Breaking: Cut school funds, increase private school tax credits
by David SafierAccording to reports, Jan Brewer is planning to call a special session to increase tax credits for private schools. The details are vague at this point, but the talking point is crystal clear. The state Supreme Court ruled that Arizona's vouchers for disabled students and children living in foster homes were unconstitutional — … Read more
Republican legislators losing supporters
by David Safier The Star had an editorial today, Slippery slope: State's education reputation at risk. But there's another slippery slope here, and it has nothing to do with education. It's the slope Republicans may be sliding down as they alienate more and more of their natural supporters. If they keep slipping, 2010 could find … Read more
Changing the subject?
by David SafierI've been watching cable news this afternoon (Warning: watching too much cable news can result in severe attacks of anxiety and rage. Contact your physician if the symptoms last longer than 24 hours — or shut off the damn TV!) The Republicans are trying desperately to reframe the torture debate into a single … Read more
Battle lines firming up
by David SafierAfter it looked like Brewer was planning to cave to R legislators last week and accept a hack-and-slash budget with no taxes, she issued a press release saying, yes, she still wants a temporary $1 billion per year tax increase. Today, she may have sealed the deal. The Accidental Guv, then the Oscillating … Read more
America’s Anti-Torture Tradition
Posted by AzBlueMeanie: George Washington established the American value that "we do not torture" even in the face of atrocities committed by the British empire on American soil. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. authored this educational opinion America's Anti-Torture Tradition, which was published in the Los Angeles Times in December 2005 (excerpts): Every schoolchild knows that Gen. … Read more
Former Governor Jesse Ventura gets it right on torture
Posted by AzBlueMeanie: Former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura recently was a guest on Larry King Live! (isn't that an oxymoron?) and wasted no time in getting to the torture issue (at 1:20 into the video). Some snippets from Ventura: "We've created our own Hanoi Hilton. We can live with that?" "I would prosecute every person … Read more
John McCain was against torture before he was for it
Posted by AzBlueMeanie: The McMedia idolize Senator John McCain partly because of his experience as a prisoner of war during the Vietnam war. McCain was savagely beaten and tortured, and was broken to the point where he signed confessions and participated in propaganda videos for the North Vietnamese. John McCain knows the horrors of torture, … Read more
