Is college worth it? A new study seems to indicate that college graduation, even with the growing cost of tuition, still returns income far above that of high school educated workers. Further, it isn’t the 1% that is the biggest cause of inequality in America–it’s college. I hate my student loans. I hate them with the heat […]
USOE Negotiated $5.4M SAGE Contract with Florida without Board Knowledge or Legal Counsel Review
May 14, 2014 by
In recent weeks, the Utah Board of Education also faced a strange situation when Judy Park, an assistant superintendent, negotiated a contract estimated to be worth $5.4 million with Florida to share SAGE questions. The State Office of Education did not give full disclosure to the Board until after the fact, admitted that it lacked expertise in negotiating […]
Senator Lee: “America’s crisis of crony capitalism”
April 30, 2014 by
In a speech on Wednesday (find the full speech below at bottom), Utah Senator Mike Lee took on what he sees as a major problem causing a loss of opportunity for the poor and middle classes–the rise and expansion of cronyism in the growth of government to benefit well-connected special interests and businesses. The more power […]
To Gag or Not to Gag? (Religion That Is)
April 6, 2014 by
A couple weeks ago, Hobby Lobby made it to the Supreme Court of the United States. The issue was Obamacare’s abortifacient/contraceptive/sterilization mandate. Hobby Lobby (a closely held corporation run by a believing evangelical Christian family) insists the mandate violates its religious beliefs and its free exercise of religion under the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act. […]
To the Utah Board of Education: Don’t Rush to Replace Menlove
March 31, 2014 by
Utah’s State Superintendent of Public Instruction Martell Menlove is retiring, and the questions raised by his exit from the State Office of Education don’t have anything to do with the LDS mission he may serve with his wife. Selected unanimously by the state school board after just ninety minutes of deliberation in 2012, the process of Menlove’s […]
Utah AG didn’t tell Republican caucus not to pass SB100…?
February 10, 2014 by
To listen to Senators Jim Dabakis or Steve Urquhart, at least through the lens of the Salt Lake Tribune, you would think that Assistant Attorney General Gene Schaerr, hired just for the purpose of running the Amendment 3 case, had single-handedly killed SB100 by advising legislators not to pass it. [Sen.] Jim Dabakis and Sen. […]
What do attacks on the religious say about America and free speech? [KSL]
February 4, 2014 by
The following is an op-ed I wrote that was published by KSL. SALT LAKE CITY — With the Human Rights Campaign’s tactic of attacking supporters of Amendment 3 for their religious convictions, we have seen an ugly shift toward divisive politics over civil discourse. Last week, Fred Sainz of HRC attacked Gene Schaerr, Utah’s […]
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