Arming School Janitors is a Terribly Foolish Idea

The aftermath of the Sandy Hook shooting and the ensuing national debate has generated all sorts of discussion regarding school safety and the presence of guns in American society - some veering into the downright scary and crazy.  One of the worst approaches to this dilemma is to promote the increased arming of Americans.  The nation already has 300 million guns floating around - there is no shortage of guns, and their prominence has not decreased violence or made anyone safer.  However, crisis situations can lead to irrational emotional responses, and that is precisely what has happened in one school district in Ohio.  As reported by the Huffington Post, Montpelier School District in Ohio Begins Plan to Arm Janitors, Pay for their Training.

Arming janitors or teachers or administrators as a way of increasing safety in schools is a terribly irresponsible idea that is based on no data.  For this reason, police departments across the nation oppose the idea of increased citizen gun ownership.  The reality is that an average citizen can not be adequately trained to handle what is, in effect, a near militaristic situation.  Being able to handle a violent situation with the control and precision of a police officer requires years of regular and consistent training.  To argue that a "janitor" who has been "trained" will be able to effectively take down a shooter intent on killing people in a school is to ignore a vast lack of data.  Additionally, the idea of a gun being consistently present in the hallways of schools and possessed by an individual whose expertise is building maintenance is not only reckless, but dismissive of the professionalism we require of police officers.

On the other side of the debate is the proposal by the Obama Administration to fund more armed police officers in schools.  The School Resource Officer (SRO) program is the appropriate - and only rational - response to increased safety and security at our nation's 150,000 schools.  In the two high schools where I've worked - large suburban schools - the presence of SROs is not disruptive and can be a important part of the school community.  SROs are not - or shouldn't be - the average street police.  They are trained to engage and build relationships with young people, connections built on trust.  At the same time, they are trained professionals whose entire raison d'être is to "protect and serve."  The programs may be expensive, even to the tune of $50 - $100 million a year.  But, if Americans determine they want armed people in schools, the cost is worth it, and it is the only rational and acceptable option.

Mike Shanahan's Tragic Mistake with RGIII

Since being fired from the Denver Broncos, football coach Mike Shanahan has been desperate to prove that he truly is "The Mastermind" and that he can win Super Bowl championships without numerous Hall of Famers on his team.  Apparently, that desperation reached "the breaking point" this past weekend when his decision to leave hobbled NFL rookie sensation RGIII in the playoff game resulted in RGII's heart-wrenching fall while trying to recover a snap and the tearing of his LCL.  Now, with the star quarterback potentially lost for all of next season, the backlash has begun.

While much of the commentary has been delivered by sportswriters - and disheartened Redskins fans - political writer Maureen Dowd delivered a scathing indictment of Shanahan's dangerous hubris.  Dowd and others are calling out Shanahan for not making the obvious call earlier in the game to pull Griffin who was clearly struggling and not able to play to anything close to his potential.  Clearly, this particularly troubling injury has gotten under everyone's skin for two reasons - RGIII is simply so electrifying to watch and this injury resulted from such negligent stupidity.  Would Mike Shanahan really risk the health of his franchise player (who he sold the team farm to get) just to win a playoff game?  In a sense, yes.

Obviously, Mike Shanahan did not play RGIII in the game or leave him in when he knew he was injured with the intention of ruining the young star's career.  However, coach Shanahan was clearly so blinded by his desire to win that he lacked the good sense to pull the kid.  Even former Shanny prodigy Jay Cutler had the sense to pull himself from a playoff game last year when he couldn't plant his back leg - and that didn't even require surgery.  But Shanahan let a 22-year-old amped up rookie playing in the biggest game of his life make the decision to head back on the field without doctors so much as talking to him.  And that is a serious deficit of leadership.  That is not a masterful mind.

With the injury to RGIII and the implosion of Washington's gridiron hopes, The Mastermind is no more ... if he ever was one.

Mint the $1 Trillion Coin - Save the Economy

Maybe you've heard the latest wisdom to save America from its debt crisis - "just print money."

In this case, however, it's not a common mistake made by countries like Mexico or Zimbabwe that have led to hyperinflation and nearly worthless currency.  It's a theory based on a 1996 law that allows the Treasury Department to print coins of "any denomination" to be deposited in the Federal Reserve for payment of debts incurred.  It has gained steam in recent days and now it's getting some mainstream press on NBC.   Basically, the Treasury would mint a single coin of platinum worth $1 trillion to cover the country's ability to pay its bills.

The issue might seem patently absurd, unethical, illegal, or even unconstitutional.  However, it was given credibility in recent days as Nobel-prize winning economist Paul Krugman somewhat endorsed the idea to avoid the debt ceiling fight with Republicans.  And, strangely, a Republican congressman actually gave the issue more clout by introducing a bill to prevent the Treasury Department from doing it.  If Congress has to pass a law to stop it, it must be currently "legal," right?  Well, that might be one for the courts to sort out later.

Theoretically, the Executive Branch could do this if the Congress refuses to raise the debt ceiling to pay off debts already incurred.  The printing of the $1 trillion platinum coin does not allocate any new spending, and obviously a $1 trillion coin wouldn't be put into circulation.  Thus, it is no risk for inflation, and it doesn't violate the Constitutional constraints on the authority to borrow and spend money.  Fascinating little trick that I haven't actually heard a strong argument against.  A $1 trillion coin.  Hmmm.

This could get interesting.

How to Teach Boys

It's no surprise to anyone paying attention to educational trends that society has shifted from girls and women being excluded from schooling to boys and men excluding themselves from school.  As schools struggle to close achievement gaps, the largest gaps are not actually racial but gender-based.  In fact, the data in many schools reveals low achievement among Latino students when the latinas are actually doing well, but the boys' achievement has practically bottomed out.  Girls simply seem to be getting it, while boys seem to be giving up.  No longer do we have a society where girls are ignored in math and science classes and shuffled toward teacher colleges - instead, young women account for a majority of students applying to colleges.  And from an economic sense, this disparity will only get worse as jobs for uneducated laborers continue to decline.

Motivational speaker and consultant Kelly King offers insight and analysis on How to Create a Boy Friendly School published in EdWeek.  There are plenty of excuses and explanations for why boys are struggling, including the design of school which is not boy oriented.  Regardless, the boys are there in need of education, struggling with motivation and literacy, and in need of help.  Boys can be engaged in learning, King writes, because it is their energy and enthusiasm that we love which also is the source of their struggles.  Certainly, boys can be more physical and require more tangible tasks.  Thus, it is the challenge of the teacher to address those needs and teach to those strengths.  That said, however, schools must not fall prey to dumbing down expectations or ignoring those skills that are required by an increasingly complex world.

In working with adolescent boys and seeking to develop lessons and curriculum that will engage them, there are numerous works which offer models of success.  Some of my favorites are:

Why Gender Matters - Dr. Leonard Sax

Reading Don Fix No Chevys - Jeffery Wilhelm and Michael Smith

Boys Adrift: The Five Factors Driving the Growing Epidemic of Unmotivated Boys and Underachieving Young Men  - Sax

Going with the Flow - Wilhelm and Smith

I Read It But I Don't Get It - Cris Tovani

Raising Boys - Stephen Biddulph

Raising Cain - Dan Kindlon

Best Inspirational Business Books on Life

Americans are big fans of those simple bits of advice that "just make sense" and "cut through all the crap" to explain "what you really need to know" in order to "succeed in business and in life."  From the earliest days of the republic when Founding Father and fountain of wisdom Benjamin Franklin offered his Poor Richards's Almanac filled with aphorisms, Americans have literally eaten up the sort of books that offer the aphorisms and advice that will enable them to, in the words of Henry David Thoreau, "live the life they have imagined."  That said, I have taken a look at the business books that have really rung true in the advice they offer.  As an English teacher, I read a lot of books, and I recommend a book a day to my students.  Thus, I am always looking for those books that seem to sum up the lessons that are generally the same and that point people in the direction they need to go.  The book that inspired this post is one  by Daniel Pink - an "Ideas Guru" - who has written for the Washington Post before developing a series of business-oriented lifestyle books.  That book was:

The Adventures of Johnny Bunko: The Last Career Advice Guide You'll Every Need.

This "business book" is written in the form of a Manga comic book, which appeals to younger readers in a multi-genre sort of way.

Other great books that simplify and really clarify the business and life experience are:

The One Minute Manager

Who Moved My Cheese

How to Win Friends and Influence People

A Whole New Mind

These are great, accessible books that you should read if you are interested in becoming better at what you do.

Great Advice for E-book Writers

Like many aspiring novelists and writers who are seeking to take advantage of new opportunities in e-book publishing, I have been overwhelmed with all the possibilities.  And I've also been challenged by trying to navigate the technologies of ebook publishing.  For example, some ebooks are simply presented on websites as a pdf. file, but that is not the format to be used if a writer wants to sell books for use with an Amazon Kindle or a Barnes and Nobel Nook or an Apple iPad.  The Kindle Direct Publishing format was a pretty simple and accessible way to start, and I also discovered SmashWords which offered the platform to publish for numerous markets from Amazon to Apple.  However, the style and presentation expectations are different than preparing a text for a print publisher, and there is often much conflicting information on "how to format your ebook."

That's where Catherine Ryan Howard - aka - Catherine Caffeinated - is quite helpful.

Catherine's website is devoted to the craft of self-publishing, and Catherine is committed to sharing her knowledge of the industry.  In the world of e-book publishing Catherine seems to have tried it all, and she has numerous posts about all the different avenues.  For example, if you have questions on formatting or the business side of ebook publishing, Catherine has a page of links to all these issues.  I had uploaded my ebook to Smashwords, but I was delayed in getting it accepted to the Premium program because of formatting.  I couldn't completely remove the tabs or text boxes, and my ebook cover did not meet standards.  The tab problems resulted from me trying to adapt a traditional manuscript - because I wasn't going to retype 90,000 words.  Trying to understand Smashwords style guide was overwhelming, and I couldn't quite figure out the "nuclear option."  However, following methodically through Catherine's post solved all my problems.  This post by Catherine is the single most valuable ebook publishing post I've found so far.

I am really thankful that people like Catherine have put together blogs sharing their knowledge.  If you are struggling with how to publish your novel as an ebook, check out Catherine's blog.  And, of course, if you want to compensate her for all the help, you might consider buying one of her books.

Tax America's Junk Food Addiction

"But it tastes good."

If I had a dollar for every time I heard this lame excuse, or justification, for why some chooses to eat fast food, I'd be a very rich man.  And, I'd still be a lot healthier than the average American.  No one really thinks fast food is good food, and no one argues for its health benefits.  Few people would even assert that the poor quality of fast and heavily processed food is not a significant health concern.  Everyone knows it is.  Regardless, Americans are loathe to give up or concede to stiffer regulation to one of the most obvious contributors to the obesity and health crisis in the United States.  Too many Americans are simply careless when it comes to what sort of "food" they will regularly put into their bodies.

Americans, still, are conflicted over what to do about rising obesity rates and its clear link to fast food and processed food consumption.  Recent polls suggest that Americans actually want the government to do something about the country's obesity problem.  However, in their traditions of being clueless and hypocritical about what they want and what they think government should do, Americans also oppose any attempts by the government to regulate food or encourage healthier choices.  In reality, an individual has a right to eat whatever he chooses.  That said, with the American government responsible for the health care costs of millions of people on Medicare, the taxpayers do have a legitimate financial interest in improving Americans' eating habits.  Additionally, in the private health care system, healthier people end up paying the price for unhealthier ones.  And, taxing behavior to discourage excessive use is a legitimate and time tested way of modifying behavior - it clearly worked to lower smoking rates.  So, for all but the seriously irrational and ideological, taxes on diet vices should be considered a legitimate public health response.

The negative impact of eating fast food is most obviously because "there's no food in fast food."  Of course, it's not like anyone really believes fast food is good quality.  They are simply willing to feed themselves really crappy "food products."  And that is America's biggest problem - we have very low standards and don't treat ourselves very well.  Seriously, why would someone be willing to eat from the "dollar menu" - unless, of course, he really only values himself that much.  The problem is that in a complex health care system that leverages and dilutes risk through a large pool, one person's poor habits negatively impact the quality of life and cost of health care for others who actually "care" about their "health."  In other words, someone else's poor habits literally raise my health care rates.  So, yes, it is my business.

Until people care about their health, America will suffer from a health care crisis.  And eating fast food is quite simply careless.

No Vote for Barry Bonds - and Steroids Users - in Hall of Fame

Call me a purist and a holier-than-thou elitist, but I firmly oppose the inclusion of Barry Bonds and other steroid users in baseball's Hall of Fame.  As the voting ballots go out this week, and the debate over Barry Bonds' and Roger Clemens' worthiness of Hall of Fame entry goes into high gear, I stand resolute that sportswriters should "Just Say NO" to performance-enhancing drug use by professional athletes.  This week Denver Post sportswriter Troy E. Renck insightfully and succinctly expresses the reservations felt by many sports fans regarding steroid use and professional awards.  Certainly, there are logical arguments for and against the inclusion of the steroid users in the Hall.  If nothing else, their accomplishments and achievements in the game cannot be refuted.  And, many would argue that simply putting an asterisk next to the records - or setting up a "performance enhanced wing" of the Hall - would be sufficient.  Time will tell how society views these flawed men.  No man is the sum of his worst act, and perhaps a little forgiveness is due.  But, for the time being I like Renck's assertion that now is too soon for the Barry Bonds Hall of Fame dilemma to be decided.

Marketing an E-book

For many years, I imagined myself as an author, and I stumbled through the forest of traditional publishing for more than a decade, hoping an agent or publisher would punch my lottery ticket and make me a success with one or more of the novels I'd written.  Alas, it was never to be, though I had many great stops and starts along the way, getting interest and feedback from some top literary agents.  It was roughly a year ago, however, that I concluded I am not a novelist or screenwriter.  After speaking with a friend who had finally - and justifiably - secured an agency contract for his fiction, I realized that non-fiction writing is actually where I am successful.  Thus, I am refocusing my writing career by seeking to develop my blogging and newspaper commentary.

With that in mind I began to explore the possibilities of e-book publishing that have developed via the rise of Amazon Kindle Publishing, as well as all associated markets from direct e-book publishers like Smashwords to Apple iBooks and Barnes and Noble Nook Publishing.  As an experiment, I went ahead and self-published the one novel that I actually felt good enough about to present to the public.  The thought of vanity publishing always bothered me, but the rise of internet publishing - and the moderate interest my book always generated among agents - convinced me that I could move forward with the publishing of my novel with a modicum of my integrity intact.

Since publishing my novel I Don't Know on Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing and Smashwords, I have generated very little in sales or interest.  However, that may be a result of the minimal effort I put into marketing the book.  That's a lesson for aspiring e-book authors - You have to do the marketing that would normally have been handled by your agent and publisher.  All I've done so far is post a link to Kindle Direct Publishing on my blog, and that has generated a few sales among my most loyal readers or curious blog wanderers.  How to Market an E-book from the eHow.com website is a pretty effective explanations of how to market ebooks, and it's certainly worth checking out.  As I learn more about the process and potentially publish more of my work, I will revisit the idea of e-book marketing and what are the best and most successful approaches.

Liberal Arts Colleges Struggle Amidst STEM and Business Push

Justin Pope of the Associate Press explores the challenges faced by the traditional liberal arts colleges that were once the heart and soul of higher education.  The liberal arts have been the target of contemptuous attacks in recent years as the American economy struggles to produce enough scientists, engineers, doctors, accountants, and technicians to prop up an economy that has become more efficient and, often, outsourced.  The myopic focus on STEM majors - and even STEM high schools - has led to claims by simple-minded business types who argue that the whole purpose of education is to prepare students to become effective workers in the marketplace.  And that Dickensian proposition is just sad.

The liberal arts - and notably liberal arts colleges - have been the foundation of our cultural soul for as long as we've been civilized societies.  Accounting and engineering may be the basis of the comfortable nature of our lives, but it is the arts and the deep thinking that makes those lives worth living.  And the success of corporations like Apple - a company which effectively markets its products via a focus on empathy and design - has depended on visionaries like Steve Jobs looking beyond simple market practicality.  Jobs wanted his products to feed our souls, even as it filled his bank account.  And it's the liberal arts that contribute to make humanity the focus of our business.

It will be a sad day if the liberal arts college goes the way of the typewriter.

Peyton Manning is Undoubtedly the 2012 MVP

Being from Colorado, I would be remiss if I did not post on the Denver Broncos and the Peyton Manning phenomenon after the Broncos wrapped up a 13-3 season, securing the number one seed and home field advantage in the playoffs.  This is a team that was 8-8 a year ago with little Timmy Tebow at the helm, and is now considered a favorite for the SuperBowl after only three losses to top teams, Houston, Atlanta, and New England.  With all that in mind, it is impossible to dispute the assumption that Peyton Manning should be the NFL MVP for 2012.

*check the link for more information on why it's not Adrien Peterson.

Do Video Games Make Kids Violent?

In the aftermath of the Sandy Hook school shooting - or any mass shooting really - the talk will inevitably turn to the potential "cause" of violent video games.  Do violent video games make people violent or more aggressive?  Do they "desensitize" young people to violence?  Does that make them less empathetic and more prone to hurt, or simply not care about, other people?  It seems like an easy and obvious answer.  And, even the president of the NRA used "violent media" as an excuse for gun violence while, at the same time, defending guns.

Like all societal issues, the answer is not so simple.

Media certainly plays a role in our life, and it most definitely influences people.  However, it's a stretch to say that violent media, especially video games, causes people to commit violence.  That's true simply because the vast majority of people who use violent media do not, in fact, become homicidal sociopaths.  However, it is equally irrational to argue that violent media does not "influence" people.  Research over many years proves that media can desensitize viewers and users.  One of the most comprehensive studies by Iowa State psychology professor Craig Anderson proves as conclusively as can be done that "violent video game play does make kids more aggressive." Anderson's research is a review and synthesis of more than one hundred other studies, and the results are all but undeniable to anyone who respects science and research.

Of course, identifying these factors does not mean any change will come to society.  Video games - especially violent forms such as Call of Duty or Mortal Combat - are a huge billion dollar industry that is simply not going away.  That said, recent shootings such as Sandy Hook Elementary and the Aurora, Colorado movie theater shooting indicate a need and willingness to re-direct the public policy debate concerning violent media.  Commentators will continue to call for action limiting the usage of violent media, though that directive is most often aimed at encouraging parents to closely monitor their own children.  Most people will concede that the action has to come at the level of individual choice among parents and young people.

Young people will continue to play video games, and after tragedies like mass shootings, people will debate the effects.  Clearly, violent media did not create or directly cause the recent tragedies in Connecticut or Colorado or San Diego.  And the majority of people who are exposed to violent media won't re-create the violence in their real lives.  However, as the tragedies continue, people will hopefully consider the warning from psychologist Dr. Leonard Sax in his book Boys Adrift that violent media is contributing to "a growing proportion of boys who are disengaged not only from school but from the real world."