Frustrated Teacher in Maryland Resigns: "We have sacrificed wisdom and abandoned its fruits."

I posted last week on declining teacher morale across the country.  Here's another letter to add to the list; this is part of a resignation teacher from Maryland:

It is with a heavy, frustrated heart that I announce the end of my personal career in education, disappointed and resigned because I believe in learning. I was brought up to believe that education meant exploring new things, experimenting, and broadening horizons. This involved a great deal of messing up. As part of the experimentation that is growing up, I would try something, and I would either succeed or fail. I didn’t always get a chance to fix my mistakes, to go back in time and erase my failures, but instead I learned what not to do the next time. Failing grades stood, lumpy pieces of pottery graced the mantle, broken bones got casts. As a result of my education, I not only learned information, I learned to think through my ideas, to try my best every single time; I learned effort. I’d like to say that in some idealistic moment of nostalgia and pride, I decided to become a teacher, but the truth is that I never thought I would do anything else. I come from a long line of teachers and I loved school from day one. 

To pursue this calling, I worked hard to earn the title of “classroom teacher,” but I became quickly disillusioned when my title of teacher did not in any way reflect my actual job. I realized that I am not permitted to really teach students anything. When I was in middle school, I studied Shakespeare, Chaucer, Poe, Twain, O. Henry, the founding fathers, if you will, of modern literary culture. Now, I was called to drag them through shallow activities that measured meaningless but “measurable” objectives.

Read the whole thing.  Read the comments, too.

Frustrated and devalued, she decided to quit.  She was not allowed to fail students because that meant that she was a failure.  Besieged by administrators, parents, an ignorant general public who assumes teachers only work between vacations, and a system that treats kids like data points, she quit:

I am paid to give out gold stars to everyone so that no one feels left out, to give everyone an A because they feel sad if they don’t have one. I take the perpetual, insane harassment from parents who insist that their child’s failings are solely my fault because I do not coddle them to the point of being unable to accept any sort of critique; if each student is not perfect and prepared for college and life by age twelve, then I must be wrong about the quality of their work. I lower my own standards so much that I have been thinking my grades were generous. After years of being harangued, I gave Bs to D-quality work, but that is never good enough. All I can do is field the various phone calls, meetings, and e-mails, to let myself be abused, slandered, spit at because that is my career, taking the fall for our country’s mistakes and skewed priorities. So if you want your child to get an education, then I’m afraid that as a teacher, I can’t help you, but feel free to stop by if you want a sticker and a C.

I'm not sure if this is a new thing, or something that has been ongoing; you know how once you're made aware of something then all of a sudden there are stories popping up everywhere on the same subject.  There are probably just as many letters of glowing satisfaction from teachers out there as well.  We just aren't hearing about them.  If you find any, link them in the comments or send them to me.  Fair and balanced, you know.

At any rate, it does seem to be a growing national problem.

Stacy McCain linked to this same letter and comments:

More and more good, honest, decent, caring teachers are quitting the public school system. The deteriorating quality of faculty and administration is increasingly pervasive because no intelligent person would willingly submit themselves to such an oppressive bureaucratic yoke. The public education system is doomed beyond all hope of redemption, and the sooner Americans cease cooperating with the system — get your children out and support alternatives — the sooner its final collapse will arrive.

Charter schools, home schooling, private schools, school vouchers.  Whatever the answer, we need to figure it out and we need to quit blaming the teachers.

How Are You Staying Warm?

Via The Blaze:

At temperatures of 15 to 30 below, exposed skin can get frostbitten in minutes and hypothermia can quickly set in.“People need to protect themselves against the intense cold,” said Dr. Brian Mahoney, medical director of emergency services at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis. “They have to wear a hat, they have to have face protection.”Mahoney said mittens are better than gloves, layers of dry clothing are best, and anyone who gets wet needs to get inside.“A person not properly dressed could die easily in those conditions.”

So what are you doing to stay warm? 

In Shreveport we aren't expecting the extreme frigid temperatures of the Midwest but 17 degrees is pretty cold to us!

Global warming?  Seriously?

Was Marie Laveau Pretty in Pink?

Somehow voodoo queen Marie Laveau doesn't strike me as a girly-girl, but apparently someone thought her tomb needed to be pink.

Via The Dead Pelican and KATC:

Dozens of tourists in St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 gathered around the tomb of Marie Laveau as tour guide Renee Dodge explained the mysterious history of the famed Voodoo queen. But most had one question on their minds: Why was the tomb painted bright pink? In mid-December, in the middle of the night, someone sneaked into the cemetery and painted the tomb, Dodge said, but she didn't think the person had malicious intent. "The person really came in to paint over the thousands of thousands of "X'''s all over this tomb," she said. "And that's the real desecration." Decades ago, someone started a rumor that if people wanted the 19th century voodoo priestess to grant them a wish, they had to draw an "X'' on Laveau's tomb, turn around three times, knock on the tomb, yell out their wish, and if it was granted, come back, circle their "X," and leave Laveau an offering, 

It seems the vandal used latex paint which traps in moisture; the soft, porous marble tablet on the front of the tomb was also painted - white.

Whoever painted the tomb used latex paint, which does not breathe and traps in moisture which is "the single biggest threat to the survival of these brick-and-mortar tombs," Dodge said. The vandal also painted the marble tablet on the face of the tomb with white paint. That is damaging because marble is very soft, porous, and fragile, 

Somehow I think Laveau would have preferred black, or purple, but who knows.  Maybe she just wants to be left alone.

Restoration methods are being examined.

Read the whole thing.

Why is Ron Burgandy's Memoir in Non-Fiction?

I don't mean to be dense, but can someone explain to me why Let Me Off at the Top by "Ron Burgandy" is in non-fiction on the NYTimes best seller list?

If it's a "memoir" by a fictional person, shouldn't it be classified as fiction?

What am I missing?

This Obamacare Letter Should Go Viral

This woman's letter ought to go viral.  What's happening to her is happening all over the country as people struggle to make their way through the Obamacare landmine only to discover they are totally screwed:

My family’s journey with securing our new insurance under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) started on October 1, 2013. I have decided to write this letter to let the American people know what it has been like for us. We are a family of four, with two little boys’ ages seven years old and three years old. My husband and I have had full time jobs for 6 years and 13 years respectively. We have been with the same two companies for those years. We are a middle class family; we own our three bedroom two bath house, we own two cars, and previously provided our own insurance for the four of us. We have coverage through Individual Blue from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alabama until 12/31/13. Our premiums have been $380.00 a month, which also included dental coverage for all four of us. 

On October, 1, 2013 we received our letters like other Alabamians about our new premiums and plans for 2014 from Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) of Alabama. When I opened our letter to say I had sticker shock was an understatement. Our premiums for the Blue Saver Silver would now be $753.26. This included the ACA tax but did not include the additional $75.00 we would need to pay in order to keep dental for me and my husband. So we would need to pay total $828.26 to keep health and dental insurance for the four of us. This payment is roughly $64.00 less than what we pay for our mortgage each month. I was outraged that anyone thought we could afford this. Sure we have some savings, but with that price tag we would whittle it down to almost nothing very quickly. I consider savings as a rainy day fund, a start to saving for the kid’s college, our retirement, etc. I never dreamed in a million years we would need to use it to pay our insurance premiums each month – how in the world could this help the economy too?

Read the whole thing.  It's a nightmare.

Graphic via R.J. Matson

Crunchy or Smooth?

This all depends on what kind of jelly it was and if it was crunchy or smooth peanut butter  Via The Des Moines Register:

A man was arrested Friday after an angry confrontation with his brother over his eating habits, according to a police report. 

The two brothers, in their 50s, live together on Des Moines’ East Side. 

The victim told police that his brother, Jerome Davis, “made three peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and ate them in the living room. Within the next hour, the suspect made another 3 of these peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, bringing his total consumption of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to six. This angered the victim…”
The victim confronted Davis about over-eating, which quickly escalated. “Both victim and suspect began yelling about the other being lazy and ‘eating again,’” police reported. 

Davis then pulled out a folding knife and held it to the face of his brother, threatening to cut him, according to the report.

Best comment from the Des Moines Register site:  "Imagine if he had six Steakumm sandwiches."

Indeed.

Cabin fever or just hungry?

Going Off The Grid: Crazy or Clever?

Roscoe Bartlett might be my new idol.   He takes "going off the grid" to new levels.   Via Memeorandum, this profile in Politico:

Now he’s midway through putting up a sixth house, a log cabin that will have a spacious kitchen, bathrooms with composting toilets, Internet access via satellite and a root cellar to store cabbage and potatoes through the winter. (Besides being more comfortable than his existing cabin, he needs the space to house his 10 adult children and their families, should his doomsday scenario come true.) The property also has a sawmill, a one-acre manmade lake with two pet swans, a gatehouse that arches over the long driveway and several gardens. It’s surrounded by mountains and wild apple trees and bears and tiny plants called club moss that look like pine trees if you get close. He’s got a mill for grinding flour, and on the day I visit his wife has whipped up potato onion soup made from produce grown in the garden and apple turnovers with apples that grow nearby.

This idyllic spot is in the mountains of West Virginia, miles away from supermarkets and cell phone towers.

At age 87, the former Congressman from Maryland spends his days working on his property, building cabins, working in gardens, tinkering with solar panels and watching the swans.

So what if he sees doomsday on the horizon; Bartlett is totally prepared for solar storms and the loss of our vulnerable power grid.  If the rest of us lose access to Downton Abbey or Facebook, Bartlett will just shake his head at our refusal to listen to him.  During his time in Congress he railed for protection of the power grid to no avail.

But he sounds like my kind of guy:

It’s all part of practicing what you preach, he says. In Bartlett’s case, that’s a lifestyle that relies on the government and other people as little as possible. Certainly, that was always his political platform; as the congressman from Maryland’s 6th district, he advocated limited government, living within one’s means—and, more surprising perhaps for a conservative Republican, expanding green energy. In 2005, he founded the Peak Oil Caucus, a group concerned that the world will soon deplete its supply of oil. (“Roscoe was green before it was cool to be green,” Maryland Democratic Rep. Steny Hoyer once said.) He’s staunchly anti-abortion but searched for middle ground on stem cell research, and he’s a Second Amendment proponent who has never owned a gun.

He does have internet access through satellite but other than that, he's on his own.

I can think of worse places to live than the mountains of West Virginia with no television or cell phones.


Photo credit:  Jason Koebler

A Hometown Thank You Concert From Cole Vosbury

Last night at Sam's Town Casino, Shreveport welcomed home favorite son Cole Vosbury.  Cole reached the Top 5 in Season 5 of The Voice.  To say "thank you" for their support, Cole performed last night for fans in what was billed as "A Hometown Thank You" concert.

Fans clamored for tickets as soon as the concert was announced; tickets were free but limited to 1,000 people.  They were available Christmas Eve at noon and by the end of the day the tickets were gone with people begging for them; some were even offering to pay up to $100 for a ticket.  It looked like they all showed up last night.

The line to get into the venue snaked down halls and around corners; fans could buy t-shirts and fill out "Questions for Cole" cards.

Cole opened the show by thanking the fans, who roared when he walked on stage.  He explained that the original concept for the evening was going to be a meet and greet session so he could meet his fans and say thank you, then play a couple of acoustic songs and that would be it.  It didn't work out that way!

Cole's band stepped up in the days before the event to help him out and in the end they played for an hour and a half last night.  Cole kept saying, "OK I'm going to play one more, well, two more...", and he was having so much fun I suspect they just had to pull him offstage.

Wearing his trademark fedora and equiped with at least three guitars, Cole opened the show to wild cheers.  Early in the set was Clapton's "Crossroads" which just goes to show what viewers of The Voice never got to really see about Cole Vosbury.  The young man is a guitarist.  Oh, he has a great voice, no doubt, but he can tear up a guitar.

Fans wanted to hear songs from The Voice as well and Vosbury did not disappoint as he picked up his acoustic guitar and played "Maggie May," "Better Man," "I Still Believe in You," "Let Her Go," and "Adorn."

Time for another guitar switch and this time the left-handed Vosbury borrowed a bass (which he had to play upside down) for "Pumped Up Kicks."  Excellent!

Cole's proud father, Robin Vosbury, came on stage with some "questions for Cole" cards which fans had filled out as they entered the venue.  We learned that Cole's favorite color is purple and that it's difficult for him to name a "favorite guitar" but he noted that he does have a Fender tattoo, so, "you can't go wrong with a Fender."  One of the people that influenced him to sing was his grandmother, Nita Lynn.  She was, of course, on the front row!

Back to the music with another guitar switch and his next song was Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean," and then it was time for a jammin' arrangement of "Movin' On Up" which is the song that turned C-Lo Green around for Cole on The Voice to get the whole journey started.  Vosbury said, "You know, when I woke up one day with this arrangement of "Movin' On Up" in my head, I had no idea it would take me to where I am today."  The crowd roared!

By this time the fans are dancing in the aisles as Vosbury launches into "Rich Girl," which was clearly one everyone wanted to hear.

Vosbury never appeared nervous or uneasy on the stage; he was completely humbled and thankful and at this point he was having a wonderful time.  He asked the crowd, "Okay, well, what do you want to hear now?"    He complied with a request for "Sharp Dressed Man," and then with a request for "Purple Rain" which was amazing.

Time for another tune from The Voice as Vosbury played "To Be With You."

The crowd clamored for "Shameless" and Vosbury gave thought to playing it on his keyboard but decided he didn't have something he needed so he explained he would try it on the acoustic even though they had not practiced that one as a band.  "We'll find out together" how it works out, he said.  There was no way he wasn't going to give them what they wanted, and "Shameless" was wonderful.

His last song of the night was an awesome "Dirty Diana" by Michael Jackson.

All in all he played about 18 songs in an hour and 40 minutes.  Midway through the concert Shreveport mayor Cedric Glover presented Vosbury with a plaque and a proclamation declaring January 3, 2014 as Cole Vosbury Day in Shreveport.

As I said, I don't think Vosbury was ready to leave the stage: he was relaxed and having a wonderful time.  The fans were more than willing to stay as long as he wanted to play.

After the show Vosbury met with fans, signed autographs, posed for pictures, and thanked everyone for their support.

A very humble and talented young man, it is safe to say that Cole Vosbury has a bright future ahead of him.  It's always important that young stars surround themselves with the right people to guide their careers and with such a wonderful family behind him I think Cole Vosbury is on the right track.


(Photos via the author; more pictures can be found at The Shreveport Times.)

Cole Vosbury Hometown Concert

We've spent the evening at Cole Vosbury's free concert to thank his hometown supporters tonight; check back tomorrow for the write-up and pictures.  He played for an hour and a half and it was just wonderful.  Shreveport proud.

Nothing Says "I Love You" More Than A Shrub

It must be tons of fun being the significant other of Gina McCarthy or any of the other EPA regulatory wonks.  Nothing says "I love you" more on Valentine's Day than fake flowers and a card made from scrap paper:

On one of the busiest days of the year for florists, the EPA says Americans should consider buying long-lasting silk flowers, potted plants, or live bushes, shrubs, or trees that can be planted in the spring. 

And instead of visiting the card shop, consider sending electronic valentines -- or recycled cards, the EPA suggests. 

“This Valentine's Day, show your love for the earth by sending recycled-content greeting cards. Consider making new cards from scrap paper or by attaching new backs to the fronts of old cards -- this can be a craft project for family and friends that helps everyone reduce paper waste while saving money!"

I'm all for recycling, but seriously, do we need these endless nanny-state suggestions?

Other suggestions for "February fun" including buying clothes from recycled soda bottles on President's Day.
What's next?  Toilet tissue wedding dresses for spring brides?

(Photo credit: Wedding Resource Blog)

Lie of the Year

The new AFP ad against Landrieu:



(H/T:  The Hayride)

Teacher Morale Across the Country Plummets

Teachers in the state of North Carolina, and probably lots of other states if truth be known, are demoralized and depressed.

Via The Huffington Post:

After North Carolina recently passed legislation that eliminated teacher tenure, halted teacher pay raises and initiated a statewide school voucher program, a new survey reveals that the state's educators are extremely frustrated with the way they are being treated. 

The online survey, conducted by University of North Carolina Wilmington professors Dr. Scott Imig and Dr. Robert Smith, asked over 600 North Carolina educators about their feelings on topics like recent changes to state education policy and teacher morale. Overall, the results of the survey, which were not based on a scientific sampling, are less than encouraging. 

Of the teachers surveyed, 96 percent signaled that they “think public education in North Carolina is headed in the wrong direction,” while 97 percent of those surveyed said they thought recent “legislative changes have had a negative effect on teacher morale.” Even before recent legislative changes, North Carolina educators were some of the lowest paid in the country.

Teacher morale is the white elephant in the room when it comes to "education reform."  As the experts focus on how to improve test scores and school report card scores, too often the blame focuses on the teacher.  If a child isn't learning then the teacher must not be doing something right.  None of the magic bullet answers to solving today's educational woes focus on the teacher except in a punitive way.  All of the onus for improvement is on the school administrators, passed on to the classroom teacher, yet no new accountability is placed on the student or the parent.

Simple fact:  no amount of Kagan strategies or Harry Wong magic will improve test scores and performance when parents are not involved.

Nobody denies the benefit of parental involvement.  Study after study supports this.

Obviously parental involvement varies across socio-economic backgrounds; What of the parent who is working two jobs just to keep the electricity on?  How much time does that parent have to come volunteer for the PTA?  What about that child whose only parent is incarcerated and the child is living in a hotel with a relative?

There are so many variables to consider.

So too often it's just easier to blame the teacher.  Let's accelerate the professional development, they say, and put these teachers in meetings to learn how to better reach kids like this.  Let's assign readings for teachers to do in their down time.  Well, okay.  No teacher, no good teacher, wants to leave any child frustrated and without hope.  All good teachers are open to learning new ways to reach students and help them achieve.  Frustration leads to behavior problems; behavior problems contribute to low academic success - not just for that misbehaving child but for all the kids in that particular classroom.

Professional development is fine and welcome.

The point is, teachers are trying.  Teachers go into those classrooms every day with the single goal of reaching that one child who is struggling.  Teachers want every child to succeed.

Teachers teach because they love what they do.

Where the teachers in North Carolina, as well as other states, are frustrated is that they feel "devalued."  The punitive evaluation rubrics required with the adoption of the Common Core standards puts in place an evaluation system which is designed to keep the majority of teachers from attaining a perfect score.  In many states teacher pay is tied to these rubrics.  Again, it's not about the money; the demoralization comes from being devalued.

Consider this excerpt of a letter blogger Michael Deshotels posted on his Louisiana Educator blog last month:

 “Everything has been put into action to be accomplished by the teachers and the schools. The entire burden is on us.--- In all the newspapers and press releases and theories proposed, the idea touted is that if the teachers change, improve, comply, then students will progress better than ever before. First, this idea is insulting to all of us because it negates what we have accomplished in all the years we have taught. Second it is a faulty “if/then” because there is MUCH, MUCH more to the equation than just teachers teaching. The unspoken issues that no one wants to utter are these: 1. Despite our best efforts, in reality some students are simply more capable than others, as is true and has been true for time and eternity in every place on this earth. 2. Many, many students have unconcerned parents who have, by the very nature of their faulty parenting handicapped their children long before they enter school. If I remember my educational psychology, the first three years of a child's life are pivotal ----- Many children are not being spoken to, read to, introduced to concepts and ideas in those years. Their learning only begins when they enter school, and at that point, a large deficit already exists. Even than, many parents don't concern themselves about homework, tests, projects or valuing school. I am weary of hearing “Every child deserves a great teacher”. How about “Every child deserves a great parent?” 

Can you feel that teacher's frustration?

Diane Ravitch posted this letter from a frustrated teacher:

I am exhausted from trying to figure out what to teach for the next county test……then state test. 

I am tired of the CLAWS that come at you and the Ugly Faces of the Powers that be when your class of 33 can not make an A on one of those SO BAD BAD TESTS!!!. 

Those “Frowny Powers that Be” people may not know it but they will die early and have so many wrinkles form those Ugly Ugly Facial Gestures!!! 

I am so tired of the hiring of all of the coaches that nag and nag and nag the veteran teachers and pretend to know more…but they do not.. 

I am tired of the Professional Learning whatevers where teachers discuss TEST SCORES for a kid with a 58 I.Q….while an administrator that has never taught more than one year takes notes back to the Super Powers…or they have some person whose position has been created to sit there and take notes to take back to the Super Powers.

Another letter posted by Deshotels notes the Louisiana COMPASS evaluation rubric:

This plan pushed through against the good advice of many knowledgeable people is ludicrously full of erroneous assumptions and unattainable goals. There is no way that it is a just and fair practice to put in something that is still evolving into motion and expect immediate proficiency to the point of using it as a ranking and punitive measure.---- Additionally the rubric itself is worded so that it is near impossible to get a 4 rating, to get the huge “carrot on a stick stipend”. The very creator of the rubric has admitted that earning “highly effective” several times in a row is highly unlikely. To earn a 4, students basically have to be in charge of the classroom. 

Louisiana has delayed implementation of some of the Common Core and COMPASS elements in order to address some of these concerns:

For the next two years, schools will be graded on a curve, not by absolute test scores: The distribution of grades will stay the same as they are now. While the specific formula for the curve remains to be determined, the 2012-13 tests showed 43 percent of schools were graded A or B, and 8 percent were graded F. 

The Louisiana School Boards Association and Louisiana Association of School Superintendents had asked to suspend school grades altogether for two years. A BESE motion to do that failed, 2-9. Metairie member James Garvey said good schools deserved to keep their hard-won A and B grades, and Stephanie Desselle of the Council for a Better Louisiana said families needed to know how schools were performing. 

Under the Compass evaluation system that went into effect this past year, about one third of teachers are evaluated based on "value-added" statistics that measure actual student test scores against how the student, based on past scores, was expected to perform. It's been a major bone of contention between White and the teacher unions. 

But White is now taking the issue off the table, saying he agreed with educators that value-added scores were meaningless when the tests were changing. For two years, the state will not issue those calculations, and local school systems will measure student growth through other means.

But teachers are still being evaluated under those rubrics and so when a good teacher gets a lower-than-expected score, morale plummets.

How is it fair to a teacher in a low socio-economic school with almost no parental involvement and no PTA in place to be graded the same as a high achieving magnet school with an active PTA and high parental involvement?   Are the teachers in those high-achieving schools really all that better than the ones in low achieving schools?  Is the system designed to make teachers in low achieving schools bail out of those schools and go to schools where they can get higher scores, and therefore more pay?

How is it fair for teachers of core subjects to be graded on the VAM model and other teachers not?

Maybe those teachers in those low performing schools should be valued even more for their commitment to the low achieving and struggling student - that student who despite all the odds stacked against him continues to try to achieve something nobody in his family has done before:  graduate.  Maybe those teachers should be encouraged for their commitment and dedication.

But, no.  Instead, those teachers are told that they work in a "D" or an "F" school and it's their fault.  They're told it's better to teach in a low performing school because then the only place to go is up!  Rationalizations.

No wonder morale is low.

Are there bad teachers?  Of course there are.  And good administrators get rid of them; tenure or not, a bad teacher can be terminated.

Education reform is a topic that will continue to be debated and tested.  The simple fact is, there IS no magic bullet.  The bottom line is that the federal government needs to stay out of education, leave it to the states as intended, and let good teachers do their jobs.  Stop implementing fad curriculum and standards requirements that take all the creativity out of the classroom; stop making students have to perform like robots, stop making education all about accountability, and above all, stop killing the souls of your teachers by telling them what failures they are.

Michael Moore: Obamacare is Awful

Michael Moore declares Obamacare to be "awful" and...wait for it...says single-payer is the way to solve all the problems:

I believe Obamacare’s rocky start — clueless planning, a lousy website, insurance companies raising rates, and the president’s telling people they could keep their coverage when, in fact, not all could — is a result of one fatal flaw: The Affordable Care Act is a pro-insurance-industry plan implemented by a president who knew in his heart that a single-payer, Medicare-for-all model was the true way to go. When right-wing critics “expose” the fact that President Obama endorsed a single-payer system before 2004, they’re actually telling the truth.

Why am I not surprised?

Wasn't that always the intent?

Duck Commander Extends Its Brand to Firearms

The Duck Dynasty brand is everywhere.

There is, of course, the wildly popular television show; the box sets and DVDs are big sellers on Amazon.  There are cookbooks, beef jerky, bacon jerky, running shoes (you have to get on a waiting list), daily devotionals, prom dresses, a Duck Commander cruise, sunglasses, baby clothes, cologne, and well, it goes on and on.

Oh, and they make duck calls, too.
\
Now, add guns to the list.  The ever enterprising Robertson clan now has its own line of guns manufactured by Mossberg.

The gunmaker Mossberg has teamed with Duck Commander, the company owned by "Duck Dynasty's" Robertson clan, to release nine different shotguns, as well as two semiautomatic rifles and a semiautomatic pistol.

The guns are manufactured under the Duck Commander brand, rather than Duck Dynasty, which I suspect cuts A&E out of the equation.

Over-exposed or not, you've got to admire the entrepreneurial spirit!

(H/T:  Memeorandum)

Local Residents Oppose New Funeral Home in Highland **UPDATED**

Scroll down for updates from the meeting.

Via KTBS:

Shreveport's Metropolitan Planning Commission will hold a public meeting Thursday afternoon at 1pm to discuss the rezoning of Kings Highway and Highland Avenue which would allow a funeral home to move into the former Don's Seafood Restaurant.  

In attendance will be groups from the Highland Restoration Association as well as the South Highlands Neighborhood Association.

At issue is the zoning exception for the proposed funeral home that wants to occupy the site.

Jolinda Redding wrote a petition against the rezoning which is to be presented at the meeting today. The petition garnered 213 signatures.

Patterson Funeral Home wishes to reopen their business in the old Don's Seafood Restaurant building which has been sitting empty since Don's closed in 2008.  Patterson, a family run business, has been in operation in north Shreveport for many years but burned in August 2012.  The fire is still under investigation.

Highland residents cite traffic concerns as their main issue against the funeral home.  The building is in an historic neighborhood district but on a major local thoroughfare and on a corner across from a Brookshires grocery store, a Wendy's, and a service station.  While the property does have a large parking lot, residents are concerned about restricted access during funerals.  On the other hand, proponents suggest that even a funeral home is better than an empty building.  Business owner Rosalind Patterson-Nelson vows to be a good neighbor and says that her business will restore the historic landmark.

Also of of concern to neighborhood residents is the potential of reduced property values because of the funeral home.

The zoning meeting is at 1:00 today at 505 Travis Street.  KTBS will stream the meeting live on their website.

Update 3:10:  The commission took up the issue around 2:30.  Mrs. Patterson-Nelson spoke in favor of her proposal to open a funeral home at the Don's location and vowed to open a dialogue with the opponents so that issues may be resolved.

Matthew Linn spoke in opposition of the proposal.  Linn contends that the funeral home project is just not a fit for the residential neighborhood.  Linn dramatically asked his contingent, which consisted of both his residential and business neighbors, to stand in demonstration of the opposition and that took care of almost everyone in the room at that point.

Linn says the proposed business does not meet the required setbacks for this kind of business at this particular location.  Kings Highway is a B1 and B2 district, he states, not a B3 district for many, many blocks - at least as far as the Red River.  Kings Highway is a historic district and a natural highway for the neighborhood.  Funeral homes require a B3 zoning.

Linn was equipped with exhibits and excerpts of the law, letters from the Highland residents, the South Highlands resident organization, and the Broadmoor neighborhood association, the Gladstone neighborhood association, as well as letters from many residents.  Linn spoke of the quick notice of this meeting and noted the huge opposition that has quickly developed.

Kings Highway is one of the few east/west thoroughfares that serve our community, Linn noted, and he explained how traffic flows easily with the businesses currently in place.  Linn said that "no matter what direction" a funeral procession went from the funeral home, it would "bring traffic to a dead stop."  He cited Byrd High School traffic when school dismisses which would also come to a complete standstill in the case of funeral traffic.

Following Mr. Linn, Malcolm Murchison, a property owner, cited the growth of Byrd High School (the magnet program) and the I49 intersection as factors that have contributed to the bumper to bumper traffic on Kings Highway.  Mr. Murchison noted that there are seven exceptions that this zoning ordinance might be granted and this case meets none of them.

Next to speak in opposition was Arthur Carmody, Jr. who has lived in the area for 62 years.  He spoke of the fine architecture in the neighborhood.  He spoke of the inconvenience the funeral home would bring to the Chevron station on the southeast corner of the intersection, the Wendy's restaurant, and other businesses in the immediate area.  He vowed that the zoning exception would "open up a Pandora's box of problems."

John Odom spoke also on traffic congestion, specifically at the time when Byrd High School lets out.  There are 2900 students at the school and when school lets out at 3:00 traffic is bumper to bumper.  Creswell Elementary is also nearby, as is First Baptist Church which also has a K-6 school - also a huge traffic issue.  Also on Kings Highway is St. Marks Day School whose students are all picked up by parents.  Mr. Odom noted that here in Shreveport we have police escorts for funeral processions and citizens all pull over out of respect during funeral processions.  A funeral procession will create major traffic problems "in any direction," Odom explained.

Patty Pernici who operates the Chevron station spoke, and explained that at first glance she was glad to have a new neighbor occupy the long empty restaurant.  Mrs. Pernici contends that this is just "not the right neighbor."

A stream of other residents and neighbors spoke, including one whose home overlooks the funeral home. The view from his master bedroom and his son's bedroom would be the funeral home.  Another resident addressed the parking issue which has always been a problem when Byrd High School is in session, especially on Atkins street.  The quality of neighborhood life could be compromised - people walking dogs, children riding bikes, joggers, etc.  Residents from the South Highlands Association also spoke of the precedent this zoning change would set.  One resident lives across the street from the funeral home and says she wouldn't be able to get into her driveway during a funeral; she also noted Centenary College, the Gilbert street post office and the Circle K which only has a Kings Highway entrance.

At the conclusion of the speakers the commission asked all in opposition to stand and the entire room stood up with the exception of Mrs. Patterson-Nelson and her companion.  I wondered how it felt to be her with everyone in the room against you.

She spoke in rebuttal and said she had told her supporters not to attend because she was asking for a deferral, otherwise, she would have had people to speak in favor of her business.

And with that, the commission moved on to the next case.

Update:  No decision from the commission yet...still going on.

Photo via KTBS.

Regulation Nation Strikes the Family Farm

Obama's regulation nation now includes the family farm.

The family farm has typically been defined as one "with ten or fewer employees."  The Wall Street Journal notes that OSHA has been prohibited from setting foot on farms with less than ten people...until now.  This administration's modus operandi has been to make up the rules as they go: Obamacare is one example of that.  Now this also applies to the family farm:

But OSHA officials have found a novel way to circumvent this statutory restraint. The regulators have simply claimed the authority to rewrite the definition of farming. A remarkable 2011 memo from OSHA's enforcement chief to regional administrators at first acknowledges that the law prevents the agency from regulating small farms engaged in growing and harvesting crops and any "related activities." But then the memo proceeds to instruct employees on how to re-categorize small farms as commercial grain handlers. So OSHA inspectors have recently begun to descend on family farms, claiming the authority to regulate their grain storage bins. 

This has inspired the normally mild-mannered Sen. Mike Johanns (R., Neb.) to take to the Senate floor recently to condemn OSHA's "absolutely incredible" and "absurd" position, which he called "a blatant overreach in violation of the law." 

Mr. Johanns grew up on a farm and pointed out that "every farm has grain storage." That's because it's not practical and at times nearly impossible to sell all of a crop the moment it is harvested. Without grain storage, farmers would be forced to immediately unload everything they grow and therefore have to accept lower prices.

Senator Johanns cited as an example a farm with just one employee that was fined $130,000 by OSHA for, among other things, failing to have a plan to address dust.  The senator spoke about this case recently on the Senate floor:

During a speech on the Senate floor this week, the Nebraska Republican said the agency has levied $132,000 in fines against a small Nebraska farm despite a prohibition against doing so with farming operations that have 10 or fewer employees. 

Johanns said OSHA inspectors said the farm willfully violated OSHA regulations associated with atmospheric tests in a grain bin, failure to wear OSHA-approved gear when entering a grain bin and other issues.

Senator Johanns thinks OSHA "is using the fines as a testing ground for future regulation of family farm operations and their grain systems."

Clearly there is little that this administration doesn't desire to regulate and if it can't be done under current policy then policy just must be rewritten.

Regulation nation.

Shock Study! Texting and Driving is Dangerous!

In a shocking study sponsored by The National Institutes of Health and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there is now evidence that texting and dialing while driving increases the risk of crash:

A sophisticated, real-world study confirms that dialing, texting or reaching for a cellphone while driving raises the risk of a crash or near-miss, especially for younger drivers. But the research also produced a surprise: Simply talking on the phone did not prove dangerous, as it has in other studies.

Seriously?

We needed a study for this?

Do you just love the prose?  "A sophisticated, real-world study...".

Can't we just concentrate on transgender kindergarteners or something?

Doolittle Raider Lt. Col. Richard E. Cole Accepts Spirit of Independence Award

Yesterday, Shreveport hosted the AdvoCare Independence Bowl; as is the tradition at the bowl, the Omar N. Bradley Spirit of Independence Award was presented.

The award is presented each year to outstanding American citizens, or organizations, who symbolize the spirit of freedom and independence on which our country was founded.

This year it was presented to the Doolittle Raiders; accepting the award for the Raiders was Lt. Col.  Richard E. Cole, age 98.  He was the co-pilot with Doolittle in the first plane that took off from the USS Hornet.

After the Empire of Japan attacked the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor in 1941, Lieutenant Colonel James “Jimmy” Doolittle led a group of 79 other volunteers on a secret and dangerous retaliatory mission against the Japanese. The men did not know the details of their mission until they were aboard the U.S. Navy’s aircraft carrier USS Hornet. 

The mission of the Doolittle Raiders, also known as the Tokyo Raiders, involved flying 16 U.S. Army B-25B Mitchell bombers off of the USS Hornet in a bombing run aimed at the Japanese mainland. 

Because it would be impossible to land the bombers on the aircraft, after the crews dropped their bombs, they were to land in China. However, still 650 nautical miles from Japan, the USS Nashville sunk a Japanese patrol boat, sending warning to Japan that an attack was coming. 

Doolittle decided to launch the attack 10 hours and 170 miles ahead of schedule. The Raiders hit their targets in Japan, but lacked the fuel to reach the safe airfields in China. Fifteen of the 16 crews crash-landed or baled out; one landed in the Soviet Union.
Three men drowned crashing into the ocean, while eight were taken captive by the Japanese. Three of the captives were executed, and the other five were imprisoned. Four men survived the imprisonment, but one did not make it through the deplorable conditions. 

Despite the fact that the raid did not cause the amount of damage as was hoped, it was still viewed as a success because it proved that the Japanese were not as impervious to attack as once believed. It also boosted the morale of United States’ soldiers and citizens alike. 

After the attack on Japan, many of the Doolittle Raiders continued to fight in the war. Twelve of the surviving Raiders were killed in combat. 

For their bravery and valor, all 80 Raiders received the Distinguished Flying Cross. The men who were imprisoned were awarded the Purple Heart, two men received the Silver Star and Doolittle earned the Medal of Honor.

While in Shreveport, Cole was able to visit Barksdale Air Force Base where he was honored at a luncheon and toured a B-52 bomber.

During the Independence Bowl there was a flyover of a B-25 bomber.

Here is video (around 1:26) of Lt. Col. accepting the award:



Go here to learn more about the Doolittle Raiders.

(H/T:  Tim Fletcher)

Photo credit:  Doolittle Raider

Shocker: Another AK-47 Turns Up in Mexico

Guns from the Fast and Furious ATF debacle continue to turn up at crime scenes; this time it's an AK-47 that turned up at the scene of a shootout between Mexican authorities and cartel gunmen.

For their part, the ATF is, well, regretful:

“ATF has accepted responsibility for the mistakes made in the Fast and Furious investigation and at the attorney general's direction we have taken appropriate and decisive action to ensure that these errors will not be repeated,” the bureau said in a statement to CNN.

Really?  Exactly who got fired for this?  What, exactly, does "accepted responsibility" mean?

How many people have been killed by these guns now?

H/T:  Memeorandum

Full Metal Jacket Reach Around: The 2014 Winter Classic Edition

Happy New Year to you!

Steve and I had a grand time last night:  we met some good friends for dinner at The Anvil Bar and Grill, had a lovely meal, listened to the soulful tunes of Lennice Bolton, then visited and laughed over glasses of wine, champagne, a tasty amaretto freeze, and finally coffee.  We were safely home by 11:30 and off the streets before the drunks turned out of the bars.

This morning we are settling in for the 2014 Winter Classic - an annual tradition for us.  I know I should be watching LSU vs. Iowa (especially since Steve is from Iowa and I'm an LSU fan), but the allure of an outdoor hockey game with snow in the forecast is too much for me.  I must watch.
The first Winter Classic was just magical.  Sidney Crosby's ear to ear smile of pure joy as he skated across that outdoor rink, snow falling and blurring the lines on the ice, well, it was awesome. While it is actually a regulation game, the players just seem to be having so much fun!

So, the corned beef is in the oven, the black eyed peas are simmering, and the cabbage is waiting to be addressed.

Since it's been ages since I did a linkfest, and this isn't likely to be a busy news day, let's peruse the blogs and see who is talking about what on this first day of the New Year.

Doug Ross has an excellent guest post by Brian Kelly on New Jersey's "Justifiable Need" law:

Think about that for a second. So in order to show you need to carry a weapon for self-defense, which is a basic human right, guaranteed by the constitution, you have to first suffer an attack. So in the case of the recent Short Hills Mall Shooting, now that the victim is dead at the hands of violent criminals, he might meet the ‘justifiable need’ which doesn’t do him or his grieving family any good now. 

It is tantamount to the government claiming you have no justifiable need to carry an umbrella because it isn’t currently raining. Ask yourself why do we as law abiding citizens have to wait until we are raped, beaten and killed before the State can see fit to grant us a right to self-defense which is a basic human right dating back to caveman times?

It is indeed scary.  Is it constitutional?

Wyblog adds his two cents on the same topic.

Legal Insurrection hopefully ends the Melissa Harris-Perry mess.  Except that as long as she's still on the air her nonsense will continue.

The Foundry posts on the anticipated new hot leftist issue for 2014:

Do a Google News search for “income inequality” and it will remove any doubt that this is already the political issue of 2014. 

The left has been gearing up for months. The liberal Center for American Progress launched a new center devoted to the subject, and President Obama has been making it a centerpiece of his speeches. 

Get ready to hear about “fairness”—because some people make more money than others, and this isn’t fair. How can you sit by and watch this happen? What is the government going to do about it?

Read the whole thing for what you need to know about this issue.

William Teach at Pirate's Cove is having a little fun with the ice-bound ship story.  He also weighs in on the contraception mandate ruling.

At Flopping Aces:  Dr. John's Law:

Whatever Obama says is a lie. The opposite is the truth. That includes the entire incompetent administration because he owns everything they do and has fired exactly no one for anything. 

Read the whole thing because there's some good stuff there that a lot of us have been thinking but not many have had the balls to say.

Dan from Squirrel Hill (H/T: Flopping Aces) has a list of fifty (only fifty?) of Obama's lies and corrupt practices.

Critical Narrative also has a list.

Da Tech Guy posts on his blogging success and how to actually make a living as a full time blogger.

Donald Douglas is advocating unplugging a bit more often in the new year, something I've already done (as evidenced by my blog stats this past year).  I've spent a lot of time in 2013 reading and concentrating on implementing the mandatory Common Core standards in my classroom which has left little time for blogging and the research it entails.  While I hope to resurrect this blog in 2014, I will also continue to read voraciously.  It's what I do.

Althouse (and Meade) discuss the idea of a marijuana economy.

Smitty at The Other McCain discusses the central problem with Obamacare:

Progressivism is an old man, stricken with Alzheimer’s, on the cusp of dementia, that cannot grasp the reality of his time having passed. ObamaCare’s swath of economic destruction is going to continue to claim victims. As the year drags on, the employer mandate is going to loom, the Democrats are going to lie, and the codpiece media is going to protect them. Wash, rinse, repeat. That old man isn’t going to the retirement home easily.

Read the whole thing.

Reaganite Republican exposes Karl Rove.

Fishersville Mike has perspective on the end of the light bulb as we know it.

Michelle Malkin has a beautiful article on the tragic story of Jahi McMath:

I want to thank Naila Winkfield and the McMath family for not “letting go” so easily. Their plight is every parent’s worst nightmare. Their fight reaches beyond ideology, race, and class. The united front of the family and the public testaments of their faith in God are gifts. The Instagram image of Naila clasping her daughter’s hand at her hospital bedside — the hope, the desperation, the abiding love — is universal.

It's just a tragic story - no doubt.

Adrienne has food porn (and a birthday!)

Lonely Conservative posts on whether or not Apple is working with the NSA.

Paco has a letter to Obama.

The always eloquent Ed Driscoll laments on the politicization of well, almost everything, by the left:

In recent years, I normally expect CNN’s annual ratcheting downward of the cultural bar to occur on New Year’s Eve, when anchor Anderson Cooper and co-host, the “comedienne” Kathy Griffin collide in their Weimaresque annualtrain wreck. But between Cooper recently discussing his famous 89 year old mother’s enjoyment of  cunnilingus, Griffin asking another CNN host “Have you ever spooned with Candy Crowley?”, and now one of the network’s commentators politicizing family snapshots, the bar was lowered by the Time-Warner-HBO-owned network even before 2014 has been ushered in.

Goodnight America; it was fun while it lasted.

Read the whole thing.

Sister Toldjah updates on the new Obamacare taxes set to hit in 2014.

Weasel Zippers:  74% of convicted felons vote democrat.

Pat Dollard posts on inconsistencies in the NYTimes piece on Benghazi.

And now, I must sign off; it's time for the Winter Classic and the joy of the outdoor rink!

Happy New Year!

Hope everyone survived the New Year safe and happy.

Cole Vosbury Sings The National Anthem at the Independence Bowl

There's a little feedback noise but other than that, local superstar Cole Vosbury did a great job on the National Anthem today at the Advocare Independence Bowl!

The Book Thief

I saw this trailer for The Book Thief at The Robinson Film Center a couple of weeks ago:



I'm reading the book now.  It came out in 2007: how did I miss it?   I wonder if the Common Core people will let my sophomores read this?

It is just mesmerizing.  Beautifully written.

I can't wait to see this film.