April 2012
20 posts
Help from the system that is failing is definitely not on the way. All the...
– Frank Joyce
The life-serving market system we want and the life-destructive capitalist...
– David Korten (via azspot)
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Gov. Rick Snyder is more hostile to K-12 education... →
Some in the room suggested there is “another agenda” at work — that some Republicans in Lansing are seeking to weaken traditional public schools to the point that the public will be more receptive to school vouchers and the privatization of public education. “I think they want to eliminate public schools,” said Susan Reichert, Climax-Scotts board president. “I...
Insanity: CISPA Just Got Way Worse, And Then... →
Up until this afternoon, the final vote on CISPA was supposed to be tomorrow. Then, abruptly, it was moved up today—and the House voted in favor of its passage with a vote of 248-168. But that’s not even the worst part.
The vote followed the debate on amendments, several of which were passed. Among them was an absolutely terrible change (pdf and embedded below—scroll to amendment #6) to the...
What we of the Western worldview embrace as progress is best understood from an...
– David Korten (via azspot)
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173 Climate Skepticisms Rebutted
onearth:
climate-changing:
bogleech:
I knew a lot of this and I’m sure most of you did as well, but it’s pretty nice to have such a comprehensive list with links.
It’s amazing this is even still a controversy when the science has been so consistent for so long.
This site is very good and should be on you list of favorites.
Will always reblog the great work of John Cook at Skeptical...
1 in 2 new graduates are jobless or underemployed →
Whistleblower: The NSA is Lying -- The U.S.... →
What we’ve seen over the last 30 years is a war on the human imagination. That’s...
– David Graeber (via azspot)
Few Americans realize the size of the problem. Healthcare costs America $2.5...
– Jim Clifton (via azspot)
The Invisible Hand Is Invisible Because It Isn't... →
Stiglitz says that “most Americans don’t realize that we are no longer the country of opportunity that we think of ourselves, that America today has less equality of opportunity than any of the other advanced industrial countries.” He points out how many like to say that our economy is doing well because GDP is growing, but that “if you’re going to be judging how well an economy is doing,...
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Apparently, the Michigan Republicans have passed 96% of their bills illegally.
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Michigan gets an "F" on "Corruption Risk Report... →
“The campaign finance system here has more holes than I-94 after a spring thaw. Big spenders and special interests can easily shovel millions of dollars into election activities — secretly if they choose… And the financial disclosure system for state elected officials?
Well actually, there isn’t one.
Welcome to Michigan, the “Trust Us” State when it comes to transparency. Reform...
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Why Does Tuition Go Up? Because Taxpayer Support... →
So tuition increases have occurred in part because of rather modest upticks in educational spending, but mostly they have occurred to cover the sharp declines in taxpayer support. The spending-constraint model offers a more consistent explanation for the facts than does the market-power formulation. Students are required to pay more because taxpayers are paying less—it’s that simple.
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State-by-State Look at How Early Spring Has... →
“For most of the country spring has sprung earlier this year, but is this anything more than a single warm year? It seems that it is. During the past several decades, with the exception of the Southeast, spring weather has, indeed, been arriving earlier.”
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Book of the Month, April 2012
Fruitless Fall by Rowan Jacobsen
Kirkus Reviews
Culinary writer Jacobsen (A Geography of Oysters, 2007, etc.) takes a laid-back yet terrifying look at the conundrum of Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), which has devastated honeybees. While CCD received media attention for its sheer weirdness, Jacobsen focuses on the larger ecological implications, particularly regarding the food chain. “80...
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Charity of the Month, April 2012
Project Apis m. (PAm) was established by beekeepers and orchardists in December, 2006, as a ‘New Vision’ to fund honey bee research on managed colonies. The organization’s goal is to fund and direct research to improve the health and vitality of honey bee colonies while improving crop production. Emphasis is placed on research studies that have realistic and practical usefulness...