Conservatives are masters at using distortion and subterfuge to sell people on things they would never buy if properly labeled. Nowhere is this more evident than in the arena of “school choice” -- a conservative euphemism for "gutting public education from the inside out."
According to its major proponents, like the late Milton “Pinochet es mi amigo” Friedman, “school choice gives parents the freedom to choose their children’s education, while encouraging healthy competition among schools to better serve families' needs.” Sounds lovely! But, it turns out, there are plenty of well-documented problems with school choice, especially when it comes to the school voucher system, which provides families with public funds to send their children to private -- often religious -- schools.
7 Most Absurd Things America's Kids Are Learning Thanks to the Conservative Gutting of Public Education
Regulator declines to set date for new rail tank car safety rules
The chief of a federal agency tasked with improving the safety of crude oil shipments by rail declined Wednesday to give lawmakers a date for new tank car rules that railroads and safety officials have sought for years.
Cynthia Quarterman, administrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, also testified the tank car fixes weren’t “a silver bullet,” and were only “one piece of the mitigative puzzle” in making crude oil transportation safer.
Four killed by woman threatened with eviction from California Indian reservation: cops
An eviction hearing at an American Indian headquarters in North California turned bloody when a former tribal leader went berserk, killing four people and wounding two others, cops said.
Cherie Lash Rhoades, former chairwoman of Cedarville Rancheria, allegedly shot four people in the tribal office and a fifth person who tried to escape the mayhem. After running out of bullets the bloodthirsty woman allegedly grabbed a butcher knife and stabbed a person.
The suspect was “systematically shooting individuals,” Barnes said.
Reports: Target warned before data breach
Target's computer security staff advised the retailer to review the security of its payment card system at least two months before hackers stole 40 million credit and debit card numbers from its servers, according to several reports published Friday.
Citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter, The Wall Street Journal and American Banker published stories on their websites that said at least one intelligence analyst at the Minneapolis-based retailer wanted to do a more thorough security review of its payment systems' vulnerability to malware, but the request was brushed off.
Nebraska city to reconsider 2010 law barring undocumented immigrants from renting homes
Voters in a small Nebraska city will decide Tuesday whether to repeal a law designed to bar immigrants from renting homes if they don't have legal permission to be in the U.S.
Critics of the 2010 ordinance in Fremont say it is less effective and more costly than anyone expected and is damaging the city's image. Supporters say Fremont needs to take a stand against illegal immigration.
The conservative agricultural hub near Omaha, population 26,000, is one of a handful of cities that have acted on their own over the last decade to curb illegal immigration. Most of those efforts have become mired in costly court battles.
Star Missouri football player comes out
Missouri football All-American Michael Sam says he is gay, and because he is projected to be a mid-round NFL draft pick, the defensive end could become the league's first openly homosexual player.
In interviews published Sunday with ESPN, The New York Times and Outsports, Sam says he came out to his teammates and coaches at Missouri in August.
"I am an openly, proud gay man," he said.
Sisters of Iowa representative killed in Pennsylvania shooting
A sister of the women found shot to death in the basement of the recently purchased East Liberty home they shared said this morning that the family was still trying to make sense of the tragic development.
"Right this minute we're still trying to figure out what happened," said Mary Wolfe, a sibling of Susan Wolfe and Sarah Wolfe and a Democratic state representative in Iowa.
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