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Column: Armed and dangerous desperados on the loose
BY PAUL WAHL - SUN NEWSPAPERS
In dealing with the Eden Prairie School District's latest insanity this past week, I couldn't help but be reminded of Ronald Reagan and his 1980 campaign against Jimmy Carter.
Reagan used the phrase "there you go again" each time Carter attempted to criticize him.
It's become nearly as ubiquitous as "whatever" in the English lexicon.
Let me say that I find no victory in the school district's contention that a column I wrote essentially on the First Amendment (you remember that one, right ... freedom of the press and all?) was threatening and somehow unethical. My feeling is more one of sadness that a public entity must stoop to name-calling and threats in its attempt to justify its misdeeds.
The district is so hell-bent on justifying its actions it is apparently willing to trample on the U.S. Constitution. I hope students of the district have a better grasp of the document than the district's leaders appear to have.
I also reckon I'm in good company. Others who have disagreed with the district's leadership have been branded "white noise." Those wishing to have a say in how the district is run have been called a cabal, a handful of "disgruntled" parents with an ax to grind.
Seems like after last week we can conclude the handful has grown considerably.
Perhaps the most concerning is that no one from the district ever picked up a phone or sent an email saying it had serious issues with the column and would like to have its say. We always welcome opposing opinions. Our door is always open to the district, just as I thought their door was open to us. Guess not.
Most public entities at some juncture realize it's probably best to have a newspaper on their side, even there are fundamental disagreements. Eventually Eden Prairie schools is going to have to ask for permission of the voters to raise its tax levy. The public is (or at least should be) still in charge of public education last I checked.
On the elementary school boundary issue, we have chosen only to attack the secrecy measures under which decisions were made. The district has a difficult task in front of it balancing attendance based on a number of factors.
Had the district conducted task force meetings in public as we had requested, we quite likely might be saying to protesters at this juncture, "you had your say in an open and fair process so we're all going to have to live with what the district decides."
Instead, we now offer the protesters barrels of tar, as it were. Oh wait a minute, that might seem threatening. I wouldn't want to be accused of being unethical once again.
I would also like to assure our readers that I do not intend to take up my weapons (a camera and a notebook) and wage war on the school district through illegal means. Our interpretation of the public access rules differs considerably; however, we are law-abiding citizens, always have been, always will be.
I would also like to respond to a woman quoted in our newspaper last week saying that she was saddened that the public no longer supported the schools.
I can't speak for everyone, but from our point of view, we have extremely high regard for the quality of education Eden Prairie students receive. The district's teachers are of abnormally high quality.
Our disagreements are with the administration and school board and their methods of conducting business outside of the glare of the public's eye.
Finally, I would like to thank everyone in the community who has supported our efforts to open the school district's eyes on these matters. We have not had one person approach us and say "why don't you lay off the poor school board."
We will continue to fight on behalf of the taxpaying citizens of Eden Prairie School District.
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I appreciate the levity and precision of your takes on the Eden Prairie School District. Wouldn't be grand to read an official school district comment on the Sun Current's endeavors in the Sun Current. "