SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:56 P.M. ET:

MAJOR EDUCATIONAL ADVANCE – FROM THE WASHINGTON TIMES:   A North Carolina school board has voted to stop naming high school valedictorians and salutatorians in an effort to reduce “unhealthy” competition among students.  The Wake County school board unanimously gave initial approval Tuesday to a policy that would prohibit principals from naming the two top-ranking students in a graduating class after 2018, The News & Observer reported.  Why reward achievement?  Where does that get us?  I'd go further and have each student in the graduating class declared a "potential winner."  I'd also abolish grades and tests, and then ask each graduate what airliner he'd like to fly.  Am I not a soldier for equality?  Compliments please.

SMART PEOPLE – HOW DARE THEY THINK FOR THEMSELVES? – FROM BREITART:   A new Washington Post poll finds that fully nine in ten Native Americans do not take offense at the name of the Washington Redskins football team.  The editorial page of the newspaper commissioning the survey forbids the use of the term, claiming “the team name unquestionably offends not only many Native Americans but many other Americans, too.” The Kansas City Star, Seattle Times, and other outlet prohibit use of the name on similar grounds. The new poll suggests that journalists misunderstand Native Americans. I'll bet they do.  I'll also bet that most journalists who announce what Native Americans think have never spoken to one.

OUR MARCH TOWARD FASCISM – FROM THE PORTLAND TRIBUNE:  In a move spearheaded by environmentalists, the Portland Public Schools board unanimously approved a resolution aimed at eliminating doubt of climate change and its causes in schools.  “It is unacceptable that we have textbooks in our schools that spread doubt about the human causes and urgency of the crisis,” said Lincoln High School student Gaby Lemieux in board testimony. “Climate education is not a niche or a specialization, it is the minimum requirement for my generation to be successful in our changing world.”  The resolution passed Tuesday evening calls for the school district to get rid of textbooks or other materials that cast doubt on whether climate change is occurring and that the activity of human beings is responsible. The resolution also directs the superintendent and staff to develop an implementation plan for “curriculum and educational opportunities that address climate change and climate justice in all Portland Public Schools.”  This is absolutely awful.  We're being told by trendy educators and their supporters that the truth is decided, not by facts and observation, but by the votes of school boards. 

May 20,  2016