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If contemporary American politics could become any more of a carnival sideshow, it would be hard-pressed to do so without Sarah Palin. The former governor of Alaska and one-time VP candidate will be in Rochester tomorrow hawking her book "Going Rogue: An American Life." For the last two weeks, Palin and the
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Years ago, fresh out of college I went to work for a local institution that cared for children and adults with mental disabilities. It was hard, often emotionally draining work. I cared for a group of young children who, at the time, were probably among the most severely handicapped in Monroe
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Dr. Jeffrey Kaczorowski began last week's annual meeting for the Children's Agenda with a story about a 13-year-old girl, one he remembered treating a year earlier. The girl complained of having chest pains, Kaczorowski said, and when she lifted her blouse, Kaczorowski saw 11 stab wounds. That same day, a young mother
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The Daily Beast has a ranking of the country's smartest (and dumbest) cities. Rather than using wealth, standard of living, and cultural offerings, the Beast looked at the education level of the population and the intellectual environment. Raleigh-Durham landed the number-one slot for its famed Research Triangle, followed by San Francisco and
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Last Saturday night, I poked my partner in the ribs to wake him up. Listen to this, I said. We sat there as President Obama talked about the LGBT community. The word "homosexual" spoken in Obama's voice rolled around the room like a beach ball. It was a strange and surreal moment. Much
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Even before reaching the front doors to East High School's main entrance, you could see people greeting, hugging, and talking. Laughter could be heard. Was this a Rochester school district event for parents? Yes, it was. And kudos goes to School Board member Melisza Campos for orchestrating last night's "Reach Out"
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Republicans don't have a long, solid history of supporting Medicare. If some Republicans had their way, including former President Ronald Reagan, Medicare might not exist today. After listening to US Representative Chris Lee, who was in Rochester yesterday, you would have thought Republicans were in a desperate fight to keep Democrats
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For every 100 units of blood donated, fewer than five are donated from the African American and Latino communities, says Slater's Raiders founder Lenzy Blake. Minority communities may have language barriers that lower participation, but fear of needles and transmitting disease is a factor, too. But Blake says it is
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At a family backyard gathering in one of the city's more upscale neighborhoods, there was a conversation about the Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant that opened on the corner of University Avenue and Culver Road. One middle-aged white man said to another that he didn't mind the new KFC, but
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The Brits are used to it. The shouting, the nostril-flaring, the fist-pounding are all in a day's work in Parliament. The South Koreans go one better. They throw chairs and get into slug fests. Former President George W. Bush was quick enough to duck a shoe hurled from short range during his final
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City School Board members met in executive session last night to discuss the flap over Superintendent Jean-Claude Brizard's salary increase. Per his contract, he got a 4-percent increase in January, tied to the Consumer Price Index. The session took place after the regular board meeting. School board members Allen Williams and Cynthia
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There hasn't been anyone like Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy. And, to Democrats, there probably never will be. Kennedy was a champion of liberal causes that span decades of service under 10 presidents. His loss leaves a remarkable void. His name alone became synonymous with liberal ideology to the degree that conservatives used the
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In what is probably the best response so far to a town hall right-wing nut at an event in Dartmouth, Rep. Barney Frank confronted a woman who compared President Obama to a Nazi. Let's just say she picked the wrong person; Frank gave her a public spanking like few you'll see. But
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The buzz among many economists is that the Great Recession is over. Of course, for many people in Upstate New York, the recession of the 1990's came and never left. A new report on Indeed.com on jobless rates in 50 US cities looks at the number of jobs available per the number
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After months of deliberation and scathing public criticism - much of it directed at Rochester Schools Superintendent Jean-Claude Brizard - the Rochester School Board backed away from approving some of the 170 teacher layoffs that Brizard had proposed. The change of heart came weeks after both the Rochester School Board and
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Last night, the Rochester School Board revised its three-year-old policy on military recruitment. Essentially, board members Melisza Campos, Allen Williams, Cynthia Elliott, and Malik Evans capitulated to pressure that is being passed down from the Pentagon to state education departments: Give us access to your kids and we'll give you money. That
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President Obama took aim last night at the laissez faire attitude building among lawmakers over health-care reform. In a press conference designed to make his case for change, Obama appealed directly to the American public. It's usually an excellent strategy for this president; last night his words made perfect sense - honest,
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More questions were raised than answered at last night's City School District meeting regarding a potentially dangerous Brownfield site. State representatives from the Department of Health and Department of Environmental Conservation gave parents, some School Board members, and community leaders a lengthy presentation on what their research has uncovered regarding
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While more than 30 million Americans were fixated on Michael Jackson's funeral last week, little media attention was given to the first look lawmakers had at the details of health-care reform legislation. Before reading it, many Republicans have managed to frighten the public into thinking that reform will mean rationed care.
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If you've ever visited Los Angeles, you know that it's hard to imagine more than a million people crowding into downtown for Michael Jackson's funeral tomorrow. It's bound to be managed chaos, much like Jackson's career and personal life. Jackson's death is sad on many levels. A pint-size mix of Wilson
