Congrats to Pueblo's Cesar Chavez Academy (and thanks to Colorado Charters for pointing out the accolades) - one of two charter schools nationwide to be featured as models of excellent education in a U.S. Department of Education documentary video. This must only make more painful the recent episode of an email sent by state Rep. Mike Merrifield (D-Manitou Springs) to Sen. Sue Windels (D-Arvada), indicating that there is "a special place in hell" for "charterizers" and the like. If one remembers, the specific context of the message was in response to efforts to replicate the highly successful Cesar Chavez Academy model in Colorado Springs. Democrat education committee chairman Merrifield summarily assigned people who wanted to try a … [Read more...]
Alternative Professional Teacher Group Emerges in Colorado
The Colorado Springs Gazette editorialists bring our attention to a new alternative professional organization for teachers in Colorado: the Professional Association of Colorado Educators (PACE). PACE offers liability insurance, legal coverage, and professional development opportunities without the political baggage: PACE will not give union dues to political candidates, nor involve itself in political causes, which will come as a relief, we’re sure, to teachers whose politics differ from those of unions that purport to represent them. Remaining apolitical allows PACE to keep membership dues low, at just $15 a month. PACE dues come to about a quarter of the typical Colorado Education Association dues (amounts vary from local to local, … [Read more...]
Yankees Fan Dealing with Disappointment
It appears my last post has stirred up a little East Coast angst in my friend David Harsanyi, the genial libertarian and Denver Post columnist who for the most part is a very sensible, stand-up sort of guy. (Nobody's perfect.) Well, I may have dashed my chances at getting a free galley copy of his new book Nanny State to review - though there is no denying Harsanyi's ability to use clever and shameless self-promotion. I didn't realize that Harsanyi and I both shared a past as sportswriters - albeit he got to cover the World Series, and I was busy writing about high school track meets and Division II college football. The best part of this exchange is the sweet, sweet memories of last October and the Yanks' demise at the hands of the … [Read more...]
Taking it to the Yankees
Though many on the team have been feeling under the weather, the Detroit Tigers came out on top of the New York Yankees last night, 8-5. Nothing like heading into the heart of the Evil Empire to win the first of a critical four-game set (unless it turns into a four-game sweep of the Bronx Bombers in their own backyard). And as the struggling bullpen is healing up and returning to normalcy (you can't come back soon enough, Zoom), let's go back out there, keep up the momentum, and beat the Yanks! … [Read more...]
Remembering Elvis
On this the 30th anniversary of the passing of the legendary Elvis Presley, we pause to reflect on a tremendously successful musical talent remembered today through a long series of sub-par films, dime-a-dozen Las Vegas impersonators, and velvet paintings hung from the walls of mobile homes. As for me, I cried the day Elvis died but haven't given him much thought since. Well, at least I'm not a hound dog. … [Read more...]
Suicide Killers: A Stunning Documentary
Pierre Rehov's new documentary "Suicide Killers" may be too politically incorrect to receive an Academy Award nomination, but that fact should recommend the film to more American viewers. And certainly, there were more viewers at last night's screening at the Colorado History Museum than event organizers anticipated. The modest size of the screen in the large hall forced the rows to be tightly-packed, but most guests eagerly pressed in to get a closer look. Reading the frequent subtitles - absolutely essential to absorbing the film's startling content - presented a minor challenge of tilting heads and craning necks. I was drawn in to the disturbing images, largely appropriate in their context and level of graphic detail, as well as … [Read more...]
Lefty Attacks on Schaffer “More Rovian Than Karl Rove Himself”
Face the State highlights the fraud and deceit behind Michael Huttner's attacks against Republican State Board of Education vice chair Bob Schaffer. Key passages: Earlier this year, Schaffer was in the majority of the board when he voted to remand back to the Denver School Board a decision to deny Life Skills Center its charter. While Denver previously denied the mostly-minority school’s charter, it ultimately agreed with the state board and approved the school’s proposal to continue in existence. After the vote, Schaffer received a campaign contribution to aid his current U.S. Senate bid from David Brennan, an individual who runs a charter school management company that has contracts with Life Skills. Huttner is trying to say that … [Read more...]
Union Payback: The Saga Goes On
The Rocky Mountain News reports today about a new policy giving labor union leaders privileged access to Colorado state government property. Too bad the administration of Governor Bill Ritter (D) is so fixated on rewarding some of his biggest campaign supporters. Colorado's voice of center-right reason on the Western Slope cataloged where these new perks fit into the larger scheme of union payback by Democrats: Republicans said the policy amounts to Ritter's second concession to unions after angering them last legislative session when he vetoed a pro-labor bill to make it easier for unions to organize in the private sector. The first payback, they said, was an executive order that allowed union dues to be automatically withdrawn … [Read more...]
Blogs Will Miss Rove’s Right-Wing Talking Points
First they came in the form of a morning fax. Then mass emails became the medium of choice. Instant messages were attempted, briefly used, then discarded. Eventually talk turned to telepathic messages delivered through implanted neurochips. But now, we may never see them, with word leaked from the White House today: Karl Rove, President Bush's close friend and chief political strategist, plans to leave the White House at the end of August, joining a lengthening line of senior officials heading for the exits in the final 1 1/2 years of the administration. A longtime member of Bush's inner circle, Rove was nicknamed ''the architect'' by the president for designing the strategy that twice won him the White House. Notably omitted from the … [Read more...]
Romney First, but Huckabee Biggest Winner from Straw Poll
Cyclone Conservatives has all the on-the-scene coverage of today's Republican Presidential candidate straw poll in Ames, Iowa. Here are the results as reported on Jonathan Martin's Politico blog: 1. Mitt Romney, 4516, 31.5% 2. Mike Huckabee, 2587, 18.1 3. Sen. Sam Brownback, 2192, 15.3 4. Tom Tancredo, 1,961, 13.7 5. Ron Paul, 1305, 9.1 6. Tommy Thompson, 1039, 7.3 7. Fred Thompson, 203, 1.4 8. Rudy Giuliani, 183, 1.3 9. Duncan Hunter, 174, 1.2 10. John McCain, 101, 1 11. John Cox, 41, .1 Total Votes 14,302 To the absolute surprise of no one paying attention, Mitt Romney won. But my first glance at the results tells me that his win isn't impressive enough to give him the clear edge he's hoping for. But if … [Read more...]
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