If you think you can’t stand reading about how the media are covering Michelle Obama’s Spanish vacation, then you deserve credit for good taste.

But bear with me. Because, given the absence of any substance whatsoever, it serves as a perfect laboratory exercise in how rightwing activists bully the nominally liberal mainstream press into validating the most ludicrous of partisan talking points.

As you may know, late last week the first lady and her daughter Sasha arrived in Spain for a few days. With the exception of a government-provided security detail, the trip is costing the taxpayers nothing. Yet it has come under withering attack from the right, as critics have seized on it as evidence that the Obamas are elitist elite liberal elitists.

But there’s no need for me to strain my limited vocabulary when I can simply send you to Rush Limbaugh’s website, currently featuring an altered photo of “King Louie Obama & Michelle Antoinette” that looks like something from a lost episode of Good Times. In an accompanying commentary, Limbaugh explains what’s going on in terms anyone can understand (provided that by “anyone” you mean, well, white racists). He says of the Obamas:

“They have never had it so good. They don’t want for anything. They don’t even pay for anything. In fact, they look at it as though they are owed this. They are owed this. They have been shafted all of their lives because of racial discrimination, because of being a minority.”

For good measure, Limbaugh invokes Marion Barry, the former mayor of Washington, DC, for no particular reason I can think of – except maybe that Barry is black, has had several well-publicised encounters with illegal drugs and has done time.

Well, all right, you might say. Limbaugh’s a loon. But times are tough, and maybe Mrs Obama should have spent some of her money on an American vacation spot. That would have mollified the critics. Right?

Wrong. Check out Bradley Bakeman, writing for Rupert Murdoch’s FoxNews.com, who rips the first lady for vacationing in Spain – as well as for the family vacation the Obamas took in Maine last month, a time when oil was gushing into the Gulf of Mexico. “I guess the Obamas thought it was better to cruise the pristine waters of Frenchman’s Bay than the oil-slicked waters in the Gulf,” Bakeman sneers. (Bonus points for working in the subliminal reference to France. Pass the freedom fries.)

I could go on and on, but you get the idea. What really matters is the way the mainstream media have incorporated such idiotic criticism into their own coverage and commentary, starting with a New York Times story on Sunday that ran beneath a curiously passive-voice headline: “First Lady’s Spain Vacation Draws Criticism“.

At least the Times story notes, rather defensively, that several of the criticisms raised by Limbaugh and company are wrong (for instance, Mrs Obama is not traveling with 40 friends). But the real stupidity is unveiled on the op-ed page, where Maureen Dowd, an alleged liberal who yet never fails to take the rightwing bait, weighed in with a Sunday column that took the first lady to task for leaving the president back home in his hour of need:

“In politics and pop culture, optics are all. And Michelle’s optics sent a message that likely made some in the White House and the Democratic Party wince.”

Over at the Washington Post, Ruth Marcus actually defended Mrs Obama. But look more closely: Marcus devotes about two-thirds of her piece to conceding that the critics are right, but, well, they’re being “unfair”. Marcus begins her purported defence by writing, “Let’s stipulate: A five-star resort on the Spanish Costa del Sol was probably not the first choice of White House spin-meisters for a mother-daughter getaway.” Good grief.

On and on it goes. At the Atlantic’s website, Megan McArdle blogs that “while there’s nothing actually wrong with it, it’s really quite unbelievably politically stupid.” Writing for Murdoch’s New York Post, Democratic political analyst and Fox contributor Kirsten Powers calls the trip “a PR gift to her husband’s opposition”.

Kudos to Eric Boehlert of the liberal watchdog group Media Matters for America, who’s been keeping track of all this on his Twitter feed, and to his colleague Christine Schwen for puncturing the false claim that George and Laura Bush hardly spent any money on their frequent trips to Crawford, Texas; Kennebunkport, Maine; and Camp David.

In part, the criticism to which Michelle Obama is being subjected can be attributed to August foolishness, a traditionally news-free month when the media can be counted on to seize upon any ridiculous story that comes by, whether it’s shark sightings or a sleazy congressman suspected, on the basis of no real evidence, that he’d murdered an intern and hidden her body somewhere in Washington.

But when these stories involve partisan politics, they rarely cut the other way. The pattern goes back decades: the right exaggerates or even manufactures a grievance, then whines that the liberal media are ignoring the story – until, finally, the so-called story is covered, usually on terms favourable to the right (think Whitewater, Climategate and Acorn). Eric Alterman, the liberal media critic for the Nation, calls it “working the refs” in his book What Liberal Media?

The kerfuffle over Michelle Obama’s vacation is so silly that you might be tempted to dismiss it as a trifle that doesn’t matter. Well, maybe it doesn’t matter much. But it matters a little.

With Democrats desperately trying to hold onto Congress this fall against a Republican party that wants to preserve tax cuts for the rich and repeal constitutionally guaranteed citizenship rights, the last thing they need is a fake controversy that reinforces the media-driven notion that the Obamas are out-of-touch elitists.

Folks in the media, terrified of being accused of liberal bias, are being used. Sadly, there’s nothing new about that.

Originally reported by the Guardian. Read the original article here.

Editorial: The real scandal of Michelle Obama’s Spanish vacation | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) is partnering with the Illinois Poison Center to staff the hotline with health care professionals.

“As H1N1 influenza continues to circulate in Illinois, we know people have many questions, especially when it comes to seeking medical treatment,” said Dr. Arnold.

“Through our partnership with the Illinois Poison Center, trained medical staff can help callers determine when to see a doctor, if emergency treatment is needed, how to care for sick family members and when it’s advisable to return to work or school.

The more information people have about H1N1 influenza, the better able we are to reduce illness.”

Having medical professional staff answer H1N1 influenza questions will help reduce the number of calls to local health departments, hospitals and health providers and allow doctors and nurses more time to vaccinate individuals and take care of patients.

“Poison centers are open 24/7, staffed with medical experts such as doctors, nurses and pharmacists who are ready to serve the health care needs of individuals seeking assistance,” said Dr. Michael Wahl, Medical Director of the Illinois Poison Center.

“It’s a natural fit for the IPC and our existing infrastructure to be part of the first response to answer calls from concerned Illinoisans seeking information during the H1N1 flu outbreak.”

The number for the Illinois Flu Hotline is 866-848-2094 for English and 866-241-2138 for Spanish.

Additional H1N1 influenza information can also be found at ready.illinois.gov and flu.gov.

Illinois H1N1 Flu Hotline Answering Medical Questions; English and Spanish Lines Available | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

Hernandez, a neighborhood school located at 3510 W. 55^th St., serves students in grades six through eight and is part of a developing linear campus along St. Louis Avenue on Chicago Southwest Side. Just south, across 55^th Street, is Sandoval School, which serves kindergarten-through-fifth grade students; under construction to the north is a new high school that is projected to open in 2010.

“Modern Schools Across Chicago is funded entirely with city money,” Daley said in a news conference at the school.

“Until very recently, state and federal money to support school construction has been very scarce and we knew it was our responsibility to create schools in every neighborhood of the city that we can be proud of and that our children can thrive in,” the Mayor said.

After the ribbon cutting, the Mayor and Chicago Public Schools officials were given a demonstration of the school district’s innovative “Parent Portal,” an interactive tool designed to allow parents and guardians a way of keeping track of student grades, attendance, homework assignments and other aspects of student performance.

Hernandez was developed to address enrollment challenges caused by the rapid growth in student population on the Southwest Side. The 126,748-square-foot three-story building has a planned capacity of more than 1,000 students and cost $29.4 million to construct.

“Our goal is to make every neighborhood school a high quality school that a parent wants to send their child to because it offers our students a great opportunity for a solid education,” Daley said.

It boasts 37 standard academic classrooms, two multipurpose rooms, two computer labs (one featuring Macs, the other PCs), five science labs, music and art classrooms, a gymnasium with stage, library/media center and many other features.

Named for Irene Hernandez, the first Latina Cook County commissioner, the school was designed to achieve a silver rating under the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) for Schools Rating System.

“Hernandez is outstanding example of the partnership between the city, local aldermen, Chicago Public Schools and the Chicago Public Building Commission in providing state-of-the-art facilities to our students,” said CPS Chief Executive Officer Ron Huberman.

“During a period in which capital funds for new school construction are scarce, we appreciate the leadership Mayor Daley has shown in creating the MSAC program that allows our District to meet our needs with both upgraded buildings and equipment and in managing local surges in enrollment,” he said.

The interactive “Parent Portal” program has been expanded this fall to include a Spanish-language version.

“Parent Portal” was introduced during the last school year, first as a three-month pilot project in 37 schools and then later District-wide. Implemented by the CPS Information and Technology Services department, the Parent Portal contains information about a student’s class descriptions and assignments, progress reports and classroom performance, as well as notes and comments from teachers.

Parents and guardians can create accounts once they have obtained a secure PIN from their child’s school. Parent Portal can be accessed from any computer with an internet connection. The online tool also allows parents with more than one child at more than one CPS school – elementary, middle or high school – to view and manage student information with a single account.

“Parent Portal” provides a simple and convenient way for parents and guardians to do what they are supposed do – take responsibility for and be involved with their child’s education every day of the year. And it represents yet another step we are taking to increase accountability and transparency in the school system,” Daley said.

Families without computers or who do not have internet service can access Parent Portal at any Chicago Public Library. Each library location offers internet on its computers, as well as free wireless internet service for visitors with laptops.

Parents who create an account can customize it for their specific needs. For example, parents can request that they be notified when their child is marked absent from school or if grades in a particular subject drop below a certain level. Notification can be sent to either an email account or a cell phone via text message. The tool also allows for direct messaging between parents and teachers.

“A great volume of information is available via a few mouse clicks. Yet, at the same time, the intent of Parent Portal is not to become the be-all and end-all in a parent-teacher relationship,” Huberman said.

“We urge parents to go to their child’s school’s open house; to make a point of meeting with teachers on report card pickup day. There is no substitute for building a relationship with your child’s teachers. Parent Portal is an important way to enhance the in-person face-to-face interaction between parents and teachers that is crucial to a child’s academic success,” he said.

Last year, more than 30,000 parents signed up for Parent Portal accounts. District officials expect that number to grow substantially this year as more parents find out about the tool, as well as implementing a Spanish-language version of Parent Portal.

Learn more about Parent Portal. Links to Parent Portal tutorials in both English and Spanish are also available.

About Chicago Public Schools

Chicago Public Schools serves approximately 407,000 students in 666 schools. It is the nation’s third-largest school district.

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