A new study was released in the last week by MIT and Duke researchers about the efficacy of exclusive, magnet schools. In the working paper, the researchers compared the achievements of students who narrowly qualified for magnet schools in New York and Boston against those who narrowly failed to qualify for the same schools. The… Continue reading Study provides more evidence against the bad school hypothesis
The myth of Social Security insolvency
The right wing in the United States has been executing a surprisingly successful public relations campaign to convince individuals that the Social Security system is somehow in dire straits. Paul Ryan — who for some reason continues to be taken seriously — has narrowly focused on Social Security along with Medicare and Medicaid as the… Continue reading The myth of Social Security insolvency
Note: hiatus and then a slow down
This is mainly meant for those few dozen rss subscribers out there. Due to work obligations and a cross-country move, I will not be writing much for the next couple of weeks. After that, with school resuming, there will probably be a slow down to an article per week or so, as opposed to the… Continue reading Note: hiatus and then a slow down
The American Dream and other attacks on deliberative democracy
The trope of the American Dream, or at least the phrase itself, has been making a comeback within the organizations that represent the American left. Most notably, Van Jones has dubbed his new project The American Dream Movement, and has established as its goal to “rebuild the dream.” What is the dream that we are… Continue reading The American Dream and other attacks on deliberative democracy
Boehner and Reid agree that poor students should pay more
The finale of the debt-ceiling theatre is nearing, and it is shaping up to be an exciting one. With this self-imposed disaster looming, two plans have moved ahead as front-runners in the negotiations. The two plans — proposed by Harry Reid and John Boehner — cut a basically identical amount of spending, with the exception… Continue reading Boehner and Reid agree that poor students should pay more