MACDONALD: Dems-n-Property Taxes

Following on my earlier post, Dems-n-Energy, I bring you another fake concern of the left that could be addressed, at least in part and almost immediately, if the Dems tried this one easy thing. In Dems-n-energy, it was the price of energy. Here, we’re talking education costs, which are the single greatest driver of high … Read more

Illustration of a parent at the helm of a ship sailing through fog toward a distant red lighthouse. Two gauges show concerning metrics: 'READING 63%' and 'MATH 30%'. The parent leans forward thoughtfully, examining the instruments as the lighthouse beam illuminates the scene through the mist. The color palette uses deep navy blues, soft grays, and a warm red lighthouse accent, creating a hopeful yet questioning tone about educational outcomes.

UNDERWOOD: Are Your Kids’ Test Scores Relevant?

Here’s something you may not have known: About 88% of New Hampshire’s Class of 2025 graduated from high school. But when that same cohort was tested in Grade 11, only 63% demonstrated proficiency in reading and 30% in math. That’s quite a gap. It made me wonder: How are so many students graduating when so … Read more

socialism

ROPER: 250 Years of Capitalism Kicking Socialism’s Butt

I’ve got to say it’s more than a bit distressing to head into the celebration of our great nation’s 250th birthday on the heels of Democratic Socialists winning a bunch of elections in New York and Colorado. So, this semiquincentennial (yes, I had to look it up, and even my spellcheck still doesn’t believe that’s … Read more

Indoctrination cartoon

BOWMAN: Americans Are Worth Saving

Today’s America is being brought to us from roughly a century of communist infiltration, organizing, and the indoctrination of those who are our Country’s future.  Counter to their former obscurity, their current actions and words have confirmed what many have suspected. To our detriment, the fact is that since the sixties, these commies have amassed … Read more

tax cap image

BROWN: Are School Tax Caps the Answer? Yes & No  

Legislation was passed in my town of Kingston during the March election and recently at the NH State House offering “tax caps” as a solution to exploding town and school budgets.     These measures – while tempting – resemble the “price controls” economists normally condemn.     Economists routinely oppose price ceilings. The best outcomes are achieved when … Read more

Dr Benjamin Rush

BOLDIN: Ignorance and Vice – The One-Two Punch for Tyranny

“It is in the Interest of Tyrants to reduce the People to Ignorance and Vice.” Samuel Adams warned us – tyranny is built on people who lack knowledge and strong morals. That’s because he knew freedom is built on the opposite foundation. “For they cannot live in any Country where Virtue and Knowledge prevail.” He … Read more

School house

ROPER: Want to Save Rural Schools? Go Independent

In the wake of Act 73/H.955 education “reform” and the emphasis on consolidation, there has been considerable worry in rural Vermont about what this means for their small, local schools. For many, it will mean closure. A recent op-ed by Nina Antin notes, “When Sen. Ruth Hardy, D-Addison, presented H.955 on the Vermont Senate floor, … Read more

UNDERWOOD: EdOpt Fair in Claremont June 3 ????

The EdOpt Fair in Claremont is taking place Wednesday June 3! Come join us and have one-on-one conversations with these providers: Don’t forget to stop by the EdOpt table if you want some guidance. Looking forward to seeing you there! This will be our last fair until the end of July. Please check out our … Read more

Kid in a wagon

UNDERWOOD: Summer Debunks The Daycare Fallacy

[Originally published in April 2025.  It seems like a good time to remind people of this.] Every summer, kids are out of school for about 80 days, almost 3 months. So, what do parents do with their kids during that time?   It’s not like their jobs end.  It’s not like they can take 3 months … Read more

UNDERWOOD: EdOpt Fair in Goffstown on Weds

The EdOpt Fair in Goffstown is taking place Wednesday, May 13! Katy Ann Myers from the Goffstown Homeschool Community and I worked closely to make this happen. What a ball of positive energy she is! Come join us and meet this wide range of providers: Don’t forget to stop by the EdOpt table if you … Read more

classroom seats desks empty

CLINE: NH’s Low Class Sizes Continue To Shrink

New Hampshire public school enrollment continues to decline at a faster rate than teacher employment, a Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy analysis of state data shows. Over the last 15 years, public schools in New Hampshire lost students at nearly three times the rate at which they lost teachers. From the 2011-2012 school year … Read more

Money flushed down the Public school toilet

ROPER: You Are Going to Pay More for a Failing Public School System

For the past two years, Vermont politicians have been telling Vermont property taxpayers that they heard us after 2024 and are working to reform our education system to provide property tax relief. It’s not happening. The debate today as we close out the 2026 legislative session is whether to pay for 4%-plus increase in spending … Read more

Cartoon of a woman archer and aman tossing paper airplanes

UNDERWOOD: Goals, Not Gestures

Marco Rubio testified before Congress recently, where he dropped this little gem in a reply to Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York: We have to have a State Department that can deliver on a foreign policy that is rooted in the national interest of the United States. To defend the national interest of the United … Read more

God and Country

PAYNE: The Key to Liberty

Scriptures tell us: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. The knowledge of the holy one is understanding.” The Lord gave us free will. To gain understanding, He gave us the Ten Commandments, a divine blueprint we could freely choose to follow so that our nature would reflect His. Rebellion against God … Read more

Right Side Up Splash with Mike T

Right Side Up: Taxes, Taxes, Taxes

This week, on Right Side Up, Alison and I discuss more of the active legislation in Montpelier incluindg more on land use, education reform, and H.933 – a whole lot of taxes. Watch on the ‘Grok Rumble Channel if the embedded video does not load. Authors’ and Speakers’ opinions are their own and may not … Read more

3-26-6 Morning Update

Morning Update: E.D.

Today, on the Morning update, the topic is ED. Educational Dysfunction. And how, no matter how much money we throw at it, it can’t seem to get it (academic achievement). Watch on the ‘Grok Rumble Channel if the embedded video does not load. Ep. 136 Links: Authors’ and Speakers’ opinions are their own and may … Read more

no

PAGE: No Federal Tax Credit for Independent Schools

One Big Beautiful Bill gives scholarship donors $1700 federal tax credit – but Dem majority doesn’t want it Vermonters will not be allowed to take a federal tax credit for contributing to a private/independent school scholarship program, if a House Ways & Means Committee miscellaneous tax bill introduced yesterday becomes law. H.933, titled “miscellaneous administrative … Read more

Money_Black_Hole

MACDONALD: Adequate for What?

I won’t pay the Union Leader, our state’s largest circulation newspaper, for the privilege of access to the declining value of what they call news, but I get their emails, and this headline caught my eye. “Manchester schools ask business leaders to push for adequate funding.” Even if you’re not a victim of the ed … Read more

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