Guard Dog

In my case that some people is The NY Post, Brookings, The Nashville Tennessean AND the Commercial Appeal (neither if which is "right wing") and other places of the like. The theory DOES have detractors other than angry parents, Republican politicians, and nutjobs wearing Viking helmets and painted faces running through the halls of the capital. Personally I do not give a f--k about it. Teach it in college. Teach it in kindergarten. Do. Not Care. When multiple informed sources I find credible (meaning not the types I listed) make the same observations I figure there is at least a grain of truth in them. I have less than zero interest in actually learning the details so I'll take the word of credible sources and rephrase my comment thusly: If the criticisms of CRT that have been reported in multiple media outlets that I personally find credible are true then I do not think that history should be over dramatized and I definitely do NOT think anyone alive today owes anyone else an apology for deeds done by people long dead. Nor do I think it's healthy to tell people they are victims and it's all stacked against them. Better? I'm sure the CRT program makes for interesting reading but right now all my time is dedicated to resolving non-linear interactions caused by slit diffraction on the cheap chinese antennas this company wasted it's capital on.

I don't know, or care, enough about it to formulate an informed opinion of CRT as a teaching program. If I had kids in school I guess I would care. Or if I actually gave a damn about the future of this society after I've shuffled off this mortal coil. I do absolutely think the inequalities and terrible treatment of our fellow humans both by individuals and systems of governance should be taught in full and brutal detail with no sensibilities spared. The whole "Lost Cause" alternative history of the Civil War is rooted in sparing the feelings of people alive to today by finding virtue someplace there was little to be had. People who believe it are basically good and grab onto it because they do not want to believe their ancestors were not. But at the same time I do not think that history should be over dramatized and I definitely do NOT think anyone alive today owes anyone else an apology for deeds done by people long dead. Nor do I think it's healthy to tell people they are victims and it's all stacked against them. All of these criticisms have been made of CRT.

Added to my "to do" list. I've read Longstreet's memoirs of the Mexican war but not much else. I have read a great deal about post-civil war American history. Very little about anything in the Revolution to Civil War period.

I repaired a barn heater for one of G's patients Monday. It wasn't a big deal. It took 30 minutes. They wanted to pay me but I refused. Yesterday they brought us a big sweet potato pie to say thanks. I consider myself well compensated for the time!

CRT has become one of those things that seems to mean different things to different people. I mean it is a thing and it does have an objective definition. But like most bogeymen it takes on different meanings to different folks. I tend to think of the way it addresses historical inequality as well meaning but also self defeating. Just my $.02 Personally I'm far more put off by the way they are teaching math these days. They are taking very simple operations like multiplication and division and making them complex by using numberline construction rather than just simple memorization. It's convoluted and IMO will make more advanced concepts in algebra harder to do. But, that is just my opinion. I don't have kids. Never going to. And I already know how to do advanced math so I don't really care. Plus it could just me viewing it through the vanity of my own knowledge. After all if I know how to do it then the way I learned to do must be the only way right?

That is a good idea

I was reading a synopsis pm a new book for the Army War College: Battle Tested!: Gettysburg Leadership Lessons for 21st Century Leaders. It goes into excruciating depth of the decisions of senior officers during the battle. Heck I can sum it up in five points without even reading it! Don't attack a numerically superior force on defensible ground Underachievers maker terrible subordinates (Ewell) Overachievers make wonderful subordinates (Chamberlain) If your enemy is making a mistake. do NOT stop him. If it didn't work yesterday and it didn't work today it's not going to work tomorrow!

God forbid! It's far easier to be angry than informed! I've never read Native Son. It's been on my to-do list for decades.

MLB lockout: New proposal leaves locked-out players underwhelmed Strike one One of the big hang ups appears to be the PA wanting to stop "tanking". Teams deliberately sucking to get better draft position. Kudos to them on that count. If you are a Baltimore Orioles fan why even watch the past two seasons? The problem with tanking is it works. Just as the Astros, Rays and, in a season or two, the Marlins. One way they might want to go is a "minimum salary cap". This might boost payrolls but it won't disincentivize cellar dwelling. A draft lottery isn't a terrible idea and that is what they are looking at now. But it hasn't prevented tanking in the NBA so it likely won't help. But there is an idea I just LOVE. At the end of the regular season rank all teams by runs scored. Eliminate the playoff teams and take the top six to eight remaining clubs and THAT is your draft order. That system does not punish losses and it does not reward wins. It rewards SCORING. That is what the MLB says they want. More action on the field. Teams are managed from a standpoint of risk aversion. Managers are afraid of squeeze plays, hit and runs, etc. They prefer the tried and true bloop, bunt, blast sequence. But more often than not it goes bloop, bunt, strikeout. And it isn't interesting to watch. Baseball has always been about scoring runs, not power and exit velocity. Tweaking the rules like they do every season isn't helping and it's bastardizing the game. Incentivize teams to score runs might well be the cure all.

Never heard of Dear Martin. I read the description on Amazon. It likely has some value as a teaching tool over Mockingbird since it's actually told from the perspective of the person who suffered an injustice rather than a witness to it. Bur, in my biased (no pun intended LOL) Mockingbird is probably a much better read. Likely a much harder read.

The problem that makes it unbelievable is using the terms "GOP" and "plan" in the same sentence without a negative qualifier. I kid. I'm actually beginning to agree with you on this the more I learn about what went on behind the scenes. It does not make we like or respect the Democrats any more. It just makes me hate the Republicans more. To tell you the truth I didn't think any more water could be drained from that pond but here we are.

Damn straight. I'm going to miss having a garden this year. It's hard work but I always found it peaceful

Ronnie Spector Be my little baby... RIP

It's been near four months since I was last reading a book. I doubt that dry spell broke any records for me but it is unusually long. So... here we go

Apple TV bidding on MLB mid-week games

How Fake Spies Ruin Real Intelligence The NSA & CIA are made up of some very smart, skilled, and unheroic looking people. They are experts in data analysis and languages/culture not hand to hand combat. When it's time to the the "Bond and Bourne" stuff it's usually Green Berets or SEALs who are doing the heavy lifting.

55 watts. Wow, no wonder it was the first thing they shut off in the Odyssey on Apollo 13.

A little early this year but all is gloom and doom in peanut and crackerjack land. The owners have locked out the players. The two sides are not even talking. Spring Training is (supposed to be) 40 days away. Not good. The national pastime is past it's time and games lost due to work stoppage might well put it in the dirt for good. But there is some news that is interesting. New York Yankees name Rachel Balkovec to manage Tampa Tarpons. She will be the first woman to manage in affiliated baseball so congrats to her.

Got Covid booster and didn't die. So that's good. Almost 6 hours now and no side affects at all.

Nah. We almost never discuss politics. She has very little interest it.

More and more I'm coming around to @Gromnir's way of thinking on this.

Let's hope not

Few end well. Fewer still accomplish anything.