Education
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These People are Failing at Their Jobs; Why Do They Still Have Them?
Read more: These People are Failing at Their Jobs; Why Do They Still Have Them?Here is the really big problem with politics: you can smell the bad odor, but you can’t tell where it comes from. We have a board of education and a teachers’ union whose current leadership is characterized by a) ongoing parent and student demonstrations b) bogus attendance counts c) verbal abuse d) alleged predatory cover-up…
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Reason #6 for School Vouchers—Predators and Their Victims
Read more: Reason #6 for School Vouchers—Predators and Their Victims(Lead image from the Washington Post, August 11, 2023.) A high-school math teacher was, by all accounts, a very good teacher, but his social skills were affected by a streak of anger. During one class a student misbehaved. The teacher reacted far out of proportion to the offense; he pushed the student against a wall.…
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Reason #5 for School Vouchers—Mahmoud v. McKnight
Read more: Reason #5 for School Vouchers—Mahmoud v. McKnightFolks, it’s on rare occasions that I need to actually think before writing a blog post. Usually I only describe and transcribe the bizarre and dysfunctional events unfolding around us, such as the recent trial Tamer Mahmoud v. Monica B. McKnight. This was the landmark trial and ruling by Judge Deborah Boardman that denied the…
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Reason #4 for School Vouchers—Prejudice
Read more: Reason #4 for School Vouchers—PrejudiceThe most common justifications for school choice and school vouchers are curriculum and quality. Parents and students want a curriculum that has an emphasis different from what the public schools offer; parents and students are desperately seeking a way out of their failing neighborhood school. There are significant populations within Montgomery County that fall into…
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Letter to Council: Removal of Lynne Harris
Read more: Letter to Council: Removal of Lynne HarrisWe received permission to publish the following letter sent to Councilwoman Stewart. As of 7/30/23 a response has not been received. The letter provides an argument and supporting evidence for the Council to remove current BOE member Lynne Harris. 7/24/2023 Good evening, Councilwoman Stewart: Thank you for speaking with me several nights ago at the…
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Opt-Out Rally #3: Yes, Whites Still Control People of Color
Read more: Opt-Out Rally #3: Yes, Whites Still Control People of ColorMaybe it was the weather. Less than one-third of the people showed up for today’s opt-out rally compared to the previous one. By one-third, I mean that the no-choice crowd had seven people in attendance, compared to about 20 last time. Still no diversity in terms of ethnicity; they were, and always have been, whites.…
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Despite Rain, Smears and Intolerant Rhetoric by Local Elected Officials, Hundreds Still Showed Up to Ask for Simple “Opt Out” Option at MCPS
Read more: Despite Rain, Smears and Intolerant Rhetoric by Local Elected Officials, Hundreds Still Showed Up to Ask for Simple “Opt Out” Option at MCPSPhoto Credit: Reardon Sullivan It isn’t going away. The grassroots energy. The passion for basic civil liberties and religious freedom, for pluralism. The grassroots movement for basic parental notification and yes, an “opt out” option on select MCPS curriculum. None of this organizing is going away, like the local MoCo politicians or the Montgomery Board…
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Opt-Out Rally #2: “We Love Everybody”
Read more: Opt-Out Rally #2: “We Love Everybody”Progressives, all 10% of you in the general population, you may want to consider something. You can insult us, you can tax us for your projects, you can appoint your friends to positions, you can deny us jobs, you can lecture us, you can judge us, and to a large extent you successfully control us.…
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Marc Elrich’s Incoherent Take on School Safety Policy & SROs
Read more: Marc Elrich’s Incoherent Take on School Safety Policy & SROsRemember 2014? A throwback to a time, just nine years ago, when Montgomery County seemed “governed” by responsive adults. MoCo was still highly taxed, its small businesses burdened and frequently regulated with local ordinances that started in California, not in MD. It was still stagnating, economically, and it couldn’t hold a match to Northern VA’s…
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To Our LGBTQIA+ Students: It’s Not About You
Read more: To Our LGBTQIA+ Students: It’s Not About YouTo the LGBTQIA+ students in the county’s public schools, in the private schools, and everywhere you are— You are just as human as anyone else. You deserve everything that everyone else deserves. You deserve love, opportunity, equity, equality, and above all, respect. You are entitled to the inalienable rights mentioned in this nation’s Declaration of…