Exactly Who Is the 'Some' Behind School Calendar Bill?

"Some" is a handy word -- so vague, so indefinite, so able to suggest a multitude of possibilities from which the reader or listener can select his or her favorities according to his or her prejudices. In certain contexts, "some" can also be a dishonest word.

Such is the case with the Livingston Press & Argus editorial on attempts to force a uniform school calendar on all school districts within the same intermediate school district.

In the edition for Sunday (July 8, 2007), a P&A editorial criticizes the move (and rightly so), listing a string of well-thought out reasons why the Legislature should reject the move.

The rub comes in the discussion of who is behind the move. The editorial merely says "some" legislators are behind it. Not even some Democrats in the Legislature or some Republicans in the Legislature, just some.

Why not name the sponsors of the bill?

Could the reason be that one of our local lawmakers is behind the bill? The Michigan Legislature's website lists none other than Sen. Valde Garcia, R-Brighton, as one of the sponsors of the SB549 measure being criticized by the P&A.

Yet Garcia's name appears nowhere in the editorial. Nor does the fact that Senate Republicans were behind the measure that passed the Senate. That information may have appeared in the newspaper at some time in the past, but people may not have seen those articles or may have forgotten it. Why not repeat it now?

Why the reluctance to name Garcia? If he is one of the sponsors of a piece of legislation that is harmful to our local schools, shouldn't P&A readers be told that so that they can contact Garcia's office and let him know what they think?

The wording of the editorial in effect lets the reader blame anyone he or she wants -- even Democratic lawmakers who may not support the measure.

Whose interests are served by such an approach? Certainly not the paper's subscribers, who depend on the P&A to alert them to things they should be concerned about.

But I'll bet Garcia doesn't have a lot of complaints about the way the paper handled it.