Mars Closest For This Trip Around The Sun
If you’ve been out in the early evening lately, perhaps you’ve noticed Jupiter, which has been dominating the evening sky the past several months, now sinking closer to the setting Sun in the west. And if you turned around and looked behind you, perhaps you’ve also noticed another star rising after dark and dominating the sky in the east, that “star” being the planet Mars.
If you’ve been out in the early evening lately, perhaps you’ve noticed Jupiter, which has been dominating the evening sky the past several months, now sinking closer to the setting Sun in the west. And if you turned around and looked behind you, perhaps you’ve also noticed another star rising after dark and dominating the sky in the east, that “star” being the planet Mars.
Traveling nearly 67,000 miles per hour, Earth orbits the Sun once each year. Mars, the next planet out from the Sun, moves only 54,000 miles per hour, has further to travel, and thus takes nearly two Earth-years to orbit the Sun.
Since we speed around the Sun more quickly, we regularly pass between Mars and the Sun about every two years. When we do, Mars is on the opposite side of Earth from the Sun, which astronomers call opposition — and this is about to occur Jan. 29.
At opposition, Earth and Mars pass nearest each other, making Mars appear larger and brighter than usual. So now and for the next few weeks, Mars outshines all the brightest stars (except Sirius which is now in the southeast in the early evening.)
If Earth and Mars orbited the Sun in perfect circles, Mars would appear the same size and brightness at each opposition. But since their orbits are elliptical, at some oppositions Earth and Mars pass nearer than at others. On average we pass within 48 million miles (rounding to the nearest million), but the distance can be as little as 34 million miles or as much as 64 million miles.
This time around, we’re passing at 62 million miles, so this is not one of Mars’ more spectacular oppositions although it will still be well worth noting. (Perhaps you recall the excitement in August 2003 when Mars passed less than 35 million miles and was extraordinarily bright — that was pretty spectacular.)
All the planets further out from the Sun come to opposition regularly. The period between Jupiter’s oppositions is about 13 months, and for the more distant Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, just over a year.
At opposition, planets rise around sunset, are up all night, and set around sunrise. And since they are then at their largest and brightest, the few weeks before and after opposition are the best times for observing them.
By coincidence, on the night of Mars’ upcoming opposition, it has a companion to escort it across the sky — the almost full Moon. And then the first week of February, the Red Planet passes near the lovely Beehive star cluster. They will be in the same binocular field of view several nights in a row — a sight you won’t want to miss.
• Sky Calendar
* Jan. 30 Sat.: The full Moon is called Old Moon and Moon After Yule.
* Feb. 2 Tue.: Commonly known as Groundhog Day, today is also Candlemas, a cross-quarter day celebrating the middle of winter.
* 4 Thu. morning: The gibbous Moon is below Virgo’s brightest star Spica high in the south.
* 5 Fri.: The Moon is at 3rd quarter.
* 7 Sun. morning: The crescent Moon is to the upper right of Scorpius’ brightest star Antares low in the southeast.
* 11 Thu. morning: The crescent Moon is to the upper right of Mercury very low in the east southeast at dawn, and to the planet’s lower left the next morning.
• Naked-eye Planets. (The Sun, Moon, and planets rise in the east and set in the west due to Earth’s west-to-east rotation on its axis.) As evening twilight ends, Jupiter is setting in the west as Mars is rising in the east. At the first light of dawn, Mercury is very low in the southeast, Saturn is in the southwest, and Mars is in the west.
• Star Party. The Central Texas Astronomical Society’s free monthly star party is Feb. 6 at the Lake Waco Wetlands beginning at 7 p.m., weather permitting. For directions see my Web site.
Stargazer appears every other week. Paul Derrick is an amateur astronomer who lives in Waco. Contact him at 918 N. 30th, Waco, 76707, (254) 753-6920 or paulderrickwaco@aol.com. See the Stargazer Web site at stargazerpaul.com.
Tree Hugging Bartenders
In these days of overwhelmingly serious issues, every once in a while we need a break from them. That’s why some people exercise, or read, or send text messages like, “I’m texting now.” People need diversions. So I have a gift for you: a question to ponder that is just something interesting that caught my attention: Why are there so many more liberal bartenders than conservative ones?
In these days of overwhelmingly serious issues, every once in a while we need a break from them. That’s why some people exercise, or read, or send text messages like, “I’m texting now.” People need diversions. So I have a gift for you: a question to ponder that is just something interesting that caught my attention: Why are there so many more liberal bartenders than conservative ones?
Sociologists Neil Gross and Ethan Fossey came up with some research recently that was reported in The New York Times. They investigated stereotypes like “university professors are liberal and bankers are conservative.” They found that liberal and conservative stereotypes are self-perpetuating. Young people hear all their lives that journalism is a liberal field and running a corporation is something conservatives do. So it’s not surprising that liberal young people might want to be journalists and conservative kids might be drawn to business.
Even when the researchers dealt with the labels that people gave themselves, many stereotypes held up. While the majority of people in most fields called themselves, “moderates,” the professions that you would probably label “conservative” generally had more people in them that identified themselves as “conservatives” and vice versa. More artists, authors, and social workers identified themselves as “liberals,” and more religious workers, physicians, and law enforcement officers called themselves “conservatives.” No big surprises so far, right? But then we come to the statistic that caught my eye: more than five times as many bartenders consider themselves liberals than conservatives. Is there a liberal bartender stereotype that I just didn’t know about?
What is it about bartending that makes it a “liberal profession?” Until now, I guess I believed in the stereotype that bartenders must be conservatives. My image was of a tough-minded guy who goes hunting on his day off and has a tattoo on his chest that reads, “If You Weren’t Born Here, Go Home.” As you can see, I also believed that bartenders have very big chests. But the statistics proved me wrong. More bartenders are liberal than conservative.
So how do bartenders fit into the liberal stereotype? What do they have in common with other liberals? Maybe the stereotypical liberal love of egalitarianism is represented by the fact that bartenders can be men or women. Customers don’t care who pours their drinks as long as they keep coming. And interestingly enough, I think the typical bartender has much in common with the sports jacket wearing, pipe smoking, latte drinking university professor. The bartender is the professor, and the bar is his classroom. He or she is in complete control. Like the professor, a bartender can kick people out of his “classroom.” Like the professor, the bartender can share his worldly wisdom with those around him. Like the professor, the bartender feels he is underpaid, considering the public service that he performs. Maybe their desire for “one world” and their liberal love of other countries is shown by their serving drinks like White Russians, French Connections, and Australian Virgins. Maybe they demonstrate their liberal disdain for tradition by mixing up concoctions like the Pineapple Martini.
Regardless of how bartending came to be in the liberal column, it’s there. So I guess there must be many children who grow up in liberal homes, wondering if they should feed the hungry or serve the thirsty. There are probably scores of college students who can’t decide if they should go into sociology or mixology. And I feel bad for all of those young liberals who go through the gut-wrenching choice of, “Should I work for Greenpeace or at the Green Grass Lounge?”
Once word gets out about these lefties who serve beer and cocktails, I assume outraged right-wingers will rail against them: “It’s unnatural for someone to be able to pour four drinks at once without spilling a drop.” “The liberal agenda includes serving all kinds of fancy drinks instead of just straight Bourbon.” And can’t you just hear Rush Limbaugh decrying, “Liberals are appropriating everything that was once ours. They’ve taken over the bars. What’s next? Are they going to start foreclosing on people’s mortgages?”
On the other hand, those on the right might not be upset about liberal bartenders at all. Let’s face it. Just now, I was guilty of using a stereotype.
Lloyd Garver has written for many television shows, ranging from “Sesame Street” to “Family Ties” to “Home Improvement” to “Frasier.” He has also read many books, some of them in hardcover. He can be reached at lloydgarver@gmail.com. Check out his website at lloydgarver.com and his podcasts on iTunes.
The People Have Spoken! The World Is Full Of Fruitcakes
Every once in a while a column strikes a nerve with readers. These readers then write me to express their displeasure; they are angry, hurt, offended, or breaking in new stationery. Whatever the reason, I appreciate this feedback regardless of the fact that, in many cases, the column they’re talking about wasn’t mine. So you can imagine my shock at getting unhappy letters from people who (a) read my column and (b) actually like fruitcake.
Every once in a while a column strikes a nerve with readers. These readers then write me to express their displeasure; they are angry, hurt, offended, or breaking in new stationery. Whatever the reason, I appreciate this feedback regardless of the fact that, in many cases, the column they’re talking about wasn’t mine. So you can imagine my shock at getting unhappy letters from people who (a) read my column and (b) actually like fruitcake.
The letters came in response to the column I wrote about Fruitcake Disposal Anxiety Disorder, which was named in a New York Times special investigation as “The fastest-growing mental disorder in the entire world.”
“And we’re pretty sure about that,” the report concluded. “If not, then it’s right up there with ‘Fear of Clowns’ or something.”
After receiving these letters, I looked back over the column and realized that, yes—it was a little insensitive to fruitcake lovers out there. So, in response, I spent time looking into what makes a good fruitcake, compared with the kind of fruitcake the rest of us receive each holiday season. After comparing dozens of recipes and then baking four different fruitcakes of my own, I realized something important — which is that, by using a six-inch bundt pan, my youngest daughter now has a full set of tires for her Barbie Jeep.
Again, I’m not saying that there’s no such thing as a good fruitcake.
I’m just saying that if there’s an R-14, all-weather radial bundt pan out there, I’d like to know about it.
I should point out that over 21 million fruitcakes were sold in the U.S. last year, and not one of them was allowed on any flight in or out of Canada. That’s because fruitcakes have been added to the list of banned carry-on items on all Canadian flights. This is due to the X-ray machine’s inability to penetrate fruitcake, therefore making it impossible for screeners — or even Superman — to verify if they’re safe.
“Well, look at that! A fruitcake from Lex Luthor. How thoughtful!”
“Be careful, Superman.”
“Relax, Lois. What danger could there be in…WAIT! THOSE AREN’T CANDIED GUAVAS!”
Admittedly, there is a huge difference between what passes as fruitcake here in the U.S., and what the English refer to as “plum” cake. While the English version is said to be extremely moist and flavorful due to its high rum content, American fruitcake is known — like many U.S. food products — for its durability. This is particularly true of commercial fruitcakes, which are primarily used for keeping decorative tins from getting bent during shipping.
Lesley Hatcher of Panama City, Fla., who wrote in promising to change my mind about fruitcake by shipping me a homemade sample next year, is obviously very passionate about fruitcake.
Frighteningly, she’s not alone. As a member of the Society for the Protection and Preservation of Fruitcake (www.fruitcakesociety.org), she is “one of thousands” who are “spreading the gospel about fruitcake.”
(Note: After looking long and hard, I’m happy to report there’s no reference in either testament to The Gospel According to Fruitcake.)
According to Lesley, the fastest way to get someone to stop making jokes about fruitcake is to give them a piece. I’m not sure if that’s supposed to change their mind or keep them from speaking, but whatever the case, I promise to keep an open mind until next year.
Who knows?
I may end up eating my words.
Then again, I may end up with a spare for my daughter’s Jeep.
My Recent Computer Woes — The Flying Frame
I’ve written before of computer woes, a sad and unavoidable fact of modern life. They come. They go. These machines make our lives easier in so many ways (online bill pay and shopping, email, and my all-time fav, eBay.) And they make our lives so much more difficult when they fail. Then one must remember how to accomplish archaic tasks like writing checks and using stamps.
I’ve written before of computer woes, a sad and unavoidable fact of modern life. They come. They go. These machines make our lives easier in so many ways (online bill pay and shopping, email, and my all-time fav, eBay.) And they make our lives so much more difficult when they fail. Then one must remember how to accomplish archaic tasks like writing checks and using stamps.
Several months ago, an expensively-framed old diploma of my uncle’s (but obviously not well-equipped with proper, strong picture wire), decided to fly off the wall and attack my laptop. The force of impact was tremendous. The sound brought me dashing from an adjoining room to find the frame on the floor. I was so delighted the glass of the frame hadn’t broken that I didn’t realize for a few days (until the machine began acting squirrely) that the diploma had actually hit the laptop on its way down. There was a tiny dent in my almost-new computer. I needed reading glasses and good lighting to see it after my daughter Becca discovered it a few days later. “Maybe THIS has something to do with your computer problems”, she said, (rather sarcastically, I thought). Naturally, the laptop had been open at the time of the attack. Slow but not stupid, it was only then I finally connected the flying frame with the computer malfunctions.
After long and tedious calls to the manufacturer, after suffering what seemed like hours of automated voice prompts, it was determined that the problem couldn’t be solved by tech support agents with unintelligible accents (something I knew before I made the call, as sure as I knew the tech support folks would be talking to me from the other side of the globe). Another long and tedious call confirmed that flying diplomas are unfortunately excluded from warranty claims.
My daughter returned with the machine after her weekend visit — for her tech support guy at work to take a look. He was clueless. Two weeks later (after severe cyber withdrawal had set in), she returned with the laptop, and we called her brother. I don’t know why I hadn’t called him from the start. My son (the computer genius) solved the problem in less than five minutes. (Or so we thought). He did this through a series of impatient commands issued to my daughter as she typed away, following his instructions. It had never occurred to me that this might be only a software problem after that kind of impact. — Sort of a miracle that such damage could be so easily repaired (or so we hoped). The trick is to find someone smart enough to help. Lucky me. (At least temporarily).
Over the last few months, I definitely noticed that there were glitches in the computer’s operation. But it worked well enough for my meager needs. (I didn’t realize there were more serious problems under the surface, files that had disappeared, etc.). When my son arrived a few days ago for rare and long-anticipated visit, he started checking out the laptop for me. (Some way to spend a vacation with Mom, right?) His reaction was, “I can’t believe this thing is working at all.” These were words I did NOT want hear.
After hours and hours and many attempts to repair corrupted files, Josh determined the hard drive should be replaced. Through the wonders of the Internet, and using HIS computer, we ordered a new part that should arrive in ONE day. Overnight delivery is another of the miracles of this age. And my computer/Internet savvy offspring usually knows how to get it free or very cheap. My poor son has now spent hours trying to save old pictures and columns for transfer to the new hard drive when it arrives. If there is damage to other parts, we will find out soon enough.
It’s amazing how dependent we can become on our electronic equipment. I’m not proud of this. And I don’t even own an iPhone, iPod, Blackberry, eReader (Kindle), or Netbook. This new age of megapixels and megabytes and has pretty much passed me by (mostly by choice). The exceptions are my computer, printer, and cell phone (no texting, no data planning, no touch screen). I’m pretty certain the technology I already own (and have mastered in my limited fashion) is most likely all I can handle.
Are American Jobs Risking Becoming An Endangered Species?
Will workers become extinct? Not if Donna Conroy, executive director and lobbyist for Brightfuturejobs.com has her way. Her grassroots campaign is dedicated to counteracting claims that Americans can’t cut it in science and technology. “We lobby to require employers to seek local talent for U.S. job openings before recruiting abroad,” she says.
CHICAGO, Ill. — Will workers become extinct? Not if Donna Conroy, executive director and lobbyist for Brightfuturejobs.com has her way. Her grassroots campaign is dedicated to counteracting claims that Americans can’t cut it in science and technology. “We lobby to require employers to seek local talent for U.S. job openings before recruiting abroad,” she says.
The gutting of America’s economic democracy has been occurring for years and can be found in reams of books and volumes of eyewitness testimony, but, according to Conroy, for the past 40 years American tech firms have failed to adhere to EEO policies. “For the last 20 of these years, they have installed surreptitious strategies to legally discriminate against the entire U.S. workforce. The result: we now have an oversupply of STEM professionals along with new STEM graduates whom we have paid so dearly to educate. And beyond any reasonable doubt, American companies are going abroad for their top talent, before they recruit locally.”
Said Conroy, “We need US policies that address this systemic problem. We need US policies that stop corporations from stealing American livelihoods from Americans.” She is in the process of counteracting claims that “Americans can’t cut it in science and technology” and articulates “the corporate assault on America’s values, money system and our economic past and future. Our economy is not what we have been led to believe. The predatory practices of the Wizards of Wall Street and their corporate paymasters, concealed by economic double-speak, the true situation of the American job market.” Conroy unravels the deception of the Axis of Greed and presents a crystal clear picture of the financial abyss towards which Americans are heading, pointing out all the signposts, “unless we honor the American worker.”
According to Conroy, the DOJ has blindly looked the other way while merger after merger has consolidated market share and power into the hands of only a few giant multinational corporations.
She says that the emergeing tech companies, when they face shortages, hire unqualified Americans and “train the hell out of them.” But they resolutely refuse to consider American minorities or qualified American veterans.
She explains that, today, too many tech pioneers are now living the nightmare of contributing to their own obsolesce by training their foreign replacements. The younger pioneers, those approaching their 30s and 40s, too often are delivering pizza rather than higher bandwidth. “Permanent jobs are being replaced with perm-a-temp jobs. When workers won the perm-a-temp lawsuit against the corporations, they retaliated by reverting to immigration laws, knowing they could bypass American talent and legally recruit only abroad to fill U.S. job openings.”
“Corporations guard the secret of legal bypass closely,” she explains. “They tell Congress and the American public that there are ‘no qualified Americans’ capable of filling these job openings and that only citizens from abroad are the ‘best and the brightest.’ They make Americans feel hopeless in themselves and belittle American technical talent, calling them lazy, ‘washed out and unemployable.’ They say that only foreign citizens can keep them competitive.”
According to Conroy,”If history has proved anything, it’s that the kowtowing to Wall Street and Corporate America isn’t working and certainly benefits aren’t trickling down to Main Street. The result for everyday Americans’ lives has been overwhelming, and that’s a price we can’t afford to risk paying.
Only Real Men Can Iron Clothes At 3,000 Feet
I have reached the conclusion that most of the world’s ironing is now being done by men. I say this because it’s the only explanation I have for a sport called “extreme” ironing, which is actually being lobbied as an Olympic event by “ironing enthusiasts” — a phrase referred to in the Bible as a sign of the coming apocalypse.
I have reached the conclusion that most of the world’s ironing is now being done by men. I say this because it’s the only explanation I have for a sport called “extreme” ironing, which is actually being lobbied as an Olympic event by “ironing enthusiasts” — a phrase referred to in the Bible as a sign of the coming apocalypse.
And four horsemen will come from the sky. And they will lay waste to the land, but not before having their robes pressed by ironing enthusiasts.
It’s easy to understand how extreme ironing evolved if you keep in mind a simple truth about the male species:
Given enough time, any man performing a mundane task will find a way to hurt himself.
And if you can hurt yourself doing it, then it’s practically a sport already. Sure, bowling and golf might appear to be exceptions to this rule. But ask anyone who has ever jammed their finger in the ball return, or inadvertently left a tee in their back pocket, and they’ll tell you there is plenty of danger involved.
As a man who irons, I know, firsthand, the danger that comes with pressing my daughter’s favorite clothes. Especially if I use the wrong setting and turn what was once a flowery cotton blouse into our newest hand towel. Until recently, men who ironed were looked upon as being wimpy. This was a stigma left over from an earlier time when men brought home the bacon and women cooked it.
Then cleaned the kitchen, vacuumed, washed the dishes, bathed the kids, and did all the laundry. Back then, men who refused to perform domestic chores were still called masculine things such as “The Breadwinner,” “King of the Castle,” and “Man of the House.”
Generally by other men.
Today, men who want to bring home the bacon — while avoiding any domestic chores — are called other things, such as “single” or “recently divorced.”
As a result, we men have come up with a way to demonstrate our unquestionable maleness by 1) taking a simple task and 2) making it as difficult as humanly possible. This is the general idea behind “extreme” ironing, which, according to its web site (www.extremeironing.com) “combines the excitement of an ‘extreme’ sport with the satisfaction of a well-pressed shirt.”
Being a man, I can appreciate that kind of logic.
Anyone WOMAN can iron a pair of slacks; it takes a MAN to do it while jumping out of a plane.
Because of this, I have decided to train for the 2011 Extreme Ironing World Championships, which my family has pledged its support for by providing me with as much ironing to do as possible. In fact, as a demonstration of her unselfish commitment to my goal, youngest daughter recently purchased an entire new wardrobe, none of which is “wrinkle free.”
My hope is that the experience will draw us even closer together as a family.
At least, once I can find them on the other side of this pile of ironing.
(You can write to Ned Hickson at nhickson@thesiuslawnews.com, or at the Siuslaw News at P.O. Box 10, Florence, OR. 97439)
‘Spinning Our Wheels’ With Public Education
If the State does NOT want to assume its constitutional responsibility to provide and finance a quality education to every child, then legislators need to change the law. Every two years lawmakers appear to look at doing just that.
Financing and Improving Public Education: Still An Issue Of Legal And Moral ResponsibilityIf the State does NOT want to assume its constitutional responsibility to provide and finance a quality education to every child, then legislators need to change the law. Every two years lawmakers appear to look at doing just that.
Currently the State is guilty of violating its mandated responsibility to parents and their children. Personally, I advocate a class-action lawsuit against the State by parents and educators. Unfortunately, it seems like any effort to resolve an educational issue in this state results from the judicial and not the legislative system.
Several years ago a court decision found the current financing system illegal. Interestingly enough it was the court that originally determined the current financing method, which includes the “Robin Hood” clause — forcing “wealthy” districts to provide some of their tax dollars to “poor” districts. Note that most districts these days are “poor” districts.
If legislators want to privatize education, that’s fine only if taxpayers don’t have to foot the additional bill for it. Otherwise, legislators simply are looking to cover their own butts for not providing the appropriate and adequate financing during the past decade. Case in point: It is the legislature that has created the current emergency plight of public education by forcing the court to set up a financing system that ensures educational inequality among economic classes and is doomed to fail.
Furthermore, if privatization of public education is our next step, legislators had better put into place a regulated system of tuition and finance costs. We need only observe what has occurred under the recent deregulation of higher education tuition costs to note the critical nature of this issue.
Privatization of public education brings along a whole set of other issues and problems. Ongoing legislative inept short-term thinking is incapable of determining, implementing and maintaining an entirely new educational system. In addition, operating two parallel educational systems under the state rubric, public and private, is doomed for failure. If the state cannot successfully manage and monitor one system, how is it possible for it to maintain two separate education systems?
However, if the real concern is to educate every child equally (which, of course, it isn’t), then privatization is NOT the automatic educational road to recovery. Privatizing education merely will ensure the inequality between the “haves” and the “have-nots” within our society.
What happened to improving the quality of education or providing teachers with a professional salary?
smaller class sizes = better student : teacher ratios = more successful learning environment
Three years ago, Texas Governor Rick Perry self-appointed yet another Commission on Public Education, which he named “The Texas Tax Reform Commission”. It was headed by Democrat John Sharp and a host of 23 of the governor’s major campaign contributors. There were no average parents, educators, middle-class homeowners or students on the commission. It’s hard to imagine this group of businessmen arriving at financing public education improvements that could benefit most Texas families.
Privatizing education is another misguided special interest notion the governor and legislators have selected so they don’t have to assume the constitutional responsibility they have been diverting for the past decade and to ensure the highest quality education for every child.
Isn’t it clear yet to everyone that legislators and businessmen are NOT the group needed to develop a quality functional public school system with adequate financing? During the past decade they have proven beyond a doubt that they are incapable of doing so or wanting to do it.
What we have consistently is an Endless Loop of Public Education. “Is Our Children Learning?”
In the U.S. our children remain on the back-burners for improving learning outcomes and developing successful lives. Most states remain “stuck” in their respective approaches to public education, much as the spinning wheels of a vehicle caught without any traction in 2 feet of mud after a rain storm.
Politics all too often corrupts public education.
For example, in Texas, Gov. Rick Perry recently appointed Cynthia Dunbar to head the State Board of Education (SBOE). Ms. Dunbar is not exactly known for her for her intelligent and open-minded approach to educating Texas children. A significant point of her discipline is that she wants public schools to teach the Bible and NOT to teach evolution.
Another example of politics in public education: Texas State Education Commissioner Robert Scott has decided that all high school students will take more electives and fewer required courses under a bill that lawmakers recently approved in May 2009. Fortunately, the required courses he refers to are computer technology, health and physical education, NOT required subjects like math or science.
Students will no longer be required to take two semesters of computer technology and a semester of health education, while the physical education requirement has been reduced from three semesters to two. Instead, students will consider taking 6 credits of electives. Supposedly, the reason for this is to enable students to select topics that will aid them in develop skills for entering college. Will it work? No one knows.
The ongoing changes in public education occur not only in Texas, but virtually in every state in the nation. What truly is amazing is that every few years schools are forced via legislative agendas to adapt to another “enlightened” approach to teaching public education.
Generally, these changes don’t amount “to a hill of beans” and it is the educational core requirements that children need to increase their learning outcomes. Too many children still don’t learn the basics well. Many do not read at an appropriate level, know how to spell [texting has added to that problem] or how to perform simple mathematics. Many don’t know basic living skills either, e.g., how to keep a check book and pay bills, or how to write a simple letter or a job resume. All too often our children do not have significant communication and personal skills.
What we need to do is to teach our children the basics of how to succeed in life and in business. Reading, writing and arithmetic still are the key to learning and unfortunately, teaching our children to enjoy learning is not a priority. So, are we really helping our children to improve their learning outcomes? Not really.
Here in Texas, as in other states, we continue to teach our children to pass certain exams (TAKS) as a guide to and validation of their success. Is it working? Hardly. There is a lot of pressure placed on our children and teachers, without increasing their learning outcomes.
Last year the legislature approved incentives for teachers. Much as in industrial labor, teachers were rewarded for piece-work quantity for every student who succeeded — success measured by passing standardized tests. However, the program was marked for failure because our children are NOT industrial commodities and passing standardized tests are NOT a true indicator of future success in life.
Most public education programs provide scattered curriculum and inappropriate teaching methods that on the timeline of pedagogical and learning skills remain on par with the enlightenment level of the Spanish Inquisition. Most children are not well-prepared for college, business or life; consequently, most of them fall through the cracks of the imagined success mold.
Mark Twain is credited with stating, “I never let my schooling interfere with my education.” How many American children are able to say the same?
How long will it take for lawmakers, educators, and parents to recognize that to improve learning outcomes we must reduce class sizes, promote a love of learning, and teach children that learning is the key to being successful in education, business and life? Otherwise, we merely are passing along our children through the public education system much as in the manufacturing sector where various products move through an assembly line. Mark Twain might have stated that “Products don’t get to think much going through the assembly line.”
So, if we want to help our children become successful in education, business and life we must provide several basics:
o Encourage children to love learning about all topics
o Teach more of the basics — reading, writing, mathematics
o Develop communication, business and life training skills
o Reduce class sizes to promote real learning
o While it’s nice to provide more electives as options, they are not needed to improve learning skills
o Make classes more interesting by using various methods of learning, e.g., visuals, audio, kinesthetic applications
o Eliminate state exams or don’t make them the major measure of success
o Reduce competition among children while promoting group inclusion and real learning
o Evaluate children in a more holistic manner that includes long-term teacher assessment, tests, various learning skills, overall learning outcomes
o Trim the cost of providing public education so that it is more affordable to taxpayers.
In conclusion, it is unfortunate that on the learning evolutionary timeline public educations has remained in the Dark Ages. It is time we reach the Age of Educational Enlightenment by promoting student interest and an ongoing love of learning, strengthening the basic core of learning (reading, writing, mathematics), reducing oversized classes and providing curriculum and teaching methods that will improve overall educational skills and learning outcomes of all children.
Peter Stern, a former Director of Information Services, university professor and public school administrator, is a disabled Vietnam veteran who lives in Driftwood., TX.
Psychopaths Have No Conscience
Surviving & Prospering in the New Economy
How or why would any sane person DO THAT?
He constantly asks for sympathy, takes risks, lies to you and when caught shows no remorse. It is unsettling, frightening. Somehow it is your own fault. But what or why would anyone do these things? There is an answer.
The terms, “psychopathy,” “sociopath,” “sociopath,” and others refer to individuals who look human but, in elemental ways, are not. They harbor a condition which cuts them off from us. Some of the automatic emotional reactions, foundational to limiting wrong behavior, do not seem to exist. These individuals emulate compassion, concern, affection, kindness and love – only to further their purposes. They feel no compunction about stealing, lying, or committing crimes to achieve their goals. They consistently demand sympathy, knowing perfectly well they deserve none.
They do not want or need sympathy. But they do want you to feel sorry for them, to desire to help them. It is all manipulation, emotions simulated to get what they want. They know we feel sorry for them and project the existence of emotions they never feel, just another lie.
People catching their eyes sometimes report feeling a chill of fear, as if looking into the eyes of a predator . Psychopaths are predators among us. The pain and suffering of those around them mean nothing, is pleasure to them. Their motivations seem inexplicable to the emotionally normal, who comprise the vast majority of the population .
Psychopaths have no conscience.
Where before little was written on the condition outside of professional journals, now much more is known. This is changing.
The evidence, now mounting, indicates the condition has a genetic element. There are also suggestions that adverse conditions in the life of the individual may be important in many cases of psychopathy . The last few years have taken understanding of the condition known as ‘psychopathy’ to new levels.
While only 4% of the population have the condition Martha Stout, PhD., points out in her book, The Sociopath Next Door, you are likely to have contact with psychopathic individuals on many occasions during your life time. You therefore need to understand the danger signs .
Experts in the field of psychology have been researching the problem since 1980. Much is now known .
In 1999 Robert D. Hare, Ph. D. published Without Conscience: The Disturbing World of the Psychopaths Among Us. Today, thanks to Robert Hare, David Kosson, Ph.D , and others, the means exist to reliably diagnose the condition. The test, carried out by qualified professionals, allows us the tools needed to understand and to take steps to help victims. The test, known as the Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R) (and adaptations of the test for use with adolescents and for screening purposes) when used by qualified professionals provides the means to identify those with the condition.
Hare’s new book, Snakes In Suits: When Psychopaths Go To Work, written with Paul Babiak, Ph.D., and published in 2006, opens the issue of the impact of the condition on the workplace, including large corporations.
It has been estimated elsewhere that as many as 4% of those in upper management may be psychopathic . Disturbingly, this may well also be true in higher levels of government given the massive cross over which exists at the highest levels of each. Logic supports the theory.
The test originated by Robert Hare has proven to be a valuable tool both to foster research on psychopathy and, increasingly, to open the door for victims to find justice. The work of Hare and his associates may, possibly, be used to the benefit of business and politics as well.
Psychopaths can impact us from every direction. For individual victims there is also hope.
Through the Aftermath: Surviving Psychopathy website victims participate with clinicians, therapists and others to move on with understanding. The site provides a Forum for victims, clinicians, and therapists for discussion and could well become the hub needed to generalize understanding of the condition in the general public.
Reading books on the subject, such as the excellent work by Martha Stout, Ph. D., The Sociopath Next Door, provide tools and tests which you can use personally. Dr. Stout, a practicing psychologist and clinical instructor in the department of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, warns the reader to beware of those who fail the simple tests she outlines. Three lies and you’re out, is one of several simple suggestions she proposes.
In dealing with the overall problem Stout raises other questions which are profoundly on point for all of us today.
On the question of war: Should sociopaths be tolerated as useful in time of war? Are we intentionally allowing psychopaths into the military? Perhaps recruiting them?
Has our toleration and ignorance smoothed the path for ugly behavior in other parts of our culture? What would a psychopath do, if elected to office? If they were the determining factor in deciding what matters, their profit or your health?
Have we considered the dangers the unchallenged presence of psychopaths presents when combined with the tendency in most of us to defer to authority?
If winning is the only thing that matters there is nothing you will not do. Recognizing no limits, psychopaths ignore the damage to others. As any small, determined group can change the world for the good, as Margaret Mead said, so a small number of individuals could destroy it. We need, therefore to limit the access of psychopaths to power while identifying them to the public.
A short tour through the books, links, and resources on the Aftermath: Surviving Psychopathy site raises questions which may well open up new understanding of ourselves. As individuals, parents, activists, and businesspersons, as Americans, we need to know.
Thanks goes to David Kosson, Ph.D., for his help in generously providing information, sharing the intentions of the Aftermath: Surviving Psychopathy project, and for his edits.
Sarah Palin: American Idol?
The other day, Sarah Palin announced that she will be working for Fox News. She said one of the reasons that she is excited about working there is because it is a place “… that so values fair and balanced news.” As an opinion columnist, nobody expects me to be “fair and balanced,” but news shows were once. But she actually called today’s Fox News “fair and balanced?” Obviously, the people at Fox may represent the conservative, right wing viewpoint if they want to, just as MSNBC presents the left wing, liberal viewpoint. But I certainly wouldn’t call either of them “fair and balanced.” That would be as silly as saying, “I can see Russia from my house.”
The other day, Sarah Palin announced that she will be working for Fox News. She said one of the reasons that she is excited about working there is because it is a place “… that so values fair and balanced news.” As an opinion columnist, nobody expects me to be “fair and balanced,” but news shows were once. But she actually called today’s Fox News “fair and balanced?” Obviously, the people at Fox may represent the conservative, right wing viewpoint if they want to, just as MSNBC presents the left wing, liberal viewpoint. But I certainly wouldn’t call either of them “fair and balanced.” That would be as silly as saying, “I can see Russia from my house.”
Like many people, I couldn’t resist watching her debut on the “The O’Reilly Factor.” I gave into the “must look at a car accident” impulse. Some of her rambling sentences seemed longer than her job as Alaska’s governor. There should have been a button to push to get a simultaneous English translation. She made up words like, “uncomfortableness.” But everybody makes little mistakes when they’re on TV, so let’s not linger on her lack of elementary school grammar.
When it came to discussing facts, she seemed to obfuscate the issue (Sarah, if you’re reading this, don’t be embarrassed to look up “obfuscate”). However, it was clear that she implied that except for her, everyone who was involved in her campaign is lying now. It would be nice to see her take responsibility for something. After all, the buck elk stops with her.
In the past, several people have used television to help make them stronger political candidates. Ronald Reagan is a good example. However, I saw Ronald Reagan on television, and you, Madame, are no Ronald Reagan.
The Fox announcement said that Palin will appear on several shows, rather than merely being on just one program. This got me thinking. If she has an overall contract with Fox, maybe she’ll also appear on shows that aren’t news programs. “24” has been a guilty pleasure of mine for years, and it would be perfect for Palin. Its lead character doesn’t let liberal, wishy-washy things like personal liberties and Constitutional limitations get in his way. “The Simpsons” might be a match for someone that many people consider a cartoon character. “Fringe” probably has the most appropriate title for the former governor. And to many, she is an “American Idol.”
Actually, my speculations might not be all that far-fetched. On the same day that Fox announced that Palin would be joining them, they announced that Simon Cowell, the acerbic co-host of “American Idol,” will be leaving after this season. Coincidence? Maybe. But don’t you think she’d be perfect for the show? It would be a great forum for this millionaire celebrity to continue to push her image as a “just folks, regular person like you and me.” Can’t you just hear her after someone’s singing performance? “We don’t have an opera house in Wasilla, but that doesn’t mean I don’t know good singing when I hear it because, like a lot of real Americans, I still sing in our choir, and your voice reminds me of some of the birds we heard when we went hunting last week and saw a bald eagle that’s no longer on the liberal, tree hugging endangered species list. You know what should be on the endangered species list? Middle class Americans who work hard, have kids, pay their bills, and don’t want the government to be in their lives except when it comes to Medicare, Social Security, and not paying a penny more than a fair price for all the American flags made in China. And I am 100% pro-life except when it comes to killing innocent animals, but we eat therefore we hunt so I don’t think this is the right time to raise taxes, especially on a young woman like you who has the chance to be a singing star in the greatest country in the world.”
In another amazing coincidence, on the same page of the newspaper that announced Sarah Palin’s signing with Fox News, there was an article that said that scientists have now determined that watching too much TV can actually shorten your life. So if I didn’t have a good enough reason to avoid watching Sarah Palin on television, I do now.
Lloyd Garver has written for many television shows, ranging from “Sesame Street” to “Family Ties” to “Home Improvement” to “Frasier.” He has also read many books, some of them in hardcover. He can be reached at lloydgarver@gmail.com. Check out his website at lloydgarver.com and his podcasts on iTunes.
Nothing Funny About Sad Life Of Daffy Duck Creator
The aspiring cartoonist told his friends on Jan. 17, 1928 to go on back to Dallas without him because he had decided to stay in sunny California. Since his mother was a distant descendant of the “Law West of the Pecos,” she christened her blessed event Frederick Bean Avery. He was born at Taylor in 1908 but grew up in Big D graduating from North Dallas High School.
The aspiring cartoonist told his friends on Jan. 17, 1928 to go on back to Dallas without him because he had decided to stay in sunny California.
Since his mother was a distant descendant of the “Law West of the Pecos,” she christened her blessed event Frederick Bean Avery. He was born at Taylor in 1908 but grew up in Big D graduating from North Dallas High School.
With his athletic good looks and love of the outdoors, people were always surprised to learn that Fred Avery had his heart set on a career as a cartoonist. The ink was still wet on his diploma, when he signed up for a summer course at a Chicago art institute. But after a month of still-life sketching, he packed his bags and caught the next train for Texas.
Waving good-bye to his buddies in the winter of 1928, Avery survived for several months by loading produce trucks and falling asleep to the sound of the surf. Recalling his adventure as a stranger in California many years later, he smiled, “You would be surprised how warm and soft a beach is after working all night.”
Failing to find a buyer for his comic strip, the Texan went to work as an assistant animator with the Walter Lantz Studio. To him the ground-floor opportunity was only a necessary evil, a way to keep body and soul together until the day he made it big in the funny papers.
But that day never came, and Tex – a nickname coined by unimaginative co-workers – eventually resolved to give animation his best shot. His prospects were decidedly dim due to the freely admitted fact that he was “never too great an artist. Most of those fellows at Lantz’s could draw rings around me.”
The loss of an eye in a freak office accident put Avery at an even greater disadvantage and changed forever his disposition. Gone was the life of the party with self-confidence to spare replaced by a brooding introvert with an inferiority complex.
Convinced he was finished as an artist, Avery jumped at the chance to master every phase of production. He was a dream come true for his lazy boss, who gave the eager beaver everything but his paycheck including complete charge of two cartoons in his fifth and final year with Lantz.
As soon as his debut flicks were in the can, Avery jumped ship for an all-or-nothing, one-film tryout with Warner Brothers. The classic Gold Diggers of ’49 so impressed producer Leon Schlesinger that he hired the 27 year old as his third animation director.
For the next seven years, Avery and his madcap crew worked out of a small frame building dubbed “Termite Terrace.” Only in retrospect did three-time Academy Award winner Chuck Jones recognize the unique talent of his former boss. “I was as ignorant of his genius as I suppose Michelangelo’s apprentices were oblivious to the fact that they too were working with a genius.”
Conceding the child market to Disney, Avery appealed to older moviegoers with a frantic gag-filled pace and adult humor that sometimes flirted with the risqué. His wisecracking characters broke the stodgy mold with sarcastic adlibs and handheld signs that poked fun at the story as well as the audience.
Avery created Daffy Duck, supposedly a native of Dallas’ White Rock Lake, and transformed a couple of extras into big-time stars – Bugs Bunny and Porky Pig. Until the rabbit underwent a personality transplant in A Wild Hare (1940), he was “just Daffy Duck in a rabbit suit.” Student slang at North Dallas High inspired Bugs’ trademark greeting “What’s up, Doc?”
Angered by a two-month suspension for insubordination, Avery quit Warner Brothers in 1941 for the greener pastures of MGM. He more than paid his own way with an average annual output of five cartoons over the next 13 years.
Although many of his features – Northwest Hounded Police, Red Hot Riding Hood, Slap Happy Lion, King Size Canary and Swing Shift Cinderella to name just a few – are considered masterpieces, Avery took a backseat to William Hanna and Joe Barbera, whose Tom and Jerry series collected seven Oscars. To compete with his rivals, the insecure workaholic rarely went home and even put off trips to the bathroom, a self-destructive practice that on one occasion necessitated the insertion of a catheter to drain his bladder.
When MGM let him go in 1954, Avery was already burned out. While Hanna and Barbera were taking television by storm with their own production company, he spun his wheels for 20 years cranking out commercials.
Avery’s private life was in worse shape than his career. His marriage did not survive the drug overdose death of his son, and he lived alone in a shabby apartment.
Tex Avery drew his last breath on Aug. 26, 1980 in the same California hospital, where Walt Disney died 14 years earlier. At his funeral, he was eulogized as “a leader who never established a studio, never tried to do anything but make good films.” And, most of all, he made millions laugh in a world that is not very funny.
Bartee Haile welcomes your comments, questions and suggestions at haile@pdq.net or P.O. Box 152, Friendswood, TX 77549. And come on by www.twith.com for a visit!
Cackle Berry: FEMA Genie
A cowboy has spent many days crossing the Texas plains without water…
His horse has already died of thirst.
He’s crawling through the sand, certain that he has breathed his last breath, when all of a sudden he sees an object sticking up out of the sand several yards ahead of him.
He crawls to the object, pulls it out of the sand and discovers what looks to be an old briefcase.
He opens it and out pops a genie. But this is no ordinary genie. She is wearing a FEMA
(Federal Emergency Management Agency) ID badge.
There’s a calculator in her pocketbook. She has a pencil tucked behind one ear.. ‘Well, cowboy,’ says the genie.. ‘You know how I work….You have three wishes.’
‘I’m not falling for this,’ said the cowboy… ‘I’m not going to trust a FEMA genie!’
‘What do you have to lose? You’ve got no transportation and looks like you’re a goner anyway!’
The cowboy thinks about this for a minute and decides the genie is right.
‘OK!, I wish I were in a lush oasis with plenty of food and drink.’
***POOF***
The cowboy finds himself in the most beautiful oasis he has ever seen, surrounded by jugs of wine and platters of delicacies.
‘OK, cowpoke, what’s your second wish?’
‘My second wish is that I was rich beyond my wildest dreams.’
***POOF***
The cowboy finds himself surrounded by treasure chests filled with rare gold coins and precious gems.
‘OK, cowpuncher, you have one more wish. Better make it a good one!’
After thinking for a few minutes, the cowboy says… ‘I wish that no matter where I go, beautiful women will want and need me.’
***POOF***
He was turned into a tampon.
And the moral of this story:
If the government offers to help you, there’s going to be a string attached.
The Changing Nature Of TV
Zack gave up on network television years ago. If he isn’t watching old movies on TMC, he’s probably catching a little news. Lately, he’s even limited the latter. Either the news shows are totally biased or just plain depressing. I go with what Zack watches because he’s King of the Remote around here. (I don’t have time to watch much TV and quite simply don’t often care). I don’t have time to read many books these days either, and THAT I miss.
And The Dumbing Down Of America Through Reality Shows
Zack gave up on network television years ago. If he isn’t watching old movies on TMC, he’s probably catching a little news. Lately, he’s even limited the latter. Either the news shows are totally biased or just plain depressing. I go with what Zack watches because he’s King of the Remote around here. (I don’t have time to watch much TV and quite simply don’t often care). I don’t have time to read many books these days either, and THAT I miss.
Our friend Ron will ask us, “Did you see [this show or that show] last night?” We stare at him blankly like deer caught in headlights, having never heard of these programs, much less watched them. (I’m sure we ARE missing some good things, but we can eventually find the whole series via Netflix with NO commercial interruptions). I only recognize some of these “new” actors if they’ve appeared in the (stupid) magazines my daughter Becca reads as she walks the treadmill or elliptical machine at the gym. (Books and more substantial magazines are too heavy, both literally and figuratively, she reports). And she tosses the old magazines my way. Sometimes we’ve actually caught some of this “new talent” in recent movies. But as many seem unremarkable to us, it’s often difficult to tell them apart or remember them. I see no Cary Grants, William Holdens, Clark Gables, Loretta Youngs, Ann Southerns, Judy Garlands, etc. I keep wondering what’s so hot about actors like Leonardo DiCaprio. I could go on and on. But that’s another column. And the truth is that we do like many of the younger “rat pack,” just not a large proportion of them. We don’t see a huge pool of talent there. But then we’re hard graders. And maybe some of them will improve with age, like fine wine.
So now NBC is moving all the late night shows around, angering the hosts. The ratings have probably skyrocketed. Conan and guest Ricky Gervais were hysterical last night. Zack says if this whole thing isn’t a brilliant publicity stunt to raise ratings, it should have been. Maybe the (younger) late night audience really is changing so drastically that these shows are no longer relevant enough for sponsors to be interested. My son Josh says he hasn’t turned on a TV in years now. He never watches one here either unless Zack forces an old movie on him. He can find almost anything he wants through the Internet — and without commercial interruptions. It’s a whole new world, but one must know how to navigate it. Tech-savvy kids like mine understand the ins and outs. I don’t.
Soap operas that have aired for 40 and 50 years are being given the ax as well. Television is changing. Instead of a Late Night Show or the old, standby series, the absolute stupidest reality shows in the universe abound in huge variety. Apparently we’re a country of voyeurs. My daughter watches these things to unwind when she visits, because they’re mindless and stupid and make her laugh. She never has time for television during her work weeks (which can often last from one Monday to the next, with little time for even sleeping. I can see her need for mindless unwinding now and then. Perhaps this explains the success of these reality shows as more and more young people have such demanding schedules and responsibilities). One wonders if the people on these shows can really be that dumb/bitchy/rude/fat/thin/untalented/brazen /clueless/such lying cheats/whatever. Sometimes it’s like the proverbial train wreck: You simply cannot look away. You just can’t believe what you’re seeing. I almost feel embarrassed for these folks. Like they’re being exploited by the producers for monetary gain. Duhhhhhh.
I’m not proud of it, but I admit to watching some of these things with Becca during her infrequent stress decompression weekend visits. It’s possible to look into the lives of Hugh Hefner at the Playboy mansion, brides before the big event, plastic surgeons at home and at work, people who want help breaking into the world of modeling, fashion design or haute cuisine cooking. There are programs showcasing real people who want to lose weight, find love (or a millionaire),dance best, dress better, have makeovers, remove clutter from their lives, redo their kitchens, grow nicer and more productive gardens, buy a new home here or abroad, sell antiques, or tractors or cattle or whatever.
You name it, and there’s probably a show built around it. I only wish I’d thought of this, but in my wildest dreams, I never would have believed most people would CARE. This is the reason I’m not in marketing. It’s one of a multitude of reasons I’m not wealthy. Few people seem to like or buy the things I like. There’s an old saying in the wholesale world, “If it smells, it sells.” Maybe that’s true in television programming now. I suppose it all has to do with the changing nature of entertainment today and the demographics and intellectual capacity of the money spending public masses. I must be getting old. I’m finding it more and more difficult to be optimistic about future generations if this stuff is what they watch on the box 24/7. Our parents probably said the same thing about US.
Eat Your Heart Out Donner Party
My daughter Ashley’s boyfriend Hugo had never seen snow before and seeing snow was very high up on his to-do list. “Can we drive up and see snow on my birthday?” he asked. That sounded like a reasonable request so we all snagged up baby Mena, slapped her in a carseat and headed off for the snow. And drove. And drove.
No Snow In The Sierra Nevadas
http://jpstillwater.blogspot.com
My daughter Ashley’s boyfriend Hugo had never seen snow before and seeing snow was very high up on his to-do list. “Can we drive up and see snow on my birthday?” he asked. That sounded like a reasonable request so we all snagged up baby Mena, slapped her in a carseat and headed off for the snow. And drove. And drove.
“You’ll see snow almost immediately after you drive past Sacramento,” the internet assured us before we left Berkeley and took I-80 east toward the Sierra Nevadas. But when we reached Placerville it was still sunny and warm.
Then we stopped at the Boeger winery to give young Mena a break and let her run around in the vineyard. “How far to the snow?” we asked the vineyard people.
“About 20 minutes.” But two hours later, we were still driving. 2,000 feet — no snow. 4,000 feet — no snow. 6,000 feet — no snow.
Finally at 6,500 feet, just 50 miles west of Lake Tahoe, away the freak up in the middle of the Sierra Nevadas, in 65-degree weather, we finally found snow.
Hugo loved the snow. Mena had no idea what to do with it. I complained about cold feet. Ashley slid down a hill on her bottom — in one foot of snow. (Ashley says that there was at least two feet of snow up there but she’s wrong. That was just the left-over stuff from the snow plow. Had there actually been two feet of snow on the ground, I would never have gotten out of the car.)
Remember the ill-fated Donner Party back in 1846 — and how, even though it was only October, they ran into a severe blizzard and got snowed at 5,698 feet (that’s 1,000 feet lower than we were) up in the wretched Sierra Nevadas for the next three months and couldn’t get out and had to resort to cannibalism just to survive? Imagine if they had been crossing the Sierras during October of 2010! They coulda all walked out alive and been safely home sitting by a warm fire in San Francisco in plenty of time for Thanksgiving. And even if they had crossed the Sierras like we did — in January — they still would have made it safely down to Frisco by Valentines Day.
PS: Here’s a video of me, Ashley, Hugo and young Mena cavorting in some hard-to-find snow. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hePq1pZwpj8
From Wikipedia: The Donner Party was a group of California-bound American emigrants caught up in the “westering fever” of the 1840s. After becoming snowbound in the Sierra nevada in the winter of 1846-1847, some of them resorted to cannibalism.
New DVD Emerges To Explain The ‘Ron Paul’ Phenomenon
Dr. Ron Paul defies all conventional wisdom. Conventional Wisdom says that the Ron Paul boom would have blown over after the campaign; he’s just a fly in the ointment, a flash in the pan, a wisp in the election wind. But in this case, Conventional Wisdom has been proved wrong.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Dr. Ron Paul defies all conventional wisdom. Conventional Wisdom says that the Ron Paul boom would have blown over after the campaign; he’s just a fly in the ointment, a flash in the pan, a wisp in the election wind. But in this case, Conventional Wisdom has been proved wrong.
So how did this obscure 11th term congressman from Texas defy the predictable batch of Washington play-by-the-rules candidates and raise more than $34 million seemingly out of nowhere? In the long run, Dr. Paul triumphed because he was the exception to the rulers.
He is the last of the breed. As a small-government tight-money Republican this gynecologist-obstetrician (4,000 babies claimed as a career total) regularly votes “No” on pork barrel projects that would put money into his own district, came into the campaign with a conservative platform: a return to the gold standard, abolition of the I.R.S., a literal view of the Constitution. His campaign was bare bones. Then he started appearing in debates. His emphatic grandfatherly presence and fierce opposition to the war in Iraq set him apart from his fellow Republicans. Setting him even farther apart were ideas like blaming American foreign policy for the attacks of 9/11 and abolishing the Federal Reserve.
If his campaign had taken place in the pre-Internet era, it might have gone the way of his 1988 Libertarian campaign for president, as a footnote to history. But because of the Internet’s low-cost ability to connect grass-roots supporters with one another — Dr. Paul’s once-solo quest had taken on a life of its own. It evolved from a figment of cyberspace into a traditional campaign, with yard signs, meet-ups, direct mail, old-fashioned rallies and good old American chutzpah. Their goal was to agitate like in a washing machine, until all the dirt came out.
While the ditto heads cheered Giuliani and Romney even though their speeches often veered into rhetorical culs-de-sac, the audience roared their support for torture and rule by emergency decree, Paul told the crowd and the TV cameras that no, torture is wrong and the Constitution is paramount.
Paul was asked if 9-11 changed anything. U.S. foreign policy, he answered, was a “major contributing factor. Have you ever read the reasons they attacked us? They attacked us because we’ve been over there; we’ve been bombing Iraq for 10 years. We’ve been in the Middle East. So right now we’re building an embassy in Iraq that’s bigger than the Vatican. We’re building 14 permanent bases. What would we say here if China was doing this in our country or in the Gulf of Mexico? We would be objecting.”
But even as Fox’s pundits tossed Paul on their devilled horns, the instant poll totted up the numbers. Of the 40,000 viewers expressing an opinion, 29 per cent wrote in that Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney had done best. Second was Ron Paul, with 25 per cent, barreling ahead of Giuliani with 19 per cent. The most pro-war of the lot, McCain, got 5 per cent.
So now just when you thought it’s all been said about Ron Paul, along comes a crack team of Wisconsin-based cybernauts Chris Rye and Corey Kealiher, two deeply informed grassroots documentary filmmakers who produced the strikingly honest Inaugural DVD “For Liberty, How the Ron Paul Revolution Watered the Withered Tree of Liberty” to show why Dr. Paul inspired such a strong grassroots movement, unmatched in American history.
By filming the dedicated millions of Paul followers who made the Ron Paul Election Phenomenon, Rye and Kealiher produced a hard-knuckled, knockout DVD that lays bare Paul’s fervent philosophy of sound money, stern non-interventionist foreign policy born of pragmatics not idealism, and individual liberty as defined by that holiest of American grails, the Constitution.
As with almost every cinema-verite subject, people in everyday action — politics in particular — reveal themselves with such absorbing originality, a script was not needed. “For Liberty” characters were operating by the seat of the pants.
“For Liberty” serves as a tour guide along the deeply flawed 2008 election trail, blowing the lid off of decades of secretive world class cronyism and high finance fraud.
Confident and secure with his ideas, Paul maneuvesr, spins, and speechifies with the best and worst of them, always a quiet eye in the political storm. By contrast with the snake oil salesmen of the political establishment who sold their recycled wares to Middle America, Paul came off as the safe port in the political storm.
His platform blew everyone away: a return to the gold standard, abolition of the I.R.S., a literal view of the Constitution. His campaign was bare bones. Then he started appearing in debates. His emphatic presence and fierce opposition to the war in Iraq immediately set him apart from his fellow Republicans. Setting him even farther apart were ideas like blaming American foreign policy for the attacks of 9/11 and abolishing the Federal Reserve.
Paul sowed his dedicated and mushrooming base largely because of the Iraq war. He alone among the Republican club of warhawk presidential candidates called a war is a war early on — that the war was an anti-constitutional betrayal of America’s interests — and thereby stood out from the snarling pack. Hence Paul was able to draw visceral antiwar support from both sides of the blurred ideological divide. He inspired millions regardless of party affiliation, who believe in conditionally supporting their country all the time and their government only when it deserves it.
When Paul’s campaign coffers swelled above and beyond his debate mates, the knives started to come out. This is how politics in the U.S. currently works.
Despite their snarling glances, Paul blew the lid off the WMD deception, the 911 blame game and the danger America faces as a result of the “greatest military blunder in American history,” the true character of his opponents and the absolute lie of their war on terror were laid bare for all to see.
“For Liberty” is not about tired, old, right-versus-left political bickering and backstabbing. It is about right vs. wrong, according to time-honored American values and the fundamental principals that 99% of Americans chose to live and abide by. Paul sees government as a clenched fist protecting corporate interests, maintaining economic hegemony through military might abroad while greasing the wheels for privileged elites to make money off the working majority at home.
Gop Attempts To Silence Gubernatorial Whistle-Blowing Candidate
WASHINGTON, D.C. — An attempt to silence Alabama gubernatorial candidate Bill Johnson has been launched by his own county’s GOP. Johnson, a 2010 Republican candidate for governor, is banned from speaking at GOP events in Alabama for blowing the whistle on current Republican Alabama Governor Bob Riley. Johnson is a former Riley cabinet member; he was director of the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA), a large state agency managing over $240 million per year in federal and state grants. Johnson led Riley’s grassroots efforts for his successful bids for Congress in 1996 and Governor in both 2002 and 2006. Johnson has worked closely with the Governor for over a decade.
Last year, Johnson became aware of possible conflicts of interest on the part of the Governor involving the giving of favorable contracts to close relatives and accepting money from Indian tribes involved with gambling while opposing gambling efforts by other parties. As a cabinet member, Johnson was required under Alabama law to report any perceived or actual conflicts of interest. Having both a legal and moral obligation, he made the difficult decision to put aside all party affiliations and friendships and report these conflicts to the U.S. Attorney’s office of the Northern District, Alabama, as well as the FBI. He also left the Governor’s office.
Upon announcing his candidacy for governor last June, Johnson immediately began receiving a series of threatening letters — culminating in a death threat — that he believes were related to his knowledge and reporting of Riley’s wrongdoing. In order to stop the increasingly serious threats that had become a growing concern to his wife and children, Johnson went public with the facts and called for an investigation by the Alabama Attorney General and local district attorney’s office. A link to Johnson’s request for an investigation, a summary of the charges, and copies of the threatening letters can be found at <http://billjohnson.org/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=-Va-YPiKxBE%3d&tabid=116>.
Among the conflicts raised by Johnson are concerns that the millions of dollars received by the 2002 Riley Campaign for Governor from Mississippi Indian casino owners are shaping the Governor’s position on gaming in Alabama and are the catalyst for Riley’s 2008 launch of an anti-gambling taskforce. These types of “contributions” precipitated the Jack Abramoff scandal and are still under investigation by the Department of Justice and United States Congress.
In addition to the threatening letters to Johnson’s home, a new threat against Johnson has emerged from the Alabama GOP itself in the form of a formal resolution banning him from speaking as a GOP gubernatorial candidate. The GOP resolution states that because Johnson raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest by a “hard-working and popular” Governor, Johnson should be banned from speaking as a GOP candidate. The resolution, sent to executive committees in all 67 Alabama counties, originated in Johnson’s home county which is led by a hand-picked Riley supporter.
The RestoreJusticeAtJustice.com <http://restorejusticeatjustice.com> campaign calls for full Department of Justice and Congressional investigations into the conflicts of interest raised by Bill Johnson. “This is not the first time that Bob Riley has been tied to corruption,” said Restore Justice spokesperson and attorney Kevin Zeese. “His name keeps popping up for his involvement with Jack Abramoff, bags of cash payoffs from Indian casino interests, unethical political patronage, manipulation of his 2002 election, and the targeting of former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman. Now he is trying to silence Bill Johnson, a close insider who witnessed first hand Bob Riley’s corrupt activities. Johnson’s allegations appear to indicate blatant criminal conduct and obstruction of justice in violation of federal statutes. Clearly, because of Alabama’s sad history of corruption and political protection, we demand a high level criminal investigation authorized by the Attorney General.”
Cackle Berry — White Strands
One day a little girl was sitting and watching her mother do the dishes at the kitchen sink. She suddenly noticed that her mother had several strands of white hair sticking out in contrast on her brunette head.
She looked at her mother and inquisitively asked, ‘Why are some of your hairs white, Mom ?’
Her mother replied, ‘Well, every time that you do something wrong and make me cry or unhappy, one of my hairs turns white.’
The little girl thought about this revelation for a while and then said, ‘ Mom my, how come ALL of grandma’s hairs are white?’
Cancer Gets A Makeover
“Hey, Ashley,” I said to my youngest daughter, “wanna come keep me company while I get a makeover?” “Sure.” What a good daughter she is! But this isn’t just any makeover. This is a makeover sponsored by the American Cancer Society, the Personal Care Products Council Foundation and the National Cosmetology Association — and its whole goal is to help cancer patients feel good about themselves.
Chanel and Mary Kay To The Rescue!
http://jpstillwater.blogspot.com
“Hey, Ashley,” I said to my youngest daughter, “wanna come keep me company while I get a makeover?”
“Sure.” What a good daughter she is! But this isn’t just any makeover. This is a makeover sponsored by the American Cancer Society, the Personal Care Products Council Foundation and the National Cosmetology Association — and its whole goal is to help cancer patients feel good about themselves.
Several years ago, some creepy plastic surgeon told me that I had just a touch of skin cancer on my face and then proceeded to cut off my entire top lip. “Oh you can’t even tell that it’s gone,” most of my friends said. But I can tell. So when this makeover class was offered I got all excited and pleased. I want one! I want my lip to “Feel good..Look better!” like the class brochure says.
First one cosmetologist taught us how to tie scarves and wear wigs. I didn’t have a problem with my hair falling out due to chemotherapy but the other women in my class did. “I get chemo once every three weeks,” the woman next to me said. “I’ve had it one time already and my hair has already started to fall out.”
“How many chemo sessions will you have?”
“We’re hoping that four should do it but you never can tell.” She had breast cancer.
The woman sitting next to her also had breast cancer. “My hair came down to my waist just three weeks ago. And now I’m practically bald.” Then she expressed her worst fear. “I just don’t want to look like a sick cancer patient.”
Hats to the rescue! A volunteer group called “Knots of Love” crochets hats for chemo patients. They’re mostly in the 1930s cloche style. They’re totally cute. “I’d wear one of those,” said Ashley. Then they taught us how to cut the bottoms off T-shirts and turn them into coolness head wraps. And Ashley suggested wearing hoop earrings as well — to add a touch of panache. And I of course suggested big, bold colorful glasses — like glasses manufacturers keep refusing to make. Have you ever noticed that almost every pair of glasses on sale in the entire WORLD are stupid and unflattering rectangular shapes in only two or three dull colors? It’s true. But I digress.
“Cut your hair BEFORE you start chemo,” the instructors warned the class, “or you will just feel bad when you see it all falling out. And stop getting manicures and pedicures unless you bring your own tools to the salon. As a cancer patient, you are more susceptible to infections than most and need to take extra precautions. Also, only use light-colored nail polish. The darker shades and acrylic nails have too many chemicals. You already have enough chemicals in your bodies. You don’t need any more. Also avoid showering in very hot water, to keep your skin from drying out. And put oil or lotion on your skin before showering. Cetaphil is good.
“The first week of chemo is the worst.”
And then they brought out the cosmetics. We each got our own gift bag. There must have been hundreds of dollars worth of war paint in those bags. Geez Louise. If you gotta have cancer, you might as well enjoy whatever aspect of this horrible disease that you can.
“Did they detect your cancer with a mammogram?” I asked the woman next to me.
“No, it was too deep.” And the woman next to her had the same problem. No lumps or nothing. Now with me it was just the opposite. I’ve had mammograms, biopsies and lord knows what all else — but thankfully no cancer. Except for my lip. But I was too focused on trying on hats to remember exactly how these women’s cancers DID get detected. Sorry about that.
“Now we are going to tell you how to shape your eyebrows with your new NYC eyebrow pencil.” Good luck with that one. I looked like a clown. “You could practice at home,” the cosmetologist said, tactfully. Ashley volunteered to give me lessons. Fine.
Next came the Bobbi Brown eye shadow. “Use a light color for all the area from your lashes to your brow. Then fill in the crease with a darker color.” They gave us shades of tan and brown.
“But what about blue and purple?” I asked.
“Uh no.” Ashley was firm. But I bet that’s just because she coveted the bottle of Chanel iridescent blue eye shadow that I got. Hey that’s mine!
We also learned how to use American Beauty blush, Mary Kay cleansing cream, Clains foundation makeup, Physicians Formula concealer and Este Lauder powder in a coolness golden compact case. Then came the important part. “Jane, you need to enlarge your upper lip with this Wet N Wild lip liner and then use the Aveda lipstick to make it pop.” Which I did. Hey, not bad!
Then came the MOST important part. We all gave everyone in the class — and each other — high-fives and hugs. And Ashley promised to buy them all a scoop of Ciao Bella gelato in North Berkeley (she works there) on the day that they finished their chemo. Brave women all. Even me. And nice women too. Have you ever noticed that most cancer patients seem to be both very brave — and very nice. Hell, even I had fun and laughed a lot.
Cancer got a makeover. Yaay!
Then Ashley and I went off to Carl’s Jr to celebrate our victory with Superstar burgers and to show off my new look. Angelina Jolie, eat your heart out! My upper lip is PERFECT right now. And here’s the video to prove it too. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrIIRvy_R7Q
PS: I was a little hesitant to write about this “Look Good..Feel Better” makeover class but as I was leaving one of the instructors asked me to tell as many people as I could about this wonderful program. So I am. If you know any women with cancer, tell them about it. And even men too. Here’s the link to help find a program near you:
http://www.lookgoodfeelbetter.org/women/program_finder/
9/11 Commission Chairman: Alleged Bomber ‘Did Us A Favor’
According to the chairman of Bush administration’s 9/11 commission, the alleged Christmas Eve airplane bomber “did us a favor.”
WASHINGTON, D.C. — According to the chairman of Bush administration’s 9/11 commission, the alleged Christmas Eve airplane bomber “did us a favor.”
Thomas Kean, a former Republican governor of New Jersey, told CNN’s State of the Union last week that the incident showed the the U.S. security system has holes that need fixing.
A 23-year-old Nigerian man, Umar Farouk AbdulMutallab, is in U.S. custody for the allegedly attempting to detonate an incendiary device on a passenger plane.
Kean explained that it’s a “good thing” that the Obama administration is now focused on Yemen, the country where AbdulMutallab supposedly met with Al-Qaeda, though no direct evidence has been linked the young Nigerian to such a meeting.
Kean noted, “[T]here were holes obviously and the [intelligence gathering] system wasn’t working well. We found out it wasn’t working well and the president understands it’s not working well and now we’re focused on fixing it.”
Rush Limbaugh Praises Socialized Medicine: Union
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Right-wing entertainer Rush Limbaugh praised the U.S. health care system after his experience at a Hawaiian hospital over the holidays.
However, little did he know that the treatment he called “the best the world has to offer” at Queen’s Medical Center in Honolulu was essentially socialised medicine.
In fact, as one reported noted, “[M]uch of the Democrats reform bill is based in the Hawaii system.”
Hawaii mandates that employees who work at least 20 hours a week must have healthcare benefits provided by their employers.
Plus, the health insurance premiums in Hawaii are the lowest in the country, according to the New York Times.
Moreover, almost all private-sector acute care hosptial RNs are in organized labor unions; the hospital where Limbaugh stayed is represented by the Hawaii Nurses’ Association.
However, Limbaugh has said that if the proposed health insurance reforms pass, “people will die.”
That said, 45,000 Americans already die every year because they do not have health insurance, according to a study published in American Journal of Public Health.
President Barack Obama claims Hawaii as his home; his family vacationed there during the holidays.
America’s Medical Insurance Cartel
America’s Medical Insurance Cartel is the reason that America’s healthcare cost is twice that of other industrialized countries while the overall quality is half. The cartel is bankrupting our country.
According to the World Health Organization, the U.S. ranks 15th in infant mortality and 54th overall. Since 1947, when President Harry Truman tried to implement universal healthcare, the AMA and now the Medical Insurance Cartel have selfishly battled any real competition in the medical industry. If the United States is truly a moral and religious country, cost effective and high quality healthcare should be a right for every citizen.
U.S. healthcare is a $2 trillion industry lead by for-profit companies, an exception to the global norm. Americans say that they are worried about socialized medicine yet over 50 percent of healthcare is provided or subsidized by the U.S. government. A leading cost driver is America’s medical insurance cartel.
The medical insurance cartel is not unlike the oil industry cartel, OPEC. Exemption from anti-trust laws has allowed medical insurers to slice, price, and dice the healthcare marketplace to the advantage of corporate officers and stockholders but to the disadvantage of consumers. U.S. antitrust laws were minimized in mid-1980, under influence of the University Of Chicago School Of Economics and are blamed for the U.S. loss of economic supremacy in the world, according to Revitalizing Antitrust in Its Second Century.
The concept of supply and demand does not exist in American healthcare. The greater the supply of physicians produces a greater demand on services. It is the physician that drives and produces the demand, not the consumer. This is referred to as fee-for-service medicine. The financial incentive is to be paid for all services while having control of the demand for those services. An alternative to fee-for-service is a capitation payment. This is where medical providers are paid a specific amount per patient/consumer and are rewarded if they keep the patient healthy and satisfied.
In 1929, teachers in Dallas were one of the first to organize their healthcare around a non-profit consumer benefit organization which evolved into Blue Cross and Blue Shield. But, today over 70 percent of U.S. healthcare is for-profit. The glut of inefficiently managed technology, for-profit insurance companies, and a fee-for-service financial incentive has propelled U.S. medical costs to over 16 percent of America’s GDP. With the U.S. government paying half of the medical bill, America is heading for bankruptcy.
Consumerism in U.S. healthcare is dead. The AMA, the Medical Insurance Cartel lobbyist, and their public relations have sold Americans the “Iodine Theory” that the higher the cost, the higher the quality. Advertisers have done a good job to promote this theory. If it burns your wallet, it must be high quality healthcare. Just like a selling point for the medicine Iodine: “burns to prove that it kills germs.” In reality, lower quality medicine produces higher cost. A cardiologist doing just a few heart procedures per year is much less efficient with much lower quality outcomes at a greater cost.
Money drives healthcare policy and politics. Political contributions to our legislators are the reason why America’s healthcare is a for-profit and unregulated cartel. According to OpenSecret.org, over half a billion dollars have flowed to political candidates in the past decade. Medical cartel lobbyist, insurance companies, pharmaceutical companies, and millionaire medical insurance and hospital executives donate hundreds of millions of dollars each year. United Health Group, Aetna, and Wellpoint (formerly Blue Cross) are the largest for-profit medical insurers. Executive salaries range from $10 million to over $40 million with bonuses doubling the number. The top recipient in the U.S. Congress of the cartel’s monies is Sen. Blanche Lincoln, Conservative Democrat from Arkansas.
In the industrialized world, there are non-socialized and market-driven approaches that are working successfully. A recent issue of the Wall Street Journal analyzed the new Dutch universal healthcare program that was implemented in 2006. In only a year, healthcare costs have gone down and quality measurements have gone up. The Dutch concept incorporates private insurer competition but mandates insurance for all. The Dutch government negotiated with drug makers to cut prices by 40 percent. The fee-for-service incentive has been eliminated.
In 2007, a Washington, D.C. based health think-tank, “Committee for Economic Development,” recommended scraping the present U.S. fee-for-service medicine — the more services, the more fees, in favor of a fixed-dollar credit for every American. Competition would drive price, satisfaction, and quality.
America’s medical insurance cartel has implemented a political smokescreen to protect their profitability. Eliminating the “Public Option” would be a financial windfall for the medical cartel. The “public option” debate should be a non-issue in that many States already successfully offer a “public option” in workers’ compensation insurance. The medical cartel offers many diversions to segment public opinion. For example, the issue of “abortion” should be taken off the table because the courts and science agree that the “Terri Schiavo Case” legally defined human life based upon a functioning brain. Another smoke screen is the issue of mandating “100-percent coverage.” This is just good medical economics to provide a level playing field and eliminate the “gaming.” Administrative costs for healthcare run by the U.S. government is two to three percent while the for-profits costs run 20-30 percent.
Current debate on implementing universal healthcare in the United States hinges on how effective the medical insurance cartel will be to overcome the consumer demand for universal quality healthcare at an affordable price. If America is truly a religious and moral country, universal high quality and affordable healthcare is simply the right thing to do.
(William Dodge has worked in the U.S. healthcare industry for 25 years. He has written for several healthcare publications. He can be reached via email at WiDodge@comcast.net.)