joi, 26 aprilie 2012

Caffeinated Thoughts

Caffeinated Thoughts

Some Facts Behind Bullying

Posted: 25 Apr 2012 08:15 PM PDT

kids-being-bullied4Iowa Governor Terry Branstad seems to be jumping on the bandwagon of having tougher anti-bullying measures based on the recent tragedy in Northwest Iowa.  We should care about all bullying and anti-bullying policies should place the emphasis on the the wrong actions of the bully, not on perceived thoughts or motivations.  The bully's reasons or excuses should matter.  Schools should pursue this problem by prohibiting any bullying regardless of the reason or the child.  Schools, communities, and families can do the best job addressing this problem, not the state government.  When government gets involved polices become politicized which ends up focusing on an agenda instead of the problem at hand.

Some facts that we must consider before jumping on the current anti-bullying bandwagon:

(Above bullet points from Fast Facts on Bullying in Schools)

Update: Some stats from the 2010-2011 school year to consider from the top 10 largest school districts in Iowa (based on 2010-2011 enrollment).

Now I admit that not every instance of bullying gets reported.  I would say that is definitely true in Ankeny, Council Bluffs and Iowa City which have extremely low numbers of reports compared to their enrollment.  I still don't believe, and the facts simply don't show, that is the prominent cause of bullying.  Since that is the case I think we can reasonably ask why is all of the anti-bullying emphasis at the state and federal level on homosexual kids?

Update 2: You have to love how the "anti-bullying" activists bully people who disagree with them.

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Planned Parenthood Makes a Mockery of Prayer

Posted: 25 Apr 2012 05:35 PM PDT

Planned_Parenthood_SignThe abortion industry has a counter to 40 Days for Life.  It seems unreal, but Six Rivers Planned Parenthood in Eureka, CA have a committee called Humbolt County Clergy for Choice (yes you read that right) a group of pastors who are in favor of slaughtering unborn children in the womb, started "40 Days of Prayer Supporting Women Everywhere" with prayer requests written by another "faith-based" group called Faith Aloud.  The 40 Days runs from March 18th to April 27th, and the "prayers" listed have actually been used by those in the abortion industry for quite some time, but Planned Parenthood just started promoting this.  Now that it is two days from completion I have to wonder if God answered prayer requests such as:

  • Today we pray for medical students who want to include abortion care in their practice. May they receive good training and find good mentors.
  • Today we pray for better access to all forms of birth control.
  • Today we pray for the counselors in abortion clinics that they may listen with their hearts and offer wise guidance.  (When you look at Planned Parenthood's stats it seems like the advice is always to get an abortion…hmmm…)
  • Today we pray for all the staff at abortion clinics around the nation. May they be daily confirmed in the sacred care that they offer women. (Abortion is sacred care?  Have these "pastors" read Psalm 139?)
  • Today we give thanks for abortion providers around the nation whose concern for women (don't they mean money?) is the driving force in their lives.
  • Today we pray for the women who travel hundreds of miles to get an abortion. May their determination be rewarded with spiritual strength. (Really?)
  • Today we give thanks and celebrate that abortion is still safe and legal. (We can be sure that God is not celebrating).

They are concerned about the abortionists who have been killed violently (and I condemn that behavior as well, it is inconsistent to be pro-life and then murder somebody at the same time), there is no concern of the babies who haven't been "chosen."  I think I threw up in my mouth a little reading through these.  Sick, sick, sick.  While women who have had an abortion need to be lovingly ministered to and not shunned by the church, it is completely inappropriate for this behavior to be celebrated by any person calling themselves a pastor.

HT: Jordan Sekulow

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Iowa: Welcome to the $4/Gallon of Gas Club

Posted: 25 Apr 2012 06:45 AM PDT

gasBy Tom Pyle

Today, President Obama will be speaking at theUniversityofIowa, targeting young voters as a key part of an election strategy that worked so well for him in 2008.  In a trip paid for by taxpayers, he will then replicate that speech and travel later this week to other universities inNorth CarolinaandColorado.  According to Politico, on Monday, the President's campaign held a conference call drawing sharp contrasts between the President and Mitt Romney on students, saying, “Romney's policies don't just hurt students and working families, they hurt our ability to grow the economy.”

While the President's campaign is focused on students, working families, and the economy, he'd be negligent if he did not address another issue which has taken a significant bite out of the average family's budget this year – skyrocketing energy prices.

Gasoline prices in some areas of the country have already shot passed $4 a gallon and are heading towards $5. According to AAA, Iowaprices are expected to join the $4 club by Memorial Day but there are some steps we could be taking now to avoid price spikes like these in the future.

There is one solution the President could address. Thanks to hydraulic fracturing, natural gas production is at an all time high creating a shale gas boom in theUnited States. With the untappedForest City Basin,Iowa seems poised to be the next state to reap the rewards.

Perhaps the reason President Obama is not addressing energy issues is that lately his Administration seems to be doing more to stifle energy jobs than promote them – last week, the Environmental Protection Agency released new air emission standards that could significantly slow down investment in shale drilling in Iowa before it ever has a chance to get going.

When he does address gas prices, he seems eager to shift blame rather than offer solutions, often shaming oil companies for making profits – usually a good thing – and calling for an end to subsidies for "Big Oil." First off, that's another surefire way to increase prices at the pump for consumers as higher costs on the industry will be passed down to motorists at the pump. And second, he's not referring to actual subsidies; these are the same tax breaks that are given to all manufacturing industries to promote development.

One of those tax breaks, called "Intangible Drilling Costs," actually helps out smaller, independent drilling companies more than it helps out huge companies like ExxonMobil. It allows the deduction of other expenses related to the exploration and discovery of new wells because all too often that exploration yields no product. Without this, smaller companies couldn't afford to keep exploring.

One major industry in Iowathat is subsidized is the wind energy industry.  According to the Des Moines Register,Iowais the nation's No. 2 state in wind energy production. Wind energy has largely benefitted from a credit against taxes of 2.2 cents per kilowatt hour of wind power produced for the first ten years of a plant's operation. That is more than 20 percent of the average retail price of electricity. But that tax credit isn't always guaranteed and wind has yet to find its feet. With the subsidy at risk, so are jobs in the companies that relied on them.

It begs the question, why is the President trying to raise taxes on oil and gas, when that industry has consistently been a provider of home grown jobs? If the President is truly concerned with students, American families, and the economy he'll put Americans before his campaign and stop misleading the public with election year rhetoric.

Tom Pyle, President with Institute for Energy Research (IER)

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Quote of the day: The Feds and the Family Farm

Posted: 25 Apr 2012 06:27 AM PDT

"The consequences of the things that you put in your regulations lack common sense…if the federal government can regulate the kind of relationship between parents and their children on their own family's farm, there is almost nothing off-limits in which we see the federal government intruding in a way of life." - Kansas Republican Senator Jerry Moran

Rural kids, parents angry about Labor Dept. rule banning farm chores

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