West Virginia Blue
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You're walking down the street, minding your own business when all of a sudden a well-dressed man in an expensive three-piece suit jumps out of an alley, whips a contract out of his pocket and yells "Give me all your money!" You're terrified of reading all the legalese and he's got a whole pack of lawyers and bankers and bought off government officials in his entourage, so you fork over all your cash and promise to make a monthly payment.
The well-dressed man in the three-piece suit starts to walk away and you think to yourself, "Hey, wait a minute! I just got robbed!" Angry, you storm after him, tap him on the shoulder and yell, "Hey, I just lost all my money!"
But this is when the well-dressed man in the three-piece suit shows his true criminal genius. "You're right!" he says, throwing you off guard. You hadn't expected him to agree with you and validate your anger. And he says it with such enthusiasm and charisma, and here is this very wealthy man who seems to identify with you on an emotional level. It feels good. "I can't believe all that you've lost! You've made sacrifices! You're down on your luck! That's not fair at all!"
Speaker Thompson is one of the front runners in the upcoming Democratic primary for Governor but is he turning his back on key Democratic initiatives? Education, LGBT rights, and health care have all been thwarted by Thompson.
Thompson has been unable to get legislation through his chamber on education- efforts that have kept WV from receiving huge sums of funding from the Obama Administration's Race to the Top. I am with the teacher's unions but something must be done and Thompson's inability to find a compromise over the past few years has been telling of his leadership ability.
Thompson has thwarted efforts again this year to pass anti discrimination legislation that would protect LGBT West Virginians from work place discrimination because of their sexual orientation. This legislation passed the Senate the past two years because of support from acting Senate President Kessler to only die in the House.
Finally, the House looks like it will fail to pass legislation to allow the State to implement federal health reform. Kessler's Senate has passed this legislation but nothing has taken place in the House on anything health reform related, including the so called health insurance exchange.
All of these issues are core to the Democratic platform and Thompson has failed on all three. There is still time this session for Thompson to do something to prove to voters he is worthy of consideration. If he thinks playing his guitar will win him favor with the Democratic base or progressives he is badly off key.
Education Week released its annual Quality Counts report card and West Virginia (free registration required by the site to view content) received an overall grade of 79.9, a B- grade, and ranked 10th in the nation.
Quite frankly, there is not much of a choice here: if you don't vote, you will condemn us to changes in our country that will be hard to live with and harder to overcome in the future.
For instance, Republican Senate candidates Linda McMahon in Connecticut, Rand Paul in Kentucky, John Raese in West Virginia, and Dino Rossi in Washington have all pledged to roll back or eliminate the minimum wage.
Sharron Angle in Nevada, Ken Buck in Colorado, and Pat Toomey in Pennsylvania have all talked about privatizing Social Security - or eliminating it altogether.
We are spending $2 Billion a week in Afghanistan. If you want to see zeros, that's $2,000,000,000.00 a week. It also means $104 Billion a year.
Meanwhile, we can't afford to keep our education budgets in functional condition. We can't reduce our National Debt. We can't bring down our operating deficit. And we are spending a fortune on foreign servicing (read China) of our debt.
Not pertaining directly to progressive West Virginia politics, but this is most certainly relevant to West Virginia itself.
The Elewana Education Project was recently started by West Virginia native Rev. Zachary Drennen in coordination with the Episcopal/Anglican church to help foster growth in education and sponsor children in Kenya to go to school.
I am now doing the first part of my blog regarding the Elewana Education Project in Western Kenya. As I sit here now, I am in the confines of the Katakwa Mission House in Amagoro, Kenya. This initial blog may be fairly small but the second part which will be issued in the coming weeks will be more detailed.
Before I begin I must tell the folks back home a bit about Kenya, the first rule of Kenya anyway. The first rule is that there is only one road rule. The larger vehicle has the right of way. You will try to drive on the left side of the road when it is convenient, but that is not necessarily what always happens. Potholes are a pain, and will cause large semi-trucks to flip and crash in the middle of the night. The corruption is staggering and Kenya itself is going through a rough political time due to a referendum on a much needed new constitution.
The crux of the project is to provide sponsorship through scholarships to students in the western Kenyan area in order to help foster their educational growth and advancement through the Kenyan school system. Although this is the idea of the project, it has grown into much more. Much of my time here has been spent getting the children of the schools we visit familiar with computers and helping them establish their own g-mail accounts to email each other. The computer labs were started and financed by people who donate to the non-profit education project, so its a wonderful thing to see the children's eyes widen as they see their e-mail address pop up on the screen. Their very own e-mail. Something we in the states take for granted, but to the children (and adults) in Kenya it is amazing and incredibly new and exciting to them.
A lot of the schools computer labs are powered by solar panels, also provided by the Elewana Education Project. I'll try to post pictures of the units as soon as I can but they are quite impressive to have in the rural African schools we visit. The large batteries that the units power slowly evaporate distilled water. As long as the water exists inside the batteries, and general mainteneance is upheld, then the units will last quite a long time.
The Elewana Education Project was started by Rev. Zachary Drennen and was initially only sponsoring a small amount of students. Today it sponsors roughly 130 (i believe) with scholarships that pay for the costs of their schooling. Most sponsored students are in Western Kenya, but some go to schools in Uganda as well. Crossing the border there is a pain in the rear for a white person (Mzungu in Swahili).
I am off to teach an English class today to girls hoping to become teachers. I will try to give a more detailed blog later on. For now, however, I strongly encourage you to check out the website (www.elewana.org) and see all of the great things this project is accomplishing.
Not pertaining directly to progressive West Virginia politics, but this is most certainly relevant to West Virginia itself.
The Elewana Education Project was recently started by West Virginia native Rev. Zachary Drennen in coordination with the Episcopal/Anglican church to help foster growth in education and sponsor children in Kenya to go to school.
I am now doing the first part of my blog regarding the Elewana Education Project in Western Kenya. As I sit here now, I am in the confines of the Katakwa Mission House in Amagoro, Kenya. This initial blog may be fairly small but the second part which will be issued in the coming weeks will be more detailed.
Before I begin I must tell the folks back home a bit about Kenya, the first rule of Kenya anyway. The first rule is that there is only one road rule. The larger vehicle has the right of way. You will try to drive on the left side of the road when it is convenient, but that is not necessarily what always happens. Potholes are a pain, and will cause large semi-trucks to flip and crash in the middle of the night. The corruption is staggering and Kenya itself is going through a rough political time due to a referendum on a much needed new constitution.
The crux of the project is to provide sponsorship through scholarships to students in the western Kenyan area in order to help foster their educational growth and advancement through the Kenyan school system. Although this is the idea of the project, it has grown into much more. Much of my time here has been spent getting the children of the schools we visit familiar with computers and helping them establish their own g-mail accounts to email each other. The computer labs were started and financed by people who donate to the non-profit education project, so its a wonderful thing to see the children's eyes widen as they see their e-mail address pop up on the screen. Their very own e-mail. Something we in the states take for granted, but to the children (and adults) in Kenya it is amazing and incredibly new and exciting to them.
A lot of the schools computer labs are powered by solar panels, also provided by the Elewana Education Project. I'll try to post pictures of the units as soon as I can but they are quite impressive to have in the rural African schools we visit. The large batteries that the units power slowly evaporate distilled water. As long as the water exists inside the batteries, and general mainteneance is upheld, then the units will last quite a long time.
The Elewana Education Project was started by Rev. Zachary Drennen and was initially only sponsoring a small amount of students. Today it sponsors roughly 130 (i believe) with scholarships that pay for the costs of their schooling. Most sponsored students are in Western Kenya, but some go to schools in Uganda as well. Crossing the border there is a pain in the rear for a white person (Mzungu in Swahili).
I am off to teach an English class today to girls hoping to become teachers. I will try to give a more detailed blog later on. For now, however, I strongly encourage you to check out the website (www.elewana.org) and see all of the great things this project is accomplishing.
The Appalachian Leadership and Education Foundation (ALEF), a non-profit organization funded by foundations and companies, supports and enables young men and women from Appalachia to pursue higher education though scholarship and leadership curriculum. The program includes an emphasis toward the preparation required to be the leaders of the next decade. The concept of operations for ALEF is to partner with established academic institutions across Appalachia to provide the technical skills necessary as the basis for credible leadership.
Obama picked 10 charities in all to make donations to, with ALEF being one of six charities that helps prepare students for higher education. Those six are each receiving $125,000. The other five are: American Indian College Fund, College Summit, the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, the Posse Foundation and the United Negro College Fund.
Get the word out. If you know a current high school senior who is good on civil liberties issues and looking to go to college next fall, please make sure they know about the ACLU's Youth Activist Scholarship Program.
The requirements are pretty modest.
A demonstrated commitment to civil liberties issues through some sort of activism
You have to be a high school senior
You have to be enrolled in, or planning to enroll in an accredited college or university as a full time, degree seeking student
So, if you know anyone that you feel falls into this category, please get word to them. The process of evaluatiing applications takes a little time, and the deadline is the end of November.
Debate and votes on amendments have been going on over the lasttwo days. My understanding is that this claws back the fees and subsidies to private banks for making student loans, re-invests 88% of those the savings back into community colleges, schools in areas with natural disasters and increases in Pell Grants, then returns $10 billion over ten year to the General Fund. Some colleges already have decided to skip private banks.
Agreeing to the Rule for Debate #703 241-175 Mollohan AYE
Rahal AYE
Ca-pee-toe NO
And since there are no funds for ACORN in the bill, Rep. Issa (R-CA) has a motion to recommit and amend the bill to defund ACORN. (I consider it a cheap trick.) #718 345-75 Mollohan NO
Rahal NO
Capito AYE
Final Passage H.R. 3221 to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965, and for other purposes #719 253-171 Mollohan AYE
Rahal AYE
Ca-pee-toe NO
Kudos to the students of the two West Virginia schools which earned the 2009 National Blue Ribbon Schools award. And special recognition to the teachers, the parents, and especially to the county school boards of Wirt and Hancock, WV, for their fine support.
Only 50 private schools and 264 public schools across the U.S. earned the 2009 National Blue Ribbon distinction of excellence.
Public schools are judged based on at least one of two criteria: Schools whose students, regardless of background, achieve in the top 10 percent of their state on state standardized tests; and schools with at least 40 percent of their students from disadvantaged backgrounds who demonstrate dramatic improvement and reach high levels on state tests or nationally benchmarked tests. source
Wirt County's leading industries include lumber, petroleum, hay and grain, livestock, poultry, dairying.
Although the US Geological studies show that there are some coal reserves there, they don't mine it.
In Hancock county, the jurisdiction under which Weirton's Liberty Elementary falls, the leading industries include the production of iron and steel including tin plate, chrome plate, hot and cold rolled, galvanized, and structural shapes and piling; chinaware, pottery, brick and fire clay; sheet metal; tin products; apples, dairying, livestock.
They don't choose to mine the coal reserves in that county, either.
Yet the support for their schools has been nationally recognized as EXCELLENT.
In contrast, 4 out of 5 school districts which have had to be seized by the state of WV due to lack of funding have been in counties where coal extraction is by far the top industry. And although the tons of coal produced per man efficiency is at an all time high in Mingo county, that school board has had to be taken over by the state TWICE. In fact, Mingo county's teachers have even had to circulate petitions just to could get paid a decent salary!
FACT: According to last available census data (2007) in coal-rich Mingo 24.9% of all folks living there were below the nationally recognized poverty level. In Wirt County, the rate of poverty was 18.7% and in Hancock county the 2007 poverty rate was 12.7%.
Meanwhile, the aquifer in the Ming communities of Rawl, Sprigg, Merrimac, and Lick Creek have been poisoned by Lead, manganese, arsenic, barium, selenium, iron, and beryllium.
According to a team of corporate lawyers, it is purely coincidental that Massey Energy has been injecting coal slurry in that area since 1977. And nevermind that folks in those communities are getting sick and dying at a far higher rate than non-coal producing towns.
FACT: There are more than 400 coal slurry injection sites across WV.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- If Marco and the Mountaineer can live in harmony, is there hope for fans of the Thundering Herd and the Blue and Gold?
Marshall University's Trey Barker and West Virginia University's Rebecca Durst, each the mascot for their university, grew up together in Point Pleasant and share a long friendship. Both are 20 years old.
First, both attended kindergarten at Roosevelt Elementary School in Mason County, Barker said.
On the first day of school, their friendship blossomed after one little incident.
"I guess she thought I was cute," Barker said. "She kissed me on the cheek and I ran up the hallway and told a teacher."
I'm nearly certain this is one of the signs of the impending apocalypse.
Sitting alone at night in secret study;
I have seen on the brass tripod.
A slight flame comes out of the emptiness and
makes successful that which should not be believed in vain.
Thundering Marco and Thunderous Mountain Dweller
Shall clasp hands in a season of championships
And victorious shall be their endeavors.
Nostradamus can be kind of vague and difficult to interpret.
As Governor, I was truly privileged to recognize the 2009 West Virginia Golden Horseshoe Award winners a couple of weeks. About 225 eighth graders were inducted as "knights" and "ladies" into the prestigious, historic Golden Horseshoe Society.
Having been administered since 1931, the Golden Horseshoe test acknowledges the state's top West Virginia history students. It is the longest-running program of its kind in the nation, making it a most impressive award. I commend the outstanding hard work, commitment and perseverance shown by these students. Their efforts have certainly paid off, allowing them to be the top scoring students in the Mountain State.
I applaud this year's award recipients, and I welcome each one into the Golden Horseshoe Society. Membership in this elite group is certainly a West Virginia distinction.
This year's students joined more than 15,000 students who have received this recognition - these are West Virginians we want to encourage to come back and visit the Capitol grounds. Therefore, it is with great pleasure that I officially invite all past and present Golden Horseshoe winners to attend the 2009 Golden Horseshoe Reunion on Friday, June 19, 2009 at the State Capitol.
This one-day reunion is free, and the day's festivities range from a VIP tour of the all-new State Museum to an evening concert. This event is being coordinated through the Department of Education and the Arts in conjunction with its Division of Culture and History. The deadline to register is Friday, May 15, 2009. Golden Horseshoe Winners may find out more information and register for the event by going to www.wv.gov/ghreunion or contacting the Department of Education and the Arts at 304-558-2440.
This is only the second time that past-winners have officially gathered on the Capitol grounds. The previous reunion in 1996 attracted more than 800 winners.
This reunion is a great way for our state to recognize the legacy of hundreds of outstanding West Virginia history students. I encourage all past and current winners to bring their family and friends to this reunion, which showcases the importance of our state's heritage, while also highlighting those who excelled in West Virginia history in the eighth grade.
MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is scheduled to visit Berkeley County Tuesday on the first stop of his nationwide "listening and learning" tour, the U.S. Department of Education announced in a news release.
Duncan will meet parents and teachers at Bunker Hill Elementary School in the morning, then have lunch with students at Eagle School Intermediate from noon to 1:30 p.m.
"Our students and staff members are looking forward to meeting Secretary Duncan," Eagle School Principal Margaret Kursey said in a news release.
MARTINSBURG - U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is expected to visit the Berkeley County Schools and Blue Ridge Community and Technical College today as part of a nationwide tour, which the department has dubbed "Listening and Learning: A Conversation about Education"
Berkeley County is the first visit on the secretary's tour.
Following a visit to Bunker Hill Elementary, where he will meet with students, Duncan will attend an event hosted by Eagle School Intermediate, where he will have lunch with students and staff members. West Virginia first lady Gayle Manchin will be in attendance as well.
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