Before Herbert Hoover was president, he was a successful businessman, and so popular for organizing humanitarian relief during and after World War I that both parties were hoping he'd run for office on their ticket in 1920. The historian David M. Kennedy, who wrote Freedom From Fear: The American People in the Great Depression 1929-1945, says Hoover was a "visionary" secretary of commerce under Harding and Coolidge, and calls him “the most accomplished and competent man of his generation." But, as Kennedy notes, the skills that made him successful in those domains didn't translate into his presidency; he didn't have what it took to grapple with the Great Depression.
“Not because he didn't understand the system," says Kennedy, “and it wasn't for want of knowledge about it. He wasn't pig-headed, or a moss-backed conservative. Hoover was more of a technocrat than FDR was." But it wasn't enough. “He understood a lot about policy issues, but working the Congress, working public opinion and the levers of the political system, were not his skills. They were Roosevelt's."
Romney's love for the private sector is beyond doubt. But as is the case with just about any relationship, love may not necessarily be enough.
by Megan McArdle, The Atlantic, December 2011 issue, p.38
http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/12/romney-8217-s-business/8718/
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Monday, November 28, 2011
On the wrong side - Principals Protest Role of Testing in Evaluations
I can remember testing and test scores as long as I was part of the public education system, starting back in 1963 at P.S. 37 in Queens. I find it most interesting that 654 New York Principals have determined that Annual Professional Performance Review (APPR) regulations which are derived partly from student test scores are flawed.
I don't understand how student test scores used as a PART of the evaluation is detrimental. In their open letter, they state "There is no evidence that evaluation systems that incorporate student test scores produce gains in student achievement. In order to determine if there is a relationship researchers recommend small-scale pilot testing of such systems. Student test scores have not been found to be a strong predictor of the quality of teaching as measured by other instruments or approaches."
I have to disagree and believe that without student test scores we are unable to hold teachers or principals accountable for their poor performance.
http://www.newyorkprincipals.org/appr-paper
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/28/education/principals-protest-increased-use-of-test-scores-to-evaluate-educators.html?ref=nyregion
I don't understand how student test scores used as a PART of the evaluation is detrimental. In their open letter, they state "There is no evidence that evaluation systems that incorporate student test scores produce gains in student achievement. In order to determine if there is a relationship researchers recommend small-scale pilot testing of such systems. Student test scores have not been found to be a strong predictor of the quality of teaching as measured by other instruments or approaches."
I have to disagree and believe that without student test scores we are unable to hold teachers or principals accountable for their poor performance.
http://www.newyorkprincipals.org/appr-paper
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/28/education/principals-protest-increased-use-of-test-scores-to-evaluate-educators.html?ref=nyregion
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
High quality FREE condoms
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Banker's Hill, 2017 1st Avenue, 619-296-6312
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Otay - Chula Vista, 1295 Broadway, 619-881-4585
Downtown, 220 Euclid Avenue, 888-743-7526
Mission Bay, 4501 Mission Bay Drive, 888-743-7526
Pacific Beach, 1602 Thomas Avenue, 888-743-7526
Mira Mesa, 10737 Camino Ruiz, 888-743-7526
Banker's Hill, 2017 1st Avenue, 619-296-6312
Rolando, 4575 College Avenue, 888-743-7526
Kearny Mesa, 7526 Clairemoth Mesa Blvd., 619-881-4588
Mission Valley, 1333 Camino Del Rio South, 619-683-7692
Otay - Chula Vista, 1295 Broadway, 619-881-4585
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Grade your knowledge of political economics (ANSWERS)
Grade your knowledge of political economics. Regardless of your political identity, you either have a good or a bad understanding of economics. Here are a few simple questions that have complex answers.
TRUE/FALSE: Mandatory licensing of professional services increases the prices of those services.
TRUE - This of course ignores the price to you when an unlicensed and incompetent lawyer drafts your contract, closes your transaction or defends your court case. Or the price to you when an unlicensed and incompetent doctor operates on your brain or performs your plastic surgery. Thus the assumption is that removing licensing will introduce more competition and lower prices. But monetary costs are not the only relevant costs if you actually want competent professional services.
TRUE/FALSE: Overall, our standard of living is higher today than it was 30 years ago.
FALSE - Standard of living is inevitably linked to the cost of living. When we try and see whether we’re better off than we were 30 or 100 years ago, we immediately have a problem. Our incomes are higher which suggest a higher standard of living. But we know that the general level of prices has risen over time, what is called inflation. So you can’t look at the growth of income alone to measure the growth in material well-being. You have to take account of the increase in prices to accurately measure how much more stuff we can have now compared to before. In practice, measuring the change in prices is quite difficult. Some of the difficulty is because the mix of goods and services—the "basket" of goods and services as it is sometimes called—isn’t really the same as it was a year ago or ten years ago. One reason is that people will tend to substitute toward goods that have become relatively cheaper and move away from goods that have gotten relatively expensive. Surely, the average American is many times more comfortable materially than in 1900 and even perhaps compared to 1970, but the measurement of income does not prove it so.
TRUE/FALSE: Rent control leads to housing shortages.
TRUE - Rent control, like all other government-mandated price controls is a law placing a maximum price, or a “rent ceiling,” on what landlords may charge tenants. If it is to have any effect, the rent level must be set at a rate below that which would otherwise have prevailed. In a competitive market and absent controls on prices, if the amount of a commodity or service demanded is larger than the amount supplied, prices rise to eliminate the shortage (by both bringing forth new supply and by reducing the amount demanded). But controls prevent rents from attaining market-clearing levels and shortages result.
TRUE/FALSE: A company with the largest market share is a monopoly.
FALSE - It is usually assumed that the company with the largest market share could be a monopoly, however there are companies that control the price of a specific item due to their longevity and stature in the market, re: Heinz and catsup, or Coke and cola.
TRUE/FALSE: Third World workers working for American companies overseas are being exploited.
FALSE - All employers, by some definition, exploit their employees to get tasks done. Likewise, employees exploit opportunities for employment and advancement provided by their employers. But even if we assign a negative connotation to "exploit," that still doesn't get us anywhere. It's a defensible belief to say that Third World workers are exploited compared to the treatment that would be required of employers elsewhere. It all depends on context. One might also reasonably argue that US minimum wage employees are exploiting their employers by accepting an unfair wage.
TRUE/FALSE: Free trade leads to unemployment.
FALSE - Free trade leads to change and that change leads to overall higher employment. But Free Trade also brings about pain and turmoil. A country’s wage and unemployment levels depend fundamentally on the productivity of its labor force, not on its trade policy. As long as American workers remain more skilled and better educated, work with more capital, and use superior technology, they will continue to earn higher wages than their overseas counterparts. If and when these advantages end, the wage gap will disappear. Trade is a mere detail that helps ensure that American labor is employed.
TRUE/FALSE: Minimum-wage laws raise unemployment.
TRUE - It's called the "spill over" effect. Especially small firms are in equilibrium at a certain wage price. When the government comes in and artificially raises that equilibrium via a higher minimum wage, it changes the labor demand curve for firms and they have to fire some workers because they can't afford to keep them. It mostly affects mom and pop shops.
TRUE/FALSE: Mandatory licensing of professional services increases the prices of those services.
TRUE - This of course ignores the price to you when an unlicensed and incompetent lawyer drafts your contract, closes your transaction or defends your court case. Or the price to you when an unlicensed and incompetent doctor operates on your brain or performs your plastic surgery. Thus the assumption is that removing licensing will introduce more competition and lower prices. But monetary costs are not the only relevant costs if you actually want competent professional services.
TRUE/FALSE: Overall, our standard of living is higher today than it was 30 years ago.
FALSE - Standard of living is inevitably linked to the cost of living. When we try and see whether we’re better off than we were 30 or 100 years ago, we immediately have a problem. Our incomes are higher which suggest a higher standard of living. But we know that the general level of prices has risen over time, what is called inflation. So you can’t look at the growth of income alone to measure the growth in material well-being. You have to take account of the increase in prices to accurately measure how much more stuff we can have now compared to before. In practice, measuring the change in prices is quite difficult. Some of the difficulty is because the mix of goods and services—the "basket" of goods and services as it is sometimes called—isn’t really the same as it was a year ago or ten years ago. One reason is that people will tend to substitute toward goods that have become relatively cheaper and move away from goods that have gotten relatively expensive. Surely, the average American is many times more comfortable materially than in 1900 and even perhaps compared to 1970, but the measurement of income does not prove it so.
TRUE/FALSE: Rent control leads to housing shortages.
TRUE - Rent control, like all other government-mandated price controls is a law placing a maximum price, or a “rent ceiling,” on what landlords may charge tenants. If it is to have any effect, the rent level must be set at a rate below that which would otherwise have prevailed. In a competitive market and absent controls on prices, if the amount of a commodity or service demanded is larger than the amount supplied, prices rise to eliminate the shortage (by both bringing forth new supply and by reducing the amount demanded). But controls prevent rents from attaining market-clearing levels and shortages result.
TRUE/FALSE: A company with the largest market share is a monopoly.
FALSE - It is usually assumed that the company with the largest market share could be a monopoly, however there are companies that control the price of a specific item due to their longevity and stature in the market, re: Heinz and catsup, or Coke and cola.
TRUE/FALSE: Third World workers working for American companies overseas are being exploited.
FALSE - All employers, by some definition, exploit their employees to get tasks done. Likewise, employees exploit opportunities for employment and advancement provided by their employers. But even if we assign a negative connotation to "exploit," that still doesn't get us anywhere. It's a defensible belief to say that Third World workers are exploited compared to the treatment that would be required of employers elsewhere. It all depends on context. One might also reasonably argue that US minimum wage employees are exploiting their employers by accepting an unfair wage.
TRUE/FALSE: Free trade leads to unemployment.
FALSE - Free trade leads to change and that change leads to overall higher employment. But Free Trade also brings about pain and turmoil. A country’s wage and unemployment levels depend fundamentally on the productivity of its labor force, not on its trade policy. As long as American workers remain more skilled and better educated, work with more capital, and use superior technology, they will continue to earn higher wages than their overseas counterparts. If and when these advantages end, the wage gap will disappear. Trade is a mere detail that helps ensure that American labor is employed.
TRUE/FALSE: Minimum-wage laws raise unemployment.
TRUE - It's called the "spill over" effect. Especially small firms are in equilibrium at a certain wage price. When the government comes in and artificially raises that equilibrium via a higher minimum wage, it changes the labor demand curve for firms and they have to fire some workers because they can't afford to keep them. It mostly affects mom and pop shops.
Monday, November 14, 2011
Grade your knowledge of political economics
Regardless of your political identity, you either have a good or poor understanding of economics. If you think you can - correctly answer the following questions:
TRUE/FALSE: Mandatory licensing of professional services increases the prices of those services.
TRUE/FALSE: Overall, our standard of living is higher today than it was 30 years ago.
TRUE/FALSE: Rent control leads to housing shortages.
TRUE/FALSE: A company with the largest market share is a monopoly.
TRUE/FALSE: Third World workers working for American companies overseas are being exploited.
TRUE/FALSE: Free trade leads to unemployment.
TRUE/FALSE: Minimum-wage laws raise unemployment.
(Correct answers will be provided tomorrow)
TRUE/FALSE: Mandatory licensing of professional services increases the prices of those services.
TRUE/FALSE: Overall, our standard of living is higher today than it was 30 years ago.
TRUE/FALSE: Rent control leads to housing shortages.
TRUE/FALSE: A company with the largest market share is a monopoly.
TRUE/FALSE: Third World workers working for American companies overseas are being exploited.
TRUE/FALSE: Free trade leads to unemployment.
TRUE/FALSE: Minimum-wage laws raise unemployment.
(Correct answers will be provided tomorrow)
Friday, November 11, 2011
How Beautifully Blue the Sky
Chorus:
How Beautifully Blue the sky
The glass is rising very high
Continue fine I hope it may
And yet it rained but yesterday
Tomorrow it may pour again
I hear the country wants some rain
Yet people say
I know not why
That we shall have a warm July
Tomorrow it may pour again
I hear the country wants some rain
Yet people say
I know not why
That we shall have a warm July
Mabel:
Did ever maiden wake from dream of homely duty
To find her daylight break with such exceeding beauty
Did ever maiden close her eyes on waking sadness
To dream of such exceeding gladness!
Frederic:
Ah yes, ah yes,
This is exceeding gladness
Chorus:
How Beautifully Blue the sky
The glass is rising very high
Continue fine I hope it may
And yet it rained but yesterday
Tomorrow it may pour again
I hear the country wants some rain
Yet people say
I know not why
That we shall have a warm July
Tomorrow it may pour again
I hear the country wants some rain
Yet people say
I know not why
That we shall have a warm July
Frederic:
Did ever pirate roll his soul in guilty dreaming
And wake to find that soul with peace and virtue beaming!
Chorus:
How Beautifully Blue the sky
The glass is rising very high
Continue fine I hope it may
And yet it rained but yesterday
Tomorrow it may pour again
I hear the country wants some rain
Yet people say
I know not why
That we shall have a warm July
Mabel:
Did ever maiden wake from dream of homely duty
To find her daylight break with such exceeding beauty
Did ever maiden close her eyes on waking sadness
To dream of such exceeding gladness!
Frederic:
Did ever pirate loathed
Forsake his hideous mission
To find himself bethrothed to lady of position!
Chorus:
Ah yes, ah yes,
Ah yes, ah yes,
AH YES!
How Beautifully Blue the sky
The glass is rising very high
Continue fine I hope it may
And yet it rained but yesterday
Tomorrow it may pour again
I hear the country wants some rain
Yet people say
I know not why
That we shall have a warm July
Tomorrow it may pour again
I hear the country wants some rain
Yet people say
I know not why
That we shall have a warm July
Mabel:
Did ever maiden wake from dream of homely duty
To find her daylight break with such exceeding beauty
Did ever maiden close her eyes on waking sadness
To dream of such exceeding gladness!
Frederic:
Ah yes, ah yes,
This is exceeding gladness
Chorus:
How Beautifully Blue the sky
The glass is rising very high
Continue fine I hope it may
And yet it rained but yesterday
Tomorrow it may pour again
I hear the country wants some rain
Yet people say
I know not why
That we shall have a warm July
Tomorrow it may pour again
I hear the country wants some rain
Yet people say
I know not why
That we shall have a warm July
Frederic:
Did ever pirate roll his soul in guilty dreaming
And wake to find that soul with peace and virtue beaming!
Chorus:
How Beautifully Blue the sky
The glass is rising very high
Continue fine I hope it may
And yet it rained but yesterday
Tomorrow it may pour again
I hear the country wants some rain
Yet people say
I know not why
That we shall have a warm July
Mabel:
Did ever maiden wake from dream of homely duty
To find her daylight break with such exceeding beauty
Did ever maiden close her eyes on waking sadness
To dream of such exceeding gladness!
Frederic:
Did ever pirate loathed
Forsake his hideous mission
To find himself bethrothed to lady of position!
Chorus:
Ah yes, ah yes,
Ah yes, ah yes,
AH YES!
Stop This World
Stop this world, let me off
There's just too many pigs in the same trough
There's too many buzzards sitting on the fence
Stop this world, it's not making sense
Stop this show, hold the phone
Better days this lad has known
Better days so long ago
Hold the phone, won't you stop this show
Well, it seems my little playhouse has fallen down
I think my little ship has run aground
I feel like I'm in the wrong place
My state of mind is a disgrace
Won't you stop this game, deal me out
I know too well what it's all about
I know too well that it had to be
Stop this game you know it's ruining me
Well I got too smart for my own good
I just don't do the things I know I should
There's bound to be some better way
I just got one thing more to say
And that is
Stop this game, deal me out
I know too well what it's all about
I know too well that it had to be
Stop this game you know it's wrecking me
There's just too many pigs in the same trough
There's too many buzzards sitting on the fence
Stop this world, it's not making sense
Stop this show, hold the phone
Better days this lad has known
Better days so long ago
Hold the phone, won't you stop this show
Well, it seems my little playhouse has fallen down
I think my little ship has run aground
I feel like I'm in the wrong place
My state of mind is a disgrace
Won't you stop this game, deal me out
I know too well what it's all about
I know too well that it had to be
Stop this game you know it's ruining me
Well I got too smart for my own good
I just don't do the things I know I should
There's bound to be some better way
I just got one thing more to say
And that is
Stop this game, deal me out
I know too well what it's all about
I know too well that it had to be
Stop this game you know it's wrecking me
Friday, November 04, 2011
Real Answers to Unmotivated Chapter Members - The Apathy Myth
Chapter leaders say that member apathy and lack of motivation are the issues that plague them the most. How can they get their fellow members engaged? How can they get all of their officers motivated? How can they get people to give a damn?
Unfortunately, too many respond to the apathy challenge with fines, mandatory attendance requirements and negativity. Ultimately, these leaders hit a wall, alienate their members and suffer from frustration and burnout. There is a better way.
What if you were told that what you think is apathy is actually the result of poor leadership that is unresponsive to the needs of the members in your organization? Would you open your mind to the possibility that there are ways to motivate your group’s members that don’t require making every event mandatory?
T.J. Sullivan has authored a new book, "Motivating the Middle: Fighting Apathy in College Student Organizations", which offers leaders a workshop that focuses on practical ideas—evaluating their events, changing their approach to meetings and redirecting their management of their people—attacking apathy head on. It’s about shaking things up, with an eye to re-igniting passion within their organizations. Fraternal leaders have the power to eliminate apathy if they take specific steps to improve their organizations and approach to serving their members.
Thursday, November 03, 2011
Confronting the Idiot in Your Chapter
Every fraternity and sorority chapter has at least one member whose behavior causes tensions and problems for everyone. The out of control roommate. The brother who gets in fights. The sister who won’t pay her dues. Bad grades. Hazing. Abusive drinking. Promiscuity. Drugs. Embezzlement. Bad eating habits. Violent relationships. Damage to chapter property.
Wouldn’t our chapters be much happier and healthier if we could confront the members whose bad behavior is bringing everyone else down? Don’t we have the responsibility to confront the “idiots” in our chapters? We often allow our friends to risk their own health, safety, relationships or grades with idiot behavior. We are afraid to confront because we fear losing a friend, losing respect or being judged.
In this situation, T.J. Sullivan, challenges all fraternities and sororities to step up to the plate and find the courage to confront negative actions and attitudes from their fellow members. He offers practical strategies for increasing the effectiveness of constructive confrontations. Additional information can be found in his new book, "Motivating the Middle: Fighting Apathy in College Student Organizations".
By encouraging members to confront each other, T.J. gives students a powerful opportunity to put the values of their fraternity or sorority into action. Regardless of the issues facing your Greek system, this keynote will challenge everyone to take responsibility for building a better, more responsible community.
Wouldn’t our chapters be much happier and healthier if we could confront the members whose bad behavior is bringing everyone else down? Don’t we have the responsibility to confront the “idiots” in our chapters? We often allow our friends to risk their own health, safety, relationships or grades with idiot behavior. We are afraid to confront because we fear losing a friend, losing respect or being judged.
In this situation, T.J. Sullivan, challenges all fraternities and sororities to step up to the plate and find the courage to confront negative actions and attitudes from their fellow members. He offers practical strategies for increasing the effectiveness of constructive confrontations. Additional information can be found in his new book, "Motivating the Middle: Fighting Apathy in College Student Organizations".
By encouraging members to confront each other, T.J. gives students a powerful opportunity to put the values of their fraternity or sorority into action. Regardless of the issues facing your Greek system, this keynote will challenge everyone to take responsibility for building a better, more responsible community.
Wednesday, November 02, 2011
The Frustrations of Student Leadership
Student leaders have challenges coming at them from every direction. Sometimes, it’s enough to drive you to the edge of sanity! Have you ever found yourself losing sleep because too few members are coming to meetings? Too few officers and chairs are doing their stuff? Too few people are coming to events? Too few members are paying their dues on time or meeting deadlines?
Have you ever just felt exhausted from the whole “leader thing?”
There’s hope. Your Regional Director can help you put things into perspective and offers tactics to immediately transform frustrations into possibilities. A well planned Regional Leadership Conference can be conducted as a keynote for a large group, or an interactive workshop or a breakout session for smaller groups. Successful regional conferences can offer perspectives and then facilitates dialogue where student leaders can help each other generate solutions and strategies for coping with their most draining challenges.
Making Chapter Meetings Matter
It’s okay to admit it. Sometimes meetings suck. Attendance is low and those who do show up talk around in circles, achieving little. Or maybe you’ve just got a nagging feeling that your meetings have some extra hidden potential.
A Regional Leadership Conference should offer hand-on workshop or breakout, where hard-earned insights from corporate consulting and student organizational leadership can be introduced to transform your meetings forever. There are practical, how-to tips spanning the whole meeting process. Student leaders will leave better able to:
Have you ever just felt exhausted from the whole “leader thing?”
There’s hope. Your Regional Director can help you put things into perspective and offers tactics to immediately transform frustrations into possibilities. A well planned Regional Leadership Conference can be conducted as a keynote for a large group, or an interactive workshop or a breakout session for smaller groups. Successful regional conferences can offer perspectives and then facilitates dialogue where student leaders can help each other generate solutions and strategies for coping with their most draining challenges.
Making Chapter Meetings Matter
It’s okay to admit it. Sometimes meetings suck. Attendance is low and those who do show up talk around in circles, achieving little. Or maybe you’ve just got a nagging feeling that your meetings have some extra hidden potential.
A Regional Leadership Conference should offer hand-on workshop or breakout, where hard-earned insights from corporate consulting and student organizational leadership can be introduced to transform your meetings forever. There are practical, how-to tips spanning the whole meeting process. Student leaders will leave better able to:
- Determine if a meeting is the best means of achieving their immediate goals
- Establish meeting objectives
- Ensure ample attendance
- Gain broad participation
- Think effectively as a group
- Have fun while building camaraderie
- Follow up on individual commitments toward action items
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