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By Paula Wethington
One of the calls made to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office Wednesday was of 80 campaign signs found dumped on property in the 2800 block of Second Street in Detroit Beach.
Deputies report they took the signs as appropriate to the local Republican and Democrat party offices.
By Danielle Portteus
My co-worker Paula posted a little while ago about campaign signs being stolen or vandalized.
After speaking with a caller yesterday, I thought this would be a good time to make some additional comments to Paula’s post.
It seems this year, more people are noticing that signs are being damaged or stolen. I think more people are complaining about it because they think there is a different motivation this time.
I spoke with a man who lives along Secor Rd. in Bedford Township. His Obama/Biden sign was spray painted black. He thinks it was racially motivated.
A sign just up the road from his was also damaged.
When I traveled the stretch of road near his home, I noticed it wasn’t just the Obama/Biden signs that had been hit, but the McCain/Palin signs as well. Those signs, which were smaller and made of different material, had been torn in pieces.
The Bedford substation has reports of signs being damaged on both sides. The difference, I think, is people’s awareness about what signs have been hit.
I think people do take political sign vandalism personally this time around because of the candidate choices, at least for the Presidential election. I think more people are concerned because they think a random “attack” is really and attack on their candidate of choice rather than just silly mischief.
By Paula Wethington / paula@monroenews.com
You know it’s election season when campaign signs start sprouting on yards.
It’s also easy to tell it’s election season when reports start showing up in police blotters about campaign signs being stolen or vandalized. I saw what may be the first such complaint of the fall when picking up reports this morning at Monroe Police Department – two presidential campaign signs vandalized on at a home on Godfroy St.
It’s hard not to take those vandalism incidents personally.
I remember serving as campaign manager in college when a friend of mine was running for a residence hall government post. We didn’t swarm the dorm with paper fliers, we just posted a few in very deliberate locations.
My friend was irate when she saw some of her signs had been vandalized.
We never found out who did that. It’s not like my friend had any enemies in the dorm.
The culprits were either people who just felt like being malicious, or who supported the other candidates.
My friend tied for the office she sought in the first election, and lost in the runoff.
But the story of what happened in my dorm is pretty applicable to what happens in the real world.
Some people are just malicious and they’re going to wreck or steal whatever happens to be in the targeted yard or neighborhood.
Some people do it because they support the other candidates.
And election sign vandalism and theft really does happen every year.
Try not to take it personally.
By Danielle Portteus
There is an article in today MEN about the House Education Subcommittee on High School Alternatives public hearing last night.
I was surprised to see the number of administrators and teachers at the event. To be honest, I expected to see about 10. In reality, there were about fifty. Of that number, only a handful were teachers.
There were two concerned parents.
The changes were approved to the Michigan Merit Curriculum in April 2006 and began being implemented last year. I’ve spoken with a number of parents, teachers and even administrators who dislike the curriculum and call it too rigorous.
Only a few people spoke out against the curriculum changes and most of them were high school principals.
A grandmother, who’s grandson isn’t even in high school yet, got up to the podium and with much emotion, explained why she felt her grandson would not be able to graduate from a Michigan high school with the current mandates. He is a special needs student who uses a resource classroom to help improve his scores in core classes. His grandmother said that though he struggles with core classes, he excels in sports and art. She said she doesn’t feel that just because he isn’t a straight A student, doesn’t mean he shouldn’t be given a chance to succeed.
She recommended changes be made to make the curriculum more individualized, especially for special education students, so that each student can be successful in completing the requirements.
She said she would move him out of the state, if she had to, in order of him to receive his high school diploma.
Immediately, people in the audience made comments and whispered to those sitting around them. I’m sure school officials don’t want her grandson to leave the state.
State Reps. Angerer and Hopgood said the comments from the meeting will be taken back to Lansing and could impact future legislation.
By Charles Slat
I ran across this in cyberspace — a celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Hubble telescope. Using Hubble and independent images, you get a video trip to a distant nebula.
Keep in mind that the place you’ll visit is just 7,200 light-years away. Keep in mind that one light-year is about 5.879 trillion miles.
So, even if you squint or use binoculars, it would be really, really hard to see this place.
By Charles Slat
An article in today’s Monroe Evening News profiles Model T enthusiasts Vern and Doris Campbell of Milan Township. Mr. Campbell bought the 1918 car from an uncle for $40 in 1950 and restored it. When the car was new in 1918, it sold for about $425.
Today, the car could be sold for around $20,000, according to Mr. Campbell.
That’s called residual value.
State Rep. Kathy Angerer pushed for a public hearing in Monroe County on the Michigan Merit Curriculum and the high school graduation requirements.
Hate ‘em, love ‘em.. tell the House Education Subcommittee on High School Alternatives tonight at 6:30 p.m. at Dundee Middle School, 420 Ypsilanti St.
It should be an interesting meeting. The public hearing should last two hours.
Subcommittee members include:
(Chair) Hoon-Yung Hopgood, D- Taylor, represents the 22nd district
Steven Lindberg, D- Marquette, represents the 109th district
Robert Dean, D- Grand Rapids, represents the 75th district
Paul E. Opsommer, R-DeWitt, represents the 93rd district
Judy Emmons, R- Sheridan, represents the 70th district
By DOUG DONNELLY, City Editor, doug@monroenews.com
The Monroe Evening News has started its annual process of interviewing candidates for state and county offices to help in making endorsements before the November election.
The Editorial Board invites candidates to the office for a sit-down interview. We ask a series of questions to each candidate in the same race. The meetings usually last about an hour. It’s not really a debate, but candidates may speak to each other or even ask each other a question – it’s up to the candidate whether or not they want to respond.
Our first interviews were this week.
55th District State Rep. Kathy Angerer, D-Dundee, came to the office Monday. Her opponent, Frank Moynihan did not accept the invitation. In fact, we never heard back from him. (He also chose not to send in a candidate biographical form that we will print in our upcoming election tab.)
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