As a state-wide elected delegate to the NEA RA I get reimbursed for most of my expenses. I have to fill out forms and provide receipts as it is carefully monitored by the IRS.

And who knows? Maybe the NSA too.

Rather than make copies of the forms at home, I normally go to the neighborhood Staples.

But not this time.

I am boycotting Staples. And so should you.

The United States Postal Service and Staples have teamed up to place mini-post offices in Staples stores. But not pay union wages to the employees that work in these USPS outlets, employees will be paid minimum wage.

The American Postal Workers Union is saying hell no.

They are asking us to boycott Staples.

Last weekend the American Federation of Teachers voted to support the boycott.

Then the USPS and Staples pulled a sneaky bit of bait and switch.

They issued a…

There are a few who don’t believe it was an accident and are not questioning whether it was the McChrystal incident, rather, they question the Clinton connection.

I found these here and here and here. 

I dunno, folks, Hastings does ask some pointed questions about what else the Clinton State Dept. left behind if they failed to pick up something as crucial as Stevens’ diary for evidence of what happened. ..

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With that, I’m off for a few days…I’m way more upset than I can adequately express here about the stuff I put up yesterday.  What the hell happened to my country?

Anyway, I’ll be back in a few.

Dispatches from the Underclass has a post up on academic freedom and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

I clicked on the link to the letter, and the part about the union’s collective bargaining agreement stood out:

“institutional discipline or restraint in their discussion of relevant matters in the classroom…” [the CBA prohibits]   “explicit or implicit threat of termination or discipline for the purpose of constraining a faculty member in the exercise of his or her rights under such principles of academic freedom.”

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“Teachers are entitled to freedom in the classroom in discussing their subject, but they should be careful not to introduce into their teaching controversial matter which has no relation to their subject.”

This was clarified later with the following:

“The intent of the 1940 statement is not to discourage what is “controversial”. Controversy is at the heart of the free academic inquiry which the entire statement is designed to…

This summer, I am writing my second book, this time on the history, development, and promotion of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). On July 4th, I finished writing the ten-chapter body of that book, which means that even though I now turn my attention to proofing, editing, and formatting my references, I do not need to sit for seven-plus hours three out of every four days intensely focused on creating a book.

I can also turn my attention to other issues that I put on hold until I finished the body of the CCSS book. One major task involved replacing the lock assembly for the ignition of my car. I finished the job today.  In May, I began having serious difficulty getting the key into the switch because the tumblers had worn out in ignition lock. I had to leave a key in the ignition for two months until…