Harvard Study Puts Three States on Medal Stand for Boosting K-12 Achievement
The latest edition of the Olympic Games is almost here (who else do you know who gets to live through two different Summer Olympics at age 5?), so what better time to hand out some figurative medals to states for K-12 student learning success? A new Harvard study by Eric Hanushek, Paul Peterson, and Ludger […]
Frack Attack: Cracking the Case Against Hydraulic Fracturing
A ban on fracking would not satisfy those who present general arguments against any kind of development. Acceptance of these arguments would require an outright ban on all oil and gas activities, new wind farm construction, electric transmission construction, residential housing developments, road construction, and the like. Before accepting any argument against fracking as sufficient grounds to restrict or ban its use, one should take that argument to its logical conclusion and consider the full set of repercussions. For if such arguments are granted valid status, they will be used again and again by whichever parties can benefit from shutting down any particular form of development.
RTD Fools the Wall Street Journal
“Denver rethinks the modern commuter,” heralds the Wall Street Journal. The article goes on to say that, instead of building parking lots at its rail stations, Denver is encouraging developers to build high-density, mixed-use developments. Somehow, this is supposed to be news. Let’s think this through. First of all, no one is “rethinking the modern […]
A Good Balance? Louisiana Brings New Kind of Accountability to Voucher Schools
Choice and accountability are two words you’ll hear my Education Policy Center friends say quite a bit if you’re around them enough. Empowering families with a broader range of educational options, and providing transparent information about — and real consequences for — a school ’s learning results, are two general principles they and I regularly […]
More Tales of Rail Failure
The ink is barely dry on California legislation to start building high-speed rail, and now they reveal a $2.5 billion hidden cost that wasn’t included in previous estimates, that being the cost of tunneling the final mile into San Francisco. It shouldn’t really matter, as they don’t have the money to build the last 130 […]
Time to Revisit the Need for Serious Cost-Saving K-12 Reforms in Colorado
In Education Next, Nevada state superintendent James Guthrie and co-author Elizabeth Ettema argue that U.S. schools face a prolonged period without historic per-pupil funding increases. The time remains ripe for Colorado K-12 leaders to develop a performance-based school finance system and to help forge a path that can be followed to promising innovations like blended learning and merit pay.
Stopping Obamacare: 10 Reasons to Oppose the “Exchanges”
As listed by the Citizens Council for Health Freedom Continue reading
Brookings Discovers Driverless Cars
Brookings Institution economist Clifford Winston points out in the Wall Street Journal that driverless cars will render high-speed rail and urban real transit even more obsolete than they already are. The Antiplanner, of course, brought driverless cars to the attention of WSJ readers two years ago. Winston’s major point is that, rather than build high-speed […]
Indiana Teacher Case Should Unsettle Colorado Union Foes of Member Options
Colorado union leaders succeeded in killing this year’s House Bill 1333, a proposal that would have granted teachers the ability to opt in or out of union membership with 30 days notice. Yes, they hung their opposition on the pathetic “local control” argument. And they have to be hoping the issue just goes away.
But poke […]
Can the IRS Can Use Liens and Incarceration to Enforce ObamaCare’s Individual Mandate?
“But, money being fungible, the IRS may simply deem my first $1,000 of income-tax withholding to be payment of that penalty,” & use all its intimidation power to collect the $1000 or real tax owed. Continue reading
Land-Use Regulation & Income Inequality
Harvard economists have proven one of the major theses of American Nightmare, which is that land-use regulation is a major cause of growing income inequality in the United States. By restricting labor mobility, the economists say, such regulation has played a “central role” in income disparities. When measured on a state-by-state basis, American income inequality […]
Land-Use Regulation & Income Inequality
Harvard economists have proven one of the major theses of American Nightmare, which is that land-use regulation is a major cause of growing income inequality in the United States. By restricting labor mobility, the economists say, such regulation has played a “central role” in income disparities. When measured on a state-by-state basis, American income inequality […]
