There is another independent movie that is being made that I am looking forward to seeing. It is called IndoctriNation. You can see clips and the trailer here. (They aren't allowing embedding at this time.) This documentary ties the indoctrination of our kids in the public school system to the decline of Christianity in America.
One thing that the movie points out is that there is no such thing as a worldview neutral education. All education seeks to transform the mind not just with straight facts but with ideals. I think many Christians don't want to believe this. They want the broad way, the easy way to be the best way when it comes to education.
I know that people can send their kids to public school and end up with devout Christians. I also believe that this is only possible with intense re-doctrination when the kids are at home.
I also know that some parents have no other choice. But I would say that this number is far fewer than the number of Christian parents that send their kids to public school.
Thoughts? Comments?
Friday, May 28, 2010
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Sad but Funny
I happened upon this Rasmussen survey and thought I would share.
The latest national telephone survey of Likely Voters finds that 41% say a group of people selected at random from the phone book would do a better job addressing the nation’s problems than the current Congress. Almost as many (38%) disagree, however, and another 20% are undecided.
The latest national telephone survey of Likely Voters finds that 41% say a group of people selected at random from the phone book would do a better job addressing the nation’s problems than the current Congress. Almost as many (38%) disagree, however, and another 20% are undecided.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Sixteen Brides by Stephanie Grace Whitson
I received Sixteen Brides by Stephanie Whitson on Thursday and couldn't put it down the whole weekend. The story revolves around civil war widows who want to make a new life by claiming homesteads in Nebraska. Sixteen women are going west together with train tickets purchased for them by the "Ladies Emigration Society". They find out later that this is not on the up and up.
Before you start to feel overwhelmed at the thought of keeping track of 16 women, the focus is on five of the ladies with glimpes at the others. And if millions of people can keep track of the first season of Lost, you can keep track of these ladies. The story is well worth it.
The five main ladies have to overcome things that are still around today. Ella feels like she is not a real woman because she is tall and "beefy" and not pretty to look at. Sally is overcoming an abusive relationship. Ruth is still grieving the loss of her true love after 3 years. Caroline has been branded a traitor by her family for her choice of husband. And Hettie . . . well you'll just have to wait to the end of the book to find out.
This is a very engaging tale that weaves God in subtly largely through Ella's mother, Zita. I do wish that there was a bit more about the spiritual transformation of the people, but I still give this book a big thumbs up.
Before you start to feel overwhelmed at the thought of keeping track of 16 women, the focus is on five of the ladies with glimpes at the others. And if millions of people can keep track of the first season of Lost, you can keep track of these ladies. The story is well worth it.
The five main ladies have to overcome things that are still around today. Ella feels like she is not a real woman because she is tall and "beefy" and not pretty to look at. Sally is overcoming an abusive relationship. Ruth is still grieving the loss of her true love after 3 years. Caroline has been branded a traitor by her family for her choice of husband. And Hettie . . . well you'll just have to wait to the end of the book to find out.
This is a very engaging tale that weaves God in subtly largely through Ella's mother, Zita. I do wish that there was a bit more about the spiritual transformation of the people, but I still give this book a big thumbs up.
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Good News and Bad News
Good News/ Bad News #1
I got a notice from the county tax assessor the other day saying that we would owe less property taxes next year because our homes value had gone down by about 12%. At first I was excited. Let's face it; less taxes is nice. Then I was slightlly concerned. Did that mean we could even get what we owe out of our house if we tried to sell it? Good thing we don't forsee moving anytime soon.
Good News/Bad News #2- In which the helpful IRS agent turns it into all good news
I got a notice on Thursday that we owed the IRS an additional $2,000 +. This is on top of the money withheld and the money I sent a check for back in March. So I panic and then carefully read the documents that came with the notice. Turns out I forgot my kids SSN on the first page. So I call the 800 number expecting a rude IRS employee to tell me it will take forever and three forms to get the matter resolved and in the mean time I am still responsible for the two grand. Instead I get a very friendly IRS agent who has me verify some information and give the SSN. He then put me on hold then came back and said my 1040 was ammended and I wouldn't owe anything. Then he asked me if I wanted to take a deduction that I hadn't taken for the kids. I didn't even know for sure what it was but I said OK. He put me on hold again and came back with the announcement that I would get about $800 in a refund. Go, IRS guy.
Now don't start thinking that I have changed my mind about the IRS needing to go and be replaced with the FairTax. But it is nice to deal with pleasant, helpful people.
I got a notice from the county tax assessor the other day saying that we would owe less property taxes next year because our homes value had gone down by about 12%. At first I was excited. Let's face it; less taxes is nice. Then I was slightlly concerned. Did that mean we could even get what we owe out of our house if we tried to sell it? Good thing we don't forsee moving anytime soon.
Good News/Bad News #2- In which the helpful IRS agent turns it into all good news
I got a notice on Thursday that we owed the IRS an additional $2,000 +. This is on top of the money withheld and the money I sent a check for back in March. So I panic and then carefully read the documents that came with the notice. Turns out I forgot my kids SSN on the first page. So I call the 800 number expecting a rude IRS employee to tell me it will take forever and three forms to get the matter resolved and in the mean time I am still responsible for the two grand. Instead I get a very friendly IRS agent who has me verify some information and give the SSN. He then put me on hold then came back and said my 1040 was ammended and I wouldn't owe anything. Then he asked me if I wanted to take a deduction that I hadn't taken for the kids. I didn't even know for sure what it was but I said OK. He put me on hold again and came back with the announcement that I would get about $800 in a refund. Go, IRS guy.
Now don't start thinking that I have changed my mind about the IRS needing to go and be replaced with the FairTax. But it is nice to deal with pleasant, helpful people.
Friday, April 30, 2010
Two Trailers Worth Watching
Today I came across two trailers that are worth looking into. The first is for an independent movie called BloodMoney. I can't embed it so you will have to actually follow a link to watch it. It is a documentary about the abortion industry from a pro-life perspective.
The second trailer is for a DVD series called Resisting the Green Dragon. Here is the blurb from the website.
And here is the trailer:
The second trailer is for a DVD series called Resisting the Green Dragon. Here is the blurb from the website.
And here is the trailer:Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Crazy World
The May 2010 issue of Newsmax has an article called "Abuse, Waste, and Blunders". In it Clayton B. Reid recounts many of the idiotic things our federal government has given money for in the name of job creation and "stimulus". It is an article worth reading though it might make you a little sick. Take this one for example.
It seems like a simple enough message: If you're a drug user, use a condom. But the folks at the University of Washington in Seattle think the Real Men Are Safe project, which stresses that message, appeals only to white men. So they'll be using $448,112 in public funds to make the program "more culturally relevant" to black and Hispanic men. To accomplish this, they will convene a panel "of academic and community based-experts knowledgeable in HIV prevention in African-American and Hispanic communities" to revise materials to be more minority friendly. It creates no jobs.
This to me is sickening on so many levels. First of all, shouldn't the slogan be something like Real Men Don't Do Drugs and Wait for Marriage. Wouldn't that do the most to prevent HIV among all communities? Second, let's look at how many people this will actually "help". There are about 80,000 blacks and Hispanics in the greater Seattle area. Let's assume that 40,000 of them are male and 30,000 of those are old enough to be doing drugs and sleeping around. Let's say these people in Seattle are about on the national average for drug use so we'll say about 2,400 black or Hispanic males in the Seattle area do drugs (and sleep around). How many of these people will even see the new message and/or be aware enough at the time to make sense of it? The whole thing seems pretty ridiculous.
It seems like a simple enough message: If you're a drug user, use a condom. But the folks at the University of Washington in Seattle think the Real Men Are Safe project, which stresses that message, appeals only to white men. So they'll be using $448,112 in public funds to make the program "more culturally relevant" to black and Hispanic men. To accomplish this, they will convene a panel "of academic and community based-experts knowledgeable in HIV prevention in African-American and Hispanic communities" to revise materials to be more minority friendly. It creates no jobs.
This to me is sickening on so many levels. First of all, shouldn't the slogan be something like Real Men Don't Do Drugs and Wait for Marriage. Wouldn't that do the most to prevent HIV among all communities? Second, let's look at how many people this will actually "help". There are about 80,000 blacks and Hispanics in the greater Seattle area. Let's assume that 40,000 of them are male and 30,000 of those are old enough to be doing drugs and sleeping around. Let's say these people in Seattle are about on the national average for drug use so we'll say about 2,400 black or Hispanic males in the Seattle area do drugs (and sleep around). How many of these people will even see the new message and/or be aware enough at the time to make sense of it? The whole thing seems pretty ridiculous.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Quite a Week
We have had quite a week. Saturday and Sunday was a fundraiser for Real Choices Pregnancy Center. This is a big deal to me because I have been working for years to get my church to be more pro-active in the abortion front. And now I am one of the people in charge of the fundraiser. I am excited to see what God will do.
Tuesday we got to see John Williams conducting the Fort Worth Symphony in some of his music. This was especially cool for my husband. He is a big fan and has been saving and plotting for a long time for us to be able to do this. The kids did great and especially enjoyed the Star Wars and Indiana Jones parts of the concert.
Then yesterday we went to Camp El Tesoro for their Homeschool Adventure Day. We had a blast. We got to choose 5 activities. First we searched for and categorized fossils. We mostly found bivalves though they had some examples of larger cephalopod fossils from the area. The next activity was the nature hike. This was the best part of the day for me because I found this guy beside the path.
It is a poisonous pit viper called a copperhead. Then our guide declared that he was going to catch it and take it back to the main lodge so that the other families could see it.
Obviously, this is not something you should try at home. After this we had a picnic lunch and moved on to archery. We all really enjoyed this. The staff was very patient with us and we all got to shoot about 15-20 arrows before the session was over. Then we went to the birdwatching class and a hayride. The last thing of the day was cooking s'mores over a campfire. That was fun and a good snack to tide us over on the hour ride home.
Also, I have to mention, the bluebonnets were spectacular. I really like our state flower.
Tuesday we got to see John Williams conducting the Fort Worth Symphony in some of his music. This was especially cool for my husband. He is a big fan and has been saving and plotting for a long time for us to be able to do this. The kids did great and especially enjoyed the Star Wars and Indiana Jones parts of the concert.
Then yesterday we went to Camp El Tesoro for their Homeschool Adventure Day. We had a blast. We got to choose 5 activities. First we searched for and categorized fossils. We mostly found bivalves though they had some examples of larger cephalopod fossils from the area. The next activity was the nature hike. This was the best part of the day for me because I found this guy beside the path.
It is a poisonous pit viper called a copperhead. Then our guide declared that he was going to catch it and take it back to the main lodge so that the other families could see it.
Obviously, this is not something you should try at home. After this we had a picnic lunch and moved on to archery. We all really enjoyed this. The staff was very patient with us and we all got to shoot about 15-20 arrows before the session was over. Then we went to the birdwatching class and a hayride. The last thing of the day was cooking s'mores over a campfire. That was fun and a good snack to tide us over on the hour ride home. Also, I have to mention, the bluebonnets were spectacular. I really like our state flower.
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