Cartoon Strip: Nota Bene by Leonardo No. 57 - Back to School

This is the fifty-seventh installment of the Salem-News.com original series "Nota Bene by Leonardo" by Salem cartoonist Glen Bledsoe.

(Salem -- Earth Prime) - Slow news day? This past Sunday Salem's local variant of syndicated news printed an "exposé" on how teachers who worked more got paid more. (Well duh!) To press the point they printed teachers' names and their salaries. Talk about gauche.

How, you might ask, does an editor come to the decision to publish such journalistic swill? Let us turn the Multiverse Browser on this city and peek into the inner workings of the newspaper-which-must-not-be-named.

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Carla September 3, 2007 12:38 am (Pacific time)

Thank you, Leonardo, for a witty and accurate ribbing of a pathetic "Have a great school year!" gift from Our Friends at the Statesman. I decided to refrain from writing them to point out a few of the facts that they accidentally omitted: for example, the application fee alone for National Board Certification is $2,300, and I shudder to remember how much I paid to obtain my Ph.D. The compensation for EITHER certification OR a doctorate is a one-time stipend of $1,000, a minute percentage of what I paid to obtain these advanced certifications. But what do I know...I'm just one of those overpaid, slacker teachers...

Leonardo August 30, 2007 6:02 pm (Pacific time)

The point is that the SJ is lazy. If they are really interested in writing an insightful article about education they would do a little research to find out what the issues are. The New York Times, for example, did an excellent article (8/29/07) "In Search of Good Teachers" which as you might guess was about the difficulty in training and retaining good teachers. That's because the staff at NY Times are pro's and can often be seen investigating stories instead of making them up. Take it from me, Salem's high school newspapers are superior to the SJ.

Have some class August 30, 2007 1:40 am (Pacific time)

Those bozos at that "other place" are sliding and grasping, aren't they?

Rosies ghost; August 29, 2007 6:31 pm (Pacific time)

I can't believe you are inferring the press manipulates the news! This woule be shameful and "sensationalized sleaze",(you can quote me), and hardly in keeping the journalistc code of honorable reporting. I'm sure you are mistaken Leo, just take a look at the Statesman or The Big O, or even turn to Fox News and you'll see honest, balanced, dictated pap,I mean worthy updates on Lindsay Lohan and..,David Beckham. Who could ask for more? I suppose you'd even malign Bill O'reilly and Rush what's his name, or even that Coulter creature..,I mean the voice of reason and truth. Admit it Leo, these people get to interview the likes of Condi And Dick,(with a capitol "D"), Cheney and I suspect petty covetiousness on your part by not being granted the same opportunity. It's true isn't it? Get with the program Leo, subscribe to Nat. Enq.,or The Conservative Chronical and you'll see the error of your ways. And what the hell is this about school uniforms? I mean why has this story been ignored? It's vital.Remember, Murdoch is our friend.I'd better go now as my govt. provided psycotropic dope is starting to wear off and Rush has a new jar of Oxicotin I can get ahold of. Just rememeber Leo, reporting reality is dangerous. The public doesn't need to be bothered as long as they can be lied to..,I mean "protected" from the harsh rigors of life in general. And one more thing. Fox is hiring. Ever thought of moving on up to the East side Leo?

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