Thursday, December 17, 2009
And The US Doesn't Crack Down On The Mexican Border Because?...
Does Congress need any more convincing proof that illegal immigration from Mexico is a very dangerous phenomenon?
If Congress wants to pay for job creation via public works projects--there is a fence that needs to be finished.
Four And Counting
Michael Barone opines on the departure of the first four Democrat members of Congress, Dennis Moore (Kansas 3), John Tanner (Tennessee 8), Brian Baird (Washington 3) and Bart Gordon (Tennessee 6).
He's much kinder than most should be...
It will be interesting to see if the remaining Honorable Members exit in an orderly fashion, or if the stampede begins in earnest early next year.
He's much kinder than most should be...
It will be interesting to see if the remaining Honorable Members exit in an orderly fashion, or if the stampede begins in earnest early next year.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
The Tale of Detroit--A Cultural Post-Mortem
With news that Detroit's unemployment rate may now be nearing 50%, I hope this will provide an opportunity for reflection.
Simply, how did this happen? If Detroit were a deceased party on the coroner's cold slab, what would the examination reveal?
What confluence of decisions taken and not taken on the ground in this city, combined with events outside of local control, created this debacle?
What was it about the culture of Detroit, the assumptions everyone lived with, that created such tragedy?
Time Magazine made an attempt of sorts in March of this year, with the unemployment rated listed at 13%.
Are we replicating those conditions in other parts of the country? In our own neck of the woods? In our own businesses and families?
This is no time to gloat. It is a time to ponder the past, the present, and the future.
It is time to look in the mirror, all of us, one person at a time, to learn from this tragedy.
Simply, how did this happen? If Detroit were a deceased party on the coroner's cold slab, what would the examination reveal?
What confluence of decisions taken and not taken on the ground in this city, combined with events outside of local control, created this debacle?
What was it about the culture of Detroit, the assumptions everyone lived with, that created such tragedy?
Time Magazine made an attempt of sorts in March of this year, with the unemployment rated listed at 13%.
Are we replicating those conditions in other parts of the country? In our own neck of the woods? In our own businesses and families?
This is no time to gloat. It is a time to ponder the past, the present, and the future.
It is time to look in the mirror, all of us, one person at a time, to learn from this tragedy.
The Retailers Have Blinked
The Wall Street Journal wondered out loud on the 10th of December who would blink first: the retailer or the consumer.
It's the 15th, and the retailers have blinked.
Nieman Marcus
Kohl's
Macy's
Coldwater Creek
Sears
Toys-R-Us
If you're in the mood to shop, there's plenty of inventory, and parking.
Of course, if you wait until Monday, there will still be plenty of parking, and the inventory will still be plentiful.
And cheaper.
It's the 15th, and the retailers have blinked.
Nieman Marcus
Kohl's
Macy's
Coldwater Creek
Sears
Toys-R-Us
If you're in the mood to shop, there's plenty of inventory, and parking.
Of course, if you wait until Monday, there will still be plenty of parking, and the inventory will still be plentiful.
And cheaper.
Another TN Democrat Congressman Flees 2010
Joining John Tanner in the rush for the exits, Bart Gordon looked at a district that had grudgingly returned him to office while otherwise voting overwhelmingly Republican, both houses of the Tennessee legislature solidly in Republican hands, thousands of extremely upset (and motivated) voters who greeted him at his town hall meetings, and the sure knowledge that the wheels are coming off the Obama administration.
He decided to get out while the going was good.
We're making progress here! Gone is one more creepy guy who tells everyone back in the district just what a conservative man of the people he is, and otherwise generally does what Miss Nancy orders him to do, like voting for climate-change legislation, bail-outs, and any other mischief that gets sent to his desk.
Next!
He decided to get out while the going was good.
We're making progress here! Gone is one more creepy guy who tells everyone back in the district just what a conservative man of the people he is, and otherwise generally does what Miss Nancy orders him to do, like voting for climate-change legislation, bail-outs, and any other mischief that gets sent to his desk.
Next!
Monday, December 14, 2009
But On The Other Hand...
Pat Buchanan chronicles the destruction of City University of New York, once a gateway for the best and brightest of modest means.
In D.C., nearly half of all black and Latino students drop out. Of those who graduate, nearly half are reading and doing math at seventh-, eighth- and ninth-grade levels. D.C. academic achievement ranks 51st, last in the U.S.
Yet last week came a report from New York that makes D.C look like M.I.T. Some 200 students, in their first math class at City University of New York, were tested on their basic math skills. Ninety percent could not do basic algebra. One-third could not convert a decimal into a fraction.
If this was a representative sampling, nine in 10 CUNY students not only do not belong in college, they do not qualify for their high school diplomas. As for that third who can't do decimals and fractions, they should not have been allowed into high school until they could do sixth-grade math.
On the other hand:
The good news imbedded in all this bad news is...
A very well-prepared young person is a joy to admissions committees and academic faculties.
Maths, English, Languages.
English, Maths, Languages,
Languages, English, Maths.
Need to hear it again, Moms and Dads and kids?
Now, get back to work...the world needs competent people, recession or no.
Governor Palin Wins A Round
Hats off to the Governor for not letting a Hollywood gasbag get away with his BS.
He's not likely to try it again...and you notice, she did her recitation from memory!
The Nippert Gift To Cincinnati
In an overwhelmingly generous and unexpected gift, 98-year-old Louise Nippert has placed $85 million of capital underneath the performing arts organizations that have in great part defined Cincinnati as a city.
A deep love of classical music prompted arts patron and philanthropist Louise Nippert to announce a gift of $85 million on Thursday to preserve music at the highest possible quality in Greater Cincinnati.
The Louise Dieterle Nippert Musical Arts Fund will help maintain the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra as a major, full-time professional orchestra. It also will allow Cincinnati Opera to continue a 90-year collaboration with the Cincinnati Symphony in its pit, and allow dancers to pirouette to live music at Cincinnati Ballet well into the future. It is the largest single gift by an individual to a Cincinnati arts organization and one of the two or three largest ever to a U.S. symphony orchestra.
A classically trained singer who was a soloist in Mahler's Symphony No. 4 with the Cincinnati Symphony in 1957, Nippert has shunned the limelight as a philanthropist. In 1995, she told The Enquirer that her motivation behind charitable contributions was simple: "Giving is enough - you see how it affects everything, and you don't have to sit back and pat yourself on the back."
Did you read that last sentence? 'Giving is enough...'
Giving is enough. No need for publicity, fanfare, the public giving of alms.
Green Shoots Award Finalist, not only for the size, location and timing of the gift, but primarily for the attitude of the donor.
Giving is enough.
A deep love of classical music prompted arts patron and philanthropist Louise Nippert to announce a gift of $85 million on Thursday to preserve music at the highest possible quality in Greater Cincinnati.
The Louise Dieterle Nippert Musical Arts Fund will help maintain the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra as a major, full-time professional orchestra. It also will allow Cincinnati Opera to continue a 90-year collaboration with the Cincinnati Symphony in its pit, and allow dancers to pirouette to live music at Cincinnati Ballet well into the future. It is the largest single gift by an individual to a Cincinnati arts organization and one of the two or three largest ever to a U.S. symphony orchestra.
A classically trained singer who was a soloist in Mahler's Symphony No. 4 with the Cincinnati Symphony in 1957, Nippert has shunned the limelight as a philanthropist. In 1995, she told The Enquirer that her motivation behind charitable contributions was simple: "Giving is enough - you see how it affects everything, and you don't have to sit back and pat yourself on the back."
Did you read that last sentence? 'Giving is enough...'
Giving is enough. No need for publicity, fanfare, the public giving of alms.
Green Shoots Award Finalist, not only for the size, location and timing of the gift, but primarily for the attitude of the donor.
Giving is enough.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Sunday Evening 13 December--Random Thoughts
The alarm rang early this a.m., but once again, church was worth the drive. Gospel reading was on the Annunciation, we sang the Standford Magnificat in G, sermon was spot on. I need the reminder that even if the world is in chaos, God is in charge.
One of the joys of the season is XM Radio's Holiday Pops, which we receive via our Direct TV service. The programming is magnificent, inspiring, a real blessing.
One day, not soon, I plan to tell the tale of the journey of a member of the family, one of the finest people I have ever known, through the dark swamp of academia. He has held up well, but the darkness he has encountered is truly profound. At this point, I can say I now understand why my ancestors considered a journey in a small sailboat across the North Atlantic preferable to continuing to live under English rule. I appreciate Adams and Jefferson more than words can say. I feel keenly for all my dear friends who have to endure present life in the UK and Europe.
If you don't read Jesse's Cafe Americain, I urge you to begin. He brings a moral insight rare in our day.
His link is to the left on the page.
Today's header from Jesse is especially inspiring, a quote from Dickens:
"I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round, as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys."
Have a great week. Hug your family extra good, and make sure they know they are loved.
Remember Gabriel's reassurance to Mary: 'With God, nothing is impossible.'
One of the joys of the season is XM Radio's Holiday Pops, which we receive via our Direct TV service. The programming is magnificent, inspiring, a real blessing.
One day, not soon, I plan to tell the tale of the journey of a member of the family, one of the finest people I have ever known, through the dark swamp of academia. He has held up well, but the darkness he has encountered is truly profound. At this point, I can say I now understand why my ancestors considered a journey in a small sailboat across the North Atlantic preferable to continuing to live under English rule. I appreciate Adams and Jefferson more than words can say. I feel keenly for all my dear friends who have to endure present life in the UK and Europe.
If you don't read Jesse's Cafe Americain, I urge you to begin. He brings a moral insight rare in our day.
His link is to the left on the page.
Today's header from Jesse is especially inspiring, a quote from Dickens:
"I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round, as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys."
Have a great week. Hug your family extra good, and make sure they know they are loved.
Remember Gabriel's reassurance to Mary: 'With God, nothing is impossible.'
Cultural Enrichment
Every now and then, in spite of myself, I stumble across a gem.
From Gates of Vienna: The Cultural Enrichment archive.
It's a list of horrors, some well-known, many less so, compiled to chronicle the effects of the Islamization of the West, and our leaders' refusal to confront obvious problems.
I'd usually invite you to enjoy the read. But I can guarantee you won't.
From Gates of Vienna: The Cultural Enrichment archive.
It's a list of horrors, some well-known, many less so, compiled to chronicle the effects of the Islamization of the West, and our leaders' refusal to confront obvious problems.
I'd usually invite you to enjoy the read. But I can guarantee you won't.
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