Bullet Point Ballet - He tells us who is is voting for and I feel inclined to agree on most points!

He hits a home-run in my book.

Bullet Point Ballet His lack of experience isn’t what bothers me. In the tradition of many libertarians before me, I think lack of experience is much more appealing than a lot of it.

Read the entire article for a good perspective.

Congress Lowers Drinking Age To 17 Just For Jenny's Party | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

Congress Lowers Drinking Age To 17 Just For Jenny's Party | The Onion - America's Finest News SourceWASHINGTON — Overturning a law that has been in place for 24 years, Congress approved a temporary repeal of the Minimum Drinking Age Act Wednesday upon learning that Benjamin Harrison High School student Jenny Larsen is celebrating her 17th birthday with an unsupervised party at which attendees are expecting to consume alcohol.

H.R. 874, more commonly known as the Jenny's Turning 17!!! Bill, will go into effect Friday, Sept. 19, 2008, as soon as Jenny's parents leave for their weekend trip to Vermont. Until the bill expires on Sunday afternoon, it will be legal for any American aged 17 or older—or 16 if they have a birthday coming up—to consume alcohol within the confines of 128 Longfellow Rd.

This is a way to deal with the 'war on drugs.' Allow for preemptive strikes -- and pardons.

Ownership of self

Nader, Barr & Paul: 'Told you so' - Ben Adler - Politico.com

Nader, Barr & Paul: 'Told you so' - Ben Adler - Politico.com: "Nader, Barr & Paul: 'Told you so'
By BEN ADLER | 9/21/08 12:57 PM EDT
Text Size:

While the presidential campaigns of John McCain and Barack Obama have stepped gingerly around the financial crisis and the question of government intervention, third party candidates Bob Barr and Ralph Nader have shown no such compunction.

Instead they have embraced the market meltdown, viewing it as a rare opportunity to highlight bold economic positions and, perhaps as important, claim credit for sounding the early warning alarms.

'We've been hammering it,' said Shane Cory, Barr's deputy campaign manager. 'When this first came about with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Bob was explaining, 'When we bail out Fannie and Freddie, expect more to come.''"

Live Blog Roosevelt interview

Students get 50% for nothing. Raising all students to get something for nothing. Rant from Marty Griffin from a school teacher. Tear up the test, get 50%. Fifty percent for nothing.

Eyebrows raised over city school policy that sets 50% as minimum score: "Eyebrows raised over city school policy that sets 50% as minimum score
1 1=3? In city schools, it's half right"

Roosevelt said, "You got to keep the kids engaged."

Well, let's keep the kids in sports.

If you get 20% and then 2 Bs in a class -- you still fail.

Well, if the kids gets 20% -- they'd be fired if they were on a job.

School district given Es not Fs.

Last week the Pgh Promise Board said 2 years to move to 2.5 rather than 1 year. Adolescence is a tough time. They are moving a college scholarship to 2.5 GPA. Go figure. If a kid gets a 2.5 they are not going to do anything in college except flunk out.

http://www.KDKARadio.com


Kids that get to graduate from a 50% worst score will hit college and might expect the same treatment. That is not the time to have a surprise, in college.

Lot of places have these policies! Who? Where? We'll be surprised as to how many.

Even if there are plenty of places that are giving 50% for nothing -- does that make it right?

Have a test re-take. Make-up the homework. Make sure that the class is not

4 Bs and 1 E give a kid a promotion to the next grade.

Trying to keep the kids engaged.

Taking 1 more year to go to 2.5. Then we'll have a graduation test at 2012. Then we'll raise the standard again. But, that standard is not constructed yet.

Brashier High School has more than expected students this year. He does not have the numbers yet. It has been nearly a month into the school year and he does not have the numbers! Furthermore, the media needs to ask him these attendance figures and have them reported. Brashier is up 200 students. The lunch room is over filled.

Mike Folmer introduces Voters’ Choice Act (SB 1578) in Pennsylvania State Senate

Libertarian Party of Pennsylvania urges co-sponsorship of legislation
Libertarian Party of Pennsylvania
3915 Union Deposit Road #223
Harrisburg, PA 17109
http://www.lppa.org

For Immediate Release: September 22, 2008

Contact: Doug Leard (Media Relations) / Media-Relations@lppa.org or

Michael Robertson (Chair) at 1-800-R-RIGHTS / chair@lppa.org

Harrisburg, PA – The Libertarian Party of Pennsylvania (LPPa) strongly endorses state senator Mike Folmer’s ( http://senatorfolmer.com/ ) ballot access reform bill, Senate Bill (SB) 1578.

In a letter to his fellow state senators, Folmer wrote “No state makes it more difficult for minor party and independent candidates to run for public office than Pennsylvania. During the 2006 General Election, minor party and independent statewide candidates in Pennsylvania were required to gather more than 67,000 signatures to appear on the November ballot. Meanwhile, the major parties’ candidates had no such signature requirements for the General Election. Had similar ballot access been in force in Utah, the Democratic Party would not have qualified as a political party. If similar provisions existed in Massachusetts, the Republican Party would neither qualify as a party nor be able to hold primary elections.”

Sen. Folmer’s legislation provides for significantly fairer ballot access in Pennsylvania. Candidates would need to collect the same amount of signatures as required of major party candidates in order to appear on the November ballot. (Minor party or independent candidates do not participate in the Primary Election). A political party would need from 0.05 and 15 percent of the total number of registered Pennsylvania voters as of 21 days prior to the date of the Primary Election in order to qualify as a “minor political party.”

“This bill is a major step forward and a welcome change from the political monopoly-as-usual in Pennsylvania,” explained LPPa representative for Pennsylvania’s Ballot Access Coalition David Jahn. “Earlier this year we saw Bounsgate allegations of Democrats using taxpayers’ money to keep Green Party candidates off the ballot. Just days ago we saw the unsuccessful Republican challenge to Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr’s placement on the ballot. Given this openly hostile political environment, we are all the more elated and thankful that Senator Folmer sponsored this legislation.”

The LPPa urges voters to support ballot choice by asking their state senator to co-sponsor and support SB 1578, the Voters’ Choice Act.

The Libertarian Party is the third largest political party in Pennsylvania and the United States. More than 200,000 people across the country are registered Libertarians, and Libertarians serve in hundreds of elected offices. Please visit www.LP.org or www.LPPA.org for more information.

Bike tour to mark reopening of Point State Park, city's birthday

Bike tour to mark reopening of Point State Park, city's birthday The PNC Legacy Relay will cover that 335-mile distance in 24 hours and catch up to the bike tour as it enters Pittsburgh.

Waiting for them on the Hot Metal Bridge on Oct. 4 will be the PNC Legacy Trail Community Ride, a group of bicyclists who will accompany them to the park via the PNC FirstSide Center where another group of community riders and some walkers will join the group.

Bikes need to be for everyday use, not just leisure and tourism actions.

Volunteers from 1996 Olympics gathered at White Water for community

Sounds like a great place to live.

Who and how can the volunteers from the 2008 Olympics be pulled together for a reunion?

# 12 Bush Profiteers Collect Billions From No Child Left Behind | Project Censored

# 12 Bush Profiteers Collect Billions From No Child Left Behind | Project Censored: "The architect of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), President Bush’s first senior education advisor, Sandy Kress, has turned the program, which has consistently proven disastrous in the realm of education, into a huge success in the realm of corporate profiteering. After ushering NCLB through the US House of Representatives in 2001 with no public hearings, Kress went from lawmaker—turning on spigots of federal funds—to lobbyist, tapping into those billions of dollars in federal funds for private investors well connected to the Bush administration.

My Friend sold her car and now lives only with a bike as transportation --- her saga

She has survived the first week. See the comments for the update.

City parks convention draws 500 visitors here

City parks convention draws 500 visitors here: "City parks convention draws 500 visitors here
Saturday, September 20, 2008
By Patricia Lowry, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Pittsburgh's revitalized parks will be in the spotlight for the next few days as the 2008 International Urban Parks Conference brings almost 500 parks professionals and advocates to town to tour the city's parks and designed landscapes."

Presidential Candidate visits Pgh after Morgantown this week

Wednesday, September 24th, 2:00pm - Morgantown WV

Nader for President 2008 Rally with Ralph Nader
West Virginia University
Gluck Theater in the Mountain Lair Student Union (University Ave)
Suggested Contribution: $10/$5 student
More information: (504) 319-9312 or events@votenader.org

Wednesday, September 24th, 7:30pm - Pittsburgh PA

Nader for President 2008 Rally with Ralph Nader
University of Pittsburgh
David Lawrence Hall, Room 120
Suggested Contribution: $10/$5 student
More information: (724) 833-5158 or events@votenader.org

For additional information, please call our national headquarters at 202-471-5833, or e-mail events@votenader.org

Get-tough initiative to target city killings

Get-tough initiative to target city killings Pittsburgh's hardest young troublemakers will be identified, rounded up, and brought together.

Come together -- in jail.

Pittsburgh does not even have a detention center. Remember that.

The hardest young troublemakers can generally be found in middle schools.

U of Delaware Hosts 28 World Coaches - Heavy Medal - Washington Post reporters blog live from venues at the Beijing Olympics

U of Delaware Hosts 28 World Coaches - Heavy Medal - Washington Post reporters blog live from venues at the Beijing Olympics U of Delaware Hosts 28 World Coaches

In its latest attempt to reach out to the international sports community, the U.S. Olympic Committee has invited 28 coaches in 15 Olympic sports from Africa, Asia, Europe, Oceania and the Americas to take part in a coaching seminar at the University of Delaware that begins Monday.

With Chicago bidding for the 2016 Games on the heels of New York's fourth-place finish in its quest for the 2012 Summer Games, the USOC is keenly aware of its need to reach out to developing nations in the international sports community.

Called the International Coaching Enrichment Certificate Program (ICECP), the program is a joint project among the USOC, the IOC's Olympic Solidarity and the University of Delaware.

Among the invitee: Ivo Lakucs, coach of the gold medal-winning BMX team from Latvia and Atanas Nikolovski, a whitewater kayak athlete who carried the flag bearer for The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia during the Opening Ceremony in Beijing.

The first phase of the program includes guest lecturers, seminars and field trips. The second module will team the coaches up in an apprenticeship with either their respective U.S. national or collegiate team, with the University of Delaware, Penn State University, Northern Michigan University and Texas Wesleyan University among the participants. The coaches also will travel to the Philadelphia Eagles training facility and the Philadelphia sports complex.

They will also fly to Colorado Springs, Colo., for lectures conducted by the USOC's Sport Performance Division at the U.S. Olympic Training Center Oct. 12-29. The final phase of the program will take place at the Maison du Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland, April 18-22, 2009.

"As a part of our commitment to international partnership and outreach, the U.S. Olympic Committee is excited to partner with Olympic Solidarity and the University of Delaware to offer coaches from around the globe a world class coaching education program," Jim Scherr, Chief Executive Officer of the USOC, said in a release. "The International Coaching Enrichment Certificate Program will provide national level coaches the possibility to keep abreast of the latest coaching principles from national level University professionals from the University of Delaware, and from USOC coaching and performance experts."

The IOC's Olympic Solidarity program is designed to get assistance to national Olympic committees around the world that most need it. The recent Summer Games in Beijing featured 586 athletes from 150 countries who benefitted from Olympic Solidarity.

The 28 coaches will be housed on the University of Delaware campus and at the U.S. Olympic Training Center. They were were nominated by their respective national Olympic Committees and selected by Olympic Solidarity and the USOC to receive scholarships to participate in the program.

Following is a list of the participating countries: Bangladesh, Barbados, Botswana, Burundi, China, Egypt, El Salvador, Fiji, Georgia, Greece, Guam, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Latvia, Lesotho, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Malaysia, Malta, Netherlands Antilles, Oman, Republic of Korea, Romania, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Virgin Islands, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Matthew J. Robinson, UD associate professor of sport management, is director of the program. Robinson has created international sport initiatives in Turkey, Senegal, Ireland, Cape Verde and India.

By Amy Shipley | September 19, 2008

Where is Pitt and Duquesne in this effort? What about UPMC?

Furthermore, this is wonderful for the rest of the world. What about for our kids in the city?

I want to see programs like this where we bring in experts -- who are not thugs. They think the ones who have graduated from jails are key motivators to our youth. Rather, I want to see international and regional talent. I want to develop leadership.

They took a couple of parking spaces and made them into a 'park' next to city hall today. I went. There was talk about being 'competitive' from Patrick Dowd. But, there was not a hint of coaching. Without programming -- you've got fake grass. That's it.

Parks are places to teach -- not just park in a lawn chair to witness fireworks.

Parks are places to interact with kids -- not just for the removal of vandals and their tags.

Well done Delaware.

I'd love to hear an interview on Wednesday with the professors at Duquesne Univ. who are doing the sport-business show on Pgh R.R. Radio -- and Ron Morris. These are the issues we as a region should tackle.

Pittsburgh targets youth crime

OMG.

Pittsburgh targets youth crimeSimple terms: Identify the worst criminal groups responsible for more than half of the violence, tell them that violence won't be tolerated and that there are other options and then follow through.

Citizens, time to get out your decoder rings.

The message: Our promise to you is, after we have this meeting, the first group that kills somebody, pack your toothbrush, because we're rolling you all up," he said. "You punish the entire group ... They start policing themselves.

So, we'll have ANOTHER Pittsburgh Promise.

The first promise is still not proven to work, or have taken root.

The formal plan SHOULD be available to the public. Could, would, should.

The city has volumes of plans. It has shelves of laws that go without any enforcement. We've got plans for sky-bus to subway stations with skylights.

They think it will have an impact in six months -- about the time of the mayor's primary. Go figure.

When does the formal plan get delivered?

If they are going to punish entire gangs for flare ups -- where do they put the new prisons? Isn't the Allegheny County Jail already full? How much room is available? Where are they going to put the punished?

What happens with they dish out punishments that don't match with the ones did the crime?

Guilt by association puts Pittsburgh onto the highway to a fascist community. This is much like Miami Vice and the spread of the War on Drugs. If you got a boat -- you're a guilty drug smuggler.

Clincher:

"If it is done with reasonable goodwill and if it is kept in place, you will get these too-good-to-be-true results," he said.

So, the heavy handed police state needs to be operated with reasonable goodwill. And, it needs to happen day-in-day-out.

Mr. Ravenstahl has pledged $160,000 in city funds and Mr. Burgess $40,000 in council funds toward the costs of retaining Mr. Kennedy and the University of Pittsburgh's School of Social Work, which will participate in the research component.

The $160,000 and the $40,000 are not from the mayor's office nor from city council. Those funds are our funds -- city taxpayer money.

A chunk of that money is going to a retainer for someone in Boston. How much? Is his role that of 'cheerleader' and 'teacher?' Is this Boston model with benchmarks for Pittsburgh?

What exactly are we going to hold these folks accountable for?

Frankly, I'm all in favor of gang activities. But, I want our kids in gangs that we control -- positive gangs. Swim teams, orchestra, and the Ozanam Basketball League are gangs that work for us.

Motivation comes with both a stick and a carrot. I hate to see them deploy bigger and bigger sticks.

Woman killed in school bus accident

Bad pedestrian death to a mom.

Woman killed in school bus accident: "Police said the victim had just taken her 18-month-old child to a day-care center near the scene of the accident. Officers said she was walking across Shady Avenue when the bus, turning left from Monitor onto Shady, struck her.

Other pedestrians yelled for the bus driver to stop, and once they caught her attention, she backed up and struck to victim again, police said.

So sad.

I just came back from a special event on Grant Street where a temporary park was made within two parking spots next to the City-County Building. Luke Ravenstahl and Patrick Dowd must have parked elsewhere today.

While there, I got to meet the new bike czar. He was quick to point out to me that he is not a 'czar.' Boy I was glad to hear that from him. I ranted about how Pittsburgh does not need any czars, again. Pat Ford was a czar. Czars often fall from power and have space inserted between head and torso.

The bike coordinator is also with duties for pedestrians and is part of planning.

As a city, we've got a lot to do.

BBC SPORT | Olympics/Paralympics blog

BBC SPORT | Olympics/Paralympics blog But on Tuesday 23 September the magic evaporates - the videos will all disappear. You have just a few days left to gorge yourselves on the very best of Beijing.

The reason the videos expire on Tuesday is that our agreement with the International Olympic Committee allows the BBC to provide video online in the UK, but only for a certain period of time during and after the Games - which is now coming to an end.

Such a shame.

M. Phelps's Home Pool Seeking USOC Funds - Heavy Medal - Washington Post reporters blog live from venues at the Beijing Olympics

M. Phelps's Home Pool Seeking USOC Funds - Heavy Medal - Washington Post reporters blog live from venues at the Beijing Olympics: "Michael Phelps's personal coach Bob Bowman led his first coaches' meeting at the North Baltimore Aquatic Club Wednesday, but no major changes to the facility or star athletes are expected to arrive until the club learns whether it receives the funding it has requested from the U.S. Olympic Committee in the coming weeks, according to NBAC Founder Murray Stephens.

Dr. Phil and with Conan O'Brien in one day

Ralph Nader to appear on both Dr. Phil and with Conan O'Brien's "Triumph the Comic Dog," on Friday September 19th.

The Hermit with Davis Fleetwood

Ralph Nader on the "Progressive Dilemma"

Ralph Nader: "God Is Not A Real Estate Agent"

Ralph Nader: "The End of America?"

Red State Update Meets Ralph Nader

Red State: Ralph Nader On Anal Flutter

Movie Preview: Washington, You're Fired