UFT Or NFL?

Sure, it’s wrong to use certain words around children, even in Spanish, but a $15,000 fine as well? That seems a little harsh:

A veteran teacher who was sidelined over accusations of spewing a Spanish profanity is suing the city over his suspension and $15,000 fine.

[A] teacher at the High School of International Business and Finance in Washington Heights, denies using the Spanish word for “c—” in front of students — and wants to know what the big deal is, anyway.

Just for comparison’s sake, the Cleveland Browns’ T.J. Ward was recently fined $15,000 for clobbering a wide receiver in the end zone. In September, the Washington Nationals’ Nyjer Morgan was fined $15,000 for FSU in games that don’t matter that late in the season. And in Oregon, you can get fined $15,000 for poaching elk.

It’s As If They’ve Never Seen Yellow Balloons Before

Or maybe it shows just how rarely New Yorkers actually go to Times Square. I hope I’m not unwittingly participating in some dopey viral campaign for Iberia Airlines but those mysterious UFOs were actually yellow balloons with the Iberia logo that were handed out to passersby in Times Square and promptly released into the air over Manhattan by said passersby:

CBS 2 cameras captured the objects while shooting up above Chelsea at 23rd Street and Eighth Avenue.

Local media and the NYPD received several calls throughout the afternoon.

However, as CBS 2 cameras showed, the objects appeared to be yellow balloons, although there has been no official confirmation from the NYPD. On the streets below there was a lot of intrigue about the mystery going on up above.

I don’t know that you need the police to confirm that — I hope they would have better things to do.

Here are the mysterious balloons from Times Square:

Location Scout: Duffy Square.

“He Has Chosen Some Of The Best People In The Country To Work For Him, And He Has Mostly Let Them Do Their Jobs”

Progress, not politics:

When New York State made its standardized English and math tests tougher to pass this year, causing proficiency rates to plummet, it said it was relying on a new analysis showing that the tests had become too easy and that score inflation was rampant.

But evidence had been mounting for some time that the state’s tests, which have formed the basis of almost every school reform effort of the past decade, had serious flaws.

The fast rise and even faster fall of New York’s passing rates resulted from the effect of policies, decisions and missed red flags that stretched back more than 10 years and were laid out in correspondence and in interviews with city and state education officials, administrators and testing experts.

The process involved direct warnings from experts that went unheeded by the state, and a city administration that trumpeted gains in student performance despite its own reservations about how reliably the test gauged future student success.

. . .

“This mayor uses data and metrics to determine whether policies are failing or succeeding,” said Howard Wolfson, the deputy mayor for government affairs and communications. He also helped run Mr. Bloomberg’s re-election campaign in 2009, using the city’s historic rise in test scores to make the case for a third term. “We believe that testing is a key factor for determining the success of schools and teachers.”

“Under any standard you look at,” he added, “we have improved the schools.”

. . .

The 2009 numbers came out as the mayor was trying to accomplish two goals: to persuade the Legislature to give the mayor control of the schools for another seven years; and to convince city voters that he deserved a third term.

Mr. Bloomberg’s opponent, Comptroller William C. Thompson, had once been president of the Education Board.

“Mike Bloomberg changed that system,” said one of the mayor’s campaign advertisements. “Now, record graduation rates. Test scores up, violence down. So when you compare apples to apples, Thompson offers politics as usual. Mike Bloomberg offers progress.”

In his debates, Mr. Bloomberg hammered home the theme. “If anybody thinks that the schools were better when Bill ran them, they should vote for him,” he said in one face-off. “And if anybody thinks they’re better now, I’d be honored to have their vote.”

Indeed, according to exit polls, 57 percent of those who said education was their primary concern voted for Mr. Bloomberg, who won the election by a five-point margin.

Mr. Wolfson, the deputy mayor and 2009 campaign strategist, said the mayor had no regrets about focusing on the exams as a matter of policy, and during the election.

“What’s the converse?” he said. “The converse is that we don’t test and we have no way of judging success or failure. Either you believe in standards or tests, or you don’t — and life is not like that. There are tests all the time.”

Earlier: We Are All Philly Now.

See also: Bloomberg For Mayor 2009.

That Camel’s Nose Is So Damn Big From All That Soda Pop There’s No Way It Could Ever Make It Under That Tent

Wow, I kind of can’t believe you can buy soda with food stamps:

Tracey Halliday, a spokeswoman for the American Beverage Association, said of the mayor’s request: “This is just another attempt by government to tell New Yorkers what they should eat and drink.”

Actually, it’s different — it’s an attempt by government to avoid paying for people to drink stuff that has no nutritional value . . . what exactly is controversial about that?

On The Iconic Status Of Critical Infrastructure

Taller, higher, deadlier:

As of Aug. 31, the NYPD had responded to more than 600 reports of people jumping or threatening to jump from buildings or bridges. That number marked a 27 percent increase over the same period last year.

Earlier: The Story NYC & Company Doesn’t Want You To Read.