Crushing Their Dreams
Posted by Sheila Kennedy in Public Policy and Governance on January 17th, 2012
In last night’s GOP debate in South Carolina, Mitt Romney once again promised that, as President, he would veto the Dream Act. I’ll admit that I find opposition to the Dream Act incomprehensible. I was really disappointed when Dick Lugar responded to the rightwing challenge from Richard Mourdock by withdrawing his long-time sponsorship of that [...]
Rooting for Santorum
Posted by Sheila Kennedy in Random Blogging on January 16th, 2012
As the interminable GOP Presidential contests proceeds, I’m rooting for Rick Santorum. Now, I realize that statement requires some explanation. With the probable exception of Ron Paul, all the other candidates can be counted on to moderate their current positions if and when they cinch the nomination—to pivot from the shameless pandering to the nut-job [...]
Not-So-Private Enterprise
Posted by Sheila Kennedy in Public Policy and Governance on January 15th, 2012
This morning’s New York Times has a story about Mitt Romney’s campaign-trail praise for a “private” enterprise that–just coincidentally–happens to be owned by one of his largest contributors. It’s a story that could undoubtedly be written about several of the other candidates in an era when money makes the political world go around, and it [...]
Short and Sweet
Posted by Sheila Kennedy in Random Blogging on January 14th, 2012
In lieu of my usual morning fulminations, this morning I’m turning the task over to Steve Benen, at Political Animal, who chronicles–and refutes–some of the many “misstatements” (aka lies) of Mitt Romney. Maybe there’s some truth to the claim that you can’t trust a man who would drive for hours with his terrified dog strapped [...]
Can We Spell Clueless…
Posted by Sheila Kennedy in Random Blogging on January 12th, 2012
The persistence of bigotry in society is widely acknowledged, and there are plenty of examples of people who are just plain hateful. There’s a robust literature that tries to explain the roots of prejudice, and a lively debate about what constitutes an appropriate response to its expression. But how should we react to behavior that [...]
Our Money, Our Information
Posted by Sheila Kennedy in Public Policy and Governance on January 11th, 2012
There is a very interesting op ed in this morning’s New York Times from an academic who does medical research, opposing a bill that has been introduced in Congress that would “protect” academic medical journals. Protect them from what, you ask? Under current practice, when the NIH or other tax-supported government agency funds research, the peer-reviewed [...]
Excuse Me??
Posted by Sheila Kennedy in Public Policy and Governance on January 10th, 2012
A lobbyist friend sent me a new legislative proposal by Mike Delph to abolish Grand Juries in Indiana. My considered response was: huh?? In prior sessions, with his not-too-coherent animus against immigrants, Delph established himself as not the sharpest knife in the drawer–proposing measures that (as he should have learned in law school) would not [...]
Pollyanna versus Gloomy Gus
Posted by Sheila Kennedy in Random Blogging on January 9th, 2012
Since I so often fill this space with depressing observations, I’m going to begin this week by indulging my inner Pollyanna. My (non-scientific) theory is that the rash of efforts we are seeing around the country to break the backs of unions, ensconce anti-gay laws in state constitutions, and weaken government oversight of everything from [...]
What We Don’t Know DOES Hurt Us…
Posted by Sheila Kennedy in Education / Youth, Uncategorized on January 8th, 2012
The other day, I was grading a research paper produced by a graduate student who shares my concerns over civic literacy. The paper included a comprehensive review of available research on the topic, much of which confirmed what we had already known about the American public’s appalling deficit in basic knowledge of our government and [...]
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