Geronimo's descendants are filing suit against the US government to rebury their ancestor's remains in New Mexico. And the US government is trying to block it. And by US government, I mean the executive branch, specifically our president and secretary of defense (and their lawyers).
Assuming the Skull and Bones did not steal Geronimo's skull back in 19-whenever, this man's remains staying in Oklahoma is about like burying George Washington in Canada. It just aint right. If his descendants wish to transport the remains of one of their former leader that should be their right, and the US government has no say in the matter. They can take it up with the Apache's living in OK, and decide between themselves where the remains should lie, if there's any conflict of interest.
Furthermore, let's dig it up. Let's see if some one actually did steal those remains. Test it genetically, and then FIND THEM.
If Yale is intent on clearing its name and its association with one of the most persistent conspiracy theories out there, then heck, have an investigation. Bring in the FBI. Use tax payer money. Call it a historical justice stimulus package if you want. If there is not truth to it, the remains should be in Ft. Sill right? If there is truth to it, then somebody needs to find them.
Furthermore, there's nothing funny about desecration of the dead. If there is this society (again, I'm not saying there is, and I think if it does exist its just an ivy-league excuse for a kegger every few weeks), and they are abusing some one's DEAD BODY like this, then they need to be held responsible. Doesn't matter who stole it. It does matter who is still doing it. If its still being used by students on Yale campus, it is the responsibility of the university to penalize or discipline them. Once Yale has expelled those students involved, start a federal investigation on the individuals implicated. Again, if they exist, nobody in that group over the past 90 years thought, "You know... maybe we shouldn't be messing around with a man's skull that we stole from his grave?"
But what is getting me is the hypocrisy of this. I'm not a lawyer, so maybe there's some legal precedent that needs to be upheld, and the suit has to be modified so it gels with whatever court mumbo-jumbo has to be done. But as I recall there was recently a Senate approved apology for slavery. Is the return of a man's remains to his homeland not "change we can believe in", while a hollow resolution of "oh yeah, our bad" is acceptable?
Come on! Just exhume the remains at Ft. Sill, have observers from both parties catalogue the remains. Once its determined if anything is missing, surrender the remains to the Apache and allow them to bury their kinsman in peace.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Friday, June 12, 2009
Oh yeah...
Forgot to apply for my MA in the Spring. I am officially getting my second MA at the end of the summer thanks to simply filling out an online form. So... basically I'm going to have to walk down to the admin office in July and pick it up then go right back go work-work. Hoo-ray.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
An Open Letter To My Intro Econ Students II
My devoted students,
You ask: how close was the South Park episode on the recession?
Well as I said in class, "For our macro section we're really only lacking a kazoo and a headless chicken."
Have fun.
You ask: how close was the South Park episode on the recession?
Well as I said in class, "For our macro section we're really only lacking a kazoo and a headless chicken."
Have fun.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
An Open Letter To My Intro Econ Students I
To the Re-takers and Sibling of an Old Student,
I know who you are. Oh, re-taker. You disappeared from my discussion section last year three months into the course without a word about withdrawing. I can only assume you went to the professor, without consulting me, and somehow managed to worm a retroactive withdrawal out of his kind old heart (he did have a preference for blonds). How confident you must have been, after two semesters, hearing that his replacement for Fall and Spring did nothing to revise his course, that you would face the exact same material. You might even get the same quiz questions and homework. How confident you looked. Until you read the syllabus. Let me demonstrate your facial expressions through emoticons as I read the subjects to be covered, and the new book, and the entirely new direction for an intro course that had not changed in probably fifteen years:
:-D ->
:-) ->
:-| ->
:-( ->
>:-( ->
>:-0 ->
X-(
Yet you have not dropped now, nor have either of us acknowledged the fact that we know we've met before, in Snow Hall, and I put up with your after class, half-efforts then as a GTA. But this is my course now; you're going to either work in my class or just drop it again.
To the little sibling of one of my former students. Your older sister sat through my class without a word. In fact if your last name had not been so strange, I would not have even realized. It must have been a shock to ask that first day, trying to seem very knowledgeable if we would be covering Economic History, to hear my frank response, "we will not be covering economic history." I hope you have more than your sister's notes. They must have been good; she did get an A after all. But that's about a week and a half worth that are now completely useless, except for your own enrichment.
To the suspected retaker. I have access to previous semester's photo rosters, and no one in the undergraduate program seems to understand the concept of FERPA. I'll find you. I'm fascinated by the amount of notes already taken that you bring in to class, and then promptly sleep on. Perhaps if you woke up every now and then you might realize this is not the same course as last Spring. Best of luck on our first test.
What I am hinting at, is I have spent the last two months chipping away at redesigning this course, and I have a particular result that I expect from my students.
I outright stated the basic question I want you all to be able to answer in my course. And if by the end of the semester, when the final hits and you're still not able to give a credible answer to that question, then be very concerned for your grade, and your ability to function in this "brave new world" of economic issues.
Good luck.
P.S. When I ask you to give two examples of "market failures", just fyi: "GM, AIG" is not an acceptable answer. Very funny though.
I know who you are. Oh, re-taker. You disappeared from my discussion section last year three months into the course without a word about withdrawing. I can only assume you went to the professor, without consulting me, and somehow managed to worm a retroactive withdrawal out of his kind old heart (he did have a preference for blonds). How confident you must have been, after two semesters, hearing that his replacement for Fall and Spring did nothing to revise his course, that you would face the exact same material. You might even get the same quiz questions and homework. How confident you looked. Until you read the syllabus. Let me demonstrate your facial expressions through emoticons as I read the subjects to be covered, and the new book, and the entirely new direction for an intro course that had not changed in probably fifteen years:
:-D ->
:-) ->
:-| ->
:-( ->
>:-( ->
>:-0 ->
X-(
Yet you have not dropped now, nor have either of us acknowledged the fact that we know we've met before, in Snow Hall, and I put up with your after class, half-efforts then as a GTA. But this is my course now; you're going to either work in my class or just drop it again.
To the little sibling of one of my former students. Your older sister sat through my class without a word. In fact if your last name had not been so strange, I would not have even realized. It must have been a shock to ask that first day, trying to seem very knowledgeable if we would be covering Economic History, to hear my frank response, "we will not be covering economic history." I hope you have more than your sister's notes. They must have been good; she did get an A after all. But that's about a week and a half worth that are now completely useless, except for your own enrichment.
To the suspected retaker. I have access to previous semester's photo rosters, and no one in the undergraduate program seems to understand the concept of FERPA. I'll find you. I'm fascinated by the amount of notes already taken that you bring in to class, and then promptly sleep on. Perhaps if you woke up every now and then you might realize this is not the same course as last Spring. Best of luck on our first test.
What I am hinting at, is I have spent the last two months chipping away at redesigning this course, and I have a particular result that I expect from my students.
I outright stated the basic question I want you all to be able to answer in my course. And if by the end of the semester, when the final hits and you're still not able to give a credible answer to that question, then be very concerned for your grade, and your ability to function in this "brave new world" of economic issues.
Good luck.
P.S. When I ask you to give two examples of "market failures", just fyi: "GM, AIG" is not an acceptable answer. Very funny though.
Tuesday, June 02, 2009
For the Record...
I am not thinking "Yay! 14 year olds!" And I should note that my wife volunteered... I was the only one "recruited" (read "drafted").
I'm busy preparing the lesson plan for the students this summer, and trying to get things planned for next fall too. On top of that a couple colleagues of mine from the department and I are attempting to start up a small economic consulting firm. Part of it is to make some money, dab our feet in the "professional world" (ever so gently), and part of it is to satisfy our own curiosity. We have been playing with the idea for two months now, and we're starting to get some things off the ground.
It's good to have my own class though. I can focus on the things that I think they need to learn. It is a little strange throwing out a good chunk of what I have been teaching for the past 3 semesters, but if these students are only going to have one economics class I would rather they come out understanding externalities, public goods, oligopoly, and elasticity instead of economic history, comparative economic systems (we no longer live in a 'pure socialist' vs 'pure capitalist' world, sorry folks), and banking systems (they can get that from any business class). I'm also including my typical ethanol criticism. Ethanol is my first full example for them with supply, demand, and equilibrium. Works out well in describing elasticity, complementary goods, substitute goods, monopoly/oligopoly, taxes and subsidies, quotas, price controls, tariffs, and externalities. Sadly I have had to cut the clip of from "Cartman Gets an Amusement Park" to explain why barter systems failed and monetary based systems arose. Ah well...
The Latin American Economic Development class is going to be a challenge though. Finally found an acceptable though limited text for them, and I'm planning on subjecting them to one or two classes on "microfinance" (see Muhammed Yunnus) in Mexico. Trying to take some good advice from my colleague Isaac, who has been teaching Development of Africa for a semester or two. "The subject material is too big and varied to cover it all. Just start with what you know, and let the students fill in the rest of their interest."
Any good ideas on how to do that other than forcing them to write a paper and do a presentation? Should also be noted that this course has not been taught at this school since Spring of 2002, and the professor who did it then has been long gone. She was nice enough to respond to my e-mail and send me her old syllabus but man... she really worked them hard. Don't think I have the time and energy to demand everything she did from her students.
Other than that, Ardilla and I have been having fun playing house. :P
She has been a trooper. She has sat through:
1) Three seasons of the Venture Brothers.
2) Conan O'Brien.
3) One Star Trek movie, and three original Star Trek episodes.
4) Various and sundry Family Guy episodes.
5) The Producers.
6) Blazing Saddles.
We've also been catching up on some reading thanks to the local library. Just finished up Phillip Dick's "The Solar Lottery", and I'm starting on "The Man in the High Castle." Was going to get some Cormac McCarthy, but they were checked out.
Looks like we will be getting the wedding pictures sometime soon (hopefully this year, jejeje), we have a visitor coming in a week, and we have some plans for the summer. Should be fun trying to survive it all :)
I'm busy preparing the lesson plan for the students this summer, and trying to get things planned for next fall too. On top of that a couple colleagues of mine from the department and I are attempting to start up a small economic consulting firm. Part of it is to make some money, dab our feet in the "professional world" (ever so gently), and part of it is to satisfy our own curiosity. We have been playing with the idea for two months now, and we're starting to get some things off the ground.
It's good to have my own class though. I can focus on the things that I think they need to learn. It is a little strange throwing out a good chunk of what I have been teaching for the past 3 semesters, but if these students are only going to have one economics class I would rather they come out understanding externalities, public goods, oligopoly, and elasticity instead of economic history, comparative economic systems (we no longer live in a 'pure socialist' vs 'pure capitalist' world, sorry folks), and banking systems (they can get that from any business class). I'm also including my typical ethanol criticism. Ethanol is my first full example for them with supply, demand, and equilibrium. Works out well in describing elasticity, complementary goods, substitute goods, monopoly/oligopoly, taxes and subsidies, quotas, price controls, tariffs, and externalities. Sadly I have had to cut the clip of from "Cartman Gets an Amusement Park" to explain why barter systems failed and monetary based systems arose. Ah well...
The Latin American Economic Development class is going to be a challenge though. Finally found an acceptable though limited text for them, and I'm planning on subjecting them to one or two classes on "microfinance" (see Muhammed Yunnus) in Mexico. Trying to take some good advice from my colleague Isaac, who has been teaching Development of Africa for a semester or two. "The subject material is too big and varied to cover it all. Just start with what you know, and let the students fill in the rest of their interest."
Any good ideas on how to do that other than forcing them to write a paper and do a presentation? Should also be noted that this course has not been taught at this school since Spring of 2002, and the professor who did it then has been long gone. She was nice enough to respond to my e-mail and send me her old syllabus but man... she really worked them hard. Don't think I have the time and energy to demand everything she did from her students.
Other than that, Ardilla and I have been having fun playing house. :P
She has been a trooper. She has sat through:
1) Three seasons of the Venture Brothers.
2) Conan O'Brien.
3) One Star Trek movie, and three original Star Trek episodes.
4) Various and sundry Family Guy episodes.
5) The Producers.
6) Blazing Saddles.
We've also been catching up on some reading thanks to the local library. Just finished up Phillip Dick's "The Solar Lottery", and I'm starting on "The Man in the High Castle." Was going to get some Cormac McCarthy, but they were checked out.
Looks like we will be getting the wedding pictures sometime soon (hopefully this year, jejeje), we have a visitor coming in a week, and we have some plans for the summer. Should be fun trying to survive it all :)
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Are You Kidding Me?
You know you've given up when you say to yourself, "Well at least it was less than $10,000 in tax discrepancies."
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