Hoi Polloi – The Politicus

Michigan Legislators Jack O'Malley, Curt VanderWall Conspire With Sheriffs Against Governor Whitmer

This article first appeared on Up North Progressive on April 15, 2020 Today the sheriffs of four counties in the northern lower peninsula of Michigan issued a press release stating they would pick and choose when and if they would enforce Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s executive orders. “While we understand her desire to...

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April 18, 2020

/ 2019 / Administration / Aging / baldwin / businesses / Campaign / Cars / Children / Community / Corruption / Donate / Election / Elections / Facebook / Fake / fakeaccounts / fakeprofiles / Family / friends / Funding / Hell / Income / Information / Infrastructure / John / Lies / Local / Media / Michigan / Money / Murphy / Nature / October / Pennsylvania / person / pioneer / Politics / problem / REAL / School / Schoolbondproposal / Schools / Stop / Students / Taxes / Teacher / Teachers / Turnout / Vote / Voter / Voters

School Millage Whack-A-Mole: Fake Facebook People and Modern Politics

Another election day in Michigan fades from memory and people are either celebrating or trying to figure out what went wrong. In Baldwin, Michigan, dismally low voter turnout sank yet another millage vote for an aging school building with a leaky roof and crumbling infrastructure that would be cheaper to...

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November 13, 2019

Administration / AsylumSeekers / baldwin / Border / Change / concentrationcamp / Education / Employment / Facebook / for-profitprisonindustry / GED / GEOGroup / Immigration / Jobs / Michigan / NorthLakeCorrectionalFacility / Prison / Trump

GEO Group Offered Me a Job at North Lake Correctional Facility: I Turned Them Down

THIS ARTICLE IS CURRENTLY BEING STOLEN BY MARY MINNICK WEATHERLY. IF YOU ARE HERE BECAUSE YOU FOLLOWED A LINK FROM HER FACEBOOK EVENT PAGE PLEASE KNOW SHE IS USING THIS ARTICLE TO PROMOTE AN EVENT ON HER MONETIZED FACEBOOK PAGE WITHOUT MY PERMISSION. Now that I’ve officially turned down the offer of...

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June 28, 2019

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CoreCivic and GEO Group Tug of War: North Lake Correctional Facility Has a Future (Again)

In the world of for-profit incarceration, one company’s loss is another company's gain. GEO Group announced on May 2, 2019, their successful contract bid with the Federal Bureau of Prisons to house 5,000 prisoners for the next ten years. CoreCivic, formerly CCA, issued a statement the day before that the...

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May 4, 2019

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Paperwork and Delays and You’re Paying More Money: Post-Trump Shutdown Tax Time is Here

When IRS employees came back to work on January 28, 2019, they faced a backlog of work left undone during the 35 day Trump shutdown. Yes, there were five million pieces of mail waiting for them and more pouring in every day. You probably think those 80,000 people walked into...

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January 29, 2019

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Legacy of a Nerd

This article was first published on Up North Progressive on December 29, 2018 On Christmas Eve Rick Snyder closed the citizen’s input hotline early to ensure Michigan taxpayers could no longer object to the shame duck bills he signed just in time for Gretchen Whitmer to take over on January...

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December 30, 2018

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For-Profit Charter School Founder Uses Extortion and Threats in Letter to Parents

This story originally appeared on Up North Progressive. Livingston Developmental Academy Co-Founder Chuck Stockwell is considered an institution in the Michigan for-profit charter school industry. Who knew a loving parent relying on vision therapy to cure his daughter of an inoperable brain tumor would over two decades later be the...

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September 20, 2018

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An Open Letter to the Senators Betsy DeVos Bought With Her Money

Betsy thinks this is all that’s required to be an educator. To the Republican Senators who intend to vote for Betsy Devos’s confirmation as Secretary of Education because she bought the office in the 2016 election: “I have decided to stop taking offense at the suggestion that we are buying...

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February 6, 2017

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Pig Bones and Public Schools: Meet Betsy DeVos, Our New Education Secretary

How are pig bones like public schools? Dick and Betsy know! Just in time so everyone would be too busy peeling potatoes and baking pies to notice, Donald Trump tapped wife and daughter of Dominion Christianity Michigan Billionaires, Betsy Prince DeVos. The wife of Dick DeVos and sister of Erik...

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November 24, 2016

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MDE Issues Guideline For LGBTQ School Safety and the MI GOP Reacts Predictably: Comment By May 11

About a month ago Michigan public school teachers attended mandatory professional development sessions on providing safe learning environments for LGBTQ students. The program caused enough discussion that school districts reached out to the State Board of Education for help. The State Board of Education and the Michigan Department of Education...

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March 26, 2016

Budget / Emergency / Financial / Flintwater / FlintWaterCrisis / Governor / Michigan / MichiganRecall / Nerd / plans / Progressive / Rescued / RescuedtoRecommended / RickSnyder / School / State / Tax / Taxes / thenerd / unknown

Dear People of Michigan: We Told You So

This blog originally appeared on Up North Progressive Can we revoke Directive 4 on The Nerd yet? Back in 2011, when an unknown, nerdy former chairman of the board of a former computer giant called Gateway was sworn in as governor of the state of Michigan, his plans for the...

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January 15, 2016

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Fund Raising GOP Style: Only One Answer Matters On Our Multi-page Questionnaire

Not that political party fund raising ever stops (just ask any member of the Democratic Party to show you their email inbox some time), but it's interesting to see the level of creativity the GOP conjures when asking for funds. Since most Republican-leaning people still get the bulk of their...

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May 30, 2015

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Why You Need To Opt Out Your Children From Standardized Testing NOW: Pearson Is Spying On Your Kids

Originally Published on Up North Progressive (( NOTICE: Bob Braun's blog had to be shut down after it was attacked. He also published an article about Pearson Education spying on school children's social media after school if they mentioned anything about PARCC.)) In the Hell on Earth that has come...

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March 14, 2015

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Please Support Michigan House Bill 4147 And Radically Change Our Public Schools

Originally published on Up North Progressive. Every week the Up North Progressive's email inbox receives a list of bills introduced to the Michigan state legislature. This week the Michigan House wants to make it illegal to teach Reading, Writing and Math with HB 4143. They also don't want Michigan schools...

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February 14, 2015

Candidate / Change / DaveAgema / Fear / GOP / Introduction / JoelPoynter / Leadership / letter / Michigan / MichiganGOP / MichiganRepublicanPartyChairman / MichiganRepublicans / Party / Republican / Republican Party / Tea Party / TeaParty

Tea Party Candidate Seeks MIGOP Leadership Promising Change We Can Believe In

Four people so far have thrown their symbolic hat into the ring to be the next chairperson of the Michigan Republican Party. Of the four, one Northern Michigan resident is among them – Joel Poynter of Lake County. Poynter was born and raised in Roseville and worked as an engineer...

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January 11, 2015

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Tea Party Charter School

No one should ever forget that one of the leaders in the profits before kids charter school movement is Hillsdale College. Their brand of for-profit charter schools which they call, “Classical Education”, is a nice way of saying Christian conservative education that bears little relevance to what students actually need...

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November 23, 2014

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Listen To EMU Regent Jim Stapleton Reveal The Origin of the Education Achievement Authority

It seems fitting to know now that the first meeting to discuss the governor's concept for the EAA was at a restaurant called “The Chop House.” The EAA most certainly lived up to being a horrific chop house of children and their education. This recording was made on September 22,...

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November 3, 2014

.LGBTrights / Border / Children / ClarkDurant / DaveAgema / DeVos / DickandBetsyDeVos / Election / EstablishmentRepublicans / GaryGlenn / Gay / Hate / Hell / Idaho / LeeChatfield / Michigan / Muslims / Obamacare / Oregon / Party / Primary / Race / Religious / Republican / School / State / Tea Party / Teacher

As Above So Below: Tea Party Hate In Michigan

Whether you live up north or down state in Michigan, one of the most interesting aspects of the 2014 election that barely anyone's talking about is the split in the Republican big tent. And by split I mean yawning Hell's Canyon-deep chasm (Hell's Canyon is on the Idaho-Oregon border. I...

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October 19, 2014

Accountability / BayCityAcademy / Business / businesses / Children / Choice / Community / Democrats / Disability / Distance / Education / For-ProfitCharterSchools / Fraud / GrandTraverseAcademy / House / Law / Legal / Michigan / MichiganStateHouse / Money / Oil / REAL / Rules / School / Schools / September / State / State House / SteveIngersoll / Stop / Tax / Taxes / Transparency / Trial

The Official Poster Child of Failed Charter Schools: The Continuing Story of Dr. Steve Ingersoll

Victory! On September 19 State Rep. Charles Brunner (D-Bay City) joined other Michigan House Democrats in supporting a bill that requires better transparency and accountability with Michigan's for-profit charter schools and with stricter rules for state charter authorizers. Brunner's example for why he supports State House Bill 5852 couldn't be...

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September 21, 2014

books / Business / Disabilities / DrSteveIngersoll / Education / Federal / Fraud / GrandTraverseAcademy / IDEA / learningdisabilities / Michigan / person / Phonics / Rescued / School / Schools / Science / SpecialEducation

GTA's Good Science Education Model: The Continuing Story of Dr. Steve Ingersoll

Grand Traverse Academy made many changes over the summer to make it appear like they have distanced themselves from Dr. Steve Ingersoll. His business partner, Dr. Mark Noss, formed a new LLC to act as management company for GTA. The school has a new superintendent and the person doing the...

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September 15, 2014

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AN OPEN LETTER TO THE ILLINOIS ATTORNEY GENERAL

Dear Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan: I realize the state of Michigan is out of your jurisdiction, but I wanted to bring to your attention that one of your citizens has been in our state for nearly four years and frankly, we're really sick and tired of him. Illinois resident...

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September 13, 2014

BAEO / BellCurve / Birthday / BlackAllianceforEducationalOptions / BradleyFoundation / Children / Choice / Civil Rights / CivilRights / DeVos / Education / Family / GaryNaeyaert / GeorgeWallace / GLEP / Governor / Happy / Internet / Michigan / Money / problem / Public / Racism / Rich / School / Schools / Segregation / Snyder / State / Tax / Teaching / Tweet / tweets / Twitter / War

Racism Blinders, Public Education, and Civil Rights: GLEP Is The Problem, Not The Solution

Last week Gary Naeyaert of Great Lakes Education Project tweeted an image that sparked outrage with many people in the state and earned the organization dedicated to destroying public education much deserved notoriety. After three additional tweets trying to explain what he meant by the meme to compare Michigan State...

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August 21, 2014

Authority / BayCity / BayCityAcademy / CharterSchools / Eclectablog / Education / GrandTraverseAcademy / Horror / Michigan / Money / News / Newspapers / Rescued / RescuedtoRecommended / Rich / School / Schools / State / stealing

Stealing Michigan Taxpayers’ Money The Charter School Way: The Story of Dr. Steve Ingersoll

Charter Schools are a scourge on this country, and no state suffers from this pestilence more than Michigan. Chris Savage of Eclectablog has done an excellent job exposing the horror known as the Education Achievement Authority, but they're not the only ones ripping off taxpayers to make themselves rich. Steve...

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June 8, 2014

Conservatives / Cosmos / Education / Evolution / IntelligentDesign / Mass / REAL / ReligiousRight / Science / Space / testing / Truth

Neil DeGrasse Tyson Gives Us What We Really Want: Real Science

In the first two episodes of the reboot of Cosmos Astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson has done an excellent job laying down the basics of time, space, and how life developed on Earth. Because Cosmos is a show about science, Tyson clearly explains in the same engaging way Carl Sagan did...

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March 23, 2014

DeVos / DickDeVos / Election / Facebook / Internet / Lansing / Message / Michigan / person / PinkFeatherBoa / Politics / Right To Work / RightToWork / Shame

A Simple Message for Michigan Politics

I've been told by a reliable source that a picture of Dick DeVos once appeared on his daughter's Facebook page very briefly before it was deleted. The picture showed DeVos on a boat while on vacation, very drunk and wearing a pink feather boa. It's a shame that person who...

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February 1, 2014

Abortion / child care / childcare / Children / Education / Google / GOP / Health Care / HealthCare / Insurance / Lying / Michigan / Petition / Pro-Life / Public / REAL / State / Tax / Taxes

A Real Pro-Life Policy

On December 11, 2013 the state legislature in Michigan voted on a petition measure titled, “No Taxes For Abortion Insurance.” The petition, circulated by Michigan Right to Life collected signatures telling people this was to make sure tax dollars didn't pay for abortions through the ACA. Of course, anyone who...

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January 25, 2014

Affordable Care Act / AffordableCareAct / Choice / Crisis / expansion / Government / Health / Health Care / Health Insurance / HealthCare / HealthInsurance / Income / Insurance / Interview / Jobs / Medicaid / MedicaidExpansion / Medicare / Michigan / person / plans / Poverty / problem / September / SNAP / State / Teacher / Washington

Falling Through the Cracks: My Healthcare Marketplace Story

I'm one of the people who won't be getting health insurance through the Affordable Care Act next year. I would really like to have insurance, but it's not possible. I'm currently part time employed as a substitute teacher in Michigan. This is not by choice, I live in an area...

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December 16, 2013

Access / Bible / Dead / Food / Freedom / FreedomOfReligion / friends / Government / Governor / Lansing / Michigan / News / Prayers / Pride / Public / PublicEducation / Religious / School / Schools / Science / Senate / Separation / SeparationofChurchandState / Snyder / State / Students / Thinking / Writing

Religious Freedom in Michigan Public Schools

Have you heard the wonderful news? Today the state senate in the great state of Michigan passed a bill that would provide religious freedom in schools! That's right, now everyone is free to express their religious beliefs in many ways that we couldn't before, because of the big bad government...

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December 13, 2013

2016 Election / 2016Election / BadassTeachers / Bullying / ChrisChristie / Failure / Football / GOP / Governor / incident / New Jersey / Public / Rally / School / Schools / Shame / Teacher / Teachers / Twitter / Wife / Women

“YOU PEOPLE! JUST DO YOUR JOB!”

Bully Chris Christie shouting down a teacher when she asked him a question.

That's what Chris Christie shouted today while his wife smiled at New Jersey public school teacher, Melissa Tomlinson, who dared approach him at the Rutgers football game rally and ask the question, “Why do you portray New Jersey Public Schools as 'failure factories?'” Dave Weigel of Slate snapped a picture...

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November 3, 2013

Answers / Bankruptcy / Children / Detroit / Emergency / EmergencyManager / Food / Governor / KevynOrr / Local / Maryland / Michigan / News / Police / Press / Public / Questions / Security / Service / Snyder / Wife

Does Kevyn Orr Live in Detroit?

Last week the headlines asked a question, and no one has really provided an answer. the question was “Is Kevyn Orr living too large in Detroit?” Local news reported that along with the six figure salaries for himself as Emergency Manager, his assistant and the police sheriff providing security that...

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August 1, 2013

Ann / Art / Bankruptcy / Cars / Cities / Citizens / Civil Rights / Data / Detroit / Disease / Emergency / EmergencyManagerLaw / Fail / Financial / gain / give / Governor / Health / Help / IDEA / Jobs / KevynOrr / Law / Michigan / Money / person / Positive / Power / Press / problem / Protests / Public / Questions / REAL / Refuse / Rescued / RickSnyder / School / Science / State / Stimulus / Stuff / Thinking / Trouble / Vaccine / World / worry

Nobody Likes Being A Guinea Pig

Especially when they know they're being used as a guinea pig against their own best interests. Guinea Pigs used in research never end up living happier, healthier lives either. The scientists and financial backers slap each other on the back and tell each other, “Oh well, better luck next time,”...

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July 21, 2013

Americans / Children / classrooms / CommonCore / Education / EducationReform / Fire / Kids / Michelle / Poverty / PublicSchools / Rescued / RescuedtoRecommended / School / Schools / State / Students / Teachers / Teaching / Union

The Top 11 Reasons Teachers are Undervalued

We've all heard the complaints about teachers: They're lazy, they get the whole summer off. What do they even do all day with those kids? It's not like they actually produce anything. Once they get tenure it's impossible to get rid of them no matter how terrible they are and...

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July 13, 2013

Administration / Apartheid / Authority / Constitution / Corporations / Dance / Detroit / Education / Election / email / Ethics / give / Governor / IDEA / Information / Kids / King / Law / members / Michigan / Money / News / p / plans / Positive / Public / Questions / Race / Republican / School / Schools / Skunk Works / SkunkWorks / Snyder / State / Technology / Transparency / Twitter / Wall / War / World

Snyder's Kickapoo Joy Juice or, A School Voucher By Any Other Name

Not many of us are old enough to remember the comic strip Li'l Abner, the dim witted hillbilly from Dogpatch. There was a cave called the “skonk works” where the still that created Kickapoo Joy Juice hid from the law and anyone trying to steal the magical elixir it produced....

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April 27, 2013

2007 / Americans / Assault / Children / Connecticut / Corporations / Criminals / Dead / Depression / Gun Violence / Guns / GunViolence / Idaho / Killed / Lobbyists / Massacre / Mental / MentallyIll / NewTown / NRA / Pain / person / Press / problem / Remorse / Sandy Hook / SandyHook / School / Schools / Silence / Surveillance / Virginia / Washington

When You Only Have a Hammer, Every Problem is a Nail

The NRA waited one entire week before issuing a statement about the Newtown, Connecticut massacre that left 26 people dead. When they did break silence, they once again broke a nation's heart. The murmurs of disbelief coming from the press were audible as Wayne LaPierre stood in front of them...

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December 22, 2012

Base / Book / Education / Environment / Food / Kids / Local / members / Michigan / Plants / Press / Public / PublicSchools / reading / Rescued / Resist / School / Schools / Science / Students / Water

Welcome to the Growing Dome

Reed City High School has something special other schools would benefit from. Two years ago members of the Science department put together the Growing Dome Project. This hands on learning facility offers high school students a fantastic opportunity to grow their own food and learn about different methods of growing...

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November 22, 2012

CEO / CEOs / Citizens / Civil Rights / CivilRights / Constitution / Dictator / Economy / Emergency / EMLaw / Facts / Governor / Lansing / Law / letter / Michigan / News / PA / Party / problem / REAL / Reality / Republican / Republicans / Resignation / RickSnyder / Snyder / State / Stop / Style / Truth

An Open Letter To The Republicans In Lansing

Proposal 1 was defeated in Michigan on Tuesday. This is good news (for now) for the state. Rick Snyder has already promised to draft a new Emergency Dictator law and decreed the zombie law PA 72 is now in force. The only problem with this is PA 72 was repealed...

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November 8, 2012

America / Americans / Anonymous / appointments / Authority / Billionaires / Boston / Campaign / Children / Choice / Citizens / Commerce / Community / Constitution / Destruction / effort / Election / Emergency / EmergencyManagerLaw / Fathers / Fight / Government / Governor / House / India / intolerableacts / King / Law / Legal / Legislation / Lies / Local / London / Massachusetts / Men / Michigan / Money / Party / person / plans / Power / Public / Representatives / Republicans / Revolution / School / spread / State / Stop / Tax / Tea Party / Thinking / UN / Union / Vote / War / Winter

21st Century Intolerable Act – The Michigan Emergency Manager Law

It was during the late winter of 1774 in London the House of Lords argued what to do with the American colonies after they were informed anonymous men dressed as Mohawks had boarded ships loaded with the Crown’s tea and dumped it into Boston Harbor. The British government knew they...

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October 31, 2012

Administration / busdrivers / Campaign / campaigntrail / Community / damn / Education / focus / Hell / Help / Honor / Infrastructure / Kids / Mitt Romney / MittRomney / Money / person / plans / PresidentialCampaign / Republicans / romney / School / Stop / Teacher / Teachers / Teaching / World / Youdidntbuildthat

Village? What Village? The Honor Roll Student Who Did It All On His Own

Today while on the campaign trail Mitt Romney made a statement that literally made me stop in my tracks and listen. He talked about a hypothetical honor roll student and how they accomplished that feat all by themselves. He finished the statement with, “You don’t thank the bus driver.” record...

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August 20, 2012

Ayn Rand / AynRand / Blue / Campaign / CBS / Courtesy / eddiemunster / Egypt / GOP / Interview / Iran / Joe / Love / Mars / McCarthy / Milo / NBC / NBCRomney / Nerd / News / Olympics / Paul / PaulRyan / President / RAND / romney / SAT / Snow / Space / Stop / Syria / Winter

Did you watch the Olympics?

I enjoyed the Olympics, or what little NBC bothered to air of the Olympics. We were stuck mostly with talking heads and human interest stories. How many times did I see a medal ceremony? I can count them on one hand. It's over until 2014 when we have the next...

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August 13, 2012

1939 / caught / Children / classrooms / College / Congress / Conservative / Crime / Death / Debt / Education / Europe / Failure / Fight / focus / Ford / Funding / give / Help / HenryFord / highschoolgraduation / History / Hitler / Holiday / Invasion / Japan / Jewish / Jobs / Kids / Manufacturing / Michigan / Poland / Poll / Polls / Press / principles / Public / reading / Reform / School / Schools / screaming / Shame / Shock / Speaker / State / Students / Teacher / Teachers / Trade / Values / Video / World

My Granddaddy Attended A Failing School*

Being a history teacher means any time I have the pleasure of finding artifacts I want to learn as much as I can from them. Sometimes the lessons I receive don't have the outcome I wanted, but still give me profound insight into how much American society and our values...

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June 18, 2012

America / Boom / Camps / Capitalism / Chicago / Cut / Detroit / Economy / Environment / Fine / Fire / Flint / Forests / Fracking / Furniture / Future / General / Government / Governor / Health / Immigrants / Jobs / Labor / Legacy / Manistee / Manufacturing / Mayor / Men / Michigan / Money / Moving / Muskegon / Newspapers / REAL / Reality / Rescued / RescuedtoRecommended / Rich / scars / State / Taxes / Travel / Wildfires / Winter / Woodward / worry

The Scars of Capitalism

Start a discussion about 20th century industry in America and images of factories humming with production probably fill your head. It's nice that romantic image fills your head because the reality is harsher to comprehend. Many factories today in this country sit idle; the people and machines that made them...

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June 14, 2012

Authority / Ballot / bargaining / Campaigns / Choice / Cities / Citizens / Constitution / Corruption / Court / Decision / Education / effort / Election / Elections / Emergency / Fail / friends / GOP / Government / Governor / Hell / Help / Helping / Hope / Jobs / Judges / Koch Brothers / Lansing / Law / Local / Madison / members / Michigan / Money / News / PA / Petition / Plutocracy / Power / Recall / Referendum / Refuse / Republican / Republicans / Rich / School / Schools / Snyder / State / Stop / Tax / Teachers / Union / Unions / Vote / Wisconsin

What the hell is the matter with the MEA?

Today, June 5th in the state of Wisconsin the most important election of the year to date will take place. The people of Wisconsin will have the choice to elect a new governor who stands with the voice of the people of Wisconsin, or keep the Koch brothers-funded, corruption riddled...

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June 6, 2012