Thomas Ratliff: A Documented Liar

Today's Austin American-Statesman has dueling Op-Eds on CSCOPE.  Peggy Venable of Americans for Prosperity has a fantastic piece outlining the problems of CSCOPE.  State Board of Education member Thomas Ratliff (R(ino) -- Microsoft) counters with a fraudulent and mendacious defense.

Ratliff asserts:

The allegations are also when extremists claim that CSCOPE is aligned with the Common Core curriculum promoted by the federal government. It’s simply not true. CSCOPE was developed by Texas educators for Texas educators to teach Texas standards to Texas kids. Period. Again, more fear-mongering.

Except for the fact that Linda Darling-Hammond helped design both:

CSCOPE documents also claim connection to Linda Hammond, a proponent of the nationalized Common Core movement that Texas has rejected in favor of its own standards.

 (Sidenote: Back in December, we broke a pretty big story on LDH's background).

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Ratliff also claims:

The allegations are also when extremists talk about parents being denied access to what their children are being taught. If that’s the case, schools are breaking the law and should be held accountable. Chapter 26 of the Texas Education Code provides for “Parental Rights and Responsibilities,” including the right to see what happens in their child’s classroom. The fact is many of these extremists are not parents of public school students. Don’t blame CSCOPE for following Texas law. In fact, CSCOPE lessons are now online for anyone to see. Yet the extremists still want it banned from the classrooms. Transparency obviously isn’t the issue. Censorship and winning a political battle is the issue.

 Cue Peggy Venable:

Last year, it took State Board of Education Chairman Barbara Cargill six months before she was finally granted access to the lesson plans. Parents were denied access to CSCOPE material in violation of state law, which requires lesson plans be available to them. [Emphasis Ours]

 In other words, Ratliff's co-board member experienced what Ratliff claims never happened.

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In another whopper, Ratliff alleges:

The allegations are when the extremists talk about the “Communist” “Marxist” “Socialist” “anti-American” “pro-Muslim” curriculum. First, they need to make up their mind if it’s Communist, Marxist or Socialist. In a state as “red” as Texas, do people really believe kids are being taught to hate America?...These allegations are simply fear-mongering designed to incite a mob.

 Funny, because you can see these lessons here, or here, or here, or here, or here.

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Thomas Ratliff is a smart guy.  He knows that what's he's saying isn't true, but he says it anyway.  That's why Thomas Ratliff is now a documented liar.

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BREAKING NEWS: Dan Patrick to Debate Thomas Ratliff over CSCOPE

With the 83rd Texas Legislature sine done, the time has come for the much anticipated CSCOPE debate between Dan Patrick and Thomas Ratliff:

Patrick to Ratliff: I’m Coming to East Texas, Will You Be There? by DanPatrickTX

Background: Ratliff had been trying to claim that Patrick was afraid to debate him because Patrick had been tied up with Legislative stuff.

Get your popcorn; this'll be fun....

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Matt Rinaldi Makes It Official

Matt Rinaldi officially jumped into the race for HD 115 today; from his campaign website:

Irving, TX-- Matt Rinaldi today announced his intention to seek the Republican nomination for Texas House District 115.  Already armed with strong grassroots support, Rinaldi provides conservative opposition to incumbent Rep. Bennett Ratliff, who is widely regarded as one of the most liberal Republican representatives in Austin. 

“Conservatives in northwest Dallas County have gotten a raw deal this session,” said Rinaldi. “Rep. Ratliff has aligned with Democrats as often as his fellow Republicans on the most important legislative votes this session and has compiled the most liberal voting record of any Republican freshman in Austin.  He voted to increase the size of government by 26% from the previous session and then voted to dip into our state’s savings so he could spend even more.  Ratliff’s efforts put Texas’s financial future at risk.  As a conservative running to represent the voters and not Austin lobbyists, I will be a principled voice for smaller government, secure borders, protecting the sanctity of life and preserving our Second Amendment rights.” 

Rinaldi’s announcement comes less than a month after Ratliff spurned Governor Perry’s request to keep the State House redistricting maps the same as the previous maps and attempted to draw Rinaldi out of District 115 without a vote. The incident caused public outcry from Republican voters and Ratliff’s fellow legislators.  

(h/t Macias Strategies)

This is great.  Bennett Ratliff is a Straus crony who is part of a corrupt family that is in the pocket of big education.  While this is not (yet) an official endorsement, we wish Matt the best of luck in this primary.

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History Lesson: The 1970 American Psychiatric Association Convention

During the recent abortion debate, several people privately bemoaned the demonic and sophomoric tactics of the pro-abortion mob.  They interpreted these actions as another sign of cultural decline.  Unfortunately, this sort of intimidation has a long history among advocates of casual sex.

 A major turning point in the American sexual revolution was the 1970 meeting of the American Psychological Association in San Francisco.  The sexual 'liberationists' of that era were attempting to 'persuade' the APA to abandon their conviction that a number of sexual activities (primarily, but not exclusively, homosexuality) were deviant.  They used the exact same tactics as the pro-Abortion crowd at the Texas Capitol.

Allan Sherman explains this event in his 1973 book Rape of the A*P*E*:

The American Psychiatric Association held it's 1970 convention in the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco....In the middle of [the] speech both doors of the Fairmont Ballroom burst open.  Down one aisle marched the Gay Liberation Front; down the other came Women's liberation, both shouting obscenities and throwing brassieres and dildos. (emphasis mine) (262/3)

 Conservative activist Ryan Sorba goes into more detail:

[I]n 1970 the leadership of a faction of pro-sodomy psychiatrists within the APA planned a “systematic effort to disrupt annual meetings of the American Psychiatric Association.” Although politically motivated protests directed at psychiatrists had taken place prior, one can see the beginnings of a coordinated effort to politicize the APA at its 1970 annual meeting in San Francisco....Pro-sodomy activists took over the podium and microphones. Then, Konstantin Berlandt, of the Berkeley chapter of the Gay Liberation Front, “paraded through the hall in a bright red dress. Paper airplanes sailed down from the balcony. With two papers still unread, the chairman announced adjournment.”

 There's nothing new about what we saw at the Texas Capitol two weeks ago.

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Inside the Reagan Library: The Hollywood Years

Great video from the Reagan Library about the Gipper and the Golden Age of Hollywood:



Highlights:

• Appeared in 53 films from '37 to '63.

• President of Screen Actors Guild (1947 - 1952)
• Developed his visceral dislike of Communism when he had to deal with the investigation into Communist subversion in Hollywood during the 1940's.

• Developed his views on the economy while working for General Electric.

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BONUS: Here's Reagan's Most famous movie line ever:

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Do New York Jets support Islamic Terrorism?!?

As a lifelong fan of the New York Jets, Cahnman's Musings was disappointed and disturbed to read this report from Breitbart Sports yesterday.

Last April, the Jets used their fifth round draft pick to select Oday Aboushai, a Palestinian (*) offensive linemen who was born in Samaria and grew up in Brooklyn.  While Aboushai possesses physical stature, he lacks athleticism.  The football justification for this pick is questionable.

Aboushai's life off-field, however, includes the following:

• Denying Israel's right to exist

• Helping to raise money for a money-laundering Hamas front-group.

• Attending a conference whose organizers have praised Hitler and denied the Crucifixion.

 This is an alarming draft pick.  The Jets owe fans an explanation, especially after their shameful treatment of Tim Tebow.  It appears the New York Jets are more concerned with faithful Christians than open terrorist sympathizers.

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Cahnman's Musings urges readers to contact the following institutions:

New York Jets:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/jets
Twitter: @NYJETS

National Football League:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/nfl
Twitter: @NFL

WFAN Sports Radio New York:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/wfan660
Twitter: @WFAN660

New York Post:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/nypost
Twitter: @NYPOST

New York Daily News:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/thenewyorkdailynews
Twitter: @NYDAILYNEWS

[NY Jets Owner] Robert Wood Johnson Memorial Foundation:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/RobertWoodJohnsonFoundation
Twitter: @RWJF_PubHealth

Council on American-Islamic Relations -- New York
Twitter: @CAIRNewYork

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How Perry can call Wendy Davis' Bluff

Last night, during her filibuster, Wendy Davis made all sorts of references to women's health; for example:

This is a war on women's health in this state," Davis said.  "Partisanship and ambition are not unusual in a state capitol...(but) right here, in Texas, right now, it has risen to a level of profound irresponsibility and the raw abuse of power.  The actions intended by our state's leaders hurt Texas.  They hurt Texas women and families.

Blah x3.

With another special session likely, Cahnman's Musings has a proposal to those who want to talk about some so-called war on women.

During the General Session, Rep. Bill Zedler (R - Tarrant County) filed a bill that would ban Sharia law in the state of Texas. If the Democrats want to advance this war on women BS, we ought to highlight their perversity.  Governor Perry can add the Sharia law ban to the call for the next special session.

(Author's Note: Zedler's bill would also protect Texas from various U.N. Shenanigans.)

You want to talk war on Women?!?  Fine, let's talk war on Women.

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The Hollow Mayor: Updates on Julian Castro

A great new site has one stop shopping for Barack Obama's chosen Texas crony, San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro; among the "highlights":

• Castro's 15% increase in the homicide rate 

• Castro's city has 37% of schools failing. 

• Castro's roach infested public housing.

In addition, today's San Antonio Express-News details the roll-out of Castro's pre-K initiative:

In what the mayor recently described as a “Herculean effort,” 20 members of the city's staff have been on a learning curve to become educational experts while developing the program. They were trained on the job by educational consultants at taxpayers' expense, but it was City Manager Sheryl Sculley and her staff, not educators, who built Pre-K 4 SA. 

After a nationwide search costing $175,000, a CEO was recruited from Harlandale ISD at an annual salary of $176,000. The job requirements specified “a master's with a focus in early childhood education, preferably a doctoral degree, and a proven record of achieving excellence,” along with other experience and skills not present in the person selected. She has a master's in educational psychology and supervision, and served Harlandale as a principal for 23 years and as head of curriculum and instruction for nine years. 

Since Pre-K 4 SA's success will be measured by third-grade STARR scores in reading and math, we are interested in the academic performance of children educated under the leadership of the new CEO. The 2012 report of third-grade performance on the STARR in Harlandale shows that 33 percent failed to attain a satisfactory reading level and 43 percent failed in math.

Read more: http://www.mysanantonio.com/opinion/commentary/article/Pre-K-4-SA-promises-empty-so-far-4587637.php#ixzz2VqZm1KPy

 Finally, this surprisingly honest piece from Al Jazeera (yeah, that Al Jazeera) takes the cake:

Given the parallels between the lives of Castro and Obama, it would seem impossible for Obama not to have noticed the two-term mayor. Like the president, Castro earned a degree from Harvard Law School. Like Obama, Castro is the son of a single mother. And like Obama, some of Castro's relationships can be seen as a challenge to mainstream political thought.

Obama's personal connection with Jeremiah Wright, his former pastor, and his more tangential connection with William Ayers, a 1960s radical with whom Obama served on two foundation boards, have drawn vehement criticism from some conservatives.

For Castro, however, it is his mother - a leading figure of Texas' La Raza Unida party, a nationalist Mexican-American movement that seeks equal rights for Latinos, who could become a lightning rod. 

For Julian and Joaquin, both sons of Texas, statements like the ones their mother made in an interview with the New York Times Magazine, attacking one of the greatest sources of San Antonio pride - the Alamo and the battle for Texan independence - could prove problematic in their ability to sell themselves as Mexican-Americans. 

Rosie Castro said "the ‘heroes’ of the Alamo were a bunch of drunks and crooks and slave-holding imperialists who conquered land that didn’t belong to them", potentially a major contributing factor to conservative criticisms of her two sons.

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Update: To say nothing of his ongoing campaign finance scandal.

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Ft. Worth Star-Telegram Neglects a Key CSCOPE Fact

A disappointing piece in today's Ft. Worth Star-Telegram uncritically regurgitates talking points from the so-called Texas Freedom Network; according to the Star Telegram:

“Sen. Patrick seems to think someone has appointed him Texas classroom czar, with the power to dictate to local teachers what they can and can’t do in their own classrooms,” said Kathy Miller, president of the Texas Freedom Network.

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/2013/06/05/4914217/demise-of-cscope-curriculum-leaves.html?utm_source=MRT+Morning+Email+List&utm_campaign=0319d183fe-060613_230am_CT6_6_2013&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_3a93afa5aa-0319d183fe-26289625#storylink=cpy

Unfortunately, the Star-Telegram neglects to mention that grassroots pressure forced CSCOPE into the spotlight in November 2012, but Senator Patrick didn't get involved until January 2013.

Senator Patrick was reacting to a story that fell under the purview of his committee that had already been in the news for several months.

But, you know, other than that the story is accurate....

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Contact the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram:

Phone: 817-390-7734
E-Mail: grav@star-telegram.com
Facebook: Ft. Worth Star Telegram
Twitter: @StarTelegram

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How to Identify Toxic Cirriculums

A must read piece from Texas CSCOPE Review:

The Characteristics of Toxic Curriculum Include:

1. A 21st Century learning curriculum

2. Constructivism or Progressive Teaching Philosophy

3. Project Based Learning– Projects that have students reinventing the wheel.

4. Not available to be viewed by parents. Anything–ANYTHING used to instruct students should be visible to the public.

5. Self-directed learning, discovery learning, cooperative work in heterogeneous groups

 Example of a problem with heterogeneous grouping: Two elementary students worked together and their work was videoed. The parent was not allowed to see her son’s class work because the video contained another child. Parents of the other child had to give permission. Who gave the teacher to video tape elementary children?

6. Emphasis on the “whole child” approach that blends psychological, social and cultral well-being of the child, which are all subjectively measured. The increase in the number of dyslexic students may be due to these children not being taught how to read during the most important formative years. A Texas teacher has reported removing the dyslexic label from a student–HOW?  By teaching the child phonics–sounding out letters–etc.. in other words, teaching the child how to read. The progressive education approach has been tried and proven not to work. 

7. Whole-language–Doesn’t teach kids phonics–This was and is the CSCOPE approach to learning. Students need phonics —students need grammar—students to know how to write in script—in other words, use computers as resources that complement traditional teaching techniques.

8. Interactive and discovery learning–”fuzzy” math–CSCOPE promotes not teaching multiplication tables. Kids are not taught traditional –tried and true –methods of solving math problems.

 The terms used for progressive instruction sound wonderful. Interactive—it is good for students to interact with each other. Science students always work in groups when doing science lab investigation. Discovery learning–this is what science is all about. But the progressive interactive discovery learning means students are given a problem to solve and they interact and share ideas and discover facts. This is much like having students pretend they are scientists of the past. But even these scientists first learned everything that has been previously discovered about a problem. They were not trying to reinvent the wheel, which is what progressive education is doing. This is what project based learning is: giving students a project that results in their reinventing the wheel.

9. Focus on diversity, multiculturalism, and global citizenship

Even the science lessons in CSCOPE included biased social issues.

10. The 4 Ps–Posters, portfolios, projects, PowerPoints.

Most of the Projects that assessed CSCOPE lessons were for students K-12 to make a poster, a portfolio, or some time of organizer. Thus, subjective assessments.

11. Do not Use An Online Curriculum to replace student textbooks. Students need to have books to learn about using indexes, glossaries. CSCOPE directors scorned the use of textbooks. Thus, students in one Texas CSCOPE algebra 2 class spent two to three days copying equations flashed on the screen by an over head projector. That left two days for instructions. How 21 Century is this? I’ve pleaded with this school district to give students books.

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Americans for Prosperity and Texas "Freedom" Network Clash over CSCOPE

The audio is a little difficult to pick up at first, but this video speaks for itself:



Highlights:

• When Dan Quinn says no one was pressured over CSCOPE, he's either lying or he's disqualifyingly misinformed.

• Ditto on Parents being informed.

(h/t Texas Watchdog)

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CSCOPE Fight is NOT Over

Via Texas CSCOPE Review; reposted in full:

Teachers Instructed to Save CSCOPE Lessons

MAY 20, 2013 BY JANICE LEAVE A COMMENT

The CSCOPE ESC directors announced that they will gut the CSCOPE curriculum by removing every CSCOPE lesson K-12. YEA!

Was this done because these Education Service Center directors decided that the CSCOPE lessons are not of a quality that they would want taught to our Texas children? I wish. Instead, this decision was made with the intent of killing a legislative bill that would provide control over curriculum created by the ESCs. Seems the ESC directors will do anything to remain in control of their kingdom.

In a last ditch effort to keep CSCOPE lessons in our Texas Schools, the CSCOPE ESC directors are encouraging teachers to download the CSCOPE lessons.  Yes, teachers are encouraged to copy the poorly written, incorrect, Anti-American, pro-Islamic, Anti-Christian CSCOPE lessons before Aug. 2013 when they will be forever gone. (Not if the CSCOPE ESC directors have anything to do with it. Wait and you will see these lessons for sale somewhere. Maybe in another form they will sell them to Texas School superintendents who confess that they must have CSCOPE.]

Now that the CSCOPE lessons may legally be copied, there is no need for school districts to rent CSCOPE. Every CSCOPE lesson has the number of suggested days and every IFD (Information Focus Document) for the lesson has the clarification for the TEKS. Done Deal! Teachers have the coveted scope and sequence that superintendents have used textbook funds to rent. Now all they have to do is open up the book room and dust off those textbooks. YES!!! Any textbook is useful. The ESCs who sell CSCOPE are the same ESCs who received more than $180+ million dollars to compare the TAKS state standards with the new TEKS. All superintendent have to do is request the Rider 42 K-12 TEKS Professional Development turnaround academy materials for Science, ELAR, Social Studies and Math. It is time for the public to evaluate this material that they paid $180+ million dollars for.

How fast things can change. Only yesterday teachers faced legal action for even making paper copies of the CSCOPE lessons. Following is one of several statements in the legal contract that teachers were forced to sign if they wanted to work. Yes, this contract was suppose to have been null and void according to Senator Patrick, but superintendents did not confirm this with their teachers.

“You are prohibited from copying, saving to a disk or hard drive, redistributing, using or publishing any portion of the Site, except as allowed by Section 3. (Which allows sharing only with others who have signed the CSCOPE gag-order.)”

What ever the reason, I send my thanks to each ESC director for making the right decision. Since there is no need for the ESCs to sell the CSCOPE scope and sequence, as of August, the entire CSCOPE website can be taken off line and the ESC directors and staff can return to actually providing a service to schools in their district.

Since my original intent for viewing the CSCOPE lessons was to help elementary kids with science, I volunteered my tutoring services. I am now volunteering my services to help elementary teachers with science. First order of business is to request science text books. If they are outdated–no problem. I am sure that the ESCs have not spent all of the $180+ million Rider 42 grant money and will be happy to use it to hire someone to post science information on the project share website. Without the CSCOPE micromanaging program, teachers can again be creative and actually align science lessons with the science process standards. I will be more than happy to provide complimentary materials to guide this process. My heart for the first time since I discovered the mind controlling CSCOPE program is light and happy. Thanks to everyone who has helped.

Texas It is Not Over

While the CSCOPE lessons have been offered up by the CSCOPE ESC directors, they want superintendents to continue to purchase supplies from companies that pay the ESCs a fee so that their products are purchased by Texas School Districts. Yes, companies are charged a yearly fee of $25,000 to $100,000 or maybe more for the honor of advertising that they are aligned with CSCOPE. I wonder how this is working out for them? But, on the sly, these companies could still sell to Texas schools with superintendents who continue to use the CSCOPE lessons. Teachers can help stop this by notifying CSCOPE Review that they are being pressured to copy the CSCOPE lessons. This can be done anonymously . Send the info to CSCOPEREVIEW@gmail.com or snail mail it to:

Tx CSCOPE Review
PO Box 145
Riesel, Texas 76682

Don’t stop now.  We still have the superintendents and other administrators who shoved CSCOPE down the throats of our teachers. We still have the school board members who sold out to CSCOPE and never evaluated the lessons. We still have TASA and TASB who are stealing school taxes from our school districts and have rings in the noses of most of the Texas school administrators. These administrators have no concern for our children. They have in their own minds established themselves as kings and queens. But, they need to be dethroned and people who love our children enough to listen to the concerns of parents. We want administrators who do not think they know what is best for our children and want parents and the community to not be involved in education. Yes, there is still much work to be done.

The ESCs need to explain what they have been doing with the millions and millions of grant money they have received over the past few years. They certainly do not need to be given anymore.

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Louie Gohmert Interrogates Eric Holder over Boston

Kudos to Congressman Gohmert's Press Secretary for posting this video to her Facebook page:



Highlights:

• Starts by following up on discovery material from the Holy Land Foundation trial.
• Holder claims Gohmert's staff never followed up.

• Holder doesn't know what questions the FBI asked re: Tsarnev.
• Gohmert wants to know about the FBI process.
• Holder plays the 'ongoing investigation' card.

• Holder claims he wasn't aware of the Boston or Cambridge mosques.

• That the FBI was warned about Tsarnev by Russia should have been sufficient. 

• "Because of political correctness, there was not a thorough enough investigation to determine whether this kid had been radicalized."

• "On the one hand, we go after Christian groups like Billy Graham's...but then we're hands off to possibly offending someone who has been radicalized as a terrorist."

• Holder's little 'you don't know' schpiel is one of the greatest acts of Chutzpah we've ever seen.

Update: Welcome Director Blue Readers.

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ACTION ALERT: MAJOR CSCOPE Vote!!! (Yes on SB 1406)

One of the most important votes of the 83rd Texas Legislature will occur today when the Texas House votes on SB 1406.  If passed, this bill will take all things CSCOPE out of the hand of bureaucrats and place them under the supervision of Texas' elected State Board of Education.  This will begin to control CSCOPE.

From Concerned Women for America -- Texas:

Thank you for all your prayers, phone calls, and e-mails regarding SB 1406 "The CSCOPE bill". This has been the major bill we have been working on since day one of session, and we are getting excellent movement on this bill. SB 1406 will be heard tomorrow on the House floor. CWA of Texas will be there. If this bill passes as written, it is an exact match to the Senate version, and we believe it will head straight to the Governor's desk to be signed into law. CWA of Texas believes CSCOPE needs to have oversight by the State of Texas because it was paid for using federal, state, and local tax dollars. That is what makes CSCOPE different from any curriculum in this state. It was created with Texas tax dollars. If our House members do not support this bill, they are saying to Texans that it is OK for a non-transparent, unaccountable, un-elected bureaucrat to run amuck with millions of our tax dollars and the hearts and minds of our children with their slanted materials.

 From Americans for Prosperity -- Texas:

Chrmn Patrick and Sen. Donna Campbell sponsored SB 1406 which does the same.  A hearing was held April 2 and passed out of committee April 4^th with a vote of 7-0. The April 2^nd hearing can be viewed here: Senate Education (Part 1) and Senate Education (Part 2).
It is clear some Senators are not open to public review of CSCOPE and we encourage their constituents to be asking why.

We encourage citizens to take action, talk to your school board and see if your district uses CSCOPE and if it does, work to get it out of your District.  Call your legislators and ask them to support SB 1406 and HB 760.  Help educate more citizens on what is going on in our schools by joining AFP-Texas.

Read more: http://americansforprosperity.org/texas/legislativealerts/cscope-of-c-scam/#ixzz2TMyyAqcP

 While the General Session of the 83rd Texas Legislature has been a bust for conservatives, we can still get CSCOPE under control.  Let's salvage something.  Call your legislator NOW and urge them to vote YES on SB1406!!!

Find your legislator here.

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HILARIOUS: Educrat Throws Hissy Fit over CSCOPE!!!

Any article that starts off like this has to be good:

Wikipedia defines McCarthyism as the practice of making accusations of disloyalty, subversion, or treason without proper regard for evidence. It also means "the practice of making unfair allegations or using unfair investigative techniques, especially in order to restrict dissent or political criticism”.  Its origin, known as the “Second Red Scare” was characterized by heightened fears of communist influence on American institutions.  "McCarthyism" soon took on a broader meaning, describing the excesses of similar efforts. The term is now used more generally to describe reckless, unsubstantiated accusations.

American history reflects an earlier similar episode known as the Salem Witch Trials. This was one of the most notorious cases of mass hysteria, and has been used in political rhetoric and popular literature as a vivid cautionary tale about the dangers of extremism, false accusations and lapses in due process.

 Read the whole thing here.

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Another RANCID vote from Congressman Roger Williams

Congressman Roger Williams, who recently voted to continue funding Obamacare, is back.

Yesterday, the United States House of Representatives passed the Cyber Information and Sharing Act (CIPSA); the Republican Liberty Caucus explains the Act:

CISPA (HR624)  would massively reduce the privacy and security of your online communications and personal data. It would give government agencies and many private companies access to your personal communications and financial information and would allow government security agencies like the National Security Agency unprecedented power to access your data including medical records, private emails and financial information – all without a warrant, oversight by any court or due process of law.  It is supported by government security agencies like the Department of Homeland Security and also by big online data companies like Google and Facebook which want to use your data for marketing with fewer restrictions.

 And yes, Congressman Williams voted for it.

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OPEN CALL: Citizen Volunteers Needed for CSCOPE Review Panel

The CSCOPE review process moves forward, from Texas State Board of Education Chair Barbara Cargill:

Dear friends,

If you know qualified people who might be interested in serving on
a review panel for the social studies CSCOPE review process, please
let me know about them.  Or let your SBOE member know about them.

The SBOE is asking for help in appointing reviewers to ensure that
the CSCOPE lesson plans for social studies are error-free and of
great quality.

Here is a little more information about the nomination process for
CSCOPE review panel members.  If you go to the TEA website, there
is now a separate link for the CSCOPE review.  It gives more
details.  That link is

http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index2.aspx?id=25769804296

The timeline for the process is also linked to this website.

The link to the nomination form is open now.  It lists the panels
by grade and subject.
http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index2.aspx?id=25769804296

Interested citizens may submit a nomination form through April 29.
The CSCOPE Ad Hoc Committee expects to make committee assignments
in May. The review panels would then work June 3-16 to review the
material.

Thank you!

Barbara Cargill
Chair, State Board of Education

PO Box 8742, Lumberton, TX 77657, USA

 Cahnman's Musings doesn't have time to take this task on, but if you do, you should.

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Kermit Gosnell: The Biggest Serial Killer in American History

Glenn Beck with a must-see segment on Kermit Gosnell:



Highlights:

• 30 weeks and on

• Babies were breathing and moving when born.

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ACTION ALERT: HB 1057 -- Keep Planned Parenthood out of Sex Education

Via Texas Values:

Today, two important bills will have hearings in the Public Education Committee of the Texas House. The Texas Parental Control Accountability Act, HB 1057 authored by Rep. Leach, would ban abortion providers and any entity or individual affiliated with an abortion provider from providing sex education instruction or materials in Texas public schools. Public schools should not be another avenue for abortion providers like Planned Parenthood to recruit and push their agenda on children. The Senate version, SB 521 authored by Sen. Paxton, has already passed the Education Committee in the Senate.

....

Action Alert: Please contact the members of the Texas House Committee on Public Education and express your support for...[this]...commonsense bills – HB 1057

Texas House Committee on Public Education
Chair, Rep. Jimmy Don Aycock (R)
Phone: 512-463-0684 | Email: jimmie.aycock@house.state.tx.us

This is the type of low profile bill where a small group of citizens can have an outsized impact; please take 2 minutes to call, Facebook, and Tweet this information.

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Common Core, Texas, and Federal Blood Money

"The rich rules over the poor, And the borrower is servant to the lender." Proverbs 22:7 

With Common Core blowing up in the news, let's remember why Texas still has a fighting chance to resist: in 2009/10, we didn't need the money.

Back in 2009, Texas had a budget surplus.  We were one of the few states that didn't have to beg Washington.  What a blessing that was in hindsight.

Texas didn't need the money.

Federal money ALWAYS comes with strings attached.  Sometimes, it takes years for those strings to emerge, but they always do.  A strong balance sheet has enabled Texas to practice financial abstinence.

TEXAS.  DIDN'T.  NEED.  THE.  MONEY.

A strong balance sheet allows states to resist all sorts of crap.  Common Core in Texas is just the latest example.  Abstinence begets freedom, a worthwhile reward for prudent financial stewardship.

Because Texas doesn't need Washington's blood money.

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