Thoughts on random issues in the public square:
- How quickly Bush began a turnaround with the Miers withdrawal, Alito nomination, Bernanke Federal Reserve appointment, and Iraqi voter approval of their constitution. Now if he can get really tough on domestic spending and much bolder on immigration policy, he will have turned the corner.
- The best (only?) decision to come out of Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco’s office since the Katrina disaster is to propose legislation that will convert the large majority of New Orleans schools to charters under new management. What a transforming experience this will be for the thousands of children who have been condemned to these failed institutions and what great potential for the city to serve as a laboratory for innovative reform.
- Clearly, the Democrats are close to meltdown after their extreme disappointment that Karl Rove has so far escaped indictment in the so-called “CIA leak” case. As incredible as it sounds, it appears they actually believed that the investigation would result in sufficient grounds to begin impeachment proceedings against Bush! The depth of their hatred and paranoia never ceases to amaze.
- Kudos to Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison for introducing a bill that would give states and local communities the authority to enforce federal immigration laws. Hopefully, this is a small first step toward eliminating the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policies that undermine the rule of law. Next, she needs to work on eliminating our silly anti-profiling regulations.
- Religious persecution watch: According to First Things, new Air Force Academy regulations will ban anything that might be perceived as favoring a particular religion or even “the idea of religion over non-religion” except in “extraordinary circumstances”, which appears to be a veiled attempt to begin to eliminate religion from the ordinary life of our military in the name of “sensitivity”. Not a positive development.
- From the Texas Journal, a story on the frustration of parents with the performance of Coppell ISD, which is rated low-performing in student achievement by almost all indicators. Included is this excerpt from an administrator on the “best practices” approach of the district: “The principles are student-centered, experiential, holistic, authentic, expressive, reflective, social, collaborative, democratic, cognitive, developmental, constructivist, and challenging.” Is the resulting low performance any surprise?
- I continue to be inspired by one of the great unsung heroes, Ward Connerly, who continues to fight the unpleasant and underappreciated battles against racial preferences in the name of “diversity” in employment, contracting, and, most importantly, college admissions, which make a mockery of the 14th Amendment and the Civil Rights Act of 1964. His organization, the American Civil Rights Institute, deserves the support of every American who truly believes in equality under the law.
- One of the more historically significant “teaching moments” is about to begin in the form of the long-awaited trial of Saddam Hussein. Properly conducted, this process promises to be the most instructive event of the entire campaign to transform the Middle East, primarily because of its potential to not only inform rank and file Arab Muslims of the depth of the depravity of his regime, but to serve to educate them on the proper response to these crimes in a democratic order under the rule of law.
