May 2005
Web Exclusive
K-12 Reform – Inga Bergel
If schoolchildren can be described as human capital, teachers as sellers in a marketplace, and the public school system as a monopoly (as Lou Gerstner did in Reinventing Education: Entrepreneurship in America’s Public Schools), then how, exactly, is the business of education faring today? With reduced funding, a new focus on standardized testing and the No Child Left Behind Act, it may be less well than we would like to think. [more]
Volume 8, Issue 5
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Berkeley
The Future of the Party – Aric Wong
Being your rank-and-file Democrat is one thing. Being a Cal Dem? Now that’s just something else. When you’re willing to roll out of bed at seven on a Friday morning and drive a god-awful four hundred miles to the 2005 California State Democratic Convention in Los Angeles, you can’t be mistaken for anything else. [more]
Berkeley: An American Town – Tommaso Sciortino
I grew up in the unincorporated community of Rancho San Diego. For those of you not familiar with the phrase “unincorporated community,” imagine a huge, gaping void of political nothingness. The worst aspect wasn’t that my most immediate representative was one of five members of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors. It was that we didn’t even care. [more]
The Indefatigable John Kerry – Jordan Lee
In March of 2001, two months after the first inauguration of George W. Bush, Al Gore was steadily receding from the public consciousness. He vacationed in Europe, grew a beard, and settled into a decidedly less political life. [more]
Environment
Drilling Ourselves in the Foot – David Lyons
When the Senate voted recently to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) to oil drilling, the environmental movement suffered another blow in what has become a bloody fight against the Bush Administration. Following the “Clear Skies” Initiative that made it easier for industrial companies to pollute, … [more]
The Democratic Party & You – Jimmy Tiehm
An elderly man breaking-and-entering in red drab (sooo last year); a Donnie Darko-esque bunny sneaking through your yard and planting plastic capsules; waking up in a gutter dressed in all green and reeking of Guinness—holidays have become pretty absurd and commercialized these days. [more]
Ideals
Why I Am a Democrat – Scott Lucas
I get mistaken for a Republican. Frequently. By professors, friends, parents of friends, people on the street, other Democrats, Republicans, the Lyndon LaRouche Youth Movement. It’s the one thing that brings everyone together. [more]
Patriotism 101 – Sarah Edwards
In times of rebuilding and strengthening for the Democratic Party, it is crucial to redefine and enunciate the values that have made our party a strong representative of the American people throughout the last century. In recent years, the Republican Party has claimed a monopoly on patriotism, asserting that only conservatives share this important value. [more]
Nine Ways to Bolster Homeland Security – Nathan Schneider
How we can work for a safer America and a safer world—without compromising our civil liberties. [more]
Spending
Investing in California – Joseph Testa
Why are California schools 44th nationally in per pupil spending? Why is traffic congestion increasing, tuition rising, and social services declining? Why is the richest state in the richest country closing libraries and schools, leaving millions of children behind, and failing to balance a state budget? [more]
Passing the Check – Jamie Beard
By now, most of you have probably gotten the “Using Credit Wisely” speech from your parents. In a time when the costs of living, not to mention the costs of attending college, is so high, many find it impossible to live without putting some of their expenses on plastic. [more]
Commentary
Blogging Killed the Media Star – Adam Miller
Hunter S. Thompson had to go and shoot himself in the head right when we needed him most. Fortunately for those who crave “gonzo journalism,” a Thompson phrase that defines itself, liberal bloggers are filling his shoes, at least in part. They’ll never generate as dense a purple haze as Thompson did when he wrote, nor could most manage to remain coherent through it. That said, the liberal Blogosphere … [more]
Washington’s Medical Malpractice – Sarah Edwards
In bustling cities, rural towns, and sleepy suburbs alike, uninsured individuals die every day because they cannot afford basic health care services. Chronic illnesses left untreated lead to emergency room trips when simply visiting a doctor could have fixed the problem much earlier. Although we have come to expect such occurrences in developing nations, these scenarios are actually happening in the world’s wealthiest, powerful, and influential nation—The United States of America—and the victims are our citizens. [more]
Equality
UC Workers’ Strike – David Denney
On Thursday, April 14, chants of “UC not for me, living wage now!” poured out from hundreds of university service workers participating in a powerful and moving labor strike. The American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees—the labor union representing university service workers—staged the strike, voicing the workers’ plight from midnight on the 14th until midnight on the 15th. [more]
Judge Stands for Equality – Jennifer Archuleta
On March 14, 2005, California gay and lesbian couples and gay-rights advocates received some good news on the issue of same-sex marriage, in the form of a court ruling by a surprising ally; San Francisco County Superior Court Judge Richard Kramer, a Catholic Republican appointed to the bench by former Governor Pete Wilson in 1996. [more]
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