A tax on sugar water
by David Safier (TASL) Advertisement Nicholas Kristof has a great column this morning about a proposed 18% tax in New York on soft drinks with sugar and other nondiet sugary beverages. The reasoning is, sugar water doesn't curb your appetite. It actually increases it. So sugared beverages are as much or more of a contributor … Read more
Vic Williams gets it from Nintzel on Deposit-gate
by David Safier I mentioned that the story of newly elected state rep Vic Williams (R, LD-26) stiffing Iraq vet Tasha Downum for her rental deposit was developing. The latest development is, Jim Nintzel picked the story up from my posts and ran with it in Tucson Weekly's The Skinny. Nintzel talked with Downum and moved … Read more
Obama’s Secretary of Education
by David Safier It's all but official that Arne Duncan will be the next Secretary of Education. While no one is ecstatic about the choice, no one is angry about it either. That seems to be the watchword for Obama's cabinet picks. It may be a great strategy, choosing people who can work with all … Read more
Another reminder
by David Safier Yet another reminder to give $200 for one person or $400 for a couple to the public school (or divided among the public schools) of your choice by December 31 and get it all back when you pay your state taxes. I think it's a good idea. Ann-Eve Pedersen,a founder of Tucson … Read more
Developing story: Deposit-gate
by David Safier Yes, Deposit-gate. Create a hypenated word with "gate" at the end, and everyone knows what kind of story it is (though, I wonder if people remember that Watergate had nothing to do with Water.) Yesterday I wrote a story about newly elected Rep. Vic Williams (R, LD-26) not returning a $400 rental … Read more
D.C. Charter school successes, at $12,000+ per student
by David Safier Washington D.C. has lots of charter schools, and a Washington Post article says their students are surpassing the regular public school students in test scores. If so, they're accomplishing something that hasn't been accomplished elsewhere, since most studies say charters don't exceed other public schools in student achievement. I don't know how rigorous the … Read more
Iraq Vet Sues Vic Williams for Unreturned Rental Deposit
by David Safier When Tasha Downum returned from Iraq in June, 2008, she took her five year old son, her mother and her grandmother on a two week vacation to Newport Beach, California. Her son had never seen the ocean, and after a year in Iraq's heat and sand, she was looking forward to being … Read more
