statism

Florida education chief resigns after fixing charter school grades for GOP donor

"Florida Commissioner of Education Tony Bennett resigned on Thursday after he was accused of changing a grading system while serving as Indiana school superintendent so that a Republican donor’s charter school would not receive bad marks. An Associated Press report earlier this week found that Bennett had quickly overhauled a school grading system after discovering that high-profile charter school Christel House was expected to receive a 'C' grade. Under a revised formula, the school was awarded an 'A' grade. Bennett had left Indiana to take the top education job in Florida in January." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFlorida education chief resigns after fixing charter school grades for GOP donor

Pennsylvania police chief suspended over profanity-laced, anti-liberal gun videos

"The Pennsylvania police chief who made a profanity-laced videos while firing machine guns and ranting about liberals has been suspended without pay for 30 days. After a 55-minute executive session, the Gilberton Borough Council voted 5-1 on Wednesday to suspend Chief Mark Kessler for using 'borough property for non-borough purposes without prior borough permission' by using machine guns and other weapons in his YouTube videos. Kessler had donated the weapons to the borough earlier in the year. In online videos, Kessler had used profanity to berate 'libtards' and suggested an armed rebellion against the government." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPennsylvania police chief suspended over profanity-laced, anti-liberal gun videos

Arkansas Attorney General Won’t Let School Arm Teachers

"Arkansas school districts can’t use a little-known state law to employ teachers and staff as guards who can carry guns on campus, the state’s attorney general said Thursday in an opinion that likely ends a district’s plan to arm more than 20 employees when school starts later this year. The Lake Hamilton School District has been using the same law for years to train a handful of administrators as security guards, but the guns are locked away and not carried by the administrators during the school day." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingArkansas Attorney General Won’t Let School Arm Teachers

Get ready for the ‘War on Sugar’

"The 'metabolic syndrome' maladies associated with insulin resistance and obesity – many authorities now just use the term 'diabesity' – are expected soon to overtake tobacco as the leading cause of heart disease in the world. And perhaps of cancer, too. Farmer Mike Small has high hopes for the campaign for a Scottish tax on sugar-sweetened beverages: he and his sustainable food campaign, the Fife Diet, will launch a new manifesto for it in September. Forms of sugar-sweetened beverage tax have already started in Denmark, France, Finland and Hungary. Scotland, Small says, is in the mood to follow." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGet ready for the ‘War on Sugar’

Glenn Greenwald: Congress ‘forced to learn about what the NSA is doing’ from newspapers

"Guardian columnist Glenn Greenwald on Sunday chided the U.S. government for claiming it had provided 'robust oversight' of the NSA even though members of Congress were forced to go to his paper to learn about secret programs that gather data on American citizens. 'We keep hearing that there’s all kinds of robust oversight by Congress,' Greenwald said, adding that lawmakers had provided 'very detailed letters trying to get this information and they’re being blocked from getting it and they’ve said, and other members have said that they are forced to learn about what the NSA is doing from what they’re reading in our reporting.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGlenn Greenwald: Congress ‘forced to learn about what the NSA is doing’ from newspapers

The concept of delusions gets a big — but unnoticed — overhaul

"It’s not clear who forcibly sedated her in 1972. It’s not certain that she was admitted to a psychiatric ward in the following year. Many people thought she was mad as she ranted about conspiracies in the White House during eccentric phone calls to the press. Questions about Martha Beall Mitchell’s sanity were encouraged by the Nixon administration, who consistently briefed against her and probably had her medicated against her will. But ultimately her claims were proven correct when the Watergate scandal broke. Claims against authorities are often dismissed by suggesting that the person has mental health problems." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe concept of delusions gets a big — but unnoticed — overhaul

The FBI Ran a Child Porn Site for Two Whole Weeks

"The San Francisco Chronicle reports that Bureau agents posed as child porn dealers, actively distributing pornography while the site was under their control—just as other agencies perform sting operations with drugs and prostitution. It's not yet clear if the technique worked that well: in the two week period, the FBI attempted to identify 5,600 users who had shared over 10,000 images of children. What can, perhaps, be judged, is the ethical position of distributing child pornography to incriminate suspects. Is it worse than supplying drugs in a sting? Or is it fair game given the end result? What do you think?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe FBI Ran a Child Porn Site for Two Whole Weeks

7 Things I Am More Concerned About Than a Terrorist Attack

"What I am doing as a result of the new US government terrorist attack alert? Absolutely nothing. The chance of a terrorist striking me is less than .000,000,0001%. However, there are things I am real concerned about. These are all very real dangers created by the state. When the state warns us of a potential terrorist attack, keep in mind what the state is doing to us on a daily basis--things that have a very real impact on our daily lives. The state is much more threatening to us than the less than .000,000,0001% chance that we will be directly impacted by a terrorist attack." Continue reading →

Continue Reading7 Things I Am More Concerned About Than a Terrorist Attack

What Bradley Manning’s life will be like in military prison

"Bradley Manning faces the prospect of years of monotony with no Internet access in a small military prison cell but he would likely be allowed to mix with other inmates and exercise outdoors. The 25-year-old Manning, who has yet to be sentenced, would be able to nominate friends and relatives for visits pending official approval. A handshake, a brief kiss or a hug that does not involve touching below the waist are allowed during visits, and visitors and inmates may hold hands. Prisoners are allowed to telephone friends and family through payphones that may only be used at set times, but they are not permitted to send email or browse the Internet." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWhat Bradley Manning’s life will be like in military prison

Why Do Bureaucrats Hate Bambi?

"I never thought I would have a special category about bureaucrats vs. Bambi. 1. Bureaucrats in Virginia filed three misdemeanor charges against a man for the horrible crime of rescuing a deer that was hit by a car. 2. Bureaucrats in Maryland fined two men $90 each for not having life jackets when they had the gall to rescue a deer that fell through some ice. 3. Bureaucrats in Indiana are threatening prison time for a family that rescued a baby deer from coyotes. The paper pushers of the world seem to harbor a special grudge against these harmless ruminants, since we now have another story about a baby deer. But this time, Bambi was the victim." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWhy Do Bureaucrats Hate Bambi?