In the movie All the President’s Men, Jason Robards (playing Ben Bradley editor of the Washington Post) tossed out the line "Does anyone have an ax to grind?" In saying this he was – in the film anyway – trying to uphold a high standard of journalism by preventing his newspaper from being used as a weapon by someone who had a private agenda against another party.
Freedom of the press is a wonderful thing. It prevents the higher ups from stifling open discussion and debate on important or sensitive topics. Unfortunately, responsibility of the press is largely self-policed, and newspapers are pretty much free to say almost anything they want about almost anyone or anything.
YSU has had more than its share of administrative blunders in the past decade, and these should certainly be, and have been, brought to light in the Vindicator. Bertram, however, has continually painted the most dismal portrait of YSU possible, trashing everybody including YSU trustees, administrators, faculty, support staff, and students. Yes students. In a prior article he referred to YSU as one of the "bottom-feeders." A not-so-subtle statement indicating that YSU students are the bottom of the barrel. In the current article he refers to YSU students as "academic shlubs." Think about this berating of students carefully. Does it make sense for the Vindicator to employ a reporter who labels so many (over 14,000) of the Mahoning Valley’s residents as academic shlubs? Does it make sense for YSU students and parents to subscribe to the Vindicator when it condones this type of reporting?
There is something damn peculiar about the Bertram-YSU saga. I don't know what it is, but something doesn't smell right. Does Bertram have an ax to grind? 1. Did he or any of his family ever work for YSU? 2. If yes, what was the nature of their separation? Was their parting amicable? 3. Is it the Ron Cole thing, where Cole got that "cushy position at YSU with a fat pension" and Bertram was left out in the cold?
If it turns out that there is clear evidence of a Bertram agenda for YSU, then it is the Vindicator that is to blame for allowing it. Journalistic standards demand that reporter integrity and independence are carefully monitored when that reporter is writing such harsh comments about one of the Mahoning Valley's major educational institutions.
Harrymuffin is right! We, along with our relatives, will not be renewing our subscription to the Vindicator. It's time for a change!
In 18th century America life was difficult. Those who didn't work starved, and sometimes people starved regardless of how hard they worked. There were, however, some benefits: you got to keep the fruit of your labor, and there was a crude form of justice that winnowed out the slackers.
In the 19th century we became a little more civilized. Life wasn't quite as difficult for most, but only the clever, industrious, or very lucky had any hope to live comfortably. The 20th century saw the dawn of entitlement, and the notion that people have a fundamental right to the basics of life spread throughout America. Initial entitlements were modest and targeted the mitigation of gross human suffering. As we moved toward the 21st century, the attitude of entitlement expanded to include ever higher standards of living for the unlucky, unproductive, and those with marginal abilities. More and more people were able to achieve higher and higher standards of living without being productive. Politicians recognized that the surest way to get elected is to support free goods and services for everyone. Society smiled as we became even more “civilized.”
The attitude of entitlement has altered our educational institutions. Students are permitted a college education regardless of their academic abilities or effort (open enrollment). Students receive As and Bs with levels of work that would've yielded Cs and Ds a generation ago. The current state funding formula paints a target on the back of professors who fail a significant number of students regardless of how poorly they perform on examinations. Faculty must choose between maintaining academic integrity and receiving their pensions; thus, students achieve significantly higher grades with far less work. The students are happy; the parents are happy; and the politicians are happy. Employers, however, are coming to grips with the consequences.
Grease has recently experienced a small taste of what lies ahead for extremely “civilized” countries such as the United States and most of Europe. At some point in the not so distant future, paying people to be unproductive will reach unsustainable levels, and dramatic downdrafts in the standard of living will occur for almost everyone.
In the aftermath, the price will have been so terrible that significant changes are likely to occur: 1. Politicians will be limited to one or two terms so they aren't obsessed with saying and doing things to get them reelected. 2. Balanced budgets will become a mandate of the people. 3. Hard work and good judgment will again be rewarded. 4. We will become much less civilized.
LostPatrol, you are clearly lost! Anyone who knows Cindy Anderson is aware that she's nobody's puppet. She does what she thinks is right, regardless of the consequences. She may not always be right, but her good faith effort to try and do what she believes is in the best interest of YSU is undeniable. It is this aspect that generated overwhelming support for her as YSU’s next president.
Let's talk about salaries. In Bertram’s world, the best brain surgeons would be paid the same as Wal-Mart cashiers. After all, we are all the same right? We should all be paid the same regardless of education, talent, or effort.
When I read Bertram's article, it appears as though he has two themes: YSU’s salaries are too high, and their performance in educating the Mahoning Valley's youth is too low. I'll put forth the following syllogism:
Talent and salary are positively correlated. Talent and performance are positively correlated. Therefore, salary and performance are positively correlated.
According to Bertram's logic, YSU needs to slash salaries while simultaneously increasing educational performance. This is a non sequitur that typifies the thinking in communist, and to a lesser degree, socialist countries.
Let's talk about educational performance. Like most of the problems currently facing our nation, there is a correct strategy involving a long-term view that requires immediate sacrifice, and an incorrect approach that yields immediate results, but comes at a high price further down the road. YSU needs to slowly raise its academic standards. Enrollment may go down in the short term as less qualified applicants are shut out. In the long run, however, enrollment may actually increase as employers recognize the improved quality of its graduates and begin paying higher salaries.
You will never find a more convoluted quagmire of self-interest dominated groups than at a modern University. Most of these groups try to maneuver administrative appointments towards their own political advantage, seldom if ever placing the interests of the students as a high priority. Colleges and Departments compete with each other for resources, positions, and funding -- sometimes engaging in activities that are ethically complex at best. Frequently the greatest trumpeters of student needs are in reality feathering their own nest.
Unlike business and industry, most university employees are protected by either tenure or continuation (Union) agreements. They can't be terminated short of committing a serious crime, and they get automatic raises regardless of performance. Managing such an organization is a difficult and demanding task. It doesn't require Nobel Prize winning intellect, or great experience in managing complicated organizations. Several have commented on the need to bring in outsiders with "fresh ideas." Such people wouldn't understand the culture of the Mahoning Valley, and YSU in particular! It would take them years -- if ever -- to become effective.
Anyone who makes it past the rigorous screening process of a presidential search has the requisite intellect for managing YSU. What's needed is Character! Character to say no for the right reasons rather than political expediency or self-interest. Character to take on difficult problems with people who can't be fired or have their pay cut. Character to look beyond the long lines requesting favors, and instead to focus on genuine need and injustice. In this respect, Dr. Anderson is an excellent choice for President of Youngstown State University.
I am depressed! If someone discovered a cure for cancer, some people would complain that chemotherapy technicians are going to be laid off.
The next time YSU negotiates a labor contract, do you think they will actually go to the trouble of reading what they're about to sign? That's good, right?
The next time the ACE union negotiates a contract, do you think some union members will be looking over the shoulder of their president to see what he's actually doing? That's good, right?
The next time Mr. Maldonado is walking across the YSU campus -- chuckling his way to the bank, do you think people will be watching him with peripheral vision, thinking thoughts they hadn't thought before? That's good, right?
In this age when students sleep through college lectures, absorbing little if anything, Mr. Maldonado has delivered a lesson that will be absorbed by everyone at YSU. That's good, right?
Mr. Maldonado should be the commencement speaker at YSU’s next graduation. David Sweet himself should put the doctoral robes around his shoulders. Dr. Maldonado can deliver an address on what's making America what it is today. I'll be there, smiling.
Now let me see if I got this right. YSU and the ACE Union negotiated a labor contract. The Union President made some changes regarding jobs and pay classifications, some of which were highly beneficial to himself. The changes were not hidden in any way, and YSU agreed in writing to the changes. Now YSU is claiming what: Deception? They didn't bother to read the contract, and they want off the hook for their negligence?
How wonderful it would be if I could break my written agreements by simply claiming I never bothered to read the contract. Imagine what such a world would be like.
The ACE President beat them fair and square on the battlefield of labor-management relations. Was he self-serving? Of course. The result is, nevertheless, a legally binding agreement that should stand up in court.
Shrewd risk takers will nearly always beat the sleeping sloths of the world. Bravo Ivan!
Shed a tear for YSU employees
Not the Godfather; but All the President’s Men
In the movie All the President’s Men, Jason Robards (playing Ben Bradley editor of the Washington Post) tossed out the line "Does anyone have an ax to grind?" In saying this he was – in the film anyway – trying to uphold a high standard of journalism by preventing his newspaper from being used as a weapon by someone who had a private agenda against another party.
Freedom of the press is a wonderful thing. It prevents the higher ups from stifling open discussion and debate on important or sensitive topics. Unfortunately, responsibility of the press is largely self-policed, and newspapers are pretty much free to say almost anything they want about almost anyone or anything.
YSU has had more than its share of administrative blunders in the past decade, and these should certainly be, and have been, brought to light in the Vindicator. Bertram, however, has continually painted the most dismal portrait of YSU possible, trashing everybody including YSU trustees, administrators, faculty, support staff, and students. Yes students. In a prior article he referred to YSU as one of the "bottom-feeders." A not-so-subtle statement indicating that YSU students are the bottom of the barrel. In the current article he refers to YSU students as "academic shlubs." Think about this berating of students carefully. Does it make sense for the Vindicator to employ a reporter who labels so many (over 14,000) of the Mahoning Valley’s residents as academic shlubs? Does it make sense for YSU students and parents to subscribe to the Vindicator when it condones this type of reporting?
There is something damn peculiar about the Bertram-YSU saga. I don't know what it is, but something doesn't smell right. Does Bertram have an ax to grind?
1. Did he or any of his family ever work for YSU?
2. If yes, what was the nature of their separation? Was their parting amicable?
3. Is it the Ron Cole thing, where Cole got that "cushy position at YSU with a fat pension" and Bertram was left out in the cold?
If it turns out that there is clear evidence of a Bertram agenda for YSU, then it is the Vindicator that is to blame for allowing it. Journalistic standards demand that reporter integrity and independence are carefully monitored when that reporter is writing such harsh comments about one of the Mahoning Valley's major educational institutions.
Harrymuffin is right! We, along with our relatives, will not be renewing our subscription to the Vindicator. It's time for a change!
December 12, 2010 at 5:05 p.m. permalink suggest removal
Concierge service at YSU?
In 18th century America life was difficult. Those who didn't work starved, and sometimes people starved regardless of how hard they worked. There were, however, some benefits: you got to keep the fruit of your labor, and there was a crude form of justice that winnowed out the slackers.
In the 19th century we became a little more civilized. Life wasn't quite as difficult for most, but only the clever, industrious, or very lucky had any hope to live comfortably. The 20th century saw the dawn of entitlement, and the notion that people have a fundamental right to the basics of life spread throughout America. Initial entitlements were modest and targeted the mitigation of gross human suffering. As we moved toward the 21st century, the attitude of entitlement expanded to include ever higher standards of living for the unlucky, unproductive, and those with marginal abilities. More and more people were able to achieve higher and higher standards of living without being productive. Politicians recognized that the surest way to get elected is to support free goods and services for everyone. Society smiled as we became even more “civilized.”
The attitude of entitlement has altered our educational institutions. Students are permitted a college education regardless of their academic abilities or effort (open enrollment). Students receive As and Bs with levels of work that would've yielded Cs and Ds a generation ago. The current state funding formula paints a target on the back of professors who fail a significant number of students regardless of how poorly they perform on examinations. Faculty must choose between maintaining academic integrity and receiving their pensions; thus, students achieve significantly higher grades with far less work. The students are happy; the parents are happy; and the politicians are happy. Employers, however, are coming to grips with the consequences.
Grease has recently experienced a small taste of what lies ahead for extremely “civilized” countries such as the United States and most of Europe. At some point in the not so distant future, paying people to be unproductive will reach unsustainable levels, and dramatic downdrafts in the standard of living will occur for almost everyone.
In the aftermath, the price will have been so terrible that significant changes are likely to occur:
1. Politicians will be limited to one or two terms so they aren't obsessed with saying and doing things to get them reelected.
2. Balanced budgets will become a mandate of the people.
3. Hard work and good judgment will again be rewarded.
4. We will become much less civilized.
June 21, 2010 at 12:43 p.m. permalink suggest removal
At YSU, numbers matter
LostPatrol, you are clearly lost! Anyone who knows Cindy Anderson is aware that she's nobody's puppet. She does what she thinks is right, regardless of the consequences. She may not always be right, but her good faith effort to try and do what she believes is in the best interest of YSU is undeniable. It is this aspect that generated overwhelming support for her as YSU’s next president.
Let's talk about salaries. In Bertram’s world, the best brain surgeons would be paid the same as Wal-Mart cashiers. After all, we are all the same right? We should all be paid the same regardless of education, talent, or effort.
When I read Bertram's article, it appears as though he has two themes: YSU’s salaries are too high, and their performance in educating the Mahoning Valley's youth is too low. I'll put forth the following syllogism:
Talent and salary are positively correlated.
Talent and performance are positively correlated.
Therefore, salary and performance are positively correlated.
According to Bertram's logic, YSU needs to slash salaries while simultaneously increasing educational performance. This is a non sequitur that typifies the thinking in communist, and to a lesser degree, socialist countries.
Let's talk about educational performance. Like most of the problems currently facing our nation, there is a correct strategy involving a long-term view that requires immediate sacrifice, and an incorrect approach that yields immediate results, but comes at a high price further down the road. YSU needs to slowly raise its academic standards. Enrollment may go down in the short term as less qualified applicants are shut out. In the long run, however, enrollment may actually increase as employers recognize the improved quality of its graduates and begin paying higher salaries.
March 28, 2010 at 7:48 p.m. permalink suggest removal
Youngstown State will have one of its own as president
You will never find a more convoluted quagmire of self-interest dominated groups than at a modern University. Most of these groups try to maneuver administrative appointments towards their own political advantage, seldom if ever placing the interests of the students as a high priority. Colleges and Departments compete with each other for resources, positions, and funding -- sometimes engaging in activities that are ethically complex at best. Frequently the greatest trumpeters of student needs are in reality feathering their own nest.
Unlike business and industry, most university employees are protected by either tenure or continuation (Union) agreements. They can't be terminated short of committing a serious crime, and they get automatic raises regardless of performance. Managing such an organization is a difficult and demanding task. It doesn't require Nobel Prize winning intellect, or great experience in managing complicated organizations. Several have commented on the need to bring in outsiders with "fresh ideas." Such people wouldn't understand the culture of the Mahoning Valley, and YSU in particular! It would take them years -- if ever -- to become effective.
Anyone who makes it past the rigorous screening process of a presidential search has the requisite intellect for managing YSU. What's needed is Character! Character to say no for the right reasons rather than political expediency or self-interest. Character to take on difficult problems with people who can't be fired or have their pay cut. Character to look beyond the long lines requesting favors, and instead to focus on genuine need and injustice. In this respect, Dr. Anderson is an excellent choice for President of Youngstown State University.
February 18, 2010 at 8:01 p.m. permalink suggest removal
YSU union should show some remorse
I am depressed! If someone discovered a cure for cancer, some people would complain that chemotherapy technicians are going to be laid off.
The next time YSU negotiates a labor contract, do you think they will actually go to the trouble of reading what they're about to sign? That's good, right?
The next time the ACE union negotiates a contract, do you think some union members will be looking over the shoulder of their president to see what he's actually doing? That's good, right?
The next time Mr. Maldonado is walking across the YSU campus -- chuckling his way to the bank, do you think people will be watching him with peripheral vision, thinking thoughts they hadn't thought before? That's good, right?
In this age when students sleep through college lectures, absorbing little if anything, Mr. Maldonado has delivered a lesson that will be absorbed by everyone at YSU. That's good, right?
Mr. Maldonado should be the commencement speaker at YSU’s next graduation. David Sweet himself should put the doctoral robes around his shoulders. Dr. Maldonado can deliver an address on what's making America what it is today. I'll be there, smiling.
December 18, 2008 at 2:54 p.m. permalink suggest removal
YSU labor leader’s pay raise is probed
Now let me see if I got this right. YSU and the ACE Union negotiated a labor contract. The Union President made some changes regarding jobs and pay classifications, some of which were highly beneficial to himself. The changes were not hidden in any way, and YSU agreed in writing to the changes. Now YSU is claiming what: Deception? They didn't bother to read the contract, and they want off the hook for their negligence?
How wonderful it would be if I could break my written agreements by simply claiming I never bothered to read the contract. Imagine what such a world would be like.
The ACE President beat them fair and square on the battlefield of labor-management relations. Was he self-serving? Of course. The result is, nevertheless, a legally binding agreement that should stand up in court.
Shrewd risk takers will nearly always beat the sleeping sloths of the world. Bravo Ivan!
December 12, 2008 at 7:53 p.m. permalink suggest removal