What was purported to be a business meeting of the Cobb County Board of Education on Thursday evening quickly deteriorated into a two-pronged assault, by a well-coached and rehearsed school board, against Board Member Alison Bartlett and the Marietta Daily Journal.

The results of an alleged investigation, by Dr. Linda Bernknopf, a former school district employee, at a salary of $175 per hour were presented. Just how effectively one can investigate a charge without talking to the alleged victims is still a mystery.

In said presentation, all school principals we supposedly exonerated of the charge of coercing teachers on their votes for the school calendar. No evidence of coercion was found.

Of course one cannot find Easter eggs without looking for them.

It is probable that Dr. Bernknopf could have written a report, equally as objective, the day she was hired. If the name sounds familiar, she was the one hired to find North Cobb High School principal Dr. Lawrence Bynum guilty of sexual harassment, a finding which flies in the face of the determinations of a previous investigation and the State Board of Education.

Armed with that "evidence," board members were quick to condemn the MDJ for its coverage of the matter. The casting of aspersions publisher Otis Brumby and the newspaper was the order of the day.

Moreover, they subjected fellow board member Bartlett, to what could only be described as a verbal lynching, complete with angry words directed at her by Holli "Pom Pom" Cash and her fellow apologist for Superintendent Dr. Fred Sanderson, Lynnda Crowder-Eagle.

The moral high tone assumed by these two, along with fellow members, Dr. John Crooks, Dr. John Abraham, and David Banks, was no less than a repugnant display of political hypocrisy.

They are known to be guilty of violation of the Open Meetings Law, a practice, it appears, that is still going on. Yet, they had the unmitigated gall to suggest that Mrs. Bartlett is not fit to continue service on the board because she expressed what was related to her by involved people.

Crooks spoke eloquently about integrity and the questioning of the same. I think he fails to understand that it is not integrity, but the lack of same that is being questioned. There has been little evidence of integrity on the part of most of the board members for some time.

Crooks even went so far as to compare his alleged injury, caused by Ms. Bartlett's revelation, to that of losing a child, an analogy in which only the most gullible put any credence. Crowder-Eagle and Cash both let their emotions get carried away to the point that observers might have wondered if they were on the verge of becoming violent.

In turn, Banks echoed many of the same rants, adding that he thought Bartlett should consider whether she should continue to serve on the board. This spin was picked up by Ms. Cash, who did not fail to find a slot for her infamous "It's for the children" justification for all things.

Abraham made a great show of apologizing to the school principals who were there. He proceeded to recap what the other four had said and added he would seek a censure of Ms. Bartlett at the next meeting.

It seems singularly hypocritical of Dr. Abraham and this board to accept the questionable findings of this investigation when this is not the first, nor will it be last, time there was reason to believe that Glover Street operates on threats and coercion.

Member David Morgan urged those who passed along the information to Ms. Bartlett to step forward. I submit they cannot and will not because the fear of retaliation is so great. Just as the board chairman was overhead to say they would "get Alison," those employees know there would be serious repercussions.

Abraham, during the tarring and feathering of Dr. Bynum stated he wanted to get rid of the "atmosphere of fear" in which our teachers live. I submit that this is an example of the real "atmosphere of fear" that exists. If you want to get rid of it, pull the plug on Sanderson and the Glover Street Gang.

As long as we have people on the board who lack the backbone to do the job they were elected for, content to "rubber stamp" every whim of Glover Street, there can be no real progress toward improving our school system.

It is time to rout the rascals, scuttle the scoundrels and fire the feckless. There is an opportunity to start the ball rolling toward that end with the current "Recall. Crooks" movement.

The ball is in the hands of the voters. Let's not fumble it.

Pete Borden is a mason in east Cobb.