Joshua the Teacher's Blog

An Open Letter to Arizona

2010-04-25T13:10:35Z

Dear Arizona,
I get the feeling I've seen this story before. For those of you who didn't know, Latinos were targeted and shipped off to Mexico during the early 30's in what's known as the Mexican Repatriation. Citizens and non-citizens were targeted alike, because, well, we all look the same, right? Families were boarded on trains and then sent away. Turns out, this was a big mistake. Not just because tossing Latinos wasn't going to solve the Great Depression, but because there's this thing called the Bill of Rights, and the 4th and 14th amendments tell me that the haters can go jump in the lake. By the way, the 4th comes before the 10th, so I'm surprised you haven't seen it yet.
But it sounds like that's not going to stop you guys. You're going to try and make yourself feel better by scapegoating a group in the middle of a financial crisis. Again. Well, even though I have trust in my federal government to slap this jumpshot right back into your face, I think you might try some more crazy crap before comprehensive immigration gets passed. And since you're going to continue to target people that look and sound like me, I have a few requests:

my daughter is fair skinned, so don't get too confused, and please make sure we can stay together.
if you put us on trains, I want mine to run on renewable energy. Wind or PV is fine with me.
when it gets to the point where you want us to wear yellow patches, I want them to be in the shape of a taco. Not an Impala.
the Native American population of your state should get a chance to look at the immigration status of all your old retirees, the state senators, state reps, and your governor. Fair's fair.

In conclusion, Arizona, it seems like you want to go down a road that's been travelled many times before. Even though the offending government has been shown to be galactically stupid in each case, you seemed determined to follow in their footsteps. So let me tell you how this will play out: we will stay, we will grow in numbers, we'll marry your grandchildren/great-grandchildren (they'll be welcomed with love into our blended culture), there will be an SNL skit making fun of you, history books will make your kids remember what you've done, and at some point in the future, your government will apologize.
Idiots.

Virginia's Confederacy Month and the Crazy

2010-04-10T01:10:00Z

I'm not a big fan of comparing President Obama to Lincoln this early into his presidency- it's a lot of pressure, and we need to wait and see how the current administration plays out in the long term before accurately evaluating it. That said, there's something that Obama and Lincoln share that's not usually mentioned, or that maybe people would rather ignore: they bring out the Crazy like few other presidents.

We can point to any number of factors that responsible for bringing out the Crazy: poor economy, feelings of disenfranchisement, racial attitudes, misinformation/propaganda, religious zealotry, etc. Virginia's governor, Bob McDonnell, by signing the Confederacy month proclamation, or whatever he calls it, has given us an insight into what's really going on.

Consider, first of all, that Candidate Lincoln did not run on an abolitionist platform. The Platform of the Republican Party was to end the slave trade and the spread of slavery into the national territories. It expressly gives states the right to Popular Sovereignty. However, President Lincoln gets elected, and states begin seceding and taking over federal forts before he's even inaugurated. The shots at Fort Sumpter take place 6 weeks after he's inaugurated. He's barley unpacked, and the South has had a full-out freak attack. There's more than paranoia, more than hate, more than self-preservation at work here.
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Next, there's Candidate Obama. Pretty clearly, he said he would not raise taxes on people earning below $250k. He had no plans to dramatically alter guns laws, and he supported the ban on late-term abortions. Although he's flipped on other campaign promises, these 3 seem to be holding up if you look at his 14 month record. Yet on the issue of taxes, abortion, and guns, people are again having a full-out freak attack and are either killing or being arrested for conspiracy to kill.

So what's going on? Sure, nowadays, there's FOX news to blame, but they weren't there in 1861. Here's my superficial and brief take on what's happening: There is strong undercurrent of adolescent resentment within the radical right. As a middle school teacher, I encounter it every day. My students constantly to assert their self-identity through whatever means they have: creative hairdos, purposely answering questions wrong, coming to class tardy. Within the system, this is their way of trying to stand out and be something important. I try to channel that energy into, you know, learning, but this is our culturally-mandated time to be a child while resenting forthcoming adult responsibilities. They are seeing the world in a new perspective: one where they are absolutely not the center of all things. As children, they resent this change, though as they learn of the independence they receive in return, it seems less threatening. Most of my kids will grown out of it, as have most Americans.

But then there's Crazy, that 20%-25% of people who don't get there. Either they missed that adolescent rebellion stage, or they failed to accept that they aren't the center of the world. Combine this child-like sense of importance/entitlement with access to adult independence, and you have emotionally unstable people with access to guns, money, the web, telephones, and anything that can threaten or cause physical harm to those with whom they disagree.

This is a big brush to paint a portion of our country, and I know there are other forces at work trying to take advantage of this phenomena for their advantage, but at the core of Crazy is a petulant adolescent who desperately craves the spotlight of the world. Bob McDonnell's proclamation is merely an attempt to validate the adolescent streak that many Americans are stuck in. It puts Crazy back in the spotlight, making them feel warm, fuzzy, and important. The proclamation links two eras with the same shortcoming. The Confederates were so obsessed with their self-perceptions regarding racial superiority they were willing to kill, while the radical right is so obsessed with staying out of the social contract they will do the same. In both cases, arrested development breeds deadly forms of acting out.
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So what? Well, I think we can take a page out of the teacher's approach: consistency and clear expectations. Make clear to Crazy what will happen when they step into unacceptable behavior, and do it every time. Don't shame them for their lack of perspective: this only exacerbates the problem. Just emphasize that certain behaviors are expected of an adult regardless of what they believe, and stepping outside of acceptable conduct will produce clear, consistent, and completely fair consequences. And no proclamation, regardless of how stupid, offensive, or backwards, will shield Crazy from them. This is how we won in 1865, and this is how we will win now.

**I struggled with whether to use the term Crazy to describe this population. I understand that it is insensitive to people with emotional/psychological issues to use this term. Know that I mean no offense to this group. If anyone in the comments can provide a better term than Crazy to describe the Confederate/Radical Right group, I'd be more than glad to edit the post.**

David Gregory's 10 New Year's resolutions

2009-12-28T20:03:56Z

For some reason, I've been thinking about all the things I now loathe about MTP that I didn't
before DG took over. It became his fictional (but very necessary) 10 New Year
Resolutions for the show in 2010. Enjoy!

1. I will not give Facebook posts or Tweets the same privileged status as CBO
reports, university studies, or common sense.

2. I will keep a picture of Ralph Wiggum taped on the table with the caption
"Choose to not be a wanker today."

3. If I complain about tax increases for the rich, the screen will
automatically show my 2008 and 2009 joint income.

4. I will have Rachel host the show once every 2 or 3 months.

5. I will absolutely not ask anyone if they are running for president for the
entire year.

6. I will ask every GOP candidate who supports tax cuts why they are against
the tax cuts in the Stimulus.

7. I will ask every GOP candidate who hates the deficits to show me the magic
pony that will turn tax cuts into Clintonian surpluses.

8. I will not assert CW based on galactically-stupid assumptions to a guest
and deny them the chance to refute it by pivoting to a totally unrelated topic
or question.

9. I will sign every email that promises the recipient that "coming on Meet
The Press allows you to frame the conversation as you really want to" with the
name Ron Mexico to ensure deniability.

10. I will discuss legislation through the lens of its aims, policy
strengths/weaknesses, and effects on normal people before analyzing the
political implications and reading of "who's up/who's down" (which tend to
affect absolutely nobody outside of DC area).

Town Hall Meeting- CA 40th

2009-08-08T00:00:24Z

If you are in the 40th District, Congressman Royce is having a Town Hall
meeting tomorrow (Sat. 8/8/09) at 1pm. It will be at:

Placentia City Hall
401 E Chapman Ave
Placentia, CA 92870

Come out if you can, and be ready to ask the Congressman if he rejects the
violence and hate spewed against President Obama and Health Care Reform.

Yes We Can!

Deep Iran Thought

2009-06-21T21:21:07Z

When will John McCain declare: "We are all Iranians now!"
Will this still apply? Or this?

Deep Sotomayor Thought

2009-05-31T00:25:56Z

You know who was the real victim this week? That poor, white, passed-over male jurist who:

Graduated from an Ivy League school
Edited a law review at another Ivy League school
Has tons of experience prosecuting criminals
Has tons of private law experience
Has worked as an appellate judge for more than 10 years
Has authored over more than 400 opinions as an appellate judge
Saved an all-American pastime
Was nominated by both Republican and Democratic presidents

I gotta tell you though, Republicans haven't paraded him around enough this week. Where is he?

McCain's awful health policy

2008-08-16T20:02:01Z

While visiting relatives, I read about McCain's health insurance proposals in the Dallas Morning News. It's worth a look given that it would tax employer-based health insurance to provide an extremely small tax credit to shop for your own insurance, which would then provide pretty crappy coverage.

For all his talk about cutting taxes, McCain sure doesn't mind hiking them up for those of us who get it through our employers. This plan looks like a complete disaster. Tell your family and friends.

The article is here.

McCain pimps his wife...

2008-08-05T18:06:27Z

This man really is a misogynist pig. Not only does he offer up his wife to a crowd of drunken bikers, but he does it in front of his daughter. Think about that next time he talks about keeping America safe from terrorists. Can he keep the women who get harassed/raped at Sturgis safe when things get out of hand?
What's worse, I think, was that he was reading from prepared remarks! This wasn't some off the cuff joke he offered. He trying to tell a joke someone else wrote, and not even doing it well. Someone in his campaign actually thought misogyny is a good angle for a Presidential candidate to play up. Stay classy, McShame.

AC360 Takes on McCain's lying

2008-07-23T04:05:11Z

On Anderson Cooper tonight, John McCain is caught lying about the Surge timeline. Olberman caught it first, I think, but let's hope it gets more traction tomorrow.
For all his huffing and puffing about the success of the Surge, McCain can't help but make stuff up. And CBS is willing to carry the water for him by selectively editing the interview.
Is it any surprise that the NYT rejects this guys rantings?

Urgent: translators needed!

2008-07-21T19:28:13Z

The Washington Post and other members of the MSM will be requiring the services of translators for the remainder of Sen. Obama's CODEL/World Tour. Applicants:* must be able to speak and understand Arabic, Hebrew, German, Farsi (just in case), French, Russian, Mandarin, and obviously, English.*must be especially familiar with translating phrases relating to time (e.g., 16 months, 2010, leave now, Jan. 20, 2009, timeline).*must have intellectual flexibility in retranslating phrases to mean the exact opposite of the speakers intent (White House will provide training in this area).*must show complete neutrality in 2008 Presidential Race, even if that means completely ignoring reality and all common sense while translating statements.
Please send applications directly to MSM in Washington, D.C. Be prepared to supply complete financial history, votes cast in previous elections, and medical history. College transcripts and copies of language degrees not necessary. US State Dept. will contact you to confirm language abilities (we trust them).

McCain's YouTube Problem...

2008-07-11T00:30:50Z

...is that ALL previous statements are there to come back and nail you!
McCain is trying to say that Phil Gramm doesn't speak for him... except that McCain has been dropping the "recession as psychological problem" line since the primaries.
h/t to Jed Report
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0P6bkbdAkFg

The Delegate game

2008-04-23T04:52:39Z

For those of you with the time and inclination, the L.A. Times has a delegate counter where you can shift the delegates allocated for the next few contests. You can even allocate the left over supers!
Now you are all free to game out the multiple ways Clinton can win big in the following contests while, as the best post of the night has mentioned, "Obama [goes] into the remaining primaries with an insurmountable lead in pledged delegates, a strong lead in the popular vote, and a huge advantage in fundraising ability."

Freedom's Watch and the West Wing

2008-03-24T22:46:42Z

My wife and I are re-watching season 1 of The West Wing during Spring Break. In episode 11, "Lord John Marbury," Josh Lyman is subpoenaed by a wing-nut group called Freedom Watch. I swear this is true, it's in the first 5 minutes of the episode after the opening title music if you want to check it out.
My question is- did Ari Fleischer (or whoever the "brains" behind the outfits is) straight up plagiarize from Aaron Sorkin? Or is there some big difference between Freedom's Watch (Fleischer) and Freedom Watch (Sorkin). Because it seems to me there's been some artistic poaching here: a real certifiable wing-nut group taking the name of a fake certifiable wing-nut group.
Gosh, they don't even try that hard, do they?

BTW- Their ad banners suck!

Obama, the phone at 3am, and Kenya

2008-03-08T04:02:54Z

I'm wondering why this story never picked up steam and wasn't reported on more thoroughly.

And as I thought about it, this event (if Joe Klein reported it accurately) would prove Obama's best argument against Clinton's 3am phone ad and Commander in Chief claim.

Obama could say that he doesn't have to wait for the phone to ring at 3am. In fact, as president, he would be able to anticipate problems around the world and actually make the call to solve them, not wait for those 6 rings before picking it up.

He could describe that his actions with regard to the Kenya elections can underscore his foreign policy approach: deal with potential problems before they get too serious. Be proactive, not reactive. Reach out to respected and responsible world leaders and engage them in the process. This is more responsible than Clinton's passive position of waiting for a phone call. And it's far more responsible than McCain's solution to world crises.

Obama can run against both of them on this issue at the same time. This is assuming the Kenya story is true, and if he played enough of a role to warrant C in C "experience," whatever that means.

Obama, Clinton, and the 2005 Bankruptcy Law

2008-02-25T02:22:19Z

I heard someone on the radio recently claim that Sen. Obama supported the 2005 Bankruptcy Law that was written for credit card companies and by credit card companies. I remembered differently, so I thought I'd check the roll call vote.
Why is this important? Given that we're in an economic downturn, many middle class families are going to be hit hard by this law. Furthermore, Republicans blocked any exemptions for military families and those going into bankruptcy because of health care costs. They also blocked limits on predatory lending. You would think that a contender for the Democratic nomination who was looking out for the economic justice would have voted down this abomination of a bill.
The roll call vote is here.
Obama- NayClinton- Not Present (The only NP vote in the Senate)
Please pass this information along to voters in Texas and Ohio.