News opinion 2008-08-10 Andanh.com

Report shows help needed at our schools Sat, 9 Aug 2008 21:02:22 -0500
It was disappointing to learn that 10 area schools had failed to make adequate yearly progress for the 2007-08 school year under the No Child Left Behind standards set up by the Bush administration. Bowling Green Junior High School is now facing consequences after missing NCLB standards for the second consecutive year. The junior high’s subpopulation of students with disabilities didn’t meet the federal standards. Included in the list of schools that failed to meet these standards were Dishman-McGinnis Elementary, Warren East Middle School, Warren East High School, Warren Elementary, Warren Central High School, Drakes Creek Middle School, Hart County, Russellville Independent Schools and Simpson County school systems. This had to be hard news for these schools to hear, but hopefully they can take this bad news and turn it into something good. What is going to be so difficult for some of these schools which rely on Title 1 funding - those with significant low-income student populations, is the consequences that they now may face because of these failures. Under Tier 1 consequences, a district has to notify parents, revise district improvement plans and request technical assistance if needed. Tier 2 consequences involve everything under Tier 1 consequences and the school may be subjected to corrective actions from the Kentucky Department of Education. Tier 3 consequences are subject to corrective action from KDE, which could include hiring new staff and extending the school year. All of these schools that failed to meet these standards fall under different circumstances. Some receive Tier 1 funding, some don’t, but the bottom lines is that something must be done in the future to change these results. We do give a lot of these schools credit because some progress has been made overall. Many individual schools were successful and have taken measures to try to meet these standards. But this report should put school districts on notice that more should be done and has to be done or the consequences could be dire. We believe in our area school districts and trust they have the foresight and the willpower to get back on course.

Rockin’ in the free world Sat, 9 Aug 2008 21:02:10 -0500
The other night I went to see the legendary R&B group Earth, Wind and Fire at Radio City Music Hall. Toward the end of the show, lead singer Philip Bailey startled me and others in the crowd when he said: “I thank God and America for allowing us to have success for 37 years.” Shocking. Call me cynical, but I am used to hearing performers badmouth their country and promote things like drugs and violence. That is routine these days. People like Nas and Ludacris spit out poison like sesame seeds. That’s why it took some guts for Bailey to say what he said. In some precincts, it is cool to run down America from the stage, not to praise it. Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young and Chris Martin of Coldplay all have demeaned the United States this summer. These guys say it’s about the evil Bush administration, but believe me, their message is clear: America, itself, is one screwed-up place. Some commentators say performers should just shut up and sing because that’s what the folks pay to hear. But artistic license and the First Amendment are on the side of the rock stars. People freely pay to hear them, and in a free society, they can pretty much do what they want. Throughout history, music has been used to protest injustice. That is a good thing. Protest songs in the 1960s, for example, effectively focused attention on America’s societal problems and the awful conflict in Vietnam. There is no doubt about that. But there is a responsibility that comes along with protest. To run your country down because you don’t like a politician or the party in power is simply stupid. America is a huge mosaic; there are great things and there are bad things in this country. What annoys me about Springsteen, Young and Martin, in particular, is that they never debate the issues. They never show us exactly how deep their political thinking is; how wide their frame of reference is. Instead, they yell out dumb stuff to their zombie followers and revel in the applause. Overseas especially, any knock on America is greeted with rapture. Country music artists generally do not go in for this kind of stuff because their audience has little tolerance for it, as we saw with the Dixie Chicks debacle. However, it is refreshing to see some rock and pop people singing a different tune. Billy Joel opened his recent Shea stadium show by playing “The Star-Spangled Banner,” and the Beach Boys consistently praise their country. Add Philip Bailey and Earth, Wind and Fire to the list. Take that, Bruce Springsteen.

Sad box score Sat, 09 Aug 2008 22:41:00 EST
Just imagine the riotous tub-thumping for change that would rumble from statehouse to private home if the Cards or the Cats regularly occupied the lower rungs of statistical ladders.

A Gitmo dud Sat, 09 Aug 2008 22:41:00 EST
One can only hope that the Bush administration retains enough contact with reality to recognize that its first war-crimes trial stemming from the 9/11 attacks was a debacle.

Marketing irresponsiblity Sat, 09 Aug 2008 22:46:00 EST
The controversy that erupted Tuesday over Ron Suskind's new book-length account of the Bush/Cheney administration's conduct of the war on terrorism raises some interesting questions about the way publishers treat a literary genre that has become increasingly vital to our political journalism.

Married . . . with children Sat, 09 Aug 2008 22:46:00 EST
The cost remains high, and a good lawyer is essential. Yet despite complications, the idea of becoming a biological dad with help from a surrogate mother is gaining allure among gay men as the status of "married with children" grows ever more possible.

A message, but is he the messenger? Sat, 09 Aug 2008 22:48:00 EST
If you're trying to figure out what last weekend's Fancy Farm Picnic meant for the fall elections in Kentucky, look beyond the political speaking at the picnic, where constant heckling and chanting have made it more a test of endurance than a useful forum for ideas.

Candidates divided over joint events Sat, 09 Aug 2008 22:47:00 EST
The first question I asked John McCain and then Barack Obama was: How do you feel about the tone and direction of the campaign so far? No surprise. Both men pronounced themselves thoroughly frustrated by the personal bitterness and negativism they have seen in the two months since they learned they would be running against each other.

Kentucky: a state that eats no lean, and taxes no fat Sat, 09 Aug 2008 22:40:00 EST
The French government is doing the unthinkable. According to the Associated Press, "An agency has pitched an increase in sales taxes on extra-fatty, salty or sugary products." The current 5.5 percent rate would rise to 19.6 percent, according to a Budget Ministry official.

Beijing Olympics could inspire reform Sat, 09 Aug 2008 23:49:00 EST
Bring on the Olympics. Please.When Paris Hilton dominates the presidential campaign for a whole week, even spelling out a plan for achieving energy independence, it is sooooo time for a break.

The phenomenon of progress Sat, 09 Aug 2008 23:09:00 EST
The Oxford English Dictionary dates the word "pogrom" from 1905, the year hundreds of Russian Jews were massacred in Odessa. In 1908, there was a pogrom of sorts in Illinois. It occurred in Springfield 100 years ago this week. So, consider the phenomenon of progress, which at the moment seems more contingent than it did just a decade ago.

Teachers group way off the mark in attack on education law Sat, 09 Aug 2008 23:05:00 EST
The National Education Association is again tugging at the lid of Pandora's Box. In throwing its support behind a House of Representatives bill that would permit states to ignore parts of the troublesome No Child Left Behind Act, the nation's largest teachers group is mounting a flanking attack on a law it has long called an unfunded federal mandate.

Readers' views Sun, 10 Aug 2008 02:03 EDT

Appalachians speak same English as others

I am writing about the article about Appalachian English: I moved from Norwalk, Ohio to the heart of Eastern Kentucky when I was a young girl. I have lived here 32 years, and I can honestly say I have never heard anyone speak as if Southern or use many of the vocabulary words or idioms mentioned in the article.

Of the words listed, I have heard only the word afeared (and then not often). As for the idioms, who hasn't heard of .getting above your raisin'.? As for being unfairly treated, one would much more likely hear, .I wouldn't treat a dawg like that.. Instead of .come up hard,. it would be, .came up hard..

The one thing I did learn from the article was the meaning of the word karn . I had wondered about that. As for that word's use, I have most often heard, .Lazy as karn..

Don't harm planet while seeing the world Sun, 10 Aug 2008 02:03 EDT

By David Anderson

When the mouse in the house chewed holes in my travel bag, I .repaired it with patches I .purchased at a peace rally in New York's Central Park.

The new connection between the pleasant travel memory and the frequently used bag gave me joy, not unlike the joy of wearing a souvenir T-shirt that conjures up memories of a beach trip or running a marathon.

It is meaningful to reminisce, but the habit of commemorating every trip, race, show, team, school, company, band and bar with .unneeded T-shirts is problematic.

Political warfare creating uncivil society Sun, 10 Aug 2008 02:03 EDT

The recent incident in Knoxville, where an out-of-work man fired his shotgun into the congregation at a Unitarian Church service, started me thinking about Rodney King's famous line, .Why can't we just all get along?.

If you don't remember King, he was a black man who was severely beaten by a group of white policemen for a traffic violation in Los Angeles.

The policemen beat King because they made some assumptions about him based on his race. The man in Knoxville shot the Unitarian Church members because he assumed they were liberal and supported gay rights.

Unfortunately, we make these types of assumptions about other people on a regular basis. We label people we don't know and assume the worst. Two stories to illustrate my point:

Highway department cleanup Sun, 10 Aug 2008 02:03 EDT

According to the National Asphalt Pavement Association, the word asphalt derives from the Greek asphaltos, meaning secure.

A remarkably appropriate name for the substance that, mixed with sand and rock, has provided political security for generations of Kentucky politicians.

So when people run for office, as Steve Beshear did last year, .saying they are going to clean up the Transportation Cabinet and take politics out of spreading asphalt, many voters simply move on to the next promise to see whether it will be more believable.

Last week, it looked like Governor Beshear may really be serious.

Nursing law needs clout Sat, 09 Aug 2008 01:58 EDT

The Kentucky General Assembly has another to-do on its list for the next session: Give some muscle to the law protecting mothers who breast-feed in public.

That's the lesson of this week's unfortunate, but timely story about Jessica Denny's expulsion from a McDonald's in Berea.

Timely because it came during National Breast Feeding month and just after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that less than half of Kentucky mothers ever breast-fed, even once.

That gives us the distinction of ranking second-last among states and the District of Columbia (Louisiana is last) in breast-feeding.

Should energy promoters, regulators be so close? Sun, 10 Aug 2008 02:03 EDT

FRANKFORT . Kentucky's Public Service Commission regulates more than 1,500 utilities that provide the state's residents with electricity, natural gas, water, sewer service and telecommunications.

Sounds like the epitome of a .public protection. agency, doesn't it?

But when Gov. Steve Beshear earlier this year issued an executive order breaking up the massive and unwieldy Environmental and Public Protection Cabinet created by former Gov. Ernie Fletcher, the PSC wound up attached not to the new Public Protection Cabinet but to the new Energy and Environment Cabinet.

To some, including Tom FitzGerald of the Kentucky Resources Council, that seems an odd coupling.

Flip-flop Sun, 10 Aug 2008 09:30 EDT

Some things are best left ...
... in the side car.Take, for example, Brett Favre’s move to the New York Jets. I don’t know if my son has yet realized No. 4 will no longer be with the Green Bay Packers.

Fancy Farm speakers need history lesson
Those who love old-time politics just can’t pass up Fancy Farm each year.

Chinese Dir