Deep Something

Some Things Should Not Be Run for Profit

September 15, 2026 B. John 153 Views 0 Comments School Vouchers, Public Education, education policy, public good, School Choice, Florida Schools, Education Funding, Educational Equity

This entry is in the series Education

What if the biggest mistake in Florida’s education debate is assuming schools should work like ordinary businesses?

Markets reward efficiency, control costs, and give consumers choices. Public education has a different job. It has to serve every child, including the student who needs far more support, the student who needs advanced opportunities, and the student whose family could never afford to buy those services on its own.

That is why I think the debate over vouchers and school choice has to go deeper than whether competition can improve some outcomes. The real question is whether K-12 education should be organized around market incentives at all.

In this essay, I look at what happens when we confuse efficiency with public duty, and why some things may work better when the goal is not profit, but making sure everyone is served.

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Whose Choice Is It?

September 12, 2026September 12, 2026 B. John 145 Views 0 Comments Teacher Shortage, Educational Equity, Wealth Transfer, Public Education, School Choice, Florida Schools, Vouchers, Education Funding

This entry is in the series Education

Florida calls it school choice. But choice for whom?

An $8,000 voucher may open doors for a family that can add another $10,000 or $15,000. For a family that cannot, the same voucher may leave those doors closed. And even when the money is there, private schools still decide whom they admit. That raises a harder question than the slogan suggests: whose choice is it?

In this essay, I look at what public education was created to do, what Florida is changing, and why the stakes go far beyond schools. Drawing on our March Voices of Justice: Speak Up for Students program at Hyde Park United Methodist Church, including insights from USF education policy professor Dr. Bill Black, I argue that public education is one of the few institutions designed to give every child a claim on shared public wealth. Weakening that promise risks hardening the very class divisions public schools were built to overcome.

Culture Featured Politics Constitution

The Second Declaration

July 9, 2026July 9, 2026 B. John 350 Views 0 Comments Democracy, John Lewis, Civic Engagement, American History, Constitution, Declaration of Independence, America250, Thomas Jefferson, Historical Fiction

This entry is in the series The 250th 4th

This is the 4th in a series related to this 250th Fourth of July

Imagine, for just a moment, that one of America’s Founders could return on the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and quietly walk among us. What would he see? More importantly, what would he think?

In this work of historical fiction, I explore that question through the eyes of an aging observer who discovers a nation that has exceeded the dreams of 1776 in remarkable ways while, at the same time, placing many of its founding ideals in jeopardy. His journey takes him from Independence Hall to Monticello, Gettysburg, Selma, and Washington as he confronts both America’s greatest achievements and its deepest contradictions.
The result is not a history lesson or a political speech. It is a meditation on liberty, citizenship, and the unfinished work of the American experiment. Along the way, familiar figures from our past take on new meaning, old promises are reconsidered, and one unforgettable question is left for every generation to answer.

I hope you’ll take a few minutes to read The Second Declaration. I suspect it may stay with you long after you’ve reached the final sentence.

Culture Featured Politics Congress Constitution Election Religion Society

What Are We Going to Do Now?

July 5, 2026July 9, 2026 B. John 344 Views 0 Comments Democracy, Civic Engagement, Social Justice, American Democracy, Citizenship, We the People, American Values, Political Participation, 250th Anniversary

This entry is in the series The 250th 4th

Essay 3 of a series examining where we are at 250 years

That question is easy to ask but far more difficult to answer. It is tempting to surrender to cynicism, retreat into anger, or simply conclude that one person’s voice no longer matters. Yet history tells a different story. Every major step toward a more just America began because ordinary people refused to believe that tomorrow had to look exactly like yesterday.

This concluding essay in my 250th Fourth of July trilogy is not about despair. It is about responsibility. It is a personal reflection on the kind of citizen I have decided to be, regardless of the political climate, and an invitation for each of us to consider the role we will play in writing America’s next chapter. Because history will move forward. The only question is whether we will help hold the pen.

Featured Politics Constitution Presidency

Patrimonialism: When the State Becomes a Business

July 14, 2025July 14, 2025 B. John 1285 Views 1 Comment Corruption, Authoritarianism, Constitutional Crisis, Trump Administration, Patrimonialism, Civic Engagement, Resistance

Donald Trump’s second term has brought a dangerous shift in governance—what experts call patrimonialism, where loyalty and personal enrichment take precedence over law and accountability. This essay explores how this system threatens the foundations of American democracy, drawing on historical lessons, constitutional principles, and the growing resistance movements across the country. But it also offers hope—and a roadmap for action.

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2020 Election – Florida Constitutional Amendments

October 23, 2020 B. John 1104 Views 0 Comments voting, florida, Constitution, Citizens, Minimum Wage, Amendment, Taxes

This entry is in the series 2020 Election

So there are six amendments for the Florida Constitution on this year’s ballot. I’m going to run through those pretty quickly. A couple of them are valid…a few are a waste of time or a political stunt.

Politics Congress Constitution Courts Featured

Jeff Flake’s Indecision Earns Him a Douche Bag Award

October 26, 2018October 24, 2018 B. John 1453 Views 0 Comments Brett Kavanaugh, Jeff Flake, supreme court, SCOTUS

This entry is in the series Daily Douche-Bag

We’re going to engrave one for retiring Republican Senator Jeff flake casting one of, if not the most important vote of his time in the Senate. Apparently, he was OK voting to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court of the United States while still harboring doubts.

Right Wingnuts Crack Pots Featured Politics Constitution Religion Society Crime

No Gun Control Unless You Are Anti-Choice

March 22, 2018September 29, 2018 B. John 1173 Views 1 Comment Women's Rights, Gun Control, abortion, Guns, Ammosexuals, Gun Nuts, Pro-Life

This entry is in the series Guns

And here’s one of the latest anti-gun control arguments I was presented with today. Apparently, my opinion on the steps I thought might help reduce the gun carnage in America doesn’t count unless I’m willing to certify that I am against abortion. Are those people fucking serious? I mean did the guy who tried that not have a clue about how easy that would be to stand on its head?

Politics Congress Constitution Society Crime Crack Pots Featured

A Good Guy With a Gun Stopped a Shooting?

March 22, 2018September 29, 2018 B. John 809 Views 0 Comments School shooting, Great Mills High School, NRA, Ammosexuals, Guns, Glock, Handgun

This entry is in the series Guns

The big news yesterday was yet another possible school shooting. This time a 17-year-old brought a Glock handgun to Great Mills High school in Maryland. Fortunately, he only wounded two people. The ammosexuals have been fetishizing the incident because supposedly a “good guy with a gun” stopped a shooting. Except, that is not what happened.

Constitution Culture Featured Politics

Cars Kill People Too – Another Gun Argument

March 10, 2018March 10, 2018 B. John 1312 Views 1 Comment NRA, Gun Nuts, 2nd Amendment, Constitution, AR15, Guns, Second Amendment, Cars, Regulation, Motor Vehicle Regulations

This entry is in the series Guns

One of the most common arguments I have seen thrown around to do nothing about gun violence is “Well cars kill people too, let’s ban cars.” I suppose one can dismiss this argument out-of-hand for its stupidity, but I want to play along with them. I’m not sure they understand what they’re doing when they compare guns with cars. I’d actually very much like to treat guns and gun-safety much as we do with cars.

Business Television Economy Featured Media Politics Constitution Legislature

Marva Johnson-Spectrum Douche Bag of the Day

December 8, 2017September 29, 2018 B. John 2529 Views 1 Comment Spectrum, Charter Communications, Public Education, Religious Schools, Marva Johnson

This entry is in the series Daily Douche-Bag

Marva Johnson. Here’s a name you may not know, but you’d better learn who she is, and what here (and apparently her employer’s) agenda is for public education. She also is chair of the Florida State Board of Education, appointed by Gov. Rick Scott in 2014. In addition, In March, the governor appointed her to the 37-member statewide Constitutional Revision Commission.

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