Principal: Anti-Obama Facebook group 'a joke'

[Xipe Totec]

Source: Concord Monitor (New Hampshire)

The Winnisquam Regional High School principal's membership in an anti-Barack Obama Facebook group is being called "unconscionable" by a teacher who challenged the district's decision not to show the president's back-to-school speech in September.

Principal Ronna Cadarette's public Facebook profile, which identified her as an administrator in the district, listed her as a member of one group.

The group's title, which references public figures who died in 2009, is "Dear Lord, This Year You Took My Favorite Actor, Patrick Swazie (sic). You Took My Favorite Actress Farah (sic) Fawcett. You Took My Favorite Singer, Michael Jackson. I Just Wanted to Let You Know, My Favorite President is Barack Obama. Amen."

The image next to the group's name shows a picture of President Obama with a hammer and sickle and reads "Vote for Obama . . . Because Socialism Worked So Well for the USSR."


Read more: http://www.concordmonitor.com/article/principal-anti-obama-facebook-group-joke

---

Here is a screen capture of the facebook page, before she took it down:

[babylonsister]

1. It's always a joke after they get called out on something. Why can't

they recognize how truly tasteless they are? This is a pattern with these clowns.

[DavidDvorkin]

11. They're cowards, as bullies tend to be

They don't even have the courage to take a stand.

[Name removed]

17. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Xipe Totec]

24. You just became my favorite person

amen.

[Name removed]

65. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Xipe Totec]

73. Our President bows to them?

Do tell, oh mighty flameboy.

we are all ears.

:popcorn:

[Name removed]

91. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[devilgrrl]

52. Funny in that it was typically unfunny juvenile conservative humor

:popcorn:

[tblue37]

53. Well, I laughed my ass off at the joke about Bush's dream of the three presidents--

Washington, Jefferson, and Lincoln. When asked, each presdent offered Bush some advice about how to help America. Lincoln's advice was, "Go to the theater."

Still, school principals should be circumspect online.

[donquijoterocket]

57. dept. of redundancy dept.

Wouldn't unfunny juvenile conservative humor stand as a redundancy? And surely conservative humor is an oxymoron on a par with military intelligence.

[Xipe Totec]

75. conservative humor is an oxymoron nt

[No Elephants]

97. Since when is wishing death on the POTUS humor of any kind?

I could not abide much of what Dummya did. I never wished death on him, though, let alone posted it publicly. And, if I had, I would have known it was not a joke, much as I fully believe this women knew it wasn't a joke.

[Cha]

76. I think it's stupid and ugly and never did I see

any of my friends in my life or on DU..wish bush or cheney any harm..we just wanted to vote the assholes out and worked toward that.

This principal is an ignorant low class form of human.

[Xipe Totec]

87. Indeed

Many a DUer wannabe got tombstoned for wishing death on the POTUS and sub-POTUS.

The ignorami are not welcome at DU.

[No Elephants]

98. I did not know that, not having been here then, but I am glad to learn it.

[Xipe Totec]

104. One of my greatest fears during that time was that somebody would take a pot shot at Dubya

and turn him into a martyr.

That would have been horrendous.

[liberation]

19. Ironic coming from such a crowd so hellbent in shoveling "personal responsibility" down our throats

I am sure she's one of those "zero tolerance" principals, who gets off ruining kids lives for doing silly harmless kid stuff.

Apparently, nothing is a joke when it comes to anything even scratching their precious upper scale white kids, successful and intelligent black men are free game though.

[No Elephants]

96. Exactly. They just don't want to accept any consequences of their acts and words.

They are, after all, the Party of "personal responsiblity"--as long as they don't have to, you know, actually take any personal responsiblity for anything.

[and-justice-for-all]

102. Sure is....nt

[GreenPartyVoter]

2. Indeed. I wonder what her reaction would have been if one of her students had posted the

exact same joke on his/her page, but substituting the principal's name for Obama's? What might have come of that?

[Dappleganger]

13. She would have considered that a direct threat.

[Richard Steele]

3. Logic was a passing fad, it seems....These people are fully-functioning IDIOTS. K&R

[Xipe Totec]

62. Intelligence is overrated

Evolution has yet to decide whether it was a good idea or not.

[Akoto]

4. She looks like Ann Coulter. n/t

[liberation]

22. Same soulless look that is for sure...

... what is with these ultra white folk with those fake poses and smiles. Their eyes always frighten me (and I am White BTW), it is like they belong to a weird species of human. Too plastic, too fake, I can never put my finger on what it is... but I never feel comfortable, there is something about that look with the perma smile that strikes a weird sense of distrust and fear. Maybe it is a self protection mechanism regarding sociopaths?

[No Elephants]

100. Actually, you did put your finger on it. Soul-less. It's more than just a look.

[Xipe Totec]

60. I had not made the connection until you pointed it out

Interesting.

[MadMaddie]

5. This person should have better judgement than this

What kind of example is this for her students?

[lolly]

7. Yes--how on earth did she get to be a principal?

I'm a teacher, and I do post a few political links or groups on my FB, I would not have posted a link to a similar post of George Bush--precisely because it would look too unprofessional. She seems as stupid as the college students who post pix of themselves at beer bashes, then seem surprised that prospective employers can find them later!

[proud2BlibKansan]

14. Same here

I've had a couple of our board members request to follow me on FB. I declined their requests:) But they serve as a reminder to me to be careful what I post there.

[Tsali]

94. By Recess Appointment

http://www.granitestatenews.com/Articles-c-2009-07-14-149038.113119_Superintendent_juggles_Winnisquam_administrators.html

Note the "highly qualified" comment.

[FightingIrish]

8. I made that point in this email to Superintendent Davis

"I’m sure you are receiving many comments from people outraged by the public conduct of your high school principal, Ronna Cadarette. I have no problem that she does not agree with the policies of the President but her ill advised use of gutter humor on a social network to express that disagreement displays extremely poor judgment. If we cannot count on our educators to help heal a divide that is crippling this country, we don’t have a very bright future to offer the children entrusted to them. I would hate to be a teacher or a student in a school led by someone with such contempt for our democracy and such an embarrassing lack of common sense."

[MadMaddie]

10. Thanks! We need to continually call these people out

for the party that screams about personal responsibility they rarely exhibit it.

[The Magistrate]

6. And Her Search For Work In Her Profession In Future, Sir, Should Be Hilarious....

[Mother Smuckers]

38. Someone who can't get a job is...hilarious?

good grief

[The Magistrate]

48. This Particular One, Ma'am, Certainly Would Be A Hoot And a Half

[Xipe Totec]

51. With the eviction of 'illegals' there's plenty of farming jobs she could pick up in Arizona nt

[The Magistrate]

63. There You Go, Sir: The Lady Will Be Fine....

[Xipe Totec]

64. She might even pick up some social skills

which, evidently, she missed during her kindergarten education.

[Tsali]

69. Not the only thing she missed in kindergarten...

...story is she didn't know the Pledge of Allegiance. For weeks she said, "I . . . pledge of allegiance . . . to the flag . . ."

Yeah, seriously.

[Xipe Totec]

70. Welcome to DU, Tsali!

:hi:

[Demit]

9. This high school principal gets a big FAIL.

Some people just don't grasp the concept of professionalism. An authority figure can't just say anything at all then claim she was only kidding. She needs to grow up a little. Maybe she needs a short lecture from the school counselor on responsibility.

[Xipe Totec]

15. As well as the school Superintendent who selected her

and now covers for her.

[beyurslf]

12. Unfortunately,I had several family members post that on facebook. No true friends

of course. I de-friended every person who did it too.

[proud2BlibKansan]

16. OMG read the comments

They are criticizing teachers at her school who complained about not being allowed to air Obama's speech last September in class.

Just unbelievable. It's okay to joke about wishing the president dead but not okay to let students hear him speak. Good grief.

[alp227]

18. Joke? Joke? JOOOOOKE??

No no no no no no no no NOOOOOOO.

You do NOT joke about killing anyone, whether your wife, your siblings, illegal immigrants, homeless people, homosexuals, your local clueless politician, or the President. EVER. Bomb threats aren't a darn bit funny either.

Oh, I'd like to point out a rule on DU regarding threats toward Presidents:

Do not post messages that could be construed as advocating harm or death to the president or other high-ranking official in the United States government. In the case of the president, do not even post jokes, as the Secret Service is not known for its sense of humor.

Yes, that rule took place even when DU was founded during "the illegitimate presidency of George W. Bush."

The Secret Service had better be breaking down doors and rounding up a bunch of fools to the federal prisons in response to this horrendous Facebook group, which is right-wing buffoonery amplified to a level so insane that Rush Limbaugh sounds like Henry Louis Gates.

[paulsby]

20. it;'s not a joke about killing ANYBODY

i realize censors like you don't understand or respect the 1st amendment, but this is CLEARLY political speech, NOT a "true threat" under any legal standard, to include brandenburg, and yet again, we have another censor who thinks the secret service should be used as a political tool for people who say things we don't like.

fwiw, i have read plenty of posts here about hoping cheney et al would die of any # of diseases, cancer, etc.

those are not "joking about killing" ANYBODY and that you fail to distinguish the difference says a a lot

[liberation]

23. Well technically your argument is about false analogies...

... which I don't think are a matter of the 1st amendment per se...

[paulsby]

25. lol

hoping somebody will contract and die of cancer, and praying for somebody to die are analogous for two reasons

1) for what they ARE NOT. - THREATS- they are not a threat to commit any violent act
2) for what they are - a call for some external force (in one case cancer, in the other God(s)) to smite somebody

hth

[liberation]

28. You are correct....

... ramblings by anonymous posters on a political forum not wishing a sick person a speedy recovery, and a high school principal advocating for the death of the current sitting president on a board read by her students.

Yup, same difference.

[paulsby]

31. yes, it is analogous

for the reasons given

1) not a threat
2) a call out for an external force (god, cancer, etc.) to smite somebody

also, the postings here were not MERELY not wishing a person a speedy recovery (nice lie to evade and minimize) but in fact hope that the persons would contract a deadly disease and die from it.

much more analogous

hth

[liberation]

40. Apparently "analogous" does not mean what you want it to mean.

For a supposedly "trained by the feds on hate crimes" (or is the other way around) feller, you seem to have a very easy time with logical fallacies.


You are entitled to your own opinion, not your own facts. And freedom of expression has nothing to do with the fact that a High School principal, posting as such, is not an anonymous internet poster. You seem to be of the opinion that doublethink somehow justifies your shaky logical proposition.


A student of hers, making the same post openly under their name... requesting god to smite their principal would not be viewed so kindly.

BTW, I noticed your awesome straw man. And before you make this into me trying to inflict on the civil liberties of the ever so misunderstood principal, I haven't asked for her prosecution. I am just pointing your fallacy of trying to make the posting by a high school principal in any way shape or form equivalent to a post made under an anonymous condition.

[paulsby]

43. you have no idea how your hypothetical would be viewed

furthermore, under the ridiculous (but unfortunately it's the law) bong hits for jesus case, the student hoping for god to smite their principal might be dealt with ADMINISTRATIVELY by the school

but under the law, it would not be a criminal threat

like i said, i know the law. i've testified on it. i've spent hundreds of hours on these types of cases

your arguments are non-persuasive

they ARE analogous. analogous does not mean "exactly" the same

you are quibbling, because you dont LIKE what they said

i don't either. but unlike you, i won't mischaracterize it

you also misunderstand anonymity. that is not dispositive to the "true threat" decision under the law (brandenburg etc.). any # of "anonymous" internet posters have been criminally prosecuted for true threats. contrary to the belief of some, it is not a legal shield

the high school principal broke no law.

[liberation]

50. Jeez, thank goodness I asked you not to use the straw man...

As I said, you are correct: an anonymous poster not wishing a speedy recovery to a sick person, and a high school principal openly advocating for the smitting of a current sitting principal. Same difference, you win.

[FightingIrish]

30. I get it. Assassinating bad. Smiting good.

I think the notion that their "dear lord" would do their dirty work is pretty sick.

[paulsby]

32. you don't get it

NOBODY is claiming here that the facebook page is GOOD

as i said, it's offensive, wrong, etc. and imo facebook should SMITE that group

the point is it is not a THREAT under the law, and that's all

hth

[Iowa]

61. +1... I don't understand the resistance you're getting to your comments...

Everything you're saying seems spot on.

[paulsby]

66. i appreciate it

there is a wide swath of assholery that does not = criminality

god knows i deal with it on a daily basis

[Xipe Totec]

68. Again, I have to agree

As hard as it is to swallow, there is a lot of protected speech that would gag a maggot.

It comes with the territory.

God knows there's a lot of anti-immigrant sentiment posted here at DU that makes me just cringe.

But this needs to be called out.

This principal needs to be called out.

If she wants to exercise her right to free speech, fine.

I will help her.

I will make sure her opinion is widely disseminated.

I will make sure everyone is aware of her opinion on this subject.

She should thank me for disseminating her message and supporting her rights to free speech.

[Cha]

79. Bottom line is they're

sick fucks.

[alp227]

26. I learned about this group from Countdown w/Keith Olbermann; he said this group wants Obama dead

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036677/vp/36861658#36861658

If you think about it, it parallels dead favorite celebrities like Fawcett, Swayze, and Jackson with the President. Thus, if they think that God kills their favorite celebs, Obama might be next.

[paulsby]

27. this prayer was stolen from an email sent out by a new jersey teacher's union

except in that case, it was a republican they wished god would take, and not obama

either way, while it is disgusting, offensive, immature, and certainly can (and imo should) be censored by the private company that owns facebook, it is NOT a threat, under any legal standard, to include brandenburg.

and like i said, i can recall plenty of posts here hoping cancer etc. would take cheney et al away from this mortal coil. not an organized group, but the same expression

fwiw, i deal with the case law surrounding threats and incitement. i once conducted a longterm investigation involving witness intimidation and threats that netted a quite healthy sentence.

i am also an instructor, trained by the feds, in hate crimes investigations (train the trainer)

so, while i don't claim to be an expert,it IS an area of law i am quite familiar with, from an enforcement and investigations angle

[Xipe Totec]

35. I agree with the points you are making

It is not a death threat. Check.

It is not criminal. Check.

What it is, is evidence of political bias by a person in authority, who used her position to block students from seeing a speech by the President of the United States.

Her facebook page demonstrates that her decision was made for political reasons, despite her protestations to the contrary.

[paulsby]

46. i think that's a good argument

i wouldn't say it necessarily "demonstrates" in and of itself. i would say it "suggests" and warrants investigation

either way, it's the same point, the only distinction is to whether it is dispositive

clearly, the principal REALLY dislikes obama.

[Mother Smuckers]

37. Thank you.

:thumbsup:

Yes, the thing was ugly and in extremely poor taste but whenever those things become grounds for prosecution we might as well all just commit Hara Kiri and be done with it.

[Tsali]

71. And it shoudn't BE grounds for prosecution . . .

. . . however, it DID violate at least two of her District's policies, policies that I've heard were used to fire to teachers last year for far less serious alleged offenses. The problem is the Board Chair has already cleared her without even taking the time to learn the site's "intent." Had that been a teacher, she would have been gone already.

[No Elephants]

101. Who said anything about prosecution?

[Ter]

93. These idiots are pretty much wishing for death

Horribly wrong, but not a threat.

[Xipe Totec]

29. It's not a joke at all

Unless you think people dying is funny.

[paulsby]

33. i'm against the group

and my point was it is not a joke or anything else about KILLING somebody,it is an exhortation for an external force to do so

just like the posts here wishing cheney et al would contract cancer and die

i don't think people dying is funny. i've seen it happen right before my eyes, gushering blood etc. not funny

done CPR 3 times, seen people die from gunshot wounds right in front of me. pulled burned corpses from an airplane

not funny

[Xipe Totec]

42. I'm not saying you support them

I'm just saying it is not a joke.

If it's not a joke, then what it is about does not matter.

I too have seen people die, in pools of blood, impaled to rail cars by sections of drill pipe. I have seen people crushed under cars and seen ambulance drivers having to be forced at gunpoint to take the still living mangled bodies because the drivers thought there was no point, and wanted to wait for the hearse.

[paulsby]

44. i would say it IS a joke, a joke in bad taste

just like when it was first created and circulated, by the new jersey's teacher's union

just because a joke is evil and ugly doesn't mean it isn't a joke

it means it's a bad joke

[Xipe Totec]

81. I admire your honest, rational discourse

it is rare, and appreciated.

well done.

[paulsby]

83. thx. i try . i think

people get *understandably so* very protective of obama, because he's the best president we've had in a long time, and he's facing the slings and arrows of metric assloads of opposition, many from some very unhinged individual.

however...

this is still america, we still have free speech, and we can criticize and scorn scumbags and offensive assmunches (like this whole facebook group) w.o trying to twist the law

[Xipe Totec]

84. This is still America...

This is why I moved here.

This is what my family back in Mexico meant when they said I was too "Americanized".

Free speech.

I can respect that.

:hi:

[paulsby]

88. was it that

or the fact that you put mayonnaise on your tacos? :)

[Xipe Totec]

90. No, actually,

it was mustard on my pancakes.

I am not kidding.

:evilgrin:

[Tsali]

95. How Much of the Site have you :Looked at?

This isn't about free speech or the law. School districts have policies against this behavior, but the Chairman seems to have already absolved her.

Also, this is about FAR more than President Obama. Check out these pages from the Group:

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=3680029&op=28&o=global&view=global&subj=111712585523370&id=730554321

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=3680891&op=21&o=global&view=global&subj=111712585523370&id=730554321

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=78075&op=13&o=global&view=global&subj=111712585523370&id=100000853218440

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=27626&op=2&o=global&view=global&subj=111712585523370&id=100001039367989

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=30644219&op=19&o=global&view=global&subj=111712585523370&id=1493324178

The list goes on and on . . .

[brendan120678]

105. It was actually created long before New Jersey...

It's been around for many, many years, with the names of the favorite dead people updated as necessary.

Here's just a few times it was used within the past year that I found with a quick Google search:

New Jersey Teachers Union asked for the same about Christie.
http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/04/09/teachers.union.governor/index.html

Anti-Tennessee Vols fans said the same thing about Kiffin (Coaches USC now)
http://blogs.knoxnews.com/silence/archives/2010/01/ouch_380.shtml?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+NoSilenceHere+%28No+Silence+Here%29

Here it is for Mahmoud Ahmedinejad
http://www.iranian.com/main/blog/souri/xmas-prayer-santa

Nancy Pelosi
http://st-bob.com/showthread.php?t=611

[No Elephants]

99. That's only your interpretation. The principal claimed it was a joke. She did not claim it was

a political statement.

[Ter]

92. You want them to round up everyone who joined the group?

Or just her?

[ladywnch]

21. 'a joke' just like your career outlook. n/t

[Mother Smuckers]

34. Boy, I'm sure thankful no Democrats ever wanted Dubya or Cheney to croak...

:shrug:

[paulsby]

36. it's a DU double standard you are honest enough to acknowledge and most here aren't

plus ca change...

[Xipe Totec]

39. If that is all you conclude from the post, you didn't read the article

This is about political censorship by a School principal, who claims no political bias in blocking students from seeing a speech by the President of the United States.

[Mother Smuckers]

41. It is what I have (correctly, I believe) concluded from reading all the posts.

Apparently, to some, the old principle of "I disagree with your opinion but I'll fight for your right to express it" has faded away. Maybe IOKIYAD?

[Xipe Totec]

45. All the posts?

It seems there are opinions on both sides; you're not the Lone Ranger here.

So your statement that this is a conclusion from reading ALL the posts is patently false.

[Mother Smuckers]

Have you never heard of "preponderance of evidence"?

I did not say every post supported my position, I said that a reading of them all tilts the conclusion in the direction in which I pointed.

[Xipe Totec]

58. Yes, I have also heard of backpedaling nt

[liberation]

49. For what it is worth: "I disagree with your opinion but I'll die for your right to express it"

is a fairly classic red herring. It basically attempts to diffuse a possible deadlock which the utterer can't overcome via their logic and factual propositions, by going into a tangential issue like the freedom of speech of their debaters. It is often attributed to Voltaire, who would most likely be rather appalled at such logical fallacy being attributed to him. Given his logical and fiery temper.

The point is that a high school principal is a public official. And as such, when she makes a statement she has a specific set of responsibilities. If she wants to be an anonymous entity she can do so. Or she can stop being a public figure in her community if she wants to utter such irresponsible statements. Reaching at the doublethink barrel can lead to some very very very intellectually dishonest venues of argumentation me thinks.

[Mother Smuckers]

54. Possibly, but notwithstanding your philological confabulation, it remains that many posters here

are perfectly willing to deny freedom of speech to some certain people whose opinions they consider to be invalid. My copy of the Bill of Rights is obviously incomplete, it doesn't say "except for public officials." Your mileage apparently varies...sorry. I still see a big double standard at work here and I find it to be an inappropriate exercise regardless of who applies it.

[noiretextatique]

59. bullshit

there weren't people toting guns at anti-war protests. the teabagger fringe has continually crossed the line between acceptable protest and irresponsible speech. this is yet another instance of that.

[Tsali]

72. Again, the point is . . .

. . . she violated policy but is not being held to that the way a teacher would be. Furthermore, this isn't about her right to express her political opinions (although she threatened to have students arrested for protesting, then claimed to be protecting their first amendment rights), so much as it is her associating with a cite that includes things like the following:

<http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=3680891&op=21&o=global&view=global&subj=111712585523370&id=730554321>

<http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=3680029&op=28&o=global&view=global&subj=111712585523370&id=730554321>

<http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=27626&op=2&o=global&view=global&subj=111712585523370&id=100001039367989>

[Xipe Totec]

85. And these are excellent points

This is what she should be held accountable for.

As an American, she has every right to hate the president if she wants to.

As a school principal, she has a fiduciary duty to remain politically neutral.

If she cannot do that, she MUST step down.

[fascisthunter]

56. you read "ALL" the posts... how long have you been here?

in other words, before you try to smear everyone on this site, get ready to have your ass handed to you. If you dislike the place so much you know what you can do...

[mokawanis]

67. Criticize one but not the other?

I couldn't help but notice your criticism of some DU folks and the total absence of any criticism by you of Gazaway's asinine speech.

[Xipe Totec]

74. Shining by it's absence

Nice catch!

:thumbsup:

[Cha]

77. Maybe you knew some "dems" who did but

I didn't..so there is no hypocricy.

The principal of this school is no role model unless a low class asshole is your thing.

[Ishoutandscream2]

47. Public educator/Republican = FAIL!!

Fuck her!

[sandyj999]

55. There were a couple of "friends" on Facebook sent it to me and

they got "un-friended" LOL! Whether it is supposed to be humorous or not doesn't matter, it is nuts that will grab onto it that are my concern.

[Cha]

78. Humor my Democratic

:kick:..sick fucks.

[Frank Cannon]

80. Funny how, as a principal, she couldn't be bothered to fix the spelling errors...

in that stupid little "joke".

I'm sure that if she's a right-winger, she didn't even know they were there. The English language is to a right-winger what a socket wrench is to a chimpanzee.

[Xipe Totec]

82. a socket wrench is to a chimpanzee...

Beautiful!

[yurbud]

86. Notice how often conservative humor leads to violence against their opponents...

[yurbud]

89. PIC: Remember this classic conservative ''joke'' shortly before Paul Wellstone's death?

[Quantess]

103. She probably did see it as "a joke"

but I question the judgment of anyone who actually signed up as a "like" of this. It's in poor taste, unprofessional, not to mention the misspelled names in the title of the group.