The rats are having a field day at CPS

Dead rat, one of many at a Southwest Side elementary school having problems with rodents and roaches since janitorial services were privatized.

Aren't the 476 custodians being thrown out of their jobs by Rahm and his Aramark subcontractors, represented by SEIU Local 1? Can't help but wonder, where the hell is the union in all this? Why has it taken an all-out principal's and parent's revolt to push back on the mass firings which have left schools ratty filthy dirty? Rahm's mayoral opponents, Karen Lewis and Bob Fioretti, have each spoken out forcefully against the firings and the privatization of custodial operations. Blaine Principal Troy LaRaviere and other principals are also raising some hell. But hardly a peep out of Local 1. Why?

It was SEIU Local 73 leader Christine Boardman who first signed onto Rahm's $340 million sub-contracting deal with Aramark and SodexoMagic (magic, my ass) in the first place. These two contracts combined make it one of the largest privatization moves of any school district in the nation. Under the agreements, SodexoMAGIC oversees 33 schools, while Aramark oversees the remaining 500-some district-run schools.

Boardman then put icing on her sell-out with a $25,000 contribution to Rahm's campaign war chest. Ugh! She's dirtier than a a CPS bathroom.

But what about progressive SEIU Local 1 Pres. Tom Balanoff? Why so quiet, Tom?

WBEZ reports:

CPS Chief Administrative Officer Tim Cawley sold the idea to board members as making schools cleaner with new equipment, such as “zamboni-like” floor cleaning machines, and making principals’ lives easier, with “Jimmy John’s-like” customer service when supplies run low.

But so far, the outsourcing seems to have led to dirty schools, property damage, poor communication and janitors being laid off. Those complaints came to light in a survey of more than 230 principals conducted by the Administrators Alliance for Proven Policy and Legislation in Education, or AAPPLE, a member-driven arm of the Chicago Principals and Administrators Association.

Chicken-Poop Rahm who always seems to disappear in times of crisis, has once again dumped everything on Byrd-Bennett's plate. All a sputtering BBB can say is:

“Obviously it has not been as smooth as we would like. We have met with principals. We continue to do so and I think in a very short time, you will see a change.”

A change? What change? How about dumping the contract with Aramark, apologizing and hiring back the fired janitors for starters?

The bloody shirt. 

The holes are from 'natural wear and tear'...Count on Urban Outfitters to try and cash in with a faux-vintage blood-spattered sweatshirt with bullet holes that appears to reference the May 4,1970 shooting of unarmed anti-war protesting students at Kent State. Ads for the shirt, priced at $130, caused such an uproar that the company had to first list the shirt as "sold out" and then pull it from their website and offer a public apology, claiming--

 "The red stains are discoloration from the original shade of the shirt and the holes are from natural wear and fray." 

Now some are popping up on eBay for as much as $2,500.