L.A.'s right-wing City Council

For all the supposed broadmindedness of America's major cities, you'd think Los Angeles would have at least one progressive member on its City Council.

But much like how Congress has maybe a dozen reliably liberal members at most, Los Angeles City Council has not a single one.

Yesterday, City Clowncil unanimously passed a resolution urging the city's school system to make it mandatory for students to wear uniforms.

This despite the fact that California law - as well as the First Amendment and the U.S. Supreme Court's Tinker v. Des Moines ruling - prohibits public schools from requiring uniforms. The California statute says public schools must allow students to opt out of uniform policies.

Why is this such an important issue? Unfortunately, groupthink in our schools lays the foundation for molding our children's minds into cheap, docile cogs in the corporatist tire. Uniforms stifle out-of-the-box thinkage.

The media continues to ignore the report that revealed that uniforms are made in abusive sweatshops.

If there is one issue where we haven't yet been able to prevail, it's our fight against public school uniforms. You'd expect the Republicans to favor uniforms, but we'll prevail sooner if the Democrats add a plank against uniforms - and if they hold candidates to this plank. Our side will win in the end. That's the natural order of things. Better now than later.

I also plan on submitting a model federal statute based on the California law requiring an opt-out. We'll see which lawmakers are willing to sign on.

(Source: http://cbs2.com/local/City.Council.passes.2.1291978.html)