Remember this? In 2010, the Obama administration pledged to end homelessness in 10 years. “The Obama administration on Tuesday unveiled an ambitious plan that aspires to end homelessness among some of society’s most vulnerable groups within the next decade,” McClatchy reported on June 22, 2010. “’Opening Doors,’ a ‘Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End...
Last week, a father told a Texas Senate committee how his family had made the big decision to move their two children to a neighboring school district. As they explored the option of transferring to another district, they were assured that attending district campuses would be free, like their home district schools. Then they found...
Inflation, rising interest rates, and bank failures are enough to make business leaders wake up in a cold sweat. Adding to the parade of horribles: crime. This month, Whole Foods executives abruptly closed their flagship store in San Francisco due to safety concerns. Before that it was Walgreens shuttering five stores in the Bay Area...
I survived Nazi occupation and the Soviet takeover of Czechoslovakia. I watched as the communists came into the schools, threw out the textbooks, and rewrote history. Every day, my father, a learned man and local leader, retaught me and my sister the true history of our country and heritage. Eventually, because my father would not...
What is happening along our international borders today is not just about illegal immigration or drug smuggling. It’s also about the rapid increase in human trafficking and modern-day slavery, which is flourishing with the chaos that open borders facilitate. With a record number of unaccompanied minors crossing into the U.S., it has become increasingly difficult to ensure...
As all parents know, raising kids can sometimes feel like it is you against the world. Even the most engaged parents know that the everyday can quickly overwhelm, leaving you to wonder if you’re truly there for your child in the ways they need you. But the emergence of new technology has created new threats...
In 2018, our state needed 6,218 more physicians to meet the demand caused by Texas’ booming population growth—and this shortage is expected to grow to 10,330 physicians by 2032 if we do not find a solution. In 2014, Missouri became the first state to propose a solution. It created a new role for medical school...
When we moved into our new home a few years ago, I considered everything under the sun to avoid changing my children’s school. Our experience with our zoned public school had been excellent. But even though we were moving to a wonderful neighborhood, the public school we would now be zoned for was a below...
The Texas Senate just passed Senate Bill 17, which will require Texas colleges and universities to close their offices dedicated to “Diversity, Equity and Inclusion,” (DEI). Senate Bill 17 will also prohibit universities from requiring applicants for teaching and administrative jobs to provide a so-called “diversity statement” that is free of any offensive words like,...
Texas’ 2024-25 budget continues to swell to uncomfortably high levels. On Monday, the Senate Committee Substitute for House Bill 1 (SCSHB1) passed unanimously on the Senate floor. This version added $6 billion in total spending as compared to the House counterpart (CSHB1), bringing the total to $308 billion. This additional spending means a biennial increase...
The electrical pricing scheme may work as income redistribution social policy, but it fails the test of reducing energy consumption. What’s behind California’s shift to paying for electricity based on income? In a few words, it’s the consequence of California’s futile fight against climate change. California’s quixotic pursuit to save the planet by reducing greenhouse...
In April 2002, Levi’s cut 3,300 jobs nationwide from its workforce, as it moved production overseas for cheaper foreign labor. Of those 3,300 jobs, 1,919 were in Texas, and one of those was my mom, who had worked at the Brownsville factory for years. Levi’s was trying to keep up with the oversaturated jeans market,...