The material calls for lawmakers to amend state laws governing school curriculums, and for textbook selection criteria to say that “No portrayal of minority experience in the history which actually occurred shall obscure the experience or contributions of the Founding Fathers, or the majority of citizens, including those who reached positions of leadership.”

Fayette County attorney Hal Rounds, the group’s lead spokesman during the news conference, said the group wants to address “an awful lot of made-up criticism about, for instance, the founders intruding on the Indians or having slaves or being hypocrites in one way or another.

So what does this really mean–besides the obvious implication that history in school is not about facts but propoganda? Before students figure out the truth, it means that only perfect people can serve their country and achieve great things. Any eight year old who has told a lie to his mom may as well give up the idea of becoming president.

However, sooner or later the students will figure out the truth and then what? Do something important enough, particularly in public service, and it doesn’t matter what you do in your personal life? We already have plenty of examples of supporters of “family values” who have had affairs and have been caught with prostitutes. And there are a few who have taken the next step and don’t believe certain laws don’t apply to them that they have broken any laws. Do you think it’s any coincidence that most of these people are also the one’s who support changing the laws as demanded by the Tea Party?

One final thought, the use of the word “majority” is disturbing. It suggests that we it’s okay to whitewash the inconsistencies of Thomas Jefferson but Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, or Caesar Chavez. How convenient…

The Washington Monthly

“What am I, not supposed to have health care?” he said. “It’s practicality. I’m not going to become a burden for the state because I don’t have health care, and God forbid I get into an accident and I can’t afford the operation. That can happen to anyone.”

No, not one of those socialist, business-hating, Obamacare supporters. It’s Rep. Michael Grimm, Republican of New York who ran against the Affordable Care Act. Someone, please explain this to me.

Your Turn – Jan. 2, 2011 – San Antonio Express-News

Money sent to foreign countries should be discontinued until our debt has been paid.

But it’s the speed with which the right-wing shift occurred that’s truly impressive. It was, after all, April 2009 when Upton characterized climate change as “a serious problem that necessitates serious solutions.” That was last year. It was 2007 when leading Republican presidential candidates not only acknowledged global warming, but endorsed credible proposals to combat the crisis.

Your turn – Monday, December 20, 2010 – San Antonio Express-News

Candace King’s Dec. 14 letter said: “Texas Sens. Cornyn and Hutchison and the rest of the heartless Republican senators showed how callous they are by denying health coverage to 9-11 firefighters, EMTs, police and other emergency responders.”

I can’t let this pass without reminding King that the Democrats gained control of the House and the Senate in November 2006 election and the White House in November 2008.

The Washington Monthly

The assumption is based on an idea — Congress operates by majority rule — that should be true but isn’t. For much of the country, procedures like “filibusters,” “secret holds,” and “cloture votes” are completely foreign. Indeed, it’s very likely this contributes to public disgust with Congress — when majorities can’t even vote on their own priorities, a lot of folks throw up their arms in frustration and assume the Democratic majority is incompetent. Pointing to procedural abuses — which are the actual heart of the problem — only sounds like excuses to those who have little patience for legislative tactics.

This, in turn, creates an added motivation for Republicans to keep up their obstructionism.

What really bothers me is that the founder of an organization that seems to lobby for the group is unaware of how the senate actually works.

Dishes Still Dirty? Blame Phosphate-Free Detergent : NPR

But dirty and damaged dishes are turning many people into skeptics, including Wright.

“I’m angry at the people who decided that phosphate was growing algae. I’m not sure that I believe that,” Wright adds.

Ultimately, she’s mixing in her own phosphates.

This really got me thinking. Here’s a person who is being inconvenienced by science so she simply decides not to believe it. She doesn’t even go through the motions of finding some pseudo science to back up her belief. Furthermore, she could test this herself very easily with the phosphates she has bought. I guess she figures that she’ll believe the science that put phosphates in the detergent to begin with but not the science that takes it out.

So is this the ultimate failure of the education system? Science is okay as long as it doesn’t negatively affect me? Let’s go beyond science education and into the citizenship aspect that is oh so important to our State Board of Education. The hell with the people who make their living fishing or who need clean water to drink because I’ll have dirty dishes?

I’m sure you can make a libertarian case for this but I don’t think it’s appropriate. After all, most people agree that your freedom to swing your fist stops at my face. And most people would agree that you need to stop at the red light to have a safe traffic system. But none of this seems to apply when science is the critical element. I suspect unless phosphates start coming out of this person’s faucet with negative consequences for her health (I have no idea if this is true), this person will have problems with the science of the issue. But should that happen, she’ll want to government to take care of it will reducing her taxes….

A federal lawsuit accuses a suburban Philadelphia school district of spying on students at home through school-issued laptop webcams.

I’m trying to envision this. How did it happen that the school issued laptops, someone put software on them that allowed the school to access the camera remotely, let other know it can be done, and nobody say this might not be a good idea? Or maybe even, do we have policies in place to ensure it’s not abused–didn’t they think that some student might hack the system and use it? Or at the very least, will our insurance cover us if we get caught?

EducationNews.org – Internet rewiring youngsters’ brains

A survey designed to examine the internet’s impact on the brain examined how 100 12 to 18-year-olds responded to a series of questions requiring some form of research.

They discovered that most of the respondents gave their answers after looking at just half the number of web pages older people examined.

They also found that younger people took far less time to research their answers and were therefore less thorough.

The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal reported that Leach locked sophomore receiver Adam James in a closet because he thought the player was faking a concussion.

I’m really having problems envisioning the scene.  Not the getting the kid into the closet part but what the other adults at the scene were doing. Did anyone suggest that this might not be the best way to handle the situation or were they all thinking, “damn, I’m going to use this technique once I’m head coach.” Or maybe they were the sergeant in Hogan’s Heroes “I see nothing!” More likely, it was “the idiot did it this time, that’s Craig James’ son, hmmm, maybe I’ll have a shot at his job.” Regardless of which thoughts were actually present at the time, I think this shows that Leach has some serious management issues.