Miguel del Valle: A Candidate That Cares About the Issues in the Right Way Education Scoop #4: SPECIAL EDITION By: Luis Gabriel Aguilera CHICAGO – January 17, 2011: THE FACT IS I am not affiliated with the Miguel del Valle mayoral campaign except to be a Facebook “friend.” And from my understanding, even if I were, I wouldn’t be hearing much CA‐CHING! for the information I’m about to pass on— which is good to some extent, as it’s clear that Chicago, with Miguel del Valle, has an independent mayoral candidate not tied to big money interests and cronyism politics that locks out the many for the benefit of a few. That said, what I’m about to pass on is partly out of a sense of personal care for education overall—not just children—but sound education reform in the various shapes and forms it can take in a variety of arenas, not these cookie‐cutter or misguided approaches that national education “experts” like Michelle Rhee with their divisive, authoritarian, and non‐ transparent ways (see attachments “RheeA” and “RheeB” for examples) and the corporate carpetbaggers of today sell people down the drain with, but holistic education models for children, teens and adults that address the individual’s physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual makeup. I believe in these holistic models because they truly help in developing a self‐actualized and self‐deterministic being, not mere drones or slaves in today’s workforce. My close friends know my desire to see Chicago’s citizens, be it in the Chicago Public Schools, the City Colleges of Chicago, adult education programs, art programs, trade programs, etc., receive what many of them have not gotten over the years: a sound education because of one hoodwink after another. So I’m backing a candidate who seems to get the value of education. Miguel del Valle has served as Chairman of the Senate Education Committee, member of the Senate Executive, Labor and Higher Education committees, and Co‐Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Education Funding Reform as a Senator in Illinois, obtaining skills that address what the PEOPLE need, not just a few. But education isn’t simply what Miguel del Valle is about, so below are five good reasons to elect Miguel del Valle for mayor. I hope YOU share this information with your family, friends or both, and maybe even become a “friend” to Miguel del Valle on Facebook if you have an account— such encouraging acts go a long way. Be creative. IF the links below don’t work at the time of this mailing, no problem, I’ve filed PDFs in the attached zip file. Chicago is undergoing a tremendous transformation, perhaps in the healthiest manner. Corrupt officials are being forced out, truth continues to come to light as more and more legitimate complaints are being filed via the proper agencies like the City of Chicago Commission on Human Relations, the Department of Labor and the Illinois Department of Human Rights and various media outlets receive concrete information, and the crooks are “scrambling” as a dear friend of mine told me from the inside. And while no one person can bring about total and positive change (each of us as well‐informed individuals are also obligated to play a part if we wish to have a working democracy in play), good politicians are part of the process. The momentum is there. A good road is before us. Live it. Enjoy it.
Luis Gabriel Aguilera
“5” Good Reasons to Vote for Miguel del Valle (in reverse chronological order) 1) Family Values & Strong Work Ethic “Miguel del Valle is battling odds again” By: Rummana Hussain, January 16, 2011 http://www.suntimes.com/3281743‐417/del‐valle‐guy‐miguel‐chicago.html LINK PERSPECTIVE by LGA: Hussain reveals a refreshingly down-to-earth, scandal-free (No joke!), dedicated civil servant who is, by the way, family-oriented. In a world that has become so corporatized and career-oriented that quality family and friendship time is being constantly disrupted and becoming less and less existent, we have a candidate in Miguel del Valle who has balanced both his service to government (i.e., the people) and family. This is not only a glimpse of Miguel’s family values and strong work ethics, but let’s us know that loved ones matter more to this dude than flashy pin-stripe suits. Can a guy like Rahm say the same? FAVORITE QUOTES: “‘These folks here have made tremendous sacrifice,’ said del Valle, pointing to his family…“We did without a lot.’ ‘But we did a lot of things together,’ son Miguel III piped in.’”
2) Clearsighted, Fairminded & Pragmatic “Del Valle defends teachers’ right to strike, backs state tax increase” By: Abdon M. Pallasch, January 12, 2011 http://www.suntimes.com/news/politics/3259049‐418/teachers‐del‐valle‐strike‐tax.html
LINK PERSPECTIVE by LGA: The scapegoating of teachers, let’s face it, is a smokescreen that provides cover for corruption and overall dysfunction at the Chicago Public Schools’ local school and central office levels. As a DJ, I enjoy original remixes but not broken records! Haven’t we had enough of this song and dance? Well, when you have Chicago Board of Education President, Michael Scott, found dead near the Chicago River following media revelations of his real estate dealings and investigations into dubious expenses he and his staff charged at the board’s (= our) expense; when former CEO of the Chicago Public Schools, the current U.S. Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, signs off on keeping a VIP list for facilitating entry into the city’s top schools for the privileged; when $40 million dollars in pension fund contributions go unreported for few years to the Chicago Teachers Pension Fund by CPS even though two Chicago Board of Education members, Peggy A. Davis and Alberto A. Carrero Jr., sit as board members for the pension fund AND school board; and when schools are being run down by administrators with bullying behaviors, false attendance numbers, grade-fixing, etc., who in some cases have network ties that beg for R.I.C.O involvement, it’s clear how chaos in the classroom with large classroom sizes, assessment paperwork overload on teachers, etc. help keep the corruption and dysfunction flowing. Civil servants like policemen and teachers are facing daily life squeezes by these artful dodgers. Do we want more of the same? Let’s not continue to get hoodwinked. Miguel del Valle seems to offer a clear-sighted, fair-minded and pragmatic perspective. And I’m going to stop here before I really get into a rant on CPS.
FAVORITE QUOTES: “‘Let’s stop attacking teachers,” del Valle said... “Trying to take away teachers’ right to strike is a direct hit on the teachers. Let’s not try to punish the Chicago Teachers Union by saying “We are
going to take away your right to strike” when they haven’t had a strike in 23 years. I think it’s a slap in the face of teachers. I want to stop the teacher-bashing.’” “‘Teachers are the first to want a good evaluation system that gives them ongoing feedback about their performance,’ del Valle said. ‘Teachers also want an evaluation system that allows incompetent teachers to be weeded out of the system.’”
3) Tackling Health Issues “Southwest Side Coal Plants: Clean Them Up or Shut Them Down” By: Miguel del Valle January 10, 2011 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/miguel‐del‐valle/southwest‐side‐coal‐plant_b_807106.html
LINK PERSPECTIVE by LGA: Speaking of smokescreens, the mere mention of these Southwest Side coal plants has me going for the lozenges. I live within a few miles from both plants and watch them unload their toxic waste in the winter months in innocent fashion: in continuous white billows. The fact that this health, environmental and economic issue is on the table also raises questions of our own personal consumption, production rates as a hypercapitalist society, and causes one to wonder what exactly is the green option now that we do have the technology to make it happen, though not necessarily the political will. Cheers to Miguel del Valle for dropping this on the table! I’m going to make myself some nice tea and drop a lemon in there like mom tells me to do instead of give in to the easy fix that doesn’t last for long.
FAVORITE QUOTES: “According to a 2010 report by Chicago's Environmental Law and Policy Center, the health- and environmental-related damages from these coal plants cost the public in excess of $127 million (in 2010 dollars) per year. These costs stem primarily from harm to people's health in and around Chicago, up to 200 miles from the plants.” Miguel del Valle
4) Cleaning Up Past Messes “As Mayor of Chicago, I Will Take Back Our Streets” By: Miguel del Valle, January 3, 2011 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/miguel‐del‐valle/as‐mayor‐of‐chicago‐i‐wil_b_803840.html LINK PERSPECTIVE by LGA: This gets the fat cats shaking in their boots. You mean correcting past wrongs of this magnitude? It’s unheard of. But EVERYONE, including ice climbers in Ouray, Colorado, knows that ALL Chicagoans got a raw deal on this one. You don’t even have to check the link to know what I’m talking about. This one even tops the space junk that landed into Soldier Field a few years ago. Still, take a look at the piece. Miguel del Valle states clearly what needs to be done to get this corrected. And there’s even a direct link to the suit filed. I’m sure the underdog has other ideas of what needs to be done with other past messes. Maybe the next M.I.B. can be filmed near the lakefront. Geesh!
FAVORITE QUOTES:
“As mayor, I will instruct the city's lawyers to not fight an existing lawsuit to invalidate the meter contract, and will an bring additional suit against Chicago Parking Meters, LLC, the Morgan Stanley-owned private company that bought the meters. Independent Voters of Illinois Independent Precinct Organization (IVI-IPO) and Aviva Pratt filed the original suit.” “Mayor Daley argued that the deal would stave off a growing city deficit and pushed it through the City Council. The Chicago Sun-Times reported that, after less than two years of the 75-year lease, only $180 million remained for the city. Chicago Parking Meters, LLC, however, will continue to earn money from the deal. In 2010, the company took in more than $73 million, according to Standard & Poor's. Before the contract, the city earned roughly $20 million from its meters.” Miguel del Valle
5) TIFs, IssueOriented Campaigning, Tackling Candidate Funding “Miguel del Valle Q&A” By: Edward McClelland, October 6, 2010 http://www.nbcchicago.com/blogs/ward-room/Miguel-del-Valle-QA-104417718.html#ixzz1BLb2eaXG LINK PERSPECTIVE by LGA: I almost didn’t have enough energy for this one, given the emotional drain of the last one, but here goes…Homing in on the TIFs scandal isn’t just something Ben Joravsky of “The Chicago Reader” covers. Looks like Miguel del Valle understands that that money isn’t being spent properly in this interview. Besides this, here’s an interview that can get you to understand what sort of politician Miguel del Valle is.
Favorite Quotations Interviewer: “What about TIFs? Some people are critical of TIFs because they say Mayor Daley has raked off the money into a slush fund.” Miguel del Valle: “We have to go back to the original intent of TIFs, which is to help blighted areas. There are too many TIFs right now, and some of the TIFs we have are not in the right places. The concept is one I support, but I also feel that TIF dollars should be used to construct schools, to relieve overcrowding. TIFs should not be used just to help a business, or businesses. I think that TIFs should be limited to areas in need of economic development. I think there is a need to look at all these TIFs and see when they’re going to expire, and where are there areas on the South Side and the West Side that need additional help.”
Luis Gabriel Aguilera is author of “Gabriel's Fire: A Memoir,” a writer, educator, DJ and electronic music composer. He is also vigorously pursuing two discrimination complaints against the Chicago Public Schools. Some of his musical works can be found for FREE following the links below. His book is available online. When not at work, Luis spends time with family and friends. http://luisgabrielaguilera.bandcamp.com http://angelalanis.bandcamp.com/album/freedom-series-vol-4-d-e-m-f http://planerecordings.com/lga http://lga.podomatic.com