Arizona Capitol Times Your Inside Source for Arizona Government, Politics and Business

Marijuana is a dangerous, mind-altering drug. In today’s highly potent forms, it poses risks to adults and children, but the risks are far greater for teens. Let’s no longer let the pot profiteers fill our children’s brains with dangerous messages. It’s time to make sure the truth is told, so the next youth survey doesn’t give us even more to be alarmed about.

The handy defeat of Proposition 305 and the election of Kathy Hoffman as superintendent of public instruction should spell out the electorate’s support for teachers, students, and well-funded public education. It should make obvious that a wide consensus exists in Arizona for increasing revenues for public education — which our legislature funds at abysmal levels, putting us at 48th in the nation — and that realizing those increases ought to be high on the agenda for the new Legislature.

Today’s kids, educated in different kinds of schools — with or without uniforms, religion, second languages, music, or whatever else — will bring to tomorrow’s positions of leadership not monotony or sameness but a deeply diverse and crucially varied set of experiences. What better way to promote that diversity than to celebrate National School Choice Week — and the diversity of education it inspires?

We have a lot of work to do to prevent sexual abuse of our most vulnerable. Only with greater awareness and resources can these heartbreaking incidents be stopped. The time to act is now.

In a recent guest opinion, Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery peddles a grab bag of outdated and weak measures – some over 40 years old – to claim that Arizona leads in criminal justice reform. If only.

Fortunately, the Arizona Supreme Court agreed to take their case, which will be argued on January 22. Joanna and Breanna will go there to defend everyone’s freedom to live by their convictions. Society is more diverse, more just, and more free when the First Amendment is zealously protected. We should all hope it is in this case.

Accountability of how public tax dollars are spent is an expectation of citizens throughout the state and country. It is very much part of the principles of governance that has separated this country from the rest. The need for an alternative model for public education should not override the public’s concern for how public tax dollars are spent.

MarCo is working to build community connections between farmers themselves and Maricopa County consumers. If you would like to learn more about how we are advocating for the regeneration and advancement of the local food system in Maricopa County and get involved, please visit marcofoodcoalition.org.

By acting proactively I hope that Arizona and the victims I represent here will be able to turn tragedy into a transformative tale of how to better protect all state residents, giving no safe harbor to any criminal endeavor named David, or otherwise.

The meme that the ERA will destroy the family has been dragged out every time women have attempted to drag themselves out of the cave. In fact, all of the evidence points the other way. Countries that have higher indexes of equality between men and women have stronger families with less divorce and inter-family violence. If you support the women who serve and have served in the military, if you support reducing abortion, and if you support strong families, then you will support the passage of the ERA in Arizona in 2019.