I had what I thought were some great thoughts, but they disappeared with a blip in the house's power. Hmmm.... With the hot weather and increased power usage for air conditioners, what does that say about how power will be available with millions of people plugging in their cars every night????
Saul Anuzis, former MI Rep Party Chair, had a great comment.... "Raising the Debt Ceiling is kind of like increasing Blood Alcohol Levels to Solve Drunk Driving." Yep.
Recovery? Hmmm.... I see more abandoned homes around here now than last year and the year before and.... And, perhaps not as dramatic, but telling nonetheless, more people are letting their lawns go to pot (no, not drugs!). They aren't mowing as often or carefully (no trim); weeds are proliferating; etc.
Walter Williams cites a study showing only one in four high school seniors knew that the Bill of Rights is the first ten amendments to the Constitution. Hmmm.... If they don't know that, what is the likelihood that they'll know what's in them? Of course, to a growing population which thinks the gov't should provide everything, why would knowing their rights be important? Fewer than 25% knew G Washington was the first President. And on and on.... This isn't the thrust of William's piece, but this isn't hard to fathom. For how many years has the education establishment disrespected history and civics? C'mon, which of us hasn't had a coach for a history teacher, not because he actually knew history, but because "anyone can teach history?" How many times were teachers who didn't have enough courses in their own disciplines given history classes to fill out their schedules, not because they knew any history, but because "anyone can teach history?" And for how long did the state achievement tests include English (both reading and writing), math, and science, but not history or civics? When the social studies were added, the scores didn't count! I blame ignorant administrators for much of this; after all, they were the ones scheduling these teachers, perpetuating the myth that "anyone can teach history." School boards have missed golden opportunities to emphasize that the past and its people are important. Instead of naming schools after giants fo the past, school boards name their schools after plants, bodies of water, and even generic city names. Go ahead, count the number of high schools in Michigan named after A Lincoln, Washington, and Jefferson. OK, I'll give you a break--use your fingers, but you only need one hand and will still have a couple of fingers left over.
And the tenure laws are the problem! We elect loons to office, nationally and on the state and local levels. "The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, But in ourselves...."
Monday, July 25, 2011
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