Residents of our town are voting today on three special property tax increases. They’re meant to fund some school renovations, for the most part. When I think of our town’s budget, I think about its financial statements. So, I found the 2013 budget and some cool charts, some of which I show below. Our town’s
Category: Politics
Movie: ‘Camp 14–Total Control Zone’
I watched a riveting movie this weekend about a North Korean political prisoner named Shin Dong-Huyk. Born at a slave labor camp, the film chronicles his life. What he has gone through is almost surreal, and it’s hard to believe that people are sent to life sentences involving harsh labor, torture and near-starvation for minor
My Trip Back to Indonesia in 2nd Grade
I just read an interesting piece in today’s New York Times. Here’s an excerpt: In America, all men are believed to be created equal and endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights. But Nigerians are brought up to believe that our society consists of higher and lesser beings. Some are born to own and
On This MLK Day
Sometimes you work, and you don’t see the benefits. Sometimes you toil away, and the hoped-for goals continue to elude you. And, sometimes, the impact you have happens after you’ve gone. I think the work of Martin Luther King, Jr., is one such example. When he was alive, social justice was elusive. Gains were hard-fought.
The Connecticut Shootings
It’s hard to read about the victims in Connecticut without shedding tears. It’s hard to process how a gunman can shoot his mother, young children and teachers. It’s hopeful to see social media serve as a platform through which people are lobbying Congress for gun control and showing deeply-felt empathy for the families. But, I hope
Thoughts on the Election
Whether your side won or lost last night, there’s one conclusion that is clear: the U.S. is a different country now. The politics of the day used to revolve around winning the “white” vote. Well, Romney carried that vote, and he lost. Women and minorities pushed Obama over the magic 270 Electoral number. In other