Keeping Up On The Gossip

So... obviously our school is a little preoccupied with trying to figure out who Principal Palpatine's replacement is going to be. I've talked to a lot of people. I heard a lot of stuff... some of it conflicting.

I had always heard that the principalship of Empire High was a tough spot to fill. We have financially, socially and politically powerful parents. We have a strong-willed, aggressive faculty. We have the immense pressure of upholding the reputation of a nationally ranked academic program. It's always been a powder keg, and Palpatine did nothing but intensify the mixture with her own brand of self-serving nitroglycerin.

I thought we were in for a long, difficult process. What I neglected was the fact that the current state of affairs in California has recently put a lot of ed people on the market for a new job - people who are suddenly far less picky than they would have been a year ago.

We got something like 80 applications, or so "they" say.

I heard a lot of back and forth about who the final line up was... and even some about who the lucky winner might have been. If that information is correct, it will have.... interesting implications for me. More on that later.

The most interesting gossip was this... Palpatine was *supposedly* fired from ner new job before she even started it. Furthermore, she *supposedly* came crawling back to our district asking for her old job back. Something about *supposed* anti-Palpatine letters that made their way to the upper brass of her new institution. Is it true? God, who knows. It sounds like wishful thinking on behalf of the source... an individual whose issues with Palpatine make mine look like an argument over pizza toppings. I've heard some wild ones come out of that one before.

I did a Google search. Nothing. Of course, I'm starting to understand that school districts never publicize when they fire someone, only when someone leaves under a mutual understanding. Funny... Palpatine had a way of proclaiming "mutual understandings" when there was none. Was she forced to swallow one herself? Maybe. To be sure: her supposed new employer hasn't posted anything on their web site announcing her arrival. Yet.

Here's a better question: Do I WANT it to be true? If for no other reason but good Karma, I am remaining decidedly neutral on this, curious as I may be. I know people who have stated that they would like nothing better than to bask in the warmth of her smoldering career. I just want her to stay out of my life.

I don't want to see Palpatine "punished", I want her to take ownership of the hurt she's caused. Unfortunately, there's no way to force that on someone - they have to have some kind of an epiphany and look in the mirror and see the person others see them as. In her case it may not happen until well after she's retired - when she looks back on a career built with deception and intimidation, and realizes that none of her accolades brought her any more respect, admiration... certainly not love. By then it will be too late.

Shit, I think that's worse than losing your job.