So the football players at Northwestern University have formed a union--with plans to be designated as "employees" of the college--and to eventually demand to be paid for their services. I've taken the liberty of writing the response Northwestern administrators should provide to these athletes:
Dear prospective Northwestern employee,
Thank you for your interest in working for this University. Be advised that the position of ATHLETE pays $65,000 a year. You will find that because of Federal Title IX and other anti-gender discrimination laws, this rate shall apply to football players who draw 50,000 fans per game as well as female field hockey players who draw 50 people a game. All athletes--regardless of the sport--will share equally in bonuses paid to the school for tournament and bowl appearances beyond the end of the regular seasons. The university shall cover the costs of your training (practice and workouts) along with all of your equipment and travel.
All positions are available only to Northwestern University students in good academic standing. Tuition for this school just happens to be $65,000 a year. We have attached financial aid applications should you think that you will qualify. You will also be responsible for your own housing expenses--which average about $7500 a year for campus units. Private, off-campus housing is also available--but as an upscale Chicago suburb, that is very expensive. In addition, you will be responsible for all meals. The "unlimited" plan--which is recommended for athletes and their high-caloric needs--is $7,000. All textbooks, lab materials and miscellaneous expenses will also be the responsibility of the employee. Failure to maintain good academic standing will result in termination of employment. Tutoring is available for a fee--and all employees will be responsible for co-ordinating make up tests and other missed class time due to travel for the job.
All employees of Northwestern are eligible for health insurance through the school--with the employee paying a percentage of their monthly premium. All services provided by the Athletic Department medical staff shall be billed to the employee and the insurer. We also recommend purchasing short-term and long-term disability in order to continue to receive a portion of your salary should you become injured and unable to work. Life insurance is also available at an additional cost.
Recently negotiated legal settlements provide you with the right to use your name and likeness as you see fit. If you would like to market merchandise bearing the logo of Northwestern University or any our trademarked uniform designs through a third party vendor, please contact the marketing and legal departments for information on the cost and approved use of those images. The employee will bear the cost of production and sale of any such items.
Finally, the University reserves the right to terminate any employee for poor performance or failure to adhere to work rules. Said employee will be responsible for any and all costs still owed to the school at the time of termination.
We look forward to working with you.
Given the academic standards of Northwestern, I would think that the football players getting that letter might be able to figure out that "working for free" wasn't such a bad deal after all.
Thursday, January 30, 2014
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
Investing With the Enemy
Unable to compete on price, efficiency and reliability, those who are pushing the "Green Energy" agenda are turning again to their only effective means of "leveling the playing field" with fossil fuels--government legislation. The latest effort comes from the Oshkosh Sustainability Board, which is asking the Common Council to approve a measure that would bar the city from holding any investments in companies that make their money through the production or sale of oil, coal and natural gas.
The city doesn't actually own stocks in any companies like that--but it does hold corporate bonds (loans) with at least Exxon Mobil. These are very safe investments in Blue Chip companies that provide the city with better returns on reserve funds than having them sit in a bank getting less than one-percent. But for those on the Sustainability Board, those investments are like blood money--allowing these corporations to wreak havoc on the planet by drilling exploration wells, building pipelines, and performing much-needed upgrades to aging refineries--all of which will continue to make fossil fuels affordable for the masses.
The divestiture request (should it be approved) will almost certainly be followed by a similar resolution demanding that the City take that money it used to hold in oil bonds and instead invest it in "Green Companies" that will be "helping the planet heal". Companies like Evergreen Solar, SpectraWatt, Beacon Power, Ener1, Abound Solar, A123 Systems, Willard and Kesley Solar Group, Raser Technologies, Energy Conversion Devices, Mountain Plaza Inc, Olsen's Mills Acquisitions Company, Range Fuels, Thompson River Power, Stirling Energy Systems, Azure Dynamics, Nordic Windpower, Satcon, and Konarka Technologies Inc.
Never heard of those companies? Well, I wouldn't expect you to--they all went bankrupt. And combined with everyone's favorite--Solyndra--took more than $1.6-BILLION in Federal Stimulus funding down the drain with them. Now as a taxpayer here in Oshkosh you should ask yourself, "Do I want my tax dollars going to companies like that--or to good old Exxon and BP--who won't be going anywhere for a while?"
In the end, this is nothing but a "feel good" measure anyway. It's not like losing the potential investment of Oshkosh is going to prevent the Big Oil companies from selling their bonds and funding their future operations. Private investors (including the union pension funds providing the retirement income for a number of Sustainability Board Members) will be more than happy to snap up the notes--knowing they are a sure thing. That is, until the Environmentalists pass laws to take away that freedom as well.
The city doesn't actually own stocks in any companies like that--but it does hold corporate bonds (loans) with at least Exxon Mobil. These are very safe investments in Blue Chip companies that provide the city with better returns on reserve funds than having them sit in a bank getting less than one-percent. But for those on the Sustainability Board, those investments are like blood money--allowing these corporations to wreak havoc on the planet by drilling exploration wells, building pipelines, and performing much-needed upgrades to aging refineries--all of which will continue to make fossil fuels affordable for the masses.
The divestiture request (should it be approved) will almost certainly be followed by a similar resolution demanding that the City take that money it used to hold in oil bonds and instead invest it in "Green Companies" that will be "helping the planet heal". Companies like Evergreen Solar, SpectraWatt, Beacon Power, Ener1, Abound Solar, A123 Systems, Willard and Kesley Solar Group, Raser Technologies, Energy Conversion Devices, Mountain Plaza Inc, Olsen's Mills Acquisitions Company, Range Fuels, Thompson River Power, Stirling Energy Systems, Azure Dynamics, Nordic Windpower, Satcon, and Konarka Technologies Inc.
Never heard of those companies? Well, I wouldn't expect you to--they all went bankrupt. And combined with everyone's favorite--Solyndra--took more than $1.6-BILLION in Federal Stimulus funding down the drain with them. Now as a taxpayer here in Oshkosh you should ask yourself, "Do I want my tax dollars going to companies like that--or to good old Exxon and BP--who won't be going anywhere for a while?"
In the end, this is nothing but a "feel good" measure anyway. It's not like losing the potential investment of Oshkosh is going to prevent the Big Oil companies from selling their bonds and funding their future operations. Private investors (including the union pension funds providing the retirement income for a number of Sustainability Board Members) will be more than happy to snap up the notes--knowing they are a sure thing. That is, until the Environmentalists pass laws to take away that freedom as well.
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
Why We Are Failing In Education
With the cancellation of classes in all area school districts again today, we will soon find out just how much of a priority we place on our children's education. All of the districts have run out of "snow days" that were built into the calendar at the start of the year. That would mean making up today's lost time at the end of the year in June--or holding classes on a day that was previously scheduled as off--like during Spring Break. You would think that would be an easy decision for districts to make, since their own surveys show that education is a "top priority" for the community--and their goal is to provide kids with the most education possible. But what will come of our extreme winter is a tidal wave of opposition to any plans to add days back into the calendar.
Action Two News already had a story last weekend about parents who DON"T want the lost class time made up. "We have a family trip planned at the end of the school year" one mother complained. "My kids usually go to a camp in June--so we wouldn't want them to miss that if they had to make up days", worried another.
In those two comments, what message is sent to kids, administrators and the "community"? That my child's education is not as important as a trip to Wisconsin Dells, or Great America or to the cabin up north or to some youth camp. And forget about making up a day during Spring Break, because there are all of those trips to Florida, or Arizona, or the Bahamas (or un-chaperoned excursions for high school girls who end up dead on Aruba)--some of which were booked through clubs at the schools themselves!
Administrators are just as guilty of shuffling actual education to the bottom of the priority list. You may recall a few years back, the Oshkosh School District (which at the time had NO snow days built into their calendar) passed on adding days to the end of the year and instead went with the ludicrous idea of just adding a few minutes to each remaining school day in order to meet the minimum number of classroom hours--rather than the absolute minimum number of days in class. I'd like to think that every teacher adjusted their curriculum, class plans and syllabuses to add .4% more learning to each of those extended classes--rather than just making the extra two minutes additional "getting ready to go back to your lockers with your books time."
Of course, we wouldn't have this problem if schools moved away from the 19th Century basis for their calendar--that kids need to have the summer off to help on the farm. I wonder what percentage of Wisconsin students still need to have those three months away from the classroom to handle "chores" and "help bring in the crops"?
Just looking at the Oshkosh school calendar--with its weeks off for the Holidays and Spring Break and scattered days off for "teacher development" and early dismissals for "collaboration"-- leads you to wonder if we aren't just teaching our children when it's "convenient for us"--rather than as much as they need it.
Action Two News already had a story last weekend about parents who DON"T want the lost class time made up. "We have a family trip planned at the end of the school year" one mother complained. "My kids usually go to a camp in June--so we wouldn't want them to miss that if they had to make up days", worried another.
In those two comments, what message is sent to kids, administrators and the "community"? That my child's education is not as important as a trip to Wisconsin Dells, or Great America or to the cabin up north or to some youth camp. And forget about making up a day during Spring Break, because there are all of those trips to Florida, or Arizona, or the Bahamas (or un-chaperoned excursions for high school girls who end up dead on Aruba)--some of which were booked through clubs at the schools themselves!
Administrators are just as guilty of shuffling actual education to the bottom of the priority list. You may recall a few years back, the Oshkosh School District (which at the time had NO snow days built into their calendar) passed on adding days to the end of the year and instead went with the ludicrous idea of just adding a few minutes to each remaining school day in order to meet the minimum number of classroom hours--rather than the absolute minimum number of days in class. I'd like to think that every teacher adjusted their curriculum, class plans and syllabuses to add .4% more learning to each of those extended classes--rather than just making the extra two minutes additional "getting ready to go back to your lockers with your books time."
Of course, we wouldn't have this problem if schools moved away from the 19th Century basis for their calendar--that kids need to have the summer off to help on the farm. I wonder what percentage of Wisconsin students still need to have those three months away from the classroom to handle "chores" and "help bring in the crops"?
Just looking at the Oshkosh school calendar--with its weeks off for the Holidays and Spring Break and scattered days off for "teacher development" and early dismissals for "collaboration"-- leads you to wonder if we aren't just teaching our children when it's "convenient for us"--rather than as much as they need it.
Monday, January 27, 2014
This Weather is Killing Us
I'd sure like to know where the folks who complain about how it's "too hot" during the summer go during times like these. I'm not seeing a lot of people walking around with just a light jacket and no gloves with big smiles on their faces. Recent trips to the grocery store found more looks of pain and general misery--with expressed desires that the cold end as soon as possible. Some even joke about "never complaining about how hot it is in July ever again."
There is good reason to hate weather like this--it is literally killing us. With the return of "real winters" in North America, a lot of attention has been paid to a 2007 study that finds living in colder climes shortens your life span. The researchers found people who spend their entire lives in parts with cold winters tend to live ten percent shorter lives than those who live down south. They add, that the growing trend of "snowbirds" spending their winters in Florida and Arizona have contributed to the 3% increase in the American life expectancy over the past couple of decades.
What's more, the study finds that the effects are almost immediate for the elderly and the ill. Both cold and heat waves cause increased death rates. But after a heat spell ends, those rates return to normal. But cold snaps see those higher death rates continue for weeks afterward. Showing that the cold takes much more out of you than the heat. The cold also tends to be harder on the poor--who cannot afford the energy expenses to keep their homes warm enough to ward off the effects of the temperatures.
I've felt that draining of energy the prolonged cold has on us. It's tougher to get out of bed. A few minutes out shoveling or just running from store to store feels like a full workout at the gym. And no amount of sleep seems to replace that energy. Conversely, the warmth and the sun of the summer seems to provide me with an endless supply of energy--not to mention a much better attitude.
So those of you who hate the summer--and celebrate that first frost or snowfall or formation of ice on the lake--go ahead and enjoy the weather you love so much. Just keep in mind, it's killing you--literally.
There is good reason to hate weather like this--it is literally killing us. With the return of "real winters" in North America, a lot of attention has been paid to a 2007 study that finds living in colder climes shortens your life span. The researchers found people who spend their entire lives in parts with cold winters tend to live ten percent shorter lives than those who live down south. They add, that the growing trend of "snowbirds" spending their winters in Florida and Arizona have contributed to the 3% increase in the American life expectancy over the past couple of decades.
What's more, the study finds that the effects are almost immediate for the elderly and the ill. Both cold and heat waves cause increased death rates. But after a heat spell ends, those rates return to normal. But cold snaps see those higher death rates continue for weeks afterward. Showing that the cold takes much more out of you than the heat. The cold also tends to be harder on the poor--who cannot afford the energy expenses to keep their homes warm enough to ward off the effects of the temperatures.
I've felt that draining of energy the prolonged cold has on us. It's tougher to get out of bed. A few minutes out shoveling or just running from store to store feels like a full workout at the gym. And no amount of sleep seems to replace that energy. Conversely, the warmth and the sun of the summer seems to provide me with an endless supply of energy--not to mention a much better attitude.
So those of you who hate the summer--and celebrate that first frost or snowfall or formation of ice on the lake--go ahead and enjoy the weather you love so much. Just keep in mind, it's killing you--literally.
Friday, January 24, 2014
Go Team NBC!!
The Olympics hasn't really been about "the spirit of sports and competition" since 1984--when Peter Ueberroth made record profits for the Los Angeles games by turning it into a giant corporate advertising event--but this year's Winter Games in Sochi, Russia have now moved into the realm of "reality TV programming". Controversy has erupted over the inclusion of Lolo Jones on the USA Bobsled team--which was reportedly orchestrated by NBC Television to provide them with the "Face of the Games" they can use to promote their coverage.
NBC found itself in a tough spot this month after previous "it girl" Lindsey Vaughn--and Tiger Woods' Girlfriend (don't forget NBC's coverage of the US Open from Pinehurst coming up in June!) dropped off the downhill ski team due to a knee injury. And this year's Ice Capades--I mean figure skating team--features a bunch of no-names that have failed to become breakout stars (more on that in a moment). So NBC needed someone with a pretty face and an interesting backstory to carry its prime-time coverage.
Lolo Jones just happens to fit the bill. She's young, attractive and will be just the sixth athlete to compete for the US in both the Summer and Winter Games. You may recall, she was a total flameout in the London Games, failing to medal in any of her hurdles events. The only problem is, she isn't the best pusher or brakeman in the US Bobsled program--or the second best or even the third best. But there she will be in Sochi--glowing on the TV screen in the Opening Ceremonies, features, interviews, previews, tape-delayed coverage of actual runs, post-race analysis, more interviews and the Closing Ceremonies--while a far more experienced and deserving sledder sits home in Illinois and watches.
This decision by the USOC follows a controversial choice for the women's Ice Capades--I mean figure skating team--earlier this month, as attractive blonde Ashley Wagner was selected for the Games despite falling about a dozen times at the National Finals and admitting that she couldn't handle the pressure. That will leave the less-TV-friendly Mirai Nagusa--who finished third in the finals--at home. Interestingly enough, Wagner had been featured in a number of NBC promos for Winter Games coverage before her gagfest at Nationals--but I can't remember seeing Nagusa anywhere in those ads.
I haven't looked real closely at the hideous Polo Ralph Lauren Team USA Uniforms that were unveilled (On the NBC Today Show) yesterday--but I'd be willing to bet there are tiny little peacocks mixed in with all of the Red, White and Blue.
And fans attending the games should just leave the U-S-A! chants at home. You're really rooting for Team N-B-C.
NBC found itself in a tough spot this month after previous "it girl" Lindsey Vaughn--and Tiger Woods' Girlfriend (don't forget NBC's coverage of the US Open from Pinehurst coming up in June!) dropped off the downhill ski team due to a knee injury. And this year's Ice Capades--I mean figure skating team--features a bunch of no-names that have failed to become breakout stars (more on that in a moment). So NBC needed someone with a pretty face and an interesting backstory to carry its prime-time coverage.
Lolo Jones just happens to fit the bill. She's young, attractive and will be just the sixth athlete to compete for the US in both the Summer and Winter Games. You may recall, she was a total flameout in the London Games, failing to medal in any of her hurdles events. The only problem is, she isn't the best pusher or brakeman in the US Bobsled program--or the second best or even the third best. But there she will be in Sochi--glowing on the TV screen in the Opening Ceremonies, features, interviews, previews, tape-delayed coverage of actual runs, post-race analysis, more interviews and the Closing Ceremonies--while a far more experienced and deserving sledder sits home in Illinois and watches.
This decision by the USOC follows a controversial choice for the women's Ice Capades--I mean figure skating team--earlier this month, as attractive blonde Ashley Wagner was selected for the Games despite falling about a dozen times at the National Finals and admitting that she couldn't handle the pressure. That will leave the less-TV-friendly Mirai Nagusa--who finished third in the finals--at home. Interestingly enough, Wagner had been featured in a number of NBC promos for Winter Games coverage before her gagfest at Nationals--but I can't remember seeing Nagusa anywhere in those ads.
I haven't looked real closely at the hideous Polo Ralph Lauren Team USA Uniforms that were unveilled (On the NBC Today Show) yesterday--but I'd be willing to bet there are tiny little peacocks mixed in with all of the Red, White and Blue.
And fans attending the games should just leave the U-S-A! chants at home. You're really rooting for Team N-B-C.
Thursday, January 23, 2014
Who's the Victim Here?
Lost in all of the hoopla over budget surpluses and tax cuts in Madison, was the introduction last week of a bill that will require all new criminal laws to include a "minority impact statement". Representative Nakiya Harris--a Democrat from Milwaukee--wants to Department of Justice to estimate how many more African-Americans, Hispanics and Asians will be put behind bars if a new crime is added to the code or if existing penalties are increased.
I find the bill fascinating, as we are somehow expected to predict the future bad behavior of just certain segments of the population. If we are that good at making predictions about that, why don't we just create the "PreCrime" police division like they did in the movie Minority Report and arrest people before they can even attempt the offense they are "surely" going to commit.
Actually, Representative Harris has introduced her bill in an attempt to frame all future debate about crime and punishment in Wisconsin not in the context of "criminal justice"--but rather in the context of "social justice". We all know that it's not bad behavior that lands people in prison--it's bad laws. Laws that some believe were put on the books for the sole purpose of ensuring that people of certain colors end up behind bars--or brandished with the scarlet letter of "F" for convicted felon--ensuring they will never have a good job and will remain poor their entire lives.
The real "victims" of crime in the "social justice system" aren't those who see their kids get hooked on drugs sold by a local dealer, or the people who have their belongings or money stolen by the drug addict looking to buy his next fix, or the people who get shot in gang disputes, or the businesses that lose money when people steal items from them. The "real victim" is the person "unfairly" sent to prison for committing those acts--even if it was of their own free will.
Perhaps that is the way sponsors of new criminal bills can turn the focus back to "criminal justice". You can put the number of minority criminals that will get locked away because of it, but you can also add the number of minority kids that won't be pressured to start using drugs or join gangs. Or you can list the number of minority innocent bystanders that won't be shot by thugs "sending a message". And you can include the number of minority businesses that might not have to hire armed security guards or put their employees behind bullet-proof glass to work the register. In other words, remind everybody about why we have laws--and prisons for those who refuse to live by them.
I find the bill fascinating, as we are somehow expected to predict the future bad behavior of just certain segments of the population. If we are that good at making predictions about that, why don't we just create the "PreCrime" police division like they did in the movie Minority Report and arrest people before they can even attempt the offense they are "surely" going to commit.
Actually, Representative Harris has introduced her bill in an attempt to frame all future debate about crime and punishment in Wisconsin not in the context of "criminal justice"--but rather in the context of "social justice". We all know that it's not bad behavior that lands people in prison--it's bad laws. Laws that some believe were put on the books for the sole purpose of ensuring that people of certain colors end up behind bars--or brandished with the scarlet letter of "F" for convicted felon--ensuring they will never have a good job and will remain poor their entire lives.
The real "victims" of crime in the "social justice system" aren't those who see their kids get hooked on drugs sold by a local dealer, or the people who have their belongings or money stolen by the drug addict looking to buy his next fix, or the people who get shot in gang disputes, or the businesses that lose money when people steal items from them. The "real victim" is the person "unfairly" sent to prison for committing those acts--even if it was of their own free will.
Perhaps that is the way sponsors of new criminal bills can turn the focus back to "criminal justice". You can put the number of minority criminals that will get locked away because of it, but you can also add the number of minority kids that won't be pressured to start using drugs or join gangs. Or you can list the number of minority innocent bystanders that won't be shot by thugs "sending a message". And you can include the number of minority businesses that might not have to hire armed security guards or put their employees behind bullet-proof glass to work the register. In other words, remind everybody about why we have laws--and prisons for those who refuse to live by them.
Wednesday, January 22, 2014
Now Booking Dates for 2016.....
I am a scheduler. I like having things planned out as far in advance as possible. I have one of those small two-year calendar books that I use as a backup for the schedule I have in my IPhone--and it is practically full--through 2015. I've got my golf tournament schedule, officiating and umpiring schedule, work schedule, vacation schedule and major events schedule all set--and it doesn't leave many available dates.
I've always thought that long-range planning shows consideration for others--and I wish more people would do it. How many times has someone thrown out a vague invitation to "do something" around a certain date, but then doesn't get back to you for weeks or even months? What invariably happens is that you commit to some other event and then that person calls you up with the "You comin' over this weekend to do what we talked about doin'?" And you're left with the awkward "Well you never gave me a firm date on that, so I planned to do something else." Then you give them a list of dates for which you are still available and they always reply "Yeah, I'm not sure what we're doin' those days--I'll have to get back to ya about that." And the cycle of missed opportunities rolls on.
There is nothing that drives me nuts more than people who ignore all of the schedules that are already out there. I'm talking to you, brides who select a Badgers home football game Saturday in the fall to hold their weddings. Ladies, the Big Ten schedule for every season through 2017 is now available at uwbadgers.com I would highly recommend going to that site right now and using it to put big X's through a number of Autumn Saturdays. (I can also give you the dates for upcoming Masters and Final Fours if you would like them as well.)
Why do I bring this up? Well, we heard from Oshkosh City Manager Mark Rohloff this week that one change that may come out of a review of the Special Events Permit Policy is no longer double- or triple- or quadruple booking events that require city resources in the future. That means all of the fishing tournament organizers, concert promoters, conventioneers, marathon runners and pub crawlers are going to have to start scheduling a lot farther in advance to avoid being the odd-man left out. And believe me, there is going to be a pecking order for events--with the big moneymakers like EAA Airventure, Country and Rock USA and Lifest getting priority--regardless of who else may have put the application in first.
So if you want to join the party here in Event City, I would highly recommend buying a calendar--or downloading an app with a future calendar feature--and start plotting the dates of everything already going on around here--or you may end up on a Sunday with a home Packers game against the Bears competing for your customers' attentions.
I've always thought that long-range planning shows consideration for others--and I wish more people would do it. How many times has someone thrown out a vague invitation to "do something" around a certain date, but then doesn't get back to you for weeks or even months? What invariably happens is that you commit to some other event and then that person calls you up with the "You comin' over this weekend to do what we talked about doin'?" And you're left with the awkward "Well you never gave me a firm date on that, so I planned to do something else." Then you give them a list of dates for which you are still available and they always reply "Yeah, I'm not sure what we're doin' those days--I'll have to get back to ya about that." And the cycle of missed opportunities rolls on.
There is nothing that drives me nuts more than people who ignore all of the schedules that are already out there. I'm talking to you, brides who select a Badgers home football game Saturday in the fall to hold their weddings. Ladies, the Big Ten schedule for every season through 2017 is now available at uwbadgers.com I would highly recommend going to that site right now and using it to put big X's through a number of Autumn Saturdays. (I can also give you the dates for upcoming Masters and Final Fours if you would like them as well.)
Why do I bring this up? Well, we heard from Oshkosh City Manager Mark Rohloff this week that one change that may come out of a review of the Special Events Permit Policy is no longer double- or triple- or quadruple booking events that require city resources in the future. That means all of the fishing tournament organizers, concert promoters, conventioneers, marathon runners and pub crawlers are going to have to start scheduling a lot farther in advance to avoid being the odd-man left out. And believe me, there is going to be a pecking order for events--with the big moneymakers like EAA Airventure, Country and Rock USA and Lifest getting priority--regardless of who else may have put the application in first.
So if you want to join the party here in Event City, I would highly recommend buying a calendar--or downloading an app with a future calendar feature--and start plotting the dates of everything already going on around here--or you may end up on a Sunday with a home Packers game against the Bears competing for your customers' attentions.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)