Thursday, March 5, 2009
Other Blog
For class I have started another blog entitled Teaching the Social Studies. It is about education and my experiences in the classroom. The volume is low, but come check it out if you are interested.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Non-Paper Daily, 3.3.09
*Bill Gates doesn't allow iphones and ipods in his house. Principles baby.
*Today the primary was held in Illinois' 5th Congressional District to determine who will run for Rahm Emmanuel's old position. Now that Rahm is running the show as Obama's Chief of Staff, there is an opening for an up-and-coming Democrat in this highly Democratic district.
*The Obama Administration is doing many things right in the international arena, including their announced withdraw from Iraq to be completed in 18 months. In addition, they are doing away with the Bush Administration policy of refusal to engage with nations with whom our relations have soured. Recently they have begun talks with Iran, Syria, and Russia. Good for them.
*While playing basketball is fun, waking up at 5:30 to do it is rough. Just thought I'd share.
*Today the primary was held in Illinois' 5th Congressional District to determine who will run for Rahm Emmanuel's old position. Now that Rahm is running the show as Obama's Chief of Staff, there is an opening for an up-and-coming Democrat in this highly Democratic district.
*The Obama Administration is doing many things right in the international arena, including their announced withdraw from Iraq to be completed in 18 months. In addition, they are doing away with the Bush Administration policy of refusal to engage with nations with whom our relations have soured. Recently they have begun talks with Iran, Syria, and Russia. Good for them.
*While playing basketball is fun, waking up at 5:30 to do it is rough. Just thought I'd share.
Michael Steele vs Rush Limbaugh
The Republican Party is going through a rough time right now. Democrats have cleaned up in the last two elections, George Bush 'n Company ruined the party by enacting a lot of their economic principles (tax cuts, tax cuts, and more tax cuts in addition to relaxed regulation) and starting two wars, demographic trends all point toward the Democratic Party, and the Republicans are facing a party with a clear, decisive, and influential leader in Barack Obama. In such tough times it's only natural that some intraparty squabbling would occur.
The most recent spat, however, is between two prominent figures. Michael Steele, the recently-elected head of the Republican National Committee, called out Rush Limbaugh as "incendiary," "ugly," an "entertainer" and not the de facto leader of the Republican Party. In the course of 24 hours, he issued an apology after Limbaugh ripped him a new one on his show. It amazes me how high level elected officials in the Republican Party kiss Limbaugh's ass. He's a drug-addicted radio talk show host who lies and distorts facts on a daily basis. That's it! Yet time and time again an Republican elected official criticizes Limbaugh and within hours reverses course and apologizes. Weak tea folks.
The most recent spat, however, is between two prominent figures. Michael Steele, the recently-elected head of the Republican National Committee, called out Rush Limbaugh as "incendiary," "ugly," an "entertainer" and not the de facto leader of the Republican Party. In the course of 24 hours, he issued an apology after Limbaugh ripped him a new one on his show. It amazes me how high level elected officials in the Republican Party kiss Limbaugh's ass. He's a drug-addicted radio talk show host who lies and distorts facts on a daily basis. That's it! Yet time and time again an Republican elected official criticizes Limbaugh and within hours reverses course and apologizes. Weak tea folks.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Non-Paper Daily, 3.1.09
*It's March already. Wtf.
*Kathleen Sebelius, Governor of Kansas and general rising star in Democratic circles, has been officially tapped to lead Health and Human Services. The main job of that position is moving health care reform through the system, so it's extremely important. Keep an eye out.
*It's looking more and more like Al Franken, the Senator-elect from Minnesota, will be seated in the next couple months. It's one of those situations where the courts are being used to hold up a process that seems to be decided. Of course, maybe there is real evidence supporting Coleman, but if there were, my guess is that it would be out by now.
*Kathleen Sebelius, Governor of Kansas and general rising star in Democratic circles, has been officially tapped to lead Health and Human Services. The main job of that position is moving health care reform through the system, so it's extremely important. Keep an eye out.
*It's looking more and more like Al Franken, the Senator-elect from Minnesota, will be seated in the next couple months. It's one of those situations where the courts are being used to hold up a process that seems to be decided. Of course, maybe there is real evidence supporting Coleman, but if there were, my guess is that it would be out by now.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Non-Paper Daily, 2.26.09
*Dood saves some lives, risks his own, then gets a ticket. Rough day.
*After a long delay, Hilda Solis was sworn in as Secretary of Labor, taking one step further to fill out Obama's cabinet. By all accounts I have read, she will be a strong advocate for labor which is a very good thing.
*Speaking of Obama's cabinet, former governor of Washington, Gary Locke, was nominated today to be Obama's Secretary of Commerce. After two strikeouts--Bill Richardson and Judd Gregg--we'll see if the third time's a charm. This post is looooowwww on the priority list, so no comment from me.
*Senator Jim Bunning, a Republican from Kentucky, is running way behind in polls that match him up with Democrats in mock reelection bids. Republicans want Bunning to step aside and let someone else hold onto the Republican-held seat. Bunning, however, is saying "BACK OFF!!!!" to the Republican establishment and is insisting that he will run for reelection. He's even gone so far as to threaten a law suit. The walls are crumbling down.
*After a long delay, Hilda Solis was sworn in as Secretary of Labor, taking one step further to fill out Obama's cabinet. By all accounts I have read, she will be a strong advocate for labor which is a very good thing.
*Speaking of Obama's cabinet, former governor of Washington, Gary Locke, was nominated today to be Obama's Secretary of Commerce. After two strikeouts--Bill Richardson and Judd Gregg--we'll see if the third time's a charm. This post is looooowwww on the priority list, so no comment from me.
*Senator Jim Bunning, a Republican from Kentucky, is running way behind in polls that match him up with Democrats in mock reelection bids. Republicans want Bunning to step aside and let someone else hold onto the Republican-held seat. Bunning, however, is saying "BACK OFF!!!!" to the Republican establishment and is insisting that he will run for reelection. He's even gone so far as to threaten a law suit. The walls are crumbling down.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Non-Paper Daily, 2.24.09
*Tonight, President Obama gave a semi-State of the Union address to both houses of Congress. I was on the road for the speech, but read a bit about it and apparently it was came across well... or even better than well. Health care reform and "let's not give up" seemed to be big themes. Here's the text. Those who saw it, thoughts?
*Hillary is killin' it around the globe. She's a star. That said, her comments about pushing human rights discussions in China onto the backburner while we figure out the economic situation were dead wrong. Now, more than ever, is the time to press the Chinese into action. They still need us more than we need them, so why not do some arm twisting to get the Chinese into (at least) the 20th century?
*It is my mom's birthday today. I arrived back in La Grande for classes at EOU and to celebrate with her. Happy birthday Carol!
*Hillary is killin' it around the globe. She's a star. That said, her comments about pushing human rights discussions in China onto the backburner while we figure out the economic situation were dead wrong. Now, more than ever, is the time to press the Chinese into action. They still need us more than we need them, so why not do some arm twisting to get the Chinese into (at least) the 20th century?
*It is my mom's birthday today. I arrived back in La Grande for classes at EOU and to celebrate with her. Happy birthday Carol!
Weed
I found this blog post over at Mother Jones fascinating. It discusses legalization of marijuana and some of the nitty gritty details therein. Long story short, it asks the question: Do we want to completely legalize marijuana and have multinational corporations targeting children with advertising campaigns with the sole purpose of getting them to start smoking the ganja? Probably not. One option, as illustrated in the post, is to make the growing and giving away of marijuana legal, but simply make the sale illegal, in effect stopping corporate advertising efforts in their tracks while still legalizing the product. It certainly strikes me as a plausible solution. Thoughts?
Monday, February 23, 2009
No NPD Today
Oye, I am le tired, so no NPD today... and you know what that means, right? No NPD means nothing happened in the world.
You heard it here first.
You heard it here first.
Dwight Howard Is A Beast
Check this out:
This guy is a freak of nature. The thing about the shots isn't that he made them, but the ease with which he shoots the ball that far. With little more than a touch of effort he sends the ball flying in a massive arch that lasts a couple seconds. Anyone can make that shot with enough attempts, but to make it look that easy takes freakish strength.
This guy is a freak of nature. The thing about the shots isn't that he made them, but the ease with which he shoots the ball that far. With little more than a touch of effort he sends the ball flying in a massive arch that lasts a couple seconds. Anyone can make that shot with enough attempts, but to make it look that easy takes freakish strength.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Things We Think Are True
This blog post about sleep and depression started like this:
All of us have things we believe in even though we don't really have any evidence for them.Isn't that the truth? For example, I'm pretty sure large amounts of coffee probably aren't good for us and in fifty years we'll be saying, "Why didn't we see that that wasn't good for us?!?!" though I've never read any scientific study that supports that theory. What about you all? What is something you believe, but have no proof of its validity?
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Non-Paper Daily, 2.21.09
*The Obama Administration is doing away with "smoke and ladders" techniques that are used to make the budget deficit appear smaller than it really is. That is good news, of course, because we should all know the damage being done to our bank account from all of our overcommitting. There is an upside, of course, for them. If things turn out well, a bigger deficit now will make it easier for them to say, "Look, we lowered the deficit!" A trade for taking all the heat they will now.
*Senator Dick Durbin, Illinois's ranking senator, is heavily hinting that The Magic Man needs to resign. In the last two days, both the Magic Man's press secretary and chief of staff abruptly resigned. Not good signs for the short-term senator.
*Apparently there are not-so-secret meeting going on on Capitol Hill concerning health care reform. More as that develops, but it sounds like a the groundwork is being built. Good.
*Senator Dick Durbin, Illinois's ranking senator, is heavily hinting that The Magic Man needs to resign. In the last two days, both the Magic Man's press secretary and chief of staff abruptly resigned. Not good signs for the short-term senator.
*Apparently there are not-so-secret meeting going on on Capitol Hill concerning health care reform. More as that develops, but it sounds like a the groundwork is being built. Good.
Friday, February 20, 2009
Non-Paper Daily, 2.20.09
*Ray LaHood, the Secretary of Transportation, floated the idea of taxing miles driven rather than gas. The result is that people drive less, but it does not encourage the use of efficient vehicles. A similar idea was floated in Oregon that received very negative reviews from many, myself included. Today, Obama nipped that idea in the bud. Thank you, sir.
*The United States military base in Kyrgyzstan is set to close in six months. Yesterday, that country served our military an eviction notice, asking us to leave. Apparently there is wiggle room for a compromise, but our military leaders are already looking for an alternative entry point into Afghanistan.
*Speaking of Afghanistan, earlier this week Barack Obama announced he will be sending an additional 17,000 troops to that country, thus raising our commitment by about 50%. Perhaps some additional troops will make a difference, but we have been there for seven years, it's about time they come home too.
*The United States military base in Kyrgyzstan is set to close in six months. Yesterday, that country served our military an eviction notice, asking us to leave. Apparently there is wiggle room for a compromise, but our military leaders are already looking for an alternative entry point into Afghanistan.
*Speaking of Afghanistan, earlier this week Barack Obama announced he will be sending an additional 17,000 troops to that country, thus raising our commitment by about 50%. Perhaps some additional troops will make a difference, but we have been there for seven years, it's about time they come home too.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Non-Paper Daily, 2.19.09
*At 7,465, the Dow Jones hit its lowest point in six years today... and, no, that doesn't mean it can only go up from here.
*Governor Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas is apparently President Obama's pick for Secretary of Health and Human Services. Former Senator Tom Daschle, the man tapped for leading health care reform, recently withdrew his nomination after it came to light that he had not paid more than a hundred thousand dollars in owed taxes. His removal from consideration is considered a major blow to comprehensive healthcare reform, however Sebelius is widely considered a very able politician. Healthcare reform is high on my "To do" list, so here's hoping she does well.
*Governor Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas is apparently President Obama's pick for Secretary of Health and Human Services. Former Senator Tom Daschle, the man tapped for leading health care reform, recently withdrew his nomination after it came to light that he had not paid more than a hundred thousand dollars in owed taxes. His removal from consideration is considered a major blow to comprehensive healthcare reform, however Sebelius is widely considered a very able politician. Healthcare reform is high on my "To do" list, so here's hoping she does well.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Non-Paper Daily, 2.18.09
Yeeks! Per a comment on the last post asking, er demanding, the return of the Non-Paper Daily, it is back.
*The stimulus package is official. At just under $800 billion it's big, but in the view of many economists, not big enough for the desired effect. We should start seeing the money flow relatively soon, in fact, the school where I teach was thinking of closing early due to budget restraints, but they may keep the doors open for the entirety of the year due to the influx of these funds.
Interestingly, I'm still very much up in the air about the stimulus package. On the one hand, without it there may be total economic meltdown. On the other, however, is the view that our current economic model of ever-increasing consumption simply cannot go no forever. Eventually it must change and perhaps this was the time for that change. As the saying goes, "Pain Causes Change." A new way of doing things is not going to just happen, it will be a result of dire economic times. We may very well be missing our opportunity for real, substantive, change
*Roland Burris, er "The Magic Man," is back in the news. During testimony before being appointed to Obama's old senate seat he said he had had no contact with Blagojevich or his associates. Apparently that wasn't entirely accurate, which is also known as a lie. Except, in his case, it was under oath, so it is known as a perjury. Ooops. Perjures, like drug traffickers, often go to jail. So the saga continues...
*The American car manufacturers are asking for more money. Looks like this time it will be for another $5-10 billion. I know if they fail it will cause extreme pain around the nation, but how long can we keep propping up failed businesses? If a mom and pop place downtown fails, they won't be receiving any stimulus funds. Since when did capitalistic theory state that once you get big you can no longer be allowed to fail?
*The stimulus package is official. At just under $800 billion it's big, but in the view of many economists, not big enough for the desired effect. We should start seeing the money flow relatively soon, in fact, the school where I teach was thinking of closing early due to budget restraints, but they may keep the doors open for the entirety of the year due to the influx of these funds.
Interestingly, I'm still very much up in the air about the stimulus package. On the one hand, without it there may be total economic meltdown. On the other, however, is the view that our current economic model of ever-increasing consumption simply cannot go no forever. Eventually it must change and perhaps this was the time for that change. As the saying goes, "Pain Causes Change." A new way of doing things is not going to just happen, it will be a result of dire economic times. We may very well be missing our opportunity for real, substantive, change
*Roland Burris, er "The Magic Man," is back in the news. During testimony before being appointed to Obama's old senate seat he said he had had no contact with Blagojevich or his associates. Apparently that wasn't entirely accurate, which is also known as a lie. Except, in his case, it was under oath, so it is known as a perjury. Ooops. Perjures, like drug traffickers, often go to jail. So the saga continues...
*The American car manufacturers are asking for more money. Looks like this time it will be for another $5-10 billion. I know if they fail it will cause extreme pain around the nation, but how long can we keep propping up failed businesses? If a mom and pop place downtown fails, they won't be receiving any stimulus funds. Since when did capitalistic theory state that once you get big you can no longer be allowed to fail?
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Scary Economic Times
Sure, our economy is bad right now, but so is everyone else's. Is there something that could really makes things bad? Yes. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that the price of US Treasury Bonds has started to fall.
What are the implications of this? Currently, United States citizens import about $800 billion worth of goods more than we export. In order to pay for this, countries around the world (especially China) buy IOU's from our Treasury Department: we get real money, they get a slip of paper that says "We owe you money and will pay you interest for it." This relationship works only if these foreign countries believe that the US dollar is, and will be, worth something in the future.
The failure of that relationship constitutes my greatest fear for true economic meltdown. Eventually, it seems as though the Chinese and other producing nations will grow tired of giving us money to buy their products. It only makes sense: As we live like kings, their proletariat continue to struggle to live decent lives.
There are two solutions (though I'm sure there are more, they are probably rooted in one of these simplified categories): 1) We start consuming less. If we consumed $800 billion less in foreign goods a year, then our trade deficit would be zero. This would make the United States and our currency look viable. 2) We start producing more. If we produced more goods and services--to the tune of $800 billionish annually--our trade deficit would balance out.
Of course, there are repercussions to either of these solutions which may have even greater detrimental and lasting effect. Keep your fingers crossed.
What are the implications of this? Currently, United States citizens import about $800 billion worth of goods more than we export. In order to pay for this, countries around the world (especially China) buy IOU's from our Treasury Department: we get real money, they get a slip of paper that says "We owe you money and will pay you interest for it." This relationship works only if these foreign countries believe that the US dollar is, and will be, worth something in the future.
The failure of that relationship constitutes my greatest fear for true economic meltdown. Eventually, it seems as though the Chinese and other producing nations will grow tired of giving us money to buy their products. It only makes sense: As we live like kings, their proletariat continue to struggle to live decent lives.
There are two solutions (though I'm sure there are more, they are probably rooted in one of these simplified categories): 1) We start consuming less. If we consumed $800 billion less in foreign goods a year, then our trade deficit would be zero. This would make the United States and our currency look viable. 2) We start producing more. If we produced more goods and services--to the tune of $800 billionish annually--our trade deficit would balance out.
Of course, there are repercussions to either of these solutions which may have even greater detrimental and lasting effect. Keep your fingers crossed.
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