Vote for Kelly Marlow - She's BOLD (exclamation mark !) alright!

Looks like the response that I posted on Addie Price's blog was closer to the truth then the bit of fiction that she drummed up.

How sad someone has to stoop to the level of making up lies go try go win over voters. Has Kelly not figured out yet that we are done with lies? Kyla is such a strong canidate. She will be a great addition to our school board.

Oh, here we go again...Sensational Journalism!

Kyla wants to KEEP furloughs. She said they were necessary. How can a teacher get up there & defend furloughs??? I like what Dean Sheridan said yesterday...Dean, where are you? Say it again!

Why was it Kelly's responsibility to give someone her opponent's signs when she had nothing to do with taking them? This is ridiculous!

Do you realize what the alternative is to furlough days? Either pay cuts or layoffs. With furloughs our retirement and step increases(the only"raise we get) will not be affected. We have lost a great deal of funding (if my recollection is correct around 50 million dollars), and in Cherokee co. around 80% of out budget is personnel---teachers. There is no way to make up for that budget shortfall without affecting teachers' salaries. We know that but we don't like it, of course. Any candidate who says he/she can end furloughs without then either cutting our pay and/or laying off teachers is completely lying.

That's wrong to say it's a lie, Angela. Teachers don't deal with budgets, they only know what they're told to know about what goes on behind closed doors. Budgeting goes much deeper than a spreadsheet shown to you by your superintendent.

You're right. We teachers are just dolts without the power of independent thinking or research skills.

Karma at it's finest.

Elisabeth

Have you ever been to board meeting? Have you ever read any of the material on the budgets? I don't think you have a clue. Please show some proof where furlough can be saved. For that to happens the state would have to fully fund the QBE end austerity cuts and the housing market would have to come back completely. Anyone who is telling you furlough day will go away is not telling the truth.

I can tell you with certainty that alternatives to furlough days are a viable option. I have read through the budget.. and when the furlough days saves 1.5 M per day at 8 days = 12 m, for a 500 m dollar budget, shaving 5% off in other ways should not be a problem. I do it all the time for one of the top fortune 100 companies.

I also have to say that I am disgusted with the behavior of our fellow citizens. I have had my car magnet stolen off my car twice now as a "Kelly" Supporter. I know of at least 5 other people who have had the same issue. Is that what we have been reduced to? I planned to vote based off the positions of the candidates. Aside from the alleged practical joke, based off the behavior of the candidates cronies who think stealing other people's property is cute.. there is nothing more that would cement my decision against voting for someone more than to stooping to such low levels. I am sure the candidates would NEVER support their people doing this, and they would prefer to win off the merits of their platform.

Pete

You have to remember that public school are non profit and 85% of the expenses are manpower. So if you shave 5% you are firing teachers. Classrooms are ready overcrowded and that would only make it worse. Fortune 500 company can do this by making less product and laying off people. Cherokee county is a bedroom community for Atlanta. Even in the recession people are still moving to the area, which means more children every year. If you can show a plan where you can shave 5% restore days and nobody lose the job I would love to see it. By the way I completely agree with you about the signs and magnets. There is no good reason why anyone should take them. I for one will be happy in November when the political season is over.

Be a good citizen and do the right thing. Tell the truth, don't lie, cheat, steal, or bad mouth the opponent. Offer real solutions' to real issues'. Once a candidate does this, he or she will be respected and considered for the position that they are campaigning.

Pete---not sure you realize from the article, but the people who took my Cromer and Read signs were not Kyla supporters. I hope that alone would not cement your decision to vote against Kelly because this was just a bad decision that went awry when the false story was given to The Patch.

So just because a Kyla Cromer supporter says Kelly lied, that means Kelly lied? I hear that Rodney has a vendetta against Kelly and have been told that he wears pink tights and listens to George Michael late at night ...

Does Rodney have a vendetta against Kelly? Does he wear pink tights and listen to George Michael late at night? I don't know and I am not willing to go under oath and affirm what I just said ... but what about these people feeding stories to an all-too-willing Patch? Are they willing to swear and affirm they are telling the truth via a deposition?

Why aren't we hearing directly from the supposed victims in this case? Good Lord, the next thing you know, we'll have the bird cage liner (a.k.a. Cherokee Tribune) referencing the Patch ... scary thought with this type of journalism.

With all of the shenanigans I have seen from the CCSD crowd in the last 5 months, you can bet they are scared - scared of losing their highly-paid jobs (some of the highest paid public school teachers in the country), scared of having to be truly accountable for the slow decline that has begun due to an absence of real, honest, collaborative leadership, scared of possibly having to go through what the rest of us have gone through for the last 5 years - layoffs, pay freezes, pay cuts.

FYI - according to open.georgia.gov, salaries accounted for about 45% of the overall expense in 2011 and administrative expense was approximately 15% of that number.

@ Chris Knowles

Wow! To say that I am blown away by your disgusting, prejudicial and highly inflammatory comments is a huge understatement!

Aren't you Kelly Marlow's campaign manager or at least one of her advisors for this campaign?

I hope that Mrs. Marlow does not share your view about Rodney which certainly veers into hateful, discriminatory territory. Should we be asking Ms. Marlow whether of not she subscribes to a philosophy of intolerance for individuals that are remotely different from us? If she is to be representing our families and educating our children, I believe her views on these matters suddenly seem very relevant to this election in light of the horrific bullying and hate crimes that have happened across the country in recent years.

If in fact Mrs. Marlow does not share these views, I believe Mrs. Marlow needs to publically address her views on these matters and immediately terminate any relationship she has with you.

Blahbiddy blahbiddy blah! Desperate Housewives of Cherokee County.

I am the victim in this case as it was my signs that were stolen. I would love to give a deposition. You know my name, and Kelly knows where I live. Have your lawyers call me anytime!

I am not treading on slander at all, you are. I never said she stole my signs. She knew that the sign was a prank yet submitted an email with a false statement from the homeowner. I think we should all make a formal legal statement in this matter. Why is it that telling the truth about the original story "Kyla supporters have sunk to a new low " gotten her supporters do upset? I didn't ask for this or create a false story to make Kelly look bad, but I was not going to sit by and let this lie be perpetuated and used for political gain.

Its like reading the Ledger Soapbox. I read the comments everyday to reinforce my belief that our society is crumbling. Good luck to you all. You are all pathetic. None of you matter. You only have one vote each. So quit acting like school children bickering and pointing fingers ( na na na boo boo ) lol. Go and vote when the time comes. Just wondering, what will you all find to bitch about when the election is over?

Wow, Chris Knowles, what a terrible thing to say.

As far as the "victims" are concerned, Angela Chambers did come forward. Maybe the homeowner didn't want to come forward because of how hateful everybody is on here.

I think one thing is clear, there is an integrity issue here. I will be factoring that in when I place my vote.

I came forward and told the truth even though I knew there would be ugliness. I don't regret that decision. I would not have commented at all if there had not been a false story blaming Kyla supporters. Kelly has strong convictions and is a good mother, and all of this is not going to change her supporters' minds anyway.

As far as the mega money I make as a teacher, what a joke. I could quit tomorrow and make more in the private sector. One of the reasons I don't is illustrated on my Facebook page today. Yesterday, I was diagnosed with cancer. I am touched and humbled by my former students who have sent me kind words. That means more to me today than any salary, benefit, or vacation time. I had always hoped to touch their lives, but they have done much more for me.

@Chris Knowles: I wouldn't make ironic comments on this site. Most of the readers don't have the IQ to comprehend your actual meaning.

@ Chris Knowles - I think you have some other facts incorrect as well. Teachers all over our state have been losing their jobs for the past five years. Many counties around us have has to lay off teachers as well as reduce their pay. Furlough days (AKA: Pay cuts) have been occurring in our county for the past four years as well. We have not had it quite as tough as some of the surrounding counties because our School Board and Dr. P have done an excellent job with the funding we have been afforded by the state. These are probably issues that you should have known about if indeed you are campaigning for someone that is running for a position that would be in charge of issues such as these. Teachers have also been forced to put more money into the retirement system as well every year, from 5% up to 6%, while the people managing those funds are receiving more than $100K pay increases...http://www.ajc.com/news/bonus-pay-stokes-anger-287662.html.

Honestly, I don't see Marlow as anything but an advocate for the Charter School and totally anti- Dr. P. And apparently you seem to have a teacher stigma about you as well.

@Richard, irony is VERY DIFFERENT than bigoted slurs that infer one's personal preferences of sexual orientation. Chris Knowles has lost much credibility with that hateful comment.

@Ethan, if you are a teacher then I don't think you have gotten a fair shake. Other districts are cutting to the bone. Look at Bartow County, their budget is about half what we have here in Cherokee County and they have NO assistant/deputy/super-secret superintendents and they share administrative help more than 6 to 1. Where are those type of actions from the CCSD???

Furlough days are not pay cuts - you may get less days cash in your pocket but it doesn't affect annual salary credit for retirement or benefits so I can't feel too bad for you there ...

As for what Fund Managers make, when you get to retirement and you're fully vested and collecting those checks, you'll be glad they got those bonuses. You certainly wouldn't want to do that job yourself ...