NBC Promo for Star Trek, 1966

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Liberals Are Smart

From an article about Rick Perry. I'm not as concerned with the Rick Perry parts as I am with this section about lefties:

Liberals often say Republicans are stupid, but they really believe it with regard to Gov. Perry. For liberals, credentials and holding fashionable opinions are more important markers of intelligence than knowledge or accomplishment.

"Liberals revere high SAT scores"....

While there's nothing wrong with high SAT scores, they're not the end-all, be-all of intelligence, either.

Technology in the Classroom

It can serve some useful purposes, but more often than not it's an expensive toy with unproven educational value. I've said this for years, and Joanne has another post on the subject, chock full of links and information. On commenter on her post hit the nail on the head:

The computer, ipad, etc. are tools. Just look how much using the calculator has improved kids math skills…NOT.

Apollo 18

Take small bits of Alien and The Thing, and mix with very large quantities of Blair Witch Project and Capricorn One, and you have Apollo 18. I give it a C+.

Not All Millionaires Make Too Much

Crony capitalism is not evidence of a free market, but of further government distortions in the market:

As the nation struggles with a stagnant economy, President Barack Obama has preached overhauling the U.S. tax code to spur economic growth. But as he gears up for what looks to be a tough reelection campaign, the president has surrounded himself with the current loophole-riddled system's prime offenders: corporate executives whose companies have profited off of those loopholes while reaping millions for themselves.

Institute for Policy Studies, a liberal think tank, named in a new report 25 major American corporations whose CEOs were paid more last year than their firm's total U.S. income tax bill. Of those business elites, 10 have substantive ties to Obama -- including some who have official economic policy advisory positions in his administration -- according to a HuffPost analysis of the report.

Again, this is from the not-quite-right-wing Huffington Post.

Strategies For Sudoku

I never really did Sudoku until I was given a book during the darkest days of my convalescence. It's actually pretty enjoyable! Here are some simple strategies for succeeding at Sudoku. My favorite one: never guess.

"What I Did On Summer Vacation, by a UCLA Math Major"

You've got to admire this kid's guts:

I’ll go out on a limb here and assume you’re aware that the economy’s not so hot. And that the likelihood of college grads snagging full-time employment that doesn’t require wearing a paper hat is pretty slim. One tried and true way for undergrads to improve their chances of getting hired after they’re handed a diploma is a summer internship. Sure, you probably won’t be paid, but at least you’re getting some real world experience, right? Chris Jeon, being the proactive type he is, decided to create his own internship fighting with Libyan rebels as his summer vacay wound down…

“It is the end of my summer vacation, so I thought it would be cool to join the rebels. This is one of the only real revolutions” in the world.

Sure, fighting Ghaddafi’s loyalists across the Libyan desert might not translate into the kind of employment a UCLA math major would find fulfilling, but with things the way they are, you have to do what you have to do.

What's Good For The Goose

From Instapundit:

MARKET FAILURE VS. GOVERNMENT FAILURE: We’ve certainly seen a lot of the latter, lately. If “market failure” is an excuse for taking power away from markets, shouldn’t “government failure” be a reason to take power away from government?

Higher Education In California?

Emphasis on higher:

A university professor suspected of leading a motorcycle gang and methamphetamine drug ring is wanted for arrest in California, authorities said Thursday.

What Was The Point Of Having A Revolution...

...when you replace one controlling government with another? Here are the big issues working their way through the California legislature.

First, the fitted sheets law:

When California’s elected officials come back from their month-long recess they face a mountain of proposed legislation (almost 900 bills are lined up and waiting), including a new law (SB432) that would require hotels to eliminate flat sheets. Not having fitted sheets on hotel beds would now be a crime in California.

I envision no-knock raids by SWAT teams.

What's that? You think no law could be stupider than that? Oh, dear reader, you do not have enough faith in the idiots in the big white building downtown. Read on, about the babysitter law:

A new domestic workers rights bill pending in California's Senate could give child care workers a slew of new benefits and leave a big dent in parents' pocketbooks.

(Republican State Senator) LaMalfa contends that casual babysitters over the age of 18 will be affected, and that parents will be legally obligated to pay minimum wage, "provide a substitute caregiver every two hours to cover rest and meal breaks" and be responsible for worker's compensation and overtime pay.

That's right, you'll have to hire a second sitter to give a break after two hours for your primary sitter. That may or may not be the intent, but it is the result of the law.

And let's not worry about who's voting!

Californians could be able to register online to vote in time for the 2012 elections if legislation headed to Gov. Jerry Brown's desk is signed into law.

I've pretty much decided that I can't worry about what happens in California anymore. Both my parents are retired, I'll let the Democrats fight to maintain my unsustainable pension promises, and I'll encourage my son to move out of the state as soon as he's able. And the day I retire is the day I pull up stakes. Until then, perhaps it's just best to laugh at the madness--and it truly is madness.

Update, September 5, 2011: Just learned about this genius of a law:

California could ban lender-initiated home foreclosures, under a proposed amendment to the state’s constitution that would make home ownership a fundamental right...

The Foreclosure Modification Act, a proposed citizen’s initiative, would ban mortgagees from foreclosing on owner-occupied dwellings in the Golden State. It would further require banks and other lenders to help mortgage borrowers struggling amid financial hardship or illness...

Adjusting loan amounts would cost local governments billions of dollars in lost revenue from property taxes and other assessments, DOJ noted.

Potential state costs are “up to the low billions of dollars annually” because constitutional provisions require the treasury to replace the loss of property tax revenue to cities and counties.

In other words, banks will be required to give you your house. Amazing.

Hat tip to reader MikeAT for the heads-up on this law, which I hadn't before even heard about.

Accent? Bad Grammar? No Problemo

In Arizona, teachers who teach English-immersion classes don't have to speak English very well. Seriously.

It's not how you speak English – it's about whether you know it at all.

That was the final word out of Arizona, where the state and two federal agencies reached a settlement over an allegation that the state was discriminating against teachers who may have thick accents or use bad grammar when teaching English-immersion classes.

The Arizona Capitol Times reports that the settlement reached by the state Department of Education will have the state consider only whether teachers are fluent, not how they speak the language.

A-freakin'-mazing. In what other field....

So Open-minded, Your Brain Falls Out

Gotta love our California legislature--because, you know, California is just rolling in money:

The state Senate on Wednesday approved the second half of contentious legislation that would allow students who are illegal immigrants to apply for state-funded scholarships and financial aid.

The Senate approved AB131, also known as the California Dream Act, with a 22-11 vote, leaving it just one step away from the governor’s desk.

Why is this even being considered? Why are they still looking for ways to give away even more money?

Fortunately, My School's Graduates Say The Opposite

From Joanne's blog:

College is great, say recent high school graduates, but they weren’t prepared for college-level math, science and writing.

College Board’s One Year Out (pdf) survey asked members of the class of 2010 how their high school experience prepared them for work and college. In addition to wishing they’d taken harder classes in high school, 47 percent said they should have worked harder, reports College Bound. Thirty-seven percent said high school graduation requirements were too easy.

I can't tell you how many bright former-students have told me that college is much easier than high school was. Then again, when you take 4 AP courses at once....

Just Got Home From My Son's Back-to-School Night

I certainly have some issues with my son's school. A week and a half into his sophomore year the world hasn't collapsed, so I'm not going to complain too loudly--but they do some odd things there.

First, they're on a block schedule--they have 4 90-minute classes a day. A year-long class at an "ordinary" school is only half a year long at his school, but they get credit for a year's worth of material. Let's do the math: they're in class 1.5 times as long per period as students at a traditional school (90 min vs. 60 min), but only half the number of days per class. That comes out to 3/4 of the amount of time per class to learn the material as they'd have at a "traditional" school.

Even better, they get entirely new classes in January. So a student who takes geometry August through January has been force-fed a year's worth of material, but the state standardized test isn't given until late April, giving the student plenty of time to forget the material because by the time the test rolls around they haven't seen geometry in 3 months.

One advantage of this block schedule is that students get 8 different classes a year, as opposed to only 6 at a school like mine. Teachers love it, because they have only 3 classes a day (plus a 90 minute prep period) whereas I have 5 classes a day (and only a 60 minute prep period). How our union can tolerate this inequity, I don't understand!

Besides the block schedule there's a second thing they do screwy. Far be it from me to challenge another teacher regarding what goes on in their class--I wouldn't tolerate it if someone were to tell me how I should run my classes--but I'll comment on that screwiness here.

Have you ever heard of an "interactive notebook"?

First off, what the heck is "interactive" about a notebook? "Interactive" is one of those overused words in English--the menu screens on my DVD's aren't "interactive", either, unless interactive means "you push the button and the scene you want pops up". If that's the new meaning of "interactive", then my garden hose is "interactive" because when I open the faucet the water pours out.

Ok, so we know an "interactive notebook" isn't interactive, but what is it? Well, it's a notebook in which you store all your homework assignments, worksheets, notes, and stuff like that. Everything has to be in the correct order and on the correct page, noted in the Table of Contents, or you get marked down. And the winner? Students cut/paste papers into their notebooks.

Remember, they have only 3/4 of the class time as is available at my school to teach exactly the same content to the exact same (in theory) standards. Why are they spending time having 15 and 16-year-olds cutting and pasting in class? Who thinks that's a productive use of student time in anything but an art class? I admit, I doubt I can be sold on the supposed benefits of these workbooks, but even if there are benefits, I just cannot believe they outweigh the wasted time.

Ugh.

On the plus side, I like the enthusiasm and dedication shown by my son's teachers. He likes them, too. I guess that's something, an important something.

The Titanic Was Unsinkable

I always worry a little about tempting the fates when I read something like this, about the new span of the San Francisco Bay Bridge:

It’s designed to handle major earthquakes and will be considered the lifeline from the East Bay to San Francisco.

The bridge is designed not only to not fall down but be immediately useable by emergency service vehicles, then open to public without rebuilding.

Do You Need To Read The Whole Thing To Know Where This Author's Going?

From the Chronicle of Higher Education comes this entirely unbiased (*cough cough*) gem. I'll boldface some fun parts in just the first few sentences:

For American higher education, the Tea Party feels like a wake. As political groups, often with ties to the movement, have increasingly intruded on the affairs of public colleges and universities, financial cutbacks have forced campuses into a triage mode. Administrators squeeze savings out of already malnourished budgets; programs disappear; tuitions rise; and the inequalities of a seriously stratified system worsen. With higher education increasingly hard to pay for in the current economic crisis, it can no longer serve as a safety net for the middle class and a source of economic mobility for society. Nor, given the political attacks on academe, can our colleges maintain the intellectual excellence, diversity, and freedom that once made them the envy of the world.

Do you get the impression that the author has a little bit of an entitlement complex, and just despises the fact that we rubes out in the sticks don't feel like financially supporting her and her whims anymore?

Poor baby.

Oh, you think perhaps I'm mischaracterizing the author's intent? Let's see her closing paragraph:

It's a vicious circle, and one that can only get worse unless the academic community—the entire academic community—recognizes that its own self-interest requires a united defense. That defense must transform the public debate about higher education into one that recognizes the broader social forces involved, explains the need for public financing, and stops scapegoating the faculty. Even then, as the economy totters, maintaining an optimistic perspective on the future of American colleges and universities requires considerable cognitive dissonance.

Circle the wagons and demand more money. Show the corn-pones how important the self-important are.

Sorry, lady. You want me to pay for it, I get a say in it--he who pays the piper calls the tunes. She doesn't like that fiscal conservatives want to start (finally!) calling some of the tunes.

Get used to it.

Beautiful Summary of Conservationism

I'm lifting this comment in its entirety from another post. Well done, sir, well done:

I have never once heard anyone argue in favor of wasting more, rather than wasting less. Nor have I heard anyone ever argue that recycling is an immoral act of Godlessness.

However. That's not the issue. It just isn't. I can be very much against the EPA (as it currently exists today) without being against 'clean water and clean air'. I can oppose the environmental fundamentalism that screams that NOT recycling is akin to raping the rainforests, without being against the concept of recycling.

Conservatives, Christians, and most regular, average folks I meet are quite happy to be good stewards of the planet. 'Good steward' does not mean freaking out when children bring ziploc baggies into school.

The original story is about whether or not children should be pressured to bring reusable (plastic) containers in their lunch, or Ziploc baggies.

If It Sounds Too Good To Be True, It Probably Is

Today I needed to look something up regarding my employment contract, and since that contract is kept on the web site of my local union, that's where I went to get it. Imagine my bouyed heart when I saw a link on that site to the Teachers Union Reform Network. Wow, teachers unions who see the need for reform!

I'm so naive. I thought they wanted to reform teachers unions. I thought that perhaps some were seeing that unions, as currently configured, aren't "the future", and were going to try to make them better, relevant, and/or useful. Let me repeat: I am so naive. This is on their home page:

Promoting progressive teacher unionism.

Building relationships at the grassroots level among teacher union leaders with key community leaders and allies.

Cultivating the next generation of progressive teacher leaders to influence education policymaking.

In other words, they're progressively promoting progressivism in progressive ways, via progressive teachers unions.

*sigh*

I'm A Bully

Sites like the one mentioned in this post on Joanne's site are trivializing actual bullying:

Nobully.com defines “eye rolling” as a form of bullying, Bader writes. “Relational bullying” includes disrupting “another student’s peer relationships through leaving them out, gossiping, whispering and spreading rumors.” It’s hard to imagine a school on Planet Earth in which everybody is friends with everybody else and nobody gossips, whispers or spreads rumors.

Leaving others out? I don't have to like you, and I don't have to let you play in my reindeer games. There are some limits to behavior that we can enforce in school, but this seems to be going more than a little too far.

Update, 8/30/11: Here's more from New Jersey:

But while many parents and educators welcome the efforts to curb bullying both on campus and online, some superintendents and school board members across New Jersey say the new law, which takes effect Sept. 1, reaches much too far, and complain that they have been given no additional resources to meet its mandates.

The law, known as the Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights, is considered the toughest legislation against bullying in the nation. Propelled by public outcry over the suicide of a Rutgers University freshman, Tyler Clementi, nearly a year ago, it demands that all public schools adopt comprehensive antibullying policies (there are 18 pages of “required components”), increase staff training and adhere to tight deadlines for reporting episodes.

Ten Forward

Just stepped on the scale this morning for the first time in forever; I've gained 10 pounds since my accident. I despise having to reconquer the same ground, but I'll be darned if I'm going to let this accident make me a gimp and fat.