Archive for January, 2012

Roadblocks: I Won at a Rigged Game

Posted January 27, 2012 By Dave Thomer

Two warnings: First, I’m not entirely sure where I’m going with this, but I think the journey is one I ought to take. Second, parts of this are going to make me sound like an arrogant jerk. I promise to beat myself up a bit to make up for it, and I ask your indulgence […]

What I Read Today

Posted January 23, 2012 By Dave Thomer

OK, gotta get the blogging mojo working again. Stayed home with Alex today because she was sick. During that time I read a bunch of stuff. I took another look at DC Entertainment’s new logo, and I still can’t figure out where the company’s going with that. When I was a kid I knew exactly […]

Ethical Issues: Presidential Project Phase 3

Posted January 10, 2012 By Dave Thomer

Presidential Project Phase 3: On to South Carolina http://www.npr.org/2012/01/10/145011112/romney-on-glide-path-as-campaign-heads-south http://www.npr.org/2012/01/10/145006842/romney-enters-danger-zone-in-weeks-ahead Use these two NPR articles to describe two advantages Mitt Romney has after the New Hampshire primary and two challenges he still faces. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/11/us/politics/idealogy-and-faith-questions-await-romney-south-carolina-primary.html What are examples of Mitt Romney’s past record as a moderate Republican? How might Romney’s religion be an obstacle to success […]

Roadblocks: Maybe Dewey Gives Us Too Much Credit

Posted January 9, 2012 By Dave Thomer

I sort of left my Roadblocks series alone for a few days, although many of the little posts I’ve made this week have been beating around the bush. This is an argument that I get into with myself a bit, because it’s a situation where I have to have faith in something when the visible […]

My class wikispace isn’t working properly in school, so I’m using this page as a backup for a project we’re working on in ethics. Presidential Project Phase 2: The Days Before New Hampshire NPR: New Hampshire Boost or Bust 1. History suggests that if Mitt Romney wins the New Hampshire primary tomorrow, he will win […]

That About Sums It Up

Posted January 7, 2012 By Dave Thomer

Me to Alex, as she’s in the middle of a project: Don’t make too much of a mess here. Pattie: Let me amend that. Don’t make a mess. Gotta admit, at 11 PM that’s a fairly rational amendment. I’ve been watching the Saints destroy the Lions for the last hour or two and trying to […]

A Do Over Would Just Mean I Had to Do It Over

Posted January 6, 2012 By Dave Thomer

This is one of those weeks that I wish had a corporeal form so that I could give it a good swift kick in the behind on its way out the door. I’m in a place where I’m having a hard time seeing the positives around me, and it’s making me not entirely pleasant to […]

The Mobility Myth

Posted January 5, 2012 By Dave Thomer

In light of the number of Republican presidential candidates who argue that poor people should just take advantage of the opportunities in America to work their way up the economic ladder, it’s worth reading this New York Times story about a number of studies that suggest that it’s harder for children who grow up poor […]

Say You Want a Revolution

Posted January 4, 2012 By Dave Thomer

So this week in World History we’re starting a set of units that have revolutions as a theme. To help introduce the topic I ask my students to analyze the lyrics of The Beatles’ “Revolution” because I think John Lennon does a pretty good job of incorporating a lot of the themes we discuss. The […]

It Starts By Showing Up

Posted January 3, 2012 By Dave Thomer

In 2010, there were over 2 million registered voters in the state of Iowa. Over 600,000 of them were registered Republicans. Approximately 100,000 voters showed up for the Iowa caucuses tonight. As I write this at 11:29 EST, Rick Santorum leads Mitt Romney by 72 votes and Ron Paul by fewer than 4000. The headlines […]