We are SOOOO BAD!

[gatordog]

wvhsparent said:

Alka Tyle won her election in Indian Prairie Unit District 204 but said she was disturbed that the campaign seemed to focus on old and supposedly decided issues and not the children.

“I was very disappointed, I must say,” she said. “It sets a bad precedent.”

I think the general linkage of "dirty campaigning" in 203 and 204 isnt a strong link. My feelings is what happened in 203 was way more of a story along these lines than 204. 203 had quite an emotional and significant battle, and that major difference was reflected in turnout.

I think AT has wisely summed up 204's last election. She truly has a good feel for this district, in my opinion. I dont think any "bad campaign tone" was as much about mudslinging, as it was about rehashing old and already decided issues. (Third HS-or-No Third HS, boundaries-this way-or that way, BB or not BB.)

[Arch]

gatordog said:

MD's public behavior since the election can be well described by a term we parents of young kids are quite familar with: sore loser.

For me, it also solidifies my opinion that the right choices were made on election day.

[momto4]

wvhsparent said:

By Melissa Jenco and Jake Griffin

Well, it's nice to see some different authors!

But some say the focus in the recent elections in both Naperville school districts sometimes had nearly as much to do with intimidation, harassment and name-calling as with what’s best for students.

Really? I didn't notice this. At least here, I thought we were trying very hard to figure out which candidates would do what's best for the students.

I didn't see any blogs or message boards for 203, nor any others for 204, so maybe those are the places where the nasty stuff was going on?

Alka Tyle won her election in Indian Prairie Unit District 204 but said she was disturbed that the campaign seemed to focus on old and supposedly decided issues and not the children.

It was too bad about all the rehashing. Since the school should be already built at the time of the next election, this shouldn't be an issue then.

Michelle Davis, who came in fourth in the District 204 race, said she believes the negative treatment she received on one message board in particular led to her defeat. She admonished the incumbent victors for not speaking out against such cyber mud-slinging.

“The passive collusion was one of the saddest aspects and poorest reflections on our district,” she said. “That site was filled with hurtful dialogue, twisted lies and racist jokes.”

I still find it incredible that MD would like school board members to have some control over a message board, or to at least make a public statement against mud-slinging. How can she possibly characterize this site that way? I think it's insulting to the majority of us who post here and are respectful. I have read almost every post here and have not seen what she's describing.

Longtime board member Mark Metzger said it was not his responsibility to dispute information disseminated on the Internet, and he believes the hullabaloo on the Web had little impact on the race — especially when only 10 percent of registered voters turned out.

Disputing information found on the internet could be a full-time job! Good answer, Mark.

One thread on a message board accused Davis of using the Virginia Tech shooting tragedy as a campaign tactic to get her name on the front page of a local newspaper on Election Day.

Serious mischaracterization of the thread IMO.

In Illinois, school board elections are supposed to be non-partisan. But that meant nothing to bloggers, who were not shy about using political labels.

Thank goodness we didn't have that issue. That was one of my complaints about Richard Irvin's bid for mayor of Aurora. That has always been a non-partisan race and then he ran as a Republican with support from various well-known Republicans. He found that doesn't fly very well around here.

District 204 challenger Leanne Lyons said she’ll never seek public office again and believes her livelihood was threatened by things written about her on some message boards. She blamed her defeat on a Daily Herald columnist who directed readers to a message board that criticized her candidacy.

So, she lost because people were directed to a site where they could read and participate in open discussion? How did this threaten her employment? Unless being elected to the school board actually was necessary for her career...

No quotes from KK and SC? I wonder what might they have to say about message boards.

I am glad to have had this forum for discussion on this most recent school board election and I wish that this had been available for previous elections. Things might well be different now if there had been such an easy way for voters to learn more about the candidates and issues.

[momof3]

archwinsome said:

gatordog said:

MD's public behavior since the election can be well described by a term we parents of young kids are quite familar with: sore loser.

For me, it also solidifies my opinion that the right choices were made on election day.

I am surprised about the sour grapes. It reflects poorly on the complainer. In '09 there will be 4 seats up and I think 2 are due for someone new. Lots of people have to run more than once to get elected.

[momto4]

momof3 said:

archwinsome said:

For me, it also solidifies my opinion that the right choices were made on election day.

I am surprised about the sour grapes. It reflects poorly on the complainer. In '09 there will be 4 seats up and I think 2 are due for someone new. Lots of people have to run more than once to get elected.

Based on numbers she should be one of the front-runners for the open seats next time, but I think she's blowing it now.

[Arch]

momto4 said:

momof3 said:

I am surprised about the sour grapes. It reflects poorly on the complainer. In '09 there will be 4 seats up and I think 2 are due for someone new. Lots of people have to run more than once to get elected.

Based on numbers she should be one of the front-runners for the open seats next time, but I think she's blowing it now.

If her or any of her 'supporters' are reading this they should walk away with:

The less said now the better (If she has aspirations for 2009).
It's also possible to say Congrats to those that did win and say that they'll serve the District well and she wishes them well.

If she has no aspirations for 2009 then hey, keep reminding us the right choices were made.

[doc]

As momof3 pointed out, people tend to spend money more liberally as the results get closer to home, and are seen more clearly. People know that taxes are necessary to allow a community to function. What people do not like, is for their tax dollars to be wasted. People feel powerless to tackle Washington and Springfield, and even a small voice can be heard on the local level, and if elected bodies listen to their constituents, much can be done without feeling as if one is beating one's head against the wall.

Look at this board. I believe the members were overwhelmingly in favor of the incumbents. It was like preaching to the choir. The minority tried to change the choir's tune, but was unable to do so. The winners in the election were the ones who were able to reach out (or have their supporters reach out) and get the vote out. I followed the discussions, and do not recall any racial slurs or jokes. The only ones who injected race into the discussions were supporters of MD.

[warriorpride]

1) MD's sour grapes continue
2) MD's supporters on this board were the only ones to bring race up
3) CV's reaction to her email were a bit overboard. If there was a SB member threatened or injured recently, then the "you're next" comment might be cause for concern, however, being the day after the SB election, one could safely assume that "you're next" was a reference to the 2009 election and her term being up.

[dcyst]

What's this issue with CV and an e-mail and "you're next"?

[dcyst]

nevermind

[Arch]

dcyst said:

What's this issue with CV and an e-mail and "you're next"?

Maybe it was meant from a different angle:

Someone could have been expecting an incumbent to be unseated and the "You're next" was referring to that in 2009 and had nothing to do with Va Tech.

Still, it sounds like a stupid pointless email, regardless.

[proschool]

Election blogs, e-mails and message boards were the “Internet equivalent of anonymous name-calling at a schoolyard,” Naperville Unit District 203 contender Steve Deutsch said. “It was particularly nasty and brutish.”

How does anonymous name calling even occur in a schoolyard?

District 204 challenger Leanne Lyons said she’ll never seek public office again and believes her livelihood was threatened by things written about her on some message boards. She blamed her defeat on a Daily Herald columnist who directed readers to a message board that criticized her candidacy.

LL was defeated because she never presented any reason whatsoever to choose her over any of the incumbants. I approached all the candidates with an open mind. I chose not to vote for her based on what I saw on her website. Not this one.

Not all bloggers followed the slash-and-burn tactics, nor did all candidates feel they were treated poorly by opponents. But some said the criticism crossed the line between constructive debate and hostility.

District 204 board member Christine Vickers, who was not on the ballot, filed a police report after receiving what she called an “e-mail threat” that arrived in the early morning hours after Election Day and in the wake of the shootings at Virginia Tech.

“In the subject line it said, ‘Good Night Christine,’ and then in the body all it said was: ‘You’re next,’æ” she said. “I e-mailed this person back and told him I knew who he was and I didn’t understand his message, but I take it as a threat.”

This is horrific jounalism. What makes them think that the person who wrote the email was a blogger? Perhaps it was someone who likes to read those tree killing newspapers. Most of the members of this site were supported the incumbents and most of those not supporting the incumbants support CV. I can't think of anyone here who would want to see the incumbants loose and CV loose as well. If there was such a person here I don't think that they would resort to threats. Our tactics are to support our postions with logic. BTW I think almost all of us have changed our mind on one issue or another because of infromation shared on this board.

Michelle Davis, who came in fourth in the District 204 race, said she believes the negative treatment she received on one message board in particular led to her defeat. She admonished the incumbent victors for not speaking out against such cyber mud-slinging.

“The passive collusion was one of the saddest aspects and poorest reflections on our district,” she said. “That site was filled with hurtful dialogue, twisted lies and racist jokes.”

If thats MD's opinion then that is her opinion. Now that she said that I no longer care about her opinion. But I do feel that the newspapers should at least have checked our site to see if the the allegation was true prior to printed it like it was some kind of fact.

I take exception to the attitude of the newspapers who have been covering the issues for 204. They have been the ones who have been inflammatory. They feed the fire by providing incomplete information. Some of the information they provided has been an outright lie IMO. People disagree with eachother when they read the papers mostly because they intrerpret the small bits of information differently. When the get all the info they need they mostly agree with eachother. But when people agree they sell less papers. If the Herald had put out all the appropriate information in the first place the referendum would have passed the first time.

I think that this board has been extrememly helpful to this community. The newspapers have been a disappointment.

[doctorwho]

proschool said:

Election blogs, e-mails and message boards were the “Internet equivalent of anonymous name-calling at a schoolyard,” Naperville Unit District 203 contender Steve Deutsch said. “It was particularly nasty and brutish.”

How does anonymous name calling even occur in a schoolyard?

District 204 challenger Leanne Lyons said she’ll never seek public office again and believes her livelihood was threatened by things written about her on some message boards. She blamed her defeat on a Daily Herald columnist who directed readers to a message board that criticized her candidacy.

LL was defeated because she never presented any reason whatsoever to choose her over any of the incumbants. I approached all the candidates with an open mind. I chose not to vote for her based on what I saw on her website. Not this one.

Not all bloggers followed the slash-and-burn tactics, nor did all candidates feel they were treated poorly by opponents. But some said the criticism crossed the line between constructive debate and hostility.

District 204 board member Christine Vickers, who was not on the ballot, filed a police report after receiving what she called an “e-mail threat” that arrived in the early morning hours after Election Day and in the wake of the shootings at Virginia Tech.

“In the subject line it said, ‘Good Night Christine,’ and then in the body all it said was: ‘You’re next,’æ” she said. “I e-mailed this person back and told him I knew who he was and I didn’t understand his message, but I take it as a threat.”

This is horrific jounalism. What makes them think that the person who wrote the email was a blogger? Perhaps it was someone who likes to read those tree killing newspapers. Most of the members of this site were supported the incumbents and most of those not supporting the incumbants support CV. I can't think of anyone here who would want to see the incumbants loose and CV loose as well. If there was such a person here I don't think that they would resort to threats. Our tactics are to support our postions with logic. BTW I think almost all of us have changed our mind on one issue or another because of infromation shared on this board.

Michelle Davis, who came in fourth in the District 204 race, said she believes the negative treatment she received on one message board in particular led to her defeat. She admonished the incumbent victors for not speaking out against such cyber mud-slinging.

“The passive collusion was one of the saddest aspects and poorest reflections on our district,” she said. “That site was filled with hurtful dialogue, twisted lies and racist jokes.”

If thats MD's opinion then that is her opinion. Now that she said that I no longer care about her opinion. But I do feel that the newspapers should at least have checked our site to see if the the allegation was true prior to printed it like it was some kind of fact.

I take exception to the attitude of the newspapers who have been covering the issues for 204. They have been the ones who have been inflammatory. They feed the fire by providing incomplete information. Some of the information they provided has been an outright lie IMO. People disagree with eachother when they read the papers mostly because they intrerpret the small bits of information differently. When the get all the info they need they mostly agree with eachother. But when people agree they sell less papers. If the Herald had put out all the appropriate information in the first place the referendum would have passed the first time.

I think that this board has been extrememly helpful to this community. The newspapers have been a disappointment.

It took 2 people to write this article, yet neither gives any first hand account of actually investigating anything on the site itself. They have become bloggers ( albeit not anonymous) themselves spreading opinons, instead of looking for facts to back up what they were printing. At least JHB actually visited the site to experience first hand what was going on..I see no evidence of that here. One would think by reading this that all discussions on the site are one sided - when nothing could be further from the truth.

[doctorwho]

<Metzger and other incumbents said they did not participate in the message boards.>

Did they ask the non incumbent candidates this same question ?

[justme]

Where is EagleDad these days?