Dog Days

The arts are not part of the ideology of either major US political party. I'm not sure if all arts supporters in our nation's increasingly partisan landscape realize that instead of being a member of either tug-of-war team, the arts suffer the thankless role of being the rope. This was very clear during the economic stimulus debate in January and February. The Republican … [Read more...] about Reverse Rope Burns

Tuesday was Arts Advocacy Day in Washington, D.C. and reports from my CA colleagues indicate they had a good day visiting Congressional offices. Yesterday, the LA Times covered the high profile testimony in Congress offered by Wynton Marsalis, Linda Ronstadt, and Josh Groban. Ironically, they argued for more NEA funding while telling stories of learning to love music in … [Read more...] about Is the NEA a Home Substitute?

A government rewrite is underway - will the arts author their part of the story? That's the question I'm trying to answer in the affirmative.Every level of government is being turned upside down and every idea for reform seems to be under consideration. The national government is practically printing money, states are slashing spending, and local governments are hostages of … [Read more...] about Imagining Government