education

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GI Bill Transferability Has Arrived

Posted by StevenLeeDouglasWV on April 21, 2011

Posted in: Defense Budgets, GI Benefits. Tagged: Barack Obama, education, George Mason University, GI Bill, Higher Education, Post-9/11 GI Bill, Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008, September 11 attacks, United States, United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Veteran. Leave a Comment

For the first time in history, servicemembers enrolled in the Post-9/11
GI Bill program will be able to transfer unused educational benefits to their spouses or children starting Aug. 1, 2009.

New Department of Defense guidance, issued June 23, 2009, establishes the criteria for eligibility and transfer of those education benefits.

The new GI Bill, signed into law June 20, 2008, provides the most comprehensive educational benefit package since the original bill, officially known as the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944, was signed into law.

For more information on eligibility and application procedures,
see the Dept. of Veteran’s Affairs Web site.

<!–The new GI Bill provides the most comprehensive educational benefit
package since the original bill, officially called the Servicemens Readjustment
Act of 1944, was signed into law.

Many veterans, enlisted and officer, who served on or after Sept. 11, 2001,
will be eligible for the cost of tuition and fees, not to exceed the most expensive
in-state undergraduate tuition at a public institution. (The percentage of benefit
is based on length of active duty service)

And for the first time, those enrolled in the Post-9/11 GI Bill program
will be able to transfer unused educational benefits to their spouses or children.

Those servicemembers not on active duty (including spouses of
non-Active Duty servicemembers and all children) may also receive a living
stipend equal to the basic allowance for housing rate for an E-5 with dependents,
and an annual $1,000 books stipend.

For more information on eligibility and application procedures, see the
Dept. of Veteran’s Affairs Web site.

–>

Breaking News from CNN

Posted by StevenLeeDouglasWV on February 6, 2011

Posted in: CNN, Top News Stories. Tagged: Colleges and Universities, education, Horizon League, Ohio, Sports, United States, Youngstown Ohio, Youngstown State University. Leave a Comment

– Student at Ohio’s Youngstown State University killed, 11 others wounded in off-campus shooting, officials say.

Police: 1 dead, 11 shot at Ohio fraternity house (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
Police: 1 dead, 11 shot at Ohio fraternity house (thenewstribune.com)

Should Personal Toys be allowed in Public Schools?

Posted by StevenLeeDouglasWV on January 15, 2011

Posted in: *Original Posts, Education, Human Interest, Local News. Tagged: Arts, Beyblade, Beyblade Metal Fusion, Christmas, education, Elementary School, Manga, Silly Bandz, Takao Aoki, Viz Media. 2 comments

In Human Interest, Shepherdstown, Shepherdstown Elementary School on January 15, 2011 at 2:27 pm

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Shepherdstown Elementary School has allowed students in the 4th Grade (possibly other grades also) to bring BeyBlades to school. At this time almost every child has one and brings them to school every day. The use of these toys has become an overwhelming occupation, to the extent that the school teachers have had to institute restrictions on how often they can use them.

The silly band craze has seemed to wear off substantially. Silly bands were different in that they were worn on kids wrists. They also seemed to be at every grade level. Even a number of teachers wore them and others gave them out as rewards for good behasviour in the class room. There were some issues when children wore so many of them on their wrists that it was bad for circulation. This fad seems to have faded.

Beyblades are now the in-thing. If you are not familar with them I am including a picture of one below.

So, what is Beyblade and where does it come from?

Beyblade (爆転シュートベイブレード, Bakuten Shūto Beiburēdo^?) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Takao Aoki. Originally serialized in CoroCoro Comic from 2000 to 2002, the individual chapters were collected and published in 14 tankōbon volume by Shogakukan. The series focuses on a group of kids who form teams with which they battle one another using highly powerful spinning tops called “Beyblades” which are enchanted with magical spirits.

The manga is licensed for English language release in North America by Viz Media. The manga was adapted into a three season anime series. The first season, spanning 51 episodes, aired in Japan on TV Tokyo from January 8, 2001, to December 24, 2001. The second season, Beyblade V-Force, ran for another 51 episodes from January 7, 2002, until December 30, 2002. The third season, Beyblade G Revolution, also spanned 51 episodes (the 51st was a double-length special but was split into two episodes for the Western release) and ran from January 6, 2003, until its conclusion on December 29, 2003. The seasons are licensed by Nelvana for an English-language release in North America.

A new series of Beyblade has been released in 2009 (2010 in U.S.), entitled Beyblade Metal Fusion (known as Metal Fight Beyblade in Japan). It features a new cast of characters and Beyblades. A sequel series has also been released in 2010 (2011 in U.S.), called BeyBlade: Metal Masters.

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Unlike Silly bands, Beyblades have movies, TV shows on Ninetndo, Wii, DS and other games that kids can buy. Their lives can be consumed by this fad which perhaps is why so many 4th Graders at Shepherdstown Elementary School are bringing them in to compete.

So, if they can bring Beyblades to school, what else can they bring to Shepherdstown Elementary?

Please chime in to this discussion.

I for one beleive children should not be allowed to bring any personal items to school, except possibly on a day set aside for kids sharing things with their classmates during class time. We called this “Show and Tell” in the old days…

Wii Review: Beyblade – Metal Fusion – Battle Fortress (blogcritics.org)
Which Beyblade Metal Fusion is the best (wiki.answers.com)
Need Some Last-Minute Gifts? Pick Up These Video Games for the Wii! (susanheim.blogspot.com)
Culture’s Collide: Shepherd U vs Shepherdstown (myshepherdstown.wordpress.com)
Shepherdstown, WV USA? (myshepherdstown.wordpress.com)
This Week’s Interesting DVD Releases – January 11th, 2011 (largeheartedboy.com)
Nintendo Channel – this week’s video updates (gonintendo.com)
SISTAR Hyorin’s elementary school photos revealed (allkpop.com)
Gear Games Weekly: November 7 – 13 (geardiary.com)
What are this Christmas season’s hot toys? (ctv.ca)

My Shepherdstown…

Posted by StevenLeeDouglasWV on December 19, 2010

Posted in: *Original Posts. Tagged: Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Eastern Panhandle, Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia, education, National Audubon Society, New York City, Organic food, Recycling, Shepherd University, Shepherdstown West Virginia, Silver Spring Maryland, Takao Aoki, United States, West Virginia. Leave a Comment

Image via Wikipedia

Bavarian Inn, Carriage House Cafe, Citizens, Culture Shock, Eastern Panhandle, Prejudice, Shepherdstown Chronicle, Students, The Clarion Inn, Town, University, West Virginia

Culture’s Collide: Shepherd U vs Shepherdstown

In Anthropology, Culture, Shepherd University, Shepherdstown, Sociology on September 23, 2010 at 11:03 pm

When I went to Catholic University in the late 1970′s (79-82) one of my favorite courses was Sociology. It was one of my general studies courses and one of the only classes I got an A. I probably only got a handful of A’s during my time at CUA. I do remember one other course I took which was Women’s Studies. Beleive it or not (of course you will) I took the course to meet girls. Most guys would unless they learned before hand that girls who took that class were the more independent minded (marry me, first) girls at CUA. What was so important about both classes was that they taught me how to be socially aware of my surroundings. In hindsight I find it quite amazing that it was at the Pope’s school.

I sat in a class this evening for Psych 101 at Shepherd. Tonight’s lecture was on Social Psychology.

Towards the end of the class students started talking about what they dont like about Shepherd University AND Shepherdstown, from a social or anthropological view. Some thoughts that I came away with I want to share.

1. “Shepherdstown is a very open welcoming town.” – A Married 40 year old male Student who lives in Shepherdstown (Hispanic Jew he says)

2. “No matter how I dress, when I walk down German Street people look at me funny, either because they think I act better than they are (I dress better), or people frown at me like I am below them.” – A Shepherd On-Campus student

3. “There are no blacks in any of my classes, or Asians. In fact, I work at the USDA nearby and there are no blacks working there either.” - Out of state commuting student, 25.

I made an overarching observation tonight that there is an absolute disconnect between the University and the Town. My immediate reaction is that this needs to change and any assimilation attempts would benefit both cultures.

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A walk down German Street

In Uncategorized on September 12, 2010 at 12:11 am

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Afternoon Tea, Carriage House Cafe, Eastern Panhandle, Lunch, Shepherd University, Shepherdstown, West Virginia

Lunch under $5 w/10% Student Discount

In Food, My Favorite Restaurants, Shepherd University on September 8, 2010 at 4:57 pm

Stopped by the Carriage House for a quick lunch today. When I tried to use my credit card they told me my total was under $5. I was happy to pay cash, with a tip of course. Some more pics of my new favorite restaurant. Remember, if you go there, mention my name.

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Back in Shepherdstown with my New Old Subaru Outback… (underthelobsterscope.wordpress.com)
American Conservation Film Festival Starts Today (underthelobsterscope.wordpress.com)
Is it the end of the Town Hall Oak? (underthelobsterscope.wordpress.com)
We Are One Demonstration Tonite In Shepherdstown… (underthelobsterscope.wordpress.com)
Should Personal Toys be allowed in Public Schools? (thecommunicatorwv.wordpress.com)
Looking for Webelos (myshepherdstown.wordpress.com)
Shepherdstown Community Garden Update… (underthelobsterscope.wordpress.com)
And yet another 2-hour delay! (myshepherdstown.wordpress.com)
Should Personal Toys be allowed in Public Schools? (myshepherdstown.wordpress.com)
Back at It (garrettperrella.wordpress.com)
Elly and I Hosted A Community Garden Meeting Today (underthelobsterscope.wordpress.com)
Got up early this morning and joined John Case on WSHC… (underthelobsterscope.wordpress.com)
What we can do to preserve Liberal/Progressive standards and information in the growing Right-Wing Oligarchy… (underthelobsterscope.wordpress.com)

Stay in touch with TED

Posted by StevenLeeDouglasWV on November 16, 2010

Posted in: Ted. Tagged: Aaron Huey, Conrad Wolfram, Denis Dutton, education, Mathematics, Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, TED. Leave a Comment

November 16, 2010

This week, Denis Dutton looks at the deep evolutionary origins of beauty, Conrad Wolfram presents a radical idea about math education, and Aaron Huey shows haunting photos from the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.

TED collaborates with animator Andrew Park to illustrate Denis Dutton‘s provocative theory that beauty has deep evolutionary origins. Watch now >>

Conrad Wolfram presents his radical idea about math education: we should teach kids math through computer programming. Watch now >>

TED Fellow Eric Berlow illustrates how to break down complex issues into simpler forms, so we can understand and address them. Watch now >>

Auret van Heerden talks about the next frontier of workers’ rights — globalized industries where no single nation can keep workers protected. Watch now >>

Aaron Huey‘s photos from the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation intertwine with a shocking history lesson in this bold talk from TEDxDU. Watch now >>

NEWS FROM TED

TEDPrize@UN webcast
Thurs., Nov. 18. More »

Join The Conversation

		Lyla Johnston on Aaron Huey: America’s native prisoners of war

		Thank you Aaron Huey. Just because it happened long ago, does not mean it isn’t still affecting us. Just because it was long ago, does not mean we should continue to ignore it. Just because it happened long ago, does not mean we can’t make things right.I say this with love for every people, not only my own.”



		Wolfgang Pilz on Conrad Wolfram: Teaching kids real math with computers

		If someone can’t figure out how to get “bang for your buck”, that’s not a question of calculation. It’s a question of understanding. What operations do I have to perform and why? If I then calculate out the result in my head or with a calculator doesn’t matter one bit.The central point of the talk is that the part of the mind which understands the concepts behind the math, is a different one than the one that does the calculating. You can be great at doing your multiplication tables, but still not understand what you have to do in order to get a measure for “bang for the buck”. Those are two different things. There is much calculating going in classrooms, without knowing what is being calculated or why. That’s the real problem. Not “evil computers”.”

Most Emailed This Week

	Ken Robinson says schools kill creativity
	Emily Pilloton: Teaching design for change
	Steve Jobs: How to live before you die
	Jill Bolte Taylor’s stroke of insight
	Aaron Huey: America’s native prisoners of war

Teaching kids real math with computers: Conrad Wolfram on TED.com (ted.com)
Teaching kids real math with computers (guardian.co.uk)
TEDTalks : Conrad Wolfram: Teaching kids real math with computers – Conrad Wolfram (2010) (ted.com)
TED Talk – Teaching Kids Real Math With Computers (freetech4teachers.com)
America’s native prisoners of war: Aaron Huey on TED.com (ted.com)
Wolfram Research Introduces Unique Concept of Linguistically Controlled Computing (prweb.com)
How complexity leads to simplicity: Eric Berlow on TED.com (ted.com)
How I Survived the Worst Earthquake of My Life (thedailybeast.com)
People really win: Meet TEDGlobal 2010′s contest winners (ted.com)
Talk to Wolfram Alpha in TeX (wolframalpha.com)

CDC Study Finds Annual Cost of Motor Vehicle Crashes Exceeds $99 Billion

Posted by StevenLeeDouglasWV on August 25, 2010

Posted in: News. Tagged: 1, Automobile safety, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Click It or Ticket, education, Motor vehicle, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, News, Seat belt, Traffic collision, United States. Leave a Comment

Image via Wikipedia

Press Release

For Immediate Release: August 25, 2010
Contact: CDC Division of Media Relations
(404) 639-3286

CDC Study Finds Annual Cost of Motor Vehicle Crashes Exceeds $99 Billion

Cost amounts to nearly $500 for each U.S. licensed driver in one year

In a one-year period, the cost of medical care and productivity losses associated with injuries from motor vehicle crashes exceeded $99 billion – with the cost of direct medical care accounting for $17 billion, according to a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The total annual cost amounts to nearly $500 for each licensed driver in the United States, said the study in the journal Traffic Injury Prevention.

The one-year costs of fatal and non-fatal crash-related injuries totaled $70 billion (71 percent of total costs) for people riding in motor vehicles, such as cars and light trucks, $12 billion for motorcyclists, $10 billion for pedestrians, and $5 billion for bicyclists, the study said.

CDC researchers used 2005 data because, at the study time, it provided the most current source of national fatal and non-fatal injury and cost data from multiple sources.

“Every 10 seconds, someone in the United States is treated in an emergency department for crash-related injuries, and nearly 40,000 people die from these injuries each year. This study highlights the magnitude of the problem of crash-related injuries from a cost perspective, and the numbers are staggering,” said Dr. Grant Baldwin, director of CDC’s Division of Unintentional Injury Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.

The study also found:

Costs related to fatal motor vehicle-related injuries totaled $58 billion. The cost of non-fatal injuries resulting in hospitalization amounted to $28 billion, and the cost of injuries to people treated in emergency departments and released was $14 billion.
More men were killed (70 percent) and injured (52 percent) in motor vehicle crashes than women. Injuries and deaths among men represented 74 percent ($74 billion) of all costs.
Teens and young adults made up 28 percent of all fatal and nonfatal motor vehicle injuries and 31 percent of the costs ($31 billion). These young people represented only 14 percent of the U.S. population.
Motorcyclists made up 6 percent of all fatalities and injuries but 12 percent of the costs, likely due to the severity of their injuries. Pedestrians, who have no protection when they are hit by vehicles and are also often severely injured, made up 5 percent of all injuries but 10 percent of total costs.

Motor vehicle crash injuries and deaths and the associated costs are preventable. CDC’s Injury Center supports proven, effective strategies for prevention such as:

Graduated driver licensing (GDL) policies: these laws allow new teen drivers to get experience on the road in lower-risk situations as they gain experience over time and are proven to reduce teen crashes. Strong GDL laws have been associated with up to 40 percent decreases in crashes among 16-year-old drivers.
Child safety seat distribution and education programs: increased use of correctly installed and fitted child safety seats could help reduce the $3.6 billion annual bill for injuries to children, the cost number found in this study.
Primary seat belt laws: these laws allow motorists to be stopped and cited for not wearing seat belts. Seat belts reduce the risk of death to those riding in the front seat by about half.
Enhanced seat belt enforcement programs: Enhanced enforcement programs in which law enforcement officers focus on getting people to buckle up (e.g.: Click It or Ticket), are effective at increasing safety belt use and reducing deaths and injuries.”
Motorcycle and bicycle helmet laws: helmets can reduce the risk of death in a motorcycle crash by more than one-third and reduce the risk of brain injury by 69 percent.
Sobriety checkpoints: these checkpoints, where drivers are stopped to assess their level of alcohol impairment, can reduce alcohol-related crash deaths by more than 20 percent.

For details on state-specific policies and a state-by-state policy comparison, visit http://www.iihs.org/laws/.

CDC has also released a one-page fact sheet to help communities play an important role in reducing the human and economic toll of motor vehicle-related injuries by supporting prevention policies that have been shown to save lives and reduce costs. It provides information about cost-effective policies to:

Improve child passenger safety.
Improve teen driver safety.
Reduce alcohol-impaired driving.
Increase safety belt use.

CDC’s Injury Center works to protect the safety of everyone on the roads, every day. For a complete copy of the study, please visit http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/section?content=a926084087&fulltext=713240928.

For more information about CDC’s work in motor vehicle safety, please visit www.cdc.gov/injury.

“Reducing highway deaths: Major factors that continue to drive vehicle fatalities” and related posts (blogs.consumerreports.org)
Native American Road Safety (nlm.nih.gov)
Teen Car Crash Deaths Declining (webmd.com)
Teen Driving and Fatal Crashes (brainposts.blogspot.com)
Study finds airbags reduce risk of kidney injury in car crashes (eurekalert.org)
Obesity Increases Risk of Death in Car Crash (livescience.com)
Obese Drivers at Higher Risk of Death in Car Crashes (nlm.nih.gov)
South Carolina Attorney Urges Parents To Talk With Teen Drivers About Seat Belt Use (prweb.com)
Obesity ‘ups death risk in severe vehicle crashes’ (news.bioscholar.com)
Obesity increases risk of death in severe vehicle crashes, study shows (eurekalert.org)

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Confession of a Victim of Human Trafficking

I, together with my sister, and with my two adolescent children (daughter, aged 17 and son, aged 14) was in Clearwater, Florida at the Church of Scientology, February – March 1998. More than two years have passed but we still cannot forget the horror we experienced there. We are only just starting to release the memories of the terror.

It has taken almost two years but I can now discuss what happened and I would like to go to the American Consulate to meet with the American consul to bring charges against the Church of Scientology for payment on moral grounds. Even though that we understand there is no amount of money or any help that can help to recreate all of our physical power and health that were broken by hard labor in the Church, I decided to apply in court for one reason, to make them stop to recruit people.

We worked for free the only thing we got was food and bed, from 7 am to 11 pm at night without weekends off. Then they took us to dormitory where we were living in 8-16 people in the room. In addition, they only allowed us 2 minutes for shower after that they turned off lights. Cleaning of rooms also was our responsibilities, the church did not have working persons and all our work was repairing, and cleaning rooms, offices and the hotels for the public was our job. The cleaning of kitchens and washing dishes in the kitchens were also our responsibilities. However, the most horrible thing was that they forced my 14-year-old son to work during two weeks at nights building a stage for a concert hall and then he was engaged in painting pipes with very smelly paint underground without any air conditioning. During the day, he and other men were allowed only 3 hours to sleep and then they were taken away for work. I could not recognize my son; he did not understand what was happening at the rare moments when I saw him. He had a dazed look and did not seem to care. Before our departure, his temperature rose and he could not understand where I was taking him. All 15 hours of our transatlantic flight, my children did not eat and could only sleep because of their exhaustion.

When the Church recruited us in Ekaterinburg they told us that we would live together, the whole family, and they will pay each of us $50 per week and what we will have weekends, holidays and at anytime we would be allowed to leave back to Russia. But what happened in reality until the end of my days, by the laws of the Church’s organization I did not have the right to visit the room of my son and other men, and vice-a-versa. They did not pay us what they promised for the time we were there. I received $23. They did not give me money for the trip back to Russia. Our friend from Perm asked his American friend, a professor living in Clearwater, to lend us money and that man brought us money to the Church about 12 midnight and the next morning we left.

Practically no one has the opportunity to leave from there, because nobody has money. Besides that, they force you to pay for the courses, which you take in exchange for hard labor. Each course cost more than $1000 and to take into consideration that one person takes one course per week then nobody from the newly arrived group could not possibly pay the price. Because every one of us sold out already everything, they had just to come to America to be at the Church.

Therefore, the human being is trapped but the most horrible is that happened to the soul and spirit. Because just before leaving I had been working in my city in the L Ron Hubbard Center for three years and I believed with all of my heart and soul that I was doing the most generous business on earth. Then they told me that they need me at Flag and what I could help all people on the planet with my contribution as a Scientologist. I was ready to make a commitment. The result was a horrible disappointment.

To make my leave less painful I had to go and lie and tell them that I had to leave for sometime because the father of my children did not approve that the children would leave and now he insists that they return to Russia. The Church staff locked me in a special room with security and they forced me to sign a statement in writing what I had committed sins against the Church. I was very scared, horrified because I was separated at that moment from the rest of the world and they could hide me for a couple of years in a punitive detachment center (known as RPF) and my children would never leave the Church. At that moment, I was ready to write and sign anything they wanted. They gave me to sign 15 or 20 pages of documents where I had been told I would never ever be able to talk publicly against the Church of Scientology. Moreover, if I would break that promise then against me they will bring legal action and require monetary payment in return.

Dear Steven, I do not know how better to go to the Consul to speak about this, and if it is possible to do it in Russian language or can, I do this through Internet? If you can help me, I will be very thankful. Goodbye. Sincerely, xxxxxxx 25th of June 2000.

(Translated from an email dated 3 July 2000 sent by xxxxxxx (xxxxx, Russia) to the author (St. Petersburg, Russia)

Good day to you Steven. I just found out that you are going to the US Consulate for a meeting with the Consul and I want you to let him know, or ask his personnel, to contact me. I also ask you please give me the email address of the Consul in St. Petersburg because I am going to correspond with him to discuss the terms of bringing legal actions against the Church of Scientology. Tomorrow I will wait for you a detailed letter of your visit to the Consul and about what actions I have to make. If there is the opportunity to bring charges in the USA from my name just to make the process faster then I would be very glad and thankful. I do not want that the crime done against my family, and me especially against my 14-year-old son xxxxxxx would be left unpunished. When recruiters, recruited us they trained my children how my children could answer the questions correctly at the US Consulate interview and what to say if asked what they would be doing in America.

They promised that there would be good schools and that the children will study there. They knew that I wanted to leave xxxxxx with my mother because I wanted him to finish school in Russia. My mother was crying a lot and she asked me to leave him with her but the recruiters knew that if I would leave him at home then I would come back, which they could not allow and therefore they told me that the school in the United States is better than in Russia. We believed them and for the Consul’s question as to what the children would do in the United Sates, they answered that they will study. However, when we arrived at that place he did not study even one day at school. And when I asked why he is not studying at school they retorted that school in the USA is not necessary because he will study special courses of L Ron Hubbard, also like every adult. Nevertheless, even there he did not study, he only worked. In addition, he worked 18-20 hours per day. In addition, other children who were engaged in this labor were much younger than 14 years. For example, “Andrew” and his little sister “Paisy” who were from the USA.

I already wrote to you that a mother has no right to visit a son’s room, this was written in an instruction letter of Hubbard, and we did not see each other for many days. The only chance we had to see each other was when we came together for meals. About leaving the place and going somewhere else was forbidden. Everything was done according to schedule and my son and I had our own separate schedules. Each thing we did was watched by security. The circumstances of this horror are obvious. xxxxxx became reclusive, touchy and dexterous. We lost job, money, respect from our family and friends, a desire for work, belief in our future and health. We received a visa in Ekaterinburg on 2 February 1998, control # —————- (contact the author) Visa R-1 and R-2 ————-.

Therefore dear Steven we need your help. You can send me correspondence through fax or email. That is all. Good luck. I wait for your answer. Sincerely, xxxxx 3 July 2000

Child Abuse as Forced Labor at the Church of Scientology (thecommunicatorwv.wordpress.com)
A Russian Human Trafficking Victim of The Church of Scientology (thecommunicatorwv.wordpress.com)

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I recently came across a document used for a Maryland Nursing School Program. I find it somewhat disturbing that with the shortage of nurses that they would so stringently get rid of students after the first semester. Seems like there is little interest to educate the students. This also presents an interesting way to get rid of students you don’t want working in your local county hospital.

“Final course grades are calculated by determining the average of the exam grades. For those students who have an exam average of 75% or above, the final course grade will be determined by calculating in the remaining grades earned on quizzes, assigned papers, and projects based on their assigned weight. Students who do not achieve an average of 75% on their exam grades will automatically fail the course.”

Note: What the school did not tell the students upfront is that if they missed the minimum 75% on the exam average that all of their additional work was NOT counted, regardless of how well they did, and their final grade for the course was the same as the Exam average, regardless of any other criteria.

I know there is a strong argument that you don’t want a nurse taking care of you that grades poorly on exams. The issue here is that this particular school makes a determination after the end of the first semester and feels they can justify themselves in doing this.

Are You Ready for Final Exams? (psychology.about.com)
Lazy Academics (freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com)
The answer must come in the form of a question. (fashionnation1on1.wordpress.com)
Do you re-test? (castingoutnines.wordpress.com)
I don’t want to be a complainer (ask.metafilter.com)
College GPA: What Is Considered a Good GPA? (brighthub.com)
State moves ahead with plans to phase out high school graduation test (ajc.com)
APNewsBreak: Nearly 1 in 4 fails military exam (sfgate.com)
Parents blindsided as stellar students are now failing state exams, as funding for tutoring slashed (narmer.wordpress.com)

Sibling Rivalries: Home Schooling vs Public Schooling

Posted by StevenLeeDouglasWV on July 9, 2010

Posted in: Humor, Theology and Psychology. Tagged: behavior, Bible, children, christian, Church, community, daughter, Day Camp, education, father, Grandparents, Home School, Homeschooling, Kids, News, Parenting, personal development, Phenomena, Relationships, Scouting, Sibling rivalries, sibling rivalry, son, Sunday School, Youth. 1 comment

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My kids are 9 and 6. My son came first. I have heard that having a boy and a girl is the Million Dollar Combination. What I dont quite understand at this point is what Million Dollar refers to. Perhaps this is the amount of money I will pay in therapy handling the anxiety I have as a parent of two kids who constantly compete. They constantly compete for mom and dad’s attention. What belongs to whom in the house, who gets kissed and hugged at night first, who gets the largest serving of ice cream for dessert.

This post is not actually about sibling rivalries and relationships but rather the phenomena that has come to my attention of how BEHAVIOR OF SIBLINGS differ between Home School kids and Public School kids. Add in the Church/Temple that the families attend as well as time with grandparents and friends.

Combination 1 (My Kids)

Public School + Sunday School + Scouting + Grandparent Visits + Friends House Visits

Combination 2 (Home Schoolers)* I dont know about these elements for Home Schoolers (YET)

Home School + Sunday School + Scouting* + Grandparent Visits* + Friends House Visits*

Case Study – I have watched my Million Dollar twosome for 6 years together. I have also participated in youth activities at the Church we attend where I have the golden opportunity to watch and observe (and occassionally police) other kids, mostly home schoolers. I am tempted to segue to talk about homeschoolers but since I have met some very smart ones who get full scholarships to Universities, I have to be careful not to generalize about them, so let’s NOT go there, for now.

My kids are, as described in my opening comment, driving their poor dad to blog about them. Ask their teachers at Church, their scouting masters, their grandparents, their friends and parents of their friends and they are PERFECT! (“You must be speaking about someone else!”) But no, I watch and observe them too, and they are well behaved. I guess I should be happy that they dont embarrass their parents and make us look like the perfect parents.

Just today I had the opportunity to speak about the Phenomena with a Youth Programming leader where my kids just finished Day Camp. He told me that he thinks Home School kids are the wild ones in the Youth programs he runs or helps run at the Church. He thinks that Home School kids are well behaved at home because they are being raised by religious Christian families who are very strict with their kids. I guess you would have to be if they are going to complete all of their work in a home setting. Every time I speak with home school parents they always tell me the kids are well behaved at home.

These same parents of home schoolers apparently drop their kids at the Church for every available program, 4 hours each Sunday morning, Wednesday nights and Sunday nights, and more if available. They are clueless what their kids are doing at Church. According to what I have experienced personally and was conveyed by this Youth leader (father of two teens himself), the home school parents typically dont know how much energy their kids are taking out at Church and ON EACHOTHER at Church.

So, what I know so far is that kids who are educated in Public or Home Schooling, behave where they GO TO SCHOOL. In the case of our kids its only at home they misbehave and abuse eachother. The Home School kids may very well behave at the Grandparents house or friends house but apparently they misbehave at Church activities when their parents are not around.

Truly a phenomenon to discuss.

Biblical note: I spoke with the lead children’s pastor at our Church and suggested that he create a special weekend camp just for siblings to learn how they can better treat one another. That respecting their parents is just the beginning and that part of fulfilling the Mosaic Law includes respecting your brothers and sisters. Problem is this is pure conjecture and that the only stories of siblings in the Bible are about brothers and these stories are very disturbing in nature. i.e. they dont teach very “calming” lessons.

Group Activities for Homeschoolers (brighthub.com)
Home School Education Online (brighthub.com)
Home Sweet School (time.com)

St Petersburg Docks (Russia) in the early morn...

Image via Wikipedia

EXCERPT

The situation I am about to describe is a direct result of the inability of the legal system to enforce its rulings. After exhaustive research I have not been able to find any published materials about Mafia Tribunals or Mafia Court. No one can actually confirm or deny the existence of either of these phenomena except those that have been party to either of them. I therefore admit that what I will discuss in this Part is from my own personal experience having participated in two mafia tribunals and having been refused an opportunity to participate in Mafia Court.

I was a businessman living and working in St. Petersburg, Russia between 1990 and 2000. In the early 90’s soon after the collapse of the Soviet Union, even before the official establishment of the Federal Constitution Law on Judicial System of the Russian Federation (Dec 1996) there were arbitration courts but these courts had no means to enforce decisions. For this reason the courts were not very busy. The main reasons people used courts in the early 90’s were to get decisions on subjects directly related to legal issues where the Government was somehow involved. Where the courts were not used were for arguments between commercial entities. The only place commercial entities could argue against each other with a remote chance of collecting damages, were Mafia Tribunals. Having had a Russian partner with admitted ties to the Mafia of the early 90’s I found myself in my first tribunal in early 1992.

Soon after we started our timber export business (), my former Russian partner informed me that we were summoned to appear at a Mafia Tribunal that took place in the coffee shop of the Pulkovskaya Hotel in St. Petersburg, not too far from the Pulkovo International Airport. It was common practice for Mafia to meet at hotels in open view to public and the local police. The truth is that they felt it was less likely that someone would try to kill them in public near tourists. This would change in later years with a number of assassinations taking place in the coffee shop of the Sheraton Nevsky Palace Hotel on Nevsky Prospekt in downtown St. Petersburg.

One of our suppliers () accused my partner of not paying full price on a shipment he made to one of our buyers. My partner obtained an old acquaintance of his whom he knew for many years that represented us. Prior to our arrival at the hotel we met in two separate locations in the backs of apartment complexes to meet the necessary people who would be a part of this meeting. Only after the 2^nd rendezvous did we know where the actual meeting would take place. We then found ourselves at the Hotel.

As we walked into the restaurant we saw at least 30 Mafia seated in the cramped area of 100 sq. ft. with three distinct groups within the overall group. The least important were the plaintiff and the defendants. Most important were our “attorneys”. The third group was their bodyguards who were sitting further away from the table watching everyone else who passed near to us. I cannot imagine that any of the tourists visiting the café had any idea of who these people were.

The tribunal lasted approximately 2 hours. We were victorious at the tribunal and received certain compensations, which were settled with my partner. The Mafia attorney for the plaintiff (our accusers) was named “Slava” who in fact was the 2^nd most powerful Mafia boss in the City. The “judge” was dressed in a Nike sweat suit and was apparently the Godfather of the St. Petersburg Mafia. Sweat suits were a very common form of dress for the Mafia in those days. Later that year he was shot 10 times but survived the assassination attempt and moved to Germany.

Continued….

Russia Is ‘Mafia State,’ Prosecutor Said in Cable (businessweek.com)

Are the sayings of Jesus of any more importance than the works of Paul?

Posted by StevenLeeDouglasWV on July 6, 2010

Posted in: *Original Posts, News, Theology and Psychology. Tagged: 1, Acts6:2, Acts6:7, Apostles, Bible, Blogger, Christ, christian, Christianity, Disciples, education, Faith, Fundamentalism, God, Gospel, Gospels, inspiration, Jesus, Judaism, LinkedIn, New Testament, NewTestament, Old Testament, Oldtestament, Paul, Religion and Spirituality, Scripture, Theology, worship. 1 comment

My past posts have been commentaries that were not asking for responses. I hope to get a nice discussion going on this Post. I originally posted this as a Discussion in LinkedIn and got quite a response that I thought I would try it as a Blog to reach a larger audience. Please chime in, assuming you have a personal interest.

I minored in Theology when attending The Catholic University of America back in the early 80′s. Since that time I have had a continuous interest in the foundations of the Bible, it’s books and writers. This Post is not faith based or meant to be religious oriented. Rather it is something I find of great interest and worthy of debate.

My question that I posed was:

“Are the sayings of Jesus, recorded in the Gospels of any more importance than the works of Paul? An added question to this would be, are the writings of the Disciples of any more importance than the writings of the Apostles? I have heard the answer that “All scripture is inspired, but this is not the answer I need to understand their argument of equality.”

One of the comments in the discussion that really brought some clarity to me was the following. I dont have the writers permission to quote his name (honestly did not ask yet) but I hope to get him in this Discussion also.

“The New Testament, better known as The Writings of The Apostles is not “The Scripture”. Whenever “The Scriptures” is referenced in “The New Testament” it is referring to what you call “The Old Testament.” Every Apostle in The Bible would sternly rebuke you for attempting to make their writings Scriptures. Jesus made it perfectly clear what The Scriptures are. The Bible (Old and New) is “The Word of God” just as what you preach on Sunday should be “The Word of God”. But…The Word of God is not The Scriptures even-though The Scriptures are The Word of God…. Acts 4:31, Acts 6:2, Acts 6:7, Acts 13:5, Heb 4:12, Heb 11:3, etc. All of Paul’s teaching had their basis in The Scriptures as evident by Acts 26, Acts 18:28, Acts 17:11 and 2 Peter 3:16 which clearly is not referring to Paul’s writings as Scripture but fits the truth that Paul taught everything from The Scriptures including The Body of Christ, Resurrection and The last Days ( and everything in between Our current Bible consists of these parts (in part – does not include subsets): The Scriptures The Narratives of Jesus’ Life The Writings of the apostles Thank You for giving these word a few moments of your time. God Bless You”

Care to Comment?

Christian Responses: Authority and Authenticity of the Bible (irreligion.org)
Christian Responses: Archaeology and History Attest to the Reliability of the Bible (irreligion.org)
The Meat of the Eucharist: Defending the Real Presence (Part 2) (trustinjesus.wordpress.com)
What’s Your Focus? – Acts 20:21 (dianneguthmuller.com)
The Bible:the Believers Gain (time.com)
Jesus, constructed from Moses and other OT passages – according to the Gospel of Matthew (vridar.wordpress.com)
Hand-me-down Gospels (oup.com)
Reasons to Read the Bible in 90 Days (thehappyhousewife.com)
All Scripture is from God (devilshighlighter.com)
Teaching Bible Memory Verses Using Piggyback Songs (brighthub.com)

Two-State Solution: Not Realistic

Posted by StevenLeeDouglasWV on June 29, 2010

Posted in: *Original Posts, Israel, Middle East, Palestine, US Foreign Affairs, World at War!. Tagged: 1, 2 state solution, Arab Israeli Conflict, Barack Obama, Blockade, education, Free Palestine, Hamas, inspiration, Islam, Islamic Studies, Israel, Jews, Mecca, Medina, Muhammad, Muhammed, Muslim, Netanyahu, News, Palestine, Palestinian people, Prophet Muhammed, Radical Islam, Two State Solution. 1 comment

Image via Wikipedia

I had an earlier post that I deleted because I felt it was not explained why I entitled it as such.

While I attended graduate school several years ago, I took several courses in Islamic Studies. It was only a couple of years since 9/11 and it seemed to me that while I was getting a Master’s in International Studies that it made sense to add this education to my degree. I happened to take a course taught by a Muslim professor. The course was on the history of Islam and was very thorough in discussing who the Prophet Muhammed was, about his family life and most importantly about how he came to become the respected Prophetic ruler of Islam, i.e. the Prophet Muhammed.

I found great interest and asked many questions in class. I found it fascinating that the leader of the Free Palestine movement (a Jewish kid) was in the class as well as several other American Muslims. About mid-Semester I was called by the professor for a private conference. Apparently the other students felt I was in the class with the intent to disrupt the class and incite others. This was furthest from the truth and after I assured the professor all of my questions about Muhammed were for educational reasons he asked me to stay and encouraged me to continue. There was never a dull moment whenever, in reviewing the reading material that I questioned and discussed the violent nature of the Prophet Muhammed.

So, who was Muhammed and why do I believe his personal “violent” history confirms my belief that Palestine and Israel can not share Jerusalem much less co-exist as neighbors? To establish himself as the Prophet he knew he had to get the support of the people of Medina. His only real supporters in Mecca had been his family who had all but died out. He had a following of about 70 men of whom he convinced to follow him to Medina when called upon.

His problem was that there were three powerful Jewish clans in Medina who would not support him. He managed to convince 1 clan to leave. After calling his 70 supporters to Medina, together he attacked and killed all the men from the two remaining Jewish clans. He then took the women and children of the Jewish clans and gave them to his followers as rewards for following him. If you know history and the spread of Islam in those years during Muhammed’s life and years following, Islam spread by conquering all peoples they met. If the people did not accept Islam they were either slaughtered or enslaved.

Does anyone reading this actually believe that present-day Palestinians are being honestly sincere when they say they can live in Peace with the Jews of Israel? They may be able to live side by side with Israeli Muslims but I see no historical proof that they would not turn around and attack the Israeli Jews even after signing a Treaty.

So, with this simple understanding of who the founder of Islam and the Muslim Faith is, what is so difficult to interpret or understand why Israel cannot possibly sign a Two-State Treaty with the PLO or Hamas? Would you if you were an Israeli or even more, an Israeli Jew?

A Two-State Solution? Not Realistic.

If you wish to read the book that I used for the course let me know so I can cite it for you.

Turning Point in Islam, Part Two (blogcritics.org)
Muslim shrine declared a national heritage centre in Singapore (risingsunofnihon.com)
The Battle of Badr (blogcritics.org)
Why was Muhammed disliked in Mecca (wiki.answers.com)
Why do Muslims kill people (wiki.answers.com)
Hamas Threatens Strong Attack Against Israel (foxnews.com)
Harris on MSNBC (whyevolutionistrue.wordpress.com)
The Battle of Badr (The Outcome) (blogcritics.org)
Anti-Israel activists: Bus ad ban ‘absurd’, fight continues (seattlepi.com)
The facts tell a different story (thejc.com)

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