“How ya’ doin’?” is the general way the question is asked. People who ask it fall into categories. Some mean, “Hi.” The question becomes an informal greeting. The person isn’t expecting you to answer. Others wonder, truly, about your well-being. The individual is expecting a reply akin to “Fine, thank you.” Their interest is intentional, kind, […]
This is a members-only post on Ricochet's Member Feed. Want to read it? Join Ricochet’s community of conservatives and be part of the conversation. Join Ricochet for Free.
Member Post
As I said in an earlier post my focus is limited to the police response to a riot on January 6. There is no reason that the public should not have access to all the videos of that day, not just the videos that elected officials want you to see. That being said I have […]
This is a members-only post on Ricochet's Member Feed. Want to read it? Join Ricochet’s community of conservatives and be part of the conversation. Join Ricochet for Free.
DeSantis Takes on the Teachers Unions and School Boards
Whenever I have discussed the teachers who have chosen to teach inappropriate subjects, such as Critical Race Theory or who coach their students on transgenderism, or teachers who have insisted that kids wear masks, a teacher often speaks up supporting my criticism of those teachers. At the same time, however, they point to the power of the teachers’ unions and the risks that teachers would be taking to defy them.
Fearless as he often is, Ron DeSantis is defying the unions, assisting the teachers, and supporting parents through his recommendations to the Legislature:
As a researcher and writer, I care deeply for factual transparency and honesty in reportage. I read across a wide spectrum of viewpoints. Paid subscriptions from the following are sent to my inbox, all of which I scan (and often read in-depth) daily: The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Atlantic, National Public Radio, […]
This is a members-only post on Ricochet's Member Feed. Want to read it? Join Ricochet’s community of conservatives and be part of the conversation. Join Ricochet for Free.
Host Joe Selvaggi talks with Pioneer Institute’s Mary Z. Connaughton about the value of transparency and Pioneer’s extensive work to provide greater access to legislative and policy information to hold elected officials accountable and build trust in our state government. Read Pioneer Institute’s Sunshine Week Transparency Resolutions.
Guest:
Health Care Lights and Sirens
“If we want to make America great again, we’re gonna have to make healthcare well again.” — Katy Talento
Or, we can call it too hard to do, take two aspirin, and call Doctor Ocasio-Cortez in a year.
Katy Talento has talent. However busy you are, do listen to at least the last two minutes and thirty seconds of the Candice Owens Show November 24, 2019 episode, in which Katy Talento gives the Trump Administration’s two-minute pitch on real health care reform. Then go to PatientRightsAdvocate.org to submit a comment into the official federal regulatory comment process—because the Medical Industrial Swamp is loading up the system, once again seeking to stack the deck in their pecuniary and power interests. Would you prefer to read the proposed rule and comment directly in the Federal Register? There is a button to submit formal comments and guidance on that and other forms of commenting, along with the summary and details about the “Transparency in Coverage” proposed rule.
Who watches the Watchmen? The Watchmen, Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, 1986. Preview Open
This is a members-only post on Ricochet's Member Feed. Want to read it? Join Ricochet’s community of conservatives and be part of the conversation. Join Ricochet for Free.
Jon Rauch’s ebook and Atlantic article defending political machines are eye-openers. Did it ever occur to you — and I assume you are not a paid political consultant — did it ever occur to you that there was other than a post hoc defense for political secrecy and cronyism and back-room deal-making? That “if you […]
This is a members-only post on Ricochet's Member Feed. Want to read it? Join Ricochet’s community of conservatives and be part of the conversation. Join Ricochet for Free.
Fast and Visible
I just discovered a new writer — The Brooklyn Investor — whom I’m (slowly) catching up on. His most recent post — an analysis of the fast food business, and of an upcoming IPO specifically — had some great insights on why Chipotle (Ticker symbol: CMG) is such a big hit:
This is a true story: I usually only go to CMG right before lunchtime. If I can’t get there by 11:30 or something like that, I don’t bother. But one time (actually more than once) I did go during the rush. The line was really long going all the way to the front door (the line was the full length of the store). Out of curiosity, I looked at my watch and noted the time. I got my burrito in five minutes. Here’s another true story: Not too long after that, I was at McDonald’s (MCD) and I was second in line. And MCD wasn’t crowded; I wasn’t second in line with five or ten registers open. I was second in line, period. There was nobody else. And it took me TEN minutes to get a happy meal (not for me) and a chicken club sandwich meal. How does this happen? I have no idea. But it happens all the time. I remember when MCD used to give something back (food is free or something) if you don’t get your stuff within a minute or two. Now it’s a disaster whenever I go (and I do go to many different MCD’s quite often).
What I like about this is, first, I agree: Chipotle is fast. But it isn’t just speed. The transparency of the process is also really important. I can see them making my burrito. They’re all moving back there. There’s no “behind the curtain” stuff going on: everyone is visible and at work. Not the same at any other fast food place.
That Old Clintonian Dysfunction
As Hillary Clinton is gearing up for another possible run at the presidency, Politico has written an in-depth story regarding Clinton’s love-hate relationship with the media. And it is mostly hate, as one of Clinton’s advisers is more than happy to admit: “Look, she hates you. Period. That’s never going to change.” I am more than willing to believe those words, and they point to why Hillary Clinton should never be president of the United States.
We are still being governed by an administration that claims to have been the most transparent in history, even though the record is clear that it is anything but. And this is an administration with relatively good relations with the media, featuring a president who has basically been a media darling ever since he burst on the national and international stage. If an administration with this many advantages when it comes to being able to charm the media still sees fit to make a mockery of transparency, what makes anyone think that in a future (Hillary) Clinton administration, there will be anything resembling more transparency, especially when one considers Clinton’s often-difficult history with the press?
