Canadian Mission to the UN set to walk out on Ahmadinejad. Saying that his insistence on denying the Holocaust is shameful, they will leave the opening of the General Assemby when he takes the podium.
Bravo! A sincere hat tip if they go through with it. And shame on us for sitting there to listen. Actually, shame on us for allowing him a visa in the first place.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Friday, September 18, 2009
Sunday, September 13, 2009
In Memory
Eight years on, it is already getting hard to find a concise list of the friends and shipmates that we lost on September 11th without having to sift first through links to various conspiracy theories and promises to reveal the untold story.
Here is one of the untold stories of men and women who stood watch while other Americans were safe in their beds.
Dan Shanower
Vince Tolbert
Angie Houtz
Jonas Panik
Darin Pontell
Brady Howell
Jerry Moran
A friend of mine had served on an AFS with Vince Tolbert when she was a brand new ensign. She told me that he was the best Officer of the Deck a new watchstander could ask to serve under. High praise, since the officer who trains you has such an impact on how good of an OOD you become.
Also in rememberance of CDR Pat Dunn.
Here is one of the untold stories of men and women who stood watch while other Americans were safe in their beds.
Dan Shanower
Vince Tolbert
Angie Houtz
Jonas Panik
Darin Pontell
Brady Howell
Jerry Moran
A friend of mine had served on an AFS with Vince Tolbert when she was a brand new ensign. She told me that he was the best Officer of the Deck a new watchstander could ask to serve under. High praise, since the officer who trains you has such an impact on how good of an OOD you become.
Also in rememberance of CDR Pat Dunn.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Debunking Myths about September 11th
I hate the fact that while I'm having trouble finding the names of all of our friends and acquaintances who were killed in the Pentagon on September 11th, sites that claim to demonstrate that the attacks were an inside job by the government keep popping up within the first page of search results. I do hope that this sort of nutty conception will remain repulsive and subject to ridicule. I dread the idea that someday my kids might end up in a college class where these conspiracy theories are voiced in the name of giving all sides of the story.
Popular Mechanics has a good debunking of September 11th myths. I printed it out in case it becomes too hard to find online in the future.
I would also recommend Freedom Isn't Free, written in 1997 by (then) LCDR Dan Shanower for Naval Institute Proceedings. CDR Shanower was killed in the Pentagon on September 11th.
Popular Mechanics has a good debunking of September 11th myths. I printed it out in case it becomes too hard to find online in the future.
I would also recommend Freedom Isn't Free, written in 1997 by (then) LCDR Dan Shanower for Naval Institute Proceedings. CDR Shanower was killed in the Pentagon on September 11th.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Poisonous Plants
Since I've been sending my eldest off to scout outings nearly every month, we've needed to pay a little better attention to the poisonous plants here. Japan has a couple varieties of poison sumac, which is actually the source for the lacquer in lacquer boxes. They are all part of the toxicodendron family, which also includes poison ivy and poison oak.
Barb at Handbook of Nature Study has some info on poison oak and poison ivy. She also mentions that her dh, a woodlands firefighter, uses something called Tecnu. Might be something to add to a first aid kit.
Ah, poison oak and fires. In my dad's volunteer firefighter days, there was one involved brushfire that exposed everyone to poison oak. Since it was in the smoke, a lot of the toxins ended up inhaled. They ended up with rashes everywhere, including in mouths and noses. Not nice.
Barb at Handbook of Nature Study has some info on poison oak and poison ivy. She also mentions that her dh, a woodlands firefighter, uses something called Tecnu. Might be something to add to a first aid kit.
Ah, poison oak and fires. In my dad's volunteer firefighter days, there was one involved brushfire that exposed everyone to poison oak. Since it was in the smoke, a lot of the toxins ended up inhaled. They ended up with rashes everywhere, including in mouths and noses. Not nice.
Tuesday, September 08, 2009
Homeschooling Boys
We are reading Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes as part of our couple weeks studying Japan. Today I read the chapters where Sadako realizes that she may die from her leukemia and where a friend teaches her to fold cranes and tells her that if she folds 1,000 cranes, the gods will grant her wish to survive.
Then I pull out stacks of origami paper and we settle down to make cranes. But by the second set, all the boys are making dragons and pterodactyls.
So much for the dewy eyed teaching moment.
Then I pull out stacks of origami paper and we settle down to make cranes. But by the second set, all the boys are making dragons and pterodactyls.
So much for the dewy eyed teaching moment.
Saturday, September 05, 2009
Things To Learn Before Leaving Home
My Super Charged Life has 40 Things to Teach My Kids Before They Leave Home. I like the list but I would add a few more.
Practical:
How to read a financial document (bank statement, credit card offer, class action settlement announcement, rebate, magazine special offer, loan offer) with an eye for what you are really getting and what you are really committing to.
How to plan a trip (travel reservations, lodging, what to see there - with special attention to days when museums are closed, and what to pack).
How to complain to customer service without getting angry or being brushed off.
How to write or call one's elected representatives to urge them to vote a certain way.
Philosophical
How to apologize when you've been a jerk or done something wrong.
How to repair a friendship even when you don't think you've been wrong.
That people are more important than things.
That it is ok to stand up for what you believe is right and true, even if it is unpopular.
What our faith believes and why. If they choose to reject it, I want them to make a choice based on the full testaments of our faith, not on a Hollywood projection or parody of it.
To see the difference between a public outcry and an outcry in public.
How to say no.
That just because "They" or "Everyone" or "Experts" say something, doesn't mean that it should be accepted uncritically.
That not every disagreement is a hill to die on, but that some battles (and wars) are in fact worth fighting. That a huge part of growing up is learning to tell the difference.
That you should never be done learning new things.
What would you add to the list?
Practical:
How to read a financial document (bank statement, credit card offer, class action settlement announcement, rebate, magazine special offer, loan offer) with an eye for what you are really getting and what you are really committing to.
How to plan a trip (travel reservations, lodging, what to see there - with special attention to days when museums are closed, and what to pack).
How to complain to customer service without getting angry or being brushed off.
How to write or call one's elected representatives to urge them to vote a certain way.
Philosophical
How to apologize when you've been a jerk or done something wrong.
How to repair a friendship even when you don't think you've been wrong.
That people are more important than things.
That it is ok to stand up for what you believe is right and true, even if it is unpopular.
What our faith believes and why. If they choose to reject it, I want them to make a choice based on the full testaments of our faith, not on a Hollywood projection or parody of it.
To see the difference between a public outcry and an outcry in public.
How to say no.
That just because "They" or "Everyone" or "Experts" say something, doesn't mean that it should be accepted uncritically.
That not every disagreement is a hill to die on, but that some battles (and wars) are in fact worth fighting. That a huge part of growing up is learning to tell the difference.
That you should never be done learning new things.
What would you add to the list?
Animal Pages from Ft Wayne Zoo
A poster on the Well Trained Mind board posted a link to Zoo Activity Packs from the Ft Wayne Indiana Zoo. There are packets for kids from pre-school up to eighth grade. There are lessons that focus on Africa, Indonesia and Australia, that could be good resources for Sonlight Core 5 or even sources for a Choose Your Adventure for those sections of Eastern Hemisphere Explorer.
The zoo activity guides focus on animals that can be seen at the Ft Wayne Zoo, but I think there is interesting stuff to support any zoo visit, or even for learning at home.
H/T Nest of 3
The zoo activity guides focus on animals that can be seen at the Ft Wayne Zoo, but I think there is interesting stuff to support any zoo visit, or even for learning at home.
H/T Nest of 3
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