You cannot do just one thing

These are some of the most dedicated educators you will ever find.

It is a great lesson of biology that you cannot do just one thing. Every ecosystem is filled with inter-dependent elements. Take away a food source here, and a species is impacted there. The food chain changes.

With a full week in the books of the UTLA/LAUSD strike, I'm puzzled to report that there have been two uniformed police officers at my kid's elementary school both morning and afternoon. By every measure I've been able to find except one, the strike has been peaceful and downright civil at every turn. Even the small incident mentioned in the previous sentence is just that—small.

But in an "abundance of caution," as we say in this day and age, public safety seems to be guarding against a Haymarket Square riot. Think about this: With two uniformed officers dispatched to—likley—every school in the city two times a day, resources are pulled away from where they're actually needed. To guard against…ladies in red slickers like those pictured above? One badge I saw actually said "detective" on it. Crimes are going un-investigated and resources are being pulled over a strike that should have never happened if the District had just agreed to simple, beneficial demands the teachers made. You cannot do just one thing.

Make the call: 213-443-1300, and urge the Los Angeles Unified School District to accede to the Union's wishes. With every day of the strike, the LASUD loses $10-$15 million owing to grant-in-aid money that is not coming in based on per-student, per-day attendance. That's money that's also vital to the District's ongoing operations.

Again, you cannot do just one thing.

Jim McLauchlin