The Huntsville Association of Small Businesses in Advanced Technology (HASBAT) hosted a Congressional Forum today featuring Republican Mo Brooks and Democrat Steve Raby.   The Forum was attended by more than 80 local business people and covered by the news media including Dale Jackson of WVNN,  Challen Stephens of The Huntsville Times, and Trang Do of  WAFF.  In addition, I had the pleasure of meeting ‘mooncat’ of Left in Alabama – she got the forum on video and I hope she posts it – I can’t wait to see their comments…

The following is a summary of the forum which I hope gives you, our dear readers, insight into the candidate’s position on issues.

OPENING STATEMENTS:
Brooks (R) = “facing a grave set of challenges”; “socialism versus free enterprise”; “balanced budget Constitutional Amendment”
Raby (D) = “don’t like the direction of our country… or what is going on in Washington”; “problem-solving standpoint”; “I believe in capitalism”; “reduce budget deficits”; “independent-minded”

QUESTION 1 = Jobs: what can the federal government do to create jobs in the private sector?
Brooks (R) = private sector funds government; extend Bush tax cuts; get Feds “out of the way”; “fewer taxes, less regulation”; “fair trade, not free trade” example China currency manipulation; “free the entrepreneur”
Raby (D) = we have “economic instability”; businesses are sitting on cash waiting on tax policy; Constitutional requirement for defense so “no one in this town should have to apologize for working for the government”; coordinate State / Federal economic development efforts

QUESTION 2 = Taxes: do you favor extending the Bush tax cuts and regulatory relief?
Raby (D) = most regulations are drafted with good intentions but twisted by administrators; “stabilize tax policy”
Brooks (R) = “this is a defining difference between me and my opponent”;  for extending Bush tax cuts; “you know what you’re going to get” if you vote for me

QUESTION 3 = Economy: unsustainable national debt?
Brooks (R) = “two years ago, Steve contributed $2,000 to my campaign” [each candidate praised the other - they're old friends];  “46% of operating expenses is borrowed money”;  can’t keep borrowing from children;  balanced budget except for crisis or war
Raby (D) = “I agree with Mo”; “greatest threat to our economy is continued deficit spending”; “for balanced budget amendment… except for capital projects like highways…”;  the $2000 contribution to Mo ”wasn’t the first time”; bipartisan; “I’ve given $48,000 to Republicans”; “going to take a centrist approach”

QUESTION 4 = Do you support Obamacare? 
Raby (D) = “No, I do not”; “wasn’t done in a transparent way”; hospitals say it will increase costs; Doctors won’t accept patients; “pre-existing conditions should be dealt with”; Medicare Part D doughnut hole should be dealt with; individual mandate “will not work”
Brooks (R) = “the issue is cost”; “socialized medicine is the end game for these people [Democrats]; “interstate competition”; “tort reform”; eliminate hospital Certificate of Need requirements; take legal bills out of health care costs; illegal aliens add costs; “a strong economy empowers us to pay for the health care we need”

QUESTION 5 = Defense: do you favor a “phased adaptive approach” to missile defense? [the guy who wrote the question later said he wished the question had been clearer]
Brooks (R) = overall the economy allows us to pay for defense;  “fed is taking $2.7 trillion out of capital markets, denying it to business”
Raby (D) = Constitutional requirement for defense; ”move money to R&D”; “prepare for the next war”

QUESTION 6 = Illegal immigration?
Raby (D) = “gather information”; “federal responsibility”; secure Southwest border and ports of entry;  focus on employers e-verify
Brooks (R) = “Thank Arizona”; secure borders; e-verify; make it expensive for employers to hire illegals

CLOSING STATEMENTS:
Raby (D) = “I’m on team Tennessee Valley”; “I don’t want to be grouped with these folks” [specifically trial lawyers but in the context of the Democratic team]; “the other team” pledged not to accept earmarks so Redstone Arsenal got $0 for Military Construction while Bobby Bright (D – AL02) got money for military bases in his district; “I’m not part of a political team”
Brooks (R) = politicans choose ideology (team); first vote in the House is for the Speaker of the House, it’s for a team; “bipartisan when it comes to mutual agreement”

***

Politics is a ‘team’ effort.  This is displayed by the very first vote each Representative casts for Speaker of the House.  Do you want two more years of Nancy Pelosi?

I thought that Mo Brooks did a great job.  Brooks was passionate and noted (often) that he has a record of fiscal leadership.  The only question he didn’t directly address was the missile defense question (it was too much inside baseball), but he gave a good answer.  Disclosure – Mo was a contributor here until the contested GOP primary and I have a ‘Brooks for Congress’ bumper sticker and yard sign.

I’m trying to figure out Steve Raby – I know many people who like him and I can see that.  Raby seems to be running away from the national Democratic Party (can’t fault him for that) – he said the word “independent” several times.  Raby dodged the Bush tax cut extension question, which was obvious to the crowd of small business people who will see their taxes rise on January 1.  I don’t doubt his concern for the Tennessee Valley.

I made the offer to Raby’s Finance Director that if they send us press releases, campaign event notices, or opinion pieces that we will post it.

***

Lisa Williams attended the forum with her husband State Representative Phil Williams (R – 6).   Lisa is one of my 10 year old niece’s favorite people – they met at a GOP breakfast – Lisa was very sweet and patient with her.

Thanks to HASBAT for a nice lunch and a great event!

David Brunsma, a Mizzou Sociology professor, published “The Effect of Student Uniforms on Attendence, Behavior Problems, Substance Use, and Academic Achievement” in The Journal of Educational Research when he taught at UAH (fun read!):

Recent discourse on public school reform has focused on mandatory uniform policies. Proponents of such reform measures emphasize the benefits of student uniforms on specific behavioral and academic outcomes… Our findings indicate that student uniforms have no direct effect on substance use, behavioral problems or attendance. A negative effect of uniforms on student academic achievement was found. These findings are contrary to current discourse on student uniforms.

This article was published in 1998, since then Brunsma wrote the book on school uniforms.  “Current discourse” indeed…  Schools adopt uniforms in hopes of imitating private and church school performance:

A decade of research showing the effectiveness of private schools has led some school reformers to consider various policies which are linked to private and Catholic school success. Within the Catholic school literature, school uniforms have never been asserted as a primary factor in producing the Catholic school effect.

Brunsma notes the opposing arguments to school uniforms.  Note the ACLU’s argument – cost to disadvantaged parents – more on that later:

Opponents of adopting uniform policies stress the legal, financial, and questionable effectiveness of such policies. The legal concerns focus on the supposition that requiring a uniform violates children’s individual rights… Financially, groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union have voiced concerns about the cost of uniforms, specifically that purchasing one is a mandatory cost which some disadvantaged parents are unable to afford. Finally, the strongest opponents to uniform policies charge that there currently exists no empirical evidence to support the numerous and varied claims of uniform proponents.

Brunsma then goes through a bunch of data and does unspeakable deviations and correlations and regressions to conclude:

Our failure to find a direct effect of uniforms on behavioral outcomes or academic achievement provide cause for a closer examination of the uniform debate. It seems that reformers have seriously considered the educational research showing outcome differentials between public and Catholic school students. However, it is equally apparent that the most superficial policies are those that have been extracted for possible reform efforts…

Instituting a uniform policy can be viewed as analogous to cleaning and brightly painting a deteriorating building in that on the one hand, it grabs our immediate attention but on the other, is, after all, really only a coat of paint.

***

The ACLU’s concern for disadvantaged parents buying mandatory school uniforms led to school systems (TAXPAYERS) buying the uniforms for those parents.  The City of Madison requires specific PE uniforms; since this is mandated the City is required to buy gym clothes for disadvantaged parents (thanks LCTMadison).  Are the same ‘programs’ available at the Huntsville schools that have adopted school uniforms?

We’re being told that the schools are in a funding crisis – but the School System is preparing to spend even more taxpayer money on a new school uniform policy – which doesn’t work.

I asked District 2 school board candidate David Blair about the uniform policy - he said it was “window dressing”.  Right answer.  But then he said that if the parents vote for it, he’d support it (saying something about ‘representing the District’).  Wrong answer on this issue.   Keep in mind that there was no real public discussion about the policy before the Schools sprung the phone poll on parents.  Also keep in mind that the taxpayers who will fund the program haven’t been asked their opinion.  Note that I voted for Blair in the municipal election and will vote for him in the runoff on October 5.

Challen Stephens of The Huntsville Times wrote the well-researched article “Huntsville city schools consider school uniforms, survey parents through robocalls”:

McCaulley, who represents north Huntsville on the school board, raised the issue in March, suggesting uniforms improve student achievement…  Anecdotal reports out of places such as California and Missouri have found success in reducing discipline problems.

Hmm… I wonder what people who’ve performed actual research on school uniforms have to say:

David Brunsma spent eight years studying the issue and wrote the book on uniforms, “A Symbolic Crusade.” He found little improvement in achievement or discipline. He wrote in American Teacher in 2005: “The results, although surprising to many, simply cannot be ignored. Uniforms do not make our schools better.”

Challen also gets responses from candidates for the school board:

[David] Blair… said he now leans toward school-by-school decisions instead of a systemwide policy on uniforms. “I think you’ve got to wait and see what the survey says”…

His runoff opponent, Emily Elam, said the same. “I feel like the process they are going through right now is the right way to go about making a decision on school uniforms.”

Runoff rivals in south Huntsville’s District 3 also said they’d wait to see the results of the survey. “The parents have got to want it,” said retired principal Walker McGinnis, suggesting he’d support school-by-school decisions over a systemwide policy.

His opponent, board member Jennie Robinson, doesn’t share McCaulley’s interest in the issue. “My focus right now is on academics and finances,” Robinson said Thursday. “Uniforms are kind of down on my priority list.”

One of the problems with the polling is that the Schools didn’t allow for discussion before the poll was taken.  People who read The Times, Flashpoint, or SoldiersPerspective may have seen Brunsma’s conclusion that “uniforms do not make our schools better” – but The Times article was written after the fact.  I don’t think that the results of the poll will be valid, given the lack of public discussion beforehand – and candidates who rely on this flawed process (Blair, Elam, and McGinnis) may arrive at a flawed decision.  Incumbent school board member Jennie Robinson is the only candidate with the right response to this issue.

This article is an example of what I like about Challen Stephen’s reportage.  He does the extra research to add information and value to his stories.  He gets the quotes from the right people.  Somebody should honor him with an award like Best Education Reporting.

CJ Grisham cited Dr. Brunsma’s research in the post “Huntsville City Schools Uniform Proposal”:

…uniforms FAILED, in our empirical analyses, to increase academic preparedness, pro-school attitudes, or a peer structure that supported academics. Finally, to our surprise, we found a small, weak, yet statistically significant negative effect of uniform policies on” violence.

Get that?  Uniforms do not help and schools that have uniforms are more violent.

I urge the Huntsville City Schools Board of Education (and candidates) to put a stop to this farce.  Do your jobs based on facts.

From MCYR, with my apologies for not posting this sooner:

Madison County’s own Young Republicans recently took home the prized Small Club of the Year Award at the National Young Republican Federation Conference in Washington, D.C.

“We’re thrilled and quite humbled to have been nominated for this award, and to have won speaks volumes about the momentum and enthusiasm that our club is building, the greatest element of which is our membership,” said MCYR Chairman, Clinton Carter.

 Alabama Republican Party Chairman Mike Hubbard said “The leadership of the Alabama Republican Party is extremely proud of the Madison County Young Republicans.  The award was well deserved and is certainly a testament to the commitment and passion of its membership.  I applaud them for their hard work and dedication.”

The MCYRs were chosen for the Award from 36 Clubs that were nominated throughout the country, out of over 150 Small Clubs in the nation. At over 70 members strong and a regular meeting attendance of 50-60 people, the MCYRs stay active in politics through monthly meetings, campaign volunteering, fundraisers and social get-togethers.

One of the county’s best attended political events of the year, the Huntsville Governors Forum held at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center, came through an event co-sponsored by the MCYRs with RightOnHuntsville.  The Forum featured six of the Republican candidates for Governor.  In all, 575 people attended the Forum and Pre-Forum Reception which also served as a Candidate Meet & Greet for non-Gubernatorial races.

“Our Club has really begun to gain traction in developing young candidates and in getting Republicans elected to all levels of office… as we say ‘from the Courthouse to the White House’” said Clinton Carter. During the past year, the MCYRs have fielded over a dozen candidates and nominees for elected office, including races for State Senate, Public Service Commission, City Council and State School Board.

WHNT TV19 reports that the Huntsville City Schools are polling parents to gauge support for system-wide school uniforms:

“Basically, the call tonight is to let them know that a parent phone call survey will be done tomorrow night to ask them their opinion on whether or not they would favor school uniforms,” said Keith Ward, spokesperson for Huntsville City Schools.

The information that is collected will be given to a uniform committee that formed last spring…

Four Huntsville City Schools have already adopted an independent school uniform policy, and Ward says parents love it. Those schools are the Academy for Science and Foreign Language, Montview Elementary, Williams Middle and Chapman Middle.

School “spokesperson” Keith Ward may have overstated parents’ “love” for school uniforms.  Here are some of the comments at WHNT, if you’ve got a few minutes read them all (plus people keep commenting) [UPDATE - WHNT deleted the comment thread]:

About Time says “Sneaker and name brand clothing competitions create a distracting environment.”

crock says “Right. Let’s make sure we don’t have any class envy going on in our schools. Make them ALL the same. Can they accessorize or would that make them “different”? How about a plain old common sense dress, appearance and hygene code.”

Old Teacher says “As for the pants around the knees and the show of a persons “step-ins”, just because a child wears a uniform, does not unsure that it will be worn corretly. As a teacher, when we called parents to the school to discuss a students behavior or dress, it was apparent where the model for clothes and language was coming from. I am all for a uniform program in Hsv city and Madison city. It has been proven that grades improve, discipline decreases and it is just a better environment for learning.”

bubles—a teen says “I am a teen at a school that has uniforms i don’t positivily hate them. But i feel that the crush self expession. you cant have your own special style because we’re all the same. adults always tell you be yourself it doesen’t make sense cuz now we can’t. they are (contrary to popular belief) more expensive because then you have to buy school clothes in addition to normal cool clothes. I know this new uniform thing wouldn’t afect me but I want to be heard unforms are a BAD IDEA!!!”

mominhuntsville says “My teenage daughter already goes to a Huntsville City School that has to wear uniforms,this is their second year wearing them, and to me their has been no change in any of the kids behavier. They still have as much trouble now as they did before the uniforms!”

concerned dad says “I believe if students are made to wear uniforms,then the staff should have to wear them also. I have seen teachers that don’t seem to know how to dress properly.”

Diane says “I think mandating that school students wear uniforms is a BAD idea.
1) It resembles more government-type control.
2) Children and their parents enjoy shopping and dressing nicely for school.
3) Enforce dress codes if a student is dressing too out of line.
4) Children need to think on their own and express themselves in their dress, their thoughts, and their actions.
5) Too many events in the past 2 years SMELL of control… dress control, mind control….what will be the next control that the Huntsville society wants to impose upon our children?”

serena08 says “I used to teach in the Birmingham City Schools system. The wearing of school uniforms DOES NOT lessen violence nor contributes to discipline in any way. It certainly does NOT stop the bagging and sagging of pants nor the showing of underwear. It’s a bad idea.”

Jerry Hammonds says “Our daughter attends Academy for Science and Foreign Language and we and our child loves the uniform system. This way there is no more u might say keeping up with the JONES, the kids look alot nicer and neater. We fully approve uniforms in the school system.”

Vote NO says “The schools already ask for copy paper, paper towels, and other supplies that the schools should be providing and now they want the parents to supply uniforms on top of regular clothes for afterschool and weekends? This is absolutely ridiculous. If my child is going to end up in a uniform it won’t be with Huntsville City Schools. The quality of education is already dropping in this city and this is what they’re focusing on. They need to straighten out their priorities. They can’t even enforce the dress codes they have now. Half of the high school teachers at some of the schools don’t look any better than the students. Maybe they should be starting there.”

sdjones says “If the uniform policy is anything like Williams middle school there is no way that I will support it. Has anyone seen the uniform code for that school? It is insane. They can only wear certain color jackets with certain color shirts,and certain parts of the uniform can only be purchased at Educational Outfitters. I hope those idiots at the school board are not trying to go that route…”

***

CJ Grisham wrote “Huntsville City Schools Uniform Proposal” in March 2010:

With over a decade of research on the topic now available, have those potential benefits been realized. Dr. Brunsma says no.

“To state the results of that study in a nutshell, we found that uniform policies did NOT distinguish between students who had attendance problems, behavioral problems, or substance use problems and those who did not. Furthermore, uniforms FAILED, in our empirical analyses, to increase academic preparedness, pro-school attitudes, or a peer structure that supported academics. Finally, to our surprise, we found a small, weak, yet statistically significant negative effect of uniform policies on” violence.

Ms. McCaulley and other uniform proponents have no facts from which to base their assertions that uniforms work. They cling to anecdotal stories from the perspectives of educators while ignoring real research. Uniforms cost families more, cost taxpayers more, and don’t provide any benefit to anyone other than the companies supplying them.

***

Candidates in the Board of Education runoffs in Districts 2 and 3 should let us know their thoughts on this issue.

***

Given the Huntsville City Schools past thuggery, make sure that if you speak out against uniforms that: 1) you have your employer’s permission (the Schools may try to get you fired); 2) you bring a video camera to public meetings (more cameras / people are better);  3)  you prepare your children for harassment from teachers and administrators;  and 4) you aren’t afraid of police harassment (hopefully the HPD has straightened that out).

I wish that I was kidding about the risks of speaking out against Huntsville City Schools, but here are some background posts:

http://www.flashpointblog.com/2009/11/11/cjs-speech-to-the-huntsville-board-of-education/

http://www.flashpointblog.com/2009/11/13/your-involvement-is-welcome/

http://www.flashpointblog.com/2009/11/20/bringing-the-spirit-of-terror-into-school/

***

The last time I remember the Huntsville Schools conducting a poll was for ‘Fall break’ vs ‘longer Summer’.  The Schools used the tactic of ‘manufactured consent’ – they had one ‘Fall break’ option and two different ‘longer Summer’ options (splitting the ‘longer Summer’ vote) – it looked like parents had a voice but the poll was rigged to the School’s preferred outcome.

From the Madison County Probate Judge’s Office:

City Council District 3 (5,666 votes):
John Olshefski (2,239 votes – 40%) is in the runoff against Barry Pendergraft (1,877 votes – 33%).

City Council District 4 (1,719 votes):
Incumbent Bill Kling won with 1,244 votes (72%).

Board of Education District 2 (4,252 votes):
David Blair (2,118 votes – 49.8%) faces Emily Elam (1,830 votes – 43%) in the runoff.

Board of Education District 3 (5,678 votes):
Jennie Robinson (2,731 – 48%) faces Walker McGinnis (2,595 votes – 46%) in the runoff.

Board of Education District 4 (1,670 votes):
Incumbent Topper Birney won with 1,174 votes (70%).

A total of 11,710 voters cast ballots in the municipal elections, almost half of those were in District 3.

District 2 turnout was fairly good, considering that the Board of Education race was the only item on the ballot.  Looking at the precinct votes it seems that David Blair did well in Southeast Huntsville and Emily Elam did well in Northeast / Downtown.

The Huntsville Runoff Election is October 5, 2010.

***

Here are links to The Huntsville Times articles:

“Blair, Elam ‘excited’ to be in runoff for District 2 school board seat” by Paul Gattis

“Walker McGinnis gains on Jennie Robinson, forcing a runoff for the Huntsville school board” by Challen Stephens:

Turnout was relatively high in south Huntsville’s District 3, as 22 percent of registered voters cast a ballot for school board…

McGinnis said he will push issues of parent involvement, accountability and transparency. In particular he said the school board, Robinson included, violated the public trust and the state sunshine law by deciding the fate of Superintendent Ann Roy Moore over e-mail.

“Had they not violated that, they would not have created that fiasco, that dissension between north and south Huntsville,” McGinnis said.

But Robinson on Tuesday called herself an independent voice. “It would be very hard to group me with the board,” said Robinson, “and Walker tried to do that.”

It’s true that Robinson had long been the most critical of Superintendent Ann Roy Moore. But it’s also true that the board voted as one not to renew Moore this summer, and voted unanimously to keep her on for an extra six months next year as an adviser.

“Topper Birney cruises to a third term on the Huntsville school board” by Challen Stephens:

Topper Birney, standing among supporters at the Huntsville Senior Center, announced Tuesday night that this will be his final term on the Huntsville school board…

Turnout was light. The center city’s District 4 has 19,767 registered voters, but only 1,670 marked a ballot for the school board race. [8%]

Thanks to Challen Stephens for reporting the election turnout in his articles.

***

Thanks to Lee Roop for writing an article on the election turnout “Huntsville District 3 led election turnout with 22 percent on Tuesday”:

Overall, only 15 percent of voters turned out for Tuesday’s municipal election, but one district with two hot races managed a more respectable 22 percent turnout.

Unofficial returns Tuesday night showed 11,710 ballots cast in three districts where elections were contested. There were 79,629 potential voters, according to voter rolls.

The highest turnout was in District 3, where 22 percent showed up for a contested school board seat and an open council seat.

The lowest tally was in council District 4, where about 9 percent of voters turned out to award incumbent Bill Kling another term.

In school board District 2, 12 percent of  voters or 4,252 sent David Blair and Emily Elam into a runoff for the seat.

Here’s a little military and statistics history…

Frederick Lanchester (1868 – 1946) was an amazing guy with many pioneering accomplishments in the fields of automotive engineering, aerodynamics, and operations research.  Lanchester invented the accelerator pedal (and much more).  Lanchester formulated the circulation theory of flight, which is the basis for aerodynamics.  Lanchester invented the field of operations research (mathematical modeling of complex decisions).

In 1916, Lanchester wrote Aircraft in Warfare: the Dawn of the Fourth Arm, which not only described air combat strategies, but also postulated Lanchester’s Equations (or Lanchester’s Laws) which modeled attrition during combat.  More accurately, Lanchester’s Laws are a set of differential equations that describe the time dependence of  attacker and defender strengths as a function of time.

Lanchester’s Linear Law is based on ancient battles where men could only kill the man in front of  them.  Lanchester’s Square Law (or Lanchester’s Power Law) applies to more modern conflicts where the correlation of two forces is proportional to the square of the “power” (defined either as quantity or quantity adjusted by an effectiveness rating).  What this means is that a relatively small advantage in forces can result in a large disparity by the end of the battle.

Quality Control guru W. Edwards Deming (also a brilliant statistician), the developer of Statistical Process Control, introduced Lanchester’s Laws and operations research to the Japanese after World War 2 – they applied the ’New Lanchester Strategy’ to business (market share) – like consumer electronics and auto manufacturing.  It works…

Researchers have tried to apply Lanchester’s Law to non-human combat, like fire ants in Florida or interspecific dominance among birds in Australia.   That’s not working out so well…

If you play video games (from first person shooters to real time strategy to strategic simulations), more than likely the game engine features some version of Lanchester’s Law.

Vote Tuesday!

City of Huntsville elections for two Council and three Board of Education seats are tomorrow. 

In my District 2, incumbent Councilman Mark Russell got a free pass (no opposition) – I would have voted for him anyway so that’s okay.  In the District 2 school board race,  The Huntsville Times recommends David Blair.  The South Huntsville Civic Association endorsed David Blair.  I think that Blair’s experience as a former school board member will be helpful as the board searches for a new Superintendent and deals with the budget.  I’m voting for David Blair.

The District 3 Council race features eight candidates.  The Huntsville Times recommended John Olshefski and Barry Pendergraft.  The South Huntsville Civic Association endorsed Pendergraft.  The Kingmaker Dale Jackson of WVNN endorsed Jonathan Hitt.    Brian endorsed Jonathan Hitt.  Disclosure – I contributed to the Jonathan Hitt campaign.

For the District 3 School Board seat both The Huntsville Times and the South Huntsville Civic Association recommended / endorsed incumbent Jennie Robinson.

Incumbent  Councilman Bill Kling received The Huntsville Times recommendation for District 4.

Incumbent Board of Education member Topper Birney got The Huntsville Times recommendation for District 4.

It doesn’t seem like the School Board will change much, but I hope that they adopt a better process for evaluating the School Superintendent (after they find a new one).  The school’s budget is a mess, and I hope that the new board provides more oversight than they do now.  Consider “optimistic” revenue projections (even though tax collections are down),  State prorationing,  savings accounts already spent, borrowing $8 million from next year to meet this year’s operating expenses, ‘borrowing’ from this year’s construction account to meet this year’s operating expenses (to be paid back next year) – the budget is a train wreck.  Creating a bow wave of borrowing to meet current expenses is an unsustainable plan – heck, it’s not even a plan – it’s fairy dust and unicorn farts. 

Did you know that while the budget for teachers is being cut, the budget for Administration is being increased?  Challen Stevens wrote “Budget woes in Huntsville City Schools;  could soon borrow $8 million”:

The board plans to spend $143.5 million on instructional salaries next year, down from $153.3 million last school year. Administrative salaries, which account for 3.2 percent of the budget, went up slightly from $5.6 million last year to $5.7 million this year.

Good to know:

Other than incumbents, only two school board candidates, David Blair and Mark Huff, showed up.

Who says there’s nothing to do in Huntsville:

A second public budget hearing, required by state law, will be held Sept. 2 at 4 p.m. at the Merts Center on White Street.

I saw this ‘yard sign’ near Pensacola yesterday and had to take a picture.   The sign makes a nice follow-on post to Brian’s “Intolerance in Monrovia”.  I got a joyful feeling from the sign and the harmony it created in the area…

Oh, maybe that headline is too hyperbolic. Maybe it should read Democratic Socialists in Congress.  Hat tip to Gateway Pundit for posting “American Socialists Release names of 70 Congressional Democrats in their ranks”.  There are a whole lot of nasty people on this list:

Co-Chairs
Hon. Raúl M. Grijalva (AZ-07)
Hon. Lynn Woolsey (CA-06)

Vice Chairs
Hon. Diane Watson (CA-33)
Hon. Sheila Jackson-Lee (TX-18)
Hon. Mazie Hirono (HI-02)
Hon. Dennis Kucinich (OH-10)

Senate Members
Hon. Bernie Sanders (VT)

House Members
Hon. Neil Abercrombie (HI-01)
Hon. Tammy Baldwin (WI-02)
Hon. Xavier Becerra (CA-31)
Hon. Madeleine Bordallo (GU-AL)
Hon. Robert Brady (PA-01)
Hon. Corrine Brown (FL-03)
Hon. Michael Capuano (MA-08)
Hon. André Carson (IN-07)
Hon. Donna Christensen (VI-AL)
Hon. Yvette Clarke (NY-11)
Hon. William “Lacy” Clay (MO-01)
Hon. Emanuel Cleaver (MO-05)
Hon. Steve Cohen (TN-09)
Hon. John Conyers (MI-14)
Hon. Elijah Cummings (MD-07)
Hon. Danny Davis (IL-07)
Hon. Peter DeFazio (OR-04)
Hon. Rosa DeLauro (CT-03)
Rep. Donna F. Edwards (MD-04)
Hon. Keith Ellison (MN-05)
Hon. Sam Farr (CA-17)
Hon. Chaka Fattah (PA-02)
Hon. Bob Filner (CA-51)
Hon. Barney Frank (MA-04)
Hon. Marcia L. Fudge (OH-11)
Hon. Alan Grayson (FL-08)
Hon. Luis Gutierrez (IL-04)
Hon. John Hall (NY-19)
Hon. Phil Hare (IL-17)
Hon. Maurice Hinchey (NY-22)
Hon. Michael Honda (CA-15)
Hon. Jesse Jackson, Jr. (IL-02)
Hon. Eddie Bernice Johnson (TX-30)
Hon. Hank Johnson (GA-04)
Hon. Marcy Kaptur (OH-09)
Hon. Carolyn Kilpatrick (MI-13)
Hon. Barbara Lee (CA-09)
Hon. John Lewis (GA-05)
Hon. David Loebsack (IA-02)
Hon. Ben R. Lujan (NM-3)
Hon. Carolyn Maloney (NY-14)
Hon. Ed Markey (MA-07)
Hon. Jim McDermott (WA-07)
Hon. James McGovern (MA-03)
Hon. George Miller (CA-07)
Hon. Gwen Moore (WI-04)
Hon. Jerrold Nadler (NY-08)
Hon. Eleanor Holmes-Norton (DC-AL)
Hon. John Olver (MA-01)
Hon. Ed Pastor (AZ-04)
Hon. Donald Payne (NJ-10)
Hon. Chellie Pingree (ME-01)
Hon. Charles Rangel (NY-15)
Hon. Laura Richardson (CA-37)
Hon. Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-34)
Hon. Bobby Rush (IL-01)
Hon. Linda Sánchez (CA-47)
Hon. Jan Schakowsky (IL-09)
Hon. José Serrano (NY-16)
Hon. Louise Slaughter (NY-28)
Hon. Pete Stark (CA-13)
Hon. Bennie Thompson (MS-02)
Hon. John Tierney (MA-06)
Hon. Nydia Velazquez (NY-12)
Hon. Maxine Waters (CA-35)
Hon. Mel Watt (NC-12)
Hon. Henry Waxman (CA-30)
Hon. Peter Welch (VT-AL)
Hon. Robert Wexler (FL-19)

The list includes (alleged) crooks like Charlie Rangel and Maxine Waters to useful idiots like ‘Baghdad Jim’ McDermott to FARC’s best friend James McGovern.