#tom luna

[swanlake1998]

lorraine graves and tom luna photographed as kitri and basilio in don quixote pas de deux by chrysler chamber ballet archives

[spaceshipsandpurpledrank]

[mralexbarron]

Raul Labrador was elected the Idaho State Republican Party Chairman. He may be the first Hispanic, and almost certainly the first American of Puerto Rico descent to be selected as Idaho Republican Party Chairman. Per the 2010 census, Idaho is 89% Americans of European origin (white).

Former federal Congressman Raul Labrador ran for Idaho governor last year and was defeated by Governor Brad Little.  It was rumored that President Trump was considering Raul Labrador for a cabinet position.

Today Raul Labrador viewed as an arch-conservative, a former member of the Tea Party, and a founder of the conservative liberty focused House Freedom Caucus was elected Republican State Party Chairman for an 2 year term.  The vote was razor thin, 111 to 109 over former Idaho School Superintendent Tom Luna.  There were a total of 226 Republican Party officials who could vote for the Idaho Party Chairman, and 220 people were in attendance in person, or through a proxy.

After the resignations of the former Idaho State Party Chairman, the first Vice Chairwoman Jennifer Locke has been the interim-Chairwoman for several months. She was extremely excited to give up the job. She received a standing ovation for her work.

This close result demonstrates the division in the Idaho Republican Party between the  conservative, traditionalists, libertarian wing, and the more establishment, moderate wing.  While Governor Little represents more of the establishment wing, Raul Labrador represents a more conservative wing.  Today both men were all smiles.  It will be interesting to see how these two men work together.

Other rule changes considered were P1 “Platform Loyalty & Accountability,” and rule2019-P4 rule to include the Chairman of the Republican Liberty Caucus of Idaho to be included in the Republican State Executive Committee both failed.

Former Congressman Raul Labrador elected #Idaho Republican Party Chairman #IDpol Raul Labrador was elected the Idaho State Republican Party Chairman. He may be the first Hispanic, and almost certainly the first American of Puerto Rico descent to be selected as Idaho Republican Party Chairman.

[cedarpost-blog]

What are props one two and three? Find out at shscedarpost.com and watch the interviews point and counterpoint. 

[knockingitoutofthepark]

For Idaho Voters, Wiping Out the Luna Laws a Matter of Basic Fairness

The fierce secrecy and cunning behind Idaho State Superintendent Tom Luna’s education reform effort showed what a shrewd political outfit is capable of even in Idaho.  But in the end, Luna’s shameful attempt to steer our children behind closed doors will go down as a stunning display of child exploitation and personal political gain.

And it’s sad.

Sad that an elected leader politicized a cause like education.  Sad that the effort marginalized parents.  And sad that teachers were made the enemy.

It’s sadder yet that education reform in Idaho will now forever be linked to deceit, money, and anger. 

At a time when we should be embracing the idea, Luna turned reform into a loaded and melancholy word that seems better unspoken.  That’s a troubling development to the many Idahoans who see fair and open education reform as a long-term necessity, something to be embraced by community leaders striving to meet the needs of the next generation. 

But even reform-minded folks recognize the value of fair process, and that’s were Luna erred.

You see, more than any other kind of reform, education reform must be done in the open.  It must strive for consensus while embracing compromise.  And it must shun politics.

Superintendent Luna ignored these principles when he pushed his back-alley reforms a year ago, and his once bright political star now seems almost white dwarfish. 

Sure it’s warm, but dimming by the day. 

Don’t get me wrong, Luna’s willingness to attempt reform in the first instance was a good thing.  His stab at change was commendable at a time when so many are unwilling to challenge the status quo, and had he owned his reforms from the very beginning who knows what would have happened.

But Luna shrunk when it mattered most. 

In the fall of 2010 when he should have been tying his reelection campaign to his reformist-vision in plain sight, Luna buried his controversial plan to secure his job.  Only after he won reelection against a defrauded Stan Olson did Luna spring his scheme on the sucker-punched and stunned electorate.

To this day, it is that fraudulent and self-serving process that remains the best justification for repeal of the Luna Laws. 

We reverse a murder conviction when a trial fails to adhere to basic standards of fairness because, regardless of guilt, a process so important and flawed must be redone.

So it should be for education reform.

It is true that there was some debate about the reform measures after Luna had his gotcha-moment.  No doubt some true believers even think last year’s choreographed dance between Luna and the State Legislature was process enough.  But to objective observers, passage of the Luna Laws seemed preordained from the moment Luna spoke them—as if Idaho Lawmakers, Governor Otter, and Tom Luna had rubberstamped the reforms before they ever saw the light of day.    

There is simply no other way to explain the Legislature’s curt dismissal of the overwhelming and passionate opposition to the Luna Laws. 

Forced to take matters into their own hands, ever vigilant citizens set on having a say in their children’s futures rose up against the Luna Laws and put repeal of those measures on the ballot this year.  That was a not-so-small victory for education advocates in and of itself, and it should have sent a dire message to Luna’s backers. 

But those impassioned parents and teachers vying for repeal were almost wronged again when the secret consortium of Luna backers engineered a second cover-up—this time the hiding of their own names.   

Fortunately objective jurists shattered the tinted windows protecting the Luna Law backers and exposed the rich guys fighting to keep their names secret.  But even so, this second sledgehammer to open government stands as a stark reminder not only of the tainted process that started this fiasco, but also of the future of education in Idaho if voters stand by and do nothing. 

Fool us once shame on you.  Fool us twice, shame on us.

As impossible as it seems today, Idaho can still be a place where education is a serious endeavor.

But we have to take a step back first.

Vote No on Propositions 1, 2, and 3 and you wipe the slate clean so that we can start again.  This time together and in the open.

Bob Firpo is an attorney and freelance writer in Boise, ID. 

[before5]

Doing a paper on Luna Laws/ Props 1, 2, and 3. Anybody have any input??

[idacold]

Tom Luna's, "education reform," bills negatively affect traditional education and union bargaining.

Written for The Arbiter.

We must not place our primary education into incapable hands. We must be cautious when our government wants to benefit the collective sovereignty.

The bill, titled Students Come First,  hardly respects its name and is truly a tool to reduce teacher’s unions’ power to bargain and allows the degeneration of traditional teaching methods. A simple allegory may explain its negative appeal. If a farmer has a bad apple, it reflects the tree which matured it and not the orchard as a whole. Similarly, we should blame the conditions and institutions which advance bad teachers, not teachers and unions as a whole.

Only selective personalities commit to a life of unruly students, sometimes fluctuating pay and underdone respect. Tom Luna’s bill eliminates unions’ collective bargaining powers for teachers. If a collective bargaining unit and the board of trustees fail to reach an agreement, compromise is not mandatory.

According to the bill, “The recommendation or recommendations of the mediator, if any, shall not be construed as having any force or effect. The board of trustees shall establish compensation for professional employees for the ensuing school year as it deems appropriate.”

Under this law, the board of trustees has legal rights to undermine all aspects of employee contracts. Sole uncheckable power seldom induces multiple winners. Unreasonable union demands can be reduced, whereas unreasonable state demands go unchallenged. Teachers’ only strength against governmental labor abuse is the bargaining of benefits. Educators of 2020 will visit cyber-schools and resent online education’s original appeal.

We cannot be ignorant to the fact that governments acquire an inch to run a mile. Today, laptops can coexist with whiteboards and books alike. But books and whiteboards will be replaced with more laptops and larger LCD screens, much like Expo pens replaced slate.

The only difference is, this new technology will erode teacher-student interaction. Creative discourse will be retained to the confines of electronic use, where students focus on a screen instead of  the people or objects around them.

Students should not be left to their own devices because actual teaching will eventually disappear into the dust. Luna’s bill effectively ends collective bargaining and starts the first generation of quasi-cyborg academia. We must remain suspicious any time the government declares a piece of legislation to be in our best interest. The people who meddle with these affairs must be approached cautiously and watched very carefully.

-Thanks for reading, Bryce Dunham-Zemberi