Posts filed under 'Uncategorized'
August 25th, 2008
I work to be “green” so you probably won’t find it a surprise about my use of the cruise control to increase gas mileage. Returning from northern
Wisconsin I chose to follow the speed limits to see just how good the mileage could be. Imagine my surprise when during the length of the drive of 300 miles, with the exception of 5 vehicles, every car, SUV, truck, van, vehicle pulling a boat, vehicle pulling a trailer, semi-tractor trailer, bus, squad car and moving van passed me. Yes, all but 5 vehicles passed me in just under 300 miles! We all have the urge to hurry home, but how about avoiding the urge to throw all that gas money out the window? Next time … could you plan to just leave a little earlier?
By the way, the hybrid made 36.6 miles per gallon and there was time to enjoy the scenery along the way too.
July 18th, 2008
It’s a great opportunity … the school district needs to save on gas expenditures … kids need to spend more time outside. Let’s get more children walking to school! What will it take? More crossing guards? More neighborhood groups to help guarantee safety and to help parents be comfortable with it? Help to make sure kids have the proper clothing during inclement weather? With this simple old-fashioned exercise and some good fresh air might kids do better in school as a result? Let’s leave bus riding to those who are able to use public transportation to save on gasoline. Whew, this is about a lot more than saving on school bus gasoline.
June 29th, 2008
“We learn simply by the exposure of living. Much that passes for education is not education at all but ritual. The fact is that we are being educated when we know it least.”
“We learn simply by the exposure of living, and what we learn most natively is the tradition in which we live”
I found the above quotes most interesting. They were coined by David P. Gardner who held positions as President of the University of Utah from 1973-1983; University of California from 1983-1992; and President of William and Flora Hewlett Foundation from 1993-1999, and as chairman of the board of the J. Paul Getty Trust, from 2000 to 2004.
He is a member of the National Academy of Education and the American Philosphical Society and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Public Administration.
David has emphasized that thinking outside the box for solutions to educate our children and our families is very important. Along the way David has fought for many causes. One was to ensure that everyone is exposed appropriately.
The best ‘Exposure to Living’ could add to an improved community, especially for our children. Our thinking outside the box means coming up with all types of exposures, which would give our children accessibility, positioning, and protection in a better community…What exposures do you think our children need?
June 23rd, 2008
As we all pitched in to help flood victims of Iowa, were we adding another problem to Iowa’s list? We sent bottled water, water in bottles that it is unlikely even 20% of will be recycled. Okay, I know it’s a “time of trouble” decision that will be followed by a “time of trouble” response. Those bottles won’t get recycled because there are more important things to think about. I get it, but I sure wish we could we have helped without “eco-sinning”.
June 18th, 2008
At last evening’s Community Viewpoints Board we talked what
Rockford needs to make this the kind of community in which we are proud and happy to live. After a great deal of discussion, Ray Garcia summed it up as “you have to have HOPE”. I felt as if I was struck by a lightning bolt … could it be if we identify what hope means to each and every of our citizens that would it lead us to the answers?
May 13th, 2008
Read it this morning … every 5 mph that you reduce your speed in an automobile, you reduce fuel consumption by 7%. Just think what that means if you drive 40 on North 2nd Street (instead of your normal 45? 50? 55?). Hummm … could save a LOT of gas. Something those folks caught in this morning’s speed trap might want to think about. Imagine how much more gas they could have purchased with the money they’ll pay for a speeding ticket instead. Go ahead … keep laughing at me as I try to stay inside the limt. Toot your horn … I’ll take it as recognition of my continuing effort. (BOY I gotta tell you, it is not easy to do!!!!) Won’t you try with me?
May 9th, 2008
There’s a lot of complaining going on (my mother would have said bellyaching) about the cost of gas, how often fill-ups are needed, and how much oil companies are making. Each day, every one of us has an opportunity reduce the amount of gas we use by driving more sensibly, leaving on time so we don’t have to speed, trips we can skip and/or drive-up lanes we can avoid. Why don’t we just remember do it?
April 24th, 2008
I was driving to work this morning & couldn’t help but notice that gas prices went up again. No surprise. What did surprise me was my reaction - I had none. I remember when gas prices first went over $2 a gallon. I was angry and upset, and decided to sell my jeep cherokee - a gas guzzler. I actually felt sorry for the poor sap who bought it. But now, I feel nothing, numb. My daughter actually noticed my apparent apathy, saying, “Dad, don’t you care any more about gas prices?” What has happened to me?
“Learned helplessness” is a is a psychological condition in which a person learns to believe that he/she is helpless in a particular situation. They believe that they have no control over their situation and that whatever they do is futile. As a result, the person will stay passive in the face of an unpleasant, harmful or damaging situation, even when it they actually have the power to change their circumstances. Martin Seligman was a psychologist who conducted a famous experiment that involved placing animals in a situation where they could not escape electrical shock. The animals initially reacted strongly, and tried to escape. Eventually, though, they gave up.
When I realized my indifference to the rising gas prices, I immediately thought of Seligman’s study. Then I thought about all the students that I have experienced over the years in my job as a school psychologist. We look at these students who are dropping out, truant, failing and ask, “Why don’t they care?” Isn’t it possible that it is not apathy that we are dealing with, but learned helplessness? If students believe that they are powerless to change their life circumstances, as many of our children who live in poverty do, they become passive. They look at their parents, relatives, etc. and give up trying. I once had a 4th grade student that I was counseling tell me that his primary goal every day was “to not get shot & killed.”
What’s my point? In attempting to reach the truants and dropouts of our world, I believe that we must take into consideration the mindset that we are dealing with. What we interpret as apathy and indifference may very well be learned helplessness. There is a very big difference between someone who doesn’t care and someone who has given up hope. It is my opinion that if we are going to make a lasting impact on these students, we must work together to get them to believe that there is hope - we have to get them to believe in their potential, to help them see that there is a real chance for something better than what they’ve experienced. That can’t happen without developing relationships with these children and their parents - and that takes time & effort. Never underestimate the impact that one person can have on another person. Maybe we can’t change gas prices, but couldn’t we attempt to help just one student who has given up hope to believe that there is more to life than not getting shot?
April 16th, 2008
This morning I read in a Register Star story … “Estimates suggest that 38.4 percent of 25-year-olds in the United States will experience poverty at some point in their adult lives.” It is so unbelievable, I hope the information is wrong. Even if it it had said 19 or 20 percent, it’s still unbelievable and I still hope it’s wrong.
April 13th, 2008
Closing two successful businesses, at the corner of Latham and Auburn streets to allow the building of a new drug store appears wrong to me, when the South East corner of Main and Auburn has available space. The empty gas station which backs onto the empty restaurant (formerly Joel’s) looks like a better option.
Obviously the city does not care about the parking lot which they share as it looks like a war zone, with all the pot holes.
Why close two successful businesses, and probably the audio store on the North West corner of Main and Auburn, when space is available across the street?
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I work to be “green” so you probably won’t find it a surprise about my use of the cruise control to increase gas mileage. Returning from northern
