July 31, 2004
US Conference of Mayors Education Resolutions
They sure are generous with your money. The document is 186 pages - on quick glance every page is a call for more federal and state funding. No mention of parents actually doing anything to help their own children though.
- INCREASE THE NATIONAL INVESTMENT IN AND EXPAND AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAMS
- QUALITY PRE-KINDERGARTEN FOR ALL
- REFORMING AMERICA’S HIGH SCHOOLS: ALIGNMENT OF STANDARDS AND GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS
- EQUITY AND ADEQUACY IN EDUCATION FUNDING
- INCREASE SUPPORT FOR SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION AND SCHOOLS AS CENTERS OF COMMUNITY
- BEATING THE SUMMER LEARNING LOSS; URBAN SUMMER EDUCATION PROGRAM
- IMPROVING THE PREPARATION, RECRUITMENT, INDUCTION AND RETENTION OF TEACHERS IN URBAN SCHOOL SYSTEMS
via EduWonk
Permalink | Comments (0)Nomar no mas
It's official. Nomar is a Cub. As part of a 4 way trade, the Red Sox end up with Doug Mientkiewicz from the Twins and Orlando Cabrerra from the Expos.
I'm not thrilled about this. Nomar for Mark Prior would have been great. This does improve the woeful infield defense in Boston as both new Red Sox are very good defensively. Both are having down years offensively, maybe the new home will spark the bats.
The bottom line is are the Red Sox better because of the trade? I'm not sure.
Permalink | Comments (0)Worst Guitar Solos of all time
Pitchfork media proves once and for all they they really, really need to stick to indie music, and never discuss rock and roll. They don't have a clue.
Eric Clapton as the worst guitar solo of all time? Are these guys trying to get struck by lightening? They have Freebird at #2. They song may be overplayed and cliched by now, but the gutar work kicks ass. Always has, always will. They seem to have a real bias against any guitarist that occasionally steps away from the song to wail for a few minutes. I don't think they understand that THAT is the point of a guitar solo.
Permalink | Comments (0)July 30, 2004
Highway to Hell
I had to drive into the office 3 days this week. Today it was 3 hours to travel the 70 miles to get home. 68 of those miles are interstate highway. Do the math, it's not pretty. No accidents or anything like that. Just too many cars going the same direction on Friday afternoon.
Going in mornings I've been picking up slugs (white collar hitchhikers) headed to the Pentagon. That way I can use the HOV lanes and zip along at a comfortable 80 miles an hour, drop them off at the Pentagon, and continue on my way. It's a totally self organized system of hitchhiking that works amazingly well. Probably because there is absolutely zero government involvement.
July 28, 2004
The Underground History of Education
Gatto's important screed gets a very well done review on Kuro5hin I also learned that Gatto has made the entire book available online. You can read it for free.
Permalink | Comments (0)July 27, 2004
My first fan in The Netherlands
I don't remember ever getting fan mail from the Netherlands before... I edited her addrress for her own safety. With my luck lately, some psyco in The Netherland would pull her address from here and show up at her house.
From:Dominique miss_domo@zeelandnet.nl
Subject:hello
Date: Tue, 27 Jul 2004 22:56:16 +0200
To:Chris O'Donnell
Hello Chris.
I'm Dominique and i'm 14 years old.
I'm a great fan off jou.. I live in The Netherlands.
I have many but the most beautyfull movie is the three musketiers.
please will you send me a picture with a autographe
my adress is:
Dominique Izeboud
(address edited)
Zeeland - The Netherland
with love and kisses Dominique
Jay Mathews Writes on Homeschooling Again
Jay Mathews, the Washington Post education columnist, has delivered on his promise of an update to his first homeschool column. It's very good - basically a survey of comments he received in response to his first column. It also sounds like he is going to feature some homeschoolers in full length articles for the paper.
You all know how I feel about publicity for homeschoolers....I'm generally in favor of staying under the radar. A full blown positive treatment in a major newspaper is the sort of thing that grabs the attention of our detractors.
However, seeing this in print in The Washington Post made my day!
Permalink | Comments (2)
For instance, the Home School Legal Defense Association, despite its energetic lawyers and many admirers, is not the leader of home schooling in this country. There is no leader, and no reigning ideology. There are instead at least a million American children -- the real figure is probably twice that number -- whose families want them to learn at home for many reasons, often having little to do with religion or politics.
Factory Tours
This has the potential to be a fun road trip - factory tours in York County, PA.
- Hershey
- Harley Davidson
- Utz Potato Chips
- Crayola
There is a vineyard and brewery too.
Unfortunately, I doubt Harley is giving away free samples after the tour.
July 26, 2004
Letters From God
Direct from God is providing personalized letters from God, for parents and spouses who have lost a loved one in the war. This letter is available at no charge. This is our way of honoring the brave troops that have given their lives for our country.
Even worse was my first reaction....Letters from Satan would be more fun.
Dear Jim,
Sorry about your wife and that car accident. It it makes it any better for you, she was on her way to the Red Roof Inn. She's been screwing around on you for years. Now she'll be paying the price for all eternity.
Yours In Pain,
Satan
via that other Fredericksburg blogger
Permalink | Comments (1)Commercials and Fox
Mike comments on the commercials Fox is showing during Saturday afternoon baseball games.
I've noticed this too. There doesn't seem to be any hour of the day that they won't show those damn erectile dysfunction commercials. A few months ago, the boy and I watched The Winning Season on Sunday morning on TNT. The movie was a Johnson & Johnson Family Theater presentation, or something like that. It's a G rated baseball movie based on the book Honus & Me. (The movie is good - if you are into baseball). We got several commercials for male enhancement drugs during this family movie, on before noon, on Sunday morning.
No cure for cancer, no cure for diabetes, but senior citizens can have 4 hour erections bought with taxpayer funds. I think our priorities are a little off in this country.
Giambi may have fatal infection
I hope the press is blowing this out of proportion. Even I don't want to see a Yankee dying.
Well, maybe Jeter.
I'm kidding. I'm kidding. Not even Jeter.
Permalink | Comments (0)TV is depressing
"The mood state Americans are in, on average, when watching television is mildly depressed." ----Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Dana forwarded this quote to me...seems apropos given the week of Democratic raving we are about to face.
Personally, I found TV quite uplifting this weekend, as the Red Sox took 2 /3 from the Yankees. Actually, uplifting might be the wrong word. Schizophrenic is probably a better word. It's July, and all three games had the emotion and atmosphere of October baseball. I think we'll see the Red Sox and Yankees playing 7 for the right to go the World Series again this year.
However, this year the Red Sox will win.
Permalink | Comments (0)July 24, 2004
Cross Canadian Ragweed - Soul Gravy
I love this album. CCR (can I use that?) actually sort of reminds me of CCR. They are dancing on the country / rock line, jumping back and forth with ease from country ballads to smokin southern rock to Texas blues. This is good stuff.
The used copy I bought is actually a promotional piece that includeds a full length live DVD. Not a bad deal for $5.
Permalink | Comments (0)John Mellencamp - Rough Harvest
This was one of those " I owe my old record company another album record," but it actually come off quite well. Mellencamp took some of his favorites and redid them with the current band in a mostly stripped down style. It's sort of a John Mellencamp unplugged.
It works well. Rain on the Scarecrow is slowed way down, Jackie Brown gets more of a folk treatment, the Carribean drum beat in I Saw You First is gone, and he does a great version of Under The Boardwalk.
Guinness Ice Cream
Michele found this recipe for Guinness Ice Cream.
1 cup water
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 1/2 cups evaporated milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup Guinness stout
In a heavy saucepan whisk together the water and the cornstarch and simmer the mixture over moderate heat, whisking, for 2 minutes. Add the milks, the salt, and the sugar, heat the mixture over moderately low heat, whisking, for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the sugar is dissolved, and remove the pan from the heat. Let the mixture cool completely, stir in the Guinness, and freeze the mixture in an ice-cream freezer according to the manufacturer's instructions.
- Makes about 1 quart
I need to find our ice cream freezer and try this.
Permalink | Comments (2)DC Blogger Poker
I had a great time. I may have played a little too tight early on, but with the cards I was getting last night it was definitely a night to just enjoy the company and have a good time. And that I did. I am looking forward to doing it again next month.
Although it does suck to have pockets kings and watch the community cards come up 6-7-8-9-10.
Permalink | Comments (2)July 22, 2004
How to buy a PC - O'DonnellWeb edition
The Frog Blog has posted advice on how to buy a PC. Summarized - Carson says to buy Dell.
I disagree. My advice is to buy from a local PC Integrator. If you are out on the boonies and have no local options, then Dell might be your best bet.
Quality
It's a wash. Dell buys whatever parts it can get cheap and in bulk. Everybody else does pretty much the same thing. Consumer grade PC's are a commodity. Buy discreet components. It's a good idea for both stereo equipment and computers. Motherboards with audio / video / networking integrated on them are a bad idea. If something breaks you have to replace the entire motherboard. It's much easier and cheaper to replace a $10 network card or $50 video card. (Dell tends to use integrated motherboards)
Don't obsess on price
The PC you want will always be cheaper tomorrow. Use the Web to figure out a fair price. Most of the time your local options will be very price competitive.
Upgrade when your current PC no longer does what you need it to do
Don't worry about processor speed. If your computer does everything you want it to do, it's fine. When you notice that it is lacking, start shopping for a new one.
Support
If you need help and you call Dell, you'll get somebody in India. No matter how good he is , he is still in India. If your PC skills are such that you know you'll be calling support, you are much better off calling the PC shop in the strip mall down the street. You can haul your PC back to their shop if needed.
Other thoughts
Use as little Microsoft software as possible. It's been my experience the MS software destabilizes your PC over time. Don't use Internet Explorer, ever.
Buy a second hard drive and back up to it. It takes about 5 minutes to install it. This is the most important advice I can give you. You will have a major hard drive failure sooner or later. It's not that traumatic if all your important stuff is backed up.
Permalink | Comments (0)Stupid Rabbits
The dogs have been obsessed with something under the deck - but I didn't see anything dead or alive under there. We figured it out today, a rabbit warren containing at least two baby rabbits.
Did I mention I have two beagles? They, of course, have been bred for hundreds of years for the singular purpose of hunting rabbit.
Which is worse?
- That the mother rabbit dug out her warren and gave birth in a fenced yard patrolled by two beagles.
- Or, the fact that the two beagles let it happen.
I've surrounded the warren with a cheap garden fence, which should keep the beagles at bay. Although I feel like I am messing with Darwin's Law here. A rabbit this dumb probably should not be passing its DNA to the next generation.
Permalink | Comments (0)July 21, 2004
Cultural Elite My Ass
People from NYC seem to think they are the cultural elite. At least us hicks in the 'burbs don't get all excited about the opening of a new Target store.
The phrase get a life come to mind.
Be careful with the link. Some not very attractive woman attended the opening sans bra - and it's not a pretty sight. She is probably famous - but I'm not cool enough to know who she is.
Permalink | Comments (1)Whole Foods
I have to admit - I've never been in a Whole Foods store. I have been in Fresh Fields, which they bought. There isn't one within 50 miles of my house, so I doubt I'll be shopping there anytime soon.
This article is fascinating though. Who would have thought you could have melded hippie ideals and capitalism into a multi billion dollar business?
Permalink | Comments (0)A $1.50 camera tripod
Made from a soda bottle and a few nuts and bolts.
Cool.
via Boing Boing
Permalink | Comments (0)July 20, 2004
Banks Suck
My new employer is in Maryland, I'm in VA. Direct deposit wasn't ready for the first couple of paychecks, so I got an old fashioned paper check. My bank put a 10 business day hold on the check, which since that time period encompassed the July 4th bank holiday, meant the funds were not available until after the next payday. Nobody at the bank can explain how WalMart knows that a check is good in 15 seconds, but a bank needs over 2 weeks.
(The answer I believe is that bank doesn't need two weeks - they are just screwing their customers)
With my next paycheck, I decided to beat the system. I cashed it at a branch of my bank in MD. That makes no sense either. Deposit at my bank in VA, and I can't access the money for 2 weeks. Cash check at my bank across the river in MD, and I can walk out with a stack of 100's. Then I took the cash and deposited it at the branch near home.
The bank lost the deposit. They found it, after I called. Luckily I had the receipt so I could give them the transaction number. Apparently the courier bag with all the deposits from Friday had been missing since Friday, and nobody noticed until customers started calling this morning. I'd change banks - but they all suck. What's the point?
Maybe I should get a Mason jar and keep it under the bed.
Permalink | Comments (3)July 18, 2004
One Is Enough
Holy Shit. This mom in NYC aborted two of her triplets (annoying registration required - but worth it. Use mefi1/mefi1) because 3 kids would be inconvenient to her hipster Manhattan lifestyle.
...This is why they say it's the woman's choice, because you think I could just carry triplets. That's easy for you to say, but I'd have to give up my life.'' Not only would I have to be on bed rest at 20 weeks, I wouldn't be able to fly after 15. I was already at eight weeks. When I found out about the triplets, I felt like: It's not the back of a pickup at 16, but now I'm going to have to move to Staten Island. I'll never leave my house because I'll have to care for these children. I'll have to start shopping only at Costco and buying big jars of mayonnaise.
I don't even know what to write about this. It's too depressing to even contemplate.
via Michele, who does have a few things to day about this.
Permalink | Comments (2)Digital Fortress by Dan Brown
Before Brown wrote The Da Vinci Code (which I still haven't read), he wrote this thriller, set in the National Security Agency. It's very "Tom Clancyish," full of intrigue, crosses and double crosses, heroic and not so heroic government agents, and heroic and not so heroic hackers. The NSA can read any email sent anywhere (ECHELON anybody?), or they could but now they can't, or maybe they still can. You'll have to read the book to figure it out.
Set aside a few hours though - this is one of those can't stop till you finish it books.
Permalink | Comments (0)July 17, 2004
Card Sharks
Sorry Ryan, this has nothing to do with the game show ;)
We've been playing cards with the kids every evening for the last couple of weeks. It started with Mille Borne, and we've progressed to Rummy, Spades, and as of last night, 5 card draw (betting pennies). When we quit last night, Breck wanted me to teach him to play "that game Jeff Gordan was playing on TV." He was referring, of course, to Texas Hold 'Em. It didn't go too well though, he had a hard time grasping Hold Em. Both the kids get 5 card draw though.
Can't start them too young ;)
Permalink | Comments (3)July 16, 2004
Spell check from within Firefox
Have you ever wished for an easy way to spell check weblog comments and entries? Or, should I phrase that have you ever wished I had an easy way to spell check weblog comments and entries?
You may have noticed improved spelling in my last few weblog posts. That is because of Spellbound, which spell checks text entry area from within Firefox. All you have to do is right click. It's a brilliant application, and like everything else associated with Firefox, it's free as in speech and as in beer.
Permalink | Comments (6)July 15, 2004
Stay On The Ground
If this story doesn't make you a little nervous.....
It's obvious we are no safer today on commercial airliners than we were on 9/10/2001.
Permalink | Comments (3)Why does anybody use the NYC Public School system?
Teachers are warned not to correct errors with red ink because that color is "aggressive." Grammar is not taught because it is "dull." Children are encouraged to invent their own spelling so that they can discover the delights of creativity. Dictionaries are frowned on. They have been replaced by mandatory word walls where random but relevant-sounding terms are taped.
Read the whole letter, from a NYC teacher.
Why would anybody voluntarily subject their children to this? IMHO, it's tantamount to child abuse, or at least dereliction of your duty as a parent.
via Joanne Jacobs
Permalink | Comments (1)July 14, 2004
Education Reform circa 1886
This is fascinating, an 1886 paper extolling the virtues of private schools and homeschooling over public school.
In order to prevent crime, Massachusetts, as early as 1647, gave the educational control of children to the public, and after over 200 years trial, to wit, in 1860, she had 1 native white criminal to every 649 people.
Virginia, down to 1860, had always left the educational control of children to their fathers and mothers, and the result was 1 criminal to every 6,566 inhabitants.
Some things just never change...
via The Agitator
Permalink | Comments (1)Eduwonk still doesn't get it
The Eduwonk still thinks that the state of Virginia has more right to direct my children's education than I do.
The fact that there are loopholes for non-degreed HS'ers is not relevant. They shouldn't need loopholes because there shouldn't be laws binding them in the first place. Public school, private school, homeschool, no school, it's really none of the State's business.
Permalink | Comments (1)Update: DC Blogger Poker Showdown
The Poker Showdown is on for July 23. Tom Bridge has graciously agreed to host in the Arlington area, sparing me the agony of telling my wife that we were hosting the event :)
(I'm kidding - nobody wants to drive out to the ODonnellWeb country estate to play cards).
It''s $20 to enter - we are limiting it to 10 people so speak up if you want in on the action.
Permalink | Comments (0)July 13, 2004
Are High Schools a relic of the past?
I'm beginning to wonder if the idea of a local public high school isn't just a leftover habit from the 19th century when international travel was expensive and time-consuming and telecommunications did not exist.
Philip Greenspun has some interesting thoughts after spending a year volunteering at Massachusett's most expensive (and one of its worst performing) public high schools.
He isn't talking about homeschooling - it's more along the lines of outsourced education. Still, it's good to see smart people thinking about education outside of the traditional establishment.
Permalink | Comments (0)A Note to Fox TV
Scooter, the animated baseball that explains stuff to kids, would be more useful if you would actually start the All-Star game BEFORE 9 PM EST. It may be summer, but 8 year olds aren't going to be up at midnight to watch the end of game.
My kid bailed out when Soriano went deep to make it 6-0 American League. He said he'd rather read than watch Clemens pitch batting practice. I rather enjoyed watching Clemens get shelled :)
Another thought, it greatly bothers me that Fox TV thinks we need an animated baseball to explain a slider to the kids. Any kid old enough to be up at 9 PM watching baseball should not only know what a slider is, he should be trying to throw one in Little League!
Yes, I know breaking balls are bad for kid's arms. I would never coach a kid to thrown one, but I damn sure expect them to be trying when I'm not looking.
Permalink | Comments (1)On Baseball and Reading
Beth and Ed are both waxing eloquent on baseball and books.
Certainly, no other sport has generated as much written word as baseball.
(football actually brings up more results - but soccer is mixed into those results so I think my statement stands)
As Ed and Beth both point out, baseball and reading are connected in other ways too. Both take a relatively long time, both are done at a somewhat slower pace than many other activities today, and both are often viewed as "old fashioned."
Old fashioned is a badge I'll wear proudly in this case. Our house is over run with books. I think we have 10, maybe 12 bookcases in various rooms. All of them are stuffed. Weekly library trips are mandatory. I get nervous when I don't have something to read. The kids are the same.
And the baseball obsession among the males in the house needs no further elaboration.
I don't want to anoint Beth, Ed, and myself a trend, but I wonder if people deeply attracted to books are also predisposed towards baseball, and vice versa?
It would be an interesting sociology project.
Permalink | Comments (1)The Ivy League Nudes
Over several decades, many Ivy League schools apparently photographed all incoming freshmen nude, as part of an anthropological study on body shape, intelligence, and potential.
It sounds like an urban legend, but it seems to be completely true.
Permalink | Comments (2)Your Horse Wants a New Home
Forbes gives us the 10 most expensive equestrian properties in the US. Be sure to click on the slide show for the pictures.
My daughter will take any of of the 10.
Permalink | Comments (0)July 12, 2004
This land is your land...
A duet by George W Bush and John Kerry.
This is hilarious.
Permalink | Comments (1)Joy in Mudville - A Little League Memoir
Greg Mitchell, best known for non-fiction political writing, delivers a fun tale of the ups and downs in coaching his son's Little League team.
I could have written this book. In fact I did. Browse through the basketball coaching, and baseball archives - I make many of the same points Greg does. It's all here, pain in the ass parents, kids lack of interest in baseball, kids never play pick up games today, kids that really love the game, and kids on the team that are real characters. It's all in the book, and it's here at O'DonnellWeb too. I've written about all those subjects.
Next time I think to myself...this would make a good book, I'm going to act on it! In the meantime, all parents with kids in youth sports should read Joy in Muddville. It's funny, entertaining, and serious, all at the same time.
Permalink | Comments (1)Nice smackdown of Gov. Warner
This editorial in The Washington Post delivers a nice smackdown on Gov. Warner for his veto of HB 675, which would have eliminated the college degree "requirement" that requires more stringent reporting for parents in VA without the magical piece of sheepskin.
via EduWonk, who doesn't agree.
Permalink | Comments (2)July 11, 2004
Damn Cars...
This morning I went to move my car out of the garage so I could get the lawn mower out.
Enter car, turn key, nothing.
Great - the battery is dead. I recruited the boy to push and we got the car out of the garage so I could manuver the minivan next to it and jump start it. It jumped easily, and I let it run for 15 or 20 minutes to recharge the battery.
The I turned off my car and attempted to restart it. Nothing.
The battery is completely dead. I took it to the autoparts store for a test. It needed to recharge a bit before they could even get a test done - it would take an hour. So I went home for lunch.
Went back to the store - the battery is toast so I had to buy a new one. I got the new battery home and when installing it noticed that the battery terminals were reversed, and my battery cables weren't long enough to reach. So I had to go back to the store and switch out the battery. It was totally their mistake - they gave me the wrong battery.
Fast forward 20 minutes, I'm home, new battery installed, I hop in the car to start it. Nothing. Not even the lights will come on. The car is getting no power at all.
I pop open the fuse box under the hood and the problem is immediately apparent - the 100 Amp fuse is blown. So I grab it to pull it out - it won't budge. I then realized there were two screws holding it in place. However, to get to those two screws, I had to remove two other screws. Once I got all that done - it still would not budge. At this point I took desperate measures and actually lowered myself to reading the f'ing manual. It turns out there are two hidden bolts holding the main fuse in. I had to completely remove the fuse box to get to them. P.I.T.A.
So now I'm off again to the autoparts store. Except this time I go to a different one because I don't feel like dealing with store 1 again. The fuse cost a whole $2.60.
This time once I got everything reassembled the car started fine. I pulled the positive battery cable off while it was running and it kept on running - indicating that it really was just the battery, and that I don't have an underlying alternator problem.
Changing the battery really shouldn't take up an entire afternoon.
Permalink | Comments (2)July 10, 2004
DC Blogger Poker Showdown
Tom and myself are thinking that it be a lot of fun to get a some local bloggers together for a night of Texas Hold 'Em.
Dave, even though you live in Deleware you are invited too ;)
If you are interested leave a comment or send me an email. It will likely be on a weekend night later this month or early August, depending on interested parties availability.
Now shuffle up and deal.
Permalink | Comments (1)July 09, 2004
Ken Jennings, Jeopardy God / Celebrity Poker
Are you watching? 28 games and counting. It's like watching Michael Jordan in his prime. It's just not fair to the other contestants. Watching tonight - the other two contestants had already resigned themselves to defeat before Alex even started the game. You could see in their posture and their eyes. Ken won $52K - putting him at $920K total. He's a programmer too - a hero to geeks everywhere!
In other TV news, our (Michelle is hooked too) Thursday nights are now totally consumed with Celebrity Poker Showdown. I find The World Series of Poker on ESPN to be boring. I think it's because they make mistakes on Celebrity Poker, which makes it more fun to watch. Also, none of pros on ESPN look like Jennie Garth.
Of course, I'm now jonesing for a game. If anybody in the DC area is playing...
Permalink | Comments (6)They want your kids after school too
Progressive Policy Institute analyst Chrisanne Gayle has produced an 8 page policy report (we call them white papers in the tech world) explaining why we should devote significantly more public resources to after school programs.
Yeah. This should be fun.
From the introduction...
Research has found that the after-school hours -- from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. -- are the peak period for experimentation with drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, and sex
That's odd - because I did most of my teenage experimentation after 10 PM - once my parents were in bed. Getting stoned at 5 PM only to have to face the parental units at 6 PM is not exactly the typical teens idea of a good time. I don't for one second believe that 3-6 PM is the peak party time for teenagers. And lets face it, the kids drinking and getting high at 3 PM probably skipped school in the first place. They aren't going to be showing up at the community center for adult supervised, wholesome fun.
Not all of the research on after-school programs is so glowing...We should not be discouraged with the uneven outcomes to date, or use those outcomes as justification to shut down funding.
Translation, no matter what the actual results, we are going to reccomend that we spend even more taxpayer money usurping the tradtional role of a parent.
Elected officials should recognize that the public firmly supports after-school programs.
The public once firmly supported burning suspected witches at the stake too, That turned out to be not such a good idea. I believe the majority also once firmly supported slavery.
A recent survey found that Americans, across all demographic and party lines, view after-school programs as a vital part of their communities. Voters also want government to provide more funding and support for them
I'd love to see who was surveyed... I'll bet the most of them contribute very little to the national treasury, thus they are more than happy to let the rest of us pay for their childcare. I found it in the footnotes - telephone survey by the After School Alliance - not exactly a disinterested party.
The passage of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, which rightly holds schools accountable for ensuring that students meet high standards, makes providing additional learning opportunities all the more important
I think the point of NCLB is that the schools should actually teach the kids during...you know...normal school hours. And if the state certified public school teachers can't do it during school, what chance does a non certified person have after school? Becuase we all know only state certified teachers can teach.
In fact, despite the multiple benefits of after-school programs, the president's fiscal 2004 budget proposed a 40 percent cut in their funding, and his current fiscal 2005 budget request freezes funding for after-school programs even as states, school districts, and schools are in the midst of implementing NCLB.
He should be cutting it 100%.
That is just from the introduction. Read the whole thing.(pdf)
Not surprisingly, the role of government in creating all these problems is not even considered.
via EduWonk
Permalink | Comments (1)The Hollywood Liberal Establishment
Interesting database of celebrity political contributions. Overwhelmingly liberal, as you would expect. In a few minutes of random clicking around I did turn up a few conservatives though.
Sammy Hagar, Tom Clancy, Michael Dell, John Elway, Roger Staubach
Permalink | Comments (3)July 08, 2004
Cameras - the new weapon of mass destruction
Check out this story of a Seattle area photography student being harrassed by local and federal officers, all for taking pictures of a local tourist attraction. That's right, dozens of tourists milling around with cameras, and this guy is detained and harrassed. Why? Hmm, could it be his brown skin?
Permalink | Comments (0)July 07, 2004
The Osbourne Fan Club Strikes Again
From: corgigals corgigals@cox.net
Subject: Sharon Osborne's Email Address or Postal Address
Date: Wed, 7 Jul 2004 10:56:21 -0700
Hi there,Do you have the above information? Thank you so much for your help.
LaDonna Howard
Anybody? Anybody?
Permalink | Comments (2)Barca - an alternative to Outlook
Poco Systems, Inc., developers of Pocomail, my email client of choice for the last couple of years, have just released Barca. Barca is an Outlook like PIM, without the 65MB bloat and security issues of Outlook.
This is the first release, so all the featues are not quite there yet. However, I've been playing around with the evaluation version and it rocks. It's only $60 bucks, and it has the complete feature set of Pocomail built in. For about 1/5th the price of Outlook, you get a rock solid and very secure email client, as well as the calendaring and task management features from Outlook. You can use a fully functional eval version for 45 days. Check it out.
Permalink | Comments (0)New EvenOut Album
The new EvenOut album, Drown Inside, is due to hit the street July 30th. Well, not really the street, more likely their website. They are one of those unsigned bands with tons of talent, good music, but no recording contract.
Snippets of 4 songs from the new album are available. Sounds like good stuff. I'll hold off on any in depth editorial comments until I can get my hands on the CD and listen to the whole thing.
Permalink | Comments (2)Spiderman 2
I took advantage of the holiday on Monday to go see Spiderman 2. Breck's one word review was "awesome."
I concur.
Permalink | Comments (0)July 04, 2004
From the things I never thought I'd see department...
David Lee Roth singing Jump, on the Esplanade in Boston on July 4th, backed by the Boston Pops. David Lee Roth?
Lockhart (the pops conductor) is about the right age to have been a VH fan growing up. Maybe he was just using his position to fulfill a longtime fantasy of backing DLR or something.
Permalink | Comments (4)Hand Jive
It was just a dance to Danny and Sandy in Grease, but for the kids at Don Estridge High Tech Middle School, "hand jive" has a whole new meaning. The school is using biometric hand scanners to keep tabs on the kids, which will make it real difficult for your best friend to cover you at roll call.
Don Estridge is some sort of charter / magnet school, so the kids are all there by choice, which somewhat mitigates my immediate privacy concerns. As a more efficient way to take roll, it may not be the worst idea ever. Though it does sort of reek of a solution in search of a problem. Does taking roll eat up so much time that the school needed to resort to this? I highly doubt it. What really worries me is the precedent. These kids are being taught that authority tracking their every movement is normal and OK.
And that is a very bad thing.
via K5
Permalink | Comments (0)McCarthy's Bar
One page one of this book I learned the 8th Rule of Travel - Never pass a bar with your name on it.
Better advice has never been spoken.
English travel writer (although he is of Irish heritage) Pete McCarthy spends a couple of weeks wandering aimlessly through Ireland, and he took good notes. If PJ O'Rourke spend 10 days pub hopping in Ireland and wrote about it, he would have produced this book. Wonderfully funny, and probably a must read if you are of Irish heritage and thinking about making a pilgrammage back to the homeland.
And really, aren't we all planning that trip someday?
Permalink | Comments (1)July 02, 2004
Tin Foil Hat Alert
The email below, that I received this afternoon, is best enjoyed with your tin foil hat securely fastened to your head.
From:Unclematthew123@aol.com
Subject: wtc conspiracy
The first time I heard of a WTC attack plan was in 1972 or 1973 in Wilton High School,Wilton CT from a classmate named Robert Cole. We both were members of the class of 1974, but I graduated ayear earlier due to extra credits earned through the CWE program. Vietnam was winding down and the WTC was just being completed and an oil shortage loomed.
Robert Cole discussed a plan of using a hijacked airliner slaming into the WTC that would start a war in the middle east. See after Veitnam, it would take a Pearl Harbor style attack to sway public opinon in order for the US military to take and occupy a middle east oil field that might otherwise be uanavailble for US consumption. He futher stated he wanted to start a war in the middle east and sell his Idea to a middle east terroist or military and make a name for hisself.Permalink | Comments (0)They are trivializing this part of the 911 investigation. The events leading up to the attack showed a clear understanding of the motivations , targets ,methods, and timing of the attacks.
We are being lied to on a scale as unaccepteable as the deliberate murder of our citizens through intermediaries.I learned later in 73 or 74 of the ogami currency folding that predicted the towering inferno.
There was also a philosophical comparison to the WTC and our experience in Vietnam. All of those years of work and war coming to naught with 50,000 plus dead on our side. This was talk going around the Univ. of CT. in Stores,CT at the time. I had worked with a few students and residents from there. This kind of talk seemed foolish to me and I soon as forgot it as I had heard it.Robert Cole was espousing his theory on the glassed in walkway bridge over the school drive that connected the school to the library. There is some tradition of English people trick or treating on bridges in London , England, I don't know or understand about it. Cole made it clear as to his heritage being English and he likened this walkway to the USS Arizona memorial at Pearl Harbor. At the library end of the walkway was an isolated guidenance counslers office which was Ms English,s office. The other counslers office was in the main part of the school and she was seldom there. She used to let my friends and I hang around in there during free periods when she was out. This information will become more informaive and more than coincidentaly clear as I go on.
Dan Pearl of the Wall Street Journal was probably sent on his assignment and murdered on account of his name and the referencence it made to a Pearl Harbor style attack. It was aclear indicator of terroist intention and might even be percieved as an invitation .
The first WTC unsuccesful attack in 1993 had the same goals in mind but was not what I will now refer to as the Cole plan of attack on the WTC. Many of the indicators point that this also was an expected event and acctually inspired by some of our fellow Americans. Seymore Hersh had published his book The Sampson Option in 1991. It was and still is known that this book was being used for target and motivational material for these terroists. The book was written to inform of Isreali Nuclear policy but it went into some other details. The motivational date of 9/11 and the massacre of Palestinians by some Isrealis . The name itself Sampson, a biblical strongman who pulled the pillars of some evil temple down. Note that Hersh was a campaign manager for McGovern/Shriver in 1972. Note that Maria Shriver is now married to the govenor of CA Arnold Shwarzanaegger. The book indentified Argentina as a source of enriched urainium for the Israelis. One year later the Isreal embassy in Argentina was bombed by terroists. The book explained it was easy for Isreal to obtain intellegince on the musilm world because of a large Jewish minority in Algeria. 1991 was the year that Afghan trained terroists killed some Algerian soliders. In 1992 Algeria broke out in to ahorrific civil war of terroism with some 100,000 people killed. The book goes into some detail of the use of the K11 spy satellite and the US sharing this information with Isreal. Robert Cole had stated his father was an employee of Perkin Elmer Corp. then there in Wilton CT. Perkin and Elmer Corp. Optical division was there and was doing defense work for the US military.
Robert Cole had stated also that his cousin had recently received his commisson in the USN.
Rear Admiral Cole had received his commisson in 1971. I cannot confirm this is Robert Coles cousin . This came to my attention later while I was doing my research into these events.Now exam the events of TWA flight 800 that went down with no surviors in 1996. The offical explanation made perfect sense to me. I was trained in liquid capacitance fuel quantity
as well as internal and external transfer systems and its relation to carrier based drouge refueling in the USN in 1976. We were informed of the differences between civil and military aircraft and the dangers posed by using in tank electrical pumps and wiring. Civil aviation used this equipment as a cost savings while the military rejected it. What I didn't understand here was the insistenance of Piere Salinger and some others of a missle conspiracy theory.
The USS Cole was launched in June of 1996 and Rear Admiral Christopher Cole was transfered to a staff and strategic planning position in July of 1996. TWA flight 800 went down in July of 1996. Piere Salinger kept rejecting the offical explanatiion as if there was some great mystery to it. The Cole plan of attack on the WTC was known at this time by Salinger ,a JFK assosiate and reporter for ABC as well as authorities and others.When the USS Cole was hit in Yemmen it should have rang those bells loud and clear.
Abu Gharib prison must be also mentioned here. It was a deliberate effort on the part of some to cause this administration some political embarissment. Ms English the guidance counsler from Wilton who was vehemently opposed to Nixon in 72 to take the McGovern side. She had said she and her sister were trying to get her neice through college at the time.
She said her neice would be somebody someday and I should not forget her name Lindsey. Well Lindsey England is obviously not the neice but beyond coincedence is what I'm sayingMatt Trail
Sunday really is a day of rest in VA.
Virginia legislators accidently reinstated a centuries old law that forbids businesses from requiring employees to work on Sundays.
Oops.
I can remember the days when just about everything was closed on Sunday. I remember my dad going out Sat evening to gas up the car, because no local gas stations were open on Sunday. When I was kid (and we are only talking the 1970's here!) if my parents forgot the batteries for a Christmas present I was screwed. Nothing was open on Christmas Day.
I sort of miss those days. The forced slowdown, I think, would be good for our collective mental health.
Permalink | Comments (2)He's on his final hole. He's about 455 yards away, he's gonna hit about a 2 iron I think....It's in the hole
So she wasn't quite 455 yards out, but recent homeschool grad Brittany Lincicome did hole out from the rough, with a 7 iron, for an eagle, on her way to topping the leader board after the first round of the US Women's Open.
Of course, the annuals of golf history are littered with first round leaders who were never heard from again. However, Brittany appears to have mad talent, so I expect we'll see her at the top of many leader boards.
Permalink | Comments (1)Nerds
My favorite Psychometrician has some interesting comments related to homechooling in her post on the infamous Paul Graham nerd essay.
This is something that, I think, homeschooling parents instinctively realize, and educrats would like us to forget. It's laughable that the main charge hurled at homeschooling parents is that their kids will be "undersocialized," when, for a lot of kids, "socialization" at school involves either abuse for being unpopular or the ever-present drug scene. Homeschooled kids are more likely to be living in the real world than kids in schools, and less likely to suffer any abuse for not worshiping at the temple of "popularity."
I linked to the nerd essay 10 months ago. I so scooped her on this one ;)
The essay is fabulous and a must read. Kimberly, of course, is on my daily read list.
Permalink | Comments (0)