Comment Archives: Today
Re: “Two Cheers for the Unified School Board”
@OTP
Thanks for confriming what I thought.
Seems to me this country has been making a concerted effort to try and fix those poverty and injustice problems for over fifty years now. Administration after administration, backed with billions of tax dollars and aided by the courts have tried mightily. That effort continues unabated.
And with some pretty good results, too.
And yet, for all the opportunities afforded, for all the grants of money, set-asides, Afirmative Action initiatives, all that money, time and treasure spent, there are still those, an ever shrinking subset, who just will not reach out and take advantage of what is offered to them.
That good, basic, quality and free education you keep talking about.
It is right there in front of them.
So isn't it about time the black community stop whining about poverty and injustice and start being responsible for themselves?
The rest of us can provide great schools, the best teachers and learning materials, free books, freee transportation, all of that.
But we can't make that black child's parent a good parent. We can't make that child's parent read to him, teach him his colors or his ABCs or supervise his homework, or go to PTA meetings, or attend teacher conferences, or in general give a damn about their child's education.
You say that much yourself.
So what do you want us to do about it?
Give them more free stuff? Like GR says, that will just result in more free stuff, not in better education results. Free stuff does not change hearts and minds. Until those blacks you talk about change their value system, nothing much is going to happen. They will continue to exist in a prison of their own making. The real pity is that the key to the cell door is already right in their hand.
Your family values education. My family values education. Many, many other families of all racial backgrounds value education.
Why don't they?
Re: “The Comparison of Detroit and Memphis, Again”
@barf @jrgolden
Respect both answers. I was curious more than anything. The funny thing is everyone is so prideful of Memphis, but not enough pride to really push to make a difference. Not saying that you two aren't doing anything to make a difference. Just saying that in general we are not doing enough as a whole. Anyway, I hope the both of you can enjoy the second half of your lives here in the midsouth.
Re: “Two Cheers for the Unified School Board”
GroveReb84
I have the references to back me up. I have seen nothing from you but your thoughts. So far I have only used a few references whereas you have used none. There are plenty more references and/or studies that I can direct you too.
All you and others do, Grove, is make assumptions and excuses with no research or studies to back you up.
As studies will show, generations of poverty and injustice cannot be fixed in a few years. Once the poverty and injustice is fixed, it takes years to come up to par, with each successive year better than the prior.
Re: “Two Cheers for the Unified School Board”
OTP, the problem is not that children are in poverty. The problem is the value system of those in poverty.
That socio-economic status may be closely linked to the school performance, but it isn't a money issue. You could put money in the pockets of all of those residents, and it wouldn't change the values of the parents.
And yes, everything with this school issue for you is about race.
Re: “Two Cheers for the Unified School Board”
ArlingtopPop
You seem to think that I am obsessed with race when it comes to this school situation. It is not an obsession, but a reality of what it is.
Read:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-garlan…
The Power of White Privilege in Racially Mixed Schools
http://acadenic.udayton.edu/race/04needs/e…
Then, here is some more on state takeovers:
http://educationnext.org/the-turnaround-fa…
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer…
Re: “Benghazi Syndrome”
OTP, I have no doubt that the folks in your flock believe "there is no there, there", but I assure you the American people, as a whole, do not realize that. This will become obvious to you in 2014.
Re: “Two Cheers for the Unified School Board”
@Homer
What I don't get is why incentives aren't offered to teachers regarding numbers of hours per week. Some subjects, Geometry for example, take a LOT more time and the students would benefit from classes that are 2 or three times as long as an American History class. Something along the lines of physics or chem labs would be a step in the right direction. I know that many students would benefit from an extra three or four hours a week with a good teacher on many of the more advanced maths. Lots and lots of people would benefit from the inductive logic that is explicitly taught in geometry, but often they believe it to be "too hard" when really all they need is more time and a teacher.
Is there anything like that in the pipe anywhere?
Re: “Benghazi Syndrome”
John Smith
I wouldn't too much be worried by what Fox News rave about. In the scheme of things, their viewership is rather small as is other cable news sources, MSNBC and CNN. The vast public outside of the beltway are not the least bit focused on Benghazi, the IRS or other so-called scandals. They are too busy worrying about the economy, jobs, healthcare, education, etc. Look at it this way, if Fox News were that powerful, Obama would never have been president and the senate would be majority gop.
The fact remains that the late Ambassador Stevens was offered enhanced security (18 man special forces team) as added personal security, he refused it. The fact remains that Stevens, as an expert on the ground, did not have to leave the security of the official embassy (Tripoli) to travel hundreds of miles to a consulate in Benghazi.
The IRS scandal, well, the IRS hires over 20,000 workers. It is no way possible that any president could monitor their activities. Hell, the director could not even do it. No large company director can be on top of everything that goes on in his organization.
The American people, as a whole realizes this. So, let Fox News blow their horn as loud as it wants to, only a small sliver of the population is listening.
Re: “Westboro Baptist Church Takes on the NBA, Ignores Elvis”
Is that Fred Phelps' daughter Shirley behind the sunglasses and above the caption saying she never stopped singing? Her picture is all over the internet; she is on TV; and she's been before the Supreme Court. I don't think she really believes all that stuff. It is a means to an end. It must be exhausting to make yourself infamous.
Re: “John Willingham, Barbecue Maven and All-Around Achiever, Dies at 80”
I will always remember meeting John in 1993 at Memphis In May. And, I will forever carry his words of advice in my heart and head, "It' ain't braggin' if you can do it!" Thanks John for being such a great man and character. Those of us in the barbecue community will do some cooking in your honor. Memphis, you have truly lost a GREAT MAN!
Re: “Benghazi Syndrome”
Actually the GOP and their propaganda branch, Fox News, deserve some credit for removing the attack on the Cairo embassy from the Benghazi narrative. The attack in Egypt which was occurring at the same time was clearly based on the anti-islamic video on YouTube. It was an elementary judgement in the immediate aftermath to connect the two attacks and declare that video was the catalyst for both. However, the GOP and Fox News have now successfully spun the facts to make it appear that the video as a catalyst for the Libya attack was a total fabrication. They also have successfully transferred the fact that the Libyan embassy is in Tripoli to it being in Benghazi. The true failure of the Obama administration is allowing the GOP and Fox News the ability to successfully go Goebbels.
Re: “Beale's Club 152: "We'll take care of it," says Kevin Kane”
CEBorst
You continuously amaze me by some of your comments. This time you were close to being right.
I have no doubt that the things that went on in club 152 are true. What I do question is how pervasive was it. How many were actually exhibiting these type of actions publically? If one would read the reports, it would give the impression that the club was an out and out drug house.
Have you ever noticed that, on Beale Street, when one club out performs the other clubs, something happens to that most popular club. I wonder why?
I regress back to the time when I worked one summer for the Memphis Country Club. Sure it was a private club, a highly distinguished private club with the crème de la crème of Memphis society. Some of the things I witnessed there would make your head swim, but, it never made the press.
How does one police a club that has millionaire NBA players, VIP's, etc, youngsters from affluent families from Memphis and the suburbs from having dope? I have found in my lifetime that people that want no part of an atmosphere that does not agree with them use the self-policing concept, they leave and don't come back to that particular establishment.
I think that this is an overblown incident brought about by the envious other club owners on Beale Street. Club 152 will weather this storm and will be open again within 2 weeks.
Re: “Animal Advocacy Group Plans Protest Against Memphis Animal Services”
Because, Julius, the last thing most government employees are hired for is competence.
Re: “Two Cheers for the Unified School Board”
ArlingtonPop, et al
Sure, you will find instances of outstanding performances by some Charter Schools, hell, even a blind squirrel will find a nut sometime. But, if you notice, the overall performances of Charter Schools is not impressive at all.
One scenario in Memphis is that charter schools have a hard time retaining returning students. The longer school days and longer school week takes a toll on the students. Most children need time for themselves too. Is it worth it to gain a few dubious points on a test to deprive children of the time they need for themselves just to be kids? Me, personally, I think not. A lot of the so-called gains made by some charter schools questionable at best, since tests are used to determine their effectiveness. It is the same with standardized testing in the public schools. Yes, the student passed the test, but have they really learned or just memorized the questions and answers relative to the test they were taught to? A couple of years ago, I did an experiment. My son took a test and did very well. Three months later, I had him take the same exact test and he made 10 points less than on the first test. That bothered me and with the new teacher standards, I am afraid it will get worse. Students will be taught to pass the tests necessary to ensure that the teacher keeps his/her job at the expense of truly teaching. Homersimpson should know more about this.
Every study of education, especially the education of kids from impoverished homes, it is more to do with the circumstance of the family rather than the school itself. That is why some kids in the same school, the same class, excel while some others don't. Refusal by governments to address these underlying problems is just like pissing in the wind. There are many ways government can help struggling families. They can legislate higher minimum wages, repeal right to work laws, expand Medicaid, which of course, Tennessee refused, actually use title 1 money to tutor young adults with kids, pass and enforce the fair pay act, etc. They can use the extra money that they spend in asd schools in traditional public schools. They should use specific schools to handle students with critical disciplinary problems.
It seems as though most of you are using excuses to cover up the real problems and are willing to waste taxpayer dollars on schemes that have been proven, in the long term, to be not effective, rather than shift money into the very areas that will make things better, the socio-economic conditions of the base family.
ArlingtonPop and Homersimpson, we don't need to be spending over 1 billion dollars on experiments when we already know what works. I am not adverse to paying higher property taxes, but, I want those dollars to go to where the problem is and be concentrated where the need is greatest.
I am not against charter schools, per se, however, I am not for vouchers unless they are available for everyone up to and including the total cost of a private school. I am not willing to waste my son's education by taking part in experiments that will take years of study to determine if they are effective. By the time those studies are done and, if they prove not to be effective, my son will have already moved on.
Re: “Two Cheers for the Unified School Board”
@Homer
As I said to OTP, I am not at all sure that any of the things the legislature is doing is going to work, but I was very suprised to follow up on his lead to Stanford to see a different picture than he presented.
I just wonder if he is right that it takes special training to work with children in poverty and that some of the charter schools have taken care to develop teachers to do just that. If that is true, then perhaps charters will be part of the solution in Memphis.
When you speak of professional development from charters and studying teachers who have been very successful, are there common practices to specifically address teaching children who come from impoverished areas?
I am also interested in his statement that the ASD and charters get more public funding than the other schools. Not that it particularly bothers me that the ASD gets additional funding if the schools are dealing with higher risk children. I just would like to understand how that works. I know these teachers are being offered all those incentives, is there anything else?
Re: “Westboro Baptist Church Takes on the NBA, Ignores Elvis”
Didn't you use the same photo spread for your article on the Special Olympics?
( for those we are inevitably offended by that, get off your PC horse and lighten up )
Re: “Animal Advocacy Group Plans Protest Against Memphis Animal Services”
Why does it seem so hard for the MAS to find conscientious and caring employees, including veterinarians???
I still find it hard to believe there wasn't a complete housecleaning of the operation after the Sheriff's raid. EVERYONE should have been made to re-apply for their positions after that mess was revealed.
You ask ..."why EVERYONE"?
That's an easy one, ... because even if employees weren't abusing or neglecting the animals, they were certainly witnessing yhe actions and did absolutely nothing about it.
Makes me sick when I think about that miscreant, Elliot, who was strangling dogs to death by hanging them over a sink by a leash around their necks. I look at my little 14 y/o Pug and am sickened by the thought of what could have happened to this loving, loyal little creature if by happenstance he'd ended up at MAS.
What these miscreants did had nothing to do with economic disparities, lack of education, sex, or jealousy ... it was pure evil and meanness which motivated them to take those actions.
They, and many still working at MAS are the scum of the earth.
Re: “Beale's Club 152: "We'll take care of it," says Kevin Kane”
Do you suppose that the timing of this closure, during MIM, a high tourist and media spotlight time, not to mention the attention brought by the Grizz, was coincidental?
If the idea was to show Memphis getting tough on crime I'm not sure striking a high profile target on Beale street at this time served the purpose.
Kane and his posse should be embarrassed.
You can't change the game if you don't change the players.
THIS WEEK'S ISSUE
SPECIAL ISSUES
Re: “Animal Advocacy Group Plans Protest Against Memphis Animal Services”
The animal abuse at MAS continues for just one reason - because our mayor doesn't care!!! None of this is news to him.
Concerned citizens and taxpayers - PLEASE join this peaceful protest so the mayor will know that Memphians will not tolerate this abuse any longer