Too Many Cooks Spoil The Broth, at least according to an old bit of folk wisdom.
I have taken a preliminary look at bills introduced into the General Assembly that concern education.
A plethora of cooks!
I have been amazed for years at the steady stream of venom aimed at public schools, their teachers, and all who labor mightily at educating our children.
Our schools are failing! How do we know? Everyone says so.
When did everyone start saying that? As it happens, people started saying such things about 1970. Why? I'll save that for another post.
Since (we all know) the schools are failing, we have decided to give them more tasks, increase class size, and provide more direction by politicians.
How is that working out?
As it happens, we have the testimony of witnesses.
One such witness is Kenneth Bernstein, a recently retired high school teacher from Maryland. He has written a warning to college professors about the students about to enter their domain. His essay is definitely worth reading.
As is too often the case, actual experienced practitioners are keenly aware of problems in their area of expertise, but are powerless to do anything about it.
Bernstein makes it clear how much teachers resent the fact that their professionalism and dedication are not taken seriously.
IMHO, he has a point.
The late W. Edwards Deming, world renowned expert in quality control, observed in general that 85% of problems in quality are because of management. Mismanagement, if you will.
And teachers are workers, not management. In short, they are not to blame. Only those who make and run a system are responsible for the outcome. Increasingly that is meddling legislators and other elected officials.
Not long before he died, Deming completed a book titled The New Economics For Industry, Government, Education. Anyone interested in making a positive contribution to any of these three areas of human endeavor should read his book.
Monday, February 11, 2013
Sunday, February 10, 2013
When Homeowner's Associations Get Out Of Hand
This is a Fairfax County, Virginia case, but is probably of interest elsewhere. Turns out even HOA's have to follow the law. Worth reading.
Saturday, February 9, 2013
2013 Session, NC General Assembly
The 2013 session of the North Carolina Legislative Assembly has been in session for a little over a week. So far, representatives have introduced 87 bills and senators have introduced 75. It's a safe bet that more drafts will be filed in the weeks to come.
Some of the bills are necessarily complex and their effects obscure.
In all cases, key questions that must be answered for each bill are: "who benefits" and "who pays."
I plan to examine selected bills, especially those bearing on elections, education, energy and transportation.
Once I feel that I understand the bills, I plan to share my thoughts on this blog.
So far, I am prepared to lend my support to two bills:
H 38: Repeal Second Primaries. I support that measure. As I have previously written, not only are second primaries expensive, very few voters turn out. Only eight states, all from the former Confederacy, still hold second or runoff primaries. Best save some money and do away with them.
H 62: Pamlico and Neuse River Ferries/No Tolling. This bill does away with tolls on the Cherry Point/Minnesott Beach and the Aurora ferries. No resident of Pamlico County needs any further explanation.
More to come.
Some of the bills are necessarily complex and their effects obscure.
In all cases, key questions that must be answered for each bill are: "who benefits" and "who pays."
I plan to examine selected bills, especially those bearing on elections, education, energy and transportation.
Once I feel that I understand the bills, I plan to share my thoughts on this blog.
So far, I am prepared to lend my support to two bills:
H 38: Repeal Second Primaries. I support that measure. As I have previously written, not only are second primaries expensive, very few voters turn out. Only eight states, all from the former Confederacy, still hold second or runoff primaries. Best save some money and do away with them.
H 62: Pamlico and Neuse River Ferries/No Tolling. This bill does away with tolls on the Cherry Point/Minnesott Beach and the Aurora ferries. No resident of Pamlico County needs any further explanation.
More to come.
Refurbished Town Hall In Oriental
Oriental, NC had the official opening ceremony for the newly refurbished Town Hall. The event was well attended by public officials as well as local citizens. All who attended enjoyed the opportunity to see inside. Everyone seemed quite impressed with the facility.
Any resident who didn't make it to the grand opening should still make it a point to drop by as soon as possible.
This was a job well done, and the building will serve the Town well for many years.
Any resident who didn't make it to the grand opening should still make it a point to drop by as soon as possible.
This was a job well done, and the building will serve the Town well for many years.
Friday, February 8, 2013
Seventy Years Ago: The Week That Was
February 8, 1943, Japanese destroyer force (Rear Admiral Hashimoto Shintaro) completes the evacuation of 1,796 troops from Guadalcanal. The next day, February 9, 1943, US Army General Patch announced the end of organized Japanese resistance on the Island.
January 31, 1943, the German headquarters of the 6th Army at Stalingrad surrendered, including Field Marshall Paulus. Remaining scattered units surrendered February 2, ending the siege of Stalingrad.
To the north, on January 18, 1943, The Soviet Union established a land corridor iinto Leningrad, providing some relief for the siege of Leningrad, though it would be another year before the siege was completely broken.
Things were not going so well for the Allies in North Africa, but Germany was no longer able to reliably supply Rommel's forces. Rommel's forces would last for another three months.
There were to be no further Axis advances on any front.
January 31, 1943, the German headquarters of the 6th Army at Stalingrad surrendered, including Field Marshall Paulus. Remaining scattered units surrendered February 2, ending the siege of Stalingrad.
To the north, on January 18, 1943, The Soviet Union established a land corridor iinto Leningrad, providing some relief for the siege of Leningrad, though it would be another year before the siege was completely broken.
Things were not going so well for the Allies in North Africa, but Germany was no longer able to reliably supply Rommel's forces. Rommel's forces would last for another three months.
There were to be no further Axis advances on any front.
Thursday, February 7, 2013
A Three Cent Stamp Costs 46 Cents?
I can remember when a first class stamp cost 3 cents. We didn't call them "first class stamps" - we called them "three-cent stamps.".
In those days in the 40's and 50's, a candy bar, Pepsi or ice cream cone cost a nickel. From 1932 until 1958, a regular first class stamp cost 3 cents. From 1928 to 1952, a post card cost one cent to mail. Air Mail cost more, depending on weight and distance.
Now, not only has postage gone up to 46 cents for a 3 cent stamp, a nickel Pepsi or Hershey Bar cost over a dollar, and a nickel ice cream cone is a buck and a half.
According to conservative opponents who are trying to kill the Postal Service, curtail service and take away our local post offices, the USPS is bankrupt.
Jim Hightower has the real story here.
In those days in the 40's and 50's, a candy bar, Pepsi or ice cream cone cost a nickel. From 1932 until 1958, a regular first class stamp cost 3 cents. From 1928 to 1952, a post card cost one cent to mail. Air Mail cost more, depending on weight and distance.
Now, not only has postage gone up to 46 cents for a 3 cent stamp, a nickel Pepsi or Hershey Bar cost over a dollar, and a nickel ice cream cone is a buck and a half.
According to conservative opponents who are trying to kill the Postal Service, curtail service and take away our local post offices, the USPS is bankrupt.
Jim Hightower has the real story here.
Why Not Nuclear Energy?
Chernobyl and Three Mile Island had already pretty much brought the US nuclear power industry to a halt, when Japan had a tsunami at Fukushima. These were all bad accidents.
The truth is, though, not many lives were lost. Compare lives lost in nuclear mishaps with those lost in the coal and oil industries, gas distribution explosions, much less accidents in employment of those energy products, and nuclear looks very safe by comparison.
Neither does nuclear power spew carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and other products that will enhance global warming, sea level rise, and other expensive and destructive eventualities.
Nuclear power makes economic and public safety sense.
Still, there is vast public opposition to nuclear.
Ashutosh Jogalekar, a chemist, examines in Scientific American the five most significant reasons that liberals oppose nuclear power. He counters each reason with a rational discussion of pros and cons.
Good article, worth reading.
I mostly agree.
Jogalekar likes the liquid thorium reactor design for its improved safety. He does not mention the pebble bed reactor, which China seems to favor.
I believe the liquid thorium reactor is similar to the design used in the twin-reactor power plant of USS Triton, commanded by Captain Edward L. Beach during the first submerged circumnavigation of the globe.
The truth is, though, not many lives were lost. Compare lives lost in nuclear mishaps with those lost in the coal and oil industries, gas distribution explosions, much less accidents in employment of those energy products, and nuclear looks very safe by comparison.
Neither does nuclear power spew carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and other products that will enhance global warming, sea level rise, and other expensive and destructive eventualities.
Nuclear power makes economic and public safety sense.
Still, there is vast public opposition to nuclear.
Ashutosh Jogalekar, a chemist, examines in Scientific American the five most significant reasons that liberals oppose nuclear power. He counters each reason with a rational discussion of pros and cons.
Good article, worth reading.
I mostly agree.
Jogalekar likes the liquid thorium reactor design for its improved safety. He does not mention the pebble bed reactor, which China seems to favor.
I believe the liquid thorium reactor is similar to the design used in the twin-reactor power plant of USS Triton, commanded by Captain Edward L. Beach during the first submerged circumnavigation of the globe.
Wind Energy And Cherry Point
Last night the Pamlico County Board of Commissioners and the Pamlico County Planning Board had a joint meeting at the court house to receive a briefing by Cherry Point on wind generation systems. Specifically, Cherry Point briefed on problems for their air operations that are anticipated from wind turbines.
The briefing acknowledged that it is national policy and the policy of the Department of Defense to encourage alternative energy sources. The briefing did not emphasize, as it might have, that Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus has been a leading proponent of alternative energy.
The main focus of the briefing was how wind turbines adversely affect Marine radar systems and how important radar is to their air operations. The main challenge was how to mitigate those effects.
Unfortunately, Cherry Point officials offered no hope and no prospects of hope for mitigation. "To date," one presentation slide asserts, "no study data is published indicating technology exists to eliminate wind turbine adverse effects on radar."
That isn't exactly what was reported in a 2008 study by MITRE Corporation, one of DOD's most experienced electronics contractors. "There is no fundamental physical constraint that prohibits the accurate detection of aircraft and weather patterns around wind farms. On the other hand, the nation’s aging long range radar infrastructure significantly increases the challenge of distinguishing wind farm signatures from airplanes or weather.
"Progress forward requires the development of mitigation measures, and
quantitative evaluation tools and metrics to determine when a wind farm
poses a sufficient threat to a radar installation for corrective action to be
taken. Mitigation measures may include modifications to wind farms (such
as methods to reduce radar cross section; and telemetry from wind farms to
radar), as well as modifications to radar (such as improvements in processing;
radar design modifications; radar replacement; and the use of gap fillers in
radar coverage).
"There is great potential for the mitigation procedures, though there
is currently no source of funding to test how proposed mitigations work in
practice. In general, the government and industry should cooperate to find
methods for funding studies of technical mitigations. NOAA has an excellent
research plan, but no adequate funding to carry it out.
"Once the potential for different mitigations are understood, we see no
scientific hurdle for constructing regulations that are technically based and
simple to understand and implement, with a single government entity tak-
ing responsibility for overseeing the process. In individual cases, the best
solution might be to replace the aging radar station with modern and flexi-
ble equipment that is more able to separate wind farm clutter from aircraft.
This is a win-win situation for national security, both improving our radar
infrastructure and promoting the growth of sustainable energy."
So the problem isn't technology, it is budgets for what may prove to be fairly minor improvements to radars, new procedures, and possibly coatings for turbine blades to reduce their radar cross-sections. I got the distinct impression that the Marine Corps isn't sufficiently concerned to spend any R&D funds fixing their radars. Why should they, if they can achieve the same end at no cost by intimidating state and local government? The only cost would be to retard economic development in Pamlico County and that doesn't cost the Marine Corps a dime.
In her introductory remarks to the meeting, Commissioner Holton emphasized the potential economic development benefits of wind energy to Pamlico County.
Speaking of mitigation, any measure to replace fossil fuel energy sources with non-carbon alternatives such as wind, solar or nuclear, will delay anticipated sea level rise from global warming. That should matter to every resident of Pamlico County and elsewhere in Eastern North Carolina. In my case, I just raised my house three feet to mitigate the effect of storm surge after Irene. But predictions are that the sea level will rise one meter (39 inches) this century. If so, my house is back in the flood waters.
So I am in favor of wind, solar and nuclear power. No single solution - all of the above.
This discussion has been going on for awhile here and here and here and here and here and here.
The briefing acknowledged that it is national policy and the policy of the Department of Defense to encourage alternative energy sources. The briefing did not emphasize, as it might have, that Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus has been a leading proponent of alternative energy.
The main focus of the briefing was how wind turbines adversely affect Marine radar systems and how important radar is to their air operations. The main challenge was how to mitigate those effects.
Unfortunately, Cherry Point officials offered no hope and no prospects of hope for mitigation. "To date," one presentation slide asserts, "no study data is published indicating technology exists to eliminate wind turbine adverse effects on radar."
That isn't exactly what was reported in a 2008 study by MITRE Corporation, one of DOD's most experienced electronics contractors. "There is no fundamental physical constraint that prohibits the accurate detection of aircraft and weather patterns around wind farms. On the other hand, the nation’s aging long range radar infrastructure significantly increases the challenge of distinguishing wind farm signatures from airplanes or weather.
"Progress forward requires the development of mitigation measures, and
quantitative evaluation tools and metrics to determine when a wind farm
poses a sufficient threat to a radar installation for corrective action to be
taken. Mitigation measures may include modifications to wind farms (such
as methods to reduce radar cross section; and telemetry from wind farms to
radar), as well as modifications to radar (such as improvements in processing;
radar design modifications; radar replacement; and the use of gap fillers in
radar coverage).
"There is great potential for the mitigation procedures, though there
is currently no source of funding to test how proposed mitigations work in
practice. In general, the government and industry should cooperate to find
methods for funding studies of technical mitigations. NOAA has an excellent
research plan, but no adequate funding to carry it out.
"Once the potential for different mitigations are understood, we see no
scientific hurdle for constructing regulations that are technically based and
simple to understand and implement, with a single government entity tak-
ing responsibility for overseeing the process. In individual cases, the best
solution might be to replace the aging radar station with modern and flexi-
ble equipment that is more able to separate wind farm clutter from aircraft.
This is a win-win situation for national security, both improving our radar
infrastructure and promoting the growth of sustainable energy."
So the problem isn't technology, it is budgets for what may prove to be fairly minor improvements to radars, new procedures, and possibly coatings for turbine blades to reduce their radar cross-sections. I got the distinct impression that the Marine Corps isn't sufficiently concerned to spend any R&D funds fixing their radars. Why should they, if they can achieve the same end at no cost by intimidating state and local government? The only cost would be to retard economic development in Pamlico County and that doesn't cost the Marine Corps a dime.
In her introductory remarks to the meeting, Commissioner Holton emphasized the potential economic development benefits of wind energy to Pamlico County.
Speaking of mitigation, any measure to replace fossil fuel energy sources with non-carbon alternatives such as wind, solar or nuclear, will delay anticipated sea level rise from global warming. That should matter to every resident of Pamlico County and elsewhere in Eastern North Carolina. In my case, I just raised my house three feet to mitigate the effect of storm surge after Irene. But predictions are that the sea level will rise one meter (39 inches) this century. If so, my house is back in the flood waters.
So I am in favor of wind, solar and nuclear power. No single solution - all of the above.
This discussion has been going on for awhile here and here and here and here and here and here.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
