Early Warning for Monday, December 9, 2013 as of Thursday Evening

It is still early, but right now I am saying 90% chance of late opening, and 40% (hedging my bets) chance of no school at all in West Hartford next Monday.

Stay tuned for the latest.

And... the following Monday's warning!!

And All Your Children Should Starve

All around the country today, fast-food workers are striking for a raise.  The current Federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour.  The workers want $15 per hour.  

A radio sound-bite from the President of the American Restaurant Association those morning explained that paying workers the lower amount is justified because most of them are under the age of 25.

In other words, young people who can't find any other work don't deserve to earn a living wage.

Doonesbury, by Trudeau, understands what is happening to young people in this country.

Of course, $15 per hour is not a living wage.   According to a report released this week, the living wage for a single adult in Connecticut is $19.44 an hour, and two-thirds of all projected open jobs in the state pay less than that.

Add to that the fact that there are 25 job-seekers for every job that pays that "living" wage, and it makes me wonder:  The economy is growing rapidly.  People can't earn a living wage if they try.  So where is that money going?  Oh yes, the "job creators".

An article in the Hartford Courant this morning explains more.

Your Daughters Should Get Sick and Die

Is really what it comes down to on  Katie Couric's new television show.

The human papillomavirus, or HPV has been directly linked with cervical cancer, which kills 4,000 women in the United States alone every year.  The Gardasil vaccination prevents infection.  Over a hundred million doses of the vaccine have been administered, and have shown no link to either short- or long-term health problems.

So yesterday Couric played host to a group who say that Gardasil is dangerous - with no proof.

As stated by Phil Plait in his blog today, 

"The real problem with this entire segment on the “Katie” show was the false balance: The idea that there are two sides to this story. That is grossly unfair; the evidence is vastly on the side of the vaccine having extremely little risk, and no solid evidence at all that it causes harm. It’s not as though the research on this is split. Dedicating most of the segment to the stories of people who claimed it harmed them is not real balance or responsible journalism."

Who Is Failing Our Kids

Arne Duncan tells kids that they aren't good enough.

On tonight's evening news, while giving us the latest list of things to fear, there was a segment showing the head of our national 'education' system, Arne Duncan .

 The newly released 2012 scores from the Program of International Student Assessment, an exam given every three years to 15 year olds around the world in reading, math and science, showed that the US is not in the top 20.

This former teacher is not surprised.  

The countries that scored highest don't push all kids through an academic program.  They channel students into either academic or vocational programs based on individual strengths.  The US assumes that all students should go to college, so potentially great mechanics and electricians and artists end up as failed scholars.  No wonder that the academically oriented kids who took the test in those countries scored better than our 'not left behind' kids.

Duncan talked about "high school dropout factories"  - once again implying that every kid must be a scholar instead of working with his or her hands.

Duncan also talked about how college enrollment is up - but strangely enough, never mentioned that so many of those students drop out or fail out of college - because they should not have been pushed in that direction in the first place.

In the meantime, I am having trouble finding a plumber to fix my water filter.

First Snow Day in CT?

I've been watching the weather as it moves across the country.  It looks like this week will end warm and very wet, but the really interesting stuff is coming Monday.

Of course it is still very early, and things will change.  But as of right now: 

Sunday Night

Cloudy with snow. Low 27F with temps rising to near freezing. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of snow 90%. 3 to 5 inches of snow expected.

Monday

Snow likely. Temps nearly steady in the low to mid 30s. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of snow 90%. 3 to 5 inches of snow expected.

Invasion From Canada

Photo from the Smithsonian

They are being seen all over southern New England:  Large, white, with round heads and yellow eyes.

They are snowy owls, one of the largest of all owls.  I've never seen one in the wild.

Normally snowy owls stay up north in the tundra, eating tasty lemmings.  However, lemming populations can crash suddenly, leaving the owls to head south.

Once here, they look for areas that are similar to the tundra - open, flat, treeless.  They are rarely seen in trees.  So far they have shown up around the beach at Stratford and Milford point.

Their arrival was expected, as the lemming population up north has crashed.  Now I just need to go out and find one.

Mr. Gasoline Engine Man!

Here it is Thanksgiving morning, and while I am watching the Macy's Parade  Mr. Gasoline Engine Man is out mowing his lawn!

I put my mower away 4 weeks ago.

Good Old Gasoline Engine Man!