tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post2053438535049990154..comments2024-03-27T18:00:02.032-04:00Comments on Sardonicky: And the Band Droned OnKaren Garciahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15612731479365562803noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-47636024141958071952013-12-05T03:30:01.502-05:002013-12-05T03:30:01.502-05:00I have no proof, Zee, but I know how hard teachers...I have no proof, Zee, but I know how hard teachers I have worked with fought "no child left behind" (which has done nothing BUT leave children behind)- not because they were lazy and didn't want to work, but because the testing instituted measured airy -fairy, vague learning instead of measuring things like reading comprehension, vocabulary development, a sound foundation in the basic algorithms and practical problem solving. So the curriculum to prepare the kids for the test followed suit and we were not even allowed to teach the basics anymore. The point is, we teachers - the workers in the trenches who actually care about the kids - had absolutely no say in curriculum decisions. And now there is a metaphorical train wreck in public education and guess what? They aren't blaming corporate test designers, text book publishers and curriculum architects (who often are the same corporate entity, like Pearson publishing). They are blaming the very same teachers who wanted a more reasonable and practical curriculum. So no, I have no data about the workers who worked on the assembly line that designed your truck, but I do have an idea of what it feels like to have no power whatsoever over decisions dictated by those who THINK they have it right and don't. And many people think teachers are lazy and stupid people who couldn't do anything else. While I know that is not your opinion, your stereotype of drunk and drug addicted assembly line workers somehow strikes the same cord.<br /><br />Let's face it, Detroit had two forks in the road starting around 1975. They knew fossil fuels were a finite resource and instead of putting their engineering in the direction of competing with Japanese imports - its not like engineers didn't see what the Japanese were doing that was working so well - and making smaller cars - or perfecting the electric car - they threw their lot in with the oil companies and built giant gas guzzlers. I blame the management for the downfall of the auto industry in America. Valerie Long Tweedienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-5504085407329244542013-12-05T02:42:19.654-05:002013-12-05T02:42:19.654-05:00But Orwell warned us it was coming.
Back in the 4...But Orwell warned us it was coming.<br /><br />Back in the 40's.<br /><br />And it's here.<br /><br />BIGTIME!<br /><br />(Will the citizens awaken before the drones start dropping their bombs?)Cirzehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07070125217972397204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-69826491976443302652013-12-04T23:54:41.657-05:002013-12-04T23:54:41.657-05:00Privatization and the Affordable Care Act http://s...Privatization and the Affordable Care Act http://shar.es/Dietb via <br />> @sharethis Pearlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-60329746670852439762013-12-04T23:48:07.602-05:002013-12-04T23:48:07.602-05:00@Valerie--
With all due respect, I have to differ...@Valerie--<br /><br />With all due respect, I have to differ with you on your opinion that the defects of my Chevy Scottsdale were <i> solely </i> the responsibility of the designing engineers or corporate executives of the day.<br /><br />If those building <i> today's </i> cars are noon-time drunks and drug users, well, maybe they were the same or worse in 1986:<br /><br />http://content.usatoday.com/communities/driveon/post/2010/09/<br />detroit-tv-station-catches-chrysler-workers-drinking-drugging-during-lunch/1#.UqABjbyA3IU<br /><br />Just my humble speculation. If you have proof to the contrary, well, I'm always prepared to listen.Zeenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-17281767440224699392013-12-04T22:00:36.026-05:002013-12-04T22:00:36.026-05:00The sad thing about the crash and burn of Detroit ...The sad thing about the crash and burn of Detroit is that executive decisions - executives that are LONG gone and got 100% their golden retirement packages - are why the American auto industry failed. The guys and gals working on the assembly lines didn't care which cars or trucks they were building - big or small, hybrid or gas guzzler - and they had absolutely no say in the decisions around engineering that caused all the problems you complain about in your comment, in your comment, Zee. Yet, THEY are the ones who don't have viable employment now and they are the ones whose pension fund have been raided and they are the ones whose contracts concerning retirement were not honoured. <br /><br />Valerie Long Tweedienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-5674883745297683422013-12-04T21:20:11.918-05:002013-12-04T21:20:11.918-05:00Also, I see that some consideration is being given...Also, I see that some consideration is being given as to whose heads should roll in the wake of the ObummerCare roll-out fiasco.<br /><br />http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/04/us/politics/considering-which-head-or-heads-may-roll-for-a-troubled-website-rollout.html?_r=1&<br /><br />How about all of 'em, starting with the Big Guy at The Top, who was too busy speechifyin' to see if his "signature achievement" even worked?<br /><br />Oh. I guess that's just too much to hope for.Zeenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-974773076690597683.post-83519673892545528992013-12-04T20:43:14.419-05:002013-12-04T20:43:14.419-05:00First, I'm rolling on the floor laughing my as...First, I'm rolling on the floor laughing my ass off that the Obama administration is preening itself over finally acting at “private sector speed” to save ObummerCare! Is this a tacit admission that “government sector speed” is equivalent to “a turtle in molasses on a very cold day?” <br /><br />Don't answer that. I've worked with the government, and they are slow, slllooowww, sllllllloooooowwwwww. Right now, I'm trying to figure out where the USPS—I know, I know, not truly the gum'mint any more—has lost a parcel of mine. May take me weeks to do so.<br /><br />Shoulda used <i> UPS, </i> but that wasn't an option with this particular vendor. <br /><br />Second, there <i> is </i> a cure for “octocopters” overflying your hot tub and mine:<br /><br />http://www.nationaljournal.com/innovation-works/this-colorado-man-is-ready-to-hunt-amazon-drones-20131203<br /><br />I have my shotgun. Do you have yours?<br /><br />Finally, when I reflect on that expensive, 1986 piece'o'crap Chevy Scottsdale, heavy-duty, 3/4 ton pick-up truck that I bought to haul my perfectly good, lightweight, American-made, in-the-box camper—the truck that constantly overheated and whose gas-tank-shifting electrical system could spontaneously leave one suddenly without gas on the Interstate, or <i>without any gas at all under any circumstances until <b> it </b> damn' well decided to switch tanks,</i>—well, I find it hard to work up any sympathy for the straits in which The Motor City finds itself these days. <br /><br />Instead, I thank God for the Japanese automobile manufacturers who forced Detroit to take a look at its so-called “quality,” and to improve thereupon. Maybe, in another ten years and several hundred thousands of miles driven, I'll dare to turn in my reliable Japanese cars for those built in Detroit. <br /><br />We'll see. If Detroit is still around.Zeenoreply@blogger.com