New Website: The (un)Reasonable Teacher

If you have stumbled upon this blog, it has moved to a new address. It is now at "The (un)Reasonable Teacher" which can be found by clicking this link. I hope you enjoy!

Election 2008

I haven't talked about the 2008 election yet. It is probably not a suprise that as liberal as I am in my politics, that I am supporting Barack Obama. There are numerous reasons for this, including:

• His support for getting out of Iraq as opposed to John McCain's belief that any kind of "victory" is still achievable (it isn't).


• His belief that economic policies should be geared more towards helping poor and middle class Americans instead of the wealthier ones.


• His background in civil rights and academics (hey, the guy is actually intelligent).


• His pragmatic approach to decision making.


• His youth and lack connection to the divisions of the 1960s (for more on this one, read Andrew Sullivan's outstanding essay for The Atlantic back in December 2007).

In addition, I really do not want John McCain to be President. Not only because of Senator McCain's stance on Iraq, but for his reversal on other issues. While he is still a man I greatly respect for his long service to America, he is no longer the "maverick he used to be. McCain, who once ran probably the most honorable campaingns in modern American political history in 2000, has now sold his soul in the hopes of winning the White House this year. For a while I thought that if McCain won the White House, he might actually say "the hell with 2 terms. I did what I had to do to win, and now I'm going back to being the Maverick I really am." However, his choice of the disasterous Sarah Palin proved to me that it isn't just politics. John McCain is a poor decision maker, and would make a terrible President.

Given the past 8 years, now more than ever, I feel we need Barack Obama. If he wins, I will celebrate his victory, but I promise, I will be his biggest critic starting after Inaguration Day (as I would for any President).

I promise that, before the election, I will do an UNBIASED analysis of both candidate's positions on education issues.

GO MIZZOU!!!

As you (whoever may have stumbled upon my blog in the past year) may remember, I am a huge Missouri Tigers fan. I was fortunate enough to attend the game tonight. We won 58-0 against the Colorado Buffalos. We really needed this type of win since the last two games where we lost to Oklahoma State and Texas.

Pictured above is Tight End Chase Coffman making an exceptional catch for a touchdown. Tonight, he broke the NCAA record for most career catches by a Tight End. He is going to be excellent in the NFL.

Contact

If you come across this blog, and see anything you like or dislike, feel free to leave a comment, or even email me. Let me know what you think.

Kids will be . . .um, kids?

Middle school students at Parkway West in St. Louis created their own unofficial Spirit Week, which includes "Hit a Tall Person Day" and . . . um . . . "Hit a Jew Day". Yep.

Another example of my love-hate relationship with this state.

The Missouri Teacher of the Year

Her name is Margaret L. Williams, and she teaches Social Studies at University City High School in St. Louis. Congratulations!

Joplin, MO says no to tattoos for teachers

I understand why teachers should be held to a higher moral standard than in other professions, but personally, this is going too far. Here is the rational for the ban explained by Joplin school board member Jeff Flowers:

“There’s a stigma associated with (tattoos), and it’s not a good stigma”.

Stigma? Numerous people in our society have tattoos. Are those individuals with tattoos supposed to be morally corrupt? I could understand asking teachers to cover up tattoos that are obscene. And certainly, there are different body parts that should be covered up, regardless of whether or not there is a tattoo. But all tattoos? What if a retired military veteran decides to become a teacher, and they have a tattoo indicating their service on their arm? What is the stigma there?

Perhaps I am making too much of this, but this is an example of my love-hate relationship with my home state (and I really do have one). I love being a Missourian, but I hate how sometimes, it can be a pretty backwards place to live.