Category: Uncategorized
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Senator Boysko on Home Defense
by James C. Sherlock I have a loaded 9 mm semiautomatic handgun in my house for defense against home invasion. Never take it out of the house except to the range. It is locked up but readily accessible, even in the dark by a 77-year-old. If my kids were still at home I would still…
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Freitas Introduces Higher-Ed Transparency Bill
by James A. Bacon Delegate Nicholas J. Freitas, R-Culpeper, has introduced a bill, HB 1800, that would bring much needed transparency to the governance of Virginia’s public higher-ed institutions. The bill was cited in a list of priority legislation backed by Attorney General Jason Miyares. The bill contains several elements: Governing boards of public colleges…
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Area Principals Admit to Withholding National Merit Awards From Students
by Asra Q. Nomani While Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Michelle Reid claims the principal at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJHSST) withheld National Merit awards from students in a “one-time human error,” parents at two local high schools got a Friday and Saturday night surprise. The revelations are emerging after school…
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As TJHSST is Investigated, an Email from 2020 Reveals a ‘Pattern and Practice’ of Hiding Awards
by Asra Q. Nomani This week, Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares walked through the glass doors of the Korean Community Center off Little River Turnpike, the dome of Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology visible through the window, and with him stood five parents of current and former students at TJ, as the…
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Politics, Virginia Style
by Bill Bolling It has been said that if you love politics, Virgina is a great place to be because there is an election every year! This year, 2023, will be no exception with all 140 seats in the Virginia General Assembly up for grabs. But 2023 will not be your typical General Assembly election…
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Mysterious Laptop May Hold Clues To Virginia Beach Mass Shooting
by Kerry Dougherty Most of the country is focused on the chaos taking place in Congress. That’s nothing compared to the slice of crazy unfolding in Virginia Beach. As best we can stitch together from Facebook and stories in The Virginian-Pilot, a member of the House of Delegates has been sitting on what could be…
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Trust, but Verify
by Jim McCarthy Thirty-five years ago this past December, President Ronald Reagan asserted U.S. policy with respect to international nuclear arms controls was to be guided by “Trust, but Verify” (TBV). Mikhail Gorbachev who led Russia from 1985-1991 through dissolution of the Soviet Union had led the promotion of glasnost, a policy of openness and…
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Chaos in Congress Isn’t Good for Virginia
by Robin Beres In a recent column for the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Rep. Bob Good (R-VA 05), noted that as of this month, “the U.S. House of Representatives will be the only thing standing between Americans and the Democrats’ assault on freedom, the family, the economy and our national security.” The GOP won the House majority…
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Dealing with Trolls
by Carol J. Bova In March 2022, The Atlantic published an article, “Trolls Aren’t Like the Rest of Us,” by Arthur Brooks, a contributing writer at The Atlantic and the host of The Atlantic podcast “How to Build a Happy Life.” Brooks wrote: If you use the internet, the odds are about even that you’ll be mistreated there. A…
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Just-in-Time Remediation for Kids Who Fall Behind
by Matt Hurt There have always been students who have evidenced a year or more delay in their independent working ability. Unfortunately, our educational response to the pandemic of closing schools and offering virtual instruction has made this problem significantly worse (more on that here). Today there are significantly more students who are a year…
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Who Kept Your Grocery Taxes High This Holiday Season?
by Scott Dreyer Turkey, ham, chuck roast, pork loin, cornish hens, cranberries, potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans, rolls, corn, cheese, flour, sugar, egg nog, hot chocolate mix. Quick! What do these items have in common? For one thing, they are popular food items, most not only year-long, but especially at the holiday season. Plus, if…
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The Big Christmas Chill Was a Wakeup Call
by Bill O’Keefe As temperatures dropped dramatically over the Christmas weekend, Dominion Energy’s advice to its customers — those who still had power — was to turn down their thermostats. Virginia was not alone. PJM, the regional grid management organization covering 13 states and the District of Columbia, made the same request because its gas…
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RVA 5×5 – New Year’s Nuggets
by Jon Baliles Left In The Cold The Richmond Free Press Editorial Page ends the year batting 1.000 and goes two for two this week. The main editorial covers the disgraceful lack of attention, urgency and concern by the mayor and the administration for those in need of shelter during last week’s arctic blast. It…