A potpourri of points of interest have recently congealed for me, to wit:
Most news aficionados realize that October 17th, 7:46 a.m. EDT marked the birth of the 300 millionth US citizen. What few attend to, however, is that we are well past that mark, already. According to the US Census bureau, allowing for births, immigrants, and deaths, our population grows by one every eleven seconds. At the time of this writing, the population is already twenty-thousand people larger.
Approximately 30 million Americans have below basic literacy skills, claims the National Center for Family literacy. That’s ten percent of the population. Having been a literacy tutor, and through conducting Labauch Literacy trainings, I’ve come to realize how vital literacy skills can be. One out of ten people you rub elbows with may not be able to read their prescription dosages or a simple map.
This is especially astonishing when considering how very much media we encounter through our every waking moment. I have just completed a media literacy unit in my composition courses, citing facts such as, “Four hours of television programming contain around 100 advertisements.” In our country, we are constantly pushed information from every media, yet some people cannot even read it.
All the while, in some remote parts of our world 30 or more children must circulate and share a single textbook. Some philanthropic organizations are doing their dead-level best to recycle books that otherwise end up in our landfills. [Check out www.betterworldbooks.com for example.] In some places, paper is at a premium, but here, it is not respected.
This week, my students chose to read Ursula LeGuin’s dystopic parable, “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas.” The piece poses a difficult question to the reader: what wrong would you allow/tolerate to sustain a utopia? In the piece, one child is abused, tormented, and kept in a cellar; in exchange, everyone in Omelas lives an idyllic life, even though they are aware of the atrocity. Though written in the early 1970’s, the social commentary is fitting even today. How can the most wealthy, formidable nation on earth still have illiterate, impoverished citizens? How can its 300 million people deny the needs of the rest of the planet?
I have had a brush with altruism, having led an extensive program for college volunteers. Through that endeavor, I was able to try on many volunteer hats myself, addressing issues of poor housing, poverty, literacy, etc. I was able to sleep at night, knowing I had a hand in fielding thousands of volunteers to address these issues and more. Still, I was realistic, and like Ayn Rand, posed the question to myself and my students: “Is altruism truly possible?” In doing good for someone, are we not always reaping reward ourselves?
Oskar Shindler, a Czech born businessman profiteered from the German war machine during the Second World War by exploiting cheap Jewish labor. Through his exposure to the plight of those he abused, he ended up penniless, having saved over 1000 Polish Jews from almost certain death during the holocaust. Near the end of 1993 film, Schindler’s List, his character had a moment of regret, for he felt he could have done more. In an exchange with Itzhak Stern:
Oskar Schindler: I didn't do enough!
Itzhak Stern: You did so much.
[Schindler looks at his car] Oskar Schindler: This car. Goeth would have bought this car. Why did I keep the car? Ten people right there. Ten people. Ten more people. [removing Nazi pin from lapel] This pin. Two people. This is gold. Two more people. He would have given me two for it, at least one. One more person. A person, Stern. For this. [sobbing] I could have gotten one more person... and I didn't! And I... I didn't!
The passage above haunts me. Like Schindler, I feel that I have not done enough. Being responsible starts with being aware. Being accountable follows responsibility. I am fully accountable for the plight of the world. I am totally immersed in the dilemma of the American conscience. Still, I do little about it. Like Schindler, I feel I could do more. I think we all could do more. Prosperity comes at a great price every individual must weigh for himself.
Friday, October 20, 2006
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Nerd, Geek, Dork Test
As I am an advisor of an esteemed academic honorary, I thought the following was fitting:
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| Outcast Genius 78 % Nerd, 52% Geek, 52% Dork |
| For The Record: A Nerd is someone who is passionate about learning/being smart/academia. A Geek is someone who is passionate about some particular area or subject, often an obscure or difficult one. A Dork is someone who has difficulty with common social expectations/interactions. You scored better than half in all three, earning you the title of: Outcast Genius. Outcast geniuses usually are bright enough to understand what society wants of them, and they just don't care! They are highly intelligent and passionate about the things they know are *truly* important in the world. Typically, this does not include sports, cars or make-up, but it can on occassion (and if it does then they know more than all of their friends combined in that subject). Outcast geniuses can be very lonely, due to their being outcast from most normal groups and too smart for the room among many other types of dorks and geeks, but they can also be the types to eventually rule the world, ala Bill Gates, the prototypical Outcast Genius. Congratulations! America/Politics Thanks Again! -- THE NERD? GEEK? OR DORK? TEST |
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| Link: The Nerd? Geek? or Dork? Test |
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
Big block of unverified (but interesting) "history"
I apologize for the formatting--I'm lazy. Someone forwarded this to me, and in my quest to learn history, (see last entry), I figured it was a good start. Be enlightened!
The next time you are washing your hands and complain because the water temperature isn't just how you like it, think about how things used to be. Here are some facts about the1500s: Most people got married in June because they took their yearly bathin May, and still smelled pretty good by June. However, they werestarting to smell, so brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide the bodyodor. Hence the custom today of carrying a bouquet when getting married. Baths consisted of a big tub filled with hot water. The man of thehouse had the privilege of the nice clean water, then all the other sonsand men, then the women and finally the children. Last of all thebabies. By then the water was so dirty you could actually lose someone in it.Hence the saying, Don't throw the baby out with the Bath water.. Houses had thatched roofs-thick straw-piled high, with no wood underneath. It was the only place for animals to get warm, so allthe cats and other small animals (mice, bugs) lived in the roof When it rained it became slippery and sometimes the animals would slip andfall off the roof. Hence the saying . It's raining cats and dogs. There was nothing to stop things from falling into the house.. This posed a real problem in the bedroom where bugs and other droppingscould mess up your nice clean bed. Hence, a bed with big posts and a sheet hung over the top afforded some protection. That's how canopy bedscame into existence. The floor was dirt. Only the wealthy had something other than dirt. Hence the saying, Dirt poor. The wealthy had slate floors that wouldget slippery in the winter when wet, so they spread thresh (straw) onfloor to help keep their footing. As the winter wore on, they added more thresh until, when you opened the door, it would all start slipping outside. A piece of wood was placed in the entranceway. Hence thesaying a thresh hold. (Getting quite an education, aren't you?) In those old days, they cooked in the kitchen with a big kettle that always hung over the fire. Every day they lit the fire and addedthings to the pot. They ate mostly vegetables and did not get much meat.They would eat the stew for dinner, leaving leftovers in the pot to getcold overnight and then start over the next day. Sometimes stew had foodin it that had been there for quite a while. Hence the rhyme, Peasporridge hot, peas porridge cold, peas porridge in the pot nine days old.. Sometimes they could obtain pork, which made them feel quitespecial. When visitors came over, they would hang up their bacon to show off.It was a sign of wealth that a man could, bring home the bacon. Theywould cut off a little to share with guests and would all sit around andchew the fat.. Those with money had plates made of pewter. Food with high acidcontent caused some of the lead to leach onto the food, causing leadpoisoning death. This happened most often with tomatoes, so for the next 400years or so, tomatoes were considered poisonous. Bread was divided according to status. Workers got the burnt bottomof the loaf, the family got the middle, and guests got the top, or the upper crust. Lead cups were used to drink ale or whisky. The combination would sometimes knock the imbibers out for a couple of days. Someonewalking along the road would take them for dead and prepare them for burial. They were laid out on the kitchen table for a couple of days and the family would gather around and eat and drink and wait and see ifthey would wake up. Hence the custom of holding a wake. England is old and small and the local folks started running out of places to bury people. So they would dig up coffins and would takethe bones to a bone-house, and reuse the grave. When reopening these coffins, 1 out of 25 coffins were found to have scratch marks on the inside and they realized they had been burying people alive. So they would tie a string on the wrist of the corpse, lead it through the coffin and up through the ground and tie it to a bell. Someone would have to sit out in the graveyard all night (the graveyard shift.) to listen for the bell; thus, someone could be, saved by the bell orwas considered a ..dead ringer. And that's the truth...Now, whoever said History was boring! Educate someone.
The next time you are washing your hands and complain because the water temperature isn't just how you like it, think about how things used to be. Here are some facts about the1500s: Most people got married in June because they took their yearly bathin May, and still smelled pretty good by June. However, they werestarting to smell, so brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide the bodyodor. Hence the custom today of carrying a bouquet when getting married. Baths consisted of a big tub filled with hot water. The man of thehouse had the privilege of the nice clean water, then all the other sonsand men, then the women and finally the children. Last of all thebabies. By then the water was so dirty you could actually lose someone in it.Hence the saying, Don't throw the baby out with the Bath water.. Houses had thatched roofs-thick straw-piled high, with no wood underneath. It was the only place for animals to get warm, so allthe cats and other small animals (mice, bugs) lived in the roof When it rained it became slippery and sometimes the animals would slip andfall off the roof. Hence the saying . It's raining cats and dogs. There was nothing to stop things from falling into the house.. This posed a real problem in the bedroom where bugs and other droppingscould mess up your nice clean bed. Hence, a bed with big posts and a sheet hung over the top afforded some protection. That's how canopy bedscame into existence. The floor was dirt. Only the wealthy had something other than dirt. Hence the saying, Dirt poor. The wealthy had slate floors that wouldget slippery in the winter when wet, so they spread thresh (straw) onfloor to help keep their footing. As the winter wore on, they added more thresh until, when you opened the door, it would all start slipping outside. A piece of wood was placed in the entranceway. Hence thesaying a thresh hold. (Getting quite an education, aren't you?) In those old days, they cooked in the kitchen with a big kettle that always hung over the fire. Every day they lit the fire and addedthings to the pot. They ate mostly vegetables and did not get much meat.They would eat the stew for dinner, leaving leftovers in the pot to getcold overnight and then start over the next day. Sometimes stew had foodin it that had been there for quite a while. Hence the rhyme, Peasporridge hot, peas porridge cold, peas porridge in the pot nine days old.. Sometimes they could obtain pork, which made them feel quitespecial. When visitors came over, they would hang up their bacon to show off.It was a sign of wealth that a man could, bring home the bacon. Theywould cut off a little to share with guests and would all sit around andchew the fat.. Those with money had plates made of pewter. Food with high acidcontent caused some of the lead to leach onto the food, causing leadpoisoning death. This happened most often with tomatoes, so for the next 400years or so, tomatoes were considered poisonous. Bread was divided according to status. Workers got the burnt bottomof the loaf, the family got the middle, and guests got the top, or the upper crust. Lead cups were used to drink ale or whisky. The combination would sometimes knock the imbibers out for a couple of days. Someonewalking along the road would take them for dead and prepare them for burial. They were laid out on the kitchen table for a couple of days and the family would gather around and eat and drink and wait and see ifthey would wake up. Hence the custom of holding a wake. England is old and small and the local folks started running out of places to bury people. So they would dig up coffins and would takethe bones to a bone-house, and reuse the grave. When reopening these coffins, 1 out of 25 coffins were found to have scratch marks on the inside and they realized they had been burying people alive. So they would tie a string on the wrist of the corpse, lead it through the coffin and up through the ground and tie it to a bell. Someone would have to sit out in the graveyard all night (the graveyard shift.) to listen for the bell; thus, someone could be, saved by the bell orwas considered a ..dead ringer. And that's the truth...Now, whoever said History was boring! Educate someone.
Sunday, October 08, 2006
Greed, God and a Glimpse for me...
First, I'm a Phi Theta Kappa advisor, and we have a series of seminars on this year's honors study topic: Power. The full title is "Gold, Gods, and Glory: the study of global power" or something like that. I'm too busy to look it up.
MY take on things is changing. I'm like someone who's risen from kryo and I'm just now starting to "get it." Somehow, in my artful course dodging and slacking in school, I've managed to not pay attention to some very important stuff. Seems like the more I pay attention now, the more shocked I am at my ignorance.
This weekend, for example, I toured a nice little museum at Fort Leavenworth, featuring a historical perspective of that fort in the westward expansion. Within the exhibit, a display was offered, titled "Beyond Lewis and Clark."
At virtually every station of every exhibit, I remarked to my brother, "Hmmm, I didn't know that!" Of course, if I don't write it down immediately, I tend to forget again, for my brain has not been wired for detail and history. I do recall some of the bigger surprises, however. I won't share most, for these revelations make me seem really, really stupid. Here's just one to give you a flavor of my lack of historical enlightenment: I thought Lewis and Clark just went on the road alone together. I did not realize they had 46 in their expedition, that they were armed, that it was a very diverse group, etc. *blushing at my ignorance*
In addition to everything else I'm supposedly working on for myself, I think I may need to investigate taking a history course every now and again, now that I'm a "grown up" and would care to learn the content.
The most important general insight I gained from the exhibit is again something many historically hip people already know: our fair country has always had greed as a motivator. Lately here in this blog and elsewhere, I've been fuming about consumerism, affluenza, media literacy, etc...but you know what? It's nothing new. In fact, if anything, it may be a bit less powerful than in 1804 when L & C (and many other soldier-explorers) were charged by GOD and country to head west and take it all in. At least current consumerism and empire building has less to do with god's divine drive; it's more honestly all about the Benjamins.
The second insight I'm coming away with: The United States of America has been one brash, ball-sy, and downright fortunate country. Things happened very fast from the signing of the declaration to the exploration and development of the landscape--especially if you think of all the limitations (no phones, no cars, no swimming pools) in transportation, navigation and so on. Wow, those people were very aggressive and working very hard in just that 25 or so years. Again, this epiphany, that the US was developing so fast, is not news to anyone but me. In history class, I always bumbled through dates, never realizing anything about how it interconnected. Now, I'm starting (just getting a glimpse) to see how things fit together. Also, when I was young, 25 years seemed like forever, I'm sure.
Ah, thanks for reading. I just needed a place to confess my ignorance and document my new perspective on what I've ranted about so much: greed.
MY take on things is changing. I'm like someone who's risen from kryo and I'm just now starting to "get it." Somehow, in my artful course dodging and slacking in school, I've managed to not pay attention to some very important stuff. Seems like the more I pay attention now, the more shocked I am at my ignorance.
This weekend, for example, I toured a nice little museum at Fort Leavenworth, featuring a historical perspective of that fort in the westward expansion. Within the exhibit, a display was offered, titled "Beyond Lewis and Clark."
At virtually every station of every exhibit, I remarked to my brother, "Hmmm, I didn't know that!" Of course, if I don't write it down immediately, I tend to forget again, for my brain has not been wired for detail and history. I do recall some of the bigger surprises, however. I won't share most, for these revelations make me seem really, really stupid. Here's just one to give you a flavor of my lack of historical enlightenment: I thought Lewis and Clark just went on the road alone together. I did not realize they had 46 in their expedition, that they were armed, that it was a very diverse group, etc. *blushing at my ignorance*
In addition to everything else I'm supposedly working on for myself, I think I may need to investigate taking a history course every now and again, now that I'm a "grown up" and would care to learn the content.
The most important general insight I gained from the exhibit is again something many historically hip people already know: our fair country has always had greed as a motivator. Lately here in this blog and elsewhere, I've been fuming about consumerism, affluenza, media literacy, etc...but you know what? It's nothing new. In fact, if anything, it may be a bit less powerful than in 1804 when L & C (and many other soldier-explorers) were charged by GOD and country to head west and take it all in. At least current consumerism and empire building has less to do with god's divine drive; it's more honestly all about the Benjamins.
The second insight I'm coming away with: The United States of America has been one brash, ball-sy, and downright fortunate country. Things happened very fast from the signing of the declaration to the exploration and development of the landscape--especially if you think of all the limitations (no phones, no cars, no swimming pools) in transportation, navigation and so on. Wow, those people were very aggressive and working very hard in just that 25 or so years. Again, this epiphany, that the US was developing so fast, is not news to anyone but me. In history class, I always bumbled through dates, never realizing anything about how it interconnected. Now, I'm starting (just getting a glimpse) to see how things fit together. Also, when I was young, 25 years seemed like forever, I'm sure.
Ah, thanks for reading. I just needed a place to confess my ignorance and document my new perspective on what I've ranted about so much: greed.
Thursday, October 05, 2006
Charge!
So, this Foley guy is making all the news for his indiscretions lately. Yes, he held an important public office. Yes, anyone practicing such behavior needs to be held accountable...
...but for my money, I have issues with the fickle American media and consuming public. Soon, unfortunately, the Foley scandal, like others before it, will be yesterday's news and will likely be swept under the rug.
And, shouldn't we hold all our elected representatives accountable for more than their sexual follies and perversions? Why is it that we aren't all much more attuned to every elected official's participation in PAC's, lobbying tom-foolery, and their every-day voting on every issue? Why is it that C-SPAN has such dismal ratings (and why do the meetings have such low attendance ?)?
We get in an uproar when an occasional individual gets caught with his digital pants down (or someone takes an extra dip in the cookie jar) but sometimes, it seems to me, we should be equally passionate about less morally-charged indiscretions which are much more likely to affect our every-day lives.
I am the worst offender. I don't know who's who or what their up to, presently. However, I did have a good discussion with a former state representative last weekend, and I'm about to embark on citizenship! He suggested (for us in Kansas) to start with the League of Women Voters as an unbiased, informative site. I've got it bookmarked, and I'm going to gather a headful of knowledge. With that, I hope to be able to vote intelligently.
Join me, won't you?
...but for my money, I have issues with the fickle American media and consuming public. Soon, unfortunately, the Foley scandal, like others before it, will be yesterday's news and will likely be swept under the rug.
And, shouldn't we hold all our elected representatives accountable for more than their sexual follies and perversions? Why is it that we aren't all much more attuned to every elected official's participation in PAC's, lobbying tom-foolery, and their every-day voting on every issue? Why is it that C-SPAN has such dismal ratings (and why do the meetings have such low attendance ?)?
We get in an uproar when an occasional individual gets caught with his digital pants down (or someone takes an extra dip in the cookie jar) but sometimes, it seems to me, we should be equally passionate about less morally-charged indiscretions which are much more likely to affect our every-day lives.
I am the worst offender. I don't know who's who or what their up to, presently. However, I did have a good discussion with a former state representative last weekend, and I'm about to embark on citizenship! He suggested (for us in Kansas) to start with the League of Women Voters as an unbiased, informative site. I've got it bookmarked, and I'm going to gather a headful of knowledge. With that, I hope to be able to vote intelligently.
Join me, won't you?
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