THE RIGHT ANGLE: Getting more for your money - Opinions
I'm a big girl. I can admit when I'm wrong - fortunately, now is not one of those times. No, this time I'm merely not 100% right. Let me explain: a week ago, I set out to prove that students who are paying their own way through college are more likely to want challenging classes than those whose parents were footing the bill. That theory was wrong. However, in realizing the flaws in my original theory, I eventually came to an even better conclusion.
Let me start at the beginning. In Spring 2005, I took an economics course. As a political science major, this course wasn't required, but I figured it would be applicable. Several people had joked that after taking an economics course I would quickly change my political affiliation. Eager to be a sheep like everyone else, I was excited at the prospect of joining the Democratic Party upon my completion of the course.
I never got that chance. In May, I left that class knowing just as much about economics as I had in January. Simply put, I was cheated out of an economics education by a teacher who just didn't care.
Had I realized how lax the professor was during the first week of school, I would have changed courses immediately. I never had a chance: that first Tuesday class lasted fifteen minutes and the professor was sick that Thursday.
As the semester wore on, I began to realize that I was learning very little, and it had nothing to do with me being a poor student. This professor spent a good 20-30 minutes a day talking about his personal life. I'll never forget the day he saw me putting on my iPod after class and remarked, "Hey, I hope you weren't listening to that during class." I smiled politely, but I really wanted to tell him that it probably wouldn't have made a difference.
Sometime last April, I ran into a girl who recognized me from that class. I lamented to her that I felt we had the worst professor in the department. She replied with a puzzled look and told me that she thought he was great because he was "so much fun in class."
Obviously, the same traits that caused me to despise this man are what made this fellow student love him. The only way I could rationalize this was by assuming that she was not paying for her own college tuition and therefore did not care that she was sacrificing her education for a "fun" teacher.
This led to my aforementioned theory. In order to test this theory, I signed on to the UNCG LiveJournal community and asked for volunteers. Technology is a beautiful thing, and within days I had dozens of students willing to take my survey. I asked several random questions, including a hypothetical situation involving a lenient and a hard professor, how they were paying for college, what (if anything) their parents were helping them pay for, and, just for good measure, how they leaned politically in regards to fiscal matters.
I surveyed several random volunteers, including my own suitemates (my own captive audience), making sure to get a good mixture of different types of students. The outcome was a disaster. There was absolutely no truth to my theory. Instead, half of all paying students chose the lenient professor, and half of all students living on their parents' dime also chose the lenient professor. So I was wrong. And even the one fraternity member that I was able to convince to take the survey crushed my theory that only rich kids "go Greek."
At second glance, however, I was able to find an interesting connection. With very few exceptions, the students who had chosen the harder professor leaned Republican when it came to fiscal matters, and vice versa. This gives all new meaning to my favorite bumper sticker: "Annoy a liberal, work hard and be happy."
Although it's not what I wanted to prove, it worked. Furthermore, upon asking why certain students chose the harder professor, I was relieved to receive answers such as "I want to be prepared for harder classes and graduate school," and "I don't expect to be spoon fed my entire life." These kids don't realize it, but they just renewed my faith in humankind.
As for the professor, the best I could do was to give him a bad evaluation. And as I recall, I wrote the equivalent of a short novel on his evaluation form. It obviously didn't help too much of anything - he's still teaching in the economics department. Meanwhile, I guess I'll never get those three course hours of my life back.
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
Wednesday, August 03, 2005
No Hablo Espanol: Thanks to a Lack of Concern, English Speakers May Soon Find Themselves in the Minority in
The Right Angle: No Hablo Espanol - Opinions
You could call North Carolina an overachiever, of sorts. A report released on July 26th done by the Pew Hispanic Center reported that six Southern states had Hispanic populations growing at twice the rate of the entire country. Not only was North Carolina one of those six states, it had the dubious honor of being THE state with the fastest growth in the entire country.
The report went on to mention that three out of four immigrants to the South were born in Mexico and that a large majority do not speak English - not that many North Carolinians needed a report to tell them that bit of information.
This report comes conveniently just a few weeks after the Winston Salem Journal published a study showing increased immigrant births across the state. The Journal reported that in Forsyth County alone, immigrant births increased from 3% to 25% of all births in a ten year span. It also estimated that over 14% of all births are to illegal immigrants.
Sure, this is fairly old news. For years people have been complaining about illegal immigrants, but no one really cares enough to do anything. On the contrary, many Americans are actually catering to the Hispanic population. Several businesses run ads in English and Spanish, and even more advertise that they speak Spanish. In many places, you can walk in and simply say, "Hablas Espanol?" and within minutes you'll be greeted in Spanish by someone willing and eager to help you.
Rather than discourage immigrants from illegally entering the country, North Carolina is making itself more hospitable. It is becoming increasingly easier to obtain licenses in this state, and the schools gladly create entire classes geared towards students who speak Spanish. North Carolina citizens are often urged to learn Spanish in order to better help their neighbors. With so many people bending over backward like that, who WOULDN'T want to come to North Carolina?
All this has really done is give the illegals a sense of entitlement. Many illegal Mexicans have no interest in even trying to learn English. A good friend of mine who works in a Greensboro pharmacy estimates that over 90% of all her Hispanic customers do not understand a word of English. Many do not even try to understand what she is asking them, answering her questions of, "May I have your date of birth?" with blank stares and the occasional, "Hablas Espanol?"
I cannot fathom going to live in a foreign country in which I do not speak the majority language, and I would certainly not expect the people in that country to change for me. But these growing numbers show that they're still coming in illegally, still not speaking English, and still taking American jobs.
For years now, those in the political correctness realm have claimed that immigrants are not actually taking American jobs, but taking the jobs Americans don't want. Another study published in the News and Record in the past few weeks shows that this is no longer the case. In recent years, Mexican immigrants have begun taking jobs traditionally held by American teenagers. Employers favor these immigrants over teenage workers because they work longer hours and do not have to mold their schedules around school. So now, we are not only encouraging illegal immigrants to invade our country, but we are encouraging lower-class teenagers to drop out of school.
This is an issue we've dealt with for a long time, but thanks to political correctness, it is not an issue that has any simple answers. We cannot point out that these immigrants need to learn English, because that might be "offensive" to their culture. We cannot question the authenticity of their citizenship because that would be "racial profiling". All we really can do in this situation, apparently, is give them our own hard-earned tax dollars and learn their language.
The last thing we need right now is political correctness. What we really need is a national language to bind us all together and a President who doesn't think amnesty is the answer. With no foreseeable change in the near future, things could get a lot more confusing before they ever get any better. That's if they ever do, of course.
You could call North Carolina an overachiever, of sorts. A report released on July 26th done by the Pew Hispanic Center reported that six Southern states had Hispanic populations growing at twice the rate of the entire country. Not only was North Carolina one of those six states, it had the dubious honor of being THE state with the fastest growth in the entire country.
The report went on to mention that three out of four immigrants to the South were born in Mexico and that a large majority do not speak English - not that many North Carolinians needed a report to tell them that bit of information.
This report comes conveniently just a few weeks after the Winston Salem Journal published a study showing increased immigrant births across the state. The Journal reported that in Forsyth County alone, immigrant births increased from 3% to 25% of all births in a ten year span. It also estimated that over 14% of all births are to illegal immigrants.
Sure, this is fairly old news. For years people have been complaining about illegal immigrants, but no one really cares enough to do anything. On the contrary, many Americans are actually catering to the Hispanic population. Several businesses run ads in English and Spanish, and even more advertise that they speak Spanish. In many places, you can walk in and simply say, "Hablas Espanol?" and within minutes you'll be greeted in Spanish by someone willing and eager to help you.
Rather than discourage immigrants from illegally entering the country, North Carolina is making itself more hospitable. It is becoming increasingly easier to obtain licenses in this state, and the schools gladly create entire classes geared towards students who speak Spanish. North Carolina citizens are often urged to learn Spanish in order to better help their neighbors. With so many people bending over backward like that, who WOULDN'T want to come to North Carolina?
All this has really done is give the illegals a sense of entitlement. Many illegal Mexicans have no interest in even trying to learn English. A good friend of mine who works in a Greensboro pharmacy estimates that over 90% of all her Hispanic customers do not understand a word of English. Many do not even try to understand what she is asking them, answering her questions of, "May I have your date of birth?" with blank stares and the occasional, "Hablas Espanol?"
I cannot fathom going to live in a foreign country in which I do not speak the majority language, and I would certainly not expect the people in that country to change for me. But these growing numbers show that they're still coming in illegally, still not speaking English, and still taking American jobs.
For years now, those in the political correctness realm have claimed that immigrants are not actually taking American jobs, but taking the jobs Americans don't want. Another study published in the News and Record in the past few weeks shows that this is no longer the case. In recent years, Mexican immigrants have begun taking jobs traditionally held by American teenagers. Employers favor these immigrants over teenage workers because they work longer hours and do not have to mold their schedules around school. So now, we are not only encouraging illegal immigrants to invade our country, but we are encouraging lower-class teenagers to drop out of school.
This is an issue we've dealt with for a long time, but thanks to political correctness, it is not an issue that has any simple answers. We cannot point out that these immigrants need to learn English, because that might be "offensive" to their culture. We cannot question the authenticity of their citizenship because that would be "racial profiling". All we really can do in this situation, apparently, is give them our own hard-earned tax dollars and learn their language.
The last thing we need right now is political correctness. What we really need is a national language to bind us all together and a President who doesn't think amnesty is the answer. With no foreseeable change in the near future, things could get a lot more confusing before they ever get any better. That's if they ever do, of course.
Tuesday, August 02, 2005
Dear George: An Open Letter to the President on Judicial Diversity
The Right Angle: Dear George - Opinions
Dear George W. Bush:
First of all, I want to thank you and Laura for the lovely Christmas card you sent several months ago. It was very nice of you to remember me, and I would have mentioned it sooner, but I'm a very busy person. Well, you know how that is, I suppose.
I'm writing to you in regards to your pick for the newest position on the Supreme Court. While I'm sure Mr. Roberts is a good, safe, conservative choice, I'm not so sure he's the BEST choice. After all, don't forget that you're losing a very intelligent moderately conservative woman. Do you really feel you should replace her with ANOTHER white male?
Now, don't get me wrong, Mr. President, I am very much against affirmative action, believe it or not. I do not think people should be chosen for a job based on their race and gender rather than their qualifications. But you see, sir, this is a very different and more delicate situation. In order for our courts to be as objective and fair as possible, we need different types of people. Females endure different types of prejudice than men do, just as blacks, Hispanics, Asians, and homosexuals all suffer through different types of prejudices. Going through these separate and different tests of discrimination gives each person a different point of view. This is the type of education that you cannot receive from a Harvard law degree.
That's not to say the Harvard law degree isn't important. I would never ask you to sacrifice intelligence and standards for race and gender in this type of situation. But you simply cannot tell me that there were absolutely no women in America who have lived up to the same standard as Mr. Roberts. I refuse to believe he is THE absolute best choice out of everyone in the United States.
I'm sure there were several other factors to your decision. Maybe Laura was being a bit too bossy that day, and you felt the need to add more testosterone to the Supreme Court. I know your home life has pretty much surrounded you by women, and you can't fathom why the country's largest court would need any more of them.
The fact is, Mr. President, I am worried. With the loss of Sandra Day O'Connor, there is only one female left on the Supreme Court. And, well, to be honest with you, I'm not even sure Ruth Ginsburg counts as a female. What we need is not another conservative white male. We need a conservative female.
Last year, I spent several hundred hours of my own personal time devoted to your re-election campaign. Why? Because I trust you to make the right decisions in times like this. I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps you couldn't find a conservative female who was willing to take the position. After all, it is a huge burden, and not a responsibility that should be taken lightly.
With that in mind, Mr. President, I would like to remind you that I am, in fact, an intelligent, moderately-conservative female. I have all sorts of opinions about how this country should be run, and because of that, I think I would make a great addition to the Supreme Court. I know I'm still fairly young, but I think that would only help bring diversity to the court.
I know it is huge responsibility, but I'm willing to take it for the sake of America. Please let me know your decision at least two weeks in advance, so I will have ample time to request off from my waitressing job. Oh, and don't worry about Roberts. I'm sure we can find an illegal nanny somewhere in his past.
I look forward to working with you and interpreting the Constitution!
Sincerely,
Melissa B.Westmoreland
PS - I am also very good at public speaking! Perhaps you and I could get together on a Saturday afternoon to go over some pronunciation. Just a suggestion.
Dear George W. Bush:
First of all, I want to thank you and Laura for the lovely Christmas card you sent several months ago. It was very nice of you to remember me, and I would have mentioned it sooner, but I'm a very busy person. Well, you know how that is, I suppose.
I'm writing to you in regards to your pick for the newest position on the Supreme Court. While I'm sure Mr. Roberts is a good, safe, conservative choice, I'm not so sure he's the BEST choice. After all, don't forget that you're losing a very intelligent moderately conservative woman. Do you really feel you should replace her with ANOTHER white male?
Now, don't get me wrong, Mr. President, I am very much against affirmative action, believe it or not. I do not think people should be chosen for a job based on their race and gender rather than their qualifications. But you see, sir, this is a very different and more delicate situation. In order for our courts to be as objective and fair as possible, we need different types of people. Females endure different types of prejudice than men do, just as blacks, Hispanics, Asians, and homosexuals all suffer through different types of prejudices. Going through these separate and different tests of discrimination gives each person a different point of view. This is the type of education that you cannot receive from a Harvard law degree.
That's not to say the Harvard law degree isn't important. I would never ask you to sacrifice intelligence and standards for race and gender in this type of situation. But you simply cannot tell me that there were absolutely no women in America who have lived up to the same standard as Mr. Roberts. I refuse to believe he is THE absolute best choice out of everyone in the United States.
I'm sure there were several other factors to your decision. Maybe Laura was being a bit too bossy that day, and you felt the need to add more testosterone to the Supreme Court. I know your home life has pretty much surrounded you by women, and you can't fathom why the country's largest court would need any more of them.
The fact is, Mr. President, I am worried. With the loss of Sandra Day O'Connor, there is only one female left on the Supreme Court. And, well, to be honest with you, I'm not even sure Ruth Ginsburg counts as a female. What we need is not another conservative white male. We need a conservative female.
Last year, I spent several hundred hours of my own personal time devoted to your re-election campaign. Why? Because I trust you to make the right decisions in times like this. I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps you couldn't find a conservative female who was willing to take the position. After all, it is a huge burden, and not a responsibility that should be taken lightly.
With that in mind, Mr. President, I would like to remind you that I am, in fact, an intelligent, moderately-conservative female. I have all sorts of opinions about how this country should be run, and because of that, I think I would make a great addition to the Supreme Court. I know I'm still fairly young, but I think that would only help bring diversity to the court.
I know it is huge responsibility, but I'm willing to take it for the sake of America. Please let me know your decision at least two weeks in advance, so I will have ample time to request off from my waitressing job. Oh, and don't worry about Roberts. I'm sure we can find an illegal nanny somewhere in his past.
I look forward to working with you and interpreting the Constitution!
Sincerely,
Melissa B.Westmoreland
PS - I am also very good at public speaking! Perhaps you and I could get together on a Saturday afternoon to go over some pronunciation. Just a suggestion.
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