Save Tucson’s Schools. Cut the Sports Programs.

by David Safier Today, I’m not wearing my Tax-And-Spend Liberal hat. Rather than saying we should fund every worthwhile educational program in our schools, I’m going to play the pragmatist and deal with things as they are, not as I wish them to be. As things are today, Tucson Unified only has so much money. … Read more

Guest Commentary by John Wright: Education and Taxes

The Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry along with other business interests are calling for the repeal of the State Equalization Rate and by doing so are focusing only on a piece of the puzzle. It is looking more like single-entry bookkeeping. Remember Enron? Taxes are but one side of the ledger. For more news … Read more

Ben Stein: “Tax the Rich”

by David Safier (TASL) Maybe his next Comedy Central Show should be called, “Tax Ben Stein’s Money (if he’s rich enough).” I may be the only liberal in the world who reads Ben Stein’s column in the Sunday New York Times Business section. But I do it because the man is a conservative with a … Read more

School Closures in Tucson Unified

by David Safier (TASL) It’s been weeks. The contentious public meetings continue, and the controversy over closing 4 schools in TUSD rages on. I have no idea how it will turn out, but I do have a question: What did everybody expect? We give school districts too little money, and TUSD finds itself with a … Read more

Do You Really Want to Lower the Dropout Rate?

by David Safier While I was googling my way through education topics, I pulled up a 2007 cover story from Time Magazine, Dropout Nation. The article bemoans the high dropout rate, which it puts at somewhere between 20% and 33%. Lowering the dropout rate is a wonderful idea. Everyone’s for it. We want an educated … Read more