Author: James A. Bacon
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In a Toxic Culture, Defining What It Means to Be a Man
My favorite living sociologist (Edward Banfield passed away in 1999), the University of Virginia’s Brad Wilcox, is perhaps the leading conservative scholar on the sociology of the U.S. family. This tweet links to his review of Scott Galloway’s book, “Notes on Being a Man” in the Wall Street Journal. — JAB
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Virginia’s Most Conservative City Births Plan to Thwart Abortion Tourism
Lynchburg is proving that the fight against abortion starts at the local level. by Hayden Ludwig Planned Parenthood boasted earlier this year that “Virginia is the last state in the South without an extreme abortion ban.” That’s a campaign consultant’s way of twisting the truth: the Old Dominion has the most liberal abortion laws south of the…
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Bill Could Release Dangerous Murderers
by Hans Bader A bill introduced in Virginia could lead to the release of dangerous murderers who committed their crime as teenagers. If passed, SB60 would mandate that the Virginia Parole “Board shall not deny parole for a juvenile offender based on factors outside of his demonstrated ability to change, such as the nature of…
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UVA’s President Was Right to Resign
“Former university head Jim Ryan presided over a potential pattern of civil-rights violations, writes John D. Sailer at the Manhattan Institute — highlighting a fact that has largely been ignored by state Senate leaders intent upon asserting control over the University of Virginia’s Board of Visitors. From his article in the City Journal: Rather than…
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Geographic Schism Among Virginia Dems?
Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, the president pro tempore of the state Senate, goes on to tweet: Recently Fairfax commissioned a study with the Weldon Cooper Center at UVA claiming they only get 50 cents back on each tax dollar raised by the Commonwealth. This is false- and is a number derived by only counting money we…
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Do Students Benefit from College Athletics?
James V. Koch, a former university president, prolific writer about college governance, and huge college sports fan, chats with Jim Bacon about the seismic changes in the college sports landscape. In his new book, “The Economic Impact of Intercollegiate Athletics on Former Students,” Koch explores the pros and cons of college athletics for students and…
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Governance Breakdown in Virginia Higher Ed
by Gordon C. Morse Here’s the thing to sort out about Virginia’s colleges and universities: These schools achieved widespread acclaim on the basis of a rather specific, long-standing governing arrangement. Today most everyone looks upon Virginia higher education with pride and satisfaction. It works for us; it has for a long time. So why have…
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The Disturbing Politicization of UVA’s Faculty Senate
— written by a correspondent in Virginia Inside Higher Ed, an online publisher of news and opinion in the higher education sphere, recently published an article entitled, “The Angry 8: On Faculty Senates.” The thrust of the story is that the faculty senates at many colleges and universities have been hijacked by a relatively small…
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One Man’s RPV Advance is Another Man’s Valley Forge
Virginia Republicans have a lot to consider as they select their new RPV Chairman. by Shaun Kenney First things first — if you haven’t watched Ken Burns’ American Revolution on PBS, I hope you have a few history books at your side to confirm whether or not the good guys actually won the war, because…
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GMU Law School Dean Tenders Resignation
Ken Randall, dean of the Scalia Law School at George Mason University, has tendered his resignation effective the end of the academic year, according to Virginia Business magazine, citing remarks by GMU Provost James Antony to GMU’s academic affairs committee. A university spokesman denied that Randall’s departure is related to last month’s House Judiciary Committee…
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Feel-Good Story of the Day
No, the drunken raccoon of Ashland hasn’t started his own YouTube channel. This is a horse story… From the Capital Region Land Conservancy: Doswell, VA – Nearly 350 acres of farmland where the legendary Triple Crown champion Secretariat frolicked as a colt are now protected forever by a conservation easement held by the Capital Region Land…
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“Better Have a Very Good Buyout Clause”
House speaker predicts short tenure for any UVA president selected by current UVA Board.
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Outfoxing Judge Thomas
An alternative redistricting strategy for VA Democrats by Paul Goldman On Friday, I showed how the recent U.S. Supreme decision on the GOP Texas redistricting put a fork in the Spanberger/Scott/Surovell mid-decade redistricting plan. The High Court made certain that Virginia and other states got the message: once the campaign season is in full swing, fundamental…