Web Browsing- Professors' Liberalism Contagious? Maybe Not - NYTimes.com 3 November 2008Do liberal faculty affect the political leanings of students? These people say no. But let's look a little deeper. One author says "it is really hard to change the mind of anyone over 15." Does this mean that the average American thinks about politics now the same way he did when he was 15? Yikes. It appears to imply that political opinions are not firmly rooted in ideas, but in feelings and prejudices. The article also suggests that the real problem is that students aren't actually being educated. They aren't getting the "good stuff." In fact, this may be the root of the problem. Even if students don't buy the liberalism of their teachers, they don't get much else either. Notable deficiencies appear in political and military history, especially of the West, but also include traditional literary criticism (and probably content), civics, and economics.
- Obama, Shaman by Michael Knox Beran, City Journal Summer 2008 3 November 2008Beran brilliant combines culture, religion, and literature into a powerful commentary on the religious aspects of Barack Obama's candidacy. The article is rich (and lengthy), but certainly worth digesting.
- Obama and the Politics of Crowds - WSJ.com 30 October 2008Fouad Ajami offers a rich and culturally insightful glimpse into Senator Obama's magic. He draws upon broad themes and key historical features of American cultural history to make his case for caution. Perhaps most telling is his observation about an American distinctive. Whereas the rest of the world champions equality, American has championed liberty. Obama offers the former, and the current financial panic has suspended Americans' faith in the latter. Consequently, we are on the verge of electing someone who inspires in the way a relgious leader, a messiah, does. But the religious hype quickly fades and people realize too late that they have been fleeced.
- America's Most Overrated Product: the Bachelor's Degree - Chronicle.com 24 October 2008Chronicle of Higher Ed points out the pointlessness of most bachelor's degrees.
- Professors' Liberalism Contagious? Maybe Not - NYTimes.com 3 November 2008
Aug
24
We’ve added some pictures from Mel’s parents to the gallery.
The last couple of a very full living room were taken at Mel’s parents’ house. That wasn’t even all of our stuff. Our new apartment is much bigger than our old one and it has lots of space. In fact, the living room is looking a little sparse at the moment.
I’m still looking for a job. The school district is being frustrating and a couple of other possibilities are in a holding pattern for now. Keep praying that it works out well.
Aug
21
First Few Days in Virginia
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These last few days have been somewhat busy for us. Friday we drove to Virginia. Andrew drove the moving truck, and his brother Anthony went with him. I followed in the car. My parents left a few hours later. Soon after we got to Radford Andrew had to go to Roanoke for a job interview. Anthony and I started unloading the truck. We got almost everything unloaded except the furniture by the time my parents came.
My mom thought the apartment was dirty, so we had a cleaning frenzy. We did everything from wiping out cabinets and closets, to cleaning floors, the fridge, and stove. Some things were disgusting, others just kind of dirty. Saturday we were able to start the unpacking. My parents and Anthony left Saturday night. We got so much done with their help.
Sunday we visited a church nearby, and then went to work unpacking the kitchen stuff. We also got our clothes put away. After over two months we finally don’t have to live out of a suitcase!! Now most of our stuff is put away except for some odds and ends. I want to tackle those today, but we’ll see. The apartment is quite a bit bigger than our old one, so the living room looks quite sparse. We plan to get some lamps and end tables once Andrew gets a job.
I started school yesterday. I actually didn’t get registered for classes until the end of the day’s activities. I went to a 10am class that we figured I would be taking (I had to talk to the chair of the department before I could register for classes, but couldn’t meet with her until late afternoon). Then we went to the Selu Conservancy (a building and farmland the school owns) for orientation. I finally got registered for classes about 4:30. I am taking 5 classes and two of them are undergrad. I think I’ll have a pretty easy semester because I’m not starting clinicals until the summer. That will give me a lot more time and much less stress than the other students. The downside of not starting clinicals right away (and that’s because of some deficiencies) is that I won’t graduate until Summer ‘09 or Fall ‘09.
We will post some pictures of our move and apartment another time. I’ll also give more info about my classes after I’ve been to them all (I’m not sure I can remember the names of all of them anyway).
Aug
10
Well, we’re back in Greenville after traveling across the country. We spent a few days in Virginia to look for a place to live and for a job for me.
We did find a place to live. It’s a nice 2-story apartment in Radford fairly near the university. We should be able to move in at the end of next week.
I’m still working on the job. It seems like I have made some progress in the local school districts, but it’s hard to know for sure. There are so many pieces and steps that any of them might stop the whole process. It appears that the certification thing will only be a problem in that principals might not be interested. I am eligible for provisional certification in VA, so that shouldn’t be much of a problem.
It is important that I get a job since we’ll have lots of expenses in the next few weeks. Further, in order to keep our apartment I’ll need a source of income. Please pray that things will work out quickly. I would like to teach, but it’s mostly out of my hands now.
Aug
5
Andrew and I went to Green River for church on Sunday. The pastor was gone and asked Andrew to fill the pulpit. He did Sunday school and then preached for church. We left right after the morning service so we could join the staff for the afternoon activity.
Mr. Dean took the staff up Sacred Rim in the afternoon. It was an hour-long hike (fairly easy) that took us to an overlook of several lakes and a great view of some of the mountains in the Wind River Range. It was beautiful up there. We had a picnic supper when we hiked back down. As we traveled down from the area toward Pinedale there was a pretty nice sunset that we stopped to take pictures of.
Monday was a pretty busy day. We did a white-glove cleaning of the cabins. There was a contest between the boys and the girls for who could clean the best. The Program Team took a white rag and wiped it wherever they wanted in the cabin to check for dirt. Of course the girls team won. ïŠ Our dessert that night was a major icecream bar. Because of the altitude sometimes the icecream containers will bulge open. The store can’t sell it that way, so they gave a bunch of half gallons to the camp for free. There were about a dozen different flavors and lots of toppings to put on it. We were pretty exhausted that night.
Tuesday we did a few more odd jobs and the SALT counselors left around mid-day. The pastor in Pinedale has some horses, so the rest of the staff got to go horse-back ridding. Andrew and I went in the last group (groups of 3). Andrew had a good horse, but she seemed to know that Andrew didn’t know what he was doing. She would see the lead horse trotting, and she would look back at him and then start trotting. My horse was kind of ornery. She wanted to eat and was SO slow. But then when she would see the other horses trotting she would take off too. I had a hard time controlling her, but thankfully she knew where she was going and it wasn’t too bad of a ride. The pastor said we got the hardest ride because the horses were tired and didn’t to go any more (we just rode around the block). One of the counselor girls, Alicen, got bucked off by the horse. Her wrist was hurting her, so on Thursday she went to the clinic and found out she had broken a bone in her hand. She came back with a cast on.
Wednesday we hiked Gypsum mountain (the one you see from the front porch of camp). Read more