Standardized testing as child abuse

It’s bubble time for the kiddos—and not the soapy kind

Last month in Oceanside, N.Y., Christine Dougherty wrote to her son’s principal requesting that he not sit for the standardized state exams. In the letter, posted to United Opt Out National’s website, she asked that Joseph instead be “given an alternative real learning opportunity.” She received a ghastly response.

May and June can be much more than a pre-summer bummer

Gray months provide crucial prep time for July and August

Ah, yes, glorious summer: when bedtime is a foreign word I cannot pronounce, when concerts in the park and concealed beverages are regular features of any weekend.

I am Trayvon Martin’s mother—are you?

Most white parents can’t relate to the experience of black parents

It makes no sense that my baby could be tucked safely in bed while Sybrina Fulton’s was being profiled, stalked and murdered by a self-appointed neighborhood policer and negro-phobe who, more than a month-and-a-half later, still has not been arrested.

My rose-colored glasses come off

Facing the realities of school administration during economic hardship

Last week, a parent at my school planned a parent-child walkout during school hours. She asked that we gather with our children for all of 30 minutes to say that we oppose the draconian cuts that could reduce our teaching staff to nearly half of what it is currently, and that the coming explosion in class sizes is unacceptable and not in our children’s best interest.

Saturdays with Zoran and Cobra

I may not be cut out for basic training, but I can handle a little urban jungle gym

Yes, my opening bid for Beach Body Boot Camp was also the only bid for Beach Body Boot Camp. And this is how I came to find myself at 8 a.m. two Saturdays ago, not snuggled in bed with a cup of coffee and The New Yorker, but, rather, standing in some sci-fi, medieval place not quite Game of Thrones and not quite Beyond Thunderdome.

I’ve been trend watching

And now I have bald spots where my hair used to be

But this column is not about one school’s innovative money-raising methods, because many schools are doing that. No, it’s really about various trends I’ve noted and have come to enjoy in some manner—either in an I-love-it kind of way or, more frequently, in an Ah-jeeze-that-one’s-scary kind of way.

The worst of the ’80s and the worst of school come together

What does this seventh-grade question say about me—and about school?

I recently found myself suffering another memory I thought I’d cremated, brought on by an overwhelmingly effective trigger in the form of a multiple-choice question posed by one Gary Rubinstein on his blog.

Home-schooling lacks my idea of diversity exposure

I don’t mean to be all socialist-y, but—what about the greater good?

As much as I may disagree with standardized testing and the abysmal curriculum that comes with it, I believe in and want to be a part of a successful public-school system

Progressive educator Alfie Kohn comes to town, but is anybody listening?

Some interested parties paid a lot more attention when Michelle Rhee was in San Diego

Kohn lambasted—while citing research—traditional education methods like worksheets and bubble questions, as well as the intellectual, social and psychologically stunting impact of tests, quizzes and grades.

Fighting back against mandatory school testing, Part 2

For my family, opting out is an act of civil disobedience

My husband and I see no incentive to subject our daughter to the ongoing experiment aimed at busting teachers unions, closing public schools and reopening them with public funds and unaccountable corporations at the helm.

Pride and publicity

Of profits, promotions, parades and pandering

San Diego's 32nd Annual Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender (LGBT) Pride Celebration got underway last Saturday with a parade that passed in front of my house. Location, location, location.

A milestone and a crossroads

We’ve hit our 500th issue, and we need your help

Ironically, thanks to a declining print-publishing industry in general and the worst economic downtown since the Depression, the better we’ve become, the more we’ve flailed financially.

UCAN’t be serious!

Don’t be too quick to judge amid allegations against utility antagonist

If you made a list of all the prominent people in San Diego and ranked them according to how likely it would be that they’d be accused of cooking books, laundering money and improperly feathering their own nest, Michael Shames’ name would probably be near the bottom.

Doug Manchester is the man in the mirror

New U-T San Diego owner and I have the ‘vision’ thing in common

On Sunday, new U-T San Diego poobahs Doug Manchester and John Lynch said we “must not let the boundaries of our city’s enormous possibilities be limited by too-modest dreams of our own.” God, I totally agree.

I’m thankful for CityBeat’s freelance contributors

They don’t fully understand deadlines, but I love ’em all the same

There are 14 people working in our office, not all of them full-time. Six of the 14 work in the editorial department, not all of us full-time. The rest of those folks you see closer to the beginning of our staff box at the bottom of this page are freelance contributors who get paid per piece of work.

CityBeat's entering the next phase

The Aug. 17 issue will include a fresh design and new content

The last time CityBeat underwent a major redesign was February 2006, when we switched from a newsprint cover to a glossy. It’s time for another.

Krvaric's bad aim

GOP chairman smears Dave Potter, who for decades has volunteered his time on city boards and commissions

More than 40 years of civic involvement for one man is bound to include some measure of controversy.

7 p.m. is now in play

KPBS finally kills its classical-music baby

Kudos to KPBS this week for sizing up the hornet’s nest and giving it a couple of good whacks with a baseball bat. Making major changes to the radio schedule that are certain to send thousands of loyal listeners—and donors—into an apoplectic rage takes guts.

That's another story

It takes longer than a few minutes to explain why some sex offenders need defending

I received a letter a couple of weeks ago from an anonymous correspondent who’d heard me talking about sex offenders on KPBS’s Feb. 4 Editors Roundtable radio show.

Not suitable for kids

Popaditch and his supporters turn Election Central into something completely different

Whole lotta love

Frye, Sanders and Co come together in hopes of marginalizing Prop. D opposition

The state budget is a very large problem

And Jerry Brown’s tax measure is absolutely necessary

On May 31, the state Citizens Compensation Commission will consider cutting by 5 percent the annual pay of Gov. Jerry Brown and members of the state Legislature. It would match the proposal that Brown issued last week to cut the pay of state employees.

Our June 5 election endorsements are here!

The devils you know: We weigh in on local, state and federal races

When it comes to voting, you’re damned if you do and damned if you don’t, but you’re a damned fool if you don’t read our voter guide first.

Shedding Light on U-T San Diego

Editor’s partisan comments to Nathan Fletcher open daily paper to scrutiny

In an interview, the U-T essentially informed Fletcher that the paper can’t endorse him because he’d been bad-mouthing the Republican Party amid his high-profile decision to leave the GOP and become independent.

Jan Goldsmith, the politician

City attorney makes egregious comments about criminal-justice realignment

Like so many politicians before him, Goldsmith is unnecessarily trying to scare you. Realignment is not creating public-safety risks in our communities; decades of public-safety policy based on mass incarceration is.

The unfortunate trajectory of Carl DeMaio

He overcame tremendous odds to become a self-centered liar

The point is that we gave DeMaio a chance, and he eventually proved himself unworthy of it.

Republicans and the Buffett Rule

What to do about politicians who defy overwhelming public opinion and the interest of socioeconomic justice

On Monday, the U.S. Senate voted 51 to 45 to proceed with a bill that would close a loophole that allows some extremely wealthy people to be taxed at a far lower rate than middle-class Americans.

Fixing San Diego’s foreclosure blight

Lorie Zapf should docket a hearing on the Property Value Protection Ordinance

Community activists will urge Lorie Zapf to schedule another hearing on a proposed ordinance that would attack neighborhood blight caused by home foreclosures.

Nathan Fletcher’s two-headed decision

Leaving the GOP was likely both calculated and principled

This is what we believe was Fletcher’s goal: widespread news coverage and buzz for a campaign that’s been running on a sort of contained electricity.

Healthcare reform and hyper-political chaos

U-T San Diego editorial board tells only part of the story

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act— otherwise referred to as “healthcare reform” or “Obamacare”—isn’t perfect. Not by a long shot. Of course, a system that we think would be much closer to perfect would have sparked the political equivalent of World War III.

The truth about San Diego pension reform

Also, we bid a sad farewell to the Millionaires Tax

Supporters of the measure, which will be called Prop. B, don’t want you to know that long-term reforms were enacted in 2008, because it reveals that the part of Prop. B that closes the pension system and opens a 401(k) is unnecessary—not to mention, as noted by the IBA, costly for taxpayers.

Letters: DeMaio makes things worse

Our readers tell us what they think

"Prop. B actually costs more than doing nothing, and he has made our most important problem worse."

Letters: Filner: last man standing, DeMaio: the snake-oil salesman

Our readers tell us what they think

Our readers call DeMaio a "meatball," "snake-oil salesman," and liken him to Mike Aguirre.

Letters: Lacking courage, Enrique Cervantes

Our readers tell us what they think

Letters: CityBeat support, San Diego's Property Value Protection Ordinance and the Buffett Rule

Our readers tell us what they think

I’m a fan of the alternative press.

'Long live CityBeat' and the Bail Project

Our readers tell us what they think

From a content perspective, CityBeat has no competition from any other alt-weekly paper in San Diego.

Letters: Obamacare, naked sushi and restaurant grades

Our readers tell us what they think

Your editorial about Obamacare in the March 28 issue was one of the best you have written.

Letters: Friendship Park, Obamacare and SDUSD

Our readers tell us what they think

"About the March 21 cover story by Kinsee Morlan titled 'One giant gesture': I live just a few blocks south of this article’s location, the Playas Tijuana international Border Wall"

Letters: Reactions to school budget, Tom Graff, yarn bombing and Code Red app

Plus a correction about a Bono impersonator's age

In his story last week about local Bono impersonator Pavel Sfera, Peter Holslin reported Sfera’s age as 36. He’s actually 46. You’d think he’d appreciate our error! In any case, we’re sorry for getting it wrong.

Defending musician Thomas Graff and corrections

Our readers tell us what they think

Regarding the Great Demo Review in your March 7 Local Music Issue, I’m writing to offer a comment on the review of Thomas Graff’s demo, “Sample from ‘Included Intuition,’” because it contained little commentary on the music but a lot of criticism of the musician’s character.

Criticizing CityBeat over Puesto, Dadian coverage

Thoughts from our readers

Based on your review of Puesto, my wife and I dined there on a recent Sunday. First, I can only state that Ms. Montgomery either has a financial interest in Puesto or has slept with the editor of CityBeat or the owner of Puesto or all of the above.

Haven't we been here before?

In San Diego politics, the frame of the game stays the same

In San Diego politics, the frame of the game stays the same

San Diego song

City may have passed a pain-free budget, but it has a bigger hole in it than Henry’s bucket

City may have passed a pain-free budget, but it has a bigger hole in it than Henry’s bucket

In lieu of flowers

A eulogy for departed City Attorney Mike Aguirre

A eulogy for departed City Attorney Mike Aguirre

Black hole in the sun

Why would anyone want to be a member of the San Diego City Council?

Why would anyone want to be a member of the San Diego City Council?

On to the 19th century!

You can’t fight City Hall—but you can fight retro plans to build a new one

You can’t fight City Hall—but you can fight retro plans to build a new one

An odd year

Elections in odd-numbered council districts and an odd trio challenging an odd city attorney make for odd times

Elections in odd-numbered council districts and an odd trio challenging an odd city attorney make for odd times

Light the candles

Even small wars cost a lot to raise these days

Even small wars cost a lot to raise these days

Tijuana burns

Our neighbor's house is on fire--and no one seems to give a damn

Our neighbor's house is on fire--and no one seems to give a damn

It's really not so bad

From financial woes to flaming fires, plagues of problems bedeviled San Diego in 2007, but we go on

From financial woes to flaming fires, plagues of problems bedeviled San Diego in 2007, but we muddled on

The fall of Mike Aguirre

Can the city attorney survive the autumn of his discontent?

Can the city attorney survive the autumn of his discontent?

I'm tense no more

Out with this old column, in with a new one

Having grown up in San Diego seeing so many creative, smart people move to Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Europe and other, less-deserty pastures, I always admired those who stayed, or relocated, here for their resolve to make it work in a town where picking up a newspaper is less popular than applying zinc oxide to the nasal region.

How may I help you?

Providing a different kind of tech support

Punya and Abhijeet, both in their late 20s, told me they were the only two guys from hundreds in the company’s Bangalore office who’d been sent to San Diego for training. So, these were the voices on the phone! I had come face to face with the living, breathing targets of every joke ever told in the U.S. about trying to get a modem fixed.

Cuckoo world

My admiration for a local antiques collector

Long before the Gaslamp Quarter became the gentrified playground of San Diego’s young 9-to-5ers, there was this giant antique mall down there, south of Market.

Sleepless in San Diego

Where can a night owl go for a hoot

If New York is the city that never sleeps, San Diego is the city that has a glass of warm soymilk before tucking itself into bed at 8:30.Sure, you’ve got your weekend Pacific Beach bro-fest, your

The politics of dancing

Shaking up the meaning of an American memorial

Five people were arrested on Saturday for dancing at the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C.

A view of the bridge

Balboa Park’s future in the grand scheme of things

I’m sure you’ve heard about Irwin Jacobs’ plan to invest in a park renovation that would remove cars from the Plaza De Panama in the heart of the park and divert traffic coming off of the Cabrillo Bridge toward other parking areas.

Bird of sacrifice

Pelicans are large and in charge, but their future is murky

Living smack in front of the tide pools in O.B. for 11 years will make an amateur pelican expert out of you, and it occurs to me that this year, something looks different.

Roe v. Wade on hold

Facing the erosion of abortion rights in America

It’s already happening across the country. The New York Times reported that since Republicans made gains in the mid-term elections, 29 states now have anti-choice governors and 15 have both anti-choice governors and legislatures.

Nukikazes wanted

Japan’s crisis offers a glowing opportunity

One of the more interesting yet under-reported stories from the ongoing disaster in Japan is about how the Tokyo Electric Power Company has ramped up its effort to find workers willing to brave the dangerous conditions at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

Meltdown versus shutdown

Let’s stop sucking the nuclear boobs

Shut down San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant! If enough of us demand it, it will happen. Raise your voices! Send letters! Organize a demonstration! Walk like an Egyptian!

Shenanigans: Local reality stars mini-crossword

Which local celebs fit in the blanks?

How well do you know your American Idol, The Apprentice, and Amazing Race?

Shenanigans: Elephants will be elephants

Can you match the local right-winger to the legislation he’s pushing in Sacramento?

Which bills are Garrick, Wyland, Jones, and Anderson pushing through this go-around?

Shenanigans: Money where our mouths are

Instead of spending money on signatures, buy us dinner

The committee behind the “Comprehensive Pension Reform” ballot measure (now known as Prop. B) spent nearly $1.16 million to collect 94,246 valid signatures. How about next time take all of us out for one of the following, equivalently priced dinners...

Shenanigans: The Procurement is Right

How much is San Diego County paying for bras, finger lights and the 'white glove' treatment

Guess the winning bids on these County of San Diego contracts:

Shenanigans: May Day Mini-Crossword

How much do you know about local labor unions?

May 1 is International Workers' Day, also known as May Day. Show how much you know about local labor unions with this mini-crossword.

Shenanigans: County Superdowser

Can you help Supervisor Bill Horn find water?

In addition to thinking he’s God’s gift to North County, San Diego County Supervisor Bill Horn believes he can use a divining rod to find water—then spend $72,600 in public money to dig a well.

Shenanigans: What's your Ghanaian soul name?

If you were born on a Friday, you might share Kofi Annan's name

Kofi Annan’s name is back in the news as the former United Nations secretary-general attempts to bring peace to Syria. But did you know that you might also be named Kofi?

Shenanigans: Common Hoods

Can you identified these real hood-i-fied villains

Geraldo Rivera got us thinking: If the worst villains of our time really did wear hoodies, would that make them easier to spot? Can you identify these four hood-i-fied criminals who aren't Travyon Martin?

Shenanigans: Spring Trained

Can you sort the Cactus League teams from the Grapefruit Leage teams?

This week marks the home stretch of Major League Baseball spring training. Mark whether the following teams are Grapefruit League (Florida), Cactus League (Arizona)  or not a baseball team at all.

Shenanigans: Lie-P-A

Can you separate the real local India Pale Ales from the fakes

As San Diego’s craft-beer scene grows, so does the number of poseurs who love to name-drop obscure IPAs they’ve sampled. Can you separate the real regional India Pale Ales from the fake ones

My retort to the Ed Decker 50th Birthday Roast

I’m breaking the rules and having my say, dammit!

For those who don’t know, last Sunday, my wife produced the Ed Decker 50th Birthday Roast held at Winstons Beach Club. It was great, and, by “great,” I mean the way being shackled to the Judas Chair for a two-hour Spanish Inquisition is great.

Becoming fluent in safety-speak

Ted Nugent, Hillary Rosen and the overreactionistas

Oh, yes, I’m amused by Ted Nugent—The Noodge, as I like to call him—for having saltpeter in his pecker and gunpowder where his brain should be, but not nearly as amused as I am by the professional overreactionistas

‘America, love it or leave it’

Remember, it goes both ways

The phrase “America, love it or leave it” is what’s known as a false dilemma because it supposes only two options when actually they are bottomless.

Acute Server Burnout Disorder

Only you can help prevent its spread

Acute Server burnout is a disorder from which it is difficult to recover, especially in the final stages—when you hate the bar and the bands, the funbuzzes become more murky and stygian and your clammy lizard claws are ready to carve out the organs of the first customer who stiffs you.

Code Red is a must for anyone living with a woman

Meet the iPhone app that will probably save your life

Code Red is an ingenious little tool that warns you when your wife or girlfriend—or any cohabitating female for that matter—is about to have her period.

All we are saying, is give cheese a chance

Don’t be such a snob—you might actually enjoy cover music

So, while this issue of CityBeat is devoted to all the excellent original bands of San Diego (CityBeat staffers are notorious OMSs), I tip my hat to the red-headed stepchildren of the scene, and will hopefully change some minds to boot

It’s time to forgive Eli Manning, San Diego

The quarterback that got away just wasn’t that into you

It’s been two weeks since my beloved New York Giants took Super Bowl XLVI, and still the pernicious missives from my Giants-Hating Chargers-fan friends keep rolling in.

In defense of texting

Don’t try to tell me nobody talks to nobody anymore

I’m like Rachel in the movie The Ring. Whenever the phone rings, my heart stops for fear the caller might be a little girl with wet, black hair who will want to talk about band camp for an hour. This is why I am so grateful for all the communication technology we have today.

Jay-Z’s song about his new baby blows

But don’t all songs about babies blow?

Whether you believe newborn babies are miraculous gifts from God or subterranean alien vampire-rats bent on draining your life force, can we at least agree that songs about babies tend to suck rusty buckets of contaminated amniotic fluid?

Cee Lo’s revision of ‘Imagine’ was perfectly fine, except that it sucked

Changing John Lennon’s lyrics wasn’t the problem

How is it possible that all the over-reactionistas and followers of The John Lennon Church of Latter Day Music Snobs don’t recognize that redesigning old songs is an exciting and unpredictable part of the music scene.

Carl DeMaio’s troubling ‘troubled upbringing’

What motivates the sons of our fathers?

If you’ve followed Spin Cycle long enough, you’ve likely noticed a greater interest in what motivates our local leaders and those who support and oppose them versus the mind-numbing calculus that can dominate the conversation about San Diego’s most pressing problems.

No mayoral fever here

Just can’t get excited about DeMaio, Dumanis, Fletcher and Filner

Maybe it’s five days’ worth of fever talking, but Spin just can’t seem to get excited in any way about the race to determine San Diego’s next mayor.

Putting polite back in politics

Fletcher/DeMaio war of words notwithstanding

Welcome to the state of political discourse in the 21st century. A rumor pops, sending political junkies scrambling to determine if this is a game-changer, or the game changer.

Plaza de animus

Balboa Park and the battle for the ‘soul of San Diego’

A hell of a headache” is how project coordinator Gordon Kovtun described the daunting task that he and the well-heeled Plaza de Panama Committee have decided to bite off in time for a citywide celebration. Much is riding on this gambit at a cost that Kovtun said fast approaches $5 million.

Will the next mayor take on SDG&E’s monopoly?

Renewable-power advocates favor a sort of local energy cooperative

The topic of high residential utility rates has received little attention from the top contenders in the race to become San Diego’s next mayor.

Eric Bidwell’s back

The dreadlocked one is running again for mayor

 “Every revolution was first a thought in one man’s mind.”—Ralph Waldo EmersonThe signature cigar-thick dreadlocks now flow a good two feet longer, down past the knees. The T-

Bryan Pease wants Sherri Lightner’s job

Animal-rights activist rejects the spoiler argument

Sure, call him a carpetbagger. Yes, he is a new resident of District 1, having recently rented a modest apartment in the UTC area. You can also call him determined, as in he plans to win.

San Diego is ego-friendly

Who’s your daddy now—Mayor Knows-Best or Papa Doug?

Mayor Sanders' media machine was on full defensive alert this past weekend, when hotel mogul Papa Doug Manchester used his latest purchase—the town’s major daily, recently renamed U-T San Diego—to encourage readers to "think big" about San Diego’s future.

Another trio for San Diego mayor

Three additional candidates would like the media’s attention

Spin Cycle presses on with its effort to recognize all candidates running to be San Diego’s next mayor. While most media would have you believe that only those named Carl, Nathan, Bonnie and Bob are worth hearing from, the list of folks who’d argue otherwise has now grown to 16 candidates. Here’s a glimpse into three relative newcomers to the race:

Resolutions from Doug Manchester, Irwin Jacobs and Tony Krvaric

Imagined New Year’s promises are most likely DOA

Spin Cycle presents “New Year’s Resolutions that Would be Great to Hear but We’re Not Holding Our Breath.”