States can now apply to opt out of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), thanks to a new executive order that President Obama signed last month -- and they're lining up in droves to ditch the program.

It's no wonder almost 30 states have already said they're going to leave NCLB in their dust. In the 10 years since President Bush signed the NCLB Act -- setting rigid but underfunded national standards for public schools -- the program has drawn criticism for countless reasons. A few things come to mind when most of us think of NCLB:

- Mathreadingmathreadingmathreadingmath... - It narrowed the scope of our schools to focus almost solely on math and reading -- two immensely important skills, for sure. But it was at the expense of science, health, history, the arts, and physical education, which are constantly on the chopping block come budget time because they don't help schools meet NCLB standards. Speaking of those standards...

Today, President Obama is expected to lift an eight-year ban on stem cell research, which was imposed by former President George W. Bush.

According to an Associated Press-Petside.com poll released today, most pet owners – by more than a 2-1 margin – say the Obamas should choose a mutt for their first dog over a purebred. The survey also found that over 50 percent of pet owners and 43 percent of all Americans said it was important to them that the Obamas adopt their dog from an animal shelter.

I cannot imagine how many “election day” blogs are being written today, but I also cannot imagine an election that is as important as this one. While I’m certainly happy that K-Man is merely three years old, I do harbor a secret wish that he were just a few years older (maybe for one day only!) and able to understand the huge, historic impact of today’s election.