To be tired....

Tired....I used to think tired was the feeling after walking 20 miles in a day.....well, today I am tired. I spend basically every waking minute of my life with children. I have two of my own and they really are both amazing little creatures. They are constant sources of entertainment, love, and exhaustion. I also teach close 150 different teenagers....but not not the 16 and 17 year old teenagers who begin to occasionally act like adults. I teach the 13 to 15 year olds... Enough said....well, maybe not. 13 to 15 year olds are filled with the energy of 7th graders but fear the social repercussions of showing that passion. They are both wonderful and maddening at the exact same time. They are tall and short, kids and adults. They are fun and infuriating. When you add a day of 13 to 15 year olds to an afternoon and evening of 1 and 4 year olds you get truly tired. Tired is a somewhat weirdly positive way however.

On Immigration

Yesterday I received a forward about immigration. I tend to delete forwards right off the bat but seeing how the forward was from a former teacher that I respect I felt I should give it a once over. Here is the forward and my response is below:

LET'S SEE IF I GOT THIS CORRECT?
RE: 3 American Hikers Now In The NEWS
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IF YOU CROSS THE NORTH KOREAN BORDER

ILLEGALLY YOU GET 12 YEARS HARD LABOR.

IF YOU CROSS THE IRANIAN BORDER
ILLEGALLY YOU ARE DETAINED INDEFINITELY.

IF YOU CROSS THE AFGHAN BORDER
ILLEGALLY, YOU GET SHOT.

IF YOU CROSS THE SAUDI ARABIAN BORDER
ILLEGALLY YOU WILL BE JAILED.

IF YOU CROSS THE CHINESE BORDER
ILLEGALLY YOU MAY NEVER BE HEARD FROM AGAIN.

IF YOU CROSS THE VENEZUELAN BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU
WILL BE BRANDED A SPY AND YOUR FATE WILL BE SEALED.

IF YOU CROSS THE CUBAN BORDER ILLEGALLY
YOU WILL BE THROWN INTO POLITICAL PRISON TO ROT.

IF YOU CROSS THE U.S. BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU GET :!

A JOB, A DRIVERS LICENSE, SOCIAL SECURITY CARD, WELFARE, FOOD STAMPS, CREDIT CARDS, SUBSIDIZED

RENT OR A LOAN TO BUY A HOUSE, FREE EDUCATION, FREE HEALTH CARE,

A LOBBYIST IN WASHINGTON BILLIONS OF DOLLARS WORTH OF PUBLIC DOCUMENTS PRINTED IN YOUR LANGUAGE

THE RIGHT TO CARRY YOUR COUNTRY'S FLAG WHILE YOU PROTEST THAT YOU DON'T GET ENOUGH RESPECT AND,

IN MANY INSTANCES, YOU CAN VOTE.

I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE I HAD A FIRM GRASP ON THE

"SITUATION"!

PLEASE KEEP THIS GOING......FORWARD TO ALL OF YOUR FRIENDS & FAMILY

IT'S TIME TO WAKE UP AMERICA!

I appreciate the humor although there is very flawed logic in the forward. One could assume that the forward is saying that we, the United States of America, would be better off if we were to act more like Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Cuba, Venezuela, North Korea, China, or Iran. If approaching immigration like they do is some how considered patriotic and/or just, then we are in for a world of hurt and trouble. No where on the Statue of Liberty, the very symbol of American freedom does it say anything about jailing, killing, or detaining. The beauty of the message is that it also says nothing about legally or illegally crossing the border. Liberty is the very core of who we are as Americans, regardless of the situation. What it says is: “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.”

Men's boogers

OK, so I realized that I was not writing enough on this blog because I was concerned that I should not write unless I focus on only politics....wrong.

My first rant - men's rooms and boogers on the wall. Why? I get that you find a solitary moment of privacy when you get dig in there and get that deceptive little booger...but do you really need to wipe it on the wall? Problem two is that most bathrooms (public) get a good cleaning most nights but the crusted boogers always remain. It really is the elephant in the public restroom.

Double speak....

I worked for the campaign. I voted for the change. I believe in the people's right to govern themselves. I am disgusted today by the announcements coming from the White House about the "relief" being "given" to the American people struggling under the tyranny of a corporatocracy.

Today - you can "refinance" in an attempt to borrow yourself out of debt, thus fattening the pockets of the very banks that already control your destiny.

Today - you can decrease your student loan payments to 10% of you discretionary income (chosen by the government) and pay for the next 20 years, even if your loan was originally 10 years, and then it will be "forgiven."

It does not change......unless we change it. Real economic reform, real relief, real change: How about this proposal. Every single American refuse to pay your student loan bill and your mortgage for two consecutive months starting on January 1st, 2011. Change comes from the bottom....not the top.

Our revolution......

Is it our turn? Inspired by the supposed less-democratized, backwards, under-developed countries of the Arab Spring, are we finally going to participate fully in our democracy?

It is our turn.....it is our time to re-write our modern history and return to what we got right so many years ago when the Declaration of Independence said:

"That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness."

Even if that government is one of the people and by the people, it is our duty to alter or abolish it.