This is where I believe the NCAA goes wrong. Payments from boosters...sure. Agents lingering and influencing before legal...all right. Money from the institution to try to sway a recruit to attend their school...I can handle that. But here I believe we have gone too far.

I've never been a big Lebro fan (though I respect the MAN greatly) not a believer in the idea that one sports figure can save a city. Then I saw Bron's "Witness" commercial last night and had a change of perspective. Maybe one man can make a difference, especially in a city like Cleveland.

I've written before that I don't like to see oil companies posting record profits with gas prices as they are, but this sure isn't the answer:

Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin of Illinois echoed those calls on “Meet the Press,” warning that “if you do not tax these corporations ... they will continue to run up the profits to high heavens.”

I'm a believer that businesses don't pay taxes, they pass it on to the consumer. So taxing the oil companies will then lead to higher prices as the pump. Makes sense to me.

Interestingly, twice this week I heard on the radio talk-show circuit that maybe the government should hold back a little on the amount of $ per gallon of gas they take, up to a third of the price in some areas. But you'll never see that happen!

Congrats Mr. Leinart,

I hope you enjoyed the last 365 days of your life. Last year you would have been the #1 pick of the NFL draft, signed a contract for around $55 million, almost $30 million of that would have been guaranteed. Today you slipped to the #10 pick, the Cardinals, where you may receive a contract somewhat above the 5 year - $13.5 million dollar range that last year's #10 pick Mike Williams signed for, again, half of which is probably guaranteed. So, you could look on the bright side and be thankful for what you have, or the downside and the $20 million you lost by staying in school. I know what I'd be thinking. You idiot!

Two things stick out to me in the article below. First, there are two major fallacies here, first an appeal to pity on the part of the young lady (which I share, but it gets us off of the topic) and an ad hominem attack against Congress (which again may be right but it gets us off of the topic, people who are in our country illegally)
.
Second, I don't ever see the US deporting people who, though they came here illegally, have lived an upright life. All I want (and I'm sure many others) are those who use the system and commit the crimes (whether that be 1 or 10 million) be punished and returned.

Diana Villanueva-Hoeckley did not take the typical path to Westmont College, a Christian liberal arts college in Montecito, California. The 19-year-old sophomore was born in Guatemala, and then smuggled into the United States at the age of 7. Her story makes you want to cry. What the U.S. Congress may do to her makes you want to scream.

Diana's mother came to the United States legally in the mid-1990s. Once she had established some semblance of a life for herself in the Los Angeles area, she tried to obtain a visa for her daughter to come and live with her. The U.S. Embassy turned down her application. Desperate to have her daughter by her side, she paid a "coyote," or migrant smuggler, to deliver Diana to California.

Imagine the fright of being told at age 7 that you must take a long, covert journey with a stranger, all alone. Diana today can only recall snippets: a bus journey, a short plane ride, hanging out at borders waiting for the right moment to cross. "I just kept focused on how great it would be together with my mother again," says Diana.

Not long after her arrival into the U.S., Diana and her now-pregnant mother moved to Santa Barbara. Diana's sister, Estrellita, was born. Earning a meager income from a string of housecleaning jobs, her mother moved the family into a small trailer. Diana attended public schools in the Santa Barbara area starting in the third grade.

During her freshman year in high school, Diana took note that her mother was not looking well. Lacking health insurance, her mother visited a health clinic serving a low-income population. At first she was diagnosed with pneumonia, but slowly it became apparent that something much more serious was going on. She had lung cancer, and died within two years.
Chris Hoeckley and Cheri Larsen Hoeckley are both professors at Westmont College. Their daughter, Mackenzie, was Estrellita's classmate at the local public school. Many there were heartbroken by Diana and Estrellita's loss. The Hoeckleys reached out and embraced the girls into their family.

The Hoeckleys had for some time looked to adoption as an avenue for growing their family. Their desire to parent matched their religious conviction that God calls us to care for the orphans in need. They went through the county process to legally adopt the Villanueva children. In the midst of much tragedy, the Hoeckleys, now 5 in number, patched together a loving connection.

If only the story could move on from there to focus on the life experiences that all families look to create. But most families do not face criminal prosecution. Yet, Diana may one day soon be charged as a felon for illegally immigrating to this country 13 years ago. And her adoptive parents also could be criminally charged for aiding and abetting an illegal immigrant.

I like how our "basic human rights continue to evolve. It's gone from life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness to a living wage and health care. Socialism, here we come...

Cover the uninsured
A group of diverse religious leaders are coming together because they believe health care is a basic human right and they are frustrated that addressing the issue of expanding health care coverage is not a national priority. While Cover The Uninsured Week does not endorse any specific legislative or policy solution to the problem of the uninsured, it will continue to shine a spotlight on this important issue until our leaders discuss potential solutions and take action.

Now this would be quite a conference!

Pentecost 2006:Building a Covenant for a New America

Sen. Barack Obama* and Rev. Jim Wallis have places at the table - will you join them? Register now!Hosted by Sojourners and Call to Renewal June 26-28, 2006 - Washington, D.C.
Join Rev. Jim Wallis and hundreds of grassroots and faith-based anti-poverty leaders for three days of putting faith into action through workshops, Hill visits, inspiring speeches, and music, with the goal of building the political will to overcome poverty! Invited speakers at Pentecost 2006 include Sen. Barack Obama and Marian Wright Edelman, and confirmed speakers include Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Rev. Sharon Watkins.

You can't put a price tag on this:

Portland Trail Blazers forward Darius MilesMiles, in an interview with Jason Quick of the Portland Oregonian:

"Yeah,you probably smelled liquor on me before. But it's not like I'm at practice drunk. I'm totally focused. I don't care if you come to practice and take a shower, once you go to practice and start sweating, it's going to come out. That doesn't mean you aren't focused or ready to practice.

Like you might go out, you might get drunk, and come to the gym higherthan a mother, and you sweating, you smell like liquor, and you interviewing everybody. What does that mean? You still 100 percent focused. That's just ridiculous. Ask any other team, little petty stufflike that, if you ask any other coach in the NBA if they smell liquor on aplayer, any coach would say, 'Every year."'

In the same interview, Miles, who wants out of Portland, detailed some ofhis concerns with Trail Blazers management. "It's like you are telling me I'm this franchise player, but hey ... once I noticed it, and I was like dang, 'I don't have no bobble head?' They tried to get me one at the last minute, and I was like, 'No, I'm fine.' "But I don't want to sound like I'm whining. But this is what you all are telling me. You mean to tell me, if they have a Steve Nash, a Raja Bell,Amare Stoudemire, and a Boris Diaw bobblehead, they wouldn't have a ShawnMarion? But I don't want this whole interview to sound like I'm whining." Too late.

Since you guys and gals all gave such great godly wisdom last time I asked, I'm going to run another situation off of you:

As you may have gleaned from previous posts, the Lord really seems to be opening up doors for both of the organizations I serve on a part-time basis, the Players Chapel Program and Tumaini International Ministries. From Kenya to Guatemala in the past to Toronto (AIDS 2006 International Conference) this summer to possibly more opportunities in such countries as the Ivory Cost and Paraguay in the near future along with follow-up in Kenya and Guatemala (where the government wants us to join them on a five-year plan to reach the entire country with our curriculum and eventually the Gospel. This has nothing to do with our skills, I see the hand of God working here, and that is what intrigues me greatly and brings me to this.

Of course, all of this travel and work brings with it a steep cost (yet one after much thought and prayer I have deemed worthwhile). While the Players Chapel had done what it can to raise the funds for the travel, the board of Tumaini has decided we will not take any percent of the child donations to underwrite our operational costs. Therefore, an idea of mine was that I would continue to work at the high school but also raise funds for the work that I do on the side. This would include the foreign travel to train others in the material we offer, attend and present at mission conferences, domestic travel for meetings, etc. Is this right? How would potential donors respond to this? What would be the proper angle to take? I really only have one shot at this, and I am beginning to feel more and more that this is the time. Any insights?

The Sports Guy was in rare form again today, two quotes stuck out from his article, one from him and a side bar from Kevin Jackson:

First the SG:

(By the way, out of any Pearl Jam song, this is the one that gives me oneof those party flashbacks -- you know, when you hear a moment in a songand it makes you remember standing in somebody's kitchen at 4:45 a.m.,bombed to smithereens, holding a cigarette in one hand and a beer in theother, waiting for the guitar transition near the end to wrap up soeveryone still awake could scream, "She loved him!" at the same time ...and you can't even remember where you were or who else was in the kitchen.Have to love the party flashbacks. They're almost like acid flashbacks.)

I've got four such songs, three of which fit perfectly with his description of the moment:
1) "American Pie" - all night party with the Mert Man, must have played this song from 1am to 8am when I tried to go roller blading and couldn't get out of the door. "Play it again..."
2) "Closing Time" - called in the national John Garabedian "Open House Party" and requested this one Saturday afternoon after we had six too many, still think of that every time I hear the song.
3) "Freshman" by the Verve Pipe - we were at a party at the house of a guy named "Blah" and this song was on repeat for the longest time, we were 21 but most were not and it got busted shortly after.
4) "Black" by Pearl Jam - on our way to the biggest FB game of the year, we were told once we hit the tracks going into Hilbert we were to focus solely on the game. At that exact moment this song came on and brought us into town, but we lost 7-3.

Now from Kevin Jackson:

For me, it's impossible to separate the Sonics and Pearl Jam in mymemories. I still vividly recall the night it became cool to be a Sonicsfan again -- when GP led them out of the tunnel wearing short black socksand all-black shoes before Game 1 of a first-round playoff game at GoldenState in 1992. (The seventh-seeded Supes went on to upset the No. 2Warriors in four games, punctuated by a Kemp dunk-for-the-ages over AltonLister in Game 3.)

Two things stick out to me here:

1) Alton Lister was still in the NBA in 1992? I didn't think he made it out of the 80's. WOW!
2) The Warriors were the #2 seed in the Playoffs at one time. Double WOW!

Ahhh....the benefits of teaching.

So today I am walking down the hall on my way to talk with a teacher when I see three kids in the hallway. I knew one of them, but the other two start yelling, "Hey Mr. Nate, you're the guy that shops at my store all the time."

I had no idea who they were, but upon a short discussion I found out that one of them needed my approval to get a half credit for graduation that she desperately needed and the other works at Aldo. I may have let on previously that I am a shoe fiend and Aldo happens to be one of my favorite stores. Anyway (and again, I had no idea who this girl was) she tells me how she works at Aldo and that every employee gets 50% off purchases of up to $1500 annually and she was willing to buy me any shoes I wanted at this discounted rate.

Needless to say, she made my day, now if I just knew her name to follow up with her...

Cool quote:

"If most of us were asked why we thought we were not fulfilled, why we were not simply happy, we would likely point to particular features of our life such as work, relationships, or health, and attribute our unhappiness to one of these.... To so many of us the activities of our day are like parallel lines and many actively resent one area's impinging on another. The result of this is that modern life so often lacks a centre, a point of convergence, a source of unity. Consequently, men and women lose the sense of their own creative centre and as a result they have no contact with their real selves." (John Main, O.S.B., 1926-1982)

Two points stick out:

1) Every time I teach a class or a two-day conference, a point I emphasize is the difference between happiness and joy. Happiness is an internal emotion based on external circumstances. One is happy when the bank account is full, marriage is well, cupboards are full of food, job is secure, etc. Joy, on the other hand, is still an internal emotion but this time it is not based on external circumstances. We can still be joy-filled when we have no money, just lost our job, have no food and our marriage is falling apart.

I see Main referring to happiness rather than joy at the beginning of the quote.

2) The other part I like is how our activities run like parallel lines throughout our day. Our devotional is separate from our relationship with our family which is separate from our job, etc. I believe the better way is for all areas to intersect, our devotional will impact our relationship with our families and jobs, we will have coffee with a friend and talk about how much we love our family, etc.

Today's update from the classroom:

Student A was trying to draw a circle next to Student B. Student A is not a good artist, butchered the circle, and was asked by Student A: "What is that?" asked Student A. Student B responded, "A circle." Responded Student A, "No, where did you learn to draw circles from, crack-whore Barney?"

Crack whore Barney...that's a new one.

As any of the readers from my home area know, I live in a highly industrial area which is losing jobs by the week. The economic history of this area is based on paper manufacturing, it's one of the world leaders in this area. Paper mills are the leading provider of jobs, heck, my school mascot is called the "Papermaker" and supposedly named after the wasp that helps do something in the papermaking process. Yet we also know that this area of the economy has been in a sharp decline of late, leading to a stagnating economy in the Fox Valley. Fortunately we have been diverse enough to hold us over for the time and we do possess a highly skilled labor force, but I still see a dim outlook for the future.

I have a deep empathy for those losing their jobs, one's job all too often ties in to who they are, and with the loss of a job comes a loss of one's self esteem to a degree I cannot even imagine. It also affects the kids at school (I'm had countless students talk about their mother or father
losing their jobs) which disheartens me even more.

But herein lies the problem, and it was spoken perfectly be a letter to the editor in our local paper, though seeking the prove the other side. The author writes, "Almost half of the employees at Glatfelter are age 55 or older. Many of them started working right out of high school and have no technical skills that employers are now looking for."

I could not have said it better myself. Americans need to learn something and learn it quick. First, we are pricing ourselves out of the global marketplace. How can businesses afford to pay Americans $18-$25 an hour plus benefits when they can go to India or countless other countries and pay $1 an hour (which as Jeffrey Sachs notes in "The End of Poverty" is an adequate wage which helps pull the Indian people out of poverty)?

Second, as Clinton noted during his presidency (at least to my understanding), Americans can no longer rely on the manufacturing sector to provide a living for their family. Sure, there will always be those jobs, but to think one will leave high school and find a job that they can
keep until they retire will be rare if at all existent. We need to continue to receiving training, broaden and improve our job skills, and be flexible in the market.

I know that even my profession of teaching will bring its ups and downs, therefore I am always seeking further training, making connections in other areas of the economy, and preparing in case somethind would happen to my job (and being a non-core teacher, I know I'm always one budget cut away from being unemployed). We all must do that, and it becomes even more important for those in fields where the market fluctuates at an unpredictable pace.

I usually don't like to discuss this, but I ran across three interesting quotes today as it pertains to Iraq and the Muslim world:

Alan M. Dershowitz, a criminal law professor at Harvard Law School and the author of The Case for Israel, once wrote "The primary cause of terrorism is not occupation, humiliation, or desperation... The primary cause of terrorism is that it works. And it works because the craven international community gives into it and rewards it. It also works because too many Islamic leaders praise it and too few condemn it. Terrorism will continue as long as potential terrorists believe they will benefit from using that tactic."

This is particularly interesting in light of my post a few weeks ago on my trip to Guatemala. I was warned of possible kidnapping and what to do in such a case. A further discussion made me think of why they kidnap white Americans: they know that the family and friends back home will chip the required money for their release. It continues because it works, there is no stopping it.

"There's no way you can impose western culture and democracy and Judeo-Christian ethics on a Muslim community to start with. The best that you can hope for is that they've got somebody in there that's not a radical nut like the president of Iran, or Saddam Hussein, or something like that." - Bruce Tefft, Former CIA official and Middle East expert

I've felt this for a long time, not all cultures are ready or able to exist in the Western style of democracy, and I think the Iraqis are a prime example. I do not feel democracy will work in that nation.

Yet, Iraq remains a predominantly Muslim nation. Its people are a Muslim people. Al-Din, who supports the US military presence in Iraq, has problems with the new Iraqi Constitution because it relies on Islamic principles. He believes the only way for Iraq to truly be a free democratic nation is for the government of Iraq to form a secular democracy. Mixing Islam and democracy, he said, "is like mixing Marxists and capitalists."

How true!

Well, in spite of my insistence that the $362 check my insurance cut me was no valid, I was told repeatedly that it is and I should go ahead and cash it. If they come back on me in a few weeks and ask for it back, I'll be livid. I'm still not set on keeping it, so I'm donating it to my good friend Japheth Simiyu of Kitale, Kenya. He hopes to come visit sometime this spring and could use the funds.

This is what I put up with on a daily basis. As a student was leaving my room today without permission, I asked where he was going. "Hey, Dude, I've got to take a crap, you don't want me to go all over this room do you?" No, but a simply, "Can I use the restroom would be more than enough."

With today being tax day we couldn't make the 24 hour period without an article that the rich pay too little in taxes. I hate to focus too much on this, but to reiterate my beliefs, the rich handle their fair share of the burden, and I am of the belief that big businesses don't pay taxes, they pass it off to you and I with the prices of their goods, which negates that argument. I'll once again cite the interview John Stossel had with Al Shapton:

We've all heard this one during the presidential campaign. When it comes to income taxes, the Democratic presidential candidates keep telling us, the rich don't pay enough.

That's a widespread belief, but do the politicians even know how much of the income tax burden the rich pay now?

According to presidential candidate Al Sharpton, "The top one percent in this country pays very much less than ten percent, very much less than five percent."

Sharpton said he thinks the wealthy should pay "somewhere around 15 percent." But that's so silly because — and I bet most of you don't know this — the IRS says the richest 1 percent of taxpayers already pay 34 percent of all income taxes. Twice what Sharpton wanted them to pay.

Still you may feel the rich should pay even more. It's a tempting thought, since they have so much.

But let's remember the facts: the top 1 percent of Americans — those who earn more than about $300,000 a year — pay 34 percent, more than a third of all income taxes, and the top 5 percent, those making over $125,000, pay more than half.

Stephen Moore also comments on this fallacy:

One final point: The CBO (Congressional Budget Office) study confirms that the rich carry the bulk of the tax burden on their shoulders. The CBO estimate says that the share of income taxes paid by the richest 20 percent of earners fell from 82.5 percent to 82.1 percent in 2004. The report also states that the top 10 percent of earners will pay “only” 66.7 percent of 2004 taxes, with the top 1 percent paying 32.3 percent. Fully 80 percent of Americans pay less than 18 percent of total income taxes. Not even Al Sharpton could look at this data and say the rich are getting a free ride.

Here's a little quandary I'm in, please give your input:

Two years ago and again last spring I received my shots for my trip to Kenya. In all, it was over $500 and I was told that insurance would not cover this. All right. Then last summer some friends of mine were going to Ethiopia to adopt a child and told me that their shots were covered, so I contacted my insurance and they told me that I should not have been billed for these immunizations, which led to hours of phone calls between the insurance and health care provider. In the end I was reimbursed for what I thought was the full amount but didn't check it exactly. The checks came from the insurance.

Then, last week, another check came from the health care provider for what as the exact amoung of my bill two years ago. Now, I felt that I had been reimbursed, so I am convicted that this money is not mine and should not be put into my bank account. Should I call and let the health care provider know that and return the check? What if I donate it to a charity? Would that be wrong? I think my conscience would be clear with that. But what is the health care provider then finds out it made a mistake and wants the money back, then I'm out $362. What advice can you all give me? What would the Bible say about this situation?

As you've probably guessed I'm back from Guatemala and though it was a great time, I haven't eaten since Sunday morning (other than toast, bagel, etc. and it runs right through me) and have had a steady dose of the runs. Not good! I called the Dr. yesterday and they put me on some meds and some other stuff. It hasn't helped much though, they also wanted a stool sample which was quite interesting, though I didn't get the results back yet.

Thought this quote was pretty cool and true, not that I'm in the business of negotiating all that much but it'll be helpful to keep in mind:
Get people to cooperate: Always keep in mind that other people don't care what you want -- they want to know what's in it for them. By approaching negotiations with an attitude that allows both parties to win, you'll be more effective at eliciting cooperation and ultimately getting what you want.

My two cents on the Brett Favre saga around here: I don't blame him if he doesn't want to come back, the Packers have done nothing to make their team any better over the last few years and basically wasted his career. The only way I would consider it if I were him is if they broke the bank, signed Arrington and Woodson and another notable FA and made one last run at the title. Other than that, ride into the sunset.

I know this was over a week ago, and I know this isn't a light situation, but I had to think when John Wooden was admitted to the hospital with a situation that "wasn't life threatening," when you are 95-years old, isn't any situation life threatening. Glad to hear he made a recovery.

Got in safe late last night, thought I was going to be met by my friend as well as some of the government officials, I thought wrong. I wandered aroud for a little while before I found them. Let me tell you, Im fairly comfortable travelling to different cultures, but when you get out of the airport and have no idea where you are going or who to talk to, its a scary feeling. And this is from me who, if need be, could have gone up to any of the major hotels (Holiday Inn, Mariott, etc) with a presence there and booked the night. Makes me have more compassion on those who arrive to a foreign country without those privileges. Im learning more and more and benefits given to those with white skin. In Kenya, I can walk into the Nairobi Hilton, through the security, without a problem, no questions asked. You could have an American of African or Latin or any other descent do the same and the questions would be raised, gates closed, etc. Crazy world.

Took a taxi to the Embassy this afternoon for a meeting with a gentleman over security for the embassy and a lady who works with cultural relations. We're trying to get the work we are doing funded or granted by the government. Anyway, I'm learning more and more about diplomacy, the thing is all you have to do is listen and pass it on to the next person. I got passed from one to the other and then given a phone number of someone in the country to speak to. Beaurocracy...

I wish I had a video of the cab ride over, the driver and I were trying to communicate, and I know about as much Spanish as he knew English, which is next to none. I can greet and say goodbye, that's about all, I used to know more, when I took the mission trips to Mexico I thought I did fine, but have lost it. I keep speaking Swahili to these people and they look at my like I'm crazy, which is true. The good thing is that I got to the Embassy and returned without conflict.

By the way, I thought that my hotel would be one of the best I've ever stayed in, it is by far!

Florida - UCLA, I want to know who picked that one four months ago. I'm actually looking forward to the game though, a lot of talent on the floor. I'm rooting for the Bruins.

Got my paper graded, now I can finally say I am DONE!

I leave for Guatemala on Wed for a short teaching trip. I was part of a group that developed a curriculum five years ago for public and private schools, we took the material to Kenya last year and now Guatemala. I'm looking forward to it, I trained five teachers last June who will be doing the training, I'm there for answering questions. Should be fun.

On a side note, I'll probably be staying at what looks like the best hotel I've ever been in (I'm a bargain shopper when it comes to travel, don't stay in nice hotels). The funny thing is that part of me would rather be down in the slums with the people, which I've been told makes me really weird. Don't get me wrong, I'll enjoy the luxury, but a part of me will be longing to be be out there with the people.