For Obama, change isn't just a policy matter.

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Saturday January 05, 2008 · 9:46 AM PST

2008/01/05 · 09:46

As an Edwards supporter you can imagine how much it pains me to write this diary, but after everything that has happened here in Iowa in the past month I feel that I owe it to the community to give an honest firsthand report. For starters, I can't begin to explain how impressed I was by the overwhelming turnout for Obama and the monumental organizational effort it required. For somebody that didn't have any built-in support from previous runs at the presidency or major unions it was nothing short of amazing how much he dominated the other two major campaigns in terms of on-the-ground organization. This was much to my dismay as I thought quite incorrectly that a 2004 presidential run should have lent itself nicely to a strong grassroots effort in 2008. Fortunately the results have shaken me up and into a more objective state so that I can make these observations today.

neia

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Thursday January 03, 2008 · 8:33 PM PST

2008/01/03 · 20:33

I don't have a lot of content for this diary, but I just wanted to share a little bit about what happened at my caucus tonight in Strawberry Point. First off, the organization that Obama had in Iowa was nothing short of phenomenal. There were two guys and two girls at my precinct from somewhere in Illinois running things for the Obama camp and this was in a town of about 1200 people. I can't imagine how organized the bigger areas were, but I knew it was a knockout for Obama right off the bat when about half of the people in attendance were wearing Obama gear.

neia

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Wednesday January 02, 2008 · 2:21 PM PST

2008/01/02 · 14:21

We mutually pledge to EACH OTHER our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

John Donne's Meditation XVII:

All mankind is of one author, and is one volume; when one man dies, one chapter is not torn out of the book, but translated into a better language; and every chapter must be so translated...As therefore the bell that rings to a sermon, calls not upon the preacher only, but upon the congregation to come: so this bell calls us all: but how much more me, who am brought so near the door by this sickness....No man is an island, entire of itself...any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.

The basis of democracy is the fundamental belief in an egalitarian society where one is only limited by his or her own ability. It is a collective mission of individual self-actualization. Whenever forces move to obstruct that potential, democracy suffers.

neia

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Saturday December 15, 2007 · 9:18 AM PST

2007/12/15 · 09:18

John Edwards was in the hills of northeast Iowa last night to talk to a good crowd at the Elkader Opera House. The general area is about as rural as you can get as far as I can tell. I just moved here from Iowa City (originally from Davenport) and I've heard that Clayton County is the only county in Iowa without a stoplight. You gotta have a laugh at that. I live in a town about 15 miles south and teach in a neighboring school district. We're about an hour away from any city with more than 20,000 residents. But enough about me...

John was simply awesome. There were about 200 people there that filled the whole floor seating area of the opera house and they were very much into it. It was as inspired as I've been in a long time and you could really feel the electricity. I was really surprised at how many true progressives there were, but then again my move here has broken down a lot of misconceptions I had about rural life and people. Please read on for a taste of what John was talking about and maybe to learn a bit more about the good people of Iowa.

neia

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Tuesday November 20, 2007 · 4:14 PM PST

2007/11/20 · 16:14

I posted this originally in the thread about the release of Obama's education plan. This is my own personal opinion and as such it is impacted enormously by my problems, fears, and concerns related to issues facing new teachers today. I am not an Obama supporter and am leaning slightly to Edwards, but I have tried to be open-minded about the plan.

I have been to many different conferences and professional development activities so far this year, so coming in I don't think that there is a lack of knowledge of best practices out there. What I failed to properly communicate in my original comment but what comes through almost everywhere, is that I think the most pressing problem is a lack of consensus in the field of education. That is what I feel the government can provide through research and development done at the federal level and applied as a framework for schools everywhere. There is a strong tradition of local control of education in this country, and while I believe that is a good thing I think we need more structure and better leadership to support new teachers, administrators, and students all over the country.

Go below the fold for my original comment and analysis.

neia

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Monday November 05, 2007 · 12:28 PM PST

2007/11/05 · 12:28

I clicked on my school email account this afternoon and found a lovely subject line that read "Fwd: Will you give this to Daddy?"

Awwwwwwwwwwww! The cute just spills out of the email so much that even the subject line can't contain it. Unable to delete an email with such a compelling title, I clicked and read the sender's comment that the forward is "worth reading and supporting." He really must believe it, because he forwarded the email to everybody in the entire system.

More on the sender's identity and the text of the forward below the fold.

neia

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Wednesday October 03, 2007 · 10:35 AM PDT

2007/10/03 · 10:35

I'm just going to lead right off with it:

I don't know why the ministry doesn't spend more money on schools.

Quoted from the headmaster of a school in Baghdad in this BBC article on going back to school in Iraq.

Where are our priorities right now in Iraq? We can sink $1bn into Blackwater but can't make sure the poor kids that are still stuck in Baghdad have a freaking history teacher? It's a good thing that this administration doesn't have to be held accountable for anything, because they would have a heck of a time trying to rectify this with the PR line that this is a great humanitarian crusade with the singular mission to rid the poor Iraqis of a brutal and maniacal dictator and free the world from 9/11 terrists.

I guess public education is overrated anyway. Just like here in the U.S., underfunded public schools are failing and can easily be replaced with private schools run by corporations or, even better, religious institutions. Maybe we should start a faith-based initiative in Iraq. Instead of risking the amalgamation of their students into a single diverse society, let the parents choose which private school their child is indoctrinated in!

RSS

For Obama, change isn't just a policy matter.

Illinois carpetbaggers herded Richardson supporters to Obama in my precinct.

stream-of-conscience musings on individualism

Ground Report: Edwards in Elkader, IA

One teacher's analysis of the Obama Ed Plan.

The Great Loyalty Oath Crusade has begun.

One quote says it all when it comes to our priorities in Iraq