George Washington Was First to Mandate VaccinationsTo all those patriots out there who are “resisting” mandates for vaccines and masks, please read this. George Washington was not only “First in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen,” he was also first to impose a vaccine mandate. A reader called “Quikwrit” sent the following comment, which I fact-checked. It is true. The United States Supreme Court has twice ruled that s
Florida: Judge Throws Out DeSantis Ban on Mask MandatesA circuit court judge in Leon County, Florida, ruled that Governor Ron DeSantis had exceeded his authority by preventing local school districts from mandating masks. Governor DeSantis must not interfere with the right of school districts to protect the health and safety of students. Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (AP) — School districts in Florida may impose mask mandates, a judge said Friday, ruling that
Leonie Haimson: Columnists at NY Times Report on Gates Projects While Benefitting from Gates’ $$$Following Tim Schwab’s investigation of financial conflicts of interest at the New York Times, Leonie Haimson describes her efforts to persuade editors at the Newspaper of Record to address a serious ethics issue at the New York Times . Timothy Schwab has written a series of must-read pieces about the overriding influence of the Gates Foundation on public policy, and how the Foundation influences
Tim Schwab: The Puzzling Rules about Financial Ties of Writers at the New York TimesTim Schwab, an independent journalist, has written several articles about the Gates Foundation and its canny strategy of subsidizing the media to assure favorable coverage. In his latest article , he describes how the New York Times has shielded two journalists with financial ties to the Gates Foundation. The Times apparently has a double standard. Earlier this year, BuzzFeed reported that Times’
Texas: Dad Strips at School Board Meeting to Support Face MasksWatch this video from the local TV station.. The parent in Dripping Springs wanted to illustrate why we follow certain rules and protocols, whether we like them or not. He stripped to his underwear to make his point.
Seen on a Texas HighwayWrong! Leaving little kids vulnerable to a deadly virus in the middle of a pandemic is really child abuse.
Texas: School Cancels Award-Winning Elective in Government to Avoid Conflict with New “Critical Race Theory” LawThe McKinney, Texas, school district canceled its successful Youth and Government elective course. Officials feared that the program might violate the state’s new law forbidding the teaching of critical race theory. In Texas, as in other states that have passed such legislation, the result is predictable: it has a chilling effect on freedom to discuss controversial issues, especially anything rel
“The American Dream Is Now in Denmark”Anand Girihadaras is one of the most interesting thinkers and writers of our time. His book Winners Take All: The Elite Charade of Changing the World describes the self-serving, status quo “philanthropy” of the super-rich. He has a blog called The.Ink, where the following interview appeared earlier this year. In it, a very successful Danish entrepreneur explains his belief that those who are very
Steve Hinnefeld: Racial Integration Benefits All of UsIndiana blogger Steve Hinnefeld reviews Heather McGee’s The Sum of Us, which he highly recommends. As we saw in the Olympics, Americans are different that other countries. We are a remarkably diverse people, and we succeed when we work together across lines of race and class. Hinnefeld writes: There’s a “solidarity dividend” to be gained when we work across lines of race and class to improve live
Pasadena, California, School Board Endorses High Standard for VaccinationsJennifer Hall Lee, a member of the Pasadena Unified School District board, wrote recently about the importance of of “high-functioning” school boards where members work together toward common goals and avoid partisan politics. Case in point: the PUSD board has a higher standard for vaccinations than the state. At a time when many school boards have been split by partisan battles, it is good to he
Children Are Currently Required to Take Many VaccinesEvery state has vaccine requirements for children entering school. Parents do not protest against these vaccines. What makes the coronavirus vaccine different from the many other required vaccines? Here are the vaccine requirements for children entering school in Tennessee: The Tennessee Department of Health is responsible for immunization requirements for those who attend child care, pre-school,
Reader: Parents Do Not Have the “Right” to Opt Out of Public Health MeasuresA reader of the blog posted the following comment, which I find to be sane and wise: There is so much hypocrisy and ignorance in this politicization of mask wearing and vaccination. When everyone’s health and well-being is on the line, there can be no personal choice to forego what keeps everyone safer. Why is it these people insist they can mandate what a woman does with her body or who can and
A Tribute to Laura Chapman by a Former StudentA former student who all’s him/herself “ArtTeacher” left the following moving tribute to our beloved friend and frequent contributor Dr. Laura Chapman. I wonder if she knew how many lives she influenced, how admired and respected she was? I learned from everything she wrote here. ArtTeacher wrote: I was an art education student of Dr. Chapman and her life partner, Patricia Renick from 1974-78 at
UVA “Disenrolls” 238 Students Who Did Not Get VaccinatedThe University of Virginia adopted a vaccination mandate. Of its 27,000 students, 238 students were “disenrolled” because they didn’t get vaccinated . About 96.6% are vaccinated. A small number of students (1.3%) received medical or religious exemptions and are required to wear a mask and get tested regularly. A university spokesman said: “If you’re unvaccinated, we ask that you wear a mask at al
The Battle Against Reality and Science IntensifiesNews flash: We are in the midst of a deadly, once-in-a-century pandemic. More than 600,000 Americans have died a horrible death, gasping for breath in a crowded hospital room with no family member there to comfort them, no family member to hold their hand as they die. Yet, there are millions of people who refuse to be vaccinated and who vigorously protest any effort to mandate masks or vaccinatio
Jeff Bryant: The End of School “Reform”Jeff Bryant is a journalist who specializes in education. In a recent issue of The Progressive , he details the many failures of what is falsely called “education reform.” The term for many has been a ruse for privatization via charter schools and vouchers. Instead of “reform,” it should be called disruption and destruction. Bryant leads the Progressive’s Public School Advocate project. This is a
North Carolina: Does Anyone Care about Ethics and Conflicts of Interest?Greg Childress of NC Policy Watch reports that a government watchdog group has lodged a complaint against one of the state’s most powerful elected officials. Rep. John Torbett, chair of the House K-12 Education Committee and the Education Subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations failed to acknowledge that his wife serves on the board of a state-funded charter school. He writes: Rep. John T
Gary Rubinstein: What You Need to Know about Admissions to Specialized High SchoolsGary Rubinstein teaches mathematics at Stuyvesant High School in New York City, one of the most rigorous schools in the nation. Admission is based on scores on one examination given on one day. The top scorers are accepted, as is the case in several other exam schools in New York City. Gary wrote a series of posts about these schools and their admissions policies. Here is a link to all of them. I
St. Louis: Stealth Effort to Push More Charter Schools Enrages School BoardA coalition of organizations in St. Louis combined to promote a new vision of education. Even the superintendent of schools added his name. But when the school board realized that the “new vision” was funded by Opportunity Trust , a pro-charter outfit, they insisted on a moratorium. Once again, an astroturf group was planning to hasten the pace of privatization. The city currently has 18,000 stud
Texas: Disability Advocates File Federal Lawsuit Against Governor Abbott’s Masking BanIn Texas, a federally authorized organization filed a federal lawsuit to block Governor Greg Abbott’s ban on masking mandates. Abbott has repeatedly said that the decision to wear a mask should be made by parents, not by school boards. CONTACT: Edie Surtees, Communications Director esurtees@drtx.org 512-407-2739 First Federal Lawsuit Challenging Mask Mandate Ban Filed Against Texas Governor and T
