Author: Robert I. Grundfest

I am a teacher, writer, voice-over artist and rationally opinionated observer of American and international society. While my job is to entertain and engage, my purpose is always to start a conversation.

Christie: Proof He’ll Run, Reasons He’ll Lose

There can be no doubt that Governor Chris Christie will be running for president in 2016. He’s taken trips to the states with the earliest primaries and caucuses and he’s even begun commenting on foreign affairs. Not that he’s at all qualified in that area, but when did that ever stop him from talking? The… Continue reading Christie: Proof He’ll Run, Reasons He’ll Lose

The Education Reform Silly Season

It might be summer, but the education know-nothings are clearly not at the beach. The latest case-in-point is former CNN correspondent Campbell Brown’s incredibly uninformed comments on teacher tenure that, unfortunately, millions of people saw and didn’t stick around for the fact-checking. Her musings come on the heels of a California decision in which a… Continue reading The Education Reform Silly Season

Obama: This Duck Is Still Mobile

You would think, from all the talk about the midterm elections and the final two years of the Obama Administration, that the president doesn’t matter anymore or that absolutely nothing will get done in Washington between now and January 2017. While we may be fighting political gridlock, and the possibility that few if any consequential… Continue reading Obama: This Duck Is Still Mobile

The Silly Season Gets Serious

I took my talents to South Beach over the weekend for a relative’s surprise birthday party, and on the plane to and fro I had the opportunity to…think. Love airplane mode. Phones and tablets should have other modes, such as marriage mode, play-with-children mode, just-watch-one-screen mode, or perhaps physical media mode, where you would be… Continue reading The Silly Season Gets Serious

Stupid Costs More

I know, I know: Money is the answer, plain and simple. School districts don’t want to pay teachers for advanced degrees and right wing politicians don’t want public schools to begin with, so it makes sense that Texas and North Carolina are both in the forefront of starving their states of effective teachers in an… Continue reading Stupid Costs More

Uncompromisingly Wrong

The Fourth of July is always a great time to revisit what makes the United States a great nation, and I always come back to the same characteristic: Compromise. There is probably nothing more American than our genius for compromise, even more so than apple pie and motherhood, both of which were invented by people… Continue reading Uncompromisingly Wrong

With a Court Like This, Who Needs Congress?

The Tea Party and most social conservatives can sleep easily throughout the summer now. The two Supreme Court decisions rendered on Monday should delight the right and make the inaction across the street in the Capitol seems like a mere distraction. Like a fly buzzing around the collective government heads. The conservative revolution has been… Continue reading With a Court Like This, Who Needs Congress?

Christie: State Workers Pay So Millionaires Will Stay

Remember when Chris Christie’s reelection was supposed to herald the coronation of a politician who could reach across the aisle, make deals with the Democrats and solve New Jersey’s fiscal problems, all while simultaneously running a campaign for president? November seems so long ago. The Governor’s signature accomplishment, the pension and benefits bill of 2011,… Continue reading Christie: State Workers Pay So Millionaires Will Stay

Tenure Scare

The recent decision in California regarding teacher tenure is causing a great deal of anxiety in public education and in those states where teacher tenure still has some meaning. The ruling that tenure is unconstitutional because it denies students the right to a decent education is an interesting take on the subject, but it obscures… Continue reading Tenure Scare