Most of the comments here seem to be anecdotal : teachers I've known or met. That's all well and good, but the question that needs resolution is how do we go about destroying the existing system that casts its net around them all. The good teachers who do outstanding work with children within the system are just as much or more of the problem than the time servers and the union minions. They allow the system to go chugging along and feast from the trough along with all of the others. The only question I have for them is, " How do you live with yourself when you see all around you creating pain and suffering that has no foreseeable end.?"

The only weapons available to initiate change that has a chance to endure would seem to have to come through the federal ballot box. I don't pretend to know the answer to this question, but if it comes to direct confrontation , I would not hesitate to de-certify the Union and demand that schools hire teachers to contracts based solely on merit. The status quo has got to go.

We've lost the abortion debate? What debate? All I have ever heard on this topic is well polarized accusations and vitriol. Pro Abortion advocates seek to absolve themselves from the responsibility, or accountability, or their actions. Anything beyond that is just an attempt to conceal their true motives. It's just the "Great Me Generation" asserting itself.

Roeder killed a man and will be judged by a jury of his peers according to law. The conclusions drawn from this sad event will change little. Finger pointing and vituperation from the Left and frustration and anger from the Right. And the killing of children will continue and the potential that they represent will be lost to our society. As an adopted child, I find these abortions particularly offensive to me. Their loss is our loss. A society that would sell its future for creature comfort and self indulgence in the present will not long endure.

Moral clarity regarding this practice is a whole other discussion...

Little man, blow your nose and wipe the drool from from your pimpled chin. You're yelling for attention among adults and your actions reflect poorly upon your parents - if they were to claim you.

Bravery may well be, for some, an enduring trait. The appellation of "Hero" is usually attached to a person because of a single selfless action or event. The Audie Murphys & Alvin Yorks of the world were brave men who were ennobled in our eyes by many heroic acts. What most "heros" know is that the act got them labeled as such are acts repeated many times in battle by their brothers without the recognition.

That is not to say that they are any the less deserving of the label of "Hero", only that they carry a heavy burden representing all those other brothers. God bless them all.

I guess adoption is another thing we have in common, Andrew. That and living in the loving arms of long married parents. Mine have since passed, but the warmth will live inside of me forever.

I pray for comfort and solace for his family and loved one and give thanks to God that such men as he populate the ranks of our armed forces. R.I.P. Soldier.

The concept of "embedding" is not alien to the corp. In Korea, training the Korean Marines, troops were embedded to the platoon level working with squad leaders and platoon commanders. The Army, as I remember & have read, sent "command groups" to battalion level & interacted and taught command principles to the company level. Some of this was a matter of scope & size, But later combat action clearly illustrated that the closer you are to where the rubber meets the road, the greater your chances of success. And that is what seasons your units : success..

"When the Republican party fields candidates that actually believe in it, then I'll get behind them."
Couldn't agree more. It actually depressed me to have to make the decision to vote Republican this time due to the head of the ticket. Sort of a salute to the man he used to be. We need the infusion of a "living breathing" life form to head our ticket, not some image of times past. Lets take this party and remake it into a dynamic, energetic machine that speaks to today and the tomorrows to come..

The " mustang" officer (Prior USMC enlisted) is the bedrock of the officer corp. The fact that this is so valued demonstrates the closeness that exists from top to bottom in this tightly knit combat arm.

tedkelle, I've been following this discussion (?) and find myself at a loss in understanding you preoccupation with the children as a rationale for your anti-smoking position. Can a smoldering cigarette represent a clearer or more present danger to a child than a pro-abortion citizen non-smoker? Does the capitalist owner of a business (bar/restaurant) not have the right to succeed by virtue of his own acumen? Do you possess, in your make-up, some genetic link denied the rest of us that allows you a glimpse of the ultimate needs of mankind & and the rest of us just refuse to acknowledge your talent?

I guess it's here that I confess to being one of those stinky smokers with holes and odors in my clothes. I have been addicted by choice for much of my 70+ years. I cannot remember ever blowing smoke in a child's face, or anyone else s for that matter. I carried them in my sock while in the Corps. or wrapped in a condom when we were out amongstum . I never thought that I was fighting for my right to smoke. I wore a badge in a metropolitan area for twenty one years. I never thought that upholding the law would entail such frivolous enforcement. It's hardly a violent crime no matter how much vitriol is added to the discussion.

It all boils down to this: allow the individual the right to his own success or failure in the market place and defend your right be allowed the right to self determination as to whither you frequent his establishment or not. Inalienable. Great word, huh?