Month: June 2014

Dept. of Brilliant Marketing: Kim Jong Un to star in rumor with James Franco and Seth Rogen

June 23, 2014

First off, the new Seth Rogen-James Franco film “The Interview” looks like a hoot. It’s a comedic-thriller set in North Korea, in which two talk show hosts are co-opted by the CIA in a plot to kill Kim Jong Un. When I saw the trailer last weekend my first thought was “why didn’t I think … More Dept. of Brilliant Marketing: Kim Jong Un to star in rumor with James Franco and Seth Rogen

Anatomy of a Charm Campaign: Venture Capitalist Vinod Khosla Tries Making Good News to Bury Bad News

June 20, 2014

Billionaire tech investor Vin Khosla is known for playing his cards pretty close to the vest. In a business filed with big egos and big mouths, he’s not one known for courting public attention. This explains his desire to keep his name out of the dispute over Martin’s Beach, an oceanfront property south of San … More Anatomy of a Charm Campaign: Venture Capitalist Vinod Khosla Tries Making Good News to Bury Bad News

NYT Op-Ed Misses the Point on Teacher Tenure Debate

June 13, 2014

NYT Op-Ed Misses the Point on Teacher Tenure Debate This op-ed by UC Berkeley Associate Professor Jesse Rothstein builds its argument around a single bad assumption, namely, that job SECURITY is what attracts the best candidates to a profession. Specifically, he claims, “One of the few things that helps recruit good people into teaching is … More NYT Op-Ed Misses the Point on Teacher Tenure Debate

Judge Deals a Serious Blow to State Rules that Protect Deadbeat Teachers from Firing

June 10, 2014

Several times over the years I’ve been asked to work on behalf of the United Teachers Los Angeles, better known as the Los Angeles Teachers Union, during political campaigns and various labor negotiations. I’m a friend of many teachers and I come from a family of teachers, so it’s understandable that they would ask. But … More Judge Deals a Serious Blow to State Rules that Protect Deadbeat Teachers from Firing