Andrew Sullivan's Blog, page 2698

Is A Good Kindergarden Teacher Really Worth $320,000?

John Cassidy complicates the study Leonhardt touts:

Yes, good teaching is important. But the key policy issue is raisingaverage teaching standards throughout the education system, not simplyseeking out and rewarding exceptional kindergartens. In affluent areasof New York City, parents' efforts to capture every possibleeducational advantage for their young children have already reachedabsurd levels. If this new research is accepted as gospel, I canalready see admissions officers at snooty...

Basil Marceaux For Governor, Ctd

Wonkette calls his campaign site "indescribably perfect." Money quote:

VOTE FOR ME AND IF I WIN I WILL IMMUNE YOU FROM ALL STATE CRIMES FOR THE REST OF YOU LIFE!

Chattanooga Times Free Press snags an interview:

"I always knew it would (attention) happen because I'm sure everyone feels like me. It just takes guts," the one-time Marine said. Voters "like my gun views," he said. "I want everyone to have a gun. If I think that someone doesn't have one, maybe I'll fine them $10."

Wonket...

How Bad Is Nevada?

Daniel Indiviglio takes a look:

It's sort of staggering to think about how many foreclosures are
occurring in Las Vegas. First, there's the awful one in 15 homes
statistic. That accounts for an amazing 6.60% of all housing units in
the metro area. And remember, this was just over a six-month period.
The glimmer of hope is that this actually isn't the worst the city has
seen. In fact, foreclosures are down 14.73% compared to the prior half,
and 8.80% lower than the same period in 2009.

Ryan...

What About The Afghans?

Andrew Exum has one final criticism of Wikileaks:

It does seem as if measures have been taken by Wikileaks to protectU.S. and allied personnel whose lives might be endangered by the leaks.The same cannot be said for the Afghans. A cursory search of the Wikileaks documents by the consistently excellent Afghanistan-based journalist Tom Coughlan revealed hundredsof Afghan lives to have been put at risk by these leaked documents. Thementions of Afghans -- either because they have...

Good News, Everyone, Ctd

Josh Green goes to bat for Elizabeth Warren:

Warren is by some in the Obama administration for her tendency to be outspoken, which is precisely why consumers trust her. The tendency of Obama officials, especially the economic team, is to speak in the bland jargon of technocrats. But with an election looming, the White House needs someone who can explain its policies and convince voters that it is working in their interest. That may be why the administration seemed to...

Beneath The Waves, Ctd

Contra Susan Shaw et al, Michael Grunwald says the BP spill isn't as bad as it has been made out to be:

The scientists I spoke with cite four basic reasons the initialeco-fears seem overblown. First, the Deepwater Horizon oil, unlike theblack glop from the Valdez, is comparatively light anddegradable, which is why the slick in the Gulf is dissolvingsurprisingly rapidly now that the gusher has been capped. Second, theGulf of Mexico, unlike Prince William Sound, is balmy at more than...

The Back Door To More War?

A Congressional resolution backing Israel's right to self-defense against Iran is the latest gambit to drag the US into another Middle Eastern war. John Bolton - yes, the guy who believes in total presidential control of foreign policy - helped jump-start it.
















Iran - Middle East - Israel - John Bolton - John R. Bolton

Face Of The Day

"What If They Had Beards?" From Curved White.

Web Design and Development - Search - Arts - United States - Hit

Tenure: Stifling Teacher Growth

Jennie Rothenberg Gritz interviews Andrew Hacker about his new book on education. His views on tenure:

Academicstypically don't get tenured until the age of 40. This means that fromtheir years as graduate students and then assistant professors, fromage 25 through 38 or 39, they have to toe the line. They have to dothings in the accepted way that their elders and superiors require.They can't be controversial and all the rest. So tenure is, in fact,the enemy of spontaneity, the enemy of...

The Politics Of Smashing Faces

Friedersdorf has noticed that many "hard
core progressives" and "movement conservatives" think that "their ideology would prevail more often
if only their partisans were more angry, their attacks more pointed,
their operatives more ruthless." He thinks this mistaken:

Lots of hard core progressives and movement conservatives are wrong:Political and ideological gains don't come from being best at smashingfaces through plate glass windows or winning news cycles or employingthe most extreme...