intelligent design

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/deepak-chopra/intelligent-design-withou_b_6105.html


So, what's up with the new teachers' contract?

Some New York City teachers are disappointed in the recent agreement. Disgruntled teachers maintain that "give-backs" far exceed salary raises.


http://www.library.pitt.edu/labor_legacy/chronology.html

miseducation

there is an increasing disparity between american communities by class, ethnicity, gender, and region. for example, research illustrates the broad impact of household wealth on child health, nutrition and academic achievement. but, gross inequality is especially evident in public education. in fact, education has the single greatest impact on employment and housing.

recent literature documents the increasing segregation of our public schools by race and class. segregation is especially harmful because it leads to substantial disparities in student achievement. in the shame of the nation, jonathan kozol (2005) maintains that rural, suburban, and urban disparities reproduce apartheid segregation. kozol explains that unequal education forcibly limits access and opportunities for students of color. now that's real. . .

research studies consistently report that students of color have increased rates of school absence, school truancy and school dropout compared to white peers. research also demonstrates that aggregate black and latino youths score dramatically below peers in standardized assessments of math, reading and science.

these disparities have significant consequences. for example, a broad gap in secondary academic achievement leads to even larger deficits in postsecondary enrollment. if high school graduates do not continue to associate or bachelor degree programs, they will earn roughly $30,000 less than college graduates. when we connect poor education to income, health care, and housing, we create and reproduce poverty and segregation.

there is a growing crisis in our schools. it is especially devastating because public education has consistently struggled to provide equal education for diverse students. newspaper headlines dating back to the late 19th century and through the entire 20th century document failing schools.

i'll report further on the history of education and current trends in education reform. what do you think about public education?

inequality

there has been considerable discussion of the afl-cio labor split. in short, the afl-cio was an umbrella agency for several major labor organizations. however, allied unions recently broke away from the afl-cio to reestablish independent unions. now, analysts are trying to figure the political winners and losers.

i am less interested in specific political capital. however, i am very interested in the declining public commitment to organized labor unions. and, i am especially concerned by the increasing inequality in american income and wealth. income and wealth disparity has increased severely since 1975.

inequality is traditionally mesaured by personal income and household wealth. wealth is the calculation of aggregate household assets, including real estate, securities, and savings minus personal debts. household wealth is an especially interesting measure of inequality and social justice because it is especially difficult for lower middle class and lower class families to establish and accumulate wealth.

for example, the top 5% of american households controls more than 60% of total wealth. . . and the top 1% of american households controls more than 40% of total wealth. in fact, the median wealth of the top 1% of american households is $12.5 million. in contrast, the median wealth of the remaining 95% of households is $62,000. this means that the top 5% of american households have more collective wealth than the remaining 95% of households.

this is incredibly severe. however, gross inequality is only one major part of a major problem. concentrated inequality is my second major concern. concentrated inequality means that poverty is disproportionately concentrated in specific communities or groups. for example, blacks have only 18% of the wealth of the average white family. in fact, 45% of black households earn less than $10,000 in personal income! and further, the median household wealth for latino families is $11,450 and $15,000 for black families. (cfa, 2002). this is more than $70,000 below the wealth of the median american household! (cfa, 2003)

there are many reasons why the income and wealth gap continues to increase. in fact, the wealth gap increased 21% between 1998 and 2001. first, our tax system is increasingly regressive. in 1980, the federal government assessed taxes at 70% of personal income. however, today, the top tax bracket pays only 37%. congressional reports demonstrate that the middle class and lower class pays an increased share of federal tax receipts. does that make any sense?

further, corporations increasingly receive tax benefits and tax relief that protect inflated profits. for example, tax reforms allow american corporations to effectively pay $11 billion less annually than required by specific state and federal tax law. major multinational corporations have also fostered an increasing disparity between executive salaries and line wages. in fact, the income gap has nearly doubled since 1978. . . and the increasing disparity is traced by a declining commitment to organized union labor.

inherited wealth and inherited poverty remain the greatest single determinant for social mobility. fifteen years ago, william julius wilson identified "the truly disadvantaged", a permanent underclass in urban american communities. he determined that contemporary economic policies and unregulated market forces created a sustained cycle of intense poverty.

unbelievably, it's getting worse. gross inequality continues to threaten our economic stability and a sustainable american democracy. capitalism encourages innovation. it encourages individuals and corporations to create, develop, and produce effective products and services that a consumer public demands. however, unregulated capitalism does not work. it exaggerates household wealth and poverty, and it severely limits opportunity and social mobility. it's not only unfair . . . it's poor economic policy.

liberals!

when did it become crazy to be liberal?

liberal policies are the foundation of contemporary democracy. the civil rights movement exposed racism, gross inequality, and legal discrimination. feminism helped women to integrate the public and private workforce. the labor movement protected children and stabilized family.

liberal women founded american social work. the american revolution was liberal, dammit! we need activism.

when republicans get things right, it's because they've co-opted good liberal policy. when democrats get things wrong, it's because they forget good liberal policy.

the true shame is that there is still real inequality, racism, and segregation.

now that's crazy!

president bush has bungled the war in iraq. we know he misread or hyped intelligence. we know he appointed

identity: variables

locus of control
self efficacy
self esteem
self concept
self knowledge
(self reflection and insight)

identity status (exploration and achievement)

five cuts

top 5 television shows

top 5 reruns

top 5 documentaries

woodstock, dir. michael wasleigh
hoop dreams, dir. peter gilbert and steve james
buena vista social club, dir. wim wenders
roger and me, dir. michael moore
baseball, dir. ken burns



really close. . .
everybody's gotta learn sometimes, beck
you're gonna need someone on your side, morrissey
discipline, guru
november twnty six nineteen hundred sixty three, wendell berry and ben shahn
the wild party, by joseph moncure march
300, by frank miller
sin city: a dame to kill for, by frank miller
black is the color of my true love's hair, verve remixed
8 minutes til sunrise, common
root down, beastie boys
this is just to say, william carlos williams
memento, dir. christopher nolan
say anything, dir. cameron crowe
dog day afternoon, dir. sidney lumet
taxi driver, dir. martin scorsese
blowup, dir. michaelangelo antonioni
shawshank redemption, dir. frank darabont
in time of daffodils, e.e. cummings
city of god, directed by fernando meirelles
the pearl, by john steinbeck
the graduate, dir. mike nichols
the healing, by gayl jones
the blue bedspread, by raj kamal jha
pictures of you, the cure
when doves cry, prince
fire and rain, james taylor
emotional, carl thomas
le 5 saison, mc solaar
y tu que has hecho, buena vista social club
rafiki, zap mama
water, by pablo neruda
jesus doesn't want me for a sunbeam, nirvana
goodnight, moon, by margaret wise brown
the deadman collection, by neil adams
boys don't cry, dir. kimberly peirce
ring of fire
when we were kings
startup.com
dogtown and z boys
koyanisqaatsi, godfrey reggio
promises, dir. carlos bolado

top 5's

we are visiting my family in chicago until the 18th. thanks for
visiting. we'll be back soon!


by andrew


top 5 movies
the usual suspects, dir. bryan singer
leaving las vegas, dir. mike figgis
the indian runner, dir. sean penn
kids, dir. larry clark
do the right thing, dir. spike lee


top 5 foreign films
la femme nikita, dir. luc besson
il postino, dir. michael radford
to live, dir. zhang yimou
city of lost children, dir. jean-pierre jeunet and marc caro
la haine, dir. matthieu kassovitz


top 5 novels
the old man and the sea, by ernest hemmingway
the street, by israel rabon
siddhartha, by hermann hesse
beloved, by toni morrison
the alchemist, by paulo coelho


top 5 poems
we real cool, by gwendolyn brooks
island mary, by lucille clifton
cotton song, by jean toomer
gravy, by raymond carver
howl, by allen ginsburg


top 5 children's books
the day i swapped my dad for two goldfish, by neil gaiman
yo! yes?, by chris raschka
the snowy day, by ezra jack keats
is that you winter?, by stephen gammell
i'm not bobby, by jules feiffer


top 5 songs with guitars
the scientist, coldplay
blackbird, the beatles
under the bridge, red hot chili peppers
been caught stealing, jane's addiction
when she believes, ben harper
my happiness, elvis


top 5 old skool
big ol' butt, ll cool j
criminal minded, bdp
light as a rock, mc lyte
just a friend, biz markie
microphone fiend, erik b. and rakim


top 5 new skool
step into a world, krs-one
music, erick sermon
ebonics, big l
what's that?, mos def f. tony touch
four women, talib kweli


top 5 r+b
doo wop (that thing), lauryn hill
head nod (remix), jill scott f. mos def
sweet baby, macy gray
crazy, seal
butterfly, michael jackson


top 5 trip hop
glory box, portishead
organ donor, dj shadow
feel good inc, the gorrilaz
mast qalandar, massive attack
extreme ways, moby


top 5 oldies
boogie woogie bugle boy, the andrews sisters
then he kissed me, the crystals
la la means i love you, the delfonics
earth angel, the penguins
stand by me, ben e. king


top 5 dusties
what's goin on, marvin gaye
lean on me, bill withers
ain't no sunshine, otis redding
abc/123, the jackson 5
i'm so tired of being alone, al green


top 5 batman graphic novels
batman: year one, by frank miller
batman: the killing joke, by alan moore
the long halloween, by jeph loeb
batman: black and white, various artists
batman: the last arkham, by alan grant


top 5 graphic novels
astro city, by kurt busiek
persepolis, by marjane satrapi
mr. punch, by neil gaiman
v for vendetta, by alan moore
martha washington goes to war, by frank miller

smokey

smokey was my family dog. last night, we had to put her to sleep. it was very sad and i miss her a lot.
samantha

i'm home!

i'm back.

shanghai was great but it is nice to be home.

i missed my husband lots and lots and i now i get to see him everyday again, yeah!!!