October 4, 2014
Oct 04 15:20 Unze's deceptive article Oct 04 02:54 Dayton-Bloomberg Onions Oct 04 13:59 Factchecking MPR's factchecker Oct 04 17:45 DSCC quadruples down on Grimes Oct 04 22:29 Patriots = AFC's Cowboys? Oct 04 23:38 Editorial blasts Gov. Dayton
Prior Months: Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep
Prior Years: 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
Unze's deceptive article
It isn't that Dave Unze's article for the SCTimes isn't accurate. It's that it doesn't speak to the initial, central complaint. Here's what I'm talking about:
The U.S. Department of Education has closed an investigation at St. Cloud State University without a finding of wrongdoing after looking into changes to students' transcripts.
The Office of Inspector General determined that "there appears to be no federal violation" of student loan rules and the "case is recommended for closure," according to information provided to the St. Cloud Times through a Freedom of Information Act request.
The department was investigating whether the university failed to return federal financial aid money it was required to return if the students whose grades were changed became ineligible to keep that financial aid.
It's true that the US Department of Education visited SCSU's campus. Likewise, they visited because they'd gotten complaints that some federal laws might've been broken. Still, it's misleading to suggest that that's the heart of the scandal. It's what the Potter administration has worked hard to portray as the heart of the scandal but it isn't close to being the heart of the scandal. This gets to the heart of the scandal :
Two years ago, a student in my class completed all requirements but the final, requesting to take the final in early January. She did not then nor in April, when another faculty member contacted me on her behalf for yet another chance. Her grade for the semester was a solid F - even if she would have earned 100 percent on the written final.
However, a year later, she requested a withdrawal for all her courses. I provided detailed evidence that she had completed the semester and reasons for denying the appeal. I later received an email that her request had been granted despite my recommendation. I contacted the registrar's office to learn that two professors had denied her request and two had complied. Yet a W was awarded for all four classes. My prompt reaction re-instated the earned grade for my class.
That isn't the only example of the Potter administration trying to pervert SCSU's transcript system. MPR's article documents what's at the heart of the Potter-SCSU transcript scandal:
Last spring, Tamara Leenay, a chemistry professor at St. Cloud State University, was reviewing grades when she came across the transcript of a student who failed an organic chemistry class she taught a couple of years earlier.
"I noticed the course was not even on his transcript," Leenay said. "There was no 'F.' There was no course number ... It was completely gone . And I have [a] record that he was in my class and that I gave him a grade ... and I was never notified of any of these changes."
That's the heart of the Potter-SCSU transcript scandal. It wasn't that transcripts were getting changed without a professor's permission. It's that people who had taken courses, completed their assignments, then failed their class talked the Potter administration into eliminating a student's participation in a class from their transcript.
I'm happy to hear that SCSU didn't break federal laws while corrupting their official transcript system. Unfortunately, students' grades were deleted from St. Cloud State's transcripts after they'd done the work but failed the classes.
If a student does all the work for the class, then fails, that student shouldn't have the right to petition the administration to have that grade removed. Deleting a student's participation in a class from the transcripts is dishonest.
The investigation determined that a "large amount" of the transcript alterations were from "a backlog of late-withdraw requests, not no-show students, and that most of the transcript alterations affected students that attended classes for some time and were thus eligible to keep a portion or all of the Title IV aid they received."
President Potter, former Provost Malhotra and spokesman Adam Hammer have tried portraying the situation as being about late drops and withdrawals. Nobody protested the fact that late drops and withdrawals were appropriate in certain situations. The faculty's protests were about students who had their participation in class scrubbed from their official transcripts after the student failed the professor's class.
President Potter still insists that that there never was a problem and that this was all about some professors venting. It's unfortunate that President Potter didn't take this seriously. It's worse that the SCTimes didn't do a real investigation. What's worst is that the SCTimes just took President Potter's word hook, line and sinker.
Posted Saturday, October 4, 2014 3:20 PM
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Dayton-Bloomberg Onions
Two weeks ago, Everytown for Gun Safety, Michael Bloomberg's gun-grabbing political operation, endorsed Gov. Dayton . This morning, the Mesabi Daily News 'awarded' Gov. Dayton a basket of onions :
Onions: To the Mark Dayton campaign for accepting the support of anti-gun former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's anti-gun group. Dayton will try to portray himself as pro-gun, but if he was, Bloomberg's anti-gun group would not be endorsing him. Also, Onions to the DFLers and union bosses who will poo-poo the NRA as a Republican group when, in fact, it is not. More Onions to DFLers who complain about Stewart Mills being a millionaire when Dayton inherited multi-millions from his family and receives payments from his trust fund administered in South Dakota. If you are telling people to not vote for Mills because he is a millionaire (and pro-gun), then you should also not vote for Dayton because he is a multi-millionaire (and anti-gun).
There's no question that Gov. Dayton will attempt to portray himself as pro-gun. That's what he did in 2010. That doesn't mean he's pro-Second Amendment. It just means he's a skilled politician who knows he can't be seen as hostile to guns in Minnesota.
As the writer said, though, Bloomberg's organization wouldn't endorse Gov. Dayton if Dayton was pro-Second Amendment. The writer is right in saying that the NRA isn't a Republican-only organization. Because it isn't, it's the strong organization that it is. It's the type of organization that Everytown for Gun Safety and Moms Demand Answers wish they could be. In reality, they aren't close.
The Everytown for Gun Safety endorsement might hurt other Democrats, too. These DFL incumbents will have targets on their backs:
HD 42A Barb Yarusso
HD 48A Yvonne Selcer
HD 49A Ron Erhardt
HD 49B Paul Rosenthal
HD 51B Laurie Halverson
HD 56B Will Morgan
It'll be interesting to see if these candidate get defeated the first Tuesday in November.
Posted Saturday, October 4, 2014 2:54 AM
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Factchecking MPR's factchecker
Catherine Richert's Poligraph article needs to be factchecked. This statement is especially egregious:
During the three-way gubernatorial debate between Dayton, GOP candidate Jeff Johnson and Independence Party candidate Hannah Nicollet, Johnson repeatedly said that Dayton's administration hasn't given enough money and attention to greater Minnesota.
That statement isn't accurate. Here's what Jeff Johnson said:
'Greater Minnesota in many ways has become an afterthought in this state, whether you're looking at where we spend our transportation dollars, whether you are looking at K-12 funding formulas, whether you're looking at some of the regulations that are killing our farmers, our miners and our loggers in this state,' said Johnson, a Hennepin County commissioner.
Gov. Dayton's reply (Richert called it pushback) was a non sequitur:
Gov. Mark Dayton: 'The facts don't support what Commissioner Johnson alleges. The bonding bill last year, 38 percent went to greater Minnesota, 28 percent to the Metro. The rest was statewide projects.'
Jeff Johnson didn't mention the Bonding Bill in his statement. Johnson talked specifically about transportation spending, the K-12 funding formula favoring the metro over outstate Minnesota and how the Dayton administration's regulatory overreach that's hurting loggers and miners in northern Minnesota and farmers throughout Minnesota. Here's Richert's verdict:
Dayton's claim is accurate.
It's the most accurate non sequitur answer I've heard in a debate. The important point to take from Gov. Dayton's statement is that he didn't deny that the K-12 funding formula is weighted in the Twin Cities' favor. Gov. Dayton didn't deny that overregulation is hurting farmers, miners and loggers. Gov. Dayton didn't deny that there's a disparity in transportation funding between the Metro and outstate Minnesota.
Gov. Dayton's defense of this egregious disparity was that the DFL threw some crumbs to outstate Minnesota in the Bonding Bill. Finally, Gov. Dayton didn't offer proof that the economy in outstate Minnesota was strong.
Building a civic center or arena in a small agriculture town won't help farmers make money. Commissioner Johnson is right that the outstate economy isn't strong because it's getting hurt by regulations on the major industries in outstate Minnesota.
I rate this Poligraph article misleading.
Posted Saturday, October 4, 2014 1:59 PM
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DSCC quadruples down on Grimes
This article highlights a questionable decision by the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee, aka the DSCC:
Democrats in Washington are taking a risky bet by quadrupling their investment in Alison Lundergan Grimes, a young and largely unproven challenger, who is running against Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.).
Spending a fresh $1.4 million on a statewide TV ad bashing McConnell is a gamble for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), which has six vulnerable incumbents and a long-held Democratic seat in Iowa to defend.
The only justification for this is that the DSCC thinks that flipping the Kentucky seat is their best shot at holding control of the Senate majority. This decision isn't without considerable risk, starting with the fact that Ms. Lundergan-Grimes is a longshot at best.
It's also possible that the DSCC realizes that Cory Gardner, Dan Sullivan, Joni Ernst, Bill Cassidy and Tom Cotton are likely to win their races. This information isn't encouraging to the DSCC:
Some political experts expressed surprise that the Senate Democratic campaign committee thinks Grimes can win, given the direction of recent polls.
'When I saw them start up, I thought, 'Well, maybe they made a commitment long ago that they would be there in October.' My guess is, they reserve the right to not be there in late October because they're in too much of a bind to spend money in a race where they don't think there's any chance,' said Al Cross, a longtime political commentator and professor at the University of Kentucky.
Jennifer Duffy, a senior editor for The Cook Political Report, said the conventional wisdom is that Grimes has an uphill path to victory. 'She's been behind in every poll but one for months,' she said. 'The one poll she was ahead by a point was her own. I just think there's been a conventional wisdom developing that she's in trouble.'
While I wouldn't put the McConnell seat in the Safe Republican column at this point, I wouldn't have a problem putting it at the upper end of the Leans Republican category, which is just short of Solid Republican.
The fact that Iowa and Colorado appear to be slipping through the DSCC's fingers is important. Neither of those seats were on the radar until this summer and last spring respectively. Braley and Udall haven't run good campaigns, which is definitely contributing to their difficult situation. Udall is suffering from an anti-Democrat mini-wave in Colorado, too. If he loses, he should thank Gov. Hickenlooper for passing Colorado's nutty gun grab laws this past year.
The political situation in Colorado has been difficult after that.
Braley doesn't have to send a note. He just has to look in the mirror. He's the candidate who's repeatedly put his foot in his mouth throughout the campaign. He's got as deft a touch as a bull in a china shop. What could possibly go wrong?
It isn't like he criticized hog farmers in Iowa or something. Oh wait. That's precisely what he did. That's as politically stupid as running for statewide office in Wisconsin and announcing at your first press conference that you hate cheese and the Green Bay Packers.
Grimes' campaign took a major hit when she ran a pro-coal mining ad that featured a British actor in a coal miner's hard hat. She's had tough sledding since. No amount of money will help her out of that hole anytime soon.
Posted Saturday, October 4, 2014 5:45 PM
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Patriots = AFC's Cowboys?
After reading this article , and after looking over their recent few drafts, it's time to question whether the Patriots are heading towards being the AFC's version of the Dallas Cowboys.
Let's look at the Patriots' last few drafts , excluding this year's. The Patriots' 2013 draft yielded LB Jamie Collins and Aaron Dobson in the second round, then Logan Ryan and Duron Harmon in the third. Dobson has been inactive 3 of this season's 4 games. According to Bill Belichick, he's been inactive because he isn't playing well.
That's astonishing considering the fact that a) Dobson is a wide receiver and b) wide receiver is one of the weakest positions on the team. What's really got to sting is the fact that they traded the 29th pick in the 2013 draft to the Vikings. The Vikings used that pick to take Cordarrelle Patterson. The Vikings traded their second, third and fourth round picks to New England. The Patriots used the Vikings' second round pick to take Collins.
No disrespect to Collins but can you imagine Brady's stats if he could stretch the field with Patterson?
In 2012, the Patriots had 4 of the top 90 picks. They struck it rich with Chandler Jones with their first pick. They got a reliable started in Dont'a Hightower with their other first round pick. Their picks in the second and third rounds are forgettable.
In 2011, the Patriots had 5 of the top 74 picks. Nate Solder, their first pick, is a starting tackle. Shane Vereen, the second of their second round picks, is a nice change-of-pace back. Stevan Ridley, their first pick in the third round, is a hard-running running back who starts. Ryan Mallett, their other third round pick, was traded to the Texans just before this season.
With tons of picks, the Patriots have failed to strengthen their offensive line, their defense or their wide receivers.
What's really sick is the Patriots failed draft of 2009. That year, they had 13 total picks, including 4 picks in the second round. Sebastian Vollmer is the only starter from those picks. Their only other starters from that draft were Patrick Chung and Julian Edelman.
The bad news for the Patriots is that their drafts prior to 2009 were mediocre at best. Most of their picks in the three previous drafts were either outright failures or they contributed as role players for a couple of years. The exception to that is Vince Wilfork, a true All-Pro nose tackle.
There's no question that Belichick is a coaching genius and that he'll join Brady in Canton. Similarly, there's no question that he's overrated as a talent evaluator. These drafts testify as to how incompetent he is at drafting impact players and longtime starters.
If he wasn't a Hall of Fame coach, Belichick would've gotten fired as the Patriots' unofficial GM. It's that simple.
Posted Saturday, October 4, 2014 10:29 PM
Comment 1 by Chad Q at 05-Oct-14 08:09 AM
The Patriots have had some failed picks but how many first round duds have the Queens had? Spielman should be fired just for drafting Ponder. Even with all those bad picks, the Patriots have been able to win divisional titles and go to the Super Bowl. Why? Because they had a more than competent QB who could make plays, something the Queens have maybe just figured out in drafting Teddy.
Response 1.1 by Gary Gross at 05-Oct-14 09:55 AM
Actually, the Vikings have had few first round busts. The only one I can think of started at QB Thursday night. Spielman is one of the top 5 college talent evaluators in the NFL. It doesn't hurt having old-school Scott Studwell running college scouting.
Over the last 3 years, the Vikings have drafted 7 players in the first round: Matt Kalil & Harrison Smith in 2012, Sharrif Floyd, Xavier Rhodes & Cordarrelle Patterson in 2013, then Anthony Barr & Teddy Bridgewater this year.
Kalil & Patterson have already played in a Pro Bowl. Harrison Smith might play in it this year & I'll bet the proverbial ranch that Barr & Bridgewater will play in it after next season. Floyd & Rhodes are top players, too.
Comment 2 by walter hanson at 06-Oct-14 04:41 PM
Chad:
Keep in mind where Spielman might have made his mistake was in not moving up to get one of the other QB's. Ponder at the time looked like he might be a serviceable QB (after all he did get the team to the playoffs in 2013). What should get Spielman fired was bringing in what's his name (that's how bad he was) from Tampa Bay to do the Monday night football disaster against the Giants.
Walter Hanson
Minneapolis, MN
Comment 3 by Gary Gross at 06-Oct-14 11:01 PM
That wasn't Spielman's mistake. The mistake was Leslie Frazier's. Frazier chose to start Freeman after being a Viking for only a week.
Comment 4 by walter hanson at 07-Oct-14 02:28 PM
Gary:
If Freeman was any good shouldn't he have been able to play a game since? And who knows it looks like it was Spielman's idea to sign Freeman so maybe he put some pressure on the coach to start him.
Walter Hanson
Minneapolis, MN
Response 4.1 by Gary Gross at 07-Oct-14 08:24 PM
Walter, that's pure speculation, which I usually don't get into.
Editorial blasts Gov. Dayton
It's still to be determined if this editorial is an accurate indicator of the Iron Range's mood towards Gov. Dayton. Still, it can't be great news to the Dayton campaign. Here's the editorial's introduction:
'The minerals aren't going anywhere.' - Gov. Mark Dayton, Mesabi Daily News Sunday, Sept. 28, interview story.
If Gov. Dayton was trying to make a positive first impression with Rangers, that fell short.
We found that to be a troubling response to a governor/reporter discussion of the proposed PolyMet Mine copper/nickel/precious metals project on the East Range. Yes, the rich deposits of minerals that are in such demand worldwide are not going anywhere while under the ground.
However, the need for jobs on the Iron Range is also not going anywhere. It's here and not going away. It's seemingly forever with us because of an unemployment rate considerably much higher than that of the statewide average. And it certainly won't improve anytime soon with a comment from the state's CEO that the minerals aren't going anywhere.
This wasn't written by a conservative activist. It's a product of the Mesabi Daily News Editorial Board.
Gov. Dayton's statement is exceptionally flippant. It exposes his disdain for Iron Range priorities. This isn't the first time he's done that. During Wednesday night's debate, he accused Jeff Johnson of pandering to the Iron Range when Commissioner Johnson talked passionately about opening PolyMet. Apparently, Gov. Dayton thinks that Republicans shouldn't have the right to advocate for the Iron Range's priorities.
That isn't the only shot the Editorial Board took at Gov. Dayton:
It has now been nine years of environmental review of the PolyMet venture without a final resolution that would allow the project to move forward and create 360 permanent jobs, hundreds and hundreds more spin-off positions and more than 1 million hours of construction work.
And where is that review at now? Stuck in election year limbo as comments on the supplemental environmental impact statement are looked at and studied for far too long. It's now been months for their review by co-lead agencies, which includes the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
It's entirely fair to criticize Gov. Dayton for slow-walking the review. Still, it's important that they don't let Iron Rangers off the hook. Their votes for the DFL, including Gov. Dayton, have pushed them into this situation. That's what happens when a region or a demographic group gives monolithic support to one political party.
If that region or that demographic group keeps voting for the Democrats year after year, they're sending the signal that it's ok to take them for granted. If the Iron Range doesn't stand up for themselves on this issue, then they're getting what they've voted for. If the Range doesn't become a single-issues voter this November, they'll still be waiting for the review process to finish in 2016 and possibly beyond.
I've heard politicians like Tommy Rukavina, David Dill and others talk about the importance of opening PolyMet in one sentence, then say that the Republicans aren't great on other, less important, issues. It's shit-or-get-off-the-pot time for the Range. Either PolyMet is important enough to vote against Gov. Dayton and Sen. Franken or it isn't.
I'll repeat this again. If the Iron Range doesn't vote strongly in favor for Jeff Johnson and Mike McFadden on the basis of their passionate advocacy for PolyMet, they'll deserve 4 more years of high unemployment and rampant poverty.
It's the Range's time for choosing.
Posted Saturday, October 4, 2014 11:38 PM
Comment 1 by Chad Q at 05-Oct-14 08:13 AM
Nice to see you laying some of the blame for the Iron Ranges woes squarely on the shoulders of those who keep voting for the DFL's policies.
They had Chip and hopefully they will pull their heads out and vote for Mills and Johnson. If not, as you said they deserve what they get.
