.  It is by far the largest complaint that we see in the tech support arena. Everyone wants to connect wireless because they believe that wireless is the latest and greatest fad.  Couple of points here. Point one, if you connect wirelessly, you will notice a difference in speed  This is simply because a wireless connection is slower than ethernet. If you are a gamer, that difference will be more noticeable simply because of the amount of bandwidth a game takes to play online versus browsing the internet or checking email.
Point two of wireless connectivity has to do with EMI, which stands for electric magnetic interference.  This is feedback which interrupts your wireless connection. Things that we have seen which cause EMI are microwave ovens, wireless phones, cell phones, static electricity from your carpet, televisions, and stereo systems.  This is just some of the items that cause EMI, and these items will cause your computer to drop connection.  As the bundling of products appears to be the latest fad of internet service providers, the big complaint is when the customers Residential Gateway is installed right next to the television.  Although it will make it easy for the technician to install, the fact is, it will cause the wireless to drop constantly. My advice, ask your technician to move your gateway away from any electrical equipment and on top of a shelf. 
Point three about wireless connectivity, is that of security. With security being on everyone's mind, in doing this, connecting to the internet now is starting to include a third step in some cases. This third step seems to throw a lot of people off as far as connecting. We have gotten use to just plugging in and it works, in the wireless world, this is not the case. One has to first choose which network to pick, then type in the network key, and then it works.  Now both Windows and Macintosh will save your key, and you will auto connect next time, but the fact is, the requirement of a password appears to be throwing a lot of people off. 
Bottom line is that although it is a nice feature to hook up wireless, the fact is that a wireless connection is still not as stable as hardline. Do not compare the two, for there is simply no comparison.  The best advice to give if you are looking for a wireless connection is to purchase a Apple Airport Extreme base station which is a dedicated wireless router. The airport base station can be used for both windows and mac networks, and appears to be the best built for the job. The multipurpose routers that we see out there, are just like anything else, where the more you build into one thing, the more that can wrong.

I don't see what the big deal is about letting the cheerleaders wear their uniforms.  I have 4 daughters who have all participated in cheer.  For the amount of money we spend on their uniforms and accessories, I want them to get as much use out of them as possible.  Yes the skirts are short, but they wear spankies (similar to shorts) under the skirts.   If the uniforms weren't tasteful to begin with, the school would not have approved the purchase in the first place. 

Just my two cents worth ;)

 

 

August 27, 2008                           Document by:  R. Carey Mason

 

                                                      
  11202 N. 34th Ave. Phoenix, Arizona 85029

 

                                                      
  602 866-2095

 

 

 

TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN

 

 

 

Subject: Mismanagement of Excessive Heat hurting our Disabled Special Needs Children

 

 

The story you are about to read should concern anyone who holds to the idea school personnel and administration should be absolutely responsible for protecting children physically. This document tells a story of violation of trust that is a continuing problem and presented here-in are the solutions we long time drivers have determined that are now absolutely necessary to stop endangering our Disabled Special Needs (DSN) Children. This district has known about this issue about extreme heat for months and in my opinion has done very little except to try to protect itself and the status quo; a new accountabity protocol (and others like it in this document) will start to absolutely insure the safety of our children. According to our drivers C. D. L., and minimum standards we are to do everything that is reasonable and prudent to protect our children.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our experience has been that our transportation management has been in group denial about the issues of extreme heat. For a long time they seem to have been making use of a defective but convenient system of justification and rationalization that is simply an elaborate way of not taking responsibility for students whom are very fragile and most definitely should have protection from extreme heat. This is not to say that any one person or persons had in mind to create this system; We believe it evolved one conflict of interest at a time until the student's best interest with regard to safety was no longer the foremost concern.

 

 

 

ARS 13-3623: Child or vulnerable adult abuse: (A) Under circumstances likely to produce death or serious injury, any person who causes a child or vulnerable adult to suffer physical injury or, having care or custody of a child or vulnerable adult, who causes or permits a child or vulnerable adult to be placed in a situation where the person or health of the child or vulnerable adult is endangered is guilty of the offense.

 

 

 

Carey submitted his first complaint in written form (3 pages) on October 4, 2006; at that time Carey cited transportation management for likely child abuse and/or endangerment, due to miss-management and drivers knowing and constantly exposing 200 plus disabled special needs children to excessive heat and/or contaminated air conditioning. Carey submitted his second complaint in written form March 12, 2007.  Carey appealed to Susie Cook, Superintendent for the Washington Elementary School District. Carey asked that the new 6 page complaint go to the board so I could be protected by the State Whistle Blowers Regulations. This latest document dated 5-5-08 is Carey’s most complete discussion on this issue (edited 8-27-08).

 

 

 

 

 

#1 For the protection of the disabled special needs (DSN) children: We insist on immediate cessation of the practice of transporting our disabled special needs children in outside temperature exceeding 80 degrees without air-conditioning. This will necessitate having a thermometer being installed on every special needs bus. This will require not putting any disabled special needs child on any school bus that lacks adequate air conditioning.  All short buses without air (usually 50, 60, & 70 series buses) will need to immediately stop transporting (DSN) disabled special needs children; these provide the best day to day evidence that (DSN) children are potentially suffering child abuse and endangerment due to excessive heat. 

 

 

 

#2 For the protection of the (DSN) children, We insist that before the next school term starts a 50% increase in the money allowed for maintenance of our bus fleet.  Other discussion: We are careful to mention we do not want this money wasted which is why (more) careful management will be important.  We realize that if this increase in allocated money is not possible it will be possible to cut service in many areas keeping our children safe which we believe is not the situation now.  On April 6, 2008 Carey had a discussion with my special needs supervisor Tina Hallquist and explained that he was taking 3 days off to work on materials for the board concerning excessive heat & our children. She explained to me that pertaining to the situation with heat - she expected the situation not to improve; Tina said it was very possible that by the start of the school year (08) which comes in the middle of our Arizona summer that she expected to see only 50% of our buses that transport our disabled special needs students to have air-conditioning.  She said she believed the solution was in new school buses to replace the old ones – other than new buses she saw little chance of much change. Many drivers do not see that all new buses is the answer to stop abusing (DSN) children with excessive heat; we believe the evidence shows that 75% of our problem is in inadequate management protocols and not enough money spent in maintenance; we see new buses as only 25% of the solution. We really don't think it is a great idea to buy a lot of new buses if we going to do the same poor job of maintaining the buses that we have (especially the new buses).

 

 

 

A most revealing statement was made by Mr. McWhorter at our public forum meeting (what we call a tailgate meeting because it is done on the back of a pick-up). Mr. McWhorter stated in this November 2006 meeting that our transportation cost and expenses for maintenance of our buses was about 50% less than normal for an organization our size. After Mr. McWhorter's proud declaration - the long time drivers had very good insight (from then on) as to why air-conditioning and other items couldn't get fixed at all or was often not fixed for weeks.

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

#3 For the protection of the (DSN) children,  We are insisting that from now on any repair that was not done to the satisfaction of the driver be logged in on the bus drivers post trip inspection ; The post trip inspection will  provide a space to list the repair and whether or not we were satisfied with the repair.  Also will be listed whether the repair is/was done in a timely manor. At the end of the month every one of these reports of satisfaction and dissatisfaction will be reported on one list by a transportation specialist for the purpose of  seeing how much excellence we have or don't have. This list will be updated monthly and placed on the employee/driver bulletin board. A second copy will go to risk management (where there can be some independent accountability) These monthly reports will be in the transportation office and will be public records for anyone to examine (i.e. Freedom of information act). We drivers in days past had a 4 part form that when the repair was done - we got a copy of that and what was done; today we see very few of these driver copies so now there is now very little accountability;  the service we are getting is very unsatisfactory:

 

 

 

#4 For the protection of the (DSN) children, We are now insisting on our readable copy of the mechanics work order with few excuses as to why the repair is substandard.  A survey of our long term drivers will tell you there is very low confidence in our maintenance mechanics to repair our buses in a professional manor; the average bus driver can (currently) cite 1 to 3 unprofessional repairs on most buses (even & especially the new ones); We drivers are seeing many repairs being done in a substandard and unprofessional ways. We are already collecting that information to insist on excellence, but we will never get excellence if we don't insist on accountability.

 

 

 

#5 For the protection of the (DSN) children, We are insisting that every mechanics in the shop be highly trained and demonstrate their proven competence; to that end we should have them list their certifications and these should be put on the mechanics bulletin board for all to see; (these should be updated every 3 months). Other Discussion: This is a standard in many shops -  displaying the credentials of the mechanics instills confidence. We all want our bus mechanics to be highly trained and have certifications to work on what they are working on; we drivers do not see high excellence now. We see many jobs being done over and over again and often no excuse or accountability is given for the lack of adequate repairs. We drivers believe their is a lot of money being lost because mechanics tinker and experiment on our buses instead of having the training to do the job right the first time. Carey can show you buses that are only 2 years old or less where they can't fix the air-conditioning, heater, turn signals, etc. Last year Carey sat on a block of wood under his seat because it took months to fix the seat. In the bus yard right now we have several seats that just don't work and according to the mechanics can't work right. A few weeks ago we lost a very good employee because the shop was unable or unwilling to fix his seat. What do seats of the driver have to do with children on the bus; Carey & other drivers can tell you sub (replacement) drivers many times just can't adjust seat properly and that improperly adjusted seat could endanger the drivers life and/or the lives of the children; but the expectation of our management is that we have to live with it; The drivers are beginning to say like I am; “this management is endangering the children’s lives and the drivers lives  and  its got to stop now”.  A great deal of the time though out the school year we only have had 50% of our air-conditioning in good working order on our disabled special needs buses.

 

 

 

#6 For the protection of the (DSN) children, We are now insisting that if a bus cannot be fixed in a timely manor - that bus will be sent to an outside service for repair not just given to someone who might drive the bus with a mechanical defect. A new form citing an untimely repair needs to be created and given to the transportation director by the driver. A monthly list of these reports needs to be sent to a risk management person in the district. That list needs to be open to all who need to review it. (Freedom of information needs to be applied here.)

 

 

 

#7  For the protection of the (DSN) children, We insist that no longer should a parent have to get a Doctor to say their child is heat sensitive; instead a parent or any other person that has regular contact with the child who has reason to believe this child is heat sensitive should have the right to immediately classified this child heat sensitive on the computer and the child’s IEP. To do otherwise is to put a child into an endangerment situation, which I firmly believe is against the law. The issues of doing what is reasonable and prudent in the face of danger and the possibility we might be discriminating against the poor are major factors to consider here. Other Discussion: On October 4, 2006, Carey informed Bruce McWhorter, Director of Transportation and Craig Carter, Director of special needs for the district, about likely child abuse and/or neglect, due to management and drivers knowing and constantly exposing 200+-disabled special needs children to excessive heat and/or contaminated air-conditioning. Carey appealed to Mr. Carter over the phone and he set up a meeting on October 4, 2006, between himself, Mr. McWhorter and myself. Carey’s concerns were documented in a three page report. Outcome of meeting: Both men projected the attitude that air-conditioning for most students, even disabled special needs students is not a necessity. Mr. Carter’s position at this meeting was that the majority of disabled special needs children can play outside in the school yard in extreme temperatures in the desert regions of Arizona and as long as their bodies can take in water or rehydrate during and/or after their playing event - their bodies will naturally keep them at a safe temperature. We grant you, this sounds somewhat reasonable at first, unless you actually have experience in riding in buses with these special needs children in extreme heat – where often a need for water cannot be expressed. Other than facial expressions a caregiver  has to make a guess at heat exhaustion or stroke.  Mr. Carter's reasoning correlating the playground to school buses does not hold up under close examination. Just picture disabled special needs children strapped into seats where they can't move, keep in mind it is usually 90 plus degrees outside - on some days it is actually hotter in the bus (5 to 10 degrees hotter); many children endure a 45 minute  to a 90 minute (plus) ride every day. This just doesn't sound like a happy playground experience - does it?  Mr. Carter was somewhat condescending as he said it sounds like Carey did live in the real world, it could not be perfect like Carey wanted it to be.  Carey shared with Mr. Carter that so far -  We have contacted 15 close school districts.  We seem to be the only district trying to save money-taking risks with no air-conditioning for a large percentage of our (DSN) children. The other districts always say the same thing - it is too risky (not reasonable and prudent) - they all in the vast majority provide air-conditioning for all (DSN) children and these consider that all (DSN) students are heat sensitive. We recently made a follow up call to Alhambra, Peoria, & Glendale elementary districts. Carey took issue with Mr. Carter when he expressed that he believed that school buses couldn’t be adequately cooled in extreme heat. Carey’s situation serves as evidence that this is not correct; after that first meeting with Mr. Carter his very old bus that had very poor air-conditioning was refitted with needed hoses, etc. and then it worked so well in extreme heat He could seldom run it on the high setting

 

 

 

#8  For the protection of the (DSN) children, We insist that a parent has a right to know when setting up a (DSN) child’s IEP how extreme heat can effect any child; if a air-conditioned bus cannot be provided, the risks must be clearly presented at the introductory meeting - we now know this is not the case and the (DSN) children are being put at risk.   Some potential risk happens to a disabled special needs child when the parent is not informed that the transportation department routinely over crowds the regular routes often making a hot bus hotter. Parents are not told their disabled special needs bus gets a greater priority to provide and repair air-conditioning as compared to regular routes. Since there is an adult helper on a (DSN) student’s route, there is a greater chance that the special needs of their child will be noticed. Two trained persons for about 20 children is a lot better than one trained person driving and watching 82 children.  Other Discussion It is our opinion that (sometimes) no child is safe riding our regular route school buses. We have watched Kim Thompson routinely over crowd many buses at Royal Palm Jr. high for about 3 years now. Over 3 years ago Carey brought up this issue with Kim Thompson (our regular routes supervisor). Carey was told 3 years ago and just recently in the fall of 2007; just move the children around so they don't block the walkways. Carey appealed to Rose Short our safety director and she gave him much data from the internet that indicated that this kind of over crowding is against the law. After a lot of discussion with Kim Thompson that went nowhere Carey began to realize that many buses were over crowded; therefore many drivers as Carey came to the conclusion this must be an un-enforced law. Carey and other drivers did have the realization that if they were pulled over (or had a accident) the driver could be cited for being over crowded & not having a proper seating chart. This was because although they might have a seating chart, like Carey they might have many more children - than the bus had seats for - therefore the children sit wherever they could and the seating chart was meaningless. Carey still has his original seating chart from the fall of 08 showing all the 20 extra children on the top and bottom of the bus where there are no seats. Carey explained the situation many times to Kim Thompson and even gave her a copy of the seating chart.

 

 

 

#10 For the protection of the (DSN) children, We now insist that the over crowding of regular school buses stop immediately. Kim Thompson should no longer assign more students to a bus than a driver can do a seating chart for because it is an unsafe practice for the driver and students.  Drivers also can't control behavior very well without an accurate seating chart and a knowingly inaccurate seating chart is against the law.  We suggest a complete audit of all the regular routes at the start of this school year; it is very likely - this will show planned over crowding of students; We have witnessed this in at least one other school - there is no reason not to believe the practice goes on elsewhere.  In the bus Carey was driving in the fall of 2008 it was rated for 82 school children; not 82 adults - which is the size drivers work with a large percentage of the time with junior high students. Carey & other drivers have  witnessed that after the children on these regular routes are wiped out by the heat exhaustion (because many air-conditioners do not work) and because over crowding makes a hot bus hotter, many parents begin to understand the inadequate service we are providing could eventually hurt their children and they pull their students off our buses; then we have more room - but this is only until the students a few days later try the bus again. Administration at Royal Palm has often expressed to Carey & others their disgust at the poor service they were getting from the transportation department.  Carey & other drivers were sure many of problems they had at Royal Palm in the fall of 2008 were because too many students were assigned to seats that did not exist. Carey was in Kim Thompson's office many times about this issue; she kept saying she would take of the problem but the only thing that finally relieved the problem was that enough students refused to ride the over crowded bus;  in other words - because of our bad service to the community the bus became less crowded.

 

 

 

#11  For the protection of the (DSN) children, We insist that a parent should not be asked to be an accomplice to a possible crime against their own child; therefore they should never be asked to approve the transport their child in extreme heat. Other Discussion: Drivers and management have a double responsibility not to transport (DSN) children known to be heat sensitive. This is precisely what Carey was up against on April 29, 2008 at 1:25 pm. Tina Hallquist my special needs supervisor made it clear to Carey – that the office workers were making calls to mom of a heat sensitive child on his bus to get her ok to transport in the extreme heat (which was 99 degrees that day) – the bus had non working A/C.  Carey started resisting this protocol of getting the parents permission - a procedure Carey felt might endanger the child. Carey shared with Tina this is the kind of thinking many drivers were wanting stopped and Carey would be bringing such items before the school board for their awareness. When Carey explained what he wanted and why he wanted it, Tina immediately put this child on another bus with good air-conditioning. If Carey had transported this child and something would have happened (like the time she went into convulsing with her original driver) - Carey very well could have been cited by law enforcement for child abuse / endangerment which has stiff penalty. This child’s original driver did a file an incident report, which he clearly related to problems with extreme heat. If Carey or other aware drivers ever find out such a student was transported in extreme heat for any reason while they were absent, when they return they will make a police report citing the transportation management and the driver.

 

 

 

#12 For the protection of the (DSN) children, We insist that the protocols for labeling of heat sensitivity in the IEP return to the simple matter it was meant to be.  Any one on the IEP team including the parent should be able for any reason to instruct transportation that the child needs to be labeled heat sensitive. Any care giver like a bus driver can call the number on the IEP summary form and ask that they classify this child heat sensitive and based on their experience it should be immediately noted on: (a) the IEP, (b) the transportation IEP summary in the computer, (d) and a copy of the changed IEP summary for transportation - should go to the driver; It is the IEP team that should have the authority with a single child not Craig Carter or any other manager. Little if any of these very needful protocols are in place now.

 

 

 

As we have insisted on before - all disabled special needs (DSN) children should  be on an air-conditioned bus. All the heat sensitivity reference does -  is to notify the driver and management that cold water may not be enough during a break down of the bus etc. If anyone looking into this issue were to call Alhambra, Peoria, or Glendale elementary they would tell you that all their disabled special needs children ride in air-conditioned buses - their mission makes it reasonable and prudent to protect 100% of these students - not the less than 3% which is Washington’s district procedure. Other Discussion: What we are writing about here is the way we drivers have seen our management take heat sensitivity and use it to save money therefore not take proper responsibility for children’s safety. After months of investigation no driver has found any mention of heat on any special needs transportation forms. Our long-term drivers (after months of investigation) have come to find out Mr. Carter's IEP (student profile forms for (DSN) students) has no direct mention concerning extreme heat or heat sensitivity. Carey took a brief polling of our long-term drivers and he asked the question: "how many disabled special needs students would you consider to be heat sensitive”; the answer to this poll was 100% by all of them. Then Carey asked, "How many of your (DSN) students do you consider to be highly heat sensitive"; the average answer was 35%. Then Carey asked:  "how many disabled special needs students have you ever seen classified as heat sensitive on our IEP summary form"; the answer was less than 3%. Many drivers had never seen a heat sensitive directive. The interesting fact is that no special needs student is guaranteed air-conditioning by our current protocol on the subject (per Mr. Carter) unless they have this heat sensitivity classification, whether they are in a wheel chair, deaf, blind, have epilepsy, or have similar physical conditions makes no difference. We as drivers have seen disabled special needs students in our district with all kinds physical, emotional, and behavioral disabilities being transported regularly in extreme heat. In the majority of districts - what we are doing with children just doesn't happen; it evidently is not reasonable and prudent for the majority of districts to risk cutting corners and discriminating against the majority of their disabled special needs students.  So why is our district the exception?  The answers I usually get from management is that it is all about the money. May we respectfully suggest that if we continue on the same course, eventually our current practices is likely to cost us more.

 

 

 

#13 For the protection of the (DSN) children, We insist on new protocols to track very heat sensitive (DSN) child; a precise list needs to be given to every driver which starts with a short list of problems that every student seems to be having; this should be made up by the regular driver of the route but transportation will need to develop a protocol very much the same as the protocol for seating charts - to make sure if a temporary driver is driving for the day, they have this information. As often as our air-conditioning goes out - it is very necessary to have a short list of children that are heat sensitive.  

 

 

 

Other Discussion: If by a rare circumstance a driver happens to have a child marked heat sensitive that child needs to be given to another bus that has good air-conditioning. Many times this is totally by the initiative of the driver as Carey has documented in my earlier writing; management seldom, in our opinion, manages this correctly on their own protocols because for the most part they don't exist. A temporary driver will not know the status of each child, and it would often take him or her an hour to find out this information by reading all students summary profiles and often these summary profiles are not accurate. Carey was personally in this situation in Oct. 2006 and if it wasn't for the adult assistant who knew the child was heat sensitive, Carey would have transported this child in the extreme heat.

 

 

 

 #14 For the protection of the (DSN) children, We insist on new approved protocols that will enable drivers and/or assistants to more easily inform parents or caregivers that their disabled special needs child is passing out or feeling sick from the heat. Also the driver has noted this on his records with at least a note in the pre/post trip form & if more serious on an incident form; again we believe parents have a right to know of the possible or actual hurt of their child.

 

 

 

We are further suggesting that every bus driver write incident reports about the effects of extreme heat on students; drivers will send:  the first copy to the parent or guardian of the child having the incident, the second copy to the school of the student, the third copy to the transportation office, the forth copy to risk management at the district, the fifth copy shall be placed with the students IEP transportation summary in the bus.

 

 

 

Drivers need to be encouraged to start writing incident reports about extreme heat; Today the there is no precise protocol in place like the one we are insisting on. It is when air-conditioning stops working on a wheel chair bus etc., when drivers are being told they must run their buses when they are excessively hot inside, even on and over triple digit temperature days; it is then on a regular basis these disabled special needs children start to pass out, vomit, or get sick in some other way because of the extreme heat. We drivers know by much experience that our disabled special needs children are suffering; at the same time we see district management avoiding documentation of the issues of extreme heat. This practice of trying to protect self-interest over the safety interests of the (DSN) children must stop; if we are going to protect our children from extreme heat we must accept new documentation and accountability for every item related to this extreme heat issue.

 

 

 

#15  For the protection of the (DSN) children, We are asking that Leonard Sweeney (or someone like him) be a weekly liaison between the district leadership and all proactive drivers united in their advocacy for: "no extreme heat on any bus transporting disabled special needs children" Carey and all drivers interested in this issue will work with all transportation and district employees. Layton Dickerson in many of our opinions - is still very inexperienced in most major transportation issues as well as respectful communication. Carey’s experience with Mr. Sweeney is that he is highly professional, good with human relations and has great communication skills. Carey & others interested will also work with Rex Shumway as needed. All lawyers know that they are to consider the ethics of all that they do - will it be considered reasonable and prudent by their peers - if not they could later have problems with the State Bar of Arizona. Mr. Shumway’s lack of action in the past has concerned many of us.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

#16  For the protection of the (DSN) children,  We are now insisting (from April to October) there be created a place on the pre-trip/post-trip form so that drivers will daily check one of three choices: (a) the air-conditioning was working adequately, or (b) the air-conditioning was inadequate or not working, or (c) this bus has no air-conditioning units.

 

 

 

#17  For the protection of the (DSN) children, We are also insisting that (from April to October) there be created a places on the pre-trip/post-trip form to be checked daily to indicate whether or not a heat related incident has occurred on the bus for that day; I suggest two places for check marks one would say "heat related incident" the other would say "other incidents".

 

 

 

#18  For the protection of the (DSN) children, We are also insisting (from April to October) there be created a place on the pre-trip/post-trip form that the driver (at the end of his route) will daily record what the temperature was inside the bus (usually this time would be anywhere between 3:00 and 6:00 pm).

 

 

 

#19 For the protection of the (DSN) children, We are also insisting (from April to October) there be created a place on the pre-trip/post-trip form that will daily record from the driver how long his last rider was on the bus.

 

 

 

#20 For the protection of the (DSN) children, We are also insisting that as a part of a monthly report that a transportation specialist collect the following data from all of the drivers pre-trip/post trip forms; this data should then be given to the persons listed below.

 

 

 

(a) The report should account for how many drivers are declaring that they have inadequate or non-working air-conditioning, how many have adequate air-conditioning, and how many have no air-conditioning units. A percentage will be computed in all aspects and this will also be added to the report.

 

 

 

(b) Also how many incidents were due to heat; these will be included in this report as well as a section for other incidents.

 

 

 

(c) A special list of all buses without air-conditioning units that are transporting disabled special needs children with the exact number of these children on each bus must be included on this report.

 

 

 

(d) A transportation specialist will need to modify the pre-trip/post-trip form to accomplish this new protocol.

 

 

 

(e) All of this data will go first to the transportation director for his awareness; A second copy will go to the risk management director in district so their can be some separate accountability; A third copy of this report will go on the employee driver/assistant bulletin board and It must appear there every month.

 

 

 

 Other Discussion: The freedom of information act will be very important with this report. (in our opinions by necessity this data needs to be public information to protect the children. The practice of our management is to put on the pre-trip/post-trip just what we required to have on that form; the minimum standard specialists have told me they encourage districts to add any procedure that would better promote excellence in transporting our students.

 

 

 

#21 For the protection of the (DSN) children, We insist new protocols need to be developed by the transportation department that will allow drivers and/or assistants as well as any one working in our transportation department to inform parents that their disabled special needs children are endanger of harm by riding one of our school buses from (April to October) without air-conditioning. Whether the bus has no air-conditioning units or the air-conditioning is not working makes no difference; We believe parents have a right to be told of the danger of extreme heat.

 

 

 

#22 For the protection of the (DSN) children, We insist on new approved protocols that will enable drivers and/or assistants to more easily inform parents or caregivers that their disabled special needs child is passing out or feeling sick from the heat. Also the driver has noted this on his records at least a note in the pre/post trip form & if more serious on incident form; again we believe parents have a right to know of the possible or actual hurt the child has suffered.

 

 

 

 

 

 Other Discussion: Not only are we one of the rare districts that - that has non air-conditioned buses for its disabled special needs children; we seem to disregard the danger wholesale. Each of our older series 50, 60, & 60 short buses hold twenty to thirty disabled special needs students & none have A/C. When Carey served as a temporary (sub) driver on these buses both Carey and many of the disabled special needs children had heat exhaustion or worse every day the heat was over 80 degrees; the very worse days was when the temperature was near or over 100 degrees. We drivers call these buses the Washington fiery furnaces because it is so hard to be a driver on these buses (3 to 5 hours with a motor up front - adding extra inside heat) on high heat days. Our estimate is that our transportation department has 100 plus disabled special needs children on these no A/C buses in the hottest times of the year; add to this the 25 to 50 percent of the A/C wheelchairs buses with poor or no A/C and we estimate a total of 250 to 300 disabled special needs have no A/C at any given time. These are the best estimates given by many of our long-term drivers. The A/C information that the transportation department put out in May was – (in most of our opinions who saw the figures) very much flawed. In May our drivers estimate along with key office leadership was 50 percent down on all A/C. When we saw figures that said we had 80 plus percent up and running A/C - we honestly laughed.

 

 

 

 

 

#23 For the protection of the (DSN) children, We insist that you develop protocols to be aware of the risks involved with heat sensitive drivers. It important to realize that these drivers usually have conditions and medications that makes them a risk if they drive in extreme heat.  A list of drivers that can't drive without risk must be employed immediately. Carey takes high blood presser medicine and extreme heat could cause him to have a stroke. We have a very high percentage of drivers that are over 55 years of age and taking some kind of medication. Because many of these older drivers need a job and are so desperate, We are  aware that they will never tell you if they are heat sensitive or not. For the safety sake of the children every medication that a driver is taking (which) is on their medical card they carry with them and for which we have a copy of in the transportation office should be examined by a independent Doctor to tell the district whether or not that medication and drivers condition is likely to be heat sensitive; likely a very high percentage of our aged drivers will be put into the heat sensitive status. Like Carey has said in his other complaints – “extreme heat and senior citizens are not words that go together” and we submit the risk of using the aged in extreme heat is often dangerous for the children.

 

 

 

My immediate authorities in this matter. (1) Susie  Cook - Superintendent (2) Craig Carter - Special needs program manager for the district (3) Tina Hallquist - my immediate supervisor & and special needs manager for transportation (4) Kim Thompson - regular route manager & dispatcher (5) Marianne Walker - former immediate supervisor & special needs manager for transportation, now retired and working part time for transportation (6) D. Rex Shumway - legal counsel for the district (7) Layton Dickerson - transportation director (8) Bruce McWhorter - past transportation director, now at another district .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 FIRST DO NOT REPLY TO THIS BLOG.  I WILL BE DELETING THE ENTIRE MY FOX PHOENIX AND WILL NO LONGER LOOK AT THE SITE.

I FIND THAT A PERSON ON THIS SITE  CRIES FOUL WHEN SHE/HE FEELS THAT THEY HAVE BEEN PERSONALLY ATTACKED BY OTHER BLOGGERS.

THIS PERSON ALSO TALKS ABOUT TURNING OTHERS IN AND GETTING THEM BANNED FROM THIS SITE. WELL, NO LONGER WILL I PERSONALLY TOLERATE THIS.

I MAY NOT BE THE BEST BLOGGER AND I GET MY BARBS IN LIKE OTHER PEOPLE DO. I AM REALLY TIRED OF THIS PERSON.

I WOULD ALSO APPRECIATE NO CONTACT FROM FOX. I WILL ALWAYS WATCH YOUR NEWS BROADCAST FOR I FEEL IT IS THE BEST LOCALLY .

You already take off your shoes, belt, jacket, and liquids at the airport security checkpoint.  And for one woman on a flight out of San Francisco, that also included having to take off her bra.

According to foxnews.com, the woman's bra had a large underwire, and set off the metal detector.  Ultimately, she had to take the darn thing off, before they let her on the plane.

Okay...so we've heard of all types of stories like this (remember the woman with the nipple rings?)....but do you think this is going too far? or do you think things like this are necessary to ensure public safety?

I'm sorry that woman had to go through that humiliating experience, but on the other hand, if terrorists can put explosives in their shoes....I wouldn't put it past them to start hiding things in their undergarments.  Just think-- the day we have to start putting put our undies through the scanner, may not be too far away!!!  Can you imagine?!?!

WOW!   Labor day weekend is here already, where did the summer go?  Of course, our summer heat will continue until the middle or end of September, but how did Labor Day get here so quickly?

Is this really, as they say, the last blast of the summer vacation?  Or because of our goofey school schedule where all the kids are back in the classroom by now, is this just another weekend.

What are your plans?   I'm working.

Something happened here in Phoenix yesterday that I've never seen happen before.

It takes a minute to get there, so stay with me.

Have you been following the story of Julie Erfle vs. KFYI talk show host Bruce Jacobs?

A quick recap: Erfle's husband, a police officer, was killed by an illegal immigrant about a year ago. She made a trip to Washington D.C. with Phoenix mayor Phil Gordon to urge a new U.S. immigration policy.

Jacobs trashed her for going on the trip, and being pro immigrant. Among many other things, he said her dead husband would be "ashamed of her."  

To hear everything yourself: http://www.kfyi.com/pages/bruce.html

Here's where it got strange for me.

Yesterday, the Phoenix police chief, and several other high ranking state law enforcement officers called a news conference.

They trashed KFYI and Bruce Jacobs, and they didn't stop there.

They put up a list of all the station's major advertisers, and basically told them to stop advertising with the station.

My personal opinion on this, is the police department overstepped their bounds.

I understand why they are upset, but I don't think its their place to put economic pressure on a private business that didn't break any laws.

Were Jacobs' comments distasteful? I think so.

But they are also protected by free speech.

What's your take? 

A 24-year-old man described by the Sheriff's office as an undocumented immigrant is accused of molesting a 12-year-old Maricopa County girl.

A Maricopa County Sheriff's Office spokesperson identifies the suspect as Jesus Martinez.

In a news release on Monday, the spokesperson said he was arrested and booked on one count of child molestation and four counts of sexual abuse. All are felonies.

Sheriff's deputies began investigating the alleged sexual abuse and molestation after the young victim's mother said she found the 24-year-old and the child kissing.

That was after the 12-year-old reportedly left home, without permission to meet with him, at a late hour.

The victim told her mother that Martinez took her next to a tractor and began kissing her on the mouth and neck.

The suspect kissed the victim's breast area, where he apparently left a "hickey". Martinez then asked the child to leave him "hickeys" for his ex-wife to see, according to officials.

The victim said she tried to leave several times by telling the suspect she was too young for him.

The sheriff's spokesperson said during the investigation, Martinez admitted to the molestation and sexual abuse of the 12-year-old girl.

Please Help!  I thoroughly believe that I am being held hostage by a car repair place and am really in trouble.  About 11 days ago (on a Friday) my cars transmission failed on the way home from work, I took the car to a shop that previously worked on it.  The following Tuesday, I was told by the shop manager that the transmission failed obviously, and they are going to cut me a break and fix it for $1000 - and even allowing me to finance it over 60 days interest free.  I stayed in contact with them, they tell me they are trying to figure out WHY it failed....they would let me know this week.

My wife emails me at work, the shop called, said that the reason the transmission failed is because the transmission fluid was being cooled by the radiator, and there is a leak somewhere in there requiring the entire radiator to be replaced.  To the tune of  an additional $700, and that they will NOT complete the original repair until the radiator is replaced.

It will be a hardship for the original repair - the $1000, even over 60 days.  The additional $700 is impossible right now - we have other bills.  My question is, can this shop DO this?  Can they refuse to complete a repair I authorized unless I authorize another repair that I cannot even determine as being necessary?  That's almost theft in my book.  Extortion even.  This is our only vehicle, and it's financed so I really cannot go out and replace it.  If anyone has any advice on how to proceed I would be very appreciative.

So my last piece was met with a little hostility, and that is cool with me. Mexican X says it is okay to disagree. That is why this is America, but please good sirs, please, don't question my Mexi-ness. My family came over here from Juarez, Mexico, and no, not three generations removed, it was actually quite recent.

Look, you can label me whatever you want. You can call me a bleeding heart liberal; you can call me a white guy pretending to be Mexican to gain sympathy... whatever. The fact of the matter is that there is a lot of anti-Mexican sentiment and it is sad. You can call them illegal, but really, what are they doing that is so illegal? Have you really examined it?

 

 

They crossed an imaginary line. That is about as simple as it gets. The funny part? I guarantee you, my angry little elves, if you somehow managed to remove all the "illegals" from the United States, you would see a serious hit to the economy. They are responsible for the low prices you pay for everything. Cheap labor means less overhead for the man, thus the lower prices. Without the cheap labor, the prices go up and combined with the wonderfully high gas prices... well, you do the math. You seem like an intelligent mob.

 

 

Also, a person coming over to the United States “illegally” doesn’t mean they are going to make the US as "bad as Mexico". Again, they are laborers, not politicians. They are drywallers, not drug runners. Most of these people have nothing to do with the state of affairs in Mexico. If you really want to point a finger at the reason for the state of affairs in Mexico, look at the US.

 

 

The United States is one of the largest consumers of ILLEGAL drugs in the world. It is simple economics, supply and demand baby! You need the weed; you need the cocaine, so you keep buying. Naturally, the bad eggs continue to produce it, some of it in your own national parks, and you keep consuming it. A major part of the problem is the United States, so don't try blaming the guy in front of Home Depot for making things "as bad as they are in Mexico". Blame the stoner kid in his dorm room at ASU sitting underneath his "Reefer Madness" poster rocking out with his bong and Grand Theft Auto. That kid is the reason the drug problem exists.

 

 

Don't hate on "illegals". You have every right to do so because it is a free country, but please, if anything, take karma into consideration. It is bad karma to hate on somebody. As far as the protestors go, go ahead and lay a hand on one of those pro-mexi protestors. I guarantee you the mexis have a lot more fire than the other side.

 

 

I am going to go now, and not because I don't enjoy the company, but I do have to go stand out in front of my local Home Depot. Until then my Caucasian brothers and sisters, be well, and remember, hate begets hate, and that isn't cool. They are only "illegal" because of an imaginary line, and that line shouldn't lead to this much anger. As for the rest of you that are going to brand me... whatever. Just remember, for all of you who are Irish, German, or English... all of you whose great grandfathers and grandmothers were proud immigrants... just remember, they faced this same racism. They faced this same hate, and it is wrong. Granted, they came in legally through Ellis Island, but the reality is that they faced this same anger and hatred. If you are Italian or Irish, go ask one of your great grandparents about the animosity they faced and then consider your words and feelings towards immigrants. They are not looking to set up a giant drug operation or "ruin" the United States. Most are just looking for an education, a warm bed, and a decent job, just like you. We are all immigrants my friends. Take care. Home Depot waits for no man.

 

 

 

 

 

The Mexican cartels have given permission for their hit teams to come into the US to take out targets. 

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,410261,00.html<
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What more motivation do our elected "leaders" need to secure our borders? How many innocent Americans need to get killed in the crossfire of these anal orifices does it take to get the attention of our "elected "leaders" (term used loosely)?

First things first, since this is my first time blogging here, let me introduce myself. You can call me... Mexican X! I use X because I am the unknown quantity... it's kind of deep, but basically I represent the unknown number of what you call "illegal aliens" in the United States. Did you know that some of us clever dudes made it all the way to New Jersey?! How cool is that? The McDonald's menus in Jersey are in Spanish!

I have to ask, what is with all the Mexi-hate? Seriously, why are people so against Mexicans? The worst part? You love us, but only certain parts. Here, let's look at a checklist of things you love, kay? You looooove Mexican women (see Eva Longoria, Eva Mendes, Selena and Jessica Alba). You also love our food (enchiladas, tacos, quesadillas and nachos). You have even embraced our filmmakers (Guillermo Del Toro, directing the next Hobbit flick), yet you hate illegal aliens, and yes, I stress the word HATE.

You form protests against illegal aliens. Senior citizens are out there putting their hands on other protestors during a protest (you know who you are, old white guy! You made the news that night, way to go!) all the while screaming and chanting "GO HOME!!!" Seriously, that is evil. That is bigotry. It is racism at it's worst and it makes me sad, because we are supposed to be a more civilized society.

Here is the thing... if we go, you all have to go too. I honestly could care less how many generations have passed, if we are getting kicked out, you have to leave too. Get out, and STAY OUT! The only people that belong here at this point are the Native Americans, so pack up your Gucci bags, grab your iPhone, jump in your Prius and head on out.

 So, let's now consider this thought, shall we? I just asked all of America, for the most part, to pack up their BLEEP and leave. Do you see how illogical that all sounds?

Look, you can't get rid of us. Joe "Lil' Adolf" Arpaio can't get rid of us, no matter how many race driven "crime sweeps" he puts into play. All that is going to happen is you are going to see fewer and fewer of us hanging out. We are still going to be there, but now we will be Mexi-Ninjas! We will blend with the shadows, and then when he leaves, we will continue to do what we were doing before he showed up, and that is standing out in front of the local Home Depot, offering ourselves up as cheap labor in hopes of feeding our families.

We are not evil. As a matter of fact,