I don't want the government to tell ME what to do

But it's OK for government to tell YOU what to do.

A too-common response to the regulations imposed on individuals to slow the spread of the COVID19 virus is: "“The government” shouldn't be telling me what to do!" It's my "right" not to wear a mask (or wear it below my nose), get a vaccination, distance, avoid big gatherings, etc.

I sort of get it. I don't like government telling me I HAVE to wear a seat belt, I HAVE to obey a speed limit, I CAN'T shoot firecrackers (in MN, anyway), I HAVE to pick up my dog's poop, I HAVE to drive a car that meets safety standards, I HAVE to send my children to school, etc.

“Government” is, of course, shorthand for any type of authority. The city tells me what kind of garbage containers I must use. The county zoning board won’t let me build a hog confinement operation in my backyard. My homeowners association dictates the color siding I can put on my house. The church tells me who I should or should not sleep with. Parents and teachers have behavioral expectations to which even very young children object. 

The rules of society as enforced by “the government” can seem over blown. I remember my disappointment the last time I visited Sylvan Lake in the Black Hills and found jumping from the rocks near the swimming beach was forbidden, having fond memories of doing so on earlier trips and wanting to share that experience with my grandsons. Not being able to climb the grand pyramid at Chichen Itza diminished the experience when revisiting. Not being able to buy recreational marijuana in Minnesota feels very parental. And hey, shouldn't I be a good enough judge of knowing when I've had too much to drink to drive a car?

For most rational people, regulations like getting a vaccination or wearing a seat belt are unnecessary. Don't "good people'' just always pick up their dog poop? Don't all caring parents send their kids to school? Doesn't everyone who believes in science wear a mask in public places? 

I often think of the old quote from Plato "Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws." Would Plato (and should I) look at a person who drives over the speed limit a "bad" person? How about the old fart at the gym who wears his mask below his nose? The Minnesotan who buys pot off the street? The dad who doesn't put his kid in a child seat? The biker without a helmet?

The difference to me between "good" people and "bad" people is if they consider the impact their choices have on others. I would not fuss at all if someone wants to get plastered and go for a drive - if no one else were on the road. I'd have no problem with letting dogs poop where they may - if neighbors did not have to look at it or smell it and toddlers were not tempted to see how it tastes. A person who chooses to potentially contract COVID19 by not wearing a mask or getting a shot should have that option - except that decision makes it more likely others may contract the virus as well.

Difficult times like these bring these sorts of hard questions to mind, and writing about them helps me personally sort through, if not answers, at least strategies for clarifying them. While I am disappointed that I will not be able to have my hog lot just outside my backdoor, overall, I am happy that that “the government” tells YOU what to do.

BFTP: 12 tips for getting kids to hate technology

This generation of students, by nature it seems, loves technology. Too much perhaps. With faces in phones, they text, talk, research, read, game, photograph, and buy - having great fun in the process. Humph.

But of course truly dedicated educators know that education should not be fun and allowing enjoyment of technology in school is antithetical to best practices. (I am positive there is a university study somewhere about this.) If it doesn't hurt, it probably isn't doing one much good in learning as in exercise..

Here then are a few tips for sucking the pleasure right out of those iPads and Chromebooks that your school may have issued to kids:

1. Block all games (or try).
2. Block all social media (or try).
3. Install classroom control features that lock students into a single application.
4. Block chat in all programs.
5. Create complicated login procedures and demand complex passwords that need to changed often.
6. Use "digital citizenship" lessons to scare the snot out of kids about predators and privacy instead of discussing common sense practices.
7. Give lots and lots of online assessments - pre, post and during. No reading without a following quiz.
8. Block all streaming media including YouTube, Netflix, and Spotify.
9. Send reports to parents on a regular basis about students' browsing habits.
10. Discourage using applications for creativity and problem-solving. Stress following instructions!
11. Find ways to shame students who might damage their devices.
12. Eliminate or restrict reading choices, online as well as off.

Come on, folks, let's get creative here! I brainstormed these in only a few short minutes. Add your most effective techniques for draining the joy from computing right out of school. Kids will realize in the future we were only doing it in their best interest.

Original post 12/4/18

A bajillion words you are using wrongly

"No matter how brilliant your ideas," I would tell my students, "you will not be taken seriously if you have poor grammar."

That was the "why" I tried to impress on my usually unimpressable sixteen-year-olds. Whether I convinced anyone that it was enough reason to do the odd numbered exercises on pronoun-antecedent agreement in the Warriner's grammar text, I do not know. But I, myself, believed it. And still do.

In the past week, I have stumbled upon two articles that made me reflect on how we use words. The first was one of those click-bait links to an article that was titled "12 most commonly confused words in the English language." I am a real sucker for testing my own knowledge on lists like these. I did OK. But the second article was shocking. On the front page of a local newspaper, the article's writer used the word "enthused" - a term I had always be taught was verboten. Not only the professional writer viewed it as acceptable, but so must have the copy editor.

Google the phrase "common words used incorrectly" and you will get a very long list of scolds regarding how people abuse the English language. Among the ones that are fingers on the chalkboard to me (now there's a dated expression) are:

• enthused, rather than enthusiastic
• nauseated rather than nauseous 
• irregardless rather than regardless
• pronouncing the "t" in often
• using the pronoun "I" as the object of a preposition
• using literally when figuratively is accurate

I am by no means making the claim I know all the rules of grammar nor have mastered all the definitions of words. Some words refuse to stay clear in my weak mind - assure or ensure or insure, jealousy or envy, infer or imply. And for 60 plus years, I have had to think hard about whether to use lie or lay and about their respective spellings in the past and future tenses.

I admit that I pass judgement too harshly on people based on what I view as the correct use of language. It's a form of bigotry, I am sure. And I wonder how many people's reluctance to share their thoughts and ideas may be out of fear of making a language faux pas? Who exactly sets the standards for word usage anyway? 

I need to continue to remind myself that language is dynamic rather than static. And that I must be both a tolerant and continuous learner myself.

Please feel free to point out writing errors I have made in this post in the comment section below. I promise not to delete them.

Image source