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High costs, troubling test results

As required by the federal government, state testing has once again come upon our schools. Over the next few weeks New York State children in grades three through eight will be sitting for assessments in Mathematics and English Language Arts. Fifth and eighth graders will also be taking a science exam. The New York State Education Department did not make much mention of the 2024 exam results nor did the media print their usual school comparison showing how each area school district fared on these proficiency exams. Could it be that the 2024 statewide results were just as middling as ...

The Great American School Musical

It always amazes me when I attend one of these. That local school kids can put on such an exceptional performance combined with all of the choreography and building of stage sets–is a great testament to our system of public education. As a grandparent of kids so involved, it makes me not a disinterested observer. When I go to one of these performances, I am all in. I keep my handkerchief close by as I know that at some point in the performance, I am going to tear up. One aspect of it is that “musicals,” as we know them, are primarily an American phenomenon. They are a Broadway ...

Region relies on PBS, NPR

This is a letter I sent to U.S. Rep. Nick Langworthy. I cannot believe Congress is considering a bill to defund NPR/PBS (No Partisan Radio Partisan Services Act) Is Congress really going to waste time trying to limit these broadly accessible media outlets that provide preschool children’s programs to children without access to preschools, improve public safety by networking first responders and issuing weather alerts to remote communities (your WARN Act would depend on this service) and for communities without access to cultural events? PBS offers a plethora of cultural ...

Sounding the Alarm in Chautauqua County

Last week, my wife Melissa and I responded to a home fire in Sinclairville and provided immediate assistance to two residents - including comfort kits, blankets and more. Just the day prior, we responded to a multi-family fire in Jamestown to assist the families in their recovery – they shared with us that there were no working smoke alarms in the home at the time of the fire. In our roles as Disaster Action Team members for the American Red Cross of Western New York, we are often on the scene alongside first responders and witness the devastating and long-term effects caused by home ...

Easter in the assassination culture

Weeks ago, a former resident of Chautauqua County on social media posted a meme from VoteBlue picturing President Trump and a circle drawn around his ear lobe with a caption reading: “The most hated POS in the world, second only to Shitler.” Despite the gratuitous vulgarity and ignorant comparison, I brushed it off until I saw the results several days later of a survey revealing that nearly 50% of left-leaning Americans feel the murder of President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk is somewhat justified. The Network Contagion Research Institute and Rutgers University’s ...

Best to say no to wind/solar/BESS

Given the amount of information available from around the world proving how economically destructive wind/solar/BESS energy is – it seems a bit self-defeating that New York State still pushes it. State politicians and citizens are either ignorant of the economics, or they don’t care because they have other personal interests in mind. Wind and Solar are absolutely unreliable power sources, so BESS (Battery Energy Storage Systems) must be added to the grid – at great expense – as backup for all-to-common periods of low wind and solar generation. BESS just adds to the already ...