theory

2Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

EDUCATION, VIDEO REELS

Here’s What Won’t Work, And What Might – Lawsuits Over Bans On Teaching Critical Race Theory Are Coming

Frank LoMonte, University of Florida As states and school districts started threatening teachers with disciplinary action for teaching about systemic racism, the question naturally arose: Does this violate the teachers’ First Amendment rights? The First Amendment protects free speech against government punishment, outside of something as extreme as a threat of violence. A school district is a government agency. So anyone punished by a school district for nonthreatening speech seems to have the makings of a First Amendment case. But from years of teaching and researching First Amendment case law, I know that this is where things get complicated. Public school teachers are government employees. And thanks to a much-disputed Supreme Court decision from 15 years ago, government employees, ...

Activism In Students Sparked By Critical Race Theory

23Jun

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

SOCIAL JUSTICE

Activism In Students Sparked By Critical Race Theory

Jerusha Osberg Conner, Villanova University Critical race theory – an academic framework that holds that racism is embedded in society – has become the subject of an intense debate about how issues of race should or shouldn’t be taught in schools. Largely missing in the debate is evidence of how exposure to critical race theory actually affects students. As a researcher who specializes in youth activism, I have conducted research on and with youth organizing groups in which critical race theory is a core component of the political education. Eighty-two percent of youth organizing groups regularly offer political education, which involves a critical examination of social issues, usually through workshops and group discussions. My research – along with that of other scholars – points to ...

A Conspiracy Theory Or A True Conspiracy – An AI Tool That Can Distinguish Between The Two

3Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

AI, TECHNOLOGY, VIDEO REELS

A Conspiracy Theory Or A True Conspiracy – An AI Tool That Can Distinguish Between The Two

The audio on the otherwise shaky body camera footage is unusually clear. As police officers search a handcuffed man who moments before had fired a shot inside a pizza parlor, an officer asks him why he was there. The man says to investigate a pedophile ring. Incredulous, the officer asks again. Another officer chimes in, “Pizzagate. He’s talking about Pizzagate.” In that brief, chilling interaction in 2016, it becomes clear that conspiracy theories, long relegated to the fringes of society, had moved into the real world in a very dangerous way. Conspiracy theories, which have the potential to cause significant harm, have found a welcome home on social media, where forums free from moderation allow like-minded individuals to converse. There they can develop their theories and propose acti...

Trillions in coronavirus spending is putting AOC’s favorite economic theory to the test

3Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19

Trillions in coronavirus spending is putting AOC’s favorite economic theory to the test

French philosopher Voltaire famously quipped: “If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent him.” Something similar can be said of modern monetary theory, also known as MMT, because it may be the economy’s only hope to get through the pandemic. Coined by Australian economist Bill Mitchell and popularized recently by Democrats like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to fund programs such as the Green New Deal, MMT holds that a country with its own currency can spend almost unlimited sums of money. While government spending is normally financed by either taxes or borrowing, MMT suggests that governments can also do this by simply creating money. I’m currently working on a book chapter that examines various economic theories about government debt, including MMT. I believe this theory is...