Education

[Swingman]

"Tanus" wrote > By and large, the Wreck talks about

Well said.

[Joe]

The Hardy boys didn't have any female help, so ditto.

Say WHAT??? Are you forgetting Aunt Gertrude??????

geez......

jc

[Dave in Houston]

I remember marveling back in the late 50s every time Frank mashed the accelerator to the floorboard and the car zoomed to 30 mph! Me thinks my set were original 1920-something prints. And, even though I knew at age nine or ten that 30 mph really wasn't very fast at all, it never kept me from finishing that particular book and starting the next one.

[Charlie Self]

And you have to wonder at the layers of administration: naturally enough, some teachers head for the admin area because of the pay. Around here, a school principal gets about double what the best paid teacher gets, while his assistants (of whom there are anywhere from three to six) get about 75% of his pay.

Is that a sad disparity? Probably not as bad as the CEO who gets 5,000 times the 10 bucks an hour his lowest paid employee gets, but that CEO is not paid from tax dollars. I wouldn't have either job these days, teaching or admin, but it does seem to me that at least SOME teachers in the system should equal or surpass the principal's salary. I recall a few years ago having a guy who owned a furniture factory at that time telling me he was delighted when all of his sales people made more than he did. Seems a sane attitude to me, and one that with adjustment might be applicable in many areas.

[Greg G]

It may have been fluff to stuffy adults, but one of the easiest ways to get kids to read voluntarily. Wasn't that the point?

Greg G.

[Charlie Self]

Not draft dodgers, Ed. Those were draft evaders and it was legal. Cheney did it. Bush did it. Hell, I think most of Congress did it. And that's one of our current problems.

[Charlie Self]

Well, hell, I wasn't going in the Army, either. By that time, I'd already serve four years in the Marines.

But it is really easy to determine intent when someone gets five different deferments, or joins the ANG, or otherwise manages to sneak under the tape. I am still smarting from that sack of shit Cheney having the gall to stand up in from of the Marine Corps League convention and give the keynote speech.

[Charlie Self]

I think so. I also think Harry Potter is trash, but fun trash for kids, and it has gotten millions who wouldn't otherwise pick up a book involved in reading, at least for a start. And made its author a billionairess (how's that for politically incorrect).

With all today's distractions, it's sometimes hard to get kids interested in books, but without books, their lives are going to be a lot less complete. Hell, even books by Ann Coulter have SOME value.

[Greg G]

Well, that's a no brainer. A classroom partially comprised of ill-behaved kids vs. a nice quiet office and more pay. No taking tests home for grading, fewer whining parents. What's not to like? Not having kids, I don't know the current breakdown for salaries, but I have little doubt it is bloated and rewards are based on politics rather than genuine performance.

The disparity you mention has exponentially increased in the past 15 years or so. It seems to me that attitudes have changed considerably since I first entered the work force. Avarice appears to have become the philosophy of modern business. Why? Who knows - probably a variety of reasons, including television, unpredictable, vacillating costs of doing business and living, and political trends. Healthy for society? Not.

As an aside, what I find appalling and befuddling is the 42 million in salary plus bonuses that are routinely awarded to CEO's who run the company into the ground or bankruptcy. Then they move to another company and continue the trend. What the hell is with that? Why are we rewarding corporate raiders and incompetence so handsomely?

Greg G.

[Greg G]

The current obsession with the Potter books is a bit disconcerting - too much of anything isn't a good thing and can displace reality in young minds; albeit temporarily. I understand their concern of the unrealistic "magic" stuff, but a part of growing up is discarding the trash yet keeping the skills developed. Hell, I spent my childhood believing I was going to get off of this cinder one day.

Even hate laden, vituperative screeds make good kindling. ;-)

Greg G.