Hillary Clinton is not the only feature of Washington that is “dead broke”: the Highway Trust Fund is set to run out of money by late August, and members of Congress are scrambling to find ways to raise revenue. One solution, proposed by Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), is to raise the … Continue reading
Category Archives: U.S. Domestic Policy
Charter Schools: Revolutionary or Racist?
The educational landscape of New Orleans, my hometown, has changed rapidly since Hurricane Katrina ravaged the city almost nine years ago. The Recovery School District (RSD), by far the city’s largest school district, closed its last five traditional public schools in May to become the nation’s first all-charter school system. During the 2013-14 school year, 92% of New Orleans … Continue reading
Political Waffling Beats Cantor, Not Immigration
As the House Majority Leader Rep. Eric Cantor (R-VA) lost in the primaries to relative unknown Tea Partier Dave Brat, many are claiming that the complex relationship between Cantor and Immigration reform resulted in a sort of political murder-suicide. Cantor’s support of immigration reform lost him his seat, and the loss of Cantor’s seat seemingly ended … Continue reading
Volcker and The Capital Asset Pricing Model: Enforcing Ineffective Regulation Since 2013?
One fundamental principle of financial markets is the relationship between risk and return. This tenet is reflected in the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), the workhorse of security pricing, where the return required by investors is measured by adding the risk free rate (such as a treasury bond) to a market risk premium, adjusted for … Continue reading
The Common Core Mystique
Critics from both ends of the spectrum have attacked the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for a number of reasons. “They are a ploy for the federal government to spread its agenda, pollute the minds of children, and diminish teachers’ role in educating!” “They eliminate teacher autonomy and creativity in the classroom!” “They give corporate … Continue reading
Common Core Doesn’t Make Common Sense
Every student in American schools is taught that the Constitution is the law of the land. So, why doesn’t the federal government understand this? The Department of Education has been working to institute a national common core on what is taught in schools around the country. This national common core usurps a state’s right to … Continue reading
Customizable Education
As U.S. math and science scores compared to those around the world continue to stay below average in 2013, changes must be made in order to prevent students in the U.S. from falling even farther behind students from other countries around the world. It has never been more important for changes to be made to … Continue reading
Airline Prices are “Fly-High” in the United States… Why Not in Europe?
I wanted to visit my significant other, who is studying abroad at the University of Limerick, in Ireland. Not to my surprise, my flight research came to a screeching halt when I saw the digits perpetuating across the computer screen, making me wonder if the amount was a phone number, or the ticket price—and I … Continue reading
Why the Wall Street Journal Is Wrong on Student Loans
About a week ago, I wrote about how the government recently made $50 billion off student loans, arguing that given the $1 trillion in debt held by students already, this large a profit was wrong. While I didn’t mention it in the article, the implication of my argument was that student interest rates should be … Continue reading
The Government is Making Money Off Students; Is that a Good Thing?
The last thing anyone expects the government to do is make money. Every day congressional lawmakers lament budget deficits, and the inability of the federal government to cover its spending with tax revenue is a perennial issue. But while Washington continues to struggle with the debt, there are a few government-affiliated organizations that are actually … Continue reading
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