About this. I wonder if the reason the porkers are acting so seeming stupid is that they've already written off their chances in November and are in a feeding frenzy to get all they can of the other white meat before the barbecue ends.
(Can I flog this metaphor any further?)
26 May 2006
24 May 2006
Schools
I was just looking back at this bit from blackprof.com and had some further thoughts.
Mr. Jeffries argues, as have many others, that school choice is the answer for fixing our deteriorating school system. I mentioned in the comments that I'd read some research years ago that suggested most students in a pioneering school choice program in Milwaukee who actually took advantage of the program did so either for social or athletics reasons. That is they either wanted to go to school with a friend/boyfriend/girlfriend or they wanted to play for a particular school's athletic team.
Another commenter suggested I was wrong.
I don't pretend to be an expert on school choice, education in general, or inner-city education in particular. I'm not completely inexperienced - I actually have a (never-used) masters in education and my student teaching took place in the closest thing Knoxville, Tennessee has to an inner-city. But - to reiterate - I know I'm no expert in this area and the little knowledge I have is many-years old.
That said. While school choice may be laudable it can't - by itself - fix the nation's education problems. And it especially can't fix our inner-city education problems because those problems are ultimately the problems of the inner-city itself.
Schools don't operate in a vacuum. They are products of their communities.
Mr. Jeffries argues, as have many others, that school choice is the answer for fixing our deteriorating school system. I mentioned in the comments that I'd read some research years ago that suggested most students in a pioneering school choice program in Milwaukee who actually took advantage of the program did so either for social or athletics reasons. That is they either wanted to go to school with a friend/boyfriend/girlfriend or they wanted to play for a particular school's athletic team.
Another commenter suggested I was wrong.
I don't pretend to be an expert on school choice, education in general, or inner-city education in particular. I'm not completely inexperienced - I actually have a (never-used) masters in education and my student teaching took place in the closest thing Knoxville, Tennessee has to an inner-city. But - to reiterate - I know I'm no expert in this area and the little knowledge I have is many-years old.
That said. While school choice may be laudable it can't - by itself - fix the nation's education problems. And it especially can't fix our inner-city education problems because those problems are ultimately the problems of the inner-city itself.
Schools don't operate in a vacuum. They are products of their communities.
Katrina analysis
Jonah Goldberg does a little urban myth busting on the subject of Katrina and who screwed up what. (HT Instapundit) My favorite bit - paraphrased - if the President screwed up so badly in New Orleans, how did he manage to do okay in Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida - the other states hammered by Katrina and her siblings? What should be obvious is that in a crisis, it's the people who are there that ultimately need to deal with it.
And they just re-elected Ray Nagin.
Wow.
And they just re-elected Ray Nagin.
Wow.
22 May 2006
15 May 2006
Carter administration offers assistance with Iran
This struck me as kinda funny. I mean I know Jimmy had some ... experience ... with Iran, but I'm not sure that's what we're looking for.
26 April 2006
Skool Choys
This was always my argument against school choice and vouchers:
"Many of the most empowered parents and families are removing their children. What's left, in even working-class communities, are schools filled with the least empowered families. Families with the least parent involvement to offer, families with the least help with homework to offer. There's been a continual outflow for at least 10 years, and it isn't stopping now."School choice is great for involved parents and motivated students - also for students who want to play sports on a different team or go to school with a boy/girlfriend - but they don't do anything for the VAST majority of poor, inner city students.
19 April 2006
Christianity in the US
Map of dominant churches by county in the US.
Links to maps for each major religion - with Christianity broken down by denomination.
Interesting to me, at least. I grew up a Catholic (nominally, at least) in Tennessee. Recently we've started attending a Lutheran (ELCA) church in Minnesota. There's also a map of Religious Adherents which suggests how the coastal power brokers might have a little trouble understanding and relating to those of us in the fly-over states.
Links to maps for each major religion - with Christianity broken down by denomination.
Interesting to me, at least. I grew up a Catholic (nominally, at least) in Tennessee. Recently we've started attending a Lutheran (ELCA) church in Minnesota. There's also a map of Religious Adherents which suggests how the coastal power brokers might have a little trouble understanding and relating to those of us in the fly-over states.
05 April 2006
04 April 2006
Very cool medical stuff
It's not sci-fi anymore - they're actually cloning organs and re-implanting them. Excellent.
24 March 2006
What a classy response in the most horrible of situations
"I don't have anything to say. I appreciate your interest. I just have nothing to say right now." -- from the father of the Tennessee woman who has confessed to shooting her pastor husband.
Can't imagine many more horrible situations for a parent to find himself in.
Can't imagine many more horrible situations for a parent to find himself in.
22 March 2006
war casualties
from Glenn
I've had the feeling that by and large our casualties have been relatively light in the WOT (war on terror), and I suspected they weren't too much higher than the numbers in peace time.
That's not to discount any of them. Every single death is a tragedy for a lot of people, and I regret every one. Nevertheless, the aggregate numbers are interesting and really impressive considering the type of war we're fighting.
Being a soldier (airman, marine, etc) is a dangerous profession even in times of peace, and naturally more so when actively engaging an enemy. If anything it's a credit to the training and leadership of our forces that we haven't lost more people.
I've had the feeling that by and large our casualties have been relatively light in the WOT (war on terror), and I suspected they weren't too much higher than the numbers in peace time.
That's not to discount any of them. Every single death is a tragedy for a lot of people, and I regret every one. Nevertheless, the aggregate numbers are interesting and really impressive considering the type of war we're fighting.
Being a soldier (airman, marine, etc) is a dangerous profession even in times of peace, and naturally more so when actively engaging an enemy. If anything it's a credit to the training and leadership of our forces that we haven't lost more people.
21 March 2006
Steer clear of Mississippi
The Cory Maye incident appears not to have been too unusual. Sounds like the Pearl River Basin Narcotics Task Force possibly should be on the other side of the bars.
20 March 2006
kids
My youngest child is six. It seems that she grows older by the moment. I find myself holding her on my lap, my head to her head, eyes closed as I try to fix that moment, to burn it into my memory forever. There are only a limited number of those moments available to us and they are the most precious commodity in the world.
G and I were talking about one of my old girlfriends who has no children, and I remarked that she was never terribly maternal. "I can't imagine," was G's comment. And I had to agree. I can't imagine my life without my kids. I guess that's not strictly true. There's nothing wrong with my imagination. What I really mean is that when I imagine my life without my kids it seems so empty, so desperately empty.
What would I do? I'd obviously have more time for myself. I could go to movies, plays, and concerts. I could go out to eat. I could travel more and it would be more relaxing. And I'd be able to afford to do those things since I wouldn't have kids hoovering up every scant penny that I hadn't yet earned.
I wonder if I would be more liberal. Would I hate George W. Bush? Would I think Islamic terrorists were moral equals of US troops fighting to create a democratic Iraq? I know that opinion doesn't break that cleanly on the demographic fault line between those with kids and those without. But ... still. It makes me wonder if there's more than a casual correlation between the declining birth rates in Europe and their rabid hatred for our President and anything he does.
It's hard to be completely selfish when you are a parent - and I'd say impossible when you are a good parent.* You have to be concerned with something other than yourself. You have to make sacrifices of time and money and attention. And you become concerned with the future in a more concrete way than previously. I think you begin to be less concerned with small endangered animals and more concerned with small human animals and the kind of world they will live in.
Life is more complicated than I'm drawing it here. But I think it's an interesting thought experiment.
Oh, one interesting tidbit - the old GF has lived in Europe since she graduated from college.
* Yes, obviously, I consider myself a good parent. I guess we'll see how good in 20 years or so.
G and I were talking about one of my old girlfriends who has no children, and I remarked that she was never terribly maternal. "I can't imagine," was G's comment. And I had to agree. I can't imagine my life without my kids. I guess that's not strictly true. There's nothing wrong with my imagination. What I really mean is that when I imagine my life without my kids it seems so empty, so desperately empty.
What would I do? I'd obviously have more time for myself. I could go to movies, plays, and concerts. I could go out to eat. I could travel more and it would be more relaxing. And I'd be able to afford to do those things since I wouldn't have kids hoovering up every scant penny that I hadn't yet earned.
I wonder if I would be more liberal. Would I hate George W. Bush? Would I think Islamic terrorists were moral equals of US troops fighting to create a democratic Iraq? I know that opinion doesn't break that cleanly on the demographic fault line between those with kids and those without. But ... still. It makes me wonder if there's more than a casual correlation between the declining birth rates in Europe and their rabid hatred for our President and anything he does.
It's hard to be completely selfish when you are a parent - and I'd say impossible when you are a good parent.* You have to be concerned with something other than yourself. You have to make sacrifices of time and money and attention. And you become concerned with the future in a more concrete way than previously. I think you begin to be less concerned with small endangered animals and more concerned with small human animals and the kind of world they will live in.
Life is more complicated than I'm drawing it here. But I think it's an interesting thought experiment.
Oh, one interesting tidbit - the old GF has lived in Europe since she graduated from college.
* Yes, obviously, I consider myself a good parent. I guess we'll see how good in 20 years or so.
18 March 2006
math
This was interesting. I've been regretting for a while that I didn't suck it up and learn more math in college (the first time). Hindsight being what it is, though, it's hard for me to be too upset about it. If I had been a more dedicated student - and less a dedicated hedonist - I'd have gotten that Math\Comp Sci degree instead of the English degree. I would likely have gotten a job in Atlanta instead of moving back to Tennessee and meeting my wife-to-be working in a restaurant.
So, being thoroughly happy with my life, it's hard for me to have much regret for anything I didn't do that might have put me on a different path to today.
Still, I've always had it in the back of my mind that if I found myself financially secure I'd go back to school and learn all the math I skipped back in the day.
So, being thoroughly happy with my life, it's hard for me to have much regret for anything I didn't do that might have put me on a different path to today.
Still, I've always had it in the back of my mind that if I found myself financially secure I'd go back to school and learn all the math I skipped back in the day.
09 March 2006
Extremely cool game
I don't know who Will Wright is, but here's an hour long presentation by him of the new game he's working on. The presentation is very entertaining and the game looks VERY cool. If you don't want to watch the whole thing, fast forward to the bits where he shows the game.
update:
I guess that video is almost a year old. Game's not out yet and apparently has not firm release date, but I saw one projection on Gamespot that it would be coming out Q3 of 2006.
I'm not a gamer - at all. But this looks really, really cool. I'm a little afraid of it.
update:
I guess that video is almost a year old. Game's not out yet and apparently has not firm release date, but I saw one projection on Gamespot that it would be coming out Q3 of 2006.
I'm not a gamer - at all. But this looks really, really cool. I'm a little afraid of it.
22 February 2006
20 February 2006
17 February 2006
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)