Check out my latest post on whether a student's grades should be private:
http://mlsgt.blogspot.com/2011/05/private-grades.html
Monday, May 30, 2011
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
What are we sick of?
A column in the New York Post
A medical degree is supposed to ensure everyone that those who hold it are trustworthy of its rights and responsibilities. These people have weakened that notion.
A medical degree is supposed to ensure everyone that those who hold it are trustworthy of its rights and responsibilities. These people have weakened that notion.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Spring of Cynicism
Why is it that politicians have a stereotype as being dishonest?
Check out this report on Robert Gibbs answering the press' questions on the administration's comfort with the Muslim Brotherhood's potential power in Egypt.
What I notice is the way Gibbs refuses to answer the questions and tries to answer a different question instead. He doesn't come out and say he won't answer the question; he pretends he is answering the question while knowing he is not. Does that mean he's trying to fool us? Does that amount to dishonesty? It's like you ask me if I'm comfortable with the Packers winning the Super Bowl and my answer is that I'm not the one who picks the winner. I'm not exactly lovingly serving you, am I?
I admit that there is a very real issue about not saying anything that could potentially hurt the United States diplomatically in the future. That is certainly an important consideration, and for all I know, the administration has discomfort with the Muslim Brotherhood, but doesn't want to harm possible future relations should that group rise to power.
However, I mean to pick on Gibbs, and these question and answer games happen all the time in politics. Am I wrong to think there is virtue in acknowledging a question for what it is and either answering it or not? I would not be bothered if Gibbs had said he won't answer the question.
But politicians rarely care about honesty. You have to worry about polling, so you have to dishonestly rename things to make them sound less threatening. You attach unrelated amendments into bills in order to get them passed. You gerrymander. You hoard as money for your district as you can.
Wouldn't it be a breath of fresh air if someone refused to do these things?
Check out this report on Robert Gibbs answering the press' questions on the administration's comfort with the Muslim Brotherhood's potential power in Egypt.
What I notice is the way Gibbs refuses to answer the questions and tries to answer a different question instead. He doesn't come out and say he won't answer the question; he pretends he is answering the question while knowing he is not. Does that mean he's trying to fool us? Does that amount to dishonesty? It's like you ask me if I'm comfortable with the Packers winning the Super Bowl and my answer is that I'm not the one who picks the winner. I'm not exactly lovingly serving you, am I?
I admit that there is a very real issue about not saying anything that could potentially hurt the United States diplomatically in the future. That is certainly an important consideration, and for all I know, the administration has discomfort with the Muslim Brotherhood, but doesn't want to harm possible future relations should that group rise to power.
However, I mean to pick on Gibbs, and these question and answer games happen all the time in politics. Am I wrong to think there is virtue in acknowledging a question for what it is and either answering it or not? I would not be bothered if Gibbs had said he won't answer the question.
But politicians rarely care about honesty. You have to worry about polling, so you have to dishonestly rename things to make them sound less threatening. You attach unrelated amendments into bills in order to get them passed. You gerrymander. You hoard as money for your district as you can.
Wouldn't it be a breath of fresh air if someone refused to do these things?
Sunday, February 6, 2011
February Update from Guest Teacher blog
Here are some of my recent posts on the Guest Teacher blog.
http://mlsgt.blogspot.com/2011/02/trip-to-nuremberg.html
http://mlsgt.blogspot.com/2011/01/celebrating-holidays.html
http://mlsgt.blogspot.com/2011/01/center-stage-performances.html
http://mlsgt.blogspot.com/2011/02/trip-to-nuremberg.html
http://mlsgt.blogspot.com/2011/01/celebrating-holidays.html
http://mlsgt.blogspot.com/2011/01/center-stage-performances.html
Monday, November 29, 2010
November Update
Here my latest updates to the MLS Guest Teacher blog:
http://mlsgt.blogspot.com/2010/11/november-update.html
http://mlsgt.blogspot.com/2010/11/not-in-america.html
http://mlsgt.blogspot.com/2010/12/children.html
http://mlsgt.blogspot.com/2010/11/november-update.html
http://mlsgt.blogspot.com/2010/11/not-in-america.html
http://mlsgt.blogspot.com/2010/12/children.html
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Salzburg
I took another night train from Budapest to Salzburg. I thought I was being clever because these tickets were cheaper and otherwise I'd have another night of lodging to consider. However, this night train experience also left me quite exhausted. I left Budapest at 9 something and arrived in Salzburg at 3:30ish in the morning. With their train station under renovation (and it being quite chilly), I really didn't have a place to go, besides a small shelter on the train platform. So, I read my book (Into the Wild) while waiting for a coffee shop to open at 6. In retrospect, I should have gone to my hostel and asked if I could sit in the lobby, but that didn't occur to me for some reason.
Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer was an interesting book to read during my travels. I began it on the first day of my journey and finished it on the last. It was about someone almost my age who goes off on long journeys all alone and eventually heads up to Alaska with limited provisions to escape society and live off the land. I certainly saw parallels in our journeys, though his were much more idealistic and extreme. And while he reveled in solitude I wished I had had a traveling companion. Certainly there are advantages to traveling alone, mostly in the independence it allows (you can take as long or as short as you want at a museum), but my usual life is quite independent, living alone, with most of my friends and family far away. In any case, I highly recommend the book. It is a compelling read, and though it is non-fiction, Krakauer crafts it as a mystery and fills it with interesting psychological and philosophical insight.
After getting a cup of hot coffee and a bite to eat, I found that Salzburg is a beautiful city with a gorgeous landscape. Some of the mountains had snow and the clouds/fog were moving slowly overhead.
I had the chance to tour two different houses that Mozart lived in, plus take a tour of sites from the film Sound of Music. The latter had the potential to be cheesy, but it was a great and fun experience to see these beautiful buildings, see the lake country, learn behind the scenes information about the film and even sing to the soundtrack on the bus. There was more to see, but I was only staying a short while.
One difference I noticed between Munich and Salzburg is in whether I was addressed in English or German. In these cities I would always address someone (waiter, shopkeeper, etc.) in German first (I began with English in Budapest). In Munich, they would almost always hear my accent or clumsiness and respond, to my dismay, in English. In Salzburg, however, they would always continue in German, which I appreciated. Also, at home in Rimbach, if I address someone in German, he usually would respond in German, and I became accustomed to this. Not only do I want to respect their cultures by speaking in their native tongue, it helps me to practice speaking German in any situation. I'm not really sure why these two cities were different in this respect, they are both tourist cities, if anything, Salzburg more so than Munich. And I saw non-German speakers getting around just fine in Salzburg, indicating they do speak English. In any case, it was easy to get around and someone who didn't know any German would easily survive in these places.
One excellent opportunity to practice my language skills was in Salzburg. I stopped for lunch in a small cafe and there were no open tables, so an older man asked if the other seat at my table was free, and I said it was, and we had a nice conversation, all in German. Interestingly, this year is Salzburg schools' first experiment with a Fall break and we talked a bit about that, among other topics.
I met many Australians in my hostel (and in Munich too). It seems that it is really common to take a gap year between high school and college and many use that time to backpack in Europe. Some of them were on the road for months. I got so tired being out for a week. I think this is because I kept myself so busy and wasn't staying for very long in any one city; to be out for so long you need to learn to rest. In any case, it was really nice to return to my apartment and get some rest in my own bed.
Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer was an interesting book to read during my travels. I began it on the first day of my journey and finished it on the last. It was about someone almost my age who goes off on long journeys all alone and eventually heads up to Alaska with limited provisions to escape society and live off the land. I certainly saw parallels in our journeys, though his were much more idealistic and extreme. And while he reveled in solitude I wished I had had a traveling companion. Certainly there are advantages to traveling alone, mostly in the independence it allows (you can take as long or as short as you want at a museum), but my usual life is quite independent, living alone, with most of my friends and family far away. In any case, I highly recommend the book. It is a compelling read, and though it is non-fiction, Krakauer crafts it as a mystery and fills it with interesting psychological and philosophical insight.
After getting a cup of hot coffee and a bite to eat, I found that Salzburg is a beautiful city with a gorgeous landscape. Some of the mountains had snow and the clouds/fog were moving slowly overhead.
I had the chance to tour two different houses that Mozart lived in, plus take a tour of sites from the film Sound of Music. The latter had the potential to be cheesy, but it was a great and fun experience to see these beautiful buildings, see the lake country, learn behind the scenes information about the film and even sing to the soundtrack on the bus. There was more to see, but I was only staying a short while.
One difference I noticed between Munich and Salzburg is in whether I was addressed in English or German. In these cities I would always address someone (waiter, shopkeeper, etc.) in German first (I began with English in Budapest). In Munich, they would almost always hear my accent or clumsiness and respond, to my dismay, in English. In Salzburg, however, they would always continue in German, which I appreciated. Also, at home in Rimbach, if I address someone in German, he usually would respond in German, and I became accustomed to this. Not only do I want to respect their cultures by speaking in their native tongue, it helps me to practice speaking German in any situation. I'm not really sure why these two cities were different in this respect, they are both tourist cities, if anything, Salzburg more so than Munich. And I saw non-German speakers getting around just fine in Salzburg, indicating they do speak English. In any case, it was easy to get around and someone who didn't know any German would easily survive in these places.
One excellent opportunity to practice my language skills was in Salzburg. I stopped for lunch in a small cafe and there were no open tables, so an older man asked if the other seat at my table was free, and I said it was, and we had a nice conversation, all in German. Interestingly, this year is Salzburg schools' first experiment with a Fall break and we talked a bit about that, among other topics.
I met many Australians in my hostel (and in Munich too). It seems that it is really common to take a gap year between high school and college and many use that time to backpack in Europe. Some of them were on the road for months. I got so tired being out for a week. I think this is because I kept myself so busy and wasn't staying for very long in any one city; to be out for so long you need to learn to rest. In any case, it was really nice to return to my apartment and get some rest in my own bed.
Budapest
I took a night train from Munich to Budapest. While booking my night train I wasn't sure what to expect. I had a seat in a compartment with three others. They got off at different times from me and others got into the compartment and so on. One of the stops was an hour long for some reason. Needless to say, I didn't sleep well. When I arrived in Budapest I had breakfast with my uncle (who was there on business) and then took a necessary "nap."
That afternoon I went to a very interesting museum called "The House of Terror." The name seems to inspire thoughts of Halloween, but its actual content is much more serious. It documents the tragic periods of fascist and communist rule beginning in 1944. In 1944 is was known as the "House of Loyalty" and was the headquarters of the National Socialist Arrow Cross Party (Nazi). After Soviet occupation began, the building became headquarters for communist terror organizations. Before seeing this museum, I was only vaguely aware of Hungary's role in the 20th century. I had the opportunity to learn quite a bit, from the Nazi government, to the Soviet occupation to the revolution of 1956. Importantly, I got a sense of what it was like to live on the other side of the Iron Curtain. I wonder how similar the experiences of the Hungarians were to other countries such as the GDR.
Another museum I toured was inside Buda Castle. It traced the history of Budapest from the beginning (and I do mean beginning). It was another opportunity for me to learn about this place I didn't know that much about. Its history is complicated, with many different peoples ruling the area.
I found Budapest to be a lovely city, full of breathtaking vistas, interesting architecture and good food (goulash!).
That afternoon I went to a very interesting museum called "The House of Terror." The name seems to inspire thoughts of Halloween, but its actual content is much more serious. It documents the tragic periods of fascist and communist rule beginning in 1944. In 1944 is was known as the "House of Loyalty" and was the headquarters of the National Socialist Arrow Cross Party (Nazi). After Soviet occupation began, the building became headquarters for communist terror organizations. Before seeing this museum, I was only vaguely aware of Hungary's role in the 20th century. I had the opportunity to learn quite a bit, from the Nazi government, to the Soviet occupation to the revolution of 1956. Importantly, I got a sense of what it was like to live on the other side of the Iron Curtain. I wonder how similar the experiences of the Hungarians were to other countries such as the GDR.
Another museum I toured was inside Buda Castle. It traced the history of Budapest from the beginning (and I do mean beginning). It was another opportunity for me to learn about this place I didn't know that much about. Its history is complicated, with many different peoples ruling the area.
I found Budapest to be a lovely city, full of breathtaking vistas, interesting architecture and good food (goulash!).
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