Giffords’ office releases first photos of Gabby since shooting
Posted by AzBlueMeanie: On Sunday, the public got its first look at Rep. Gabrielle Giffords since she was shot on January 8 at a Congress on Your Corner event near Tucson. Rep. Giffords' staff provided two photographs to The Arizona Republic Photos reflect Giffords' recovery and to the Arizona Daily Star First photos of Gabrielle Giffords … Read more
GOP fails to learn from mistake of Bush tax cuts
Posted by AzBlueMeanie: Last week marked the 10th anniversary of the Goerge W. Bush tax cuts (2001). The tax cut champions made bold predictions about what the tax cuts would do — massive job growth, vast new wealth, higher incomes, smaller government, and balanced budgets. So how'd that work out? Steve Benen has a good … Read more
Stephen Colbert gives the business end to ‘Mittens’ Romney
Posted by AzBlueMeanie: What Jed Lewison said at Daily Kos: Colbert calls B.S. on claim that Romney is a job creator: Mitt Romney's campaign spin is that he was a businessman, so he knows how to create jobs, and that's why he should be president. Except, as Stephen Colbert points out, Mitt Romney's business career … Read more
Gaming high stakes tests
by David Safier Those of you who haven't taught may not have thought about the most rational way for a teacher to maximize the number of students who pass high stakes tests. Here's the thinking teacher's guide to getting the highest passing rate on AIMS (or any other state test): 1. Don't waste time working … Read more
High stakes, low value tests
by David Safier The nation bought into high stakes testing for accountability and incentives with no evidence they do any good because, well, because the idea sounds like it makes so much sense. Test the students, then improve their performance, then reward teachers and administrators whose students make the most progress. What could be simpler? … Read more
You would think . . .
by David Safier You would think a report stating 70% of the firearms picked up by authorities in Mexico originate in the U.S. would make the no-gun-laws crowd think maybe there should be a few restrictions on who can buy guns in the U.S. (That 70% figure, by the way, is from an article in … Read more
Howard Fischer goes after David Schapira, and blurs the line between professionalism and partisanship
Posted by Craig McDermott, cross-posted from Random Musings Last night, I put up a post that quoted from a story written by Howard Fischer of Capital Media Services. Actually, I should just say "written by Howard Fischer" because he *is* Capitol Media Services. It's a one-man operation where he is reporter, photographer, editor, business manager, … Read more
