AP Education Poll: Firing Bad Teachers Not Only Issue On Which Public Weighs In
Quick hit for today from The Associated Press, highlighting results from a new education survey:
An overwhelming majority of Americans are frustrated that it’s too difficult to get rid of bad teachers, while most also believe that teachers aren’t paid enough, a new poll shows.
The Associated Press-Stanford University poll found that 78 percent think it should […]
Guess Which Governor Has the Worst Ideas on Energy Policy?
Today I posted the first annual “Energy Policy: Top 5 Worst Governors” list. Click here, to see for yourself who’s the worst. (Hint: He coined the term “New Energy Economy.”)
HB 1365 Update: Don’t Be Shocked If Xcel Ditches the PUC’s HB 1365 Plan
Despite media reports to the contrary, HB 1365 isn’t settled It has been widely reported that the book closed on the Clean Air Clean Jobs Act last Thursday, when the PUC selected an implementation plan after almost four months of deliberations, but this is untrue. In fact, there’s another chapter of this story, and the […]
Pro-liberty reactions to Virginia health care lawsuit (Cuccinelli-v-Sebelius)
A federal judge has ruled mandatory insurance to be unconstitutional. Pro-liberty reactions including the Independence Institute’s Dave Kopel, scholars from the Cato Institute, Reason magazine journalists, bloggers from the Volokh Conspiracy, & National Review’s health care blog.
High-Speed Rail = Low-Quality Planning
High-speed rail advocates are psychotic, says the Boyd Group, an aviation planning firm. Psychotics, notes the company blog, suffer from “confusion, disorganized thought and speech, mania, delusions, and a loss of touch with reality”–all of which describe rail nuts. “If you really want to see psychosis,” adds the Boyd Group, “log on to the DOT’s […]
Best Wishes to Michelle Rhee & Indiana Leaders, Even If Selfish of Me to Say So
My mom and dad work with me a lot to help me be less selfish. The phrase “Me first” is kind of frowned upon in our household. Ok, I get that. But what about “Students first”? Here’s hoping that success follows both Michelle Rhee’s national education reform efforts and the pursuits of Indiana State School Superintendent Tony Bennett, even if it comes across as selfish for me to say so.
Support for frac'ing fluid disclosure dries up
Having spent time on a hydraulic fracturing job site in Weld County, I can say that it is a completely underwhelming experience — just the way I want it. Hydraulic fracturing allows natural gas producers to recover natural gas from deep deposits. Frac’ing is both safe and cost effective. The fluid used is 99 percent […]
Regarding HB 1365, Here Are Two Numbers To Remember
$8 Doesn’t anyone remember the summer of 2008 when natural gas prices spiked to $8 dollar/mmbtu? Currently, coal supplies almost 70% of Xcel’s electricity portfolio; In 2018, thanks to the Clean Air Clean Jobs Act, coal will supply less than half, while natural gas’s share will increase to more than 40%. The upshot is that […]
How the Colorado Child Health Plan could save taxpayers $16 million
Colorado’s implementation of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program is the Children’s Health Benefit Plan (a.k.a. Children’s Health Plan Plus). It can save Colorado taxpayers millions of dollars by increasing enrollment fees to be comparable to those in other states.
Small May Be Beautiful, but Coercion Is Not
A new report from Oregon’s Department of Environmental Quality urges the state to give people incentives to live in smaller homes or disincentives to live in larger ones. A Life Cycle Approach to Prioritizing Methods of Preventing Waste from the Residential Construction Sector reviews the energy costs of various styles of homes and comes to […]
2010 Ozone Data: More Evidence That CDPHE Is Cooking the Books
Twice I’ve provided evidence that the Colorado Department of Public Health and Energy (CDPHE) has inflated projections of ozone ambient air concentrations (see here and here). Those were critiques of ozone projections. This year is the first year that we have a data set against which to judge the accuracy of CDPHE ozone modeling during […]
Douglas County School Board Takes Stand for Increased Parental Choice
On December 7, 2010 The Douglas County School Board unanimously passed the following resolution to increase parental choice:
BOE Resolution Choice Task Force
RESOLUTION OF THE BOARD OF EDUCATION
OF
DOUGLAS COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT, RE-1
REGARDING
A B…
