EDITOR:
From time to time, those of us who write on these pages make
errors. I believe most of these errors are unintentional. They may
be due to sloppiness or carelessness, or our sources may have
provided us with incorrect or false information.
EDITOR:
From time to time, those of us who write on these pages make errors. I believe most of these errors are unintentional. They may be due to sloppiness or carelessness, or our sources may have provided us with incorrect or false information.
In the case of Dennis Taylor’s latest rant, it may be both. For him to accuse Cynthia Walker of fabricating a story is hysterical coming from a writer whose inaccuracies are legendary.
First, Taylor jumps on the bandwagon after reading Cynthia Walker’s letter regarding Alexandria Williams. After talking to Principal Bob Bravo and Mr. Camacho-Light, he not only retracts his support of the alleged student victim, but also goes on the attack, accusing Walker of lying.
Taylor should be clear: Cynthia Walker interviewed a student and wrote HER story. Did Dennis Taylor call Cynthia or talk to the student herself to confirm the story? No, he did not.
Taylor then smears the hard work of The Alliance for Academic Excellence, which Cynthia Walker is neither a member, nor a consultant. The Alliance has a broad membership from A to Z, representing the liberal as well as the conservative point of view.
Dennis Taylor states: “The only reason imaginable why a small group of parents, or in Walker’s case, a disenfranchised home-schooler, would launch false accusations is for political gain. If the accusations were not outright lies, they were immense exaggerations.”
He continues foaming at the mouth that the “entire guerilla war is being waged over political agendas.” You can no more accuse The Alliance of being political than you can accuse The Dispatch of being a tool for “political shenanigans.”
Because I have spent time with Alliance members, I can assure you that better education is the ONLY goal of this group.
I have been at every RLAG meeting since the beginning. Taylor has not been to one. Alliance members have sacrificed countless hours attending meetings and doing tireless research.
It never ceases to amaze me that Dennis Taylor accuses people of false accusations, political gain, even downright lies without a single phone call to any Alliance member to find out who they are and why they believe what they do! Unbelievable!! Dennis Taylor’s brand of journalism is haphazard at best. He may be an award-winning writer, but he has no class whatsoever.
I can’t emphasize enough that if it hadn’t been for the constant involvement by The Alliance there would be no movement towards a textbook or anthology in the English Department at GHS. Superintendent Diaz at a recent GUSD Board meeting so much as admitted that.
I applaud the time and effort put in by each and every Alliance member.
There are really only two choices for a parent of children in public school; either get involved in the process, attend meetings and stay informed or don’t. Alliance members have proven that involvement creates change. It is not always pleasant or without pain, but it is necessary and very, very important.
Mark A. Zappa, Gilroy
Submitted Thursday, Nov. 20, to ed****@****ic.com
