I'm deeply concerned about the caucus coming up in a few weeks. As a pretty liberal person, I don't normally follow republican politics too closely. I currently am following it in Iowa, since I heart Huckabee is making a big run. I really want that guy named Mitt or Mr. 9-11 to win, since they will both get crushed in the general election by any of the democrats. I'm worried about I heart Huckabee since he can probably win every southern state with his Christian ways, and will probably pick up a couple northern states as well (Possibly Iowa, Ohio and maybe Florida). Losing those states again would be detrimental towards Democrats goal of gaining control again. I think he would be an awful president who would blur the separation of church and state lines (he was a minister) and would decrease social programs and cut taxes all while heavily funding the military. Anyway, just a quick thought. Also, Mitt Romney's commercial is really funny. He says "I believe marriage should come before children because every child deserves a mother and a father." However, apparently he doesn't believe that every child deserves health care. Ah, the good, core values of a multimillionaire. Here's his health care policy:
Rather than relying on a one-size-fits-all, government-run system, we must recognize the importance of the role of the states in leading reform and the need for innovation in dealing with rising health care costs and the problem of the uninsured. By expanding and deregulating the private health insurance market, we can decrease costs and ensure that more Americans have access to affordable, portable, quality, private health insurance.
Putting health care in the hands of states isn't the best idea. It decreases buying and negotiating power that the federal government could have with a single payer system. The medicare reform did something similar thing where there are a bunch of private companies that people can chose from. Taking choice away from people sucks, but it also gave the government no power to decrease medicine costs that the single payer system is useful for.
Monday, December 10, 2007
Sunday, December 09, 2007
Texans Win!
Texans had a big home win against the playoff bound Bucs. Tampa Bay was without Jeff Garcia, and their best WR, "Old Man" Joey Galloway was probably a step slow coming off an injury; however, Houston wasn't at full strength either. Ahman Green has been placed on IR, and Ron Dayne went down with an injury early in today's game. The Texans were able to manage the clock through short, controlled passes by Sage and a decent running game from rookie Darius Walker. They always seemed to get just enough for a first down. The Texans were effective on third down (10-17, 59%) which allowed them to keep the ball for most of the game.
Sage and Matt Schaub have been around for about the same length of time in the NFL. Sage had a few starts and some relief appearances before this year, whereas Schaub hadn't had much experience at all. Still, Schaub is supposed to be the man. So why do I have more faith in the Texans when Rosenfels is starting? He seems to manage the game a little better, has thrown more TD passes and seems to put up more consistent numbers than Schaub. Joe asked whether anyone was talking about Sage starting instead of Schaub. I haven't heard any talk yet; the Texans believe Schaub is their starting QB of the future, and they will play him when he's healthy. However, it has to be reassuring to the Texans coaching staff and front office that they have a backup QB that can win games both as a starter and in relief.
The Texans' Record Setting Season
Best record through 13 games: 6-7 (.452) 2007
Total team TD passes: 17, 2007
Sage and Matt Schaub have been around for about the same length of time in the NFL. Sage had a few starts and some relief appearances before this year, whereas Schaub hadn't had much experience at all. Still, Schaub is supposed to be the man. So why do I have more faith in the Texans when Rosenfels is starting? He seems to manage the game a little better, has thrown more TD passes and seems to put up more consistent numbers than Schaub. Joe asked whether anyone was talking about Sage starting instead of Schaub. I haven't heard any talk yet; the Texans believe Schaub is their starting QB of the future, and they will play him when he's healthy. However, it has to be reassuring to the Texans coaching staff and front office that they have a backup QB that can win games both as a starter and in relief.
The Texans' Record Setting Season
Best record through 13 games: 6-7 (.452) 2007
Total team TD passes: 17, 2007
Sunday, December 02, 2007
Are libraries still relevant?
An article in last Sunday's Houston Chronicle spoke of the deficincies of Houston's school's libraries. The state of Texas has established benchmarks (9000 books with an average age of 15 years or less) to measure libraries. Many of the schools in Houston's school districts fall short. The funding necessary to update these resources would be large. Even larger would be the funding necessary to staff these upgraded libraries. My question is, are libraries outdated? Over Thanksgiving, my grandfather was lamenting Monticello, Iowa's building of a new public library. He made a remark that most people are getting information from the internet. This made me think on a couple levels. One, I was unaware that he knew what the internet was. To my knowledge, neither of my grandparents have been exposed to the information superhighway, and two, he was on to something. I haven't been to a library since I moved to Houston. I can't remember the last time I went to a city library, and I don't believe I had ever checked out a book from the library at Iowa State. Are libraries still relevant?
Books are important. They continue to remain an important part of education. The state of Texas has differentiated between elementary school, middle school and high school libraries. I'd agree with them. Real books are more important for younger children, who are more likely to read fiction stories front to back. High schools students are more likely to use books as resources, and are looking for specific information. This information is more easily accessed digitally, however the "whole picture" that reading a book on a subject would give you would be lost. Certainly, there are different needs for different groups of users, but how can we adapt to provide the best resources for each group at a reasonable price?
Elementary schools should have large, fully staffed libraries. Especially in Houston, where many students don't speak English as a first language, libraries should have many books of varying difficulties. The librarian is important in stimulating students' interest in books and finding books that would be of interest to the student. However, the age requirement doesn't make much sense to me for younger students. My book about big cars, small cars probably still has relevance. High schools are a somewhat different story. I believe there should be a determined effort to digitize much of what is contained in libraries. Access could be restricted to computers in the school to protect copywrite laws. I enjoyed the traditional method of research - looking through indexes and reading large portions of books to find relevant material. However, I think that may be a little outdated. While real books will continue to be an important part of research, online searching should be appreciated as a larger part. Aside from the digital editions of books, another logical step would be to link the collections of all libraries in HISD. As one of the largest school districts in the nation, HISD could spread the burden of a complete library over many different schools and campuses. Keep an online record of all the books and allow students access to books at other sites. There are probably trucks travelling between the schools anyway, why not put books on them? This makes sense because students are there everyday anyway, so they are more likely to order a book from another site knowing they won't have to do much to pick it up and return it.
I feel libraries are still relevant, but they need to adjust to technology. Maybe they don't need the resources that they once did, just a little more innovation. Large school districts can benefit from distributing the burden and allowing students to check out books from any location. Finally, older students should be able to conduct research through digital access to collections. Google has begun an effort, and I believe most authors and publishers would be receptive to having their books available in an electronic format to students and educators.
Books are important. They continue to remain an important part of education. The state of Texas has differentiated between elementary school, middle school and high school libraries. I'd agree with them. Real books are more important for younger children, who are more likely to read fiction stories front to back. High schools students are more likely to use books as resources, and are looking for specific information. This information is more easily accessed digitally, however the "whole picture" that reading a book on a subject would give you would be lost. Certainly, there are different needs for different groups of users, but how can we adapt to provide the best resources for each group at a reasonable price?
Elementary schools should have large, fully staffed libraries. Especially in Houston, where many students don't speak English as a first language, libraries should have many books of varying difficulties. The librarian is important in stimulating students' interest in books and finding books that would be of interest to the student. However, the age requirement doesn't make much sense to me for younger students. My book about big cars, small cars probably still has relevance. High schools are a somewhat different story. I believe there should be a determined effort to digitize much of what is contained in libraries. Access could be restricted to computers in the school to protect copywrite laws. I enjoyed the traditional method of research - looking through indexes and reading large portions of books to find relevant material. However, I think that may be a little outdated. While real books will continue to be an important part of research, online searching should be appreciated as a larger part. Aside from the digital editions of books, another logical step would be to link the collections of all libraries in HISD. As one of the largest school districts in the nation, HISD could spread the burden of a complete library over many different schools and campuses. Keep an online record of all the books and allow students access to books at other sites. There are probably trucks travelling between the schools anyway, why not put books on them? This makes sense because students are there everyday anyway, so they are more likely to order a book from another site knowing they won't have to do much to pick it up and return it.
I feel libraries are still relevant, but they need to adjust to technology. Maybe they don't need the resources that they once did, just a little more innovation. Large school districts can benefit from distributing the burden and allowing students to check out books from any location. Finally, older students should be able to conduct research through digital access to collections. Google has begun an effort, and I believe most authors and publishers would be receptive to having their books available in an electronic format to students and educators.
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