Hello loyal reader!  That would be me...so HI back atcha.  I seem to come back here when there are a lot of things going on in the world.  They could be good or bad or funny things but mostly I seem to return to this page when there are things happening that I simply cannot bear to discuss in a normal conversation.  Right now there are several things that are transpiring in the world.  I will try to break this down in an intelligent fashion but I warn you now it might be long winded. 

First I would like to address the strike happening in Chicago with all the teachers.  Actually, it is not the strike so much but one of the reasons that the teachers are striking.  So with out further ado, let's talk about the glamorous world of standardized tests.  I have a little story for you....

Once upon a time, in a land far, far away I was a college student.  And as a college student I was hard up for some cash.  To remedy this I got myself a little job in the afternoons grading/scoring standardized tests.  Now I can't recall the ages of the kiddos whose tests I was scoring but I can recall some details about the job.  A bunch of adults of assumed mental intelligence sat around a big table reading stacks and stacks of test booklets.  It was our responsibility to score fairly the booklets we were given.  That meant deciphering the childish scrawl of responses jotted down in these booklets.  And how did we determine what was correct and incorrect?  Well that, my dear friends in fairy tale land. is an answer that has caused me to write this long winded narrative...  We had to use PERSONAL JUDGEMENT!  Yes, some potentially hung over, high on life and power, snot nosed college student is in charge of determining whether or not a strange child from a strange state was displaying some level of cognitive ability.  Lets just make a very long story short and say that my personal experience as a "scorer" is one reason I do not agree with using students test scores to rate the ability of a teacher.

I don't believe it does our education system any justice to have teachers "teaching to a test" in order to keep their jobs.  And that is why, if asked, I would say I have to agree with the teachers. 

Moving on....

Some person of, let's call it very poor judgement, decided to make a film trashing Islam.  And not just the Muslims of the world but the actual cornerstone of their religion.  Now the person lives in the U.S. and has every right under the tenets of our constitution to make whatever type of film they want but (and I hate putting a but on this) they seemed to forget that we are all members of the internet age and anything you put out there can be seen by anybody.  It was reckless in my opinion.  Akin to yelling "FIRE" in a crowded theater and then standing off to the side as people trample one another.  And guess what!  There were riots and storming of U.S. embassies in foreign nations AND worst of all DEATHS!  People were killed!  For fucks sake look outside of your own little universe and try to see how your actions have the potential to effect others.  Its not hard, its called not being a selfish prick. 

Finally,

Tuesday marked eleven years that have passed since several thousand souls were lost in an attack on our nation.  It was a sad day and a day of reflection.  I will say I indulged myself in looking at the photos and reading the stories.  I did not do this on year ten.  I don't know why I chose to do it this year.  I could still remember exactly the sequence of events that played out as I came to realize the horror that was occurring in NYC.  I still pray, time to time, for the families and friends of the survivors. 

So that ends my missive on the ills of the world.  I will see you next time.  Same blog page, same blog channel.