iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

“Well spent” is a massive load-bearing phrase here

7732

Tell it to the people here who insist that "spending = success" I think it's a stupid idea, but it's a stupid idea that refuses to die no matter how much money we've lit on fire over the past 60 years

17501

David Gustof @dgustof1966.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

No. I'm going to take some time to fight as well with people who think they should be able to direct my activities on social media

151392

Reposted by Tom Nichols

I’ll say it again. The largest influence/indicator of student achievement is parental involvement.

913110

I guess I should say this out loud. What works? Sometimes, the sad answer is: nothing. All you can do is spend enough and do what you can to mitigate the damage, but 60 years of experiments should tell us that sometimes, life is unfair and you can't fix everything.

141141

New York has some seriously uneven public school outcomes. New York City spends *even more than the state average*, and yet NYC outcomes lag the state, the region, and the national average. By the "spending = success" reasoning, NYC should be at the top of the heap for outcomes. It isn't.

23603

If this were true, New York and DC would have the best educational outcomes in the country

18531

And the assault he led on government programs was so unpopular that he barely squeaked back into office in 1984

7555

I was on the road today doing stuff and it was pretty funny to hear Wink Martindale sitting in for Casey. Peak mid-70s.

151032

You're confusing cause and effect. The voters in 1980 had already made that decision. They didn't elect Reagan to give the social programs of the 70s a fair shake, they elected him to dismantle them.

12675

I have to dial back the sarcasm, because people aren't getting it. Yes, better housing, nutritious food, nicer streets, low crime - all of these will help grades! But many of you are basically unreconstructed 70s liberals who *just don't get it* that you can't make that magically happen. /1

151034

Occasionally, I interact with my family and watch television and do things beside answer annoying people who demand full treatises on government at the snap of their fingers.

281901

Sure, and affordable housing and universal healthcare, all of these can help solve poor grades in public schools

33611

(whispers) Title IX But sure, some departments he'll destroy. Others he'll hijack. The point is that education - like many other areas of American life - are the responsibility of states, not the feds. Centralizing power is a temptation to mischief.

22926

Art from the street fair! A local artist who makes collages out of vintage comic books

355348

Stephen Schwartz @atomicanalyst.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

Beautiful day and big turnout at the Newport Street fair

213974

Reposted by Tom Nichols

Today in 1967, the Outer Space Treaty entered into force. Now boasting 112 states parties (it started with just 62), the treaty guarantees the peaceful exploration of space for all, bans militarization of the Moon, and outlaws nuclear and other WMDs in orbit, on celestial bodies, and in outer space.

A black and white photograph showing representatives of the Soviet Union (Ambassador to the United States Anatoly F. Dobrynin), United Kingdom (Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the United Nations Sir Patrick Dean), and the United States sitting at a table in the White House to sign the Outer Space Treaty on January 27, 1967. President Lyndon Johnson, seated at the right end of the table, looks on as Secretary of State Dean Rusk signs the treaty.

613342

And this is how you get mission creep: Now it's not just fixing the school, you have to provide enough money, food, and housing to get better educational outcomes. Maybe even enough so that parents only work one job. Maybe a car would help, too. And a pony

91874

Two all the way, a coffee milk, and a Del's @ri.oldfolkshome.org · 10/10/2026

This person does not understand my Juche thought

7621

Reposted by Tom Nichols

Oh, they ABSOLUTELY would. Look at Cambridge, MA which prohibited Algebra 2 from being taught in middle schools in the name of “equity” until they were forced to grudgingly reverse when parents rightfully went apeshit.

15662

Yes, the first step would be to become a small homogeneous Scandinavian country.

5521211

Also, I want school days shorter so that children can be sent into the fields to harvest potatoes

221756

Correct, this is one of those statistics that a lot of people simply don’t believe until you show them the actual numbers. Money cannot change neighborhoods or parents.

251367

I have no problem with the federal government setting standards for nuclear reactors, but every federal regulation should be justified rather than assumed

6704

I think “states must adhere to standards written in DC for all sorts of things” is generally a problem, not a positive thing.

9472

Life is not fair. Kids in suburban Boston are going to get a better education than kids in the inner city. Federal bureaucrats cannot change that.

20713

Gail Helt @gailhelt.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

One reason people are suspicious of centralized federal power is because people like this think that states and localities cannot possibly find experts, and that only the central government can find and employ them. Expertise is not the sole property of federal bureaucrats.

6735

Reposted by Tom Nichols

Dear Lord save us from the lukewarm pastors who have replaced the Bible with Project 2025 because they seek access to political power.

1839492

Millions of Americans literally bet their life that RFK Jr, a complete crackpot, knew science better than the CDC and Jonas Salk and just about every living doctor

79825210

Cindy B @cbum22.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

I mean, did Bluesky do a recruiting drive and now there's a zillion new people here

17961

Reposted by Tom Nichols

Social media is a bunch of uninformed hot takes that presume some nefarious intent lurking in everyone.

4515

I would slash defense spending and spend the defense budget differently. "Strong" doesn't have to mean "expensive."

2021014

That's darn right And this gif doesn't really relate to that, but I wanted to use it anyway before I dive into Season 6

14652

Michael Feinberg @michael-feinberg.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Fine, but he's right about Sandra Day O'Connor. People here are certain that Reagan was doing the Moral Majority's bidding, which is a hoot to those of us who were alive and paying attention to what was actually happening back then.

7380

Reposted by Tom Nichols

In light of today's latest idiotic announcement from Kash Patel that UFC will officially begin training new agent trainees, I'm reposting a few of responses to his similar, previous efforts.

210227

I was trying to finish a paper for an IR class, the only late paper I ever handed in.

11801

This is posted as if I haven't been doing this since 2015. I realize that if you're new here, or new to politics, or new to this solar system, you might think this is my first midterm with Trump in power, but this is just, um, stupid

131192