It is fascinating to look back at the last couple of years around Pocatello.
I had asked a lot of questions at forums for the Idaho State University presidential candidates. The following AP entry appeared on Wednesday January 25, 2006. It is an interesting reminder that anything you say at a forum or on a blog can, in fact, hit the national newswires.
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POCATELLO (AP) The fourth and final candidate for Idaho State University's presidency visited the campus this week.
Larry Lemanski is the vice president for research and graduate studies at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Fla. He met with students, faculty and staff Monday and talked about the school's promising future, including potentially moving the Idaho State football team up to Division 1A.
"It would be interesting to see if that ever actually happens and to see how it is implemented because that kind of a move will have a huge impact on our resource allocation," Communications and Rhetorical Studies instructor Michael Strickland told the Idaho State Journal.
I wrote the following letter to the editor in the Post Register toward the end of last basketball season. It will be interesting to hold the Idaho State Journal editor's feet to the fire this year:
It's March!
And I recently sat in on a religion class. The teacher began by asking class members what their Final Four men's basketball predictions were. Many students answered. Then the instructor gave his picks.
So by now, a fine sports editor such as Mitch Worthington must have some thoughts on who will be in the men's Final Four this year, and thoughts on who will take it all.
Or maybe those religious folks are just prophetic.
So come on, Mitch. Tell us what will happen in March Madness.
MICHAEL R. STRICKLAND
Pocatello
EDITOR'S NOTE: After Day 1, Sports Editor Mitch Worthington was tied for 17th out of 21 entries in a friendly Post Register NCAA tournament pool.
From a Post Regsiter letter to the editor: Wednesday
March 21, 2007
I can't understand why Leon Harmon of Iona complained about letters to the editor being allowed only 250 words, while "liberal" editorials get 450 words. Well, in case you hadn't noticed, the conservative editorials get 450 words also. And there are certainly more conservative editorials than there are liberal ones.
I get really sick and tired of Mike Adams, Michael Strickland, Lenore Barrett, Kathy Stanger, Ray Swenson, et al. -- but, I accept them as the Post Register's attempt to balance things. And I respect and admire the paper for doing so.
Harmon mentions the corruption in the Democratic Party when Bill Clinton was president. Have you taken a good look at the Republican Party? That party is more than just a little familiar with, and guilty of, corruption. It goes with power.
And why attack Tom Walsh because he thinks differently than you do? This country is a democracy, and that allows for differing views.
I have actually had some readers suggest I should move to a different country because my political views are different from theirs, and that of course means they are right and I am wrong.
If we all have to think alike to be good Americans, then this is not a democracy; it would be Hitler's Germany.
Back to school season is an exciting time for teachers and learners. We begin a new year, fresh with enthusiasm and with the psychological benefits of the experiences behind us.
Preparing to get back into the classroom has had me reflecting on a variety of ways to engage young readers and writers. What strategies can we use to find a balance? In a truly balanced literacy program, how you teach is as important as what you teach.
That's one of the conclusions that numreous local teachers, administrators, and curriculum supervisors have shared with me over the years. Like most educators today, we've been changing our practices to reflect new knowledge about learning and teaching. Our students are reading more, writing more, and learning through themes. Yet we share a mixed bag of excitement and uneasiness — excitement about the learning taking place in our classrooms every day, and uneasiness about the public perception that schools are not as good as they used to be, especially when it comes to teaching reading.
We wonder: How can we maintain the good practices of the past without ignoring current evidence about how children learn? Have we gone too far in one direction? What we're searching for, then, is balance.
"Who dares teach must never cease to learn," is a popular adage quoted by Gretchen Anderson and Shannon Allred, Reading teacher consultants at the Pocatello - Chubbuck School District #25 Alameda Center.
From collaborative work and years of learning alongside faculty from Idaho State University, the Rutgers Graduate School of Education, and other circles -- as well as several team-ups with the editorial staff of Instructor Magazine and my recent appointment to the staff of the International Reading Association journal "The Reading Teacher" -- I've been able to derive several teaching tips that may be helpful in addressing concerns that have surfaced and are common to all teachers.
During my staff development workshops around the country, many teachers have voiced the following frustration: "Teaching phonics with literature seems so hit or miss. What about a correct sequence of skills?"
To address this concern and many others, click below.
Resignation may threaten senator's work on salmon, immigration, dam relicensing and mining reform.
From the Idaho Statesman:
If U.S. Sen. Larry Craig steps down at the end of this week, it would leave some of his agenda for Idaho and the nation in limbo.
The contacts and clout Craig developed over 27 years won't be replaced soon, and that means Idaho won't have as much influence over federal decisions.
What's at stake? Decisions on everything from fish and dams to burying forgotten veterans.
Idaho Power Co. hopes to complete relicensing of its three Hells Canyon dams on the Snake River by the end of President Bush's term. Craig won't be around to encourage federal agencies, including the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, to speed up deliberations.
Craig singlehandedly kept the Bureau of Land Management from moving top managers at Boise's National Interagency Fire Center to Washington in 2005. And he and Rep. Mike Simpson were able to get through Congress in one day the agreement that resolved the Nez Perce Tribe's water rights to the Snake River.
Please join the International Reading Association for the12th RockyMountain IRARegional Conference, to be held in Billings, Montana, October 18-19, 2007.
Learn the latest news in the field with sessions on early literacy, intermediate literacy, middle-adolescent literacy, adult literacy, technology, reading strategies, specialists, author, diversity, and educational research.
Keynote speakers are P. David Pearson, Donald Leu, and Steven Layne. Featured speakers include Margaret Peterson Haddix, Margriet Ruurs, Shelley Gill, Ben Mikaelsen, Sneed Collard, III, Gary Dulabaum, Jack Gladstone, Lloyd Hardesty, Timothy Hillmer, Jill Jackson, Maureen McLaughlin, Michael Opitz, Carol Santa, and Barbara Walker.
Act now to secure a room at Billings Hotel & Convention Center by calling 800-537-7286 or visit http://www.billingshotel.ne...>www.billingshotel.net. Click on "check our rates" and use promotion code READIN to receive a special conference rate of $72 (single) and $79 (double). Rooms are also available at the Holiday Inn Grand Montana, 800-465-4329 or 406-238-8969 (state you are with IRA) or visit http://www.holiday-inn.com/...>www.holiday-inn.com/billings-west (use group booking code IRA) to receive special conference rates starting at $60 (single) and $75 (double).
Advanced registration fees (prepaid by September 26) are US$75 for IRA members and US$115 for nonmembers.Registration after this deadline will be US $135 at the Holiday Inn Grand Montana .Prices quoted are for the full conference.
We look forward to seeing you there!
International Reading Association • 800 Barksdale Road • Newark, DE 19711,USA
800-336-7323 • Outside the United States and Canada,call 302-731-1600 • www.reading.
Pocatello, ID--Kilee Quigley scored a first half goal and Jana Boehler added the game-winning score in the second half to help Idaho State to a 2-1 win over San Jose State Friday afternoon in the Idaho State Classic at Davis Field. The win pushes ISU's record to 3-3-1, while SJSU falls to 0-5-2.
"I'm proud of the way the team executed our game plan today," said ISU head coach Allison Gibson. "We were able to attack at the right times and we played well together defensively."
Quigley put the Bengals on the scoreboard first, heading a ball into the back of the net off an Annamarie Hofstetter cross at the 37:30 mark. The goal is the first of the season for Quigley.
"It was a great goal," Gibson said. "Kilee always does a good job of getting her head on the ball and she was able to direct it to the right place. Annamarie couldn't have placed the cross in a better spot. A lot of credit goes to both players."
Boehler put the game-winning goal in the back of the net in the 50th minute, receiving a pass from Chelsea Cox from about 12 yards out on the right side of the box. Natalie Graham and Cox were each credited with assists on the score.
"The ball was controlled very well on Jana's goal," Gibson said of the game winner. "I think our defensive pressure contributed to the goal as well."
San Jose State got its goal in the 70th minute from Jennifer Guadagnolo, who sent a shot from 25 yards out and over the head of ISU keeper Maren Eves. Liz Behlen assisted Guadagnolo's first goal of the season.
Idaho State controlled the majority of the game, taking a 20-10 shot advantage, including a 9-3 edge on goal. Graham registered a game-high eight shots with four on goal. Boehler had five shots and Quigley added four. Eves played all 90 minutes in goal, collecting a pair of saves.
The Bengals return to action at the Idaho State Classic on Sunday when the team hosts Air Force at 2 p.m.
NOTES: Northern Iowa defeated Air Force 1-0 on a penalty kick in overtime in the first game of the Idaho State Classic... San Jose State will take on NIU on Sunday at 11 a.m. at Davis Field.
NAACP Releases Annual Economic Reciprocity Report to Guide African Americans' $700 Billion in Spending Power
After 11 years of tracking the diversity efforts of some of the nation’s largest companies in five key industries, the NAACP reports that positive change is occurring but at a measured pace, with most companies performing average at best in their efforts.
The 2007 edition of the NAACP Consumer Choice Guide, part of the Association’s Economic Reciprocity Initiative (ERI), is now available. The latest guide, which includes a report and a new Best Practices Diversity Guide, provide Black consumers with empowerment tools that enable them to make informed choices when purchasing products and services from the surveyed companies.
“African Americans infuse an estimated $700 billion into the American economy annually,” said NAACP Interim President & CEO Dennis Courtland Hayes. “That’s a substantial block of economic power. African Americans want to experience a return on their consumer investment and challenge those who are taking their dollars for granted.
“We are proud to mark the gains we’ve seen in employer diversity, community reinvestment and minority vendor usage since this survey began,” Hayes added. “Yet there continue to be opportunities for major corporations to improve their performance. Corporations must understand that diversity works, is the right thing to do under law and makes good business sense.”
In 1996, the NAACP launched the ERI as a sustained consumer movement to measure corporate America’s financial relationship with the African American community. Since then, the ERI has expanded its scope and has continued to annually highlight diversity efforts made in lodging, telecommunications, financial services, general merchandising and automotive industries.
“Economic empowerment is a civil rights issue too,” said NAACP National Board of Directors Chairman Julian Bond. “African American consumers want fairness in the marketplace just as they do in all aspects of their lives. As we educate consumers on the value of their dollar, they will make more prudent spending decisions, ultimately holding businesses accountable for their practices, good or bad.”
The Best Practices Diversity Guide--a supplement to the consumer guide--highlights innovative strategies undertaken by companies in an effort to improve diversity in corporate America.
Participating industries and companies are rated in employment, marketing/communications, charitable giving, supplier diversity and one industry specific area. Information contained in the report is based on 2006 data provided by the participating companies. Survey questions are graded and assigned point values which are translated into a letter grade.
Lodging—
This year’s grade for the lodging industry is a C for its diversity-related activity. The industry overall tends to be most responsive in the area of charitable giving; the greatest challenge is in the area of property ownership followed by vendor relationships and marketing/communications. Adam’s Mark and Loews earned a B-. Marriott received a C+ while Intercontinental, Starwood, Hyatt, and Carlson all had a C. Wyndham Worldwide and Hilton were given a C-. Choice and Omni each received a D+.
Telecommunications—
This year’s grade for the telecommunications industry is C. The industry is most responsive in the area of charitable giving but performs below average in the area of marketing/communications. Alltel led the firms with a B followed by AT&T and Comcast each with a B- in the latest round of grading. Cox Communications and Verizon received a C+ to Time Warner Cable’s C. Charter Communications and Sprint Corporation earned a C-. A D+ went to Embarq Corporation and a D to Qwest Communications. Cablevision and T-Mobile each received an F for not responding.
Financial services--
The financial services industry received a C+ this year. The industry overall tends to be most responsive in the areas of Community Reinvestment and Charitable Giving; industry performance was modest in the areas of employment, marketing/communications, and supplier diversity. Wachovia Corporation and Bank of America led the pack by earning a B while SunTrust Banks, Inc. and Washington Mutual each received a B-. A C+ went to Key Corporation, LaSalle Bank, Wells Fargo Company and U.S. Bancorp. Fifth Third Bank, National City, Citigroup, Inc., PNC Financial all earned a C while J.P. Morgan Chase and Citizen’s Financial Group earned a C-.
General merchandising--
The nation’s major retailers earned a C- overall in this year’s report. Dillard’s and Target continually refuse to respond to the survey. This is the fourth consecutive year of non-response for Dillard’s and the third consecutive year for Target, despite having participated in the past. Federated Department Stores held the top rank in the category with a B- followed by Wal-Mart’s C+. A D+ was earned by J.C. Penney Company, Inc. Nordstrom Inc. and Kohl’s Department Stores each received a D and Sears Roebuck and Company a D-. Dillard’s and Target each earned an F for their lack of participation.
Automotive--
The automotive sector received a C. The industry is most responsive in the area of charitable giving but performs below average in the area of marketing/communications. Top grade in this industry was a B- given to Daimler Chrysler and Ford. Toyota got a C+ followed by General Motors, BMW and Hyundai with a C and Honda and Mitsubishi each earning a C-. Nissan received a D+ and Volkswagen a D.
Complete details of the 2007 Consumer Choice Guide, the Best Practices Diversity Guide and NAACP Economic Reciprocity Initiative Report, including individual company scores, can be found at: www.naacp.org/advocacy/economic/eri_2007/index.ht ml
Founded in 1909, the NAACP is the nation's oldest and largest civil rights organization. Its members throughout the United States and the world are the premier advocates for civil rights in their communities, conducting voter mobilization and monitoring equal opportunity in the public and private sectors.
Bipartisanship and integrity are seen as key for whoever succeeds Craig
From the Idaho Statesman:
Whomever Gov. Butch Otter names as Sen. Larry Craig's successor should be a consensus builder willing to reach across the aisle, several veteran Idaho politicians and political observers say.
It won't hurt to be steeped in the issues of federal land management, either. And the appointee will have to work double time to make up for the lack of clout a freshman senator brings to the seniority-driven upper chamber.
"They will come in 100th in seniority," said longtime Idaho political watcher Jim Weatherby, a retired Boise State University political scientist.
Craig has said he intends to resign at the end of the month unless he can clear his name by winning a discharge of his guilty plea for disorderly conduct. He pleaded guilty after an undercover police officer accused him of soliciting sex in the Minneapolis airport men's room. A court hearing is scheduled Wednesday. Meanwhile, Gov. Butch Otter is considering a lengthy list of potential replacements. They include Lt. Gov. Jim Risch and Attorney General Lawrence Wasden.
Pocatello, ID --- Matt Nichols threw a season-high 285 yards as the #25 Eastern Washington Eagles took advantage of five ISU turnovers, including four in the first half, as they cruised to a 34-7 win in the Big Sky Conference opener for both teams.
The Bengals were done in by five turnovers, four of which came in the first half. The first three lead to Eastern Washington scores, including a pair of Felipe Macias field goals sandwiched around the first of Alexis Alexander's three touchdown runs.
Three of the turnovers were off interceptions from starting freshman quarterback Russel Hill, who finished just 7-for-16 passing for 52 yards. Hill was pulled in favor of sophomore Luke Butler near the end of the first half after his third interception of the half, giving him eight on the season.
Eastern Washington was up 27-0 at the break, getting two long touchdown drives in a 24-point second quarter. Alexander scored on a 37-yard run for a 20-0 lead, and then Eastern capped off a streak of five straight scores with a picture perfect 27-yard pass from Nichols to Aaron Boyce.
Eastern eventually went up 34-0 on a third Alexander touchdown before ISU put together their only scoring drive with a 1-yard Ken Cornist run, capped a 92-yard drive that saw Butler give his body on a 3rd-and-11 with a diving pirouette for a first down early in the drive.
Butler threw for a career-high 264 yards in just over a half for Idaho State, and Eddie Thompson had another nine catches, running his season total to 30, after having 27 all of last year. The Bengals nearly outgained Eastern, as ISU had 400 yards to Eastern's 418.
Ryan Phipps and Sterling Mennear were the stars defensively, with seven and six tackles respectively. Mennear also forced a fumble as the defense gave ISU a chance in the third quarter. The Bengals drove into Eastern territory five times during the period, but came away with no points.
The Bengals will now travel to Bozeman for their conference road opener against the nationally ranked Bobcats. That game will be shown on Altitude at 1:35 pm Mountain Time.
NOTES:Idaho State narrowly avoided getting shutout at home for the first time since losing 48-0 to Montana on Homecoming in 1998 ... Dan Zeidman hit a 71-yard punt down to the 1-yard line to end the first half ... Branden Jones missed a pair of 36-yard field goals from the same spot on the field, one right, then one left ... Eastern's Lonnie Hosley had a nice night with five tackles, two interceptions, a half tackle for a loss, and two passes broken up ... ISU lost their conference opener for the 11th time in 12 seasons.
A Guilty Liberal Finally Snaps, Swears Off Plastic, Goes Organic, Becomes A Bicycle Nazi, Turns Off His Power, Composts His Poop and, While Living In New York City, Generally Turns Into a Tree-Hugging Lunatic Who Tries to Save the Polar Bears and The Rest of the Planet from Environmental Catastrophe While Dragging His Baby Daughter and Prada-Wearing, Four Seasons-Loving Wife Along for the Ride
One of the questions people ask me again and again is to describe a day in the No Impact life. I always think it’s a funny question, because I’m so used to it now and it seems so routine. All the same, I thought I might as well answer it:
If I get it together, I wake up before the girls when my wind-up alarm clock goes off (no electricity) and take a little quiet time to meditate. If not, I wake up with Michelle when Isabella, the two-and-a-half-year-old, makes the short, two-foot trip from her toddler bed to our bed (we live in a one bedroom). How I miss the cage…I mean, crib!
Michelle and I contort our bodies to fit into the space allowed us. We sleep on one quarter; Frankie, during the night, progressively takes over three-quarters. When Isabella arrives and insists we don’t touch her, our share reduces by another half.
Eventually, after noisily sucking her thumb for a while, Isabella gets up and starts running around after Frankie. The windows are open (no air conditioning) and Michelle can’t bring herself to believe that the window guards—which could stop a guerilla—are strong enough to prevent Isabella from cart-wheeling out. We have to get up, too.
We brush our teeth (baking soda) using a cup of water (rather than letting the faucet run). We may or may not take a bath—one at a time in the same water—depending on whether it is bath day (we’re in the water conservation stage). We use homemade unscented beeswax soap to wash and baking soda for shampoo.
Breakfast consists of marvelously fresh cantaloupe and toast, both from the farmers’ market. I haven’t been able to bake my own bread for the last few weeks because the combination of a 400 degree oven, 90 degree weather and no air conditioning could potentially overwhelm my family’s ability to live with me.
One of us—depending on who wins the “discussion”—walks Frankie down the nine flights of stairs, around the block and back up the nine flights of stairs (no non-self-propelled transportation which means no elevator).
We all get dressed in clothes that are just this side of fermented (thanks to the combination of perpetually putting off washing our clothes by hand and our attempts to conserve water).
We stumble down the stairs, Michelle carrying the bags and bike helmets and Isabella riding on my shoulders.
We stop at the Gray Dog with Michelle’s reusable cup and my glass jar. The no coffee part of the local food stage has fallen by the wayside. Michelle couldn’t cope with the caffeine withdrawal. I couldn’t cope with not hanging out in coffee shops.
For more information on the work of Colin Beavan, see:
Just a quick reminder of this weeks TLC (True Loyal Connections) Meeting.
Tuesday, September 11th ,atThe Continental Bistro, 140 S. Main in Old Town Pocatello.
Time: 11:45 to 1:00 pm
Kimberly Olsen with Pre-Paid Legal will be presenting for us this week.
If you’re crunched for time Rob will be setting up a soup and salad bar for $5.50 or you can call your lunch in ahead of time if you like. The phone number for The Bistro is 233-4433.
The sole purpose of this time is to meet with Business Owners, Managers and Leaders to network, pass referrals and have lunch.
There is nothing to join, and no cost other than your lunch and a $1.00 voluntary donation to support our group. Bring a new friend and your lunch could be free!
Remember, everyone who attends is eligible to win a free dinner courtesy of The Continental Bistro.
If you have any questions please call Troy Neu at 234-2679.
-- Michael
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Jobs go overseas, and Americans hurt for it, but still the Democrats blame the Republicans and the Republicans blame the Democrats because if they convince us that they are right, that puts them on the "winning team" -- the one that did not create the problem.
Meanwhile, let somebody else holler about it.
Our government has evolved to the point where, from the White House on down, it is run not by statesmen but by pollsters, who in turn create an ersatz wave of public opinion off what the spin doctors have convinced us we really think.
We used to think for ourselves in this country. There were times when we were one of the few countries in the world that did. We didn't even know what a spin doctor was until 1952 when a group of them won a presidential election in the first television-fueled campaign by putting a retired Army general before the cameras, selling him like a breakfast cereal simply by having him grin and say 5,000,000 times:
"It's time for a change."
He won, although he never really said a change to what.
So the floodgates burst open, and we let the advertising industry, the public relations firms, the spin doctors rob us of the ability tell right from wrong and good from bad because it was easier for them to tell us what we didn't know we were thinking. They cowed us into never daring to take a side that wasn't politically, racially, gender-wise or chauvinistically correct.
One night I hope we will sit in front of the boob tube and hear what the pundits have to tell us that everybody in a state or a county or a precinct had voted exactly the way their pundit and pollsters said was impossible.
Ruckus Network, Inc., the provider of a multimedia network that supplies free and legal music downloads specifically for college students, today announced that its Ruckus® service is now available at Idaho State University.
Throughout the year, ISU’s undergraduate and graduate students can access the Ruckus service anytime – on or off campus – to enjoy the full-featured music service.
Members of the ISU community can access the first, college-only service that blends social networking features with a massive and continuously expanding library of free, legal and safe music downloads. Ruckus has already proven successful at more than 120 colleges and universities across the country, including Brown University, Duke University, Georgia Tech, Indiana University, North Carolina State, Princeton University, University of California-Berkeley, the University of Denver, Penn State University and the University of Pennsylvania.
With Ruckus, students can legally download and share music, create playlists, send personal media recommendations to friends and neighbors, browse classmates’ profiles and media libraries, and meet new friends. Students can also build their personal music libraries from Ruckus’ collection of more than 3 million high-fidelity, virus-free songs. Ruckus eliminates copyright infringement through its licensing agreements with all of the major international record labels, as well as thousands of independent labels and artists. Faculty and staff can also take advantage of the partnership for a low monthly fee.
“I’m so excited to see Ruckus come to ISU,” said Jennifer Brown, ASISU President. “Congratulations to ISU for implementing such a great program for students, providing a safe and legal way to download and share music."
“We at Idaho State University are thrilled about our partnership with Ruckus because of the many advantages it provides to our students. Now students can download legal, licensed and free digital content, while sharing and discovering new music through the Idaho State University community,” said Randy Gaines, ISU chief information officer. “With the Ruckus service, we are giving students a legal downloading alternative that also includes social networking features found at popular sites. It’s something we think will be well received on our campus.” ISU was selected to participate based on student demand for the Ruckus service, the school’s robust networking infrastructure, and a demonstrable commitment to supporting legal digital media services through on-campus marketing, according to the company.
“We are very excited to make our music service available to students at Idaho State University , to help them discover and share new music,” said Mairin Bzrica, director of campus relations at Ruckus. “Idaho State University students have been asking for Ruckus for months and we are happy to now provide a full featured digital entertainment service – and a safe and legal alternative to file-sharing – at no cost to students or to the school.”
ISU students can begin using the service immediately by visiting www.Ruckus.com, clicking on “Join Ruckus” and entering a .edu e-mail address. The registration process only takes a few minutes.
For more information about Ruckus, visit www.RuckusNetwork.com or www.Ruckus.com.
Just a quick reminder of this weeks TLC (True Loyal Connections) Meeting.
Tuesday, September 4th ,atThe Continental Bistro, 140 S. Main in Old Town Pocatello.
Time: 11:45 to 1:00 pm
Dave Reichelt with NationWidewill be presenting for us this week.
If you’re crunched for time Rob will be setting up a soup and salad bar for $5.50 or you can call your lunch in ahead of time if you like. The phone number for The Bistro is 233-4433.
The sole purpose of this time is to meet with Business Owners, Managers and Leaders to network, pass referrals and have lunch.
There is nothing to join, and no cost other than your lunch and a $1.00 voluntary donation to support our group. Bring a new friend and your lunch could be free!
Remember, everyone who attends is eligible to win a free dinner courtesy of The Continental Bistro.
