By formerbludevil, unverified — Tue, 11/30/2010 - 20:58
Since we all hate taxes so much...let's just start eliminating...
Schools, public water and waste disposal, public works, police and fire departments, courts, DHS (without a referral, that guy from Farmington could have kept his "relationship" going with that 13 year old girl...lucky him in Mr. Dumont's world), wildlife and environmental services, transportation, communication and utility infrastructure...just to name a few...
"Give to Caesar what is Caesar's"...Sorry Mr. Dumont...I'll gladly pay my 20 bucks
By formerbludevil, unverified — Thu, 11/25/2010 - 22:58
EXACTLY the problem with our society at present. First, we only have enough of an attention span to respond to "sound bites" and we can't continue an intelligent, reasoned, factually-supported debate without resorting to bickering and partisan ideology. Second, we have gotten so far away from the freedom and independence our fore-fathers had envisioned for us it's appalling. Initially, most of us have assumed that the writer of the column has been a drain on society because of his smoking. We have assumed that the writer receives entitlements that are a direct result of his smoking which may, or may not be so. If we look at some statistics...such an ugly word for most SJ bloggers...the $327 billion in annual Medicare expenditures for end-of-life medical care far exceeds the $96 billion per year the Center of Medicare and Medicaid Services has identified that goes directly to the care of America's smoking population. Or how about the approximately $150 billion spent on America's obese population? Should we start including happy meals and other fast food in the "sin tax" category? Would that wake you up, fatandhappy?
By formerbludevil, unverified — Sun, 05/09/2010 - 18:14
The mark of a truly great and memorable teacher is when their former students come to their classrooms for a visit and a "how-do-you-do." Diane and Bud had no shortage of former students visiting their classroom throughout the years. They have touched the hearts and minds of a number of young adults over the years, and thankfully, I can count myself among that group. Diane in particular, grew to know me so well as a student, that when I began preparations for a research paper on JFK she actually gave me a small Kennedy/Johnson campaign button that she had stored away at her house. I fell in love with that button, and I still have it to this day. As she said in the article, she always finds a way to motivate her students. Diane, you were such an inspiration to me that I chose to become an educator myself and one of my goals everyday is to be just a little bit like you were in classrooms of my own. You will be missed, you will be very difficult to replace, but we all sincerely wish you the best in your much deserved retirement. I hope to run into you at Shaw's sometime soon :)
By formerbludevil, unverified — Wed, 04/07/2010 - 18:18
Since I have been living in South Korea for the past four years...I think he's extraordinarily stupid...but also lucky.
Last year, a 50-some odd year old Korean woman was shot to death for an illegal crossing. After "repeated warnings" said the North Korean media, the woman was shot to death at a popular tourist area known as Mt. Keumgang. This inter-Korean spe
cial tourism zone, actually past the DMZ in the North (I've actually visited this place myself) is completely fenced in with tall bright green metalic fences, that it is so surprising how this woman wouldn't have known she was crossing into a restricted area.
As for Gomes, if he had any knowledge of recent events on the penninsula, which I'm sure he did, he knew that he was risking more than a slap on the wrist for his actions. I've visited the DMZ site of Panmunjom, as well as Mt. Keumgang, and there is no way that I would ever risk such an idiotic move. It had to have been a premeditated move on his part because these areas are so protected and inaccessible that he would have had to have planned every movement of such a risky undertaking.
Furthermore, his visa status in the South (E2) specifically prohibits political demonstrations by foreign residents. His activities in the South could have had him deported as it was. It sounds like the moment he stepped off the plane in Incheon, he had some kind of agenda. An educated man such as himself...should have known better...I'm just a UMF grad working here...and I know better.
Simply dumb. I wish him and his family well, he will have a very difficult next few years. Hopefully another "envoy" will be sent for his safe retrieval
By formerbludevil, unverified — Tue, 12/08/2009 - 23:29
Malicious intent or not...if a student "accidentally" brought a weapon to school, that student would be severely punished. In this case, a "responsible" gun-owning adult brought hers. No weapons of any kind should ever cross the doors of a school building...period. If I "made the mistake" of reaching for money that I dropped in the car to pay my toll, and I "accidentally" rear ended a car and killed a family of four...should I be treated differently by the justice system? This isn't a question of being politically correct, this is an issue of personal responsibility. Very few in our society, or the world for that matter, take full responsibility for our actions. In defense of the woman in question, she did plead guilty and realized that she did commit a crime...however accidental it may have been.
By formerbludevil, unverified — Tue, 11/03/2009 - 18:54
The fix was in for the Clay vs. Liston fight...but not for this. If the fix was in the two previous times...as the other poster noted...wouldn't he already have the job? On two previous occasions, he has stepped in, but didn't receive the job...why? Because...he didn't apply for it, and didn't want it. Now he does. The city has done so well bringing in people from out of town...said dripping with sarcasm...mostly because they were unfamiliar with the town's demographics and circles of "authority." Phil brings experience, networking skills in the city, state, and across the nation.......plus......he's a proven quantity. Go ahead folks...roll the dice with someone else. And...to the poster that noted his policy on landlords...in the current economic environment, would you rather see more homeless on the streets of Lewiston...I think not.
By formerbludevil, unverified — Mon, 11/02/2009 - 18:18
Yeah...it would be horrible to have a Lewiston native...a highly qualified Lewiston native at that...get the job. This is his second time as interim admin...the other coming before the hiring of Mr. Bennett...and he has steered a straight course each time. He knows the faces and personalities...and knows how to work with all those faces and personalities. He's been in the admin's office for a decade already and would be the perfect man for the job. It's too bad that we "Lewistonians" can't see a good thing when it's right in front of our face. Good luck Phil!
By formerbludevil, unverified — Sun, 09/20/2009 - 17:55
Furthermore...instead of keeping your "independent thinkers" inside the classroom where they could have followed up with debates and activities after the speech...allowing them to formulate their own thoughts and listen to the points of view of their fellow peers/citizens (as we do in a democracy by the way)...you removed them from a learning environment in which they could have expressed their own points of view, validated them with reasoning and logical thought...and maybe as a result, could have created cognitive dissonance in the classroom thereby possibly altering one of their "indoctrinated sheeple" in the class, resulting in another person or two changing their political orientation over to your side/children's side of the fence. Again...you have no idea what it means to raise "independent thinkers." You want your children to be in lock step with your political orientation...you have no desire to create independent thinkers...you want "Johnny" and "Susie" to think just like mom does...and by definition...that's indoctrination. Far worse than anything President Obama said during one "idealistic" speech.
By formerbludevil, unverified — Sun, 09/20/2009 - 17:41
And...no Jane...I don't think we should create "sheeple." However, you who holds the value of teaching your children to think for themselves...step back and analyze this for a second. YOU pulled YOUR kids out of class....YOU want them to think for themselves and come to their own conclusions as adults do........YET.......YOU didn't talk to your children and give them an objective choice. YOU DICTATED their actions...thinking for them...indoctrinating them...and imposing YOUR values on THEIR lives. Good job teaching them to become independent thinkers ;)
By formerbludevil, unverified — Sun, 09/20/2009 - 17:34
Sorry Jane...a six year old doesn't have the cognitive/developmental capability to understand what "standing up for their own beliefs" actually means. As humans, we truly don't even develop consequential thought capabilities until we near our 18th year...on average. And again...whose differing point of view is it? Yours, or your child's? That's the point of my comment. A six year old has no platform, agenda, or political orientation...and if you think they do...it's because you've indoctrinated your child...not the president...not the media...not the schools. You.
I suppose...
Since we all hate taxes so much...let's just start eliminating...
Schools, public water and waste disposal, public works, police and fire departments, courts, DHS (without a referral, that guy from Farmington could have kept his "relationship" going with that 13 year old girl...lucky him in Mr. Dumont's world), wildlife and environmental services, transportation, communication and utility infrastructure...just to name a few...
"Give to Caesar what is Caesar's"...Sorry Mr. Dumont...I'll gladly pay my 20 bucks
and that is...
EXACTLY the problem with our society at present. First, we only have enough of an attention span to respond to "sound bites" and we can't continue an intelligent, reasoned, factually-supported debate without resorting to bickering and partisan ideology. Second, we have gotten so far away from the freedom and independence our fore-fathers had envisioned for us it's appalling. Initially, most of us have assumed that the writer of the column has been a drain on society because of his smoking. We have assumed that the writer receives entitlements that are a direct result of his smoking which may, or may not be so. If we look at some statistics...such an ugly word for most SJ bloggers...the $327 billion in annual Medicare expenditures for end-of-life medical care far exceeds the $96 billion per year the Center of Medicare and Medicaid Services has identified that goes directly to the care of America's smoking population. Or how about the approximately $150 billion spent on America's obese population? Should we start including happy meals and other fast food in the "sin tax" category? Would that wake you up, fatandhappy?
Thank you...
The mark of a truly great and memorable teacher is when their former students come to their classrooms for a visit and a "how-do-you-do." Diane and Bud had no shortage of former students visiting their classroom throughout the years. They have touched the hearts and minds of a number of young adults over the years, and thankfully, I can count myself among that group. Diane in particular, grew to know me so well as a student, that when I began preparations for a research paper on JFK she actually gave me a small Kennedy/Johnson campaign button that she had stored away at her house. I fell in love with that button, and I still have it to this day. As she said in the article, she always finds a way to motivate her students. Diane, you were such an inspiration to me that I chose to become an educator myself and one of my goals everyday is to be just a little bit like you were in classrooms of my own. You will be missed, you will be very difficult to replace, but we all sincerely wish you the best in your much deserved retirement. I hope to run into you at Shaw's sometime soon :)
He's lucky...
Since I have been living in South Korea for the past four years...I think he's extraordinarily stupid...but also lucky.
Last year, a 50-some odd year old Korean woman was shot to death for an illegal crossing. After "repeated warnings" said the North Korean media, the woman was shot to death at a popular tourist area known as Mt. Keumgang. This inter-Korean spe
cial tourism zone, actually past the DMZ in the North (I've actually visited this place myself) is completely fenced in with tall bright green metalic fences, that it is so surprising how this woman wouldn't have known she was crossing into a restricted area.
As for Gomes, if he had any knowledge of recent events on the penninsula, which I'm sure he did, he knew that he was risking more than a slap on the wrist for his actions. I've visited the DMZ site of Panmunjom, as well as Mt. Keumgang, and there is no way that I would ever risk such an idiotic move. It had to have been a premeditated move on his part because these areas are so protected and inaccessible that he would have had to have planned every movement of such a risky undertaking.
Furthermore, his visa status in the South (E2) specifically prohibits political demonstrations by foreign residents. His activities in the South could have had him deported as it was. It sounds like the moment he stepped off the plane in Incheon, he had some kind of agenda. An educated man such as himself...should have known better...I'm just a UMF grad working here...and I know better.
Simply dumb. I wish him and his family well, he will have a very difficult next few years. Hopefully another "envoy" will be sent for his safe retrieval
Malicious intent or not...if
Malicious intent or not...if a student "accidentally" brought a weapon to school, that student would be severely punished. In this case, a "responsible" gun-owning adult brought hers. No weapons of any kind should ever cross the doors of a school building...period. If I "made the mistake" of reaching for money that I dropped in the car to pay my toll, and I "accidentally" rear ended a car and killed a family of four...should I be treated differently by the justice system? This isn't a question of being politically correct, this is an issue of personal responsibility. Very few in our society, or the world for that matter, take full responsibility for our actions. In defense of the woman in question, she did plead guilty and realized that she did commit a crime...however accidental it may have been.
The fix was in for the Clay
The fix was in for the Clay vs. Liston fight...but not for this. If the fix was in the two previous times...as the other poster noted...wouldn't he already have the job? On two previous occasions, he has stepped in, but didn't receive the job...why? Because...he didn't apply for it, and didn't want it. Now he does. The city has done so well bringing in people from out of town...said dripping with sarcasm...mostly because they were unfamiliar with the town's demographics and circles of "authority." Phil brings experience, networking skills in the city, state, and across the nation.......plus......he's a proven quantity. Go ahead folks...roll the dice with someone else. And...to the poster that noted his policy on landlords...in the current economic environment, would you rather see more homeless on the streets of Lewiston...I think not.
Yeah...it would be horrible
Yeah...it would be horrible to have a Lewiston native...a highly qualified Lewiston native at that...get the job. This is his second time as interim admin...the other coming before the hiring of Mr. Bennett...and he has steered a straight course each time. He knows the faces and personalities...and knows how to work with all those faces and personalities. He's been in the admin's office for a decade already and would be the perfect man for the job. It's too bad that we "Lewistonians" can't see a good thing when it's right in front of our face. Good luck Phil!
Furthermore...instead of
Furthermore...instead of keeping your "independent thinkers" inside the classroom where they could have followed up with debates and activities after the speech...allowing them to formulate their own thoughts and listen to the points of view of their fellow peers/citizens (as we do in a democracy by the way)...you removed them from a learning environment in which they could have expressed their own points of view, validated them with reasoning and logical thought...and maybe as a result, could have created cognitive dissonance in the classroom thereby possibly altering one of their "indoctrinated sheeple" in the class, resulting in another person or two changing their political orientation over to your side/children's side of the fence. Again...you have no idea what it means to raise "independent thinkers." You want your children to be in lock step with your political orientation...you have no desire to create independent thinkers...you want "Johnny" and "Susie" to think just like mom does...and by definition...that's indoctrination. Far worse than anything President Obama said during one "idealistic" speech.
And...no Jane...I don't
And...no Jane...I don't think we should create "sheeple." However, you who holds the value of teaching your children to think for themselves...step back and analyze this for a second. YOU pulled YOUR kids out of class....YOU want them to think for themselves and come to their own conclusions as adults do........YET.......YOU didn't talk to your children and give them an objective choice. YOU DICTATED their actions...thinking for them...indoctrinating them...and imposing YOUR values on THEIR lives. Good job teaching them to become independent thinkers ;)
Sorry Jane...a six year old
Sorry Jane...a six year old doesn't have the cognitive/developmental capability to understand what "standing up for their own beliefs" actually means. As humans, we truly don't even develop consequential thought capabilities until we near our 18th year...on average. And again...whose differing point of view is it? Yours, or your child's? That's the point of my comment. A six year old has no platform, agenda, or political orientation...and if you think they do...it's because you've indoctrinated your child...not the president...not the media...not the schools. You.