My Beauty Best Teacher

Admittedly, this is thin, but Governor Sarah Palin has made a single appointment to the Alaska Supreme Court, so we have some idea of what sort of candidates she prefers as judges. Mind you, she had to choose from a recommendation pool put together by a 'non-partisan' commission, but here is what she said on choosing Daniel E. Winfree for the Alaska Supreme Court:

"In his life and his legal career, Daniel Winfree has demonstrated an impressive intellect, a generous heart and a profound respect for the legal system and Constitution it relies on to guide civil life in Alaska," Governor Palin said. "I am gratified at the opportunity to place this fine man and outstanding attorney on the Alaska Supreme Court, and am confident he will serve the people of the state with wisdom and integrity."

This is good news- she spoke about his respect for the Constitution. Found this information here.
And apparently, based on my reading of this news story here, he is pro-life.

Winfree was described by Alaskan State Rep. Mike Kelly, who knows him and has worked with him, as "bone-honest."

For those people who really get into judicial stuff, he apparently has issues some decisions- you can look them up for more info.

Labor Day: A Remembrance of Those Who Labored for Our Country......

Echoing my last post, I question the moral character of those people who vote for liberal Democrats. Saying this makes me feel like I am painting too broad of a generalization, and if you vote Democrat, I'm not saying you're a bad person- it's just that for all the talk I hear from the leftists of this country about how Bush is evil, I've never heard him gloat about people dying or bad things occurring. You may think he's an idiot and his policies are wrong, but he is a moral person- he cares about others and is genuinely anguished when bad stuff happens.

Contrast this to Democrats. They chuckle when bad stuff occurs- when hurricanes hit, a war goes poorly, the economy sputters, etc- they rub their hands in glee, and get excited that they think their chances of getting elected improved. Ask yourself- when bad things occur when Democrats are in power, do you feel joy? Or do you get bitter and upset, and out of a desire to help, vote Republican? When bad things occur when Republicans are in power, do you feel joy? Do you chuckle, get excited, and think to yourself- now we can prove that Republicans are bad- now that bad things occurred Democrats will gain in power?

Which side is moral? Which side are you on?

This isn't out of far-right field either- Obama has been trying to make political hay out of the Hurricane Katrina- which incidentally was a failure by Democrat politicians (Governor and Mayor) and big bureaucracy (FEMA), not a product of Bush and his black people hating weather machine. And here we have video of Don Fowler, former Chairman of the Democratic National Committee, and Democratic Congressman Don Spratt caught on video laughing about the fact that a hurricane is about to hit New Orleans, to the political advantage of their party.

Oh, and what does Obama propose to do if there is another government failure on the level of Hurricane Katrina. From his website, Change to Socialism, here is what he proposes with the 'Katrina Issue':

Obama introduced legislation requiring disaster planners to take into account the specific needs of low-income hurricane victims. (And) He worked with members of the Congressional Black Caucus to introduce legislation to address the immediate income, employment, business and housing needs of Gulf Coast communities.

In other words, when disaster strikes, his proposes to spend more time talking about things and provide more welfare. Why doesn't he just stop hurricanes in their tracks- after all, he is the one, and can walk on water and all that.

UPDATE: Fowler was forced to apologize today- "One doesn't anticipate that one's private conversation will be surreptitiously taped by some right-wing nutcase," said Fowler. "But that's the nature of what we're dealing with." In other words, he's sorry he got caught, but in this world of free speech and open government, sometimes it happens. Now, if you elect a Democrat, it'll never happen any more...

When I was younger, I used to play a lot of golf with my brother, and also used to love Star Wars. My method of golfing well is to calm down, relax, and just play the game- in fact, some of my best golf has been played with my mostly deaf grandpa, who doesn't talk much, or with my dad, who just smokes a cigar, drinks a beer, and enjoys the outdoors. My brother is different- in order to golf well, he taps into all his anger, aggression, and hate, and smacks the ball around well. In some ways, I use the light side of the force, and my brother uses the dark side. After reading this article about the DNC convention by Nolan Finley, I think Democrats use the dark side too.

Finley's article is about how the DNC convention was exciting because it tapped into our inner aggression, passion, and anger. He then tries to further use the power of the dark side by invoking fear in his article- ironically enough, he tries to scare you into fearing the use of fear. Typical hypocritical Dem.

So what will the Republican convention look like? I imagine a lot more data- a lot more facts, figures, etc. Instead of saying "Bush is bad", they will give specific reasons why Obama would be bad. Instead of saying "The economy is bad", they will make specific connections to the economy, citing facts and figures. In my mind, there is going to be less 'excitement,' but that's because they will be tapping into the light side of the force- as Yoda says, you will know who is right when you are calm, quiet, and at peace with yourself. It's explained further here. I wonder, on questions on gun rights, abortion, liberty, freedom, patriotism, etc- who is more at peace with himself and does not become mentally agitated- Republicans or Democrats?

No more will you learn today.

Candi: That's a handsome, useful blog. Keep up the good work. - Bonnie Cain

Candi: Excellent blog. - Liz Davis

Candi: Your blog is a welcome addition to the fight to protect the rights of school system workers and to restore teacher/student/community/school worker/parent involvement in the decision-making process in DCPS. - Roger Newell

The Union Girl posted... Welcome to the blogging world.

Looks good ! - Robert Vinson Branum

Excellent Candi. I just checked it out. This is so necessary and timely. - Zein

Posted by Candi.

Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf and Nicky Oppenheimer write in the IHT:

Effective use of aid can support African reforms, but it must not be the organizing principle for African development. The key to success will be the extent to which African governments can provide the private sector with the right incentives to add value to the economy, so both business and government can concentrate on what each does best...[continue reading]

see CIPE Blog for related coverage

" Plot a path to academic success for black males rather than cast a spotlight on their failures." Elsie L. Scott, PhD. - President/CEO, Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Inc.

A Howard University student (Eugene Puryear) sent me this study which proves to be an interesting resource especially for all of us working in an urban school system as well as those interested in the plight of African-American males and the minority achievement gap. This study was conducted by Howard University professor, Ivory A. Toldson, PhD. It explores factors that statistically improve educational outcomes for African-American males. Posted By: Candi.

Link: http://www.cbcfinc.org/pdf/breaking_barriers.pdf

Talk radio and the blogs are already trying to tear down Palin. The biggest criticism of her by Democrats, liberals, and the media- 'her lack of experience.'

This is important for this election, and about how to fairly criticize people. If you feel that lack of experience disqualifies someone to be President, how could you ever support Barack Obama? You can't. If you think that Barack Obama should be President and say Sarah Palin should not be Vice-President because of her lack of experience, you are a disingenuous hypocrite.

Now, lack of experience is indeed a valid criticism. If it factors in to your criticism of her, that's okay. But if you read the immediate reaction of the blogs and media (here, here, here, here, here), it is ONLY her experience that these people don't like. They obviously feel that experience is the most important thing on the ticket... and yet support Obama? They are either a hypocrite, or they are disingenuous about their criticisms of Palin. They might even be against Palin for another reason, like she's a women, and try to hide it behind "not enough experience." Did I just pull the sexism card out? Opps! Reading off the wrong playbook.

Now, lack of experience is indeed a valid criticism. But, personally, I feel that it is less of a minus in the VP spot than in the P spot- and so should you.

For the record, here is her experience, according to wikipedia. She served two on the Wasilla City Council from 1992 to 1996. She was major of Wasilla from 1996 to 2002 (?). She then served Ethics Commissioner from 2003 to 2004. Then she was elected Governor in 2006, till present. That's 14 years of elected office, of which 8 were as an executive.

Barack Obama's experience is as a state senator from 1996 to 2004, followed by US senate from 2004 to today. That's 12 years of elected office, of which 0 are as an executive.

What's that about lack of experience? Obama still losses the game, and should lose the election.

UPDATE: Also, check out Victor Davis Hanson's take on her as the pick.

To be honest, out of Obama, Biden, McCain, or Palin... I like Palin the best. Admittedly, I don't know as much about her as I do the others. I understand a little bit the attraction of Obama in the beginning- he was an unknown, so was everything to everybody. I don't understand why people support him now though, now that they know more about him.

In all seriousness though, I really like her. She sounds, looks, and acts like a regular person. She is strong and tough and forceful in her manner of speech- she reminds me of Margaret Thatcher in many ways. Her personal background is a model- a small town major, a governor of a state, a mother, a mother to a valiant soldier, a mother to a child with a disability, etc.

And her stance on the issues is dead on. Look what she talked about in her acceptance speech. I haven't found a transcript of it yet, but I did find some stories that talk about her speech here and here, and here is the video. In her speech she talks about how she is against special interests- and not 'special interests' in a generic sense, but the bad kind, the kind that use the power of government to win special contracts and loot the people of their hard-earned money. She has fought against government waste and earmarks. She has the correct stance on drilling and energy concerns. And I remember a lot of other good stuff I liked about her stances on issues- I just can't remember them and can't seem to find any stories about her speech that do anything other than criticize her and repeat Democrat talking points- AP I'm looking at you.

I want to echo Jonah Goldberg's thoughts on the selection of Sarah Palin as Vice President:

I'm more and more keen on Sarah Palin. Palin is tackling the establishment in Alaska, including the oil and gas industry. She's attractive. She could get some real profile out of the latest polar bear lawsuits. She reinforces McCain's outsider-reformer-Western credentials. And, for the moderate soccer mom types who were all jazzed about Hillary being the first woman president, she might win a few suburbanite female swing-voters for the same reason.

Democratic President John F Kennedy is revered in the Democratic Party, and Barack Obama likes to make allusions to the fact that he is the next JFK. But, he is not. What is the most famous saying of JFK- what is the line you remember first about him, the line that became the signature of his Presidency, and made him what he is. "Ask not what your country can do for, but what you can do for your country."

Is this what Obama believes? Look at his speech for yesterday. His speech, the main point of it, is that you should vote for him because he is promising to make government do a lot of stuff for you. He promises to have the country provide more welfare for you, more education for you, more housing funds for you, more health benefits for you, etc. He promises to have your country do for you what you are currently doing for yourself.

Now, maybe you like this- maybe you are voting for Obama because you are happy that he is going to loot the productive members of society and immorally transfer their wealth to you. But don't pretend that you are voting for JFK. Obama is not JFK. Obama promises that your country will do for you whatever you want it to, and ask nothing of you.

Oz ponders "Emerging Emerging Markets":

For the past 10 years the Nigerian economy has swung back and forth between emerging market, frontier market and even underdeveloped economy, as perceived by institutional investors. Personally I find it difficult to to tell the difference sometime.I am of the opinion that Wall Street is acutely tunnel visioned when it comes to recognizing the impressive changes that the African continent has undergone in the last ten years. This is why I find it difficult not to be cynical sometimes when ‘premier’ analysts sometime tout the equity markets in Nigeria as the next big thing...[continue reading]

Ory Okolloh talks about becoming an activist at TED:

"The test of a first rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still function." F. Scott Fitzgerald

Check out the WTU legal opinion : http://www.dcpswatch.com/wtu/080801.htm

I encourage all to review a copy of the legal opinion which provides a critical survey of the WTU contract information packet. I hope this legal analysis helps DC teachers and providers as they weigh the pros and the cons of an upcoming tentative agreement. The legal opinion titled: "Seniority Rights"was rendered by O'donnell, Schwartz, and Anderson- the D.C. law firm under contract to the WTU. The WTU Executive Board passed a motion to secure a legal opinion on the contract proposal.

I have no problem listening to people who think differently than I do because they challenge my ideas and keep me from being complacent. My only rule of thumb is that if you expect me to respond to your posts - No personal attacks and No ranting PLEASE for obvious reasons ! Posted by Candi

Soon I will have the link to the transcript of Barak Obama's speech at the DNC convention, because I want to point to one particular part of it that really bothered me.

Obama talked about (and got large cheers) when he said that the main way that he would pay for all of his ideas is by going through the federal budget line by line, and eliminating items that he didn't agree with.

This sounds very much like having the power of line-item veto, which he refused to give to President Bush. Line-item veto also was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, who said that it violated the idea of separation of powers, and gave too much legislative power to the executive. And he didn't propose to just do this with new bills- he wants to go through all the laws passed in our nation, and unilaterally change them. He wants to disregard the collective wisdom of our Congress, ignore the compromises and struggles that went into place to put those budgets in place, and on his will alone shape the budget.

Obama didn't care or know that this impulse violates the spirit of our Constitution. Either he has less knowledge of the powers of the executive than my senior high school students, or he doesn't care, because he believes he is not bound by the laws of our nation. He wants to act as the legislative and executive part of our government- he doesn't want to follow the Constitution, protect our country, and serve as an executive- he wants to pass laws, pass programs, make budgets, and then make sure we all follow his decrees.

The way that he described what he wanted to do with the budget should chill you- Barack Obama's budgeting ideas violates the very spirit of our nation.

First off, my earlier post was a good prediction. I would like to just state it again- in a speech like this, an acceptance speech to be the nomination for President from a major party- you really should have mentioned our Constitution, the Founding Fathers who fought for it, the beliefs and ideas contained in it, or the long history of our nation in fighting for it. You'd think he might even mention the Declaration of Independence, and life, liberty, and property.

But he didn't, and I'm not going to pull any punches here- the reason he doesn't talk about life, liberty, and property, is because he doesn't believe in it. He doesn't believe in life (Born Alive stuff), he doesn't believe in liberty (more government control over aspect of your life), and he doesn't believe in property (higher taxes).

He went on to say in his speech that we need to forget the history of our country, ignore the founding fathers, and abandon the principles on which our nation was built- limited government, separation of powers, federalism, checks and balances, and popular sovereignty (not government sovereignty!). His speech defied these ideas at every term- he wants government do be unrestricted, unrestrained, and able to do anything and everything that he wants it to do. He ignored the states and the role they play, ignored local government, and instead talked about centering more power in Washington, more power under him. At every turn, he ignored what makes America great, and instead evoked demagogues of the past.

Barak Obama views government as a parent, giving money to various groups, watching out for us, and forcing us to make decisions which we don't want to make. He should not be President of our great country. He should not.

UPDATE: I got a look at the Daily Kos' take on Obama's speech. They agree with me. Editing some, their take: The speech was "a full-throated defense of progressive principles, devoid of mushy "centrist" crap. It didn't unnecessarily praise John McCain. It drew sharp distinctions between Democrats and Republicans. And it came from the Democratic wing of the Democratic Party."

Just about to turn on the TV and watch the One give his acceptance speech. Here is an advance summery of it-

The Democrats are the party that starts the conversation about changing the country and moving us forward in unity and hope.

Incidentally, that is some of the most vague poop ever, and yet the speech will be filled with it, as have most of the speeches for the past week. The Democrat party looks pretty and sounds pretty, but lacks substance or thought. I'm going to play a little game myself- I'm going to count the number of times I hear the words 'conversation,' 'change,' 'unity (or bipartisanship,' or 'hope.' I bet it'll be a ton. I'm also going to count the number of times I hear 'gas prices,' 'drilling,' unemployment,' 'Georgia,' 'the surge,' 'free trade,' 'capitalism,' 'the Constitution,' 'life, liberty, and property,' or the 'Founding Fathers.' Odds are there will be 100 of the first group, 1 in the second- those are good odds- any takers?

Every day I hear more and more stories about how, in the name of doing good and in the name of doing nice things, we lose more liberties and freedoms. Again, I refer to you Jonah Goldberg's book "Liberal Fascism." Here is a good review/interview of it here.

Basically, the idea I am getting at is that the United States is not going to adopt a dictatorship in the manner that liberals describe- it isn't going to be King George using the military to take control of our nation and take away our freedoms and liberties. It will be The One, one by one taking away our liberties and freedoms, all in the name of fairness, niceness, and happiness.

No one is going to show up at your door and demand you turn over your firearms- they'll make laws registering it, locking it up, holding it in 'secure' locations for happy use when the government says you can 'safely' have it. No one is going to tell you you aren't allowed to speak out agains the war- but they will say you have to be fair, and if you speak out in favor of the war, you have to also pay to have someone speak out against it (fairness doctrine). No one will say you don't have the right to a lawyer- they'll instead say that you have to have a state mandated one to be fair, and they'll give you the sucky state-mandated one to be really fair to you. No one will say you have the right to a fair trail- but they will say that you have to be nicer to the person who just beat you and took your money, and that they have a right to a fair trail. In the name of niceness and fairness, you will become less free and live under a dictatorship.

From the movie Serenity: "Y'all got on this boat for different reasons, but y'all come to the same place. Sure as I know anything, I know this - they will try again. Maybe on another world, maybe on this very ground swept clean. A year from now, ten? They'll swing back to the belief that they can make people... better. And I do not hold to that. So no more runnin'. I aim to misbehave. "

"If you don't read the newspaper you are uninformed, if you do read the newspaper you are misinformed." -Mark Twain

"Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress....But then I repeat myself." -Mark Twain

"I contend that for a nation to try to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle." -Winston Churchill

"A government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul." -George Bernard Shaw

"A liberal is someone who feels a great debt to his fellow man, which debt he proposes to pay off with your money." -G Gordon Liddy

"Democracy must be something more than two wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner." -James Bovard

"Government is the great fiction, through which everybody endeavors to live at the expense of everybody else." -Frederic Bastiat

"Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it." -Ronald Reagan

"If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it costs when it's free!" -P.J. O'Rourke

"A government big enough to give you everything you want, is strong enough to take everything you have." -Thomas Jefferson

"Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek." -Barak Obama

"If the people cannot trust their government to do the job for which it exists - to protect them and to promote their common welfare - all else is lost." -Barak Obama

Frank Beckman (heard locally on 760 am) gave me this idea. He noticed the differences in the speech Michelle Obama gave on Monday with the speech Condoleezza Rice gave at the RNC convention in 2000. It's a fair comparison- both are black women, well educated, and in positions of power where they could advise potential Presidents.

I've gone through both speeches, quoting from them, comparing them, and hopefully making intelligent comparisons when it occurred to do so. I hope you enjoy, and see how these major advisers could be shaping the worldview of their presidential preferences.

Michelle Obama begins her speech by talking about herself- she jumps right how she was raised, and gives thanks to her father. She then states her main message of the speech- "And Barack and I were raised with so many of the same values: that you work hard for what you want in life; that your word is your bond and you do what you say you're going to do; that you treat people with dignity and respect, even if you don't know them, and even if you don't agree with them." To repeat- the values that she represents are hard work, honesty, and respect.

Condoleezza Rice begins her speech by thanking all those who have gone before her- great Presidents like Ford, Reagan, and HW Bush. She then states her main message of the speech- "The future belongs to liberty, fueled by markets in trade, protected by the rule of law and propelled by the fundamental rights of the individual. Information and knowledge can no longer be bottled up by the state. Prosperity flows to those who can tap the genius of their people." To repeat- the values she represents are liberty, free trade, and individual rights.

We'll stop here- both are great messages. But one sounds better on the streets of Chicago, trying to organize a community and help people, and the other sounds better in the White House, trying to lead a nation and defend America.

Obama goes on to speak about how her "piece of the American Dream is a blessing hard won by those who came before me... All of us driven by a simple belief that the world as it is just won't do -- that we have an obligation to fight for the world as it should be."

Rice goes on to speak about something similar- that "Democracy in America is a work in progress, not a finished masterpiece. But even with its flaws, this unique American experience provides a shining beacon to people..."

Obama sees the failures of America, while Rice sees the triumph. That's a major difference in looking at America.

Obama says "I believe that each of us -- no matter what our age or background or walk of life -- each of us has something to contribute to the life of this nation."

Rice says "In America, with education and hard work, it really does not matter where you came from; it matters only where you are going."

Compare those two statements- they both talk about background, but Obama's conclusion is that people most go to work for the state now, and be a slave to its desires, while Rice believes that people can do whatever they want in life, and don't owe anybody anything- including owing the state some sort of service.

Obama goes on to say that Obama will make a great President, because he will be "bringing us together and reminding us how much we share and how alike we really are."

Rice says that Bush will be a great President because he "challenges us to call upon our better selves, to be compassionate toward those who are less fortunate, to cherish and educate every child, descendants of slaves and immigrants alike, and to thereby affirm the American dream for us all."

So Obama brings us together and reminds us how alike we are, and Bush challenges us to be greater, more compassionate, and better than we are. Obama wants us all to wallow in the mud, saying- hey, we're all pigs together, while Bush wants us to rise above, be more, and be greater. Our country was built by people more like Bush, who challenged us to be more than we are, and not by people like Obama, who demands we all be alike.

Michelle Obama ends her speech by saying "So tonight... let us devote ourselves to finishing their work; let us work together to fulfill their hopes; and let us stand together to elect Barack Obama president of the United States of America."

Condoleezza Rice ends her speech by saying "We will go forth--to extend peace, prosperity and liberty beyond our blessed shores. Thank you. Let's go out and elect George W. Bush and Dick Cheney. Good night. God bless you and God bless America."

I'm not editing these comments- I'm just quoting and comparing. So what do we get out of the closing statements by these two advisers with similar messages but different conclusions. First, I notice that Rice ended by saying God Bless, and God bless America, and Michelle didn't end that way. That might mean something, or might mean nothing- you decide. I see that Obama says that by electing Obama we will finish the work of our ancestors and fulfill their dreams- in other words, Obama is the savior. Whereas Rice simply says that Bush will extend peace, prosperity, and liberty- stuff that a person can do, although maybe not as impressive as a savior. Lastly, and this might just be semantics, but Obama asks everyone to 'stand together', where Rice asks people to 'go out.' You stand together when you are weak, and your biggest threat is separating from the herd. You go out when you are strong, and your biggest threat is not getting up and getting out.

Comparing these two speeches is relevent and useful, and gives me some further insights into the type of candidates that Obama is and Bush was. Bush was moralistic and willing to fight to bring liberty to other countries, for better or worse. Obama believes you're all the same, although he is better than you, and you should serve him.

By comparing Condoleezza Rice's speech and Michelle Obama's speech, it becomes more clear that you should vote against Obama in this coming election.

Yesterday I was listening on the radio to Ed Schultz, the self-described voice of progressive radio, and one of the more popular liberal radio shows in the country. Many Democrats and liberals go on his show and talk about how much they value his opinions and encourage him to keep doing what he does. So when he states his opinions on things, I think it carries some weight about what liberals and Democrats are really thinking.

Yesterday, Ed went off on a rant after talking to a caller, and started to talk about how their is not going to be anything new going on at the Republican Convention next week- there it is going to the usual Republican hate-and-fear mongering fest. Then he adopts a mocking voice, dripping with sarcasm, and mocks the idea that things have changed since 9/11- in fact, he mocks the fact that Republicans even remember, care about, and bring up 9/11 still. This 'voice of the liberal left' goes on then to poo-poo the notion that our security situation changed after 9/11, and states that the world is the same it was and that we should go back to doing things the old way before Bush was in office.

This is change we can believe in- go back to the security situation of the Clinton years, and stand by while terrorists grow bolder and bolder in attacking us. This is what an Obama presidency will look like- weak responses and 'strong talking' as terrorists attack our civilians in our homeland once again. If Ed Schultz got his way, and the Democrats he talks to who agree with his ideas, he would pretend the real world didn't exist, and go on putting his head in the sand, calling it change.

In the Prospect Richard Dowden analyses the continents dysfunctional 'democracies':

The core of the problem is not inexperience in electoral procedure; it is the nature of the African nation state. Successful democratic systems depend upon a group of people—judges, civil servants, election officials—who stand outside party politics and serve the state and people as a whole, irrespective of who is in power. In Africa this class barely exists. Only a few countries maintain a distinction between the ruling party and the state...[continue reading]

via ProspectBlog
Hat Tip Sean!

Just a reminder - WTU will hold its second bi-monthly meeting in on Thursday,
August 28th @ 5:30 p.m. at the WTU Office. The office is located at 490 L'Enfant Plaza SW Suite 7200 - Washington, DC 20024. WTU members are welcome to attend. Please notify the WTU President Mr. George Parker via email @ gparker@wtulocal6.org Bring your WTU card if you plan to attend. Hope to see you there ! Posted by Candi

Winner of the Sakharov prize Hauwa Ibrahim, talks about the aspirations of the young:

Young Africans want to contribute to peace, freedom and human dignity. They want the opportunity to be and to use their minds creatively. They want the opportunity not to think about what they are eating tomorrow, to be free of things that slow them down - like poverty. They want the opportunity to make a positive change for their society, for their countries and for the world...[continue reading]

See related PBS Coverage here

Binneh S. Minteh writing in the The Sword of Truth states:

The emboldening of an African – Brazilian /African-Indian private sector, through positive and constructive bilateral mechanisms and institutions, may be a contributing policy decision in both fostering ties, and diversifying economies across the continent.In addition the opening of African economies to more entrepreneurs and private businesses from both India and Brazil may become the necessary driving force behind the vehicle strengthening economic diversification across the continent.....[continue reading]

via Cheetah Index

David R. Francis writes in the CSMonitor:

If a developing nation wants to make fast progress, it must educate its girls and give them more equality in jobs and economic opportunities.Decades of international and domestic efforts to speed development in more than 100 poor countries shows that, as the title of a recent study puts it, "Girls Count."More than just counting, helping girls get ahead and out of the limitations that so many cultures have placed on them for hundreds of years is vital to overcoming poverty and growing prosperity...[continue reading]

Watch related video the 'Girl Effect'

via CIPE Blog

Related articles by Zemanta

• The Girl Effect

image courtesy of Acumen Fund

There is still a lot going on over in Georgia, and I would direct you to the Belmont Club for more information- out of all the websites I have seen, this is the best analysis and coverage of this continuing conflict. Check it out here.

Some of you may not know this, but I'm a sportsman- I like to fish, hunt, camp, hike, and do a lot of things outdoors. That may surprise some of you liberals, who think that conservative Republicans must hate the environment, but I would contend that I'm more of an outdoorsman than you are. Anyways, when I came across this story at Dartblog, I had to link to it- here is the best parts of it:

As reported in the L.A. Times, the Braun Research Survey conducted a telephone poll of 1,009 sportsmen, of whom 45 percent indicated their intention to vote for McCain, with 31 percent leaning towards Obama. On a more personal level, 49 percent of sportsmen said they’d rather hunt with McCain, compared to 27 percent for Obama. The more pacific fisherman set was a more tolerant of Obama, though McCain still held the lead with 44 percent who would rather fish with him, compared to Obama’s 31 percent.

“They’re just not sure how much fun Barack Obama would be in a duck blind,” said Steve Sanetti, president of the National Shooting Sports Foundation.

I was out driving and listening to the radio, and heard a lot of talk about Pelosi and her recent comments on abortion, and rather than discuss it myself, I'm going to let the Anchoress' site speak for me. Link to it here.

Over on Founding Bloggers, they did an interview with a Democrat who said his dream ticket would be Che-Obama. He is referring of course Ernesto "Che" Guevara for President, and Barak Hussein Obama for Vice President. Would that really be a dream ticket for the United States? I'm not so sure. Check out the interview though- it's good.

Via Doug Ross, here are some funny lines of the day:
• It takes two Americas to warehouse John Edwards’ sins.
•Top Clinton advisers tell CNN they’re outraged by how she was treated- the only way this could be better for Republicans is if it involved robots.
•The Democratic ticket has big problems.... it is Obama Biden... Osama Binladen...

Russian women in bikini's greet Russian navy ships at the Black Sea port of Sevastopol as they return from operations at Georgia's sea border. These are some nice pictures. Could this be more evidence of Russia's rapidly rising median age?

Last week, Via the Viking Pundit, Election Projection was showing a 269 to 269 electoral vote tie between Obama and McCain. I see today that Obama is up 273 to 265. That's rather depressing. You'd think that voters would be paying more attention to Obama's trouble dealing with real concerns such as gasoline prices and a resurgent Russia, and less attention to the cult of personality that is the empty "I love Obama" mouthed empty nothings at the DNC convention.

Via Michelle Malkin-

Barack Obama is striking back fiercely and swiftly to stamp out an ad that links him to a 1960s radical, eager to demonstrate a far more aggressive response to attacks than John Kerry did when faced with the 2004 “Swift Boat” campaign.

Obama ... sought to block stations the commercial by warning station managers and asking the Justice Department to intervene. The campaign also planned to compel advertisers to pressure stations that continue to air the anti-Obama commercial.

This is change I can believe in- the change from a free state to an unfree one, led by Democrats trying to chill free speech in the name of fairness and diversity.

UPDATE: Case in point- Michelle Malkin was at the DNC convention covering some of the protesting going on at the event, and she was attacked by lefties claiming that they were going to kill her. They argue that the truth must be known about 9/11, while threatening to kill anyone who speaks out against them. Shocking. I'm not quite sure that the 1st amendment protects assault and threats to do bodily harm, but I'm sure if anyone sued, the ACLU would step in. Here is a link describing what went on from the Gateway Pundit.

From CNN:

Observers say the growth of simple communication technologies like cell phones are assisting many states to progress towards open and fair elections in increasingly democratic systems.Senegal is one of a number of African countries to hold successful elections by keeping voting and counting in check through independent communication...[continue reading]

via Textually.org

What this essay brings to mind is the oft quoted: "Fools rush in where wise men dare to tread."Essay from Opposed in The Mail, August 24, 2008 by yours truly.

As long as DC Public Schools continues to place excessed teachers in positions that are not in their area of professional certification, DC students will continue to be shortchanged. Eliminating school counselor positions on the elementary level, closing twenty-three schools and restructuring twenty-seven schools simultaneously in one year while cutting many required teaching positions contributes to a shortage of available teaching positions citywide. Another factor that contributes to the citywide teacher shortage problem is Rhee’s decision to recruit and hire new teachers and counselors before locating positions for existing excessed staff. In addition, many teaching positions, such as math coaches and science teachers, etc., have been eliminated altogether while other teaching positions have been reduced to half time.

The frequency with which DC teachers are placed outside of their certification areas casts doubt on Rhee’s commitment to comply with No Child Left Behind law “which requires that states create a plan in which poor and minority children are not more likely to be taught by inexperienced teachers, unqualified teachers, or those teaching outside their field of certification.” Teachers, counselors, and art therapists are being compelled by DCPS central office and principals to accept alternate positions for which they are not qualified and certified to teach. For example, art therapists are being assigned to function as art teachers, while counselors are being assigned to function as classroom teachers while regular educators are being assigned to work as special educators, and the list goes on.

If Chancellor Rhee had developed a systematic educational plan as required, then many of these issues would have been worked out earlier on. Without the creation of an educational plan as well as immediate policy changes under Rhee’s Renew, Revitalize and Reorganize school model — student learning and achievement will continue to be undermined while DC teachers and providers will continue to be devalued. Posted by Candi Peterson

Questions about Nigeria's Banks-Economist
African Union a potential superpower?-African Executive
African mining digs deeper-Knowledge at Wharton
Baguettes versus Softbread-the legacy of colonialism.

Image via Wikipedia From the Economist:

IN HER inaugural speech in January 2006, Africa’s first female head of state set out the daunting tasks facing Liberia, citing her determination to heal the awful wounds inflicted during the civil wars of 1989 to 2003 by her various appalling predecessors, including Charles Taylor, now on trial for war crimes at The Hague. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, a former World Banker, also promised to reduce Liberia’s dire poverty and to consolidate democracy. On the whole, she has made progress—albeit with a lot of help from friends abroad...[continue reading]

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The Aga Khan founder of the Aga Khan Academy, Mombasa stated:

"...An education must equip students with the tools that enable them to adapt, and thrive, in a world characterised by change...“In such an environment, technical proficiency is not enough. Education that prepares children for life must go beyond fundamental skills to stimulate creativity, intellectual curiosity and honest inquiry. Advancement and development, both personal and societal, are dependent on these elements. Innovation and progress arise from the ability to approach a challenge in a new way and offer a solution..."

via Africa Science News

Banji Oyelaran-Oyeyinka and Padmashree Gehl Sampath write:

Our analysis of the innovation process for biopharmaceutical research within Nigeria reveals specific obstacles at different stages of work that the institutions were engaged in, for three reasons. First, lack of facilities and financing to move the research to the concluding stages.Second, we found situations where significant research results had been collected, with evidence of possible utility of the process and product, but no demand by the end-users10.Third, failure to commercialize sometime resulting from institutional rigidity much of which relates to the ways traditional PRIs and universities are set up. There are two issues that recurred in our interviews namely, who initiate the process (the PRI[public research institutes] or a
firm/entrepreneur?); and what form of formal or informal contract guides the process? In advanced developing and highly industrialized countries, two broad types of formal contract are common, which are, academic entrepreneurship, and spin-off companies from public research or universities...[continue reading]

From Richard Reeves at the Prospect:

The three key ingredients of a good character are: a sense of personal agency or self-direction; an acceptance of personal responsibility; and effective regulation of one's own emotions, in particular the ability to resist temptation or at least defer gratification. Progressives are realising that, thus defined, character is intimately linked to many of their social goals—and also that it is unevenly distributed. Indeed, inequality of character may now be as important as inequality of economic resources...[continue reading]

via 3QuarksDaily

For an unorganized effort, I must say that I was impressed by the number of teachers that were dawned in black for the back to school teacher rally on Friday, August 22nd to demonstrate their displeasure of the Rhee/Parker tentative agreement that attempts to take away long earned job protections. I couldn't help but noticing that Chancellor Rhee was also dressed in black. Could it be that she too got a copy of the email to wear black on Friday ? Perhaps. :)

Many teacher and service provider colleagues expressed dissappointment in Friday's events. A little too much grandstanding for my taste. I think that the time could have been put to better use. From my vantage point in the back , I believe that the No's had it in a showing of teachers hands against the contract proposal. Here is an excerpt from Bill Turque's DC Wire blog on teachers back to school rally :

"This morning's "Welcome Back" rally at the Washington Convention Center for 5,000 returning D.C teachers started with cheers, cash prizes .... But warm-and-fuzzy quickly gave way to bread-and-butter as Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee and union president George Parker turned the subject to the proposed pay package that has roiled the city's teacher corps.

Parker ... is wrestling with whether to bring it to a membership vote, even if it contains provisions -- such as the one-year probationary period -- that he finds noxious. "What this boils down to is...What kind of contract do we bring to you to ratify?" Parker said, before asking for a show of hands -- for and against. The results? Kind of depends on who you ask.

Parker said sentiment appeared to run about 2-to-1 against a vote, roughly mirroring the results of a recent poll commissioned by the American Federation of Teachers. From other vantage points, the margin looked a little closer. Parker said he would call a membership meeting for next week before he makes a final decision." No matter your vantage point, stay tuned for more on the saga of the Rhee/Parker tentative agreement and Parker's promise to hold a WTU membership meeting next week. Posted by Candi.

Daily on liberal talk shows, and every day in Obama and other Democrat speeches, we have to be subjected to "The Litany"- the list of everything that is supposedly going wrong in the world right now due to Bush/Republican/Conservative ideas- high gas prices, high health care costs, businesses going bankrupt and cheating people out of pensions, houses being foreclosed on, education failing, roads falling apart, and the rising threat of global warming.

The question is, are these failures because of Bush/Republican/Conservatives, or in spite of them? I know it's not fair to lump Bush, Republicans, and Conservatives together, but my point is, look again at all the failures above. Supposedly, the right is pushing for less government, less regulation, more choice, more freedom, and more personal responsibility. But, in the area of energy, healthcare, education, home loans, roads, bankruptcy laws, and management of public lands, the opposite is occurring.

To me, the problem is obvious- as more laws, regulations, and restrictions have been placed on energy development, gas prices have gone up. As the government has placed more laws, restrictions, oversight, lawsuits, etc on healthcare, the costs have gone up. As the government got more involved in providing sub-prime loans to homeowners, the situation got worse. As education became more monopolized by government, received more government funding, the situation got worse.

Liberals are not pointing to places where freedom, responsibility, and choice have been growing and saying 'fix this'- no, those areas are doing quite well. Deregulating telephones resulted in a lot of great things- no one wants to go back. Having many competing soda companies is a great thing. The competition among pencil builders has driven down price. Any example of free enterprise is thriving- the areas that are not are areas that are heavily regulated.

So, what is the solution? Any reasonable person would say- 'if you do more, you get less, so try less, and see if you get more.' Any liberal would say 'if you do more, you get less, so try more, and see if you don't get less.' Less is more!

I think this is called the "Rahn Curve"- I'll have to do some more research on this later, but this blog is a good starting site, which appears to be based on this article.

I first heard about this article from the Reason Foundation on the Michael Medved show on 1400 AM in Detroit. It is a very good article, and analyzes Barack Obama's recent call for spending $10 billion a year of federal money on early education, through providing unaccountable grants to states that would provide universal preschool for all.

Obama wants children as young as 4 to be forcibly enrolled in government run daycare centers, where government employees will then read to them. Everyone will be forced to pay taxes to support these re-education centers, where students will learn that it's okay to have two mommies and that whitie is the bad guy (he may be and it might be okay, but they probably should learn to read and write too). And once you admit that the state gets your kids at age 4... it's not that much of a stretch for you to give your kids over to the state at age 3... age 2... age 1... just born. It'll stop there though, because in the womb, babies aren't people (according to Obama).

Now, one might be able to stomach the state intruding into the private sphere and taking over a sector of the economy that is going quite well, and doing so at a great cost, if there were dramatic benefits. There aren't. According to Reason Foundation's Lisa Snell, there is a decided lack of lasting benefits in the long-term test scores of kids who go to government-run universal preschool programs. Almost every measurably indicator quite clearly shows that that 10 billion could be better spent elsewhere, or not at all.

Lastly, Obama once again displays his utter disregard to foundational American principles, in this case FEDERALISM, where the states are supposed to play the primary role in education. Everyone who was upset about Bush nationalizing education with NCLB should be very upset about Obama proposing a dramatic increase in the federal government's involvement with your state's young children.

Liberal radio hosts often say that the reason people give for not wanting to vote for Obama is that they think he was sworn in to the Senate on the Koran. He wasn't. These liberals want to throw this up as a straw man- look they say, these evil bigoted conservatives have phony reasons for not liking the One. They mention this far more than conservatives do- in fact, most conservatives don't like the One for many other reasons, not the straw one the liberals throw up.

I think though that what annoys me most about this is that the liberals say that Republicans and conservatives won't vote for Obama because he was sworn in the Koran, and they do this to demonstrate that we're all evil conniving worms who use scare tactics and what not, and there is absolutely no basis for truth in what we think. I think this obscures the fact that although the Democratic Congressman African-American liberal male from the north named Barak Obama did not swear in on the Koran, the Democratic Congressman Muslim-American liberal male from the north named Keith Ellison did.

So instead of this of this being a scare tactic by evil people, it is more of a simple mix up of unpatriotic Democratic liberal Congressman, and so more in the realm of a simple mistake. I think that comparing Ellison to Obama is a better comparison than comparing McCain to Bush, something the Democrats frequently do.

... Lenin! He just needs to figure out a way to re-animate his corpse- Obama wants a all lefty communist ticket! Just kidding. Lenin turned him down. Actually, it was going to be John Edwards, and now that he's finally pinned down as a hypocrite, it can't be him- sadly though, they can't reprint the bumper stickers, because that'd hurt the environment, so it'll most likely be Representative "Chet" Edwards from Waco, Texas. You heard it here first.

From the Council for Foreign Relations Stephanie Hanson writes:

A small group of economists now argue that brain drain might have a positive impact on Africa. Those skilled workers, their research shows, are often sending significant quantities of money back to their home countries. A March 2008 paper by economists William Easterly and Yaw Nyarko says remittances to Africa are likely undercounted, but on average they are equivalent to 81 percent of the foreign aid (PDF) received by an individual country. A 2005 World Bank study showed that remittances from skilled workers to their families in Guatemala, Mexico, and the Philippines helped reduce poverty in those countries.
In some cases, talented workers are even returning to their home countries to work or start businesses. Though research on this phenomenon in Africa is limited, economists have documented the effects of Chinese and Indian tech entrepreneurs returning to their home countries. This so-called brain circulation—in which entrepreneurs start new companies but maintain business links in the United States—has been extensively researched by Anna Lee Saxenian of the University of California, who calls these entrepreneurs "The New Argonauts." Some experts believe African skilled workers could have a similar positive effect on their native economies...[continue reading]

Read the TEDBLog and Mootbox for related coverage.

By definition a 'protest' means an expression or declaration of objection, disapproval, or dissent, often in opposition to something a person is powerless to prevent or avoid. On Friday, DC Teachers will be wearing black in protest to the back to school morning rally with Chancellor Michelle Rhee. As we have learned from the independent Hart research poll results , a majority of DC teachers disapprove of the Rhee/Parker tentative agreement . Many are concerned about swapping long earned job protections for hefty raises. In solidarity, talks of this small unorganized effort has spread from school to school. So rarely do we hear of DC teachers being civilly disobedient against our leaders. Join us if you dare. We'll be there, dressed in black. Posted By: Candi Peterson

Happy Birthday To Ya -Happy Birthday To Ya -Happy Birthday ! My son turned nineteen on August 21st. I thought about him all day. Reflecting back to all the times I told him - you are a man yet to be. Well the time is now upon me and its a bittersweet pill of ambivalence. Good ambivalence of knowing its time to let go but wanting to hold on all the same. JBL called me today. I smiled as he made a request for my annual happy birthday song. I asked- you want me to sing the birthday song ? He replied emphatically a baritone yes- sing it to me mom---my. I did, he laughed and I laughed. Nineteen year old birthdays aren't so bad. I have much love for you JB. Happy Birthday ! Posted By Candi Peterson

Ndidi Okereke-Onyiuke misfires with "Africans for Obama"-Akin
Why worry about Doha? Securing Economic Growth through Trade Facilitation-Daniel Ikenson
Mobile money transfers to exceed $5bn by 2013-Juniper research
Aleksandr Shkolnikov writes about Democracies and economic outcomes.-CIPE

Can you? Is it possible to stop people from hearing about, reading about, or knowing about what is real out there? Listening to liberal Democrats talk on the radio, they want to- they rant about how they want to control what people here, what they think, what they perceive as reality. But I think there hold is broken- you can't stop the signal now. Talk radio, Fox News, the internet- reality will bite you. I think it's biting Obama right now- he's down by 5 in poll!

As I get older, I get more fascinated with military history, and also realize how my education neglected such an important area. Personally, I am making an attempt to rectify that injustice with my students- I have started an innovative club at my high school called the Military History Club, where students learn about military history, strategy, and principles through watching war movies. It's a lot of fun, and blog about that more later as I start running those meetings again.

My main reason for bringing it up is that I came across a really good article by Victor Davis Hanson about why we should study war, and I wanted to pass it on to you. Here is the link to the article, and here is the beginning of it:

It’s no surprise that civilian Americans tend to lack a basic understanding of military matters. Even when I was a graduate student, 30-some years ago, military history—understood broadly as the investigation of why one side wins and another loses a war, and encompassing reflections on magisterial or foolish generalship, technological stagnation or breakthrough, and the roles of discipline, bravery, national will, and culture in determining a conflict’s outcome and its consequences—had already become unfashionable on campus. oday, universities are even less receptive to the subject....

Sorry for the delay in posting- for the last several days I was working for the government on a test that they are producing, reviewing test items for content. I'm being vague on purpose- first, I don't want to violate any confidentiality about test items, and second, I don't want to get black-listed by the government and not get invited back.

The test is a state required one, and the state pays to have people write items for it, and then has a bias committee review the items for racial or sexist bias, and then another committee for content. The bias committee only looks at racial or sexist bias- not ideological or religious bias. But, there is plenty of bias of this sort on these tests.

I've worked on several tests for the state so far, and they are all pretty much the same- liberal. This is a Social Studies one. The test questions are on the following topics- labor unions, feminism, hippies, arguments against Vietnam War, Japanese internment in WWII, New Deal, Great Society programs, and the civil rights era. That's it. A teacher teaching social studies in this state only needs to have their students learn that information to do well on the test. Oh, and all with a heavy liberal slant to- there is no attempt made at balance. There are a lot of questions about the good things Democratic Presidents did, and a handful on the bad things Republican Presidents did. That's it.

Well, I'm not going to get into it further- I already am getting a lot of dirty looks for my comments on these committees, and have barely avoided getting purged several times. Just wanted to explain my delay in posting for the last couple days and give you a hint of the darker side of state created education tests.

Image via Wikipedia In Vanity Fair Peter Godwin writes about the 'The Crocodile' Robert Mugabe, and his battered country:

The tragic irony of Zimbabwe is that what is today a hellish country should by all evidence be a paradise. Its high, malaria-free interior is a magical place: sweeping vistas of long tawny grasses slope up to the mountain ranges of the eastern highlands; in the north the land falls sharply down to the Zambezi River, which tumbles magnificently over the Victoria Falls. Zimbabwe is blessed with rich, loamy soil. Beneath it lie generous seams of gold, chromium, coal, iron, and diamonds. At independence in 1980, Mugabe inherited a sophisticated, well-maintained infrastructure. The black middle class grew fast, and Zimbabwe enjoyed the highest standard of living in black-ruled Africa.
But that was yesterday. The most recent World Values Survey shows that Zimbabweans are today the world’s unhappiest people. Their economy has almost halved in size in the past 10 years. The unemployment rate is more than 80 percent. About half of all Zimbabweans are reliant on food aid. Some 20 percent of the population is afflicted with H.I.V./aids. Zimbabwe today has the world’s shortest life span—the average Zimbabwean is dead by age 36 (down from age 62 in 1990). As a result the country now has the highest percentage of orphans on the planet...[continue reading]

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At 3QuarksDaily Ram Manikkalingam writes:

Ethnic conflicts are not only about ethnicity. They are also about political parties seeking power and armed entities confronting each other militarily - who are not necessarily divided neatly along ethnic lines. Starting with a ceasefire may not be the best way to resolve ethnic conflicts, even if this might give you a temporary respite from the armed conflict. Protecting human rights may not always help with promoting peace, though such tensions can be reduced with political shrewdness and strategic design...[continue reading]

DC Teachers vacation just ended on Monday. All DC Teachers started back to work officially today. Many attended pre-arranged staff development sessions. Ours was at the Kellogg Center on the campus of Galludet University. While I was glad to see faces that I hadn't seen for over nine weeks- hugs and kisses were exchanged while teacher contract talks were all the buzz amongst teacher and service provider colleagues during lunch and mini- break sessions.

Contrary to what our mainstream media reports, today many teachers young and old contemplated the validity of a teachers contract that takes away not only contractual rights but statutory job protections for hefty raises. One teacher argued "don't buy the hype" while she vehemently voiced her frustration at our lunch table over Chancellor Rhee's regular media campaigns which castigates veteran teachers leaving many feeling devalued to talks ranging from what is wrong with our union and why isn't George Parker representing our best interests and why must we lose tenure if we choose the green tier especially since we have earned tenure to why will excessing lead to termination ?

In our mist is much ado about our teachers contract and I contend that we are intentionally being fed a regular diet of distorted and inaccurate information in the mainstream media, by uninformed others and by DC teachers whose votes have been purchased for a motley sum of $1,000 per week. What we know is there has been a campaign funded by City Bridge to buy union members votes . Lauren Castillo, DCPS teacher at Jefferson admits in an email to accepting $1,000 weekly in exchange for lobbying teachers to vote yes on the Rhee/Parker tentative agreement. There are other un-named others. Bill Turque, Washington Post reporter uncovered that City Bridge has funded this campaign. What's wrong with this picture I ask you ?

While I am bothered by these unprincipled people , rather than criticize and complain - I have embraced a pro-active position to get out as much factual information to our DC teachers as I can. I am committed to encouraging our American Federation of Teachers (parent union) to release the 6 page legal opinion by O'Donnell, Schwartz and Anderson, P.C. - titled "Seniority Rights," dated August 1st to all DC teachers who are WTU members which states "... This proposal replaces teachers rights with automatic termination on the Green system and eventual termination on the Red system.... DC Teachers would lose their career status as tenured professionals and the characteristics of tenure...." (for additional excerpts from the legal opinion - see "Should DC teachers Swap Raises for Job Protections ?- post 8/18/08). For me, this legal opinion confirms/solidifies my belief that "information is power." Spread the word to a DC teacher that you know. Posted by Candi Peterson