Immanentize the Eschaton

About two months ago, I started listening to classical music.  It was not a conscious decision, in that I said to myself “Self, you need to listen to classical music and improve yourself.”  It more of an “I can’t find anything decent to listen to on [a whole bunch of Sirius Stations].  Let me try the classical channel.”

Now, I did not know that much about classical music.  I knew the basics (e.g., the Three Bs), and knew that I had long ago listened to Dvorak’s Ninth Symphony and enjoyed it.  Oh, and Handel’s Messiah.  So I tuned to “Symphony Hall” with no great expectation that I would enjoy what I heard.  I was quite surprised that not only did I like the music; I was listening to it more closely than I did the rock stations.  I now regularly listen to both “Symphony Hall” and “SiriusXM Pops”, as well as the local classical radio station (WDAV).  I have also started listening more to what SiriusXM calls the “Sinatra” channel.

So, am I putting on airs?  I do not think so.  I think I am experiencing on a small, personal scale what Tom Wolfe called a “Great Relearning”.  I am finding out that maybe, just maybe, some of the old things and old ways really were better.  Certainly not everything older was better.  But maybe my Dad knew something when he told us that Sinatra, Tommy Dorsey, Glenn Miller, and other artists of that era made some terrific music that would outlast the pop and rock we kids were listening to.  He was no classical music aficionado, but he could appreciate a good symphony or concerto.

Another small example or two might help clarify what I am groping at.  I head Dennis Prager on a podcast I listen to each week.  He was talking about classical music, and one of the hosts said something like “you sound like a man who writes with a fountain pen.”  Now when I was younger (and I mean around 4^th or 5^th grade), I used a cheap fountain pen.  (I think it was a Schaeffer.) Whether out of enjoyment or affectation I can’t remember now, and it probably does not matter.  I do know that the comment piqued my interest and I did what any one would do nowadays:  I Googled “fountain pen.”  I found a variety of sites proving that interest in this has not faded; indeed, it appears that many people still use fountain pens regularly.  I found out that there is even a disposable fountain pen.  I picked up a couple of them, and I enjoy using them for taking notes at work, writing in my journal (which I have also re-started), etc.  I am also learning about better stationary, notebooks, and so on.

One site that popped up was “The Art of Manliness”.  I checked it out (it was there that I learned about the disposable fountain pen).  I wasn’t sure if the site was meant to be ironic, or if it was intended to provoke discussion and recovery of “manly” skills and virtues.  One article concerned “How to Shave Like Your Grandfather”.  It discussed the benefits of traditional shaving techniques and tools over those used today.  For example, a double-edged safety razor actually provides a better, more comfortable shave for far less money than the four or five bladed cartridges most men use.  This is especially true if one prepares the beard in the correct way:  use hot water and a good shaving brush and shaving soap to really help the blade glide over the skin.  As luck would have it, I had a particularly painful shave that day (it probably didn’t help that the Fusion cartridge I was using was on its fourth week of service, but at $17 for four cartridges, I push them as long as I can take it).  I started looking into what some call “wet shaving”, and I decided to try it out.  I bought an inexpensive (not cheap!) brush and some traditional shaving cream.  So far, it has made my shaving more comfortable and pleasurable.  I plan to get a safety razor and see how that works.  I suspect that it will work just fine.

Now, my father used a safety razor.  But when I started shaving, there was no way I was going to use that “old geezer stuff”.  Nope, it was Trac II, etc., for me!  I did like Old Spice and English Leather though (still do).  Again, he knew something we didn’t, and I have to re-learn it now.

And I think that’s my point: newer isn’t necessarily better.  The old ways have value.  I have lost that somehow in the rush of modern life, chasing the new and “exciting”.  My dad has not been with us for over 30 years, but I know he’ll smile when I say “Dad, I am sorry.  You were right!”

Brian Setzer,

Can anyone who has listened to Setzer's playing seriously say that Joni Mitchell belongs on the list instead of him (I'm looking at you, Rolling Stone)?  Or that any of a number of lesser players belong, but not the Stray Cat himself?

Pull out your copy of "Built For Speed" (you do have one, right?).  Listen to his work on "Rock This Town".  Listen to it again on "The Dirty Boogie".  Check out his work in the cut "Sleepwalk".

Does he not get respect because he plays rockabilly and leads an updated big-band?  I just don't get it.  Help me out, please!

It also makes me want to keep my Netflix subscription.  Movies like this just aren't at Redbox, or even at Blockbuster (which we no longer have).  I know of no place else to get these smaller, independent movies (we got "The Apostle" from Netflix years ago).  Throw in foreign gems like "The Lives of Others" of the "Dragon Tattoo" trilogy (the movies were much better than the books), and suddenly it is worth the 10 dollars a month.

They showed pictures of her in the background, and I did know her. Susan Clyne.  Her desk was adjacent to mine.  She was a fine person and colleague, and her children were her pride and joy.  I remember her talking to them several times a day.  She was killed in Tower 1 of the World Trade Center on September 11. 

I couldn’t make it through more than 20 seconds of the segment. 

Bastards.

His post is full of platitudes, generalizations, jargon, and not much else.  Let’s examine his so-called thoughts: 

He begins by stating “Our high school has a focus on global education as evidenced by the globe centered on our school crest.”  Really?  The evidence of “global education” at Cuthbertson is the fact that the school’s crest has a globe?  He can’t cite exchange programs, immersive language courses, international business courses, or other instructional efforts? 

He then makes some noises concerning the BRIC countries, and talks about how things were when he was in high school.  He states that competition from foreigners wasn’t a real concern.   But now: 

“Our students have to be very aware of all of the players in our interconnected world. Their peers around the globe directly compete with them for lucrative positions that are geographically indifferent as long as the employee has the necessary skills and a reliable connection to the Internet. They compete for limited spots in the freshmen classes of the best universities. Competition is the first “C.” for our students to be successful they must be fully prepared to compete against their international counterparts.”

I have no real beef with this, other that to say that Mr. Jackson is way off base if he thinks this is a new phenomenon.  He and I are about the same age; in fact, he may be a bit younger than me.  When I went to college, there were students and professors from India, Taiwan, Korea, Russia, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Israel, and many other countries.  To say that students now have to compete against students from around the globe shows that he and UCPS haven’t been paying attention over the past thirty years.

His next point is:

“Our students must be able to collaborate with others regardless of cultural differences. As businesses recruit talent around the world, our students must be able to demonstrate an ability to work on multicultural teams. Collaboration is an equally important “C.”"

This is really an empty platitude, and he doesn’t say what he is doing at CHS to make this happen.

And just for the record, there’s no such thing as a “multicultural team”.  There are teams of people from different culture, who ought to be working toward the same goal.  I’ve worked on team with Indians, Chinese, Taiwanese, Japanese, Russians, Ukranians, Israelis, and so on.  At no time did I think I needed to understand or have an in-depth knowledge of the various cultures to work successfully.  What I DID need to do was to treat each team member with respect and dignity.

His third “C” is:

“…Communication. Students need to be able to communicate using 21st century tools, leveraging social media and Web 2.0 tools to share their messages in a variety of mediums. An understanding of the power of a well-crafted message between a skilled sender and receiver will allow them to become a vital cog in industries that span the globe, yet depend on well-timed communication between teammates to keep the work going forward.”

Develop your craft…don't be discouraged…work wherever you can.  Be patient.

“If it doesn’t make you happy, and it doesn’t make you money, just move on.”

Words of wisdom from Adam Carolla. It’s at least a good first cut!

I hope this finds you well, and that you've had opportunities to enjoy the summer while preparing for the new school year.

During the controversy last year over the ALTS program being housed at Cuthbertson High, you told both the Board of Education and the public that you would report on the program at the end of the first semester and at the end of the academic year.  I see in the BOE minutes, as well as in press reports (which I noted at the time), that you gave the promised end-of-semester report on 1 February; however, you have not given the end-of-year report. 

When do you intend to give this report to the Board?  What are the standards for stating that the program is successful?  Will you ask the parents of students in the Cuthbertson community for their feedback, and not just the parents of students in the ALTS program?  (I ask this because of a 4 Feb 2011 press report that states "Contrary to the original fears and reservations, parents have been generally pleased with the results of the program, school officials said. The district polled parents of each child entered into the program, asking how they would rate the intake process, instructional and procedural parts of the project. On a scale of 1-10, the average response was around a 9.4 to each question…Likewise, students have responded positively as well, district officials say, adding they also polled the kids who were involved. The majority rated their experience between good and okay.  'We have had no problems with the student body at Cuthbertson,' Davis said."   It was not the parents of the ALTS students who had "fears and reservations"; it was the parents in the CHS community.)

I also note in the minutes for the BOE meeting on 1 February that in your report on ALTS you "…commented that the staff would need to look into arrangements for the next school year with regard to the location of the program as the CHS student body will be increasing."  What progress has been made on this?  Is this related to the agenda item "South Providence restructuring and ALTS Tiers 1, 2, 3" discussed in the Curriculum Committee meeting on 17 May?  When will a decision be made and announced to the public?  Surely after the outcry last August and September, you can appreciate the need to be ahead of events on this topic.

Finally, in September of 2010 Dean Arp asked us for questions we had about the ALTS program.  These questions were never answered; indeed, I have no reason to believe they were ever brought to anyone's attention.  Some of these questions were:

1. Of the students in UCPS who successfully completed the previous ALTS program (i.e. earned all the available credits), how many later dropped out of school anyway? 
2. How many graduated on time?  How many graduated, but in a later class? 
3. How do these numbers/percentages compare with students suspended for lesser terms? 
4. How do they compare to the overall population? 
5. How do these number/percentages compare with programs in other districts throughout the state? 
6. What offenses were these students suspended for and their frequencies?

Frankly, these are data the district should have at its fingertips and would bolster your case that the previous program was a success.  Can you or your staff provide any answers to these questions?

I apologize for the length of this e-mail, and look forward to your response.

Sincerely,
Dan Kennedy

) where she explains her vote against the County budget.  I must take issue with her claim that “the schools are well past the point of cutting nonessentials”.  UCPS took actions that increased the “baseline” for their spending.