[This post is inspired by a recent masterful piece by one of my real role models as a writer on all topics related to education: Peter Greene, the author of Curmudgication. Thank you, Peter, for so beautifully capturing the frustration that so many teachers feel about the standards and testing movement that seems to be dominating our work in the […]

A column written last year by Stephen Mucher, Director of the Master of Arts in Teaching Program at Bard College, has attracted a lot of attention from those concerned about the health and vitality of public education. And for good reason. Mr. Mucher mentions the recent history of campus protests across the country, which he says he has noticed on his […]

There is no evidence that the establishment is overruling the will of the people in the Democratic primary 1) Clinton has consistently led national match-ups. Sanders was gaining ground on her, but that appears to have stopped and even reversed. At no point in the entire cycle has he led the Huffington Post polling average. If we went back now […]

When Scott Walker announced his candidacy for president in July of this year, labor supporters across the country collectively groaned that the thought that anyone at all would consider voting for the anti-worker, Koch brothers puppet. Richard Trumka, the president of the AFL-CIO put out a press release with just six words: Scott Walker is a national disgrace. Yesterday, Scott […]

Last week was an incredible week for all Americans, but most especially for progressives and activists and advocates for equality and equity. We need to take time to celebrate these crucial and impactful Supreme Court decisions, all three of them. King v. Burwell affirmed what most common sense non-elected Republicans have known from the beginning of the Affordable Care Act. […]

“The future of labor is the future of America,” labor leader John Lewis said, during the Great Depression. And for a long time, you had to squint to see that future because it’s so bright. America capitalized on its enormous advantages after World War II with unprecedented growth that was — thanks to the labor movement — widely shared. However, […]

Blame politicians, not the voters, for Prop 1’s failure I want to be clear that, like the other authors on this site, I voted for Prop 1 and am disappointed that it failed. We need to fix the roads. I think increasing the gas tax is an appropriate way to pay for that. And Michigan’s low-income workers lose out without […]

What I thought was going to be a review of the premier of the documentary that made its Michigan debut on Sunday, March 8, 2015 at the Maple Theater in Bloomfield, MI, titled, She’s Beautiful When She’s Angry is turning more into a testimonial in many ways. Many deeply personal ways. Director/Producer/Writer Mary Dore was in attendance for the premier […]

In less than 10 weeks from today the voters of Michigan will be asked to vote on the ballot question titled Proposal 1, or as it is commonly being called the “road fix bill”. Here are the main elements of Proposal 1: An increase in transportation revenue of $1.3 billion, with $1.2 billion a year going to roads and about […]

Update:  The program I mention toward the end of this story was called “The Win Machine” and it was delayed for use but eventually went up and was successfully used by 2500 people, a significant number.  Also, and this did deserve a mention earlier today, but the miabsetee.com app/site was VERY successful and helped both many Democrats and Republicans register […]

Ray Holman is the Legislative Liaison for UAW Local 6000 and, for those of you not familiar with this Local, they represent over 22,000 state of Michigan workers that cut a wide path. Their membership, according to their website, “represents workers in every Department in State of Michigan government. We are the nurses, teachers, doctors, probation officers, social workers and […]