Frank Jackson - the wanna-be mayor

 March 7, 2005

Soon after the United Way's contribution to Campbell's campaign became pubic knowledge, a spokesperson for UW defended the organizations position. The $20,000 did not come out of a fund " earmarked for charitable causes. " The donation came from a separate fund that was not related to helpful causes. But if the political gift did not originally come from contributors to charitable funds, than where did the money come from? Did it come from employees at UW who really felt Campbell was the one and only candidate to...? Or did it come from a UW administrative budget which sets aside a cookie-jar fund for social pleasantries? If the " cookie-jar " question answers it best, than there is to much fat in the pursuit of what...

Three weeks ago, I urged Campbell to do the right thing. However, she is not accustomed to taking advice from " Little Guy " critics. Somewhere in City Hall, there must be embedded in stone, a reminder to politicians of the words, " Silence to the people. " But I will stubbornly press forward. If the $20,000 that came from the UW's " cookie-jar " the dough has to much much fat in it. Maybe Campbell should not give the money back to UW but forward it to a cause greatly needed in the public schools. I have an excellent proposal that should receive cool " punch-fist " reactions from many high-school students who feel they are stuffed in " sardine-can " classrooms. I can imagine teachers would be thrilled at the idea also. In a November 2, 2003, commentary, I wrote about the overcrowding of students at James Ford Rhodes High School . No one within government circles, cared to act on a matter I called educational discrimination. Not even a sound logical argument against it was addressed. Now If Campbell does not understand what, " educational discrimination "  is, ask any teacher assigned to teach large classrooms of students. 

In a recent TV newscast, WKYC reporter Kim Wheeler interviewed some teachers and from what I read and wrote about more then a year ago, gave me this sick feeling that in this local government, " silence to the people, " seems to be a motto stringently adhered to. I challenge Campbell to read the article and transfer some of the " compassion " she now holds for students in the Shaker School District, and transfer it to where it is really needed " FOR THE KID's! " in Cleveland Schools.

Kim Wheeler 's article " The kids that need the most are hurt the most " can be found by clicking on http://www.wkyc.com/news/news_fullstory.asp?id=31100 

But I am confident Campbell can provide some breathing space in many of the classrooms.  And no, it's much to easy to pass-the-buck on this one by sighting budget-blues. Other urban centers have the same problems, but many are far ahead of Cleveland, in treating the youth to better classroom conditions.

If the UW $20,000 is indeed " fat " from the " cookie-jar, " a better use of the money could provide seed funding to start the slow process of reducing the size of classrooms. True enough, this is not the answer to class size but it is a start and can raise the educational spirits in a number of students and teachers. The Cleveland Foundation provides Barbara Byrd-Bennett with a yearly $54,000 fund that does not require accountability ( receipts for expenditures ). $54,000, the foundation feels is a good administrative investment. $54,000 to help reduce class size, is also a good investment of foundation money. Direct services to students and teachers is desperately needed. Think of it this way. The mind is a terrible thing to waste and it's being wasted five days a week in large classrooms. And the waste will continue, as long as people in powerful positions don't really care about what is happening to youth (overcrowded) in rooms a fire marshal should close down for safety reasons.

If there is a lack of creativeness on the part of the mayor, the Rhodes commendatory can at least provide some ideas...that certainly could lead to better ones by people working in the reform " class size " movements in other urban centers. $20,000 from United way and $54,000 from the Cleveland Foundation adds up to great start in the right direction " FOR THE KIDS! "  

                          Frank Jackson - the wanna-be mayor

Frank Jackson did not officially become a candidate for mayor until Raymond Pierce dropped out. Now if Jackson was not sure about entering the race because of Pierces reputation, his hesitation  was certainly wise. When Pierce ran against Campbell he gained 46 percent of the vote. And in the last three years, citizens had not forgotten him. In fact the more Campbell paid homage to the " Big Guy " wants, and " leftovers " to the " Little Guy, " Pierce was gaining in popularity. But now that Jackson made the choice, his next step is to convince the public that he would provide leadership, that is not just another shadow act that will only imitate past mayors. 

What does Jane Campbell, Barbara Byrd-Bennett and Frank Jackson have in common? They all stood tall and proudly campaigned for " Mayoral Control of the Cleveland Public Schools. " and in the process, stepped on democracy by removing citizen rights to vote for school board members. They were on the front line, and in my opinion, not honest with themselves nor the public in what they claimed would become a better school system because of the switch. They were not honest with themselves nor the public, because the public failed to witness the honesty in the form of blood, sweat and tears, the emotional equivalent of the word " compassion. "  Citizens have already observed the " hands-off the schools " attitude of Campbell's, and the buck-passing negativism belonging to Byrd-Bennett.  And Jackson, the laid-back politician who slept for many years in Council while education in the schools became a buck-passing subject, but became a real threat to students who wanted to learn, and a heartache issue for parents who could do little in achieving quality education for sons and daughters. Where are the true signs today that complements the word " compassion? " in local leadership? I welcome a debate from any one of the three on what the word " compassion "  had compelled them to do... "FOR THE KIDS! " 

Citizens who voted against the " MAYORAL CONTROL " issue will recall the steps Campbell and Jackson proudly took, and will express their upsets in the coming election. And adding to that upset, will be voters who voted for the issue, and observed Campbell's failure to lead the school district, but instead observed weak leadership by her choice of being led.

Frank Jackson thought " Mayoral Control... " was such a great idea that he wrote an article for the PD's forum page. But writing about it and doing something to elevate the ideology is where Jackson falls short. He has been a member who has sat in Council for years, like a bump on a log, and yes, I am repeating myself, allowing the schools to go downward. But in all fairness, he is just one of 21 members of City Council who sat on the sidelines and allowed Byrd-Bennett and Campbell to take the heat for the debacle of the schools. And yes, I'm also ready for a good email debate if members wish to differ with my argument. 21 members, and not one stepped forward with the echoes of citizen discontent over the public school, since Byrd-Bennett huffed and puffed all 22 leaders into a state of catatonic numbness. 

However, I was impressed with Jackson's essay. He actually admitted, Cleveland has a public school system. That's more than I can say about a colleague of his. I wonder if Michael Dolan as yet, ever saw the light of public school days in Cleveland? In the past, I quoted him as saying, " Cleveland does not have a public school system. " Now if perchance, he had not, as yet, seen the light of day, he needs to take a good look at himself in the mirror and start taking inventory on what needs correcting in light of being a public servant. 

Jane Campbell and Frank Jackson cannot escape the discontent of citizens on election day but Barbara "Catch me if you can. " Byrd-Bennett can. But I really do believe the escape routes are beginning to close in on her. 

Campbell decline to comment on the United Way campaign contribution. Now it is up to citizens to interpret what the silence means. But to me, the silence only encourages the urge to ask another question.

If re-elected, would you continue the unethical practice of doing public business, " behind-closed-doors? " 

Now it is Jackson's turn to be questioned. 

Would you accept one, a hundred, or thousands of dollars from United Way, If they offered this kind of support to you in your campaign to be the next mayor of Cleveland? A simple yes or no answer is better then trying to explain why the question is not a simple one to answer. And...

If you were mayor, would you continue the unethical practice ( Campbell and Mike White embraced ) by doing public business " behind-closed-doors? " 

Answers to the three questions should be relayed to any of the TV news departments. However, no matter how hard I try to gather all the current news, supporters of this WebSite, continue to share with me things I may have missed. It is impossible to know it all and I would greatly appreciate becoming aware of the responses by confirming them by emails. Otherwise I know nothing until the alleged responses can be confirmed by readers, or the media which excludes the Plain Dealer.

Please note: All questions submitted to Campbell and Jackson will also be submitted to other candidates after making their official entries into the mayors race known. 

" Tracking Mayor Jane Campbell " series, which also contains tracking Council members, includes FACT FINDING pages that should come in handy for citizens to glance at before election day arrives. Please click for the current entry. And as this series unfolds in the months ahead, candidates for Council seats will also be included. There is no better time than the present for concerned citizens in all wards to start approaching officials with issues that may been long overdue in finding resolutions. The FACT FINDING pages should only be thought as just a small part of the whole. I am just doing what civic minded groups in all the wards have done in the past in providing informative data so Cleveland voters can  be armed with the best information possible before casting votes. The American vote is to precious to waste on candidates that become mute to citizens concerns once the election is over.

                             A shocking issue - A mute Council

About a year before raising this WebSite, I sent a letter to Michael Polensek with an issue that has caused much upheaval in the lives of many citizens in all the Wards. He was Council president at the time and I felt this man was a good start in airing the grievance. The letter was the first of 22 Messages sent to all members. But that first letter and the ones that followed were not what I anticipated. However, the lack of responses is nothing unusual. I was hoping for the best but was prepared for the worst. Many citizens received the same reaction before I addressed the issue. I made a promise to myself in preparation for the worst. If Polensek remained silent concerning the issue raised in the letter, dated, 1-12-2001, I would raise a Website to share with citizens, the first of many issues that contribute to poor government services, rendered to the common folk. Not that citizens are not already accustomed to the silence on a variety of issues. For years, letters written, phone calls made, and other forms of communication, to often ended in silence. And silence is the poorest of government services, politicians could impart to citizens. But on the other hand, silence can also be the most important factor when citizens need to know something about the person they may have voted for. The back-turning can become an invitation to explore  personalities of politicians who may be lacking in business ethics. These are candidates most unsuited for public office. 

Frank Jackson received my nineteenth letter dated, 9-30-2001. And no, he was not on my list of most important Council members. I kept my letter to him short and centered the thoughts on an indirect problem which related to the main issue. As simple as it was, Jackson was not impressed with a concern from a " Little Guy. " And needless to say, I am not impressed with his " wanna-be mayor " ...aspirations.

I owe several hundred dollars to the city of Cleveland. Or rather this is what was claimed. I have owed the money since 1999, but no ones seems to want to collect it. I did everything but stand on my head to get them to do the right thing and start collection proceedings but...well-maybe if I take my case to court and enforce the issue...Na-better-still...maybe I can get into the Guinness book of records for having the oldest bill owed in local government that lacks private business savvy in collecting. But I am going to try again by illustrating in words, the difference between government and private business practices. This time it is Campbell's turn to either use proper proceedings in collecting on a dept or add her name to the long list of people who seems to be following the creed of  " silence to the people. " Michael Polensek can be of help to her in handing over a copy of the letter I sent to him. He certainly must have put it in a file marked pending. Things to get to whenever. But in case the letter got filed in section W for waste basket...I-have-a-copy! I can send it to Campbell by special currier...that is if she is willing to break the silence and requests something many citizens would like her to read...for starters.

Please click - Part 4

Old Glory

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