post by froggy

posted by froggy

I hope we shall crush in its birth the aristocracy of our monied corporations which dare already
to challenge our government to a trial by strength and bid defiance to the laws of our country."
- Thomas Jefferson


The corporate statehood that the colonies exemplified was the very reason for the American Revolution, and the development of the Constitution. Remember folks, the original 13 colonies were the private property of the Crown, and the King, and were treated as such. Their only purpose was to enhance the Crowns wealth and finance his wars with France and Spain.
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BobPomeroy 1 hour ago in reply to deathfrogg

Thankyou froggy. It's of a tenor anyone who's thought about Jefferson recognizes its veracity. May I borrow it for my own use in my own right? (Just being polite). It is incomprehensible to me that anyone would make Mitt's Assertion. We have all become commodities in his eyes, and he doesn't understand that corporations are from Flatland: that people are more complex than corporations by many many degrees cubed. And all of that complexity is as real as anything can be. And that is what the Constitution protects - not some artificial 'being' endowed by the Court with Equal Protection. Corporations do deal with commodities, but they weren't meant to be more than we are. To seriously engage them, we need all the allies we can enlist. If all those willing to enlist would plant all the sunflower seeds they can, 1000's and 1000's of sunflowers would sprout in the spring, and nobody could do anything about. Something which doesn't speak of violence or pomposity or aggrandizement. Probably need watering at times and seasons, but that's all the enlistment would be for, it's all volunteer, non-reporting.

t-party's achilles heel

The tale that tells the T-party is manifold, but a short bit or two does it. They don't want to promote changes they think would improve it; they have invented a hate word for it and want only its repeal. Why did to have to oppose lifting the debt ceiling, a symbol, when they might have promoted their proclaimed objective of cutting spending? It now appears that failure to do so has caused the international jitters. And everyone on earth knows that taxes are the only way we can pay for 'common goods', such as reducing our national debt.

Ideology is the lazy man's poor substitute for thinking and judgment, or shirking the responsibility therefor. It is to pray at a graven image.

The T-party better figure out how to break the deadlockked log-jam in Congress by acting like a balance of power which has replaced platitudes with wisdom. It's not going to do that behind the pretentious ignorance of its Palins, Perrys and Macks. Bachmann's purported law school should retrieve its diploma for her obvious failure to grasp the most basic principles of constitutional law.

Show us something thoughtful and well-considered. Practice using only using positive words (not about the person you see in the mirror) for one sentence every morning when you brush your teeth.
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lees

they really have some dramatic history. Geo D, a fall guy, Rex's dad died in a car wreck in the middle of life on his way to or from some minor hearing, Rex had half 'the 'legendary' first class' upstairs in 'private' constitutional law classes (wouldn't let me in the door), resigned from what he called the best job in the country, and died before his time. The interwoven/reciprocal resume building that went on for Mike reads like a midevil conspiracy among the cardinals. Now he's going to filibuster 'the deal' belaboring historically routine legislation? Who will they put him with as a VP nomination, or is he about to mimic Obama's rise? Have you read his 'agenda for freedom'? Whew! Shades of Aaron Burr.

cover ups and credibility crisis.

dammit weiner! I can't post my npr comment, but 'think' it's on facebook

Gabby has been so notably middle-of-the-road that she's been called a 'blue dog' by more liberally-inclined folks, yet she was viciously attacked by RWE's in the last election for being 'liberal' and even 'socialist'. Juxtaposing those facts, it cannot be avoided that an atmosphere of hate and anger was created, artificially, about her for its gratuitous application by an unbalanced person. She was just not ordinarily in the 'target' posture, and worked very hard to reflect the views of all the community she served, and was very non-partisan in that approach. She voted against Pelosi and Obama several times, unfortunately imo.The 'fiddling' of the direct cause argument is fatuous. Hate mongering killed 6 people, maybe more. This pathetic perp suffered John Wilkes Booth syndrome -- wanted to be a hero and not make those in his circle mad at him. So now he's a historic figure. I guess he got his wish. It is our patriotic duty to engage or debate in civil terms based on fact. We have experienced a massive betrayal of that duty and are reaping the whirlwind for that reason. Government's credibility, partly as a function of 'credible deniability', has vanished in the breeze. The result is that when 'big lies' are caught en flagrante, much of public perception and reaction is simply that 'they all do it', and this reaction is used by certain partisan media to shield them from responsibility for those lies. Think Elmer Gantry or Lonesome Rhodes. It's nothing new for those conversant in history. The question remains of our Republic, "can we keep it".

barred from blogging on faux

I've always been interested in sports, and long ago I signed up for FOX Sports because it was what MSN used. I had an ache about it at the time, but it was just sports. Today was one of life's heartfelt moments when I confirmed that I'd been barred from their site, though I've never commented on it much except to say "Go Cats" or, call Kyle Busch a spoiled brat. It can only be that Rupert Murdoch has purchased me a Pulitzer for my comments and characterizations of him on actual political sites. I guess I'll have to get my sports fix, superficial though it is, from some other place. All are invited to join me. I'll even take hints, though I must caution that I had a couple of polyps removed this week and may be a little too sore to not respond to some of the suggestions I might receive from faux fans. Please at least be original.

Mom's letter

Thank you Arne Duncan. I respect and honor that you want to do the best for children. So do I. To me that also means doing the best for teachers. May I give you a kaleidoscopic view of my thoughts on the issue of the pay of teachers depending on the scores their students make on tests. I taught in primary grades in Tucson, Arizona for 26 years. I am retired and at 87 I am still teaching piano lessons. I love teaching. I love children. Here is a letter I wrote to children.

Dear Child,

I know you! I have lived with children like you for twenty-six years. I know
you have some sense of your power. I wish I knew how to help you see just how powerful you are.
I know you sometimes feel as if you have no choices in school or at home. There
so many "shoulds" and "must learns" that you have felt that saying "no" to learning was your only
way of having any power.
Your teacher can't make you learn no matter how much she wants to, or how
hard she works. You are the chooser. You can say, "No, I want to show you I am strong. I
can say no." It's true, you can. But it is powerful to choose to say "yes", too, and to make a
choice to learn even if it feels weak and confusing. It just takes practice, like anything else.
Practice is being willing to keep trying even when you miss the basket in basketball or throw a wild
pitch in baseball. It begins to be exciting as you work at it and get better. On the day when you
can say "yes" as well as "no" you will find that you have truly awesome power. I look forward to
that day. love,
Mrs. Pomeroy

Your story about the children on the Northern Cheyenne Reservation in Montana is heart breaking, both the story of the hopelessness of the students and the 70% unemployment of the adults. The "failure" of the schools in poverty areas falls in the same category. Surely these are examples of societal failures and must be addressed on many levels. Maslow postulates that persons whose basic needs aren't met cannot be fully functional persons. Basic needs must be met first. Is this the role of schools? I want these needs to be taken care of.

I taught in a school where often there were no blue-eyed children in my class. I remember a beautiful little girl who didn't know her hair was brown, her sweater was red, or her pants were purple. I had her pick red things out of a basket filled with many different colored objects, then I tied a piece of red yarn around her wrist and asked her to find out how many children knew "red." She found a blank cereal box top and a red crayon and drew red circles in an array three across and four down to display the results of her survey. I had only thought of her being reinforced in her recognition of the color red. She was so bright.

The July/August issue of the magazine ODE had an article on The Academy for the Love of Learning based in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The academy offers teachers training to move beyond the culture of outcomes such as test scores, to a culture of a passion for learning, honesty, and growth. An inspiring article and helps me remember that teacher training colleges are looking to find better methods courses.

I wonder what you think when someone mentions music, art, poetry, creativity, critical thinking, social skills, and other things that tests do not measure. These things that are of primary importance to our quality of life.

In the August 30, 2010 issue of The Christian Science Monitor the article about you, Arne Duncan, tells of your experience with the Ariel Education Initiative in Chicago. I loved the part that told about sixth graders in Shakespeare Elementary who were promised affordable college if they graduated from high school! I'm excited that the student is encouraged to make the effort. How could we offer affordable college to everyone?

In graduate school I was in a two credit course in Current Issues in Education. Each week we were to hand in a paper, annotated as to sources, with our arguments pro and con on a certain issue. He assigned us to debate pro or con on the debate after class started. One week we students were in class a few minutes before Dr. Daniel Davies arrived. We were complaining eloquently about the amount of work we had to do, and that it was too much to expect for a two credit class. We were all in agreement. We were primed to complain in detail to our teacher. I can still see Dr. Davies walking in waving a handful of papers at us and exclaiming as he walked. "I can't believe how good your papers are. You work so hard, and write so well about each side of the current problem under consideration. You have done this week after week. I think you are the best class I have ever taught." He spoke from his heart and we believed him. We felt appreciated and proud and said not a word, not one word, about how burdened we were with overwork. We all smiled and kept on working an talked about how Dr. Davies was one of the best teachers we ever had. He is a model of a good teacher. I acknowledge that attendance in his class was not compulsory.

I haven't mentioned that I have two grandsons just out of business school who make way more money than two of my daughters who have been teaching for 30 years and love teaching. Every year they say, "I can't believe how wonderful this class is." Is their salary a symbol of how much teachers are valued? They deserve more. I felt valued and respected as a teacher and loved it so much I hoped nobody would find out how little I would be willing to do it for. Excuse me, nea. I just don't want to be thinking of how high a score any child is going to get on a test when I am teaching her. So, all of my passion isn't on salary after all. This is just now occurring to me. It is on excellence in teaching that would be diminished if a teacher must be measured by test scores. This limits the scope of teaching.

I want schools to be a place where teachers and students are learning and growing with all kinds of life skills, intellectual, emotional, physical, and spiritual skills that help us all experience the beauty and wisdom in ourselves and each other.

Also to remember Edison, Bill Gates, and my gardener who works and lives so joyously.

Shall we dance?

Respectfully submitted, Bernice Pomeroy
PO Box 76
Patagonia, AZ 84624