Odds and ends, 1/28/08

From the "What Took You So Long?" Department:

The Associated Press
Heeding a steady drumbeat of sexual misconduct cases involving teachers, at least 15 states are now considering stronger oversight and tougher punishment for educators who take advantage of their students.

Lawmakers say they are concerned about an increasingly well-documented phenomenon: While the vast majority of America’s teachers are committed professionals, there also is a persistent problem with sexual misconduct in U.S. schools. When abuse happens, administrators too often fail to let others know about it, and too many legal loopholes let offenders stay in the classroom. ...

Some states are looking to increase penalties, expand background checks or broaden their ability to police charter schools for abuse, like Indiana, Massachusetts and Utah. Kentucky and South Carolina are considering making it illegal for teachers to have sex with older students.

Several states are tackling a major problem — the loopholes that allow problem teachers to move from one school district to another, or from one state to another. The AP investigation found that what education officials commonly call “passing the trash” happens when districts allow a teacher to quietly leave a school, or fail to report problems to state authorities, or fail to check with state authorities before hiring a teacher, among other glitches.

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On something totally different, the Census Bureau has gone through its 2002 economic census and ranked states in various categories. West Virginia leads in total receipts for coal production. It also leads in per capita recepits for death services.

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Am I the only one getting tired of seeing Miley Cyrus' face all over the place?

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Wendy’s International Inc. will scrap its eight-month old advertising campaign — much of it built on young men wearing a red wig with braided pigtails — amid continued weak sales, the nation’s third-largest hamburger chain announced Monday.

The campaign, which debuted during the season finale of “American Idol” in May, has generated attention, but hasn’t translated into improved sales, the company said.

“It was a love it or hate it kind of spot,” said Bob Holtcamp, Wendy’s vice president of brand marketing.

You mean someone loved it? I always wondered what the point was. I hated it.

I know Dave Thomas is dead and Wendy's can't air those old commercials. But whoever thought up this campaign with the men in the wigs sure turned off a lot of people like me.

Seriously, who "loved" these ads?

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Ashland Inc. says that its first-quarter earnings fell from a year ago due to the sluggish economy and a tax adjustment stemming from the sale of its highway construction business.

Ashland used to be a big-name company: refining, marketing, construction, chemicals and such. Over the years, it came to be a collection of subsidiaries, some of which had synergies with one another and some of which were out in left field. At one time, the company was almost like a mutual fund that had heavy investments in dissimilar industries.

The Tri-State lost a lot when Ashland decided it was too big for this area. Now you have to wonder what the company would have been like had it stayed. And what impact a greatly reduced Ashland would have here today.

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