My gut reaction is that they said it was the drug taking issue to cover their arse. They couldn't come right out and say it was because it was an inflamatory banner with Jesus on it. I could be wrong but it's just a guess. Would they still have been so up in arms if it was Oprah or Geraldo? It would still have the bong reference but it probably wouldn't get the attention that Jesus brought.
I dunno, from the FA, it sounds like a school function to me. The kids were let out of class, in the form of entire classes trooping down to see the Olympic torch go through, and with teachers present and supervising. Afterwards, they trooped back to school. Sounds like a school excursion to me, just like if they were on a field trip to go to a museum or a national park.
I guess this could be yet another case where we get our legal system involved and close every loophole we can find. One could argue that there were no permission slips or release forms signed and thus could be used as supporting documents that it was in fact a school function. Perhaps the students were released from class and there just happened to be teachers present also. It looks like we need to have some attorneys write up a 450 page document breaking down every imaginable case for a school function so incidents like this don't happen anymore.
I keep looking for the sarcasm tags here. Where are they? Is this post for real?
Just yesterday I was down working with some developers. There were four rather old G4 Powerbooks and one new (3 months old) PC. Four PowerBooks running flawlessly. PC was already riddled with spyware and viruses and not working properly because of such. These poor people have an unusable computer because of all these security flaws...well...PC-specific flaws. Luckily they kept chugging along on their old Macs while the PC was being worked on.
C'mon Apple, let Universal pull their stuff from iTMS and see what happens. I bought my iPod way back when there wasn't even half the music on iTMS as there is now. It certainly wasn't because Universal had their library on there. I think it would be a great case study to watch them pull their content and go down in flames while the other studios sit back and see if they should follow suit or not. When they realize just how much they stand to lose it may even put Apple in a better position for future negotiations (or at least keep them from making other boneheaded threats).
Leave it to MS to screw up the online music distribution model that actually worked and that the studios could agree upon...sheesh...
Most everyone on here is probably going to hell then since I suspect most of Slashdot's readers are more scientifically minded. Yup...I'm going to hell for thinking it's sad that this kind of thing happens and that today's youth is subject to this kind of "learning" in schools. Ah yes...separation of Church and State at its finest...*sigh*
This is probably great news for Apple and Apple investors. I do believe I read somewhere that they (Apple) were partnering up with AT&T for the iPhone. That would have limited the number of potential customers (skipping over Verizon which I believe is still the largest carrier in the US). Apple puts out cool products and all but hoping everyone will switch providers based on the phone alone...I don't know. But this...this could be huge. Now EVERY cell phone user in the US can buy the iPhone and have fun. Hmmmm...time to buy some Apple stock.
It would be much easier to recruit top of the line teachers if they weren't treated so crappily though. However, I do agree with you in the fact that unfortunately you are correct in the sense there are many teachers out there that just don't care. They've got the sweet bennies that you describe and since they don't really care, whatever restrictive rules the administration impose just don't matter. Same with unreasonable parents...if it's an uncaring teacher, the parent's harassment really doesn't matter.
It's a shame...the current system is so screwed up that it discourages people that actually want to teach and make a difference yet also provides a safe haven for apathetic "instructors". It's easy to bad mouth the bad teachers, but just look at the crap an actual honest-to-goodness, caring, interested, engaging instructor has to deal with and you'll see the deeper roots of the problem.
Big congrats to your mother. That's certainly an accomplishment and it sounds like she was one of the teachers that cared. Very cool. And you are absolutely right...the parents. Egads. I was kind of lumping that into the "hands tied behind their backs" part but it really does deserve it's very own category. The stories are ridiculous...
"They" being administrators and politicians. Our poor teachers have their hands tied behind their back when it comes to discipline, teaching styles, curriculum, and pretty much everything else that could make them an effective teacher. Now throw in some long hours, low pay, and more ridiculous requirements and you've got a sad sad state of an education system.
I dated a teacher for a while and have friends and relatives that are teachers. I was shocked to see some of the treatment. The pay is low enough as it is, and yet they are still expected to purchase their own supplies, decorate their own room, and pay for more training classes that are requirements. Again, the hours are long...at school at 7:00 or earlier. Sure, they get to leave at 3:00 or so but then spend the next four or five hours grading papers, making tests, coming up with projects, etc.
I've seen many a teacher with such high ambitions and such a desire to teach our kids only to get completely frustrated by not being allowed to teach (rather, they must regurgitate some lesson plan crammed down their throat by an administration or even worse, prep the students for a test that really doesn't refect if they've learned anything or not), frustrated by not being able to discipline their students, or even to feel threatened by their students.
Will our teachers ever get treated better? Unfortunately I haven't seen any indication of such in many of the states I've lived in. Has anyone else?
Great...just what we need. RULES to make sure we raise a nation of wusses. Like we don't have a problem as it is with our kids being slugs and sheltered beyond belief. Sad...truly sad...
We're on to your sneaky ways oh mighty Slashdot editors. Put up a story with the words "MySpace" in the article here and there and you're bound to get some spillover. When do we get to add our pictures to our profiles here now?
You people are crackin' me up with all this "aitch pee" computer stuff. Every time I read "aitch" I keep thinking Snoop is gonna come in screamin' "beatch!"
All this of course while HR is standing right behind me. Thanks guys...
I tried sooooo hard to think of some witty comment to make about Dr. Shaw being the Secret of NIMH, but it just wasn't working. I guess I'm not so nimble...
Just as parents that are too strict on things such as a social life, sex, alcohol, etc end up having kids that are rampant on the respective scenes, I think this would be pretty damn funny if Ballmer's tactics had the same effect on his kids. Rather than curtail their use of Google and iPods, his kids will probably sneak off at night to "Google parties" and "iPod raves", be a part of the "Underground iPod Movement" (not like there really needs to be one) and end up being the top contributors to iPod accessories and features and some day work at Google.
Is the French Parliment going to require that Sony open up their consoles so they play XBox games too? Sure, this is a gross oversimplification of a comparison here, but c'mon. I think the fact Apple was able to gain this much market share WITH their format is something to commended. Remember when the iPod first came out and how many people bitched about that? Sheesh...
By allowing movies to be burned to DVD (unlike Apple's current offerings), Amazon is allowing you to watch movies:...
You bring up a VERY good point about how this differs from Apple's iTunes offerings. The point of my comment was based on the original article of how "Amazon is going to start competing with iTunes movie downloads." You helped illustrate how Amazon's offering could potentially be a leader in downloads destined to be burned onto DVDs. Who knows if Apple will offer something similar. Right now, these two are vastly different offerings. Amazon's service should be compared to Netflix and Blockbuster instead. I wonder how they will react, and how (if) Apple will react.
It will be interesting to see how this pans out. One of the reasons all the other music download services have failed to make a dent in iTMS' market share is because iTunes downloads load right into iTunes (duh) and load quite easily onto the iPods. Now since the iPods own the mp3 market by a landslide, it's no wonder people use iTunes to get their music. Add in the ease of use, simple interface, and decent (ie, acceptabel) DRM and you've got a winner.
Amazon does a damn good job at selling "stuff". Can they distribute the digital media to the masses in the same way? Which hardware are they going to aim it all at? If Apple is able to get a foothold in the video market also, then why would anyone download video if it's a pain to load onto their iPod Videos? It's all about ease for most of the users out there. Amazon may have a bazillion videos and a decent model, but if the people find it a hassle to put on their favorite player, it's not gonna rock.
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No doubt there would be serious repercussions. Bring religion into any debate and things flare up in no time.
You're right though. Keep the phrase, change the name, and watch how the reaction changes.
My gut reaction is that they said it was the drug taking issue to cover their arse. They couldn't come right out and say it was because it was an inflamatory banner with Jesus on it. I could be wrong but it's just a guess. Would they still have been so up in arms if it was Oprah or Geraldo? It would still have the bong reference but it probably wouldn't get the attention that Jesus brought.
I'm guessing this wouldn't even be an issue if it didn't say "Jesus". "Bong hits 4 Oprah". I don't see that going to the Supreme Court, do you?
So much for separation of Church and State. It's nailing free speech and everything else in life...
I dunno, from the FA, it sounds like a school function to me. The kids were let out of class, in the form of entire classes trooping down to see the Olympic torch go through, and with teachers present and supervising. Afterwards, they trooped back to school. Sounds like a school excursion to me, just like if they were on a field trip to go to a museum or a national park.
I guess this could be yet another case where we get our legal system involved and close every loophole we can find. One could argue that there were no permission slips or release forms signed and thus could be used as supporting documents that it was in fact a school function. Perhaps the students were released from class and there just happened to be teachers present also. It looks like we need to have some attorneys write up a 450 page document breaking down every imaginable case for a school function so incidents like this don't happen anymore.
I keep looking for the sarcasm tags here. Where are they? Is this post for real?
Just yesterday I was down working with some developers. There were four rather old G4 Powerbooks and one new (3 months old) PC. Four PowerBooks running flawlessly. PC was already riddled with spyware and viruses and not working properly because of such. These poor people have an unusable computer because of all these security flaws...well...PC-specific flaws. Luckily they kept chugging along on their old Macs while the PC was being worked on.
C'mon Apple, let Universal pull their stuff from iTMS and see what happens. I bought my iPod way back when there wasn't even half the music on iTMS as there is now. It certainly wasn't because Universal had their library on there. I think it would be a great case study to watch them pull their content and go down in flames while the other studios sit back and see if they should follow suit or not. When they realize just how much they stand to lose it may even put Apple in a better position for future negotiations (or at least keep them from making other boneheaded threats).
Leave it to MS to screw up the online music distribution model that actually worked and that the studios could agree upon...sheesh...
Most everyone on here is probably going to hell then since I suspect most of Slashdot's readers are more scientifically minded. Yup...I'm going to hell for thinking it's sad that this kind of thing happens and that today's youth is subject to this kind of "learning" in schools. Ah yes...separation of Church and State at its finest...*sigh*
This is probably great news for Apple and Apple investors. I do believe I read somewhere that they (Apple) were partnering up with AT&T for the iPhone. That would have limited the number of potential customers (skipping over Verizon which I believe is still the largest carrier in the US). Apple puts out cool products and all but hoping everyone will switch providers based on the phone alone...I don't know. But this...this could be huge. Now EVERY cell phone user in the US can buy the iPhone and have fun. Hmmmm...time to buy some Apple stock.
It would be much easier to recruit top of the line teachers if they weren't treated so crappily though. However, I do agree with you in the fact that unfortunately you are correct in the sense there are many teachers out there that just don't care. They've got the sweet bennies that you describe and since they don't really care, whatever restrictive rules the administration impose just don't matter. Same with unreasonable parents...if it's an uncaring teacher, the parent's harassment really doesn't matter.
It's a shame...the current system is so screwed up that it discourages people that actually want to teach and make a difference yet also provides a safe haven for apathetic "instructors". It's easy to bad mouth the bad teachers, but just look at the crap an actual honest-to-goodness, caring, interested, engaging instructor has to deal with and you'll see the deeper roots of the problem.
Big congrats to your mother. That's certainly an accomplishment and it sounds like she was one of the teachers that cared. Very cool. And you are absolutely right...the parents. Egads. I was kind of lumping that into the "hands tied behind their backs" part but it really does deserve it's very own category. The stories are ridiculous...
"They" being administrators and politicians. Our poor teachers have their hands tied behind their back when it comes to discipline, teaching styles, curriculum, and pretty much everything else that could make them an effective teacher. Now throw in some long hours, low pay, and more ridiculous requirements and you've got a sad sad state of an education system.
I dated a teacher for a while and have friends and relatives that are teachers. I was shocked to see some of the treatment. The pay is low enough as it is, and yet they are still expected to purchase their own supplies, decorate their own room, and pay for more training classes that are requirements. Again, the hours are long...at school at 7:00 or earlier. Sure, they get to leave at 3:00 or so but then spend the next four or five hours grading papers, making tests, coming up with projects, etc.
I've seen many a teacher with such high ambitions and such a desire to teach our kids only to get completely frustrated by not being allowed to teach (rather, they must regurgitate some lesson plan crammed down their throat by an administration or even worse, prep the students for a test that really doesn't refect if they've learned anything or not), frustrated by not being able to discipline their students, or even to feel threatened by their students.
Will our teachers ever get treated better? Unfortunately I haven't seen any indication of such in many of the states I've lived in. Has anyone else?
Great...just what we need. RULES to make sure we raise a nation of wusses. Like we don't have a problem as it is with our kids being slugs and sheltered beyond belief. Sad...truly sad...
Anyone?
Anyone?
We probably played MacFoxes more in the semester it was popular at CMU than my entire life with Tetris. Ohhhh...that's scary...
*shudder* Did you have to say that? I WAS eating dinner but not anymore...
We're on to your sneaky ways oh mighty Slashdot editors. Put up a story with the words "MySpace" in the article here and there and you're bound to get some spillover. When do we get to add our pictures to our profiles here now?
And obviously I haven't had my coffee yet 'cause my spelling in the above post is horrific. *sigh* Time to find my mug.
I'be been getting it all wrong all these years. I've been thinking beer was the persuasion drink. Sheeeeit...
You people are crackin' me up with all this "aitch pee" computer stuff. Every time I read "aitch" I keep thinking Snoop is gonna come in screamin' "beatch!"
All this of course while HR is standing right behind me. Thanks guys...
I tried sooooo hard to think of some witty comment to make about Dr. Shaw being the Secret of NIMH, but it just wasn't working. I guess I'm not so nimble...
Just as parents that are too strict on things such as a social life, sex, alcohol, etc end up having kids that are rampant on the respective scenes, I think this would be pretty damn funny if Ballmer's tactics had the same effect on his kids. Rather than curtail their use of Google and iPods, his kids will probably sneak off at night to "Google parties" and "iPod raves", be a part of the "Underground iPod Movement" (not like there really needs to be one) and end up being the top contributors to iPod accessories and features and some day work at Google.
Viva la chair-thrower!!!
Does it have a First Post button? Imagine the millions of man-hours per day saved by people hitting that button rather than typing all that manually.
Is the French Parliment going to require that Sony open up their consoles so they play XBox games too? Sure, this is a gross oversimplification of a comparison here, but c'mon. I think the fact Apple was able to gain this much market share WITH their format is something to commended. Remember when the iPod first came out and how many people bitched about that? Sheesh...
By allowing movies to be burned to DVD (unlike Apple's current offerings), Amazon is allowing you to watch movies:...
You bring up a VERY good point about how this differs from Apple's iTunes offerings. The point of my comment was based on the original article of how "Amazon is going to start competing with iTunes movie downloads." You helped illustrate how Amazon's offering could potentially be a leader in downloads destined to be burned onto DVDs. Who knows if Apple will offer something similar. Right now, these two are vastly different offerings. Amazon's service should be compared to Netflix and Blockbuster instead. I wonder how they will react, and how (if) Apple will react.
It will be interesting to see how this pans out. One of the reasons all the other music download services have failed to make a dent in iTMS' market share is because iTunes downloads load right into iTunes (duh) and load quite easily onto the iPods. Now since the iPods own the mp3 market by a landslide, it's no wonder people use iTunes to get their music. Add in the ease of use, simple interface, and decent (ie, acceptabel) DRM and you've got a winner.
Amazon does a damn good job at selling "stuff". Can they distribute the digital media to the masses in the same way? Which hardware are they going to aim it all at? If Apple is able to get a foothold in the video market also, then why would anyone download video if it's a pain to load onto their iPod Videos? It's all about ease for most of the users out there. Amazon may have a bazillion videos and a decent model, but if the people find it a hassle to put on their favorite player, it's not gonna rock.