General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Thurs., Jan. 12, 2012

I’m not gonna lie. Some days, there just isn’t much to discuss. Today is one of those days.

The committees met on Wednesday, and the results can be seen on both today’s Senate Agenda and House Agenda. Other than the ‘bath salts’ ban, which is the only bill on the Senate agenda, very little piques my interest today.

The News-Journal article on bath salts points out the unique challenges in trying to cope with designer drugs:

“We’ve got chemists down in their basements making this stuff,” said Caroline Honse, lab manager for the Office of the State Medical Examiner. Though SB 160 lists 17 chemical compounds that are known to be used in bath salts, inventive producers likely will make new compounds that aren’t on the list. Even with language that covers new chemical combinations, the bath-salts law likely will have to be amended in future years to keep pace.

The only other event of note was a joint meeting of the House and Senate Education Committees. At the meeting, state officials sought to allay teachers’ concerns about how they’d be evaluated in the wake of the Race To The Top standards. It’s impossible for state officials to eliminate those concerns when it consistently carries a sign saying “Will Jump Through Hoops for $$’s”. In other words, while the additional funding is appreciated, the state invariably surrenders  a large degree of control over educational priorities. It is therefore inevitable that quality teachers get screwed as the state seeks to satisfy the requirements attached to the funding.

Well, that’s it. Some days, 1500 words aren’t enough. Some days 300 is too many. I’m closing in on 300, so…