Reform @ MindSay 
Since I believe that Barack Obama means what he says when he says "I will listen", I sent him an e-mail at change.gov today. I'll be interested to see when and what type of response I get. I plan to send one e-mail every day for the next couple of weeks. I'll let you know how it works out!
Here's a copy of the text I sent him today, Wednesday, November 12, 2008:
President-elect Obama – I am a special education teacher near Portland, Oregon, and my students and I are so excited that you are our next president! I teach 9th grade boys who are in a residential treatment center and most of them were so excited about this election…for months they’ve been following your steady road to success. They’re inspired by you!
I have several ideas for educational reform in this country. Like you, I have lived in other countries (my children were born in Japan and attended Japanese schools), and I think it might be time for a “Meiji Reformation” of education (among other important things, like health care) in America. What I mean is that Japan sent some of its best minds abroad during the Meiji era to observe how other countries worked. They looked at education in Germany and the United States, for example.
I think there is a lot we can learn from Japan, Sweden, Canada, and many other countries about how they operate their schools. I have several specific ideas and in the coming days I plan to send you some of my ideas for educational reform. For today, I repeat that I think it’s time for major reforms and looking at other countries to glean ideas that might work here (like teaching a foreign language from an early age) is important at this time in our history.
Thank you for having an open forum and for “LISTENING.”
Bonnie Becraft, M.A., Special Educator
Levi Anderson Learning Center at St. Mary’s Home for Boys (not affiliated with any denomination)
Recently I was raked over the coals here on MINDSAY and vilified for a response that was not, shall I say, appreciated by other respondents.
I was accused of cursing in my response when there was no cursing. I was most certainly adversarial as has been my wont and habit when confronted with, by my perception, grossly ignorant or obviously deceptive posts or out-and-out lies.
Admittedly I have been or am known, far and wide as a crude asshole. Admittedly, again, I am frequently just that in offering my statements, pontifications [both correct and grossly incorrect] and actions when I protest what is, from my perspective, fudking wrong.
Fudking idiots, greedy conservatives, heartless Republicans, ignorant politicians, crazy Christians, religious nuts and their supporters of whatever political stripe have planned in some instances, connived and conspired in many others and or too, too often blindly followed policies leading to the destruction of our high moral status and position of power in the world, our financial bankruptcy as a nation and to the verge of losing our once prised and touted and soughtafter haven for the beacon of hope for freedom on this planet: Democracy.
All such more than bothers me or dismays me. It angers me to the nth degree and I say so, often, and yes, often too crudely. Sincerely, David
What will be them come tomorrow, is never anticipated.
Jose Rizal in his last poem, a poem without a title, but entitled Last Farewell" by people who read and interpret it, indicated that he wanted just to be buried, place a cross in his tomb, indicate his name, birthday, and death, nothing more.
To Be Continued...........................................
Welfare was first established to help those in hardship manage tough crisis situations until they could get back on their feet. The creation of welfare was never meant to be a way of life. However, quite a number of people in this country have figured out how to work the system, as opposed to working, and have become comfortable in living the welfare lifestyle. In other words, they work at not having to work.
To make matters worse, their offspring tend to repeat their parent's behaviors, and hence they too become lazy and refuse to work, and thus the cycle continues. Human Nature being what it is, why would they entertain the thought of working when they have learned to work the system and receive free benefits?
Our country needs real and serious welfare reform, not band-Aids. Let's give those who have abused welfare a fair warning that changes to that system are on the way so that they can plan ahead and tackle their situations appropriately. This includes getting an education, and learning a new skill or trade that will enable them to re-enter the work place. With new and improved skills, they will be empowered to wean themselves off the welfare roles.
One obstacle legal American workers fresh off the welfare system face, is the reality of sordid employers who would rather hire and exploit illegal aliens who lack language skills and can easily be manipulated to work overtime without extra pay, and accept less money than a minimum wage. We often hear the argument that Americans refuse to do certain jobs that they may deem to be beneath them. Not many legal citizens accept this as true. If we begin tightening up the rules for welfare applications, and laws are passed to penalize or fine unscrupulous employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants, we will inevitably discover that many Americans will do honest work for the well-being of their families.
(For this plan to be successful, we would need to close and secure our borders, and initiate a system of photos or biometric identification cards. Two additional benefits of this would be to curtail illegal aliens from voting, and could also potentially make it more difficult for terrorists to enter our country through porous borders.)
If people do not want to do hard labor tasks for the rest of their lives, they can improve their English language skills, attend classes in vocational/technical schools that will upgrade their capabilities and this will lead to better paying jobs. Just as importantly, these folks just off welfare can teach their children the principles and values of education and work. Many college students would also fill work positions that employers are currently issuing to illegal immigrants, and this would allow them to purchase necessary items such as books, supplies, or perhaps new clothing.
Welfare people, for the most part, need to learn to teach their children work ethics. There are many diligent parents who work two jobs to pay for their kid's college education. The kids should be able to get a job and earn a living and the value of making their own money, as many of them wished they could have done this past summer. But unfortunately, the unethical/dishonest employers gave those positions to criminal illegal aliens for less money instead.
now we start preparing for sukkot-one of my very favorite holidays and we don't have to actually build one in this house as the deck has three wals and an uncovered section for pine boughs. In denver we had a similar situtation, we just retracted the cable shade system my husband built and lay boughs over the cables for the week. and the table and chaiirs are out there already so all I have to do is string the chili lights and decorate it with fruit. we have begun inviting people over to celebrate.
and monday the master bath renovation begins: adding a bidet new flor tiles and a heated floor. abi will LIKE that indeed, as will we. But back to havurah:
services at the havurah were very different from what we experienced in the south. inthe south things were formal and started righton time and the cantor sang kol nidre. and the al chet was in english for us and in hebrew by a choir of methodists paid to sing. and break the fast was a feast with silver platters and huge flowers arrangements.
but here in portland we did all the work ourselves and the congregation sang kol nidre all three times in a very warm room while standing. and we did the A-to-Z in hebrew (very nice) and the break the fast was a strictly vegetarian affair. no lox. waaaaaaa. BUT we knew someone: Iris ( my first friend in portland) a ten year old girl and her parents, who live up the street from us, were there so we even could actually talk to someone we knew out of the hundreds of people there.
Next year I may be a member and can help set out break the fast and maybe do the flowers. Aha !!
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