Amy's Ringer Lawsuit

[first published: Monday, December 17, 2007]

This is not the first time the Rose Parade has been used for political ends. The high publicity of the event has made it a magnet for those seeking to propagate unsavory causes.

Rene Amy sought to take advantage of this, the difference being that he was not attacking a remote country or float, he was attacking his own neighbors - the children of PUSD.

In 2006 the Pasadena Unified School District put together an All Star band to march in the parade. To fill out the sound, the band sought "ringers" - i.e. extra players from other school - to march in the band. Open rounds of try-outs and auditions were publicly held.

As former board member Pete Soelter clarified here:

"The All Star Band made a deliberate effort to reach out to our neighboring independent schools (even placing posters about All Star try-outs at our community's independent schools) in the fall and held several rounds of try-outs and auditions. As a Board member and a parent, we were kept appraised of the Band's progress on a regular basis."

In what reporter Susan Henderson called "The ugliest politics I have ever witnessed" [and for this veteran of local news, this was saying something!] Rene Amy sued the district over these "Ringers" saying the district had concealed them and not released to him [Him!] detailed records of the band participants.

Our local press, far from deriding this gross conduct, as per usual gave Amy a "thumbs up" and willingly helped him along. The Pasadena Weekly [our Not-alternative weekly] joined the chorus in this published piece:

http://www.pasadenaweekly.com/article.php?IssueNum=9&id=3064

PUSD 'ringers' back in the news
By Joe Piasecki

"Rene Amy is at it again.
And apparently so is the Pasadena Unified School District."

Here greatschools "pundit" Jerry Rhoads chimes in. [Mr. Rhoads name appeared again as part of the insane movement to separate Altadena public schools from PUSD. Mr. Rhoads was a prominent member of this suspicious "movement" but guess who filed the initial proposal? Rene Amy.]

"The problem that I see is that in the final analysis, it does not
matter one iota if there were no ringers, one ringer, or if the entire band consisted of ringers...The bottom line is that government, like private citizens, must comply with the law...how can the district possibly expect its students to engage in ethical and lawful behavior?" [Mr. Rhoads own unethical behavior needs calling out here]

The Star News however, with uncharacteristic restraint, refused to take this one on and Larry Wilson derided the suit and Amy in an editorial column.

However there was plenty of other local media glad to take up their slack. In the media giant across the river, the Los Angeles Times, reporter Bob Pool wrote this ugly bash-journalism on the issue:

"[these] kids...covered Pasadena Unified's butt. They cooked up this plan to make Pasadena look better. It was like Professor Harold Hill in 'The Music Man'': It was, 'Let's all have a band!' But how can you do that when you don't have a cohesive music program in your schools?" (SOURCE--Bob Pool/LA Times)

Lets talk a minute about that music program. In a Herculean effort, our school district has recently brought music instruction back into ALL of our schools at the Elementary level, ensuring that the ranks of future marching bands will grow. No, some parents cannot afford music lessons but now, thanks to the efforts of our district, all of the children of PUSD can learn to play an instrument. Mr. Pool's ferocious attack is unconscionable and seriously questions the integrity of the Los Angeles Times.

Thats not all the media that participated in this propagandistic attack on our public school district. Amy has proven himself a master of spreading "dirt" far and wide through the media. As reported by the Pasadena Weekly:

"On Tuesday, City News Service broke the story about Amy's lawsuit and the so-called "ringers," which was picked up by Associated Press. After that, the story was picked up by major newspapers around the country and television stations here in LA, including Glendale-based KABC Channel 7...a Channel 7 helicopter could be seen hovering over PUSD headquarters."

A helicopter!?! this shows the extent of the "sickness" in our media! What wasn't published was one piece of news illuminating how the children of PUSD and their families were hurt by this savage and petty "crime" - not to mention how our city has been damaged by this indefensible media behavior.