Mighty AC

Even if our brew did happen to be stronger, who cares? In 'merica it's cheaper. The craft brewed gems in the US rarely go much beyond the buck a beer mark which happens to be about what we pay for the cheapest swill up here.

"You shouldn't have worn that dress!" I think that is partially true. I also think that relativism is partially to blame. To many of us seem to say 'Who are we to impose our moral standards on another culture?' If a person is raised from birth to believe that women are property, gays are evil or those with a different skin colour are inferior, can we blame him/her when they commit evil acts? What if they are also taught to believe in gods, ghosts and magic and accept that they are commanded to hold these evil beliefs? I say there is universal morality, based on human well-being and we can and should be demanding change for the better. I also think that this is impossible as long as dogma is so prevalent.

If the goal is to improve the lot of the third world, why are we not trying to improve the working conditions, environmental and safety standards of our suppliers? Seems to me that those in charge are more interested in exploitation and skirting the high cost of ethics.

No, I parroted a discussion from a talk radio show. Looking at the household income data, you're right household incomes have been relatively static for almost 40 years except for the 1%. I guess the point they were making is that it now takes 2 incomes, typically working longer hours, to earn what 1 did previously.

Why is it that deniers like to claim that climate scientists are using data incorrectly and yet have no problem ignoring ocean temperatures, when they comprise most of the planet? Similarly, obesity is not a problem if you simply ignore the west.

Once you move beyond the flipped model you'll find that even though you are not delivering a lesson everyday, you are actually doing far more work. Since you have to scaffold the entire process, providing more or less support on a group by group and concept by concept basis you will still be required to have a tonne of resources ready to be used on demand. If you do it right you will also be required to facilitate instruction well beyond the requirements of the course you're teaching. If one of the benefits of a student centered approach is allowing them to proceed at their own pace, we can't just stop them when they go beyond the reach of a particular class. We should also encourage students to explore the areas that interest them to a great depth. In this model the more advanced level students are actually more of a challenge because they explore topics you are sometimes unfamiliar with and ask questions you've never thought of. Teachers in this model have to be comfortable not knowing everything. Model the ever so important inquiry skills by seeking and evaluating information along with them. The student centered approach will eventually become the norm. When it does the logical next step, IMO, is to tear down the barriers between courses and grade levels.

Good idea Socialist. I've been working with the flipped model for a few years now. The concept seemed incredible when I first read about it. Hours of classroom time freed up to directly help and interact with students, what's not to like? We've known for a long time that lecture is an ineffective method of teaching. Even though video lectures improve information uptake because they can be viewed on demand as well as paused and replayed as needed, they are still lectures. The flipped classroom is a move in the right direction but you will soon notice that it is just the first transition step to a fully student centered model. The progression is a natural one. You start off recording your own lectures or linking to Khan Academy/You Tube/Web content and spending more time in class directly helping and formatively assessing your students. Initially your time is spent ironing out kinks in responsibility, motivation, access to technology, etc. You'll find that this model allows students to proceed at their own pace which is great but it also makes summative assessment more time consuming and difficult. At first most teachers will still force the class to write quizzes and tests at the same time as a whole group which somewhat negates the freedom to proceed at one's own pace. Once you get comfortable you can take it a few steps further. Start with the curriculum docs and work with students to develop their own learning goals. Guide them through the process of identifying the criteria that will show they've successfully mastered the content and achieved their goals and them allow them to seek out and find the information required. We already know that in the information age creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, problem identification and solving skills are more important than any content taught in any individual class. So why not teach in a manner that forces the development of these skills in every topic?

I even included a ~ as a clue.

Tough love. It is important to learn not to be raped.~ The shift away from fossil energy and the fall of middle eastern theocracies can't come soon enough for my liking.

Like most adult products and services I think some regulation in areas like access, advertising and safety standards is a good thing. Maybe one day prostitutes will be like massage therapists. There will be registered and non-registered versions, with the latter adhering to a set of standards and subject to inspections. Imagine having some prostitution coverage through benefit plans...

I think there is some room for regulation in areas such as disease testing and advertising standards.

August, why do you oppose regulated, legal prostitution?

Well said. The 'culture' of most animal populations would be considered immoral by western human culture. The physically strong generally dominate the physically weak and improve the chances their DNA will be spread. This practice is generally good for a wild population as it ensures the strong and best adapted organisms do the bulk of the breading; improving population strength. We humans have insulated ourselves from the natural selection process though. Cultural evolution is now what effects us the most. We are slowly, but steadily, overcoming our violent and brutal nature through the inheritance of ideas. Dawkins calls the cultural ideas we pass to each other, memes. The Abrahamic religions really just reflect the more brutal, male dominated, slave owning, ghost believing culture that existed at the time of writing. Like bad genes in a natural population, most bad ideas die out relatively quickly. Unfortunately, like a virus these religious 'memes' have evolved complex protection and reproduction systems. The bad ideas have been granted a cultural suit of armour. We are told that religious ideas are divine, sacred and impolite to criticize. The ideas and protection systems are injected into us at a young age, before our mental immune systems are fully developed. Like any other virus, the religious variety is difficult to fight once it takes root. The host then acts as a carrier who spreads the viral ideas to others and contributes to their cultural defense system. Fortunately, work is being done to strip away the protective sheath religious ideas still posses. Like medications though, the spread of these anti-virals is not uniform. More work has to be done to get them into the Middle East, Africa and even the United States.

On a talk radio show today I heard that 1978 was the high point for household income in North America, when adjusted for inflation. At that time over 70% of households had 1 wage earner. Since that time we have experience massive gains in GDP but household incomes have steadily declined, despite the fact that over 70% of households now have 2 wage earners. The wage depressing and primary industry destroying power of free trade between unequal nations simply decimates the working class.

I think all ideas should be subjected to scrutiny. We then elevate the good ones and denounce, mock or ridicule the bad. You are trying to wrap silly ideas in other deeds to give them power, but the secondary deeds are separate acts. Take Isaac Newton for example. The man is one of the most brilliant humans to have ever lived but we can still laugh about his belief in alchemy. The fact that the man invented calculus to solve his own physics problems doesn't somehow substantiate his belief that base metals could be turned into gold. The two ideas are separate. Jason Giambi was a phenomenal hitter, but he also believed that wearing a woman's gold coloured thong had the power to end hitting slumps. We can appreciate his great talent and still ridicule his belief in the power of ass floss. Similarly, we can honour Dr. King's fight for human rights while simultaneously denouncing his womanizing and religious beliefs. I mock them like I would group of Big Foot hunters or Wiccans because their beliefs are silly. I give more attention and scorn to the religious because as a group they help provide the clout necessary for the evil acts I've discussed in previous posts. Social and charitable groups are a great thing and they are readily available without the taint of religion. I belong to a couple myself.

Solid cover and vid. Hopefully creative YouTube projects like this will lead to success, like it has for acts like Walk Off The Earth.

There are no acts of charity that require religious affiliation...yet we can all list despicable deeds that do. Praising a group that routinely preaches evil, discriminates and denounces proven facts because they also contribute to charity is wrong headed. Should we overlook the violence perpetrated by Hamas because of their charitable deeds? The KKK thinks we should forget about racism and lynchings because they now help the homeless. http://amarillo.com/opinion/opinion-columnist/2011-05-16/klan-doing-iwhati-these-days Charity is and will continue to be done without the influence of religion. Truth matters. I don't care if a person believes in a 3,500 year old, adult nursery rhyme. Just like I don't care if my neighbour believes that the position of my couch impedes optimum chi or the old lady down the street believes in the power of Reiki, crystals and witchcraft. However, when millions get together and create political power, I care. We should all be ashamed that in the age of space stations those running to be heads of state must pretend to believe (or actually believe) in the myths and legends of ancients. The most powerful people on the planet then owe debts to dogmatic, fairy tale believing crackpots. The source of this problem has to go, even if they do make charitable donations.

Charity exists without religion. Evil also exists without religion, however, the absence of religion does not command evil acts. Truth matters. BS bothers me in general; be it religion, astrology, Reiki, feng shui, healing crystals, etc. Belief in your luck changing due to the position of your couch or a star sign you were born under is ridiculous but mostly harmless. Religion is not. This fairy tale is very destructive and has political power. Not only do people do evil to please their gods but they combat and suppress factual knowledge because it conflicts with their chosen fable. Imagine teaching that rubies have the power to teleport when fashioned into shoes, in science class. Or preventing medical research and instead employing princes to kiss anybody that loses consciousness. That's what we're doing now. Men will always lie, cheat, steal and kill for money and power. It's human nature. However, we can do something about the dangerous make believers. In fact, we are. Religiosity is in an accelerating decline. That's a good thing. When its dwindling support robs religion of political power and it becomes just another laughable myth, we will all benefit.

I'm a fan of Cornwell and have 1356 but haven't read it yet. I became addicted to the Game of Thrones TVseries so I decided to read the books as well. I'm currently part way through "A Clash of Kings"; the second book. Does anyone know if any of Martin's other works like Dreamsongs, The Hedge Knight, The Ice Dragon, etc act as prequels to or involve any of the characters from the Song of Ice and Fire books?

I can't wait to see Kingslayer live! Hodor!

Why are you comparing the Middle East to only Western nations....and only today? Are African Christians not true believers? Are the bloody deeds done by European Christians for hundreds of years forgivable? Thankfully, in recent times, Christian leaders have decided that morality trumps the word of god and pretend that much of the hate the Bible spews does not apply. I personally think that the watering down effect is a triumph of skepticism and materialism. Give people something to lose and a little knowledge and all of a sudden the men spewing BS in the name of a god start to look a lot like big foot chasers and living Elvis spotters.

I've said repeatedly that Islam is currently a far bigger problem. However, I find it pathetic when people deride Muslims and apologize for Christians in the same breath.