Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 1:21 pm
FWIW, other news sites are confirming that story now.
So, uh... yeah.
Page 1 of 21
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 2:01 pm
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 9:20 pm
Weeeeeell kinda.
She's eliminating the existing iteration of CPS, which up to this point has been a subdivision of DES. There's a recent scandal involving the discovery that CPS failed to investigate 6000 reports of child abuse, which is kind of a fucking brobdingnagian deal. (Unless you're County Sheriff, in which case people just kinda shrug and vote for you anyway.)
This doesn't mean we're not going to have an agency that investigates child abuse anymore, it just means we're going to have a new one.
Ideally, this one will be more effective than the last one.
In practice? I don't think switching one government bureaucracy out for another is going to fix the institutional problems we're looking at, which come down, as usual, to a state legislature that isn't willing to fund a goddamn thing.
She's eliminating the existing iteration of CPS, which up to this point has been a subdivision of DES. There's a recent scandal involving the discovery that CPS failed to investigate 6000 reports of child abuse, which is kind of a fucking brobdingnagian deal. (Unless you're County Sheriff, in which case people just kinda shrug and vote for you anyway.)
This doesn't mean we're not going to have an agency that investigates child abuse anymore, it just means we're going to have a new one.
Ideally, this one will be more effective than the last one.
In practice? I don't think switching one government bureaucracy out for another is going to fix the institutional problems we're looking at, which come down, as usual, to a state legislature that isn't willing to fund a goddamn thing.
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Sun Jan 26, 2014 7:35 am
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Mon Jan 27, 2014 12:52 am
Judge rules it's okay for Sheriff Joe to shackle pregnant women.
...A US District judge. Damn. That means he won't be on the ballot in November.
...A US District judge. Damn. That means he won't be on the ballot in November.
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Fri Feb 21, 2014 2:03 pm
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Fri Feb 21, 2014 4:19 pm
Not quite passed. It made it through the Arizona Senate, still has the House to get through.
'course, it's Arizona.
'course, it's Arizona.
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Fri Feb 21, 2014 6:16 pm
Arizona is like a goddamn blasted hellscape
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Fri Feb 21, 2014 7:40 pm
TA wrote:Not quite passed. It made it through the Arizona Senate, still has the House to get through.
'course, it's Arizona.
Nope, House passed it. Just waiting on the Gov's sig.
Fuckin' hell.
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Mon Feb 24, 2014 6:26 pm
Arizona's State Education Committee just barred the state from implementing Common Core standards in education:
(via Hermit)
PHOENIX — Ignoring pleas from business leaders, the Senate Education Committee voted 6-3 along party lines Thursday to bar Arizona from implementing the Common Core standards the state adopted four years ago.
Sen. Al Melvin, R-Tucson, who championed SB 1310, said he believes the concept of some nationally recognized standards started out as a “pretty admirable pursuit by the private sector and governors.”
“It got hijacked by Washington, by the federal government,” said Melvin, a candidate for governor, and “as a conservative Reagan Republican I’m suspect about the U.S. Department of Education in general, but also any standards that are coming out of that department.”
Melvin’s comments led Sen. David Bradley, D-Tucson, to ask him whether he’s actually read the Common Core standards, which have been adopted by 45 states.
“I’ve been exposed to them,” Melvin responded.
Pressed by Bradley for specifics, Melvin said he understands “some of the reading material is borderline pornographic.” And he said the program uses “fuzzy math,” substituting letters for numbers in some examples.
(via Hermit)
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Mon Feb 24, 2014 6:49 pm
Melvin’s comments led Sen. David Bradley, D-Tucson, to ask him whether he’s actually read the Common Core standards, which have been adopted by 45 states.
“I’ve been exposed to them,” Melvin responded.
Pressed by Bradley for specifics, Melvin said he understands “some of the reading material is borderline pornographic.” And he said the program uses “fuzzy math,” substituting letters for numbers in some examples.
Amazing. They're on such a steep intellectual backslide they actually deny the fucking maths that got us to the moon.
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Mon Feb 24, 2014 8:11 pm
You can't just replace numbers with letters. That's witchcraft.
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Mon Feb 24, 2014 10:25 pm
Hermit wrote:Amazing. They're on such a steep intellectual backslide they actually deny the fucking maths that got us to the moon.
The man did just admit to being a Reaganite.
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Mon Feb 24, 2014 11:36 pm
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Tue Feb 25, 2014 1:26 am
zaratustra wrote:You can't just replace numbers with letters. That's witchcraft.
Worse. It was invented by Arabs.
...oh shit, the numbers were too!
Anyway, given that my wife is an algebra teacher, this is probably a point of particular interest to my family.
But I'd give it even odds that this turns into one of those things that's such a huge embarrassment that they slink away with their tails between their legs. (Remember the Texas Republicans opposing the teaching of critical thinking?)
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Tue Feb 25, 2014 2:35 am
Speaking of slinking away: three of the Senate Republicans who voted for the anti-gay bill are now begging the governor to veto it, because it's causing* "irrepairable harm" to Arizona's image.
Had they simply voted against the bill in the first place, their three votes would have been enough to sink it.
* Actually, of course, they're specifically blaming this on their well-meant bill being mischaracterized by those mean opponents. Phew, that was close - they almost took some responsibility there.
Had they simply voted against the bill in the first place, their three votes would have been enough to sink it.
* Actually, of course, they're specifically blaming this on their well-meant bill being mischaracterized by those mean opponents. Phew, that was close - they almost took some responsibility there.
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Tue Feb 25, 2014 3:49 am
And here I thought they were immune to shame.
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Wed Feb 26, 2014 12:11 pm
Anderson Cooper completely destroys AZ senator Al Melvin over anti-gay law:
Re: Arizona is a blasted hellscape
Posted: Wed Feb 26, 2014 9:10 pm
Can I get a Citizen Kane slow clap anigif up in here?
A heartfelt and unironic thanks to Governor Brewer. There's quite a lot I don't agree with her on, but she has my gratitude for standing up for sanity in the face of the craziest, most extreme elements of her party.
A heartfelt and unironic thanks to Governor Brewer. There's quite a lot I don't agree with her on, but she has my gratitude for standing up for sanity in the face of the craziest, most extreme elements of her party.