We Are Not Happy

Today's effort is a jumble of eclectic electronic articles, images, and opinions that are intended to enlighten, provoke, challenge and, possibly, inspire.

The prevaricator-in-chief just cannot bring himself to acknowledge the inconvenient truth; he lied about raising taxes.

The Patriot Act may be a necessary evil; however, parts of it give the federal government far too much power and cost citizens too much liberty.  This is a welcome and heartening consequence of trying to stampede authorization through Congress without adequate examination, analysis, and debate.  This odd consortium of left wingers, tea partiers, and Republicans snatched the arrow out of midair and dragged it back for reexamination.

WalMart is targeting 8-12 year old girls with a makeup sales campaign.  Eight year old girls should look like eight year olds, not fifteen year olds.  This article about two moms who write a blog about motherhood is a call to arms for everyone who opposes child exploitation and sexualization.  These women also exposed a company that is best described as Victoria's Secret for pre-pubescent girls.  Together, these two business operations seem to offer a pedophile's fantasy-land.  Little wonder that the television show Skins is popular.  Yuck!

A book has been released recently that punctures progressives' pandering balloons.  A newly discovered cache of documents in England reveals that Abe Lincoln conspired with the British Government to ship newly freed slaves to Belize and Guyana.  Lincoln wanted to free the slaves to punish southerners for objecting to his confiscatory tax policies, but he was squeamish about having freed slaves mingling with whites in northern cities.  

This information must be a terrible affront to those whose delirious naiveté prevents them from recognizing the folly of believing that, in the 1860s, millions of white guys got together and fought a war to free a bunch of slaves.  They killed some 600,000 of themselves and squandered untold fortunes to fight a war on principle, not because the Confederates wanted to be equitably compensated for the unlawful seizure of their property.  You bet, now to look for the Easter Bunny.

Surely the American Association of University Professors would not stoop to featherbedding by trying to bloat the number of unqualified university students in the US, no more than they would want to add members to their fiefdom at almost any cost.  It seems mercenary that they oppose a report revealing that abroad and in 'sharp contrast to the US, vocational education is seen as a mainstream, well-respected pathway while a university education is reserved for people interested in a narrower band of professions like law, medicine, and research.' 

The authors of the article continue by asserting that placing 'all our bets on classroom-based pedagogy...is simply unacceptable for anyone who cares about America.'  "Many students are dropping out of high school and becoming delinquents and single mothers.  Those who complete their schooling are often unemployed and...dependent on their parents."  This "is because there is not enough correlation between studies and future careers."  Barack Obama called on all students to commit to a year or more in "community college, a four-year school, vocational school, or an apprenticeship."

It seems as though vocational school is an idea whose time has come once again. 

"Oh fatherland, fatherland, show us the sign your children have waited to see.  The morning will come when the world is mine.  Tomorrow belongs to me!"  For those who are thinking pre-WWII Germany, think again; this is Egypt 2011.  The Muslim Brotherhood intends to establish Sharia law from border to border and ocean to ocean in the US and Europe as well.

There was a country once that was founded, in part, upon the principle of religious freedom.  This guaranty was even enshrined in its supreme laws and upheld many times by its courts.  As it has repeatedly revealed, the national education collective is above laws and has given itself the privilege of abiding only by those legal requirements that are expedient.

Finally, here is an article about teaching ethics.  At one time ethics was a required course in order to earn a degree from universities' four year programs. Nowadays, it is sometimes not even part of the curriculum.  We have suffered as a nation since the national political dialog became about economics rather than ethics.  

May your gods be with you.