Donald Trump - Really? If You Support Trump, Watch This - I Dare You!

Was Councilor AuClair Involved In A Fundraising Scam?

Ken O’Brien

In a previous post I addressed whether Southbridge Town Councilor Kristen AuClair had misled voters about her role in denying the historical evidence on the existence of dinosaurs.

During her campaign for her current seat on the Council she claimed that her comments on the matter were little more than satire.

As another blogger has noted, “Sadly, I think they actually believe what they’re saying, although we may never know for sure. Between their Facebook page, Twitter feed and Youtube channel, they seem dumbfoundingly earnest. And would anyone put this much effort into their website if they didn’t really mean it?”

Whether or not Councilor AuClair was pursuing an earnest belief or was in fact engaged with others in a high level piece of performance art, one of her group’s efforts, in which she was involved, raises serious concerns. 

Charter Schools – Havens For Waste, Fraud And Abuse?

Ken O’Brien

May 4th through the 10th is National Teacher Appreciation Week. It is also National Charter School Week.

In what may be regarded as a poke in the eye to that latter occasion, a new study has been issued that focuses on what it maintains is a culture of criminal behavior that infects charter schools around the country.  Titled “Charter School Vulnerabilities to Waste, Fraud and Abuse,” the report focused on 15 states representing large charter markets, out of the 42 states that have charter schools.

The report, co-authored by the Center for Popular Democracy and Integrity in Education, makes the point that the problem of charter school waste, fraud and abuse, which it focuses on, is just one symptom of the underlying problem: inadequate regulation of charter schools.