If you were out shopping this past Black Friday weekend, you probably noticed that the stores were packed. The holiday shopping season, traditionally considered to be between Thanksgiving and Christmas, is a key time for retailers because they can generate up to 40 percent of annual sales. How will retailers...
(Editor’s Note: Virginia Governor-elect Terry McAuliffe campaigned on a pledge to radically “reform the SOLs” – Virginia’s Standards of Learning and their accompanying tests. As the General Assembly and the Commonwealth’s opinion leaders begin that discussion it is critically important that we look at why the SOL program began, how...
“The present system of producing food animals in the United States is not sustainable and presents an unacceptable level of risk to public health and damage to the environment, as well as unnecessary harm to the animals we raise for food.” In other words, concentrated animal feeding operations should be...
George Allen and Standards of Learning reform. Jim Gilmore and car tax reduction. Bob McDonnell and transportation reform. That’s what we remember. So what does Governor-elect McAuliffe want to be remembered for when he walks out of the office? How about reforming K-12 education through “Weighted Student Funding?” This is...
If one assumes that Ferris Bueller was a second semester senior in the 1986 classic comedy hit “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off’, today he would be 44 or 45. While Ferris would have never voted for Ronald Reagan, he was a child of the times as we all are children of...
I was once told that the only bad thing about being a good sport is that you have to lose to prove it. So it is with democracy; you have to have the freedom to disagree to prove that it works. This brings me to the issue of the Washington...
The labor market has been sending mixed signals over the last few months regarding its strength. For instance, initial unemployment claims—typically a signal of the overall labor market—has been trending downward and is not far from a new 35-year low. After adjusting for the size of the current population, the...
To get an idea of just how crazy the parking problem was in downtown Richmond before City Hall decided to give focused attention to the situation, consider this. In the 23-block Capitol District, dominated by city, state and federal office buildings, there was more than enough parking to handle the...
By this point – EVERY YEAR – in Virginia, the electorate decides. Whether the electorate shows up or not determines the outcome. But the decisions have been made. We’re on final approach. Please make sure your seat backs and tray tables are in their locked and upright positions. This one...
(Editor’s note: this is the continuation of the article that began in the last issue of the Jefferson Policy Journal, on October 17, 2013. This article discusses the extent of public private partnerships in Virginia’s transportation spending and the active work that is being done by the Office of Transportation...
