Common Core Is Not A New Exercise Program

A Couple of Things 

Small Untitled Piece by John Bonanno

 

Common Core

 Isn't it funny that when the federal government implemented common standards under George Bush the right had no problem. "No child left behind" was a joke that taught tests not children. The Obama administration implements standards called "common core" to attempt to prepare children for college or the workplace and it is considered evil by the usual suspects. I think Common Core is a little better than the ridiculous "No child left behind" which really amounted to "No child gets ahead." What a country!

Personally, I think we need smarter and better teachers who really know their subjects. That would require raising pay (and changing the criteria used to hire teachers so that we have educators that have been trained more in subjects and less in the metatheories of education) and we all know Republicans will never go for that. So politicians just bump along trying to find some magic formula to overcome the crappy American education system. I doubt it will happen.

By the way, Jeb Bush is the politician who has been the biggest promoter of "common core" in the country.

Why Bowe Bergdahl Will Not Be Charged With Desertion and Why It Is Plain Wrong to Call Him "Deserter" 

    Bowe Bergdahl can't be charged with desertion since he was taken prisoner immediately by the Taliban. It doesn't become desertion until  AWOL (absent without leave)  continues for 30 days. Being taken prisoner obviously prevented Bergdahl from returning to base and abrogates any desertion charge. I would say that the majority of people in the military are AWOL at some point in their military careers, usually after getting drunk or hooking up with a woman. Bergdahl has never been charged by the military with any crime. The only crime under the UCMJ he can be charged with, in my opinion based on current evidence, is AWOL, for a day and, perhaps, failure to follow orders (I assume a standing "don't leave the base" order existed, but who knows?), not such a serious thing as desertion. But I can't blame all those rabid right wingers who never wore a uniform for their ignorance of the UCMJ, can I? 

Many stories were circulating about the 7 or 8 soldiers who were killed in the search for Bergdahl but it looks like that was all right wing hysteria. None of these so-called victims have actually been linked to trying to rescue this man when they were killed as far as I can tell.