Whiskey - Tango - Foxtrot - ???
Oh, yeah, it's one of THOSE mornings...
I didn't plan for it to be that way...the world did that ALL by itself.
Usually, I'm the kind of guy that likes to rise
S L O W L Y...
Don't jolt me into another day...had my share of those times when I was a lot younger and a lot more "spry".
Let me E A S E into the new morning, and we'll get along just fine, kapeesh?
But NO, it wasn't gonna happen today, and here's some of the "why"...
You have to understand straight away, that the morning paper was responsible. I wasn't even tuned into the local news (which is usually a rehash of last night's news - unless some of the locals get "anxious" and decide to shoot one another).
*** We're hearing a lot about ELECTRIC cars these days, and I did two posts a LONG time ago about them.
(refer to posts of 10 Sept. 2007, and 9 Jan. 2007 - trust me, they still exist)
Now, we have this TESLA ROADSTER...I like the name.
Tesla was one of those marvelously eccentric "heroes" of mine.
Read Tesla: A Man Out of Time by Margaret Cheney...fascinating book.
But this new ALL-ELECTRIC car is "supposed" to be a savior of sorts.
The cost for the 2-seater is in the neighborhood of $100K (and a lot of change), so that OBVIOUSLY puts it WELL within reach of the "average citizen", right?
It gets 245 MPC (miles per charge), and can go from 0 to 60 in about FOUR seconds with a top speed of 125 MPH.
Oh, but going THAT fast WILL deplete the batteries at a considerably QUICKER rate, so the mileage might be (at least) HALVED.
And, did I mention that it WILL charge on a standard 120 volt outlet. A 240 volt outlet will charge it in a LOT less time (but you will need a SPECIAL PLUG in your house to accommodate it, as well as it's OWN circuit breaker...sorry).
Still, it DOES have NO emissions, because it DOESN'T run on ANY petroleum product...
Or DOES it?
Nah, you just plug it in, charge it up and off you GO, right?
Well....where DOES that electricity IN that outlet of yours COME from, anyway? (from the power plant, Bob)
Very good, and HOW does that power plant generate electricity?
(uh, by burning FOSSIL FUELS, Bob)
EXCELLENT...go to the head of the class. So, the TESLA Roadster DOES run on fossil fuels...mystery solved!
Not to mention that the over 7000 lithium batteries WILL need replacing after SEVEN years, and they ain't cheap in THAT kind of quantity.
Yeah...I feel SO much "greener" already, don't YOU?
But wait...there's more...
*** Indiana Education "Capo de Capo" wants to grade teachers on performance.
Here's the news story:
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20100824/LOCAL04/308249993
Tony Bennett (yeah, not the singer who left his heart in San Francisco) says:
"Our most enthusiastic and effective teachers find themselves wondering at the end of each year if they are secure in their jobs – regardless of how effective they are in the classroom – just because they have taught fewer years," Bennett said.
I'd tell Tony that if you're FORCING teachers to WORRY about their employment status (that THEY went to college and into debt for...JUST so they could educate the youth of America) that does not bode well in the long run for teachers who are always having to "look over their shoulders"...is it?
I mean, I'd sure as hell HATE to spend tens of THOUSANDS of dollars to get a degree in teaching, and do the best I know how, ONLY to be on the "chopping block" every single school year...talk about a clusterf*ck for our teachers. Don't see the ADMINS facing the SAME "alternatives", do we?
And THEY get paid a helluva lot MORE to do a helluva lot LESS, when it comes to hands-on teaching.
"As we confront an uncertain and rapidly changing American economy, we must accept the fact that money is not the answer to the problems challenging our schools," Bennett said.
Well, in THAT I agree 100%!
But I ALSO maintain that having the TEACHERS all but jump through flaming hoops and balance beachballs on their noses, completely for the sake of "performance-based" initiatives does a disservice to the students, and certainly to the educators.
Sure, there will always be a FEW teachers that are "empty suits" and are just passing time, but they are NOT the norm, but the exception. It's like the one bad apple gig...the whole bunch is never spoiled.
Bluffton High principal, Steve Baker sees a much CLEARER picture than the one painted by Bennett:
"There are issues outside the school building that teachers can’t control and they don’t believe it’s fair to hold them accountable for those," Baker said.
Now Steve "gets it"...he truly does.
I just wish the state education head honcho could see it too.
This last story is the "icing on the cake", though...
*** The DEA needs help with, of all things...EBONICS!
(you heard me right...can you BELIEVE it?)
Here's the link to the article:
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20100824/NEWS03/308249965
Now, after I almost spit my coffee on the screen while stifling the laughter that accompanied my "shock" over this, you are probably also wondering what this is all about. You're not alone.
This all smacks back to OAKLAND, CA (back in 1996), when the "legitimacy" of this "language" (actually a lazy-english sub-tongue) was brought into question...and promptly dismissed.
But, we're to take another ride on the "merry-go-round", it would appear.
Hell, any of you want to know all the TRUTH behind ebonics?
Just grab yourself a copy of either of these John McWhorter books:
-- Losing the Race: Self-Sabotage in Black America
-- Doing Our Own Thing (The Degradation of Language and Music)...and Why We Should, Like, Care
Both are fantastic tomes regarding WHY we (as a nation) are wasting valuable resources on nonsense such as this.
To quote from the story:
(( "Hiring translators for languages that are of questionable merit to begin with is just going in the wrong direction," said Aloysius Hogan, the government relations director of English First, a national lobbying group that promotes the use of English. "I’m not aware of ebonics training schools or tests. I don’t know how they’d establish that someone speaks ebonics," he said. "I support the concept of pursuing drug dealers if they’re using code words, but this is definitely going in the wrong direction." ))
Kinda sums it all up REAL well, doesn't it?
Guess Indiana Education Director, Tony Bennett hadn't figured this into his teacher "evals"...did he?
Yeah, this whole trip will be another colossal waste of money, time, and sundry other resources.
In fact, the road ITSELF will be nothing short of miles and miles of unpaved gravel, replete with ruts, puddles, and assorted "detours".
Can't get too much more FUBAR than THAT...can we?
And to think...it's ONLY Tuesday.
Let's hope for something a bit better as the week progresses, shall we?
Stayed tuned tomorrow for another milestone here at the "Erudition".
In the meantime...
Be well, make a difference to someone, and...
Stay safe out there, America.