MarshaLouise.com

Not surprising

2005-05-26T13:31:00.000-07:00

A home-schooled student won the 2005 National Geographic Bee this week.

Congratulations to Nathaniel Cornelius of Minnesota!

I think home-schooling is delightful.

Ooo-Kay.

2005-04-20T22:50:00.000-07:00

The latest online business venture: SaveToby.com. If people don't send this guy $50,000, he says he'll eat the cute bunny (Toby) he found and nursed back to health.

Someone call PETA! Send in the hostage negotiators!

Education choice

2005-04-17T22:03:00.000-07:00

My latest column in The News Tribune.

Book Meme

2005-04-17T21:27:00.000-07:00

1. You are stuck inside "Fahrenheit 451." Which book would you be?
It's been years since I've read that, but as I recall most of the books got torched. I'd like to be one of the ones that didn't get torched. If there were any.

2. Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character?
If I ever have, you can bet I wouldn't publish it on my blog.

3. What is the last book you bought?
"Orthodoxy" by G.K. Chesterton. I already own a dog-eared copy and it's one of my favorites, so it became the prize for a target-shooting contest some friends and I had at the local firing range. I didn't have a "snowball's" chance of winning anyway, so it was perfectly fair to choose the prize and compete. (I took fourth place. Out of four contestants.)

4. What are you currently reading?
- The Bible.
- Another Chesterton book about St. Thomas Aquinas.
- "No Excuses: Lessons from 21 high-performing, high poverty schools." (Samuel Casey Carter)
- "Left Back: A century of battles over school reform." (Diane Ravitch)
- "End Times Fiction." (Gary DeMar)

5. Five books you would take to a deserted island.
No internet access on the island? Hmm. I'd take a copy of 1) the Bible, since it never gets old, and if a plane load of people made an emergency landing on the island one day, it would be invaluable in forming the new close-quarters stranded society. 2) "The Counte of Monte Cristo" by Alexandre Dumas because I forget all of the details every couple of years and it's a delightful read. 3) Paul Johnson's "A History of the American People" because I've been trying to get through that for years and I'd have more time there. 4) "Human Action" by Ludwig von Mises because I've heard it's one of the best books ever written on economics, and it's horrendously long, but I'd have time. 5) Going with Goldy's good idea, probably something about surviving or getting off of a deserted island.

Sigh.

2005-04-17T21:20:00.000-07:00

I've never wanted to be one of those people other people describe as "always busy." What a drag. So perhaps I've taken on too much lately. I think I was still in childhood the last time I was bored, but lately my hours have been filled with so much "going and doing" that it seems I have very little time for all the "sitting and thinking" that needs to be done.

Let alone blogging.

Still, at the invitation of Goldy, I'm going to try to answer some quick questions about my reading habits. (In the next post.)

Democrats are partially right

2005-04-10T20:35:00.000-07:00

As reported by David Wickert in The News Tribune today, some Democrat legislators are considering making wealthy students (or their families) pay for the full cost of their higher education at state universities.

That makes sense. Why should taxpayers -- many of whom are struggling to cover modest expenses -- foot the bill for rich people?

The problem is, the Democrats don't take their logic far enough. The proposal is rightly dubbed a "Robin Hood plan" since rich families would pay the entire cost of their education plus the cost of education for less wealthy families.

I can't say I think much of Robin Hood for stealing from the rich to give to the poor. Where's the virtue in that?

But...if Government doesn't take money from some people and redistribute it to others (i.e. from each according to his ability, to each according to his need...), how will poor people ever rise above their circumstances? Who else would give them a chance to achieve a college education?

In response to which, I pose another question: Did Government have to force people to donate money to the victims of 9/11? How about victims of the recent tsunami?

No. In fact, as I recall, the individuals and foundations handling relief efforts asked people to stop contributing because the generosity was greater than the need.

Why do we sell people short and abuse government power by assuming similar generosity won't be shown in meeting a need as crucial as education? Countless individuals and foundations already prove the negative assumption wrong.

Wouldn't you?

Who would have thought?

2005-04-08T23:04:00.000-07:00

Way back in 1993 a couple of teenage thugs severely injured a pizza delivery man in an armed robbery here in Washington. They were members of an Alaska Indian Tribe that successfully lobbied to mete out its own form of punishment instead of sending the criminals through the regular justice system. They were "exiled" to an island off the Alaskan coast for 18 months.

Only...the media noticed they got off the island quite a few times during their exile, as well as received visitors. Ultimately, they came home early.

One of them was arrested this week for assault in Alaska. Guess the exile didn't work.

Public v. Private

2005-04-08T17:16:00.000-07:00

I've been digging through SAT scores for Washington's students, and I find the comparison between public and private school mean scores interesting. For 2004:

Public
Verbal: 526
Math: 530

Private
Verbal: 554
Math: 552

Of course, there are far fewer private school students in the pool (2,508) compared to public school students (27,467), but maybe that's a good argument for increasing one pool and decreasing the other. Maybe it's a good argument for allowing parents to send their children to the best schools they can think of using some or all of the $9,688 per-student we're currently spending every year on public schools.

Hm. Maybe.

Takes a village to raise a clone...

2005-04-08T17:09:00.000-07:00

Two great columns in Washington newspapers yesterday...

Legislators want village to do more
by Elizabeth Hovde (Columbian)
"The proposed bill drips with entitlement language, suggesting the state must do more to help people meet family obligations and responsibilities. Generous employers should feel free to do more in this regard voluntarily, but the government hasn't the right to be so generous with other people's money."

Bill raises many ethical questions
by Sharon Quick, M.D. (Seattle P-I)
"Why would any legislator vote to exploit citizens for the speculative medical benefits theorized from unsafe, unethical, unsuccessful and impractical research involving human embryo destruction and cloning?"

Miles: The Latest

2005-04-05T23:39:00.000-07:00

Miles is almost completely healed and he's allowed outside again. He wasn't allowed out for a few months, so he still thinks he's doing a Bad Thing when he manages to scamper through the screen door I open for him. When I call him to come back in an hour or two later, he usually yells from somewhere in the backyard to let me know he's coming. Then he "sneaks" into the house.

The most exciting part of Miles' day is sneaking through the door in one direction or the other. I admit, affectionately, he isn't very bright. My roommate and long-time friend, Tiana, is less sensitive about it:

"I think Miles has smoked a little too much catnip, if you know what I mean."

Tiana's cat, Boston, is quite a bit smarter, but also evil. Boston got shot in the leg several years ago (I'm guessing in a drug sting), and she turns the limping on and off whenever she wants. If you have food, she's near death and can barely drag herself across the floor -- it's like she doesn't even have a leg there anymore. But if you look at her wrong, she'll bury the sharp end of it in whatever part of your body is closest. Then she'll cuss at you and stalk away.

Miles, watching the whole thing, thinks: "That Boston sure is nice."

I'd post a picture of Miles, but I haven't figured out how yet.

Como estas?

2005-04-05T22:30:00.000-07:00

Hola. Mi llamo Marsha. Aprendo Espanol en mi communidad instituto local. Es divertido! Penso...

My brother-in-law

2005-04-04T17:56:00.000-07:00

It's a delightful thing to hear husbands and wives speak well of each other, so I can't resist posting an excerpt from an email my sister (Anna) recently sent me. (I got her permission first.) She and my brother-in-law (Brian) will celebrate their third anniversary this year. Here's what she thinks of him (and everyone who knows him agrees):

He is a really amazing man - I have a lot of respect for him. The more I get to know him, the more things I see to admire. He's a very considerate person at home - he didn't become less nice or less attentive after the wedding day. He's always willing to give me a foot massage or spoil me if I've had a long week or a bad day. He works hard and is willing to take complete responsibility for our financial situation. He loves God and has good judgement and wisdom and wants to do the right thing. He's also a very humble person - he has this great balance where he's not fearful or insecure and he has good confidence, but he's also not prideful or egotistical. He is always quick to give God the credit even for his own strengths and accomplishments or to admit his shortcomings and apologize when he sees he's been wrong. Yet I also I love that he is a very unwavering person in so many ways. Very steady and consistent. It's a great security for me. He makes me feel safe because he's so solid, he always goes to God about everything.

Union brilliance

2005-04-04T13:55:00.000-07:00

It’s amazing how much wisdom a local teachers’ union president can pack into one short newsletter article. Here are a few quotes from the March 28 newsletter of the Federal Way Education Association (by union president Shannon Rasmussen) to make you think profound thoughts:

“Instead of ‘No Child Left Behind’, which focuses only on improvement on tests and heavy-handed sanctions, our school system should be interested in seeing that every child have [sic] an opportunity to excel – at something valuable.”

I guess grammar isn’t on the list of valuables.

“It is our job to educate our public.”

“Federal Way should create a school system that we are able to stand behind and defend to the parents of our children.”

“Our parents want their children to have the same kind of education that kids get in private schools.”

I sense a lot of biological confusion. But why not let all your surrogate parents send your/their kids to private schools, if that’s what your public wants?

“The best part of investing in the school system kids truly deserve is that the very programs we are finding it necessary to eliminate while playing the game are the ones shown to actually improve the very test scores we know don’t accurately indicate our children’s potential.”

YAY!! Er. Wait. Huh?

These are the people who control public schools. Think about that.

Books

2005-04-03T20:52:00.000-07:00

Douglas Hyde was a long-time communist who converted to Christianity and wrote an excellent book called "Dedication and Leadership." The book answers the question: "What can Christians learn from Communists?" Fully aware of the evils inherent in Communist philosophy, Hyde focuses on the legitimate tactics and strategies they used to inspire people and change the world.

Another good book on strategy and tactics is Saul Alinsky's "Rules for Radicals." Unlike Hyde, Alinsky was a rather dark man with no apparent ethical boundaries though. He personally trained members of the National Education Association in the late 60s and early 70s, which explains a lot.

Anyway, I recommend both books.

No tolerance for abstinence

2005-04-02T15:39:00.000-08:00

The federal Department of Health and Human Services has created a website promoting sexual abstinence as the healthiest choice for unmarried young people.

Frankly, I don't think Government has any business teaching young people about sex. That's the Family's job and Government will just screw it up.

Unfortunately, that's not the argument the ACLU and its pro-gay allies are making in their efforts to get the website shut down. No, they're mad because the website promoting abstinence doesn't go out of its way to tell kids how to have sex, and it seems to imply that homosexuality is wrong.

They're mad because the site contains factual information about why various contaceptives are not foolproof. After all, they say, abstinence "doesn't work" because teenagers can't resist sex. Thus, if we don't lie to them about the effectiveness of contraceptives, they won't even bother to use them at all.

Having read some of the "sexual health" curriculum these adults foist on children, I've concluded they're perverts masquerading as professionals. They hate the idea of abstinence because it implies humans (even adolescent humans) can control their appetites, and they don't want to control their appetites.

I hope this is a wake-up call to moral people who imagine they can reach a peaceful consensus on this issue. I hope it's a wake-up call to parents who imagine they can trust strangers with the hearts and minds of their children.

Sigh. Why try?

2005-03-31T21:48:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I wonder why I even bother trying to have a rational discussion with most liberals. They can't defend their opinions in an honest exchange of ideas, so they launch personal attacks. It goes something like this:

Me: I think parents should be able to decide how and where their children are educated. Why do you disagree?

Them: She's villifying teachers! She wants to indoctrinate all children in private religious schools!! She hates education!!! She's a shill for Wal-Mart!! Aaaiiiieeeeee!!

Me: Um, do you need me to help you find your meds?

Here's a good example on David Goldstein's "Horse's Ass" blog. (Goldstein is the one who filed an initiative to declare Tim Eyman a horse's ass. I think he's wrong on many things, but certainly intelligent and entertaining. I don't group him with the liberals above.)

This'll make the unions mad

2005-03-31T21:41:00.000-08:00

Here's a great op-ed by Michael Reitz of the Evergreen Freedom Foundation on why mandatory union membership is bad.

Mission Impossible

2005-03-31T21:38:00.000-08:00

Three dozen school district superintendents signed an open letter to legislators this month in which they asked for more education dollars to accomplish a mission they claim “has changed from providing universal access [to a quality education] to insuring universal success for all students.” [emphasis added]

They need the same reality check many critics have wisely voiced in the face of President Bush’s federal education mandates: No amount of money or time will ever make it possible to achieve universal academic success. Period. There is no virtue in denying this reality. Utopian ideals may sound nice, but few things are more destructive than utopian policy. ...

Read the rest of my commentary here.

In the news...

2005-03-30T23:41:00.000-08:00

A smattering of interesting news stories this week...

- There's a good article about Francis Schaeffer in the March 26 issue of World Magazine. What's not to like about a man and his wife who opened their chalet in the Swiss Alps to all passersby who wanted to know more about Christian philosophy and life?

- ABC posted an article online announcing Terri Schiavo's death. Only she's still alive. Can you say "vultures"?

- The Colorado Supreme Court tossed out the death penalty for a convicted rapist/murderer because jurors in the case consulted the Bible in their deliberations about capital punishment. Never mind that the Bible provides the foundation for many of our nation's laws.

- The front-page headline in today's News Tribune is "Gregoire vows to save Sound". (In case you didn't know we were in danger of losing The Sound.) "We have met the enemy and the enemy is us," Gregoire said. "Our robust population leads directly to the health problems of the Sound." Price tag: $31.5 million.

- Spam-lovers unite! Senate Democrats want to tax canned meat to raise $11 million a year. What next? A tax on chocolate? They wouldn't dare.

- There's a picture in the paper of Richard Gere dancing with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. Koizumi is called the "Japanese Richard Gere" because they resemble each other in looks. That's weird.

Clone and kill?

2005-03-25T13:08:00.000-08:00

I’ll be interviewing Wesley J. Smith of the Discovery Institute on Republican Radio tomorrow from 11:20am – noon PST. We’ll be talking about human cloning and the Terri Schiavo case. A bill moving through our state legislature right now (HB 1268) claims to ban human cloning but actually allows it as long as the cloned baby is killed before birth.

You can listen on several stations in Washington or live on the internet. Here’s the link for a station list and the streaming audio.

Foiled again!

2005-03-24T18:52:00.000-08:00

If only those public employee unions weren't so smart!

I confess it. I infiltrated the editorial board of the Tacoma News Tribune. I didn't apply for that guest column because I have a passion for ideas and a personal enjoyment of writing. No. I work with a "shadowy front group" -- an "anti-government think tank" -- and my motives are, therefore, never what they appear on the surface.

There's no denying it because it's all on video.

Back again!

2005-03-23T21:23:00.000-08:00

Long absences are the death of a blog. My apologies!

I took the comments down a couple of weeks ago because one person was getting a little out of control. I'm putting them back up, and hopefully everyone can use them in a normal way.

Looks like we're in for a few days of rain here in Washington, after weeks and weeks of glorious sun. Someone from California remarked recently: "Yeah, I came up here to get away from the rain."

Heh!

I support state workers

2005-03-10T23:11:00.000-08:00

I keep seeing drivers with signs stuck in their car windows: "We support state workers."

I support state workers too. Literally. Whether I like it or not.

I think most of the sign-people are state workers, and what they mean is: "We want more of your money, even if you never would have hired us in the first place."

Marriage

2005-03-09T00:13:00.000-08:00

The Marriage (traditional marriage) rally in Olympia today drew a crowd of (I estimate) several thousand. I added myself to the crowd because I support traditional marriage -- one man, one woman.

I believe God defined marriage and no matter what humans want to call it, His definition stands.

That said, I still don't support a federal marriage amendment on principle. Maybe I'll change my mind on that after I attend a debate on the issue in Seattle tomorrow sponsored by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. 7pm at UW.

Comments

2005-03-08T23:44:00.000-08:00

Just want you all to know I read all of the comments left on my blog, though I haven't had time to respond to most of them lately. Love 'em. So thanks.

Enough is Enough

2005-03-06T14:57:00.000-08:00

My News Tribune column about taxes is getting some great responses from people urging me to stop complaining about how much I must pay when I can apparently afford it, and reminding me of my duty to support the many wonderful services government provides to the downtrodden.

I'll be responding to some of these later on.

Read it and chime in if you'd like. My email address is mushra@hotmail.com. (For those who wonder, "Mushra" is a nickname bestowed years ago by a toddler and tenaciously reinforced since by gleeful friends. To my great surprise, no one had claimed it for their email account before I came along.)

Hurray. The union hates me.

2005-03-03T20:51:00.000-08:00

I testified before the state's Senate Committee on K-12 Education yesterday regarding the issue of fraudulent teaching degrees.

The teachers' union has, of course, taken the opportunity to blast me as a Teacher-Hater. Under the benign headline "EFF lobbies against teachers," the union writes:

The Evergreen Freedom Foundation, funded by wealthy out-of-state businesspeople [hiss! businesspeople!!], claims it's not a political group.

Yeah, right. With funding from the Arkansas family that owns Wal-Mart [HISS!!], EFF continues to advance its anti-union, anti-public education agenda in Olympia.

An EFF lobbyist [meaning me! hiss! hiss!] recently testified before the Senate education committee, urging lawmakers to base teacher pay on student test scores instead of education and experience. She said the current pay system encourages teachers to cheat and "creates perverse incentives to defraud the system with false credentials."

1. I sure hope EFF gets funding from some businesspeople. I can't help but admire successful entrepreneurs and job-creators.

2. The union hates Wal-Mart because the company is non-union. The union really, really hates Wal-Mart. I like Wal-Mart because it sells cheap stuff.

3. If by "anti-union" the union means I'm against forcing some Americans to give large sums of money to an organization for the privilege of working, then yes, I suppose I am. I don't have any problem with voluntary unions though.

4. If by "anti-education" the union means I'm against forcing parents and taxpayers to submit their children and billions of dollars to institutions that can't manage to teach children to read, write and do math in the course of twelve years, then yeah, I suppose they're right. I'm all in favor of competition, choice and parent control over education so kids can actually get a good one though.

5. What in the world is wrong with expecting teachers to be able to show results (student achievement) in the classroom? What is wrong with allowing excellent teachers to earn pay that reflects their success? What's wrong with identifying teachers who can't do the job and allowing them to go ahead and move on to a career more suited to them?

6. As for "lobbying against teachers," you can certainly say I don't support teachers who spend $14.95 at an online diploma mill so they can submit a fraudulent degree and collect an illegitimate salary increase from taxpayers. The union conveniently left out the rest of my short testimony though, which you can read or hear here.

A Good Scene

2005-03-02T21:31:00.000-08:00

I'm here working in my Tacoma office (i.e. Starbucks) and there's a little kid a couple tables away who has the Best Laugh in the World. He's erupting.

His dad just reminded him that there are other people in the cafe' as well and he should be considerate and keep his volume down. He listened respectfully and then erupted again about ten seconds later when his friend said something funny. So his dad reminded him again, kindly but firmly.

Now he's quiet, but happy.

Gotta say: I love the kid's laugh and the dad's training.

Good Teach, Bad Teach

2005-03-02T21:29:00.000-08:00

My latest over at Sound Politics:

According to our Superintendent of Public Instruction, a "below standard" teacher is one whose "students believe there are right and wrong answers to questions and work to determine what those are. [They] come up with immediate responses to questions and move quickly to the next task."

An "above standard" teacher is one whose "students know their ability to construct understanding and think reflectively about a problem is more valuable than correct answers."

I wish I was kidding.

Here's the Word document with her rubrics for "assessing teacher capacity." (Hat tip to Research Mom.)

End of the lapse

2005-02-28T23:03:00.000-08:00

Whew! It's been a busy week and I've done the unthinkable ... let my blog lapse. And now it's late on Monday night and any profundity I might have is running on fumes.

But here's an "interesting" fact:

I paid government $1,568.00 late last week for the privilege of buying a new (to me) vehicle. Actually, that was just the sales tax. In addition, I paid $79.00 in B&O (Business and Occupation) taxes (next time you think "business" pays those taxes, think again); $150.00 in title and license fees; $35.00 in documentary fees; and $6.50 for a King County trauma care fee.

Since the vehicle is used, government already collected more than that from the first person who bought it. And since I am likely to sell it someday several years down the road, government will collect money again from another buyer.

Government makes a lot of money when we spend money.

State of Fear

2005-02-19T09:48:00.000-08:00

A friend of mine recently sent me a copy of Michael Crichton's latest novel State of Fear. I recommend it, both for entertainment and a great overview of the modern global warming debate.

Amid numerous gory deaths (fair warning) and a fair amount of profanity (warning, warning), Crichton picks apart the myth of global warming, starting with all of the common claims we hear every day. Though fictional, the novel is full of footnotes to scientific documents, proving Crichton did a significant amount of research in the process.

I think one of the most interesting observations he makes (through the character of an intelligent but wild-eyed professor) is the crux of the novel's title:

"For fifty years, Western nations had maintained their citizens in a state of perpetual fear. Fear of the other side. Fear of nuclear war. The Communist menace. The Iron Curtain. The Evil Empire. And within the Communist countries, the same in reverse. Fear of us. Then, suddenly, in the fall of 1989, it was all finished. Gone, vanished. Over. The fall of the Berlin Wall created a vacuum of fear. Nature abhors a vacuum. Something had to fill it."

Evans frowned. "You're saying that environmental crises took the place of the Cold War?"

"That is what the evidence shows. Of course, now we have radical fundamentalism and post-9/11 terrorism to make us afraid, and those are certainly real reasons for fear, but that is not my point. My point is, there is always a cause for fear.

"Has it ever occurred to you how astonishing the culture of Western society really is? Industrialized nations provide their citizens with unprecedented safety, health, and comfort. Average life spans increased fifty percent in the last century. Yet modern people live in abject fear. They are afraid of strangers, of disease, of crime, of the environment. They are afraid of the homes they live in, the food they eat, the technology that surrounds them. They are in a particular panic over things they can't even see -- germs, chemicals, additives, pollutants.

"How has this worldview been instilled in everybody? ... I call it the politico-legal-media complex. The PLM. ... Western nations are fabulously safe. Yet people do not feel they are, because of the PLM. ... Politicians need fear to control the population. Lawyers need dangers to litigate, and make money. The media need scare stories to capture an audience. Together, these three estates are so compelling that they can go about their business even if the scare is totally groundless. If it has no basis in fact at all."

You can no doubt pick the book up at Amazon.com if you're interested.

I may have been unfair

2005-02-19T09:37:00.000-08:00

I mentioned my theory on liberal mind-readers to my dad, and he emailed back with some very interesting thoughts and information about brains and tendons:

[The nurse] was partly right. ... Some people can mentally block a deep tendon reflex, like a patellar reflex. I've encountered lots and lots of people who could.

When you thump certain tendons, like the knee one, it stretches it, which stimulates proprioceptors in the tendon, which fire a signal up the nerve to the spine and then to the brain. With deep tendon (or myotatic) reflexes, the spine fires a motor signal back and makes the quadricept muscles contract and slightly extend the knee before the brain can interpret the signal, decide not to contract the quadricept and send a motor signal back. But some people anticipating the thump to the patellar tendon already have the signal on the way before the reflex can happen.

But... the theory is that a brain can only actively deal with three signals, give or take depending on the individual, at a time. Like three sensory ones, coming from some place in the body to the brain; or three motor ones sent from the brain to some muscle in the body; or some combination of sensory and motor signals.

Brains give priority to motor signals. That's why when someone is playing a rough, active, intense sport where they have to notice and respond to many things at once, they don't notice all the bumps and bruises and associated owies and pain util they are done playing.

So... if you occupy a brain with three motor tasks, it will ignore insignificant sensory signals, like the signal sent from the proprioceptors in the patellar tendon after it is slightly and briefly stretched by being thumped, and not send a motor signal to block the reflex triggered by the signal fired back from the spine.

What I do is give the person more than three motor functions to do at the same time. "Hold your arms with your elbows out to the sides parallel to the floor (one task requiring a signal from the brain to a muscle), hook your fingers together in front of you (another signal from brain to a muscle), focus your eyes on the orange flower in the picture on the wall to your right (signal from brain to neck and eye muscles), and pull real hard with your hands (more signals to muscles. Many people actually can't do all those things at once. They're maxed out.)." Then I thump their knee. It never didn't work.

They teach women the same theory for natural childbirth, to block pain. It's called psychoprophylaxis (mind blocking). They have them breath in certain patterns and count fingers on someone else's hands.

So I guess we'll have to see if he can make my knees bounce.

They're in your mind

2005-02-18T12:55:00.000-08:00

My dad, a registered nurse, works with a drug research company, which is why I'm now participating in an out-patient drug study. I am a human guinea pig.

So this morning I was at the clinic having my reflexes checked with a little rubber hammer. Much to my disappointment over the years, no one has ever been able to get my knees to bounce. I really want to see them bounce. For some reason it's always a little alarming when the nurse tries and tries and finally says with wrinkled brow: "Huh. You have no reflexes." I always have to remind myself that my legs still seem to work so it's probably ok.

Anyway, today a new nurse was hitting me with the hammer.

(Key to the story: I know from past discussions that this nurse is politically and philosophically very liberal.)

As she bustled about getting ready, I made small-talk by telling her no one had ever been able to make my knees bounce. She assured me that she could.

She couldn't.

But instead of the standard response, she informed me that it was because I was steeling my will against it. She was serious. I was told to "think about something else" while she tried again. When it still didn't work she told me it was because I was still thinking about not letting my knees bounce, even though I didn't know it.

And it was suddenly clear: The reason liberals know what's best for everyone else is because they know what we're thinking even when we don't.

Cemeteries are interesting

2005-02-16T20:21:00.000-08:00

I don't know if I'm morbid for liking cemeteries, but I always have. There's a lot to spark the imagination there, and a lot to signify the depth of humanity.

Cemeteries are a testament to the eternal significance of human life. The fresh flowers on crumbling headstones are proof that life doesn't end with death. Who we are becomes a part of who other people are, for generations to come.

The weight and the glory...

Reader's Undigestible

2005-02-16T19:58:00.000-08:00

I'm still mourning the devolution of Reader's Digest, now the People Lite of magazines.

I grew up on the "old" RD -- the one with words on the cover instead of meaningless slogans and Hollywoodites. It was the first magazine I remember buying with my own money as a kid; the one I was impatient to get my hands on two weeks before the next issue came out.

The original RD stuck up for old-fashioned American values like honesty, strength in times of trial, kindness to strangers, and constitutional government. The research was sound and trustworthy, the dramas real, the content substantive.

I was talking with a contributing editor of the Old RD a couple of years ago, and he sorrowfully informed me the changes -- the transformation from substance to fluff -- were intentional. The first thing cut was the fact-checking department. The "old-schoolers" were phased out.

When subscriptions dropped from 16 million to 9 million, the new ownership said it was part of the plan to make the magazine "more manageable."

And so a bright candle has been snuffed.

"It's just stupid, Stupid."

2005-02-14T23:52:00.000-08:00

Former President Bill Clinton just won a grammy for "the spoken word." He certainly didn't win it for his impeccable logic.

The subject is Bush's tax cuts "for the rich." Clinton tells the story of a young soldier who gripped his hand in a crowd and said: "I'm probably the only man in my company who wishes you were still president." (Probably so.) The man is missing a limb and four of his comrades were killed in a roadside bomb. Clinton wishes he could give as much for his country, and claims President Bush's tax cuts have "deprived us [rich people] of the opportunity to help fight terror these last four years; he is not letting us sacrifice like that brave military soldier." (paraphrase)

I'm gagging.

Can someone tell me who's stopping Mr. Clinton from writing a check to Uncle Sam right now?

No one, that's who.

But apparently 1) he's so greedy he won't part with money unless government takes it from him by force, 2) he thinks everyone else is just as greedy and he should therefore take their money by force, 3) he knows people aren't greedy but knows they still won't choose to give government more money, and/or 4) he's willing to exploit soldiers and say disingenuous, stupid things to make government bigger.

Isn't that just like the liberal elite?

Not too late

2005-02-14T09:41:00.000-08:00

If you didn't get around to signing up for the Education Reformer, EFF's bi-monthly e-newsletter, it's not too late. If you'd like to preview it first, you can do so here. There's a link in the sidebar if you'd like to subscribe (it's free), or you can go to this link and choose the education list.

Note: It won't ever be "too late" to sign up, but if you wait a month you'll miss at least two issues, plus the one you already missed. Six months: you'll miss twelve issues.

Yikes, right? Who wants to miss an issue?

Jeremiah 9:23-24

2005-02-11T03:40:00.000-08:00

"Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,
Let not the mighty man glory in his might,
Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;
But let him who glories glory in this,
That he understands and knows Me,
That I am the Lord,
Exercising lovingkindness, justice,
and righteousness in the earth."

"For in these I delight," says the Lord.

Obsessing over differences

2005-02-09T21:45:00.000-08:00

Olympia: Where psychobabble becomes policy.

As if we don't have enough taxpayer-soaking committees, boards and advisories, some legislators are trying to form the [deep breath] Joint Select Committee on Equitable Opportunity For All (JSCEOFA).

The JSCEOFA (as defined by House Bill 1659) would "consult with communities of color stakeholders" to make sure small children in our state schools have an unhealthy dose of diversity indoctrination before they're old enough to sound out the words (assuming they're fortunate enough to learn phonics).

The whole thing is a ridiculous idea. Diversity isn't something you can "promote" with a centralized program; it's something that flourishes when there is no centralized program to stifle and limit it.

Remember the old "patchwork quilt"? Proponents of "diversity programs" seem to want to stamp out thousands of identically bland patchwork quilts (hapless children who all have the same narrow understanding of "diverse"), rather than allowing each child to be a unique patch in the quilt we call culture.

Far better that we teach children to read, write, do math, think critically, and recognize that humans (who come in all shapes, sizes and colors) share the capacity to reason and communicate. That's the common ground that breeds respect for benign differences. Obsessing on those differences, for whatever reason, is counterproductive.

Bon Voyage!

2005-02-09T21:09:00.000-08:00

According to yesterday's News Tribune (in an article reprinted from the New York Times), the Liberal Exodus to Canada has begun. Canadian officials have identified a few hundred American refugees who claim they're "fleeing Bush."

Ha HA! Bon Voyage!

Hello? Help Desk?

2005-02-09T21:06:00.000-08:00

Does anyone out there know how I can add "links" to the sidebar on this blog? It's one of those free blogs you get at blogspot.com. I've seen other blogspotters who have links, and now I have link-envy.

Patrol and Destroy

2005-02-07T21:38:00.000-08:00

This letter in The News Tribune today made me laugh:

As I sit in my office in downtown Tacoma, I listen to one (or more) car alarms which have been going on for hours on end. Can the city budget afford to hire someone whose job it would be to patrol and destroy vehicles which have been shrilling away, annoying people until they wish they'd lose their hearing?

Marge Neumann

Well, I can think of other, less useful things the City Council does with our money.

Cascade County?

2005-02-07T21:33:00.000-08:00

Those rural people are trying to get away from King County and its onerous restrictions on their property again. Efforts to secede and start Cascade County have been revived after a previous failed attempt in the 90s (then called Cedar County).

Admit it: "Cascade County" has a real ring to it.

Beware, Rogue Piercers!

2005-02-07T21:25:00.000-08:00

Kids in Washington will have a harder time poking holes in their body if Sen. Pam Roach has her way. Senate Bill 5738 would make it a misdemeanor to body-pierce a minor without written parental consent, proof of relationship with consenting parent, and a parent present for the piercing.

I don't know if the state has a legitimate role here or not. I mean, do we need Big Brother stopping teenagers from doing stupid things, or do we need a government that supports (i.e. doesn't interfere with) reasonable parental discipline before and after the fact?

I don't have any body-piercings because I'm afraid of being struck by lightning in a storm, but I did have a roommate in D.C. who came home one day and blurted out: "I wath on the thubway coming home when I thaw thith girl with her tongue pierthed. She looked tho cute! Tho I got mine pierthed! It hurtth!"

She wasn't a minor though. What is government to do about that? I know! A body-piercing tax!

Taxes, more taxes!

2005-02-04T17:37:00.000-08:00

My latest on Sound Politics, this time about yet another education tax proposal. ('Fraid you'll have to scroll down until you see the article titled "You say 'no,' they say 'yes." For some reason I can't get the direct link to work.)

Social (in)Security

2005-02-03T22:19:00.000-08:00

If you're following the Social Security reform debate, the Club for Growth has a great website called Social Security Choice you'll want to check out.

Also, some recent articles by David Hogberg in the American Spectator:

Insecure Arguments
The True Cost of Social Security

Village mentality

2005-02-03T21:43:00.000-08:00

I endured another multi-hour legislative hearing this week, during which a steady stream of bleeding hearts spoke about the need to repeal the constitutional provision that requires a sixty percent majority to pass a school levy in our state.

Young students were trotted in to give the "we are the future" speech; teachers' union representatives decried the "unfairness" of it all; school administrators sobbed about heart-wrenching layoffs and leaky roofs; and one absurd education professional stated with certainty that levy committees knew how to assess a local economy and would never ask for more than their local taxpayers could pony up comfortably. (Why fret? Our benevolent leaders know what we can afford.)

The cake-taker was a PTA member who said her "darkest moment" came sometime last year when she was rushing out the door to attend a levy campaign meeting. Her son stopped her and said, "Mom, I need help with my homework tonight." She was torn. The question, she said, came down to: Should I help this one child, or the 26,000 who will benefit if we can get more money for our schools?

"Sorry," she told her son, "you're going to have to figure it out yourself. And tell your dad there's a pot pie in the freezer."

Frankly, I was a little shocked to hear her say it (I know, I shouldn't be shocked anymore), as if "this one child" wasn't her own son who should be far more precious to her than any number of other children. Her village mentality -- along with the fallacy that money is more important to student achievement than loving parental involvement -- is a big part of the problem in our public schools today.

On a good note: A lone but quintessential citizen named Myrtle (whose elderly husband accompanied her and sat in the audience) took the microphone on behalf of the invisible man in the levy debate: the property owner who will be paying the bills. She also cited the fact that less than half of the dollars we currently spend for education [an average of $9,439 per pupil per year] make it to the classroom where instruction happens. Perhaps, she suggested, we should figure out where that money is going before we demand more.

Yes, perhaps.

Let Us Now Try Liberty

2005-02-03T21:37:00.000-08:00

Here's one of my favorite Bastiat quotes. (If you haven't read The Law, do, oh do!)

God has given to men all that is necessary for them to accomplish their destinies. He has provided a social form as well as a human form. And these social organs of persons are so constituted that they will develop themselves harmoniously in the clean air of liberty. Away, then, with quacks and organizers! Away with their rings, chains, hooks, and pincers! Away with their artificial systems! Away with the whims of governmental administrators, their socialized projects, their centralization, their tariffs, their government schools, their state religions, their free credit, their bank monopolies, their regulations, their restrictions, their equalization by taxation, and their pious moralizations!

And now that the legislators and do-gooders have so futilely inflicted so many systems upon society, may they finally end where they should have begun: May they reject all systems, and try liberty; for liberty is an acknowledgment of faith in God and His works.

Miles did a hand-stand (paw-stand?)

2005-02-02T20:04:00.000-08:00

In stark contrast to my sister, I was agility-challenged growing up. She was bendy, twisty and flippy. I was sore after sitting cross-legged for two minutes. She could do a hand-stand in the middle of the room. I was proud if I managed to lean against the wall upside-down on my head. (My family graciously called this a "head-stand." I haven't tried it since childhood, largely due to the suspicion that my head would explode.)

But this post is about Miles.

Miles did a hand-stand (paw-stand, whatever) the other day. On a normal day it's not unusual to see him crash into table legs or lose his balance running around a corner on the wood floor. On this day, he was facing The Medicine Dropper.

I had him cornered in the bathroom. It was me and the medicine dropper against him and his twenty claws and sharp teeth. I was bloodied, but not beaten. (If our IQs were any closer, he'd win, but I think I've got at least a hundred points on him.) The medicine dropper was getting closer and closer to his frowning, growling mouth and he was avoiding it by flattening his face against the floor. He managed to shrink and scrunch backward into the corner until there wasn't room for another molecule, and then he kept on going right up the bathroom wall until he was stretched vertically as far up the wall as he could go, his face still obstinately pointed at the floor.

Miles won that round because I started laughing, but I won the battle.

We fight again tonight. And tomorrow morning. And tomorrow night. And so on until he's done taking the antibiotics. To his credit, he's managed to splatter at least a dropper-full around the bathroom.

A whole lotta kids left behind

2005-01-31T18:40:00.000-08:00

See my latest at SoundPolitics.com exposing the so-called "improvements" in Washington's student academic achievement.

Old, heavy words?

2005-01-30T23:18:00.000-08:00

I've gotten it from men and women: "You know, reading your stuff online, I really had the idea that you were about twenty years older and forty pounds heavier."

Huh.

So, hey, if you're forming an opinion right now about what I look like, shave off twenty years and forty pounds, ok?

Unsocialized?

2005-01-30T17:49:00.000-08:00

"Hi, I'm Casius Butcher, and I'll be arguing for the Affirmative team."

He wasn't much taller than the podium, and he'll be growing into his suit and tie for another year, but he made a compelling and articulate case for the adoption of a "resolution to reduce the United States' dependency on foreign oil."

Young Mr. Butcher was just one of the several talented debaters I had the pleasure of judging at a tournament for the Puget Sound Debate Club yesterday. They're homeschooled students from all over the region, and they're impressive.

People like to stereotype homeschoolers: "unsocialized" (whatever that means), backward, shy, uncultured. Nothing could be farther from the truth. These kids are smart, funny, fun-loving, gracious, well-mannered. They're plunging into the world around them with all five senses.

What exactly do we think "socialization" is anyway? I think for a lot of people today it means "go to public school for twelve years."

I was homeschooled for four years growing up -- between the end of third grade at a private elementary school and the start of college (at age 13 for me, 15 for my sister). I can't count the number of times I'd sit with college classmates for weeks on end discussing projects, ideas and life, only to have them "react" when they found out I'd been homeschooled: "You were homeschooled?? Man, do you feel like you have a hard time relating? Do you feel like your socialization was affected?"

"Yeah," I'd respond. "I have such a difficult time even talking to other people. Usually I just sit under my desk and rock."

I mean, c'mon.

Where did we get the idea that public schools are more like the "real world" than the myriad activities of homeschoolers (which are generally supervised by loving parents)? In public schools, children are segregated by age. They answer to bells, sit in rows, line up in lines, and look at the world through a chainlink fence.

What other institutions in our society resemble public schools?

The military. And prisons.

Have public schools worked for some kids? Yes, they have. For most kids? No, unfortunately not. At least not in recent years.

I don't think all public schools are bad, and I think a great many can be made better. Assuming the school is doing a good job teaching kids to read, write and do math, I don't object to the structure if that's what parents choose for their children.

What I object to is the idea that all children should go through the same one-size-fits-all system. I object to calling that "socialization." (Especially when the system we have is so clearly failing to do the job.) I object to policies (excessive regulations, taxes and restrictions) that deprive parents of the ability to choose the path that best suits the needs of their unique children.

The homeschooled kids I know are shining examples of potential realized. They redefine today's narrow views of education and socialization.

Quotable

2005-01-30T17:45:00.000-08:00

Pastor Mark Driscoll of the Mars Hill Church in Seattle had a good quote this morning: "The Bible isn't full of good guys and bad guys, it's full of bad guys and Jesus."

It's a great church. You can find out more and hear sermons online at: www.marshillchurch.org.

Animals are not people

2005-01-27T17:32:00.000-08:00

Fellow think-tanker Paul Guppy, of Seattle's Washington Policy Center, was interviewed by Evening Edition a few years ago, and they're still airing the segment. I managed to catch a split-second promo recently, which featured him saying something like: "Animals are not people." Since Paul has an uncanny knack for defending truth with simple and profound insight, I emailed for more details.

Sure enough.

His counterpart on the show was a lawyer who was suing zoos and labs for better treatment of animals. "Who could be against that?" notes Paul. "But to make her argument she was trying to create a new legal doctrine that animals have rights like people do, backing this up by pointing out that men and apes share 98% of the same genetic material."

Paul had three main points in response:

1. Re: the 98% figure. "Almost the same" means "NOT the same." If I have a metal box full of wire, circuit boards and microchips, but no hard drive, I have 98% of a computer. That 2% makes a big difference.

2. The reasoning that animals are very close to being people also works the other way. Some people (infants, the disabled, the mentally ill, the elderly, people in comas) seem, outwardly, to be very close to being animals. Once the lines are blurred it becomes much easier (as has often happened) to start treating them that way.

3. The best way to help animals is to enforce the anti-cruelty laws we have now, not forge new, risky legal doctrines. Besides, needlessly hurting animals, beyond the pain it causes them, reflects morally on US. That's why good care of animals is called "humane" treatment.

I have no doubt he won the debate.

Miles update

2005-01-23T15:03:00.000-08:00

Thanks, all, for the many kind inquiries about Miles. I'm happy to say he's been frisking around the house lately like old times, and mooning about whenever he remembers there's an "outdoors" that he desperately wants to be in, despite the fact that he's not fully healed.

Cats are like children. They want all kinds of things they shouldn't have, but just try explaining that to them.

I just gotta write

2005-01-23T14:36:00.000-08:00

Fun news: I get to write a periodic (almost-but-not-quite monthly) guest column for The News Tribune (Tacoma) this year.

Topics are my choice, but I don't get to stump for EFF or "plow the same ground the nationally syndicated columnists till every day."

Ah, what else, what else...?

Education Reformer

2005-01-23T14:32:00.000-08:00

I'll be sending out the first edition of a bi-monthly e-newsletter called the Education Reformer this week, which will feature news, analysis and commentary on various education issues.

If you'd like to be on the list to receive it, send me an email and let me know: mrichards@effwa.org.

Miles

2005-01-13T18:43:00.000-08:00

For the second time in a week I made a trip to the "Animal ER" with my cat Miles -- this time at the ungodly hour of 5am after his crying woke me up. We made the first trip last week at midnight.

Unfortunately, cats can't talk, so I have no idea how he got a large burn right between his shoulder blades. Now he's on pain-killers and antibiotics, and I clean him up every night and try not to lose a finger in the process.

He seems to be healing as he should, but the vet mentioned the possibility that he may need surgery if the damage is more than skin-deep.

Surgery? Yikes, that sounds expensive. Which got me thinking: How do I know when Miles has maxed out his tab? If he was a child, I would indenture myself for life if need be to get him care. But he's a cat.

I've always thought it a bit bizarre when people take extreme measures with pets, as if they're a human member of the family. But then I look at Miles. My big, fuzzy, black cat. He's always in a good mood except when I'm trying to clean up his owie. He plays fetch and crashes into table legs. And he's completely helpless. With an IQ of about 1.5 he'd starve to death next to a lifetime supply of cat food if I didn't pour some out of the bag every day.

How much is "too much" when it comes to keeping him alive and healthy?

I don't know.

It's strange, really.

2005-01-10T20:12:00.000-08:00

Have you ever considered how narrowly most people today define "education"?

It starts when you're five and ends when you're eighteen. You go to the same local building for six hours a day, 180 days out of a year, sometimes for several years in a row. You sit with the same group of people, all your same age, in rows, behind wooden desks. You answer to bells and line up in lines. Your activity is defined by 15-, 30-, or 50-minute periods. If your building is one of the "safe" ones, you see the world through a chain-link fence. When your daily routine ends, you file onto a bus with everyone else and make the same trip home every day.

Is it just me, or is that bizarre?

Deficit?

2005-01-10T19:20:00.000-08:00

The state legislature is back in session and the calls for more money are as loud as ever. Predictably, we're going to hear a lot of talk about a budget deficit. This year we're $1.8 billion short.

Or are we?

The definition of a "deficit" in the mind of big spenders is "the difference between how much I have and how much I want to spend."

The state is actually going to collect $1.6 billion in new revenue this year (over last year's spending levels). That's the equivalent of a 7 percent raise. (Most of us would love a 7 percent raise.) It just so happens state spenders want to spend $3.3 billion more this year, resulting in a $1.8 billion "deficit."

Incidentally, inflation for the next biennium is forecasted at less than 4 percent, so the excuse that we're "maintaining current levels of service" doesn't fly.

Don't you just love these guys?

FLASH

2005-01-06T19:56:00.000-08:00

Someone broke into the Seattle Police Chief's car recently and stole his 9-mm Glock semiautomatic service pistol.

We need to let that criminal know it's illegal for him to have a gun.

Christianphobia

2005-01-06T19:40:00.000-08:00

This is how one Seattle Democrat described her trauma when she discovered that some of the Republicans helping with the manual recount in the governor's race out here took time out for prayer.

"How come I see you going in and out of the GOP Lounge at breaks and lunch?" ... The answer the Sean Hannity look-alike gave me came as a shock.

It was for prayer time, he said barely above a whisper. I had to ask the other people standing with us—one other Democratic ballot counter and two Republican ballot counters—to confirm what he said. This was something I had never considered. That a political party interested in the results of an election would conduct daily prayers, formally or informally, inside an office building in which the express purpose is to conduct civic business left me speechless. Apparently, because they had paid for the space, they felt entitled to do whatever they wanted—or, more precisely, whatever they could get away with. The revelation that prayers were being conducted in the GOP Lounge, together with the fact that the Republican candidate for governor once said he thought creationism should be taught alongside evolution in public schools, gave me a chilling new understanding of the phrase "party faithful." What I had thought was a contest for governor turned out to be more like a religious war.

The separation of church and state is one of the most cherished tenets of our democracy. Many would argue, myself among them, that those who seek to blur or erase the line are the real enemies of the American way of life. While I started out not caring much about who among the disappointing choices would be our next governor, suddenly I found that I care a great deal.

Talk about paranoia. And what a sad and complete misunderstanding of our nation's founding principles.

Wireless in Tacoma

2005-01-03T19:21:00.000-08:00

I've discovered the joys of a wireless internet connection and joined the ranks of people who imagine they look just like all those tech-savvy GenXers in the movies who surf the web while sipping coffee at Starbucks.

I did not resolve to kick my latte habit in the New Year.

Christmas this year was spent at Briananna's (brother-in-law and sister) house in Seattle, eating too-good food and watching animated episodes of "The Tick." (My favorite line from the blue, sense-challenged superhero as he surveys his new domain: "Ah, The City! MY The City!")

Maybe you had to be there.

We also watched The Triplets of Belleville. It was ... weird. And interesting. I probably missed most of the nuances, but I was entertained.

The most important part of Christmas is, of course, Christ, for Whom there are no adequate words of gratitude and awe.

Depends on what "soon" is . . .

2005-01-03T18:59:00.000-08:00

Despite the two-month gap between this and my last post, Washington still does not know who will be its next governor. After two machine counts in which Rossi maintained leads of 261 votes and 42 votes, respectively, the far left in the Democrat party put up the $730,000 deposit required to do a statewide hand recount. Gregoire came out on top by 129 votes.

Oddly enough, when Rossi was ahead it was a "literal tie" in Gregoire's words, but now that she's ahead it's a mandate from the people.

If it was legit, I'd say accept it and move on. But a bright and dedicated group of citizens have discovered so many "irregularities" (I will go so far as to say likely fraud) in the proceedings and counts that the outcome is completely untrustworthy.

Consider, for example, that the margin of error here is 129 votes. Yet the King County elections department counted more than 3,500 ballots for whom there are no reported voters.

And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

Check out the excellent and alarming investigation results on SoundPolitics.com, now the national source for information about "the closest gubernatorial race in political history".

Frankly, this isn't about Rossi vs. Gregoire or Republican vs. Democrat anymore. It's about protecting the right of voters to have an equal voice in the selection of their public representatives.

I've joined the chorus petitioning the legislature for a revote. It won't be cheap or convenient, of course. But then, it wasn't cheap or convenient to win the right to be a self-governing nation in the first place. The price was paid in lives.

Been awhile...

2004-11-10T18:39:00.000-08:00

It's been quite awhile since I've posted. But the election is over now! Initiative 884, about which I blogged in earlier posts, went down in flames (61% against to 39% for). That's good news. Now we just need to get some real education reforms on the table.

It's looking like Washington may get its first Republican governor in a few decades. See the latest on that at Sound Politics.

And it's definitely fall here in the Pacific Northwest. Cool and crisp. Love it.

More soon.

Another great quote

2004-09-11T22:00:00.000-07:00

This time from G.K. Chesterton's book "Orthodoxy":

"We need not debate about the mere words evolution or progress: personally I prefer to call it reform. For reform implies form. It implies that we are trying to shape the world in a particular image; to make it something that we see already in our minds. Evolution is a metaphor from mere automatic unrolling. Progress is a metaphor from merely walking along a road -- very likely the wrong road. But reform is a metaphor for reasonable and determined men: it means that we see a certain thing out of shape and we mean to put it into shape. And we know what shape."

(sniff) I love it.

2004-09-11T21:38:00.000-07:00

I just watched one of my favorite movies of all time: Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (with Jimmy Stewart and Jean Arthur, directed by Frank Capra).

Oh the glorious idealism and determination, integrity and principle!

For all the "freedom-fighters" out there, the words of Clarissa Sanders (Arthur): "Your friend Mr. Lincoln [faced powerful enemies]. So did every other man who tried to lift his thought up off the ground. Odds against them didn't stop those men. They were fools that way. All the good that ever came into this world came from fools with faith like that. You can't quit now."

And from Jefferson Smith (Stewart): "No sir, I will not yield!"

Concentrated costs, diffused benefits

2004-09-07T17:32:00.000-07:00

There's an economic "model" to explain why taxpayers allow themselves to be slowly sucked dry by taxes: Concentrated benefits, diffused costs.

Quite simply, members of a small special interest group who stand to gain millions of dollars from a ten-cent tax on widgets have a greater incentive to pursue the tax than the multitude of taxpayers (who stand to lose ten cents on each widget) have to defend against it.

Well, it seems to me the model can be enlightening when pondered in reverse as well, and that it might behoove some tax-happy politicians to do so: Concentrated costs, diffused benefits.

I recently calculated my visible monthly tax bill, which turns out to be almost $1,000. Here's an itemization:

Income tax: $440.00
Social Security: $220.30
Medicare: $51.52
Property: $160.00
Phone tax/fees: $15.00
Sales: $50.00
Total: $936.82

That's probably not comprehensive.

So let's just suppose for a minute that government is not as efficient and effective as it could be. Let's suppose there's some waste, fraud and mismanagement. Let's suppose some government programs are unnecessary and illegitimate (i.e. they can and should be provided in the private sector).

Let's suppose we could cut the cost of government in half by eliminating waste, fraud and mismanagement, and by limiting it to its constitutionally defined boundaries. (My guess is we could cut it even more, but let's just say half. I'm already thinking wishfully as it is.)

That would mean I could keep an additional $500 of the wages I earn each month.

Concentrated Costs
What is $500 to someone like me? How about: A car payment ($250), a college loan payment ($125), a car insurance payment ($100), and a three-month supply of cat food ($25)? (The cat food is for the cat, but if government gets any bigger, I might be sharing it with him.)

Or how about: A cell phone payment ($60), a mortgage payment ($300), a utility bill ($50), a month's worth of gas ($70), and a dinner out with a friend ($30)?

I kind of like the thought of being able to use my money for those things. (Gasp! Greedy capitalist pig!)

Diffused Benefits
What is $500 to a big, wasteful government with a multi-trillion dollar budget? Nothing, nada, not even a blip on the radar. Which is why politicians and bureaucrats who are used to throwing that kind of money around seem to think it doesn't matter when they take it from us.

It's why the people pushing so hard for a new billion-dollar sales tax increase in our state act like it's no big deal. Since many of them get paid with the money they take from us, I suppose to them it isn't. (Coo. Sympathetic generous liberals.)

In which the Queen of Carrots interviews me

2004-09-03T18:13:00.000-07:00

It's your seventy-fifth birthday tomorrow. How are you going to celebrate it?
What?? It's tomorrow?! I have to work! . . . I have to work?!? I DEMAND to know why I'm not retired by now!! [gasp!] Where are my teeth??!

Before you sits a book with your entire life history written out in it. Do you peek? Read the whole thing? Or what?
I am definitely gonna figure out why I'm an unretired 75-year-old with no teeth!

If you had to be shipwrecked on a deserted island, what would be the ideal number of people to be shipwrecked with, and why?
What would those people be doing? Fanning me with palm fronds? Feeding me peeled grapes? Throwing sand in my eye? Talking incessantly? Ideal numbers could vary dramatically.

I should have been a crafty lawyer.

Choose one current habit or character trait you'd most like to improve, and tell us why.
How about the habit of staying at the office too late? Because I'm still here.

Describe the view from your favorite chair.
Just to my right, easily within reach of my arm, is a tall shelf of interesting books. In front of me, a green and white couch, with an annoyed cat sitting on it. To my left, another couch. And on the burgundy rug at my feet, another cat, getting ready to pounce on the first. Behind the couch, a big window with sunlight streaming in at an angl ... zzzZzz.

What is "Christian libertarian"?

2004-08-29T20:51:00.000-07:00

I deliberately chose the term "Christian libertarian" to describe my worldview/civic philosophy several years ago when I discovered none of the mainstream terms fit (Republican, Libertarian, conservative).

Why Christian libertarian? Because before anything else, I'm Christian, and I believe there are things Christians can and should do that government can't and shouldn't.

A lot of Christians seem to think saying "government shouldn't stop people from doing that" is the same as saying "people should do that" or "we shouldn't do anything to stop people from doing that." It's not.

One of the best books I've ever read on the proper role and mission of government is "The Law" by Frederic Bastiat. In a nutshell: Government's just role is to protect God's gift of life, liberty and property. What you, as an individual, have a legitimate right to do in self-defense of those gifts is what government has a legitimate right to do on behalf of individuals. Period.

One of the best summaries I've ever read of the proper role and mission of the Church is Matthew 28:19-20, the commission given by Christ. In a nutshell: Share the gospel with everyone in the world (which has the power to convert and transform) and teach them to obey My commands. Jesus begins it by saying, in verse 18, "all authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth." Thus, the King of kings has given his soldiers marching orders into a battle they can fully expect to win.

That's why I can say with all confidence: "Government can't and shouldn't stop people from doing drugs." And with equal confidence: "The Church can and should stop people from doing drugs."

The two institutions don't look or work the same way, of course. Government is, at its core, the power to kill. The Church is, at its core, the power to transform. Government uses guns and tanks. The Church uses prayer and persuasion.

We should never, never get the two mixed up.

I'm a real blogger!

2004-08-27T18:37:00.000-07:00

I have a new favorite blog to add to my list:

Sound Politics

Check it out. It has some great bloggers, and I get to join them. Since that one's political, maybe this one can be theological, philosophical and, on occasion, silly.

To start off silly: I went to an "open mic" at a cafe in Tacoma earlier this week. (Not to participate, lest I become the hapless subject of someone else's blog.) A band, which I will not name, played.

No. It didn't play. It did something else, involving instruments and noise.

The moral of the story: Five humans collaborated to make that sound. And then they did it in public. Is this a reflection on our public schools? Because if it is, I'm in the right business . . . but I'm gonna need a lot of help.

Spin me round n' round

2004-08-27T18:35:00.000-07:00

Awareness of our nation’s education crisis is fueling market-based reforms, and the National Education Association (NEA) is stepping up efforts to bolster the image of status quo public schools.

The union’s latest effort is a report trumpeting “good news about public schools.” Since such news would be welcome, the report merits a close look. And that close look reveals statistical spin that would make anyone dizzy.

Take one example.

The NEA notes that “reading scores are up” in Washington state schools because “the proportion of 4th graders who scored at the highest two levels in reading in the National Assessment of Educational Progress increased by 22% between 1994 and 2003.”

Sounds good, but statistics can sound just about anything. The NEA’s “fact” is technically true; the conclusion you're supposed to reach isn't.

The NEA derives its “22% increase” from a trend showing that 27% of 4th graders scored "proficient" on the national writing exam in 1994, and 33% scored proficient in 2003. The flipside: 67% are failing to meet standards, down from a 73% failure rate.

Progress? Sure.

Success? No.

The NEA also (conveniently) fails to mention that starting in 1998 schools were allowed to provide some students with “testing accommodations”. Right or wrong, this arbitrarily increases the overall percentage of proficient students and makes a direct trend comparison inaccurate.

On top of that, “proficient” on the reading assessment is defined as a student who scores at least 238 out of 500 points—or 48%. “Advanced” is a score of at least 54%.

Of course we should commend progress. The irony in the NEA’s happy dance is more than just the union’s refusal to acknowledge the true crisis of low student achievement and offer meaningful solutions. It's the union's active and aggressive role in creating and prolonging the problems.

War of the Blogs

2004-08-24T19:09:00.000-07:00

Apparently you don't have to be "vast" to be part of the "right-wing conspiracy." Our Seattle event at the Downtown Republican Club earned mention on a blog run by the Initiative 884 campaign:

There's nothing like a whiff of the opposition to get a campaign and its supporters jazzed up. After Natalie convened the whole staff for a planning session, we all got to the phones and began calling people we know in the area to stand outside and wave signs as well as sit inside and ask pointed questions to the forum's right-wing panelists (people from the Evergreen Freedom Foundation and conservative Washington Policy Center, among others).

The "others" they don't mention included Charles Hoff, former assistant school superintendent and teacher, and current member of the Federal Way School Board. He wasn't speaking for the Board, but it must scare them to admit that someone with firsthand knowledge of our state's schools agrees mo' money ain't the answer.

Their blog continued into absurdity . . .

It's really quite remarkable the gall these people have, to come to a community that values education as much as Seattle does and tell us how to spend our money.

Think about that for a minute. These people are trying to raise your taxes and my taxes by $1 billion a year, and when we say "hey, wait just a minute," they're outraged and affronted.

I'm not sure I can comprehend it.

Get Involved

2004-08-23T19:55:00.000-07:00

Tonight I went to Seattle to record a 30-minute public access show. Subject: Initiative 884. The show is hosted by the Downtown Republican Club, which meets weekly for dinner and discussion.

It's a small, informal affair. The "studio" is a table with two chairs. The "equipment" is a video camera on a tripod, operated by a dedicated club member. There are about a half-dozen regular attendees.

And tonight group members were outnumbered by dedicated supporters of I-884, who showed up with signs and stickers to make their presence known. A few stood on the street corner outside with a large sign expressing "support for schools." Others were inside, politely filling chairs.

Wake up call!
Folks who believe in limited, accountable government and true education reform should not be outnumbered at their own event by members of the opposing side of the issue.

Governing yourself requires action. Get involved.

Mo' Money! (croak)

2004-08-23T07:57:00.000-07:00

I need to stop scheduling radio interviews before, say, 11:00 a.m. My voice refuses to cooperate.

Today I croaked out information for hapless Spokane listeners to support EFF's claim that Initiative 884 (Washington's one-billion dollar education tax increase proposal) will not help students in our state. In fact, it will hurt them by making current problems a billion dollars bigger.

The initiative employs the same old ceaseless mantra: "Mo' Money!" It doesn't say anything about "mo' results."

Interestingly, just this morning an EFF supporter sent me a 1963 editorial that ran in the Burlington Farm Journal opposing a school levy. The editorial made some great arguments against the mo' money bureaucrats of the time, and the levy was defeated.

Back then, in the Farm Journal's district, the annual local cost per student was $447.75. Today it averages $1,396.10 statewide. (That's just local. Total spending in Washington state per student for 2002-03 was $9,454, which includes local, state and federal funds.)

Now what was that about results?

You can read more about Washington's Initiative 884 -- and the real solutions to our education crisis -- here.

Beginning a Blog

2004-08-22T13:23:00.000-07:00

There is no better time to begin a blog than when one has come to work on a weekend to "catch up on some things." So here I am.

And here are some of my favorite blogs -- notable for their pith and humor:

The Duchy of Burgundy Carrots (Karen Richmond)
Shark Blog (Stefan Sharkansky)
Joanne Jacobs (Joanne Jacobs)

It's easy to start a blog.