Category: issues

Tyson pointed out in a series of tweets that the agencies’ combined budgets are roughly equivalent to what Americans spend annually on lip balm, and would fund fewer than five hours of military spending.

“A pilot programme testing the impact of matched crowdfunding is doubling the amount of funding that successful projects can receive.”

“Our cultural bureaucracies, from the NEA down to the local organizations and institutions it supports, are the great enemy of American art, distorting tastes, careers, and patronage. They are a major factor in the malinvestment that has employment in cultural institutions growing significantly more quickly than that of the overall labor force. I am sure the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis is terrific — but 400 employees Eliminating the NEA is not a program for punishing artists but for liberating them — from bureaucracy, from mediocrity, and, above all, from subservience to politics.”

“The first step before diving down this rabbit hole should probably begin with a few real facts. Contrary to the European model where ‘the state and/or central government’ supports the arts and culture almost totally, in this country support of the arts is a partnership between the private sector and government, local, state and federal. Clearly the private sector is the dominant player in this partnership but all the partners play and important role in what has become a very successful model.”

“We fall into this trap that if kids are at their desks with their heads down and are silent and writing, we think they are learning. But what we have found is that the active time used to energize your brain makes all those still moments better,” or more productive.

“The stereotype that online instruction is less rigorous, or that students cannot be engaged in it with appropriate rigor, isn’t borne out by my experience. Anyone who’s taught an on-the-ground class has looked out into the classroom and seen boredom or disconnection. By comparison, my online students were choosing when to log on to do their work. They seemed very tuned in when they did.”

“In February, the Emperor Qin Shihuang Mausoleum Site Museum in [Xi’an] accused an amusement park that features replica warriors of violating its registered copyright. … The 5,000-Year Cultural Expo Park in Anqing, Anhui province, contains a large pit of full-scale Terracotta Warrior models.” (Are we allowed to see some irony here?)

Tom Finkelpearl: “New Yorkers and our elected officials clearly see the value of investment in culture. On an individual level, people point to the transformative experiences that can bring joy and enlightenment while building empathy. … For more data-driven policy makers, there is a strong economic argument for cultural investment. It’s true: culture drives regional and international tourism, which creates jobs.”

“The pilot ‘Great Place Scheme’ has awarded three-year funding to 16 English towns, cities and regions, to encourage them to use culture and heritage to drive growth, improve residents’ health and wellbeing, and boost tourism.”