Taking the easy way out

The last line of this article refers to a poem by Dylan Thomas, pleading for his father to fight against death, but the author of this article is obviously on the opposite side of this debate.  Are some parts of his argumentation questionable?  How would you like to face death, and what can be done about a system that consistently encourages overtreatment?

What if Helmholtz was an official government blogger?

This article is quite a propos given what we are reading at the moment.  Does government and/or business interference in the realm of the internet concern you?  What can be done about it?  Is manipulation through the internet becoming too subtle for people to notice and fight against?  Has the internet become mainly a tool for freedom or a tool for oppression?

Learning about life while wearing fish-net stockings and an eye-patch

By the title of this article, you may think it is entirely inappropriate for a high school blog, but it actually has some very interesting things to say about low level jobs.  Would you accept a job like this?  Have you ever underestimated the intellectual abilities of those who work in these types of jobs?  If you have had a paid job in your life so far, presumably it was not a very high position, but what, if anything, did you learn from it?  And finally, why oh why are people in such jobs paid more than teachers like me?

Be sure to click on "continue reading" to get the full article.

Are poverty and ignorance becoming synonymous?

This article gives several explanations as to why the educational gap between poor and rich students is growing.  Do they seem convincing to you?  Do you think the same trend is happening in Slovakia?  Should something be done about this, or is it inevitable, or even perhaps not entirely negative?  (Be sure to read both "pages" of the article.)

Excommunication from the church of science

Do you lean towards materialism, or do you think science has an unwelcome tendency to ignore phenomena that it cannot explain?  Some of the phenomena treated in this article are life after death, intuition and memory.  Also, it touches upon the relation between science and religion, science and mind-altering drugs, and science and pets.

Just say no to horalky

This is the last entry you can comment on for the second half of February.

What is your relationship to sugar?  What do you think about the proposal of banning the underage purchase of sugary products?  How about taxing purchases more highly or an anti-sugar educational campaign?   Do you admire the researchers who came out with the report for going against powerful companies like Coca-Cola?

Fiction’s function

Do educational practices such as tests make students become reductionist readers?  Does it irritate you if the stories you read have morals or are moralizing?  What is fiction for if not for teaching us to live better or improving our academic abilities?  If it’s just for fun, why teach it in school?  (Be sure to click on “continue reading” for the full article.)

The skull and crossbones over Berlin

Do you think that voting for new and untried parties like this one is a good way to fight against old (and corrupt?) political practices?  Does the pirate party have good ideas in terms of making democracy more direct and transparent?  Should stuff be free on line, or do you agree with the recent crackdowns on file-sharing sites?  Would you vote for the pirates?

Spare the rod, raise a rioter

This article is a reaction to claims that the recent riots in the UK would not have happened had parents used physical punishment to discipline their children.   Are many of the problems with young people today caused by a lack of dscipline at home, or are other factors more important?  Are you for or against the corporal punishment of children?  When is the line between discipline and abuse crossed, and how can laws best prevent the latter?  What do you think about this writer’s arguments against spanking/smacking?

I’ll show you mine if you show me yours

When is sharing things good for a relationship and when does sharing between partners go too far?  How important do you think it is for teenagers to have “trust rituals” like this one?  Is the need the same for adults?  What can parents do about something like this, if anything?

Reacting too strongly to building reactors?

This is an article about the increasing tensions between Iran and the West over the former’s nuclear enrichment program.  What do you think of this author’s stance?  Is allowing the country to enrich uranium a dangerous step, or is it simply Iran’s right to do so?  Are the sanctions put in place a good idea, or will they make the situation worse?  What is the best way to prevent war and at the same time prevent countries from developing nuclear weapons?

Is this censorship, pray tell?

This is the last entry you can comment on for the first half of February.

What do you think of the policies toward prayer in American (public) schools?  What should the role of religion be in an educational setting?  What limits should freedom of speech have on school grounds?