The Longest Week of my Life

Whenever I have a job that is hard I simply get by knowing that at least for the rest of my life things will be that much easier. Otherwise I'd go insane. I believe the main reason this was so incredibly crazy was because Adam and I actually did our jobs extremely well. Call me stuck up, but considering the circumstances, and the things we accomplished, we really were the best candidates for the job. It got to the point where I would stop and think, "Woa, I just performed a miracle."
We were briefed before hand that we would basically be their mothers for a week and we would have to handle almost everything. This is not an embellishment. Not to mention this is the first time away from home for all of them. And we had no experience working w/ children. That being the case how did Adam and I get sucked into this? through circumstances which I consider unfair. The options were; work in camp or go home. Now I would not have minded at all- had we been getting paid. But that's a bitterness I'll keep to myself.
Needless to say we did not do a half-job at all. We were given a duty and we took it w/ full force. Not having any actual experience w/ kids I drew from what made sense to me and what I remember my parents doing and what they taught me about discipline. I also recalled effective teachers I've had and the methods they used to keep us in line. Discipline and behavior are a staple to the success of the camp. The main point is to have fun but this only happens is every one shows the proper respect. A few methods I used from what I know from growing up were:

• No means No. Especially w/ small children. You say no once and make it known that you do not say it again.
• You do not owe the kids an explanation. At times telling them the reason (w/ older kids) will make them more co-operative in which case I'll give the reason. However, if they ask "why" right off the bat, I will simply reply that it's because I said so.
• No talk-backs. I see it all the time. As soon as a kid is allowed to argue or voice his opposition ("go from the kitchen" "but I....") he is elevated to the same level as the counselor, it turns into an argument, and nothing gets done. Instead I cut them of before they speak ("You can't be up it's lights out" "oh but I wanna-" "I didn't ask for an explanation..."). They continue for a few tries to get a word in, but simply standing firm and shutting them down will have them give up. It's almost like it shocks them that they can't argue w/ you. So they simply do whatever they are supposed to do.
  
• Don't forget about rewards! It's now all about the firm authority. Suppress the bad but bring out the good. I dished out prizes here and there, icee-pops, a party, and at the last night a runaway. When a kid is doing a good job, say so!
  
• Always hold to your word. Even more so when others hear you. Kids are not stupid. They know how to manipulate, they know who's buttons they can push and how, and they know how to get around what they want. One 6th grader flat out told me that he didn't care that the counselor "took 10 minutes off the activity" since he knew he'd wind up not missing anyway. Also the old, "Well if your good I'll think about not making you sit out." Lethal. The kids know full well it's just a pansy excuse for not carrying it out. When you give a punishment you must carry it out. It's hard. I hate having a kid sit out. I really do. But when you lay down the rules and they break them you must show little tolerance. To many times I hear staff say "If you do that again.." because the kids learn that it doesn't matter and you lose control. Obviously if the kid didn't know that's a different story. But for example I made it very clear that anyone climbing through a window would sit out 15min. Lo-and-behold someone did. I had to take it off. The little kid of 7 began to tear up and and say he forgot and never do it again, but I had to simply tell him that I made the rules and stop arguing. I really wanted to let it slide, but you can't.
  
• Be their boss but be their friend. Talk to them, joke w/ them, be cool. But be careful. You still have to maintain authority. For example in the room I was really cool w/ the kids, but no one was allowed on the counselor's bed. I would wrestle w/ the boys too, but again, I would never let them beat me.
  
• Every kid is different. All the above has to be slightly tailored for every kid. They all respond differently.
• When teaching, drop the classroom approach. It sucks. I was given a class that was supposed to be the most rambunctious. They don't shut-up, they don't sit still. Others would have thought the solution is to force them to sit still, don't talk, but the actual case is these kids have a different method of attention. To concentrate they must remain kinesthetic. Let them doodle, let them shift in their seats, they need too. Obviously draw the line. and be interesting. Don't bore them to death like a factory-made teacher, be creative. Get them involved! My class of "hard kids" has wound up being known as one of the best classes in camp.
• Keep a system, especially for night. Every night each kid got a shower according to an order I made, and every kid brushed their teeth, in the same order every night. Eventually, they just did it themselves!
• Lastly, before anything, lay out the ground work. Kids are not mindless. Sit them down and firmly explain that they will have fun, that you will be really cool and nice, and they will get stuff. But let them know what you expect, and make it clear that you do not tolerate misbehavior. They will have a good time only if everyone works together and is respectful. Do that, and your problems are halved.
  

Following these rules I found that I had to punish very little and reward quite often. The kids quickly learned they could not find loop-holes and instead behaved. Therefore I hardly had to worry about punishments because I was consistent and the kids knew it. Toward the end of camp I was able to, w/out a word, just give a look and/or a point and the child knew exactly what he was meant to do because we had a system. We therefore maximized our fun by minimizing the tolerance for disrespect which minimized time wasted arguing. And so my kids had the best first year of camp they could possibly have had. Throughout the whole period, they did not call home yet not one camper was homesick.

More details about the thrills and perils of camp to come...

Stoked for Camp- EVERYTHING Will Kill Our Campers

So it is. Summer camp in December. Chanukah hasn't even crossed my mind because it's just to warm for it! This Monday starts Summer camp. Now; being that they stressed all the hard work involved, and being we are not getting paid, I can't say I was too certain I wanted to sign up. However the choices were; sign up or go home. Call it usury, exploitation, whatever, all Americans must work.
But aside for not getting paid I must say I am looking forward to it now. This will be my first time seriously working with children and of course anything I am charged with I master immediately. My friend Adam Finck and I were chosen t o be councilors for the youngest age group, year two, whom are all in camp for the first time. We were selected because we were deemed "savvy, aware, sensitive, caring" zzzzz... nah but really, we're gonna give these kids an awesome time.
In the meantime we've been having weekly mini-seminars about working w/ kids. From safety issues to discipline to bed wetting (Which of course mainly pertains to our age group :( ) Apparently, everything will harm our kids; Poisonous snakes, poisonous spiders, animals in general, deep water, shallow water, any water, lack of water, hikes, walks, runaways, not going anywhere but sitting around the sun- the sun will kill them, people coming into camp, people outside of camp, bush fires will destroy everything, giant birds, nuclear attacks, rogue robots flying jellyfish! Alright things aren't that bad.
We are ready none-the-less and we are more than qualified for the responsibility. The year 2 kids only stay for a week so our work is half of the rest of the camp, woohoo. Not to mention there is a chance I could host a cooking seminar for the kids thanks to my exquisite skills in the kitchen (thank you mom!)

An Awkward Moment in St Kilda

I'm taking an early morning jog to St Kilda beach and back. On my way back to yeshiva I reach into my pocket for my Palm to check the time. Rats. I forgot it in my room. However I see a woman walking the opposite direction as me. Good then, I shall ask her for the time. When our paths cross (across the road from a church) I stop and inquire the time. A quarter-to-six is what I learned. "What brings you out here this time of the morning?," she asks. "Just taking a morning jog.," I reply, "You?" "I'm just working." Now we're in a residential part of the road and I see no venue that would offer work of any sort. "Working? Where?" "Right here on this corner" I should have taken the hint but of course I naively blurt, "Here? Doing wha-... oh, well uh ahem that's nice I gotta go hope things are good." I turn away as she replies, "things are usually good but it's been slow lately." "Oh well uh the weekend's coming so things should pick up right? really running late now" and I continue my jog back bewildered at how humdrum that seemed to be.

When Possoms Attack from the Heavens

Sitting at the table for seder-chassidus by night (The LAST and LONGEST hour) I look up. To my great surprise I see an unwelcome creature walking along the top of the archways near the ceiling (the ceiling is about 20ft high. The place used to be a palace for the queen and the architecture has been preserved). A possum. I immediately point it out to the three at my table. seconds later others in the zal make the same observation and everything instantly falls into disarray. Everyone leaves their seats to marvel at this uncanny occurrence. The possum runs back and forth a bit and then does the unthinkable. It jumps! As it sails through the air to the zal below the bochurim plummet into a haze of panic and terror. The possum lands as the entire zal is transformed into a circus of bochurim chasing, running from, yelling, and standing up on the chairs in reaction to this menacing mammal. Myself and my good friend Adam Finck hardly budge. Adam sips his mint tea as I simply observe my fellow peers in mild amusement. The possum scurries past me and soon runs out an open door. I look left and right. Amongst all the bochurim in mid-run, on chairs, standing on tables, I realize Adam and I are the ONLY ones seated. Nerves of steal?
They will speak for years to come of the possum that soared around the zal- onto a guy's face and attacked him! (That IS how rumors are started)

Bochur Knowledge

Now I knew not all the bochurim here would be the most savvy people in the world. I've gathered some of my favorite bits of wisdom my fellow peers:

• It's debatable if penguins have feathers.
• Your skin becomes tan because of protein
• Airplanes dump their waste directly into the air. It disintegrates before it hit the ground
• There are medicines that just make you arm fall off as opposed to amputation
• Bacteria turns into bugs
• The reason there is no gravity in space is because everything would fall down
• The (scientific) definition of fruit is anything that's sweet (and again some say it's the protein).

• Oh and apparently America is suffering from a huge cholov-yisroel milk shortage. However Obama is now involved and is brokering a deal w/ Israel to import milk. I had no idea

And then when I seemingly giggle for no reason they look at me strangely.

It's Certainly Been a While

I haven't waxed philosophy or written of humorous adventures in some time now. Now I'm in Australia. I did not think I'd ever be on this side of the world and yet here I am, albeit thanks to hard work. The toilets don't swirl the other way. they don't even swirl at all. For a while I kept almost getting hit my cars because I looked the wrong way all the time. Fries are chips. tomato is tomahto. and ketchup is tomahto sauce for that matter. Everything is "Cheers mate" and "No worries." I like it quite a bit.
I've already had a few adventures (and miss-adventures) and humorous occurrences. To many for one post. But it will come out.
The learning is great I must say. Though he schedule is long, but that's why there's coffee. And there's plenty of it here!

The Scoop on Cass Sunstein

Cass Sunstein is really not what Glenn Beck has him all cooked up to be. At first glance, he does seem pretty scary, pretty left, and pretty bad news, but you have to then consider what his job actually is, what his views actually are, and how they will actually dictate his job.

He is not actually another of Obama’s czars. In fact he is filling an official senate position that has been around since 1980. The title is the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs within the Office of Management and Budget.

Now, think logically, do you really think someone as seemingly radical as Sunstein would get such smooth sailing in the senate? Wouldn’t you think more Republicans would have voted against him? As a matter of fact, his nomination was met with opposition from the left because he was deemed to conservative. So is Sunstein really the liberal wacko we think he is?

Sunstein has in fact a deregulatory mindset when it come to the economy. In his book ‘Nudge’ he makes clear that he believes that it is more effective for the Gov-t to attempt to ‘nudge’ the market rather than to have all out regulations or even bans as some left wing economists would like. In other words, Sunstein believes in minimal involvement of the Gov-t in our economy. Pretty conservative.

One may argue that Sunsteins alleged views on the environment will dictate his policies, but looking over Sunsteins writing will dispel such worries. While Sunstein seems to believe that we should take caution with the environment, he makes it very clear that it should not be done at the expense of the economy and he has argued for strict cost-benefit analysis of government regulations. In other words he asserts; sure help the environment, but don’t go crazy and throw industry to the wind.

Another concern about Sunstein was that he would attempt to take away our right to bear arms. However he endorsed the Supreme Court’s pro-gun ruling in District of Columbia v. Heller and wrote an article stating that taking away that right would cause unacceptable unrest and outrage around the country, reason enough to leave it alone. But maybe he just doesn't like confrontation. What are his real views on the issue? Sunstein wrote a letter to Senator Saxby Chambliss (R-GA):

“I strongly believe that the Second Amendment creates an individual right to possess and use guns for purposes of both hunting and self-defense. I agree with the Supreme Court’s decision in the Heller case, clearly recognizing the individual right to have guns for hunting and self-defense. If confirmed, I would respect the Second Amendment and the individual right that it recognizes.”

Despite Sunsteins views on animals, I don’t think this is cause for concern and Sunstein himself stated that pushing such agendas would cause an unacceptable burden on ranchers and farmers.

That is not to say that Sunstein is not an animal rights activist. He certainly is. He does believe that concerned people should be able to sue on behalf of an animal for violations of animal cruelty law. He reasons that frivolous suits would be kept in check because of lawyer’s fees. He also believes that hunting for a hobby or sport (not in reference to food) should be made illegal because it serves no purpose. He is not against farming animals, but rather he is an advocate of improving the living conditions of the animals. He says that meat eating is acceptable so long as the animal lived a descent life. He is not for creating new animal-rights laws, but rather for creating awareness for and enforcing existing ones. Listening to a lecture he gave I discovered that Sunstein’s philosophy for his agenda is not to impose regulations, but to force companies to give disclosures of their practices. Sunstein stated that the mere transparency would nudge (like mentioned above) companies to improve their activities in regard to animals.

Bottom line; The biggest controversy around Sunstein are his views on animal rights. However, Sunstein seems to be a non-confrontation type of person. He pursues non-controversial aspects of the animal-rights debate and seeks to strengthen areas in which there is generally bi-partisan agreement. While he is indeed quite ‘green’ minded, he does not support ideas that would cause societal unrest or force people to change their way of life. As far as his animal-rights agenda would affect his decisions, we can expect him to pursue transparency in the farming, cosmetic, pharmaceutical, and entertainment industries, but we need not worry about Gov-t regulations being that Sunstein views Gov-t intervention as bad for the economy. Are there better conservative choices than Suntein? Certainly. But the Republicans need be strategic here and see the bigger picture. While Sunstein is a very lefty liberal, his economic views are rather conservative, and the fact of the matter is this; with the current administration, Suntstein is about as good as the Republicans are going to get (and he’s not even that bad). If they oust him, it is likely that he will be replaced by someone a little less ‘green’, but a lot more economically left (regulations, Gov-t intervention etc). So if the position concerns the economy, get the guy who’s good for the economy whatever his views on animals may be.

Arizona Nightlife

Every other night I go out jogging and I noticed the amount of company I had. It’s amazing how the weather here dictates our activities. It’s too hot to do anything during the day so everyone stays inside or works. But at night, that’s when all the populace come out to play.

I’m coasting down the road and I notice that the place is rather abuzz with activity. Under the light of the stars and moon above, people come out to walk their dogs, to jog, bike-ride, sit in their lawns talk and have beers, a baseball game is underway at the high school, and I myself am heading over to the track for a nighttime run. It’s like the whole Arizona is nocturnal.

On top of how nice it is to see others out and about under the moonlight, Arizona nights are one of the most unique in the country, especially during monsoon. Being we’re in the valley, there is too much heat radiating from the ground for the storm clouds infiltrate our city. But at night the heat dissipates and they begin to creep in from all fronts. As I jogged around the track I enjoyed the steady breeze coming from the east and it was quite thrilling as the clouds came in from all around me, lightning flashing repeatedly from all sides, and having only a small patch of starlit and moonlit sky above me like the eye of a hurricane. I love living here.

Remember

I remember clearly eight years ago getting up in the morning and seeing my mother watching the television with watery eyes. I went to get some breakfast and my mom came into the kitchen to explain that early that morning planes had flown into the two tallest towers in the world. I had no idea which were the two tallest buildings in the world were and I assumed it was two sister towers in China or Japan or something. She explained that it was the World Trade Center right in NY. Two jet planes. High-jacked. Flown directly into the towers. They killed everybody. Then my mother started to cry.

The whole rest of the day we sat and watched the television. Over and over again we watched that second plane enter the building and almost come out the other side. We listened over and over again to the absolute shock of observers when it dawned upon them, as that second plane came in, that this was no accident. We were attacked. We watched as over and over again people were shown who chose to end their life by jumping out the window than to burn in the agonizing heat of the flames. Over and over again we watched in horror and disbelief as the first tower, quickly followed by the second, peeled like a banana down to the ground ending the lives inside. Over and over again we watched people on the ground run in terror from the debris. We watched people on the rubble, dazed, confused, and unsure what to do next. I remember walking out that night and looking up at the sky. U.S. airspace had been shut down and I could see to F15s on a night patrol over the valley. Days afterward we watched the dust billow from ground zero. The dust we knew, was made up of concrete, dirt—and people.

Never before were we so united. We recuperated like a boxer who just took a hit. Left, Right, we were all together. People made eye contact. They gave knowing nods to one another saying, “We will do something about this.” We were going to go in, get the Taliban, get those responsible, and end terrorism once and for all. We stood united against the evil that attacked us. Attacked us.

Now it’s eight years later and that unity has faded. People have forgotten what they felt that day. They fail to transport themselves back and relive those memories of shock, horror, and unity. Even two years after 9/11 American flags could be seen on dozens of cars and trucks on the road. Today, I saw eight. Things got a little confusing. We found the hotspot in Iraq instead of Afghanistan. I don’t know why exactly we went to Iraq, I don’t oppose it exactly, but now it’s given society a convenient distraction. Once again we are split and lost that ‘go give ‘em hell’ attitude we all had right after 9/11. We need to remember. We need to get that back. We need to remember that we were attacked, our fellow Americans murdered, and that such action can not pass without repercussion. We need to remember that the world still has bad guys. So many things we need to remember.

An Interesting Juxtaposition

Listening to the news on the radio this morning and I heard this;
"and we'll be back w/ some interesting news on American Idol and the reaction to Obama's Health-care Plan."
I found it interesting that the issues shared the same segment. What's up w/ us these days.

Surprise! He's Gone

B”H

It was all by complete surprise. We thought he wouldn’t be able to go until my mother could secure a job which meant he wouldn’t leave till after Succos. R. Bryski in the morning called and clarified that he meant we wouldn’t make a payment plan until a job was secured, but little Simcha really should be in school—tomorrow.

So my mother quickly threw all my little brother’s laundry downstairs, put together a list of what was needed, took my brother out to get some clothes and whatnot, and I stayed behind to keep the laundry going. We quickly bought a ticket for that night and got him packed up. We pretty much had no time to think about it before we were driving him to the airport. My father took him past security to see him off and that was that.

The next morning I realized how strange it was. Until now I was the one going away. I had never experienced having the house to myself. I woke up at four like every morning, but found myself being a little less careful w/ the noise I make. Later it dawned upon me how quiet it was. No Xbox playing, no cartoons on, no computer game noises… it was, nice! Now I can expand my workspace. Now there’s no arguing about getting things done around the house. Now there are no breadcrumbs on the table. I felt like I have more of the house to myself. I can shift my working space into his brighter room and perhaps even get some Xbox games I’ve wanted to try out but Simcha couldn’t play. Yay.

Of course I then realized that now I’m walking to shul by myself now. During Shobbos meals it’ll just be me, and my parents. and sometimes when I just feel like goofing around and now…well I’m all by myself. I wonder how he’s doing up there. If he’s met any of my old pals, which room he got, whose class he’s in, if he’s getting around all right. I’m really curious. For the first (limited) time, I’m the one staying behind. He’s so little and now he’s all the way in NY. I also wonder how it’ll be for my parents when I go off to Australia and then the house will really be empty. I imagine it would be pretty nice for them. As for me, my mother hasn’t gotten a job yet so we hang out together, but when she gets a job, I will be all alone. Although I am extremely good at staying busy, I imagine it will start to get at me. I can only run around doing things for so long, and then, just maybe, I might start to miss my little brother. Good thing I’m going off to Australia.

Obama Talks to Kids and Our Public School System

B”H

It’s not unordinary for a president to address school children and was under the impression that this was no different. It seemed to me that people were making way to big a deal just because the president wanted to make a clique ‘stay in school’ speech. I do believe he may have planed to make it political, but now that would be suicide. This is going to be a neutral speech. Sure I don’t like Obama, but what’s the big deal?

Then I looked at the accompanying lesson plan put out by the Department of Education under the suggestions of the Administration. Then I looked at the actual manner this speech would be given in comparison to others. When Bush senior gave a speech to school children about staying away from drugs, it was on closed-circuit Television and all, but it was not broadcast to every single school in the country. There were no lesson plans given out. Never before has there been such a broadcast address to children. There has never been a speech that was placed in every schoolroom in the country. If you’ve read ‘1984’ then you know what this sounds like. If you know history you can see its similarity to the strategies of fascist dictators. If you keep up w/ world news you’ll see a striking resemblance to N Korea.

Even then I wouldn’t have such a big problem w/ a feel good speech, but the lesson plan is alarming. It is supposedly meant to promote critical thinking to analyze the speech. But when I looked at it (now revised) it was based on pre-conclusions. It would make sense if had questions such as:

· Do you agree w/ Obama? Why or why not?

· What do you like about the president? What do you think he could improve upon?

· What suggestion would you have for the president?

These are is material that promotes true critical thinking. Here’s what the orginal lesson plan had:

· What is the President trying to tell me?

· What is the President asking me to do?

· What new ideas and actions is the President challenging me to think about?

· Students can record important parts of the speech where the President is asking them to do something. Students might think about: What specific job is he asking me to do…Are we able to do what President Obama is asking of us

· What resonated with you from President Obama’s speech? What lines/phrases do you remember? Is he challenging you to do anything?

These are my favorite:

· How has Obama inspired you?

· How will his speech make you a better person?

There is no part that questions whether we agree w/ Obama in general or not. Instead the answer is assumed and we can simply move on to the part of ‘how can we do what Obama wants us to do?’ And o geez, “How has Obama inspired you?” It is forgotten that the president is elected to serve us. Instead the notion will be promoted to impressionable kids that we have a duty to serve the president.

Thank G-d private schools and yeshivas don’t have to worry about all this. Only public schools, a Gov-t program, are being bombarded by all this. That is the fact. Public school is Gov-t education. It is extremely inefficient because there is no competition. Think about it. Competition promotes choices. If people had competitive things to choose from then the pubic system would have to improve to stay competitive. But they don’t have to. All they need to worry about is training the kids to take standardized tests to keep their funding. It’s also simply not fair. We all know how yeshiva costs an arm and a leg in tuition. Anyone who wants to send their kids to a superior private school has to pay the tuition, and pay the taxes to pay for public school that they don’t use! There are options, such as vouchers for private schools or more charter schools, but changing something we’re used to would be to inconvenient, aside for obviously not being in the Gov-t’s favor.

Jefferson had proposed public education but the legislature didn't want to levy a school tax, so it failed. The first real public schools appeared in Massachusetts around 1850. The public system was minimal and had to stay competitive w/ many other private options. Therefore the education remained on par. Along came the great depression and FDR. FDR poured money into public school along w/ his other Gov-t programs (which prolonged the recovery) and greatly expanded its influence (not to mention financial hardship had removed some private options.). The public school system had become a much bigger deal w/ the New Deal. Later the Soviets launched Sputnik in 1957 and the notion was “My G-d! We gotta get smarter to catch up w/ the Commies!” and the public school agenda was pushed further. Finally in the 70’s policies were pushed that practically made public school our only sensible option.

The result? Today’s 11^th grader is acquiring the same critical thinking and problem solving skills that yesterday’s 8^th graders were mastering.

H1N1

It’s the flu. There, I’ve just summarized all the horrors of swine flu. It is just the flu.

What is unique about it? It’s off season so it is a little weird I’ll give it that.

But people have died! People die every year from the flu and it is almost always, and the same goes here as well, when they have underlying health problems.

But more people have died. Because it’s off season and there’s no vaccinations. duhhhhh

I finally shout this out because I’m sick of all this H1N1 hullabaloo and today was the last straw. We find this new strain of the flu that rises up off season and all of a sudden it’s the Bubonic plague. A pandemic they’re calling it. Ask any doctor and they will tell you that while you should get vaccinated (because they always tell you that) it is essentially no less or more deadly than the flu because that’s what it is. Every year we get a new strand and this is no different.

But it makes for such good news material! First it was Swine Flu, then Pandemic, now it’s H1N1 Virus because the official name sounds really scary and not like it’s just the flu. Call it whatever you want, the Godzilla Flu if you may, it won’t change anything. Yet when I was in NY I must have read about at least 5 schools shutting down because a few students got sick. They don’t do that w/ the flu because that would be ridiculous. But w/ H1N1, oh boy don’t mess.

I finally vent about this because of what I saw on the news this morning. In MA they are trying to get a bill passed that would allow way to much power to the Gov-t. Basically in the event that the governor declares a state of emergency, people will still retain the right to refuse vaccinations, but the state will have the authority to forcefully enter houses and detain and quarantine those who are sick and deemed health threats. Those who refuse to comply can actually be fined and put in jail.

Now I read the bill (S. 2028) and I believe it’s preposterous. Who gets to decide who’s a ‘health threat’ and who isn’t? A politician? All this for the flu? This is the most absurd thing ever. What a poor excuse for absolute idiocy. At least it is being done in a legal and democratic way; as in it is being passed through the state senate (it got a unanimous vote!) and w/ enough resistance can be shot down. What scares me is that this come at a time when the Obama administration is trying to pass their healthcare bill which has already shoed in some shady stuff (like the ability to peer into private IRS tax records. What does that have to do w/ healthcare?). What if in the name of the ‘H1N1 Pandemic’ the Federal Gov-t decided to adopt the same practice? Do you know what that would mean? They could turn this whole silly Swine Flu hysteria into a means to have absolute control on society.

I’m sick of this flu business (no pun intended).

Manafacturing Facts

B”H

I’ve been noticing (and becoming quite annoyed) how easily people and society are manipulated or how quickly they simply they accept things for the way they are. I’m not talking about major things (though that is equally ridiculous) but about everyday assumptions. Things about daily life that people just accept without question.

Passport photos for example. My mother took me out to Walgreen’s to get me one. They charge who knows what for that photo. Everyone knows that you have to get a passport photo. It has to be a passport photo. I didn’t get it. I mentioned that it was the same thing as getting a regular miniature photo printed. We could just take our own digital camera and take a picture, then have it printed for a fraction of the cost since it would be charged as a photo and not a passport photo. Of course, you can’t do that. You have to make a passport photo.

The same day again I was at the pet store. We wanted to get a ball to play w/ the dog. They had a ball for six bucks. Someone bought that ball without blinking. I was about to do the same thing but then I realized how absurd that was. Why buy a ball for six dollars when I could get it anywhere else for 75 cents? But then it wouldn’t be a dog ball. It would just be a ball. No one thinks about that. They just do it.

Already on a roll, I confronted my mother about buying club soda. The notion had circulated around our community that adding club soda instead of regular water to challah dough was better. Everyone accepted that including me. After all, if that’s what they said then it must be so! But yesterday I actually allowed myself to think about it for two seconds. No it didn’t help the challah at all. As you knead it all the carbonation escapes and you just have regular water. It’s the dumbest idea ever, completely pointless. Yet it’s got all these women buying club soda every time because that’s just the best way to make it right?

Just how unnecessarily inconvenient and inefficient are our lives because we just mold to accepted practice without thinking about how things could really work or what could actually be the best way to do something? How many absurd assumptions do we let control our lives? Pop-rocks and soda right? Many say eating those together will make your stomach explode or at least cause a stomachache. Do you think if that were true they wouldn’t change the formula of something to make it safe? Don’t you think you’d see it in the news? Yet many people think this stupid thing because they were told so (the same thing goes for diet coke and mentos. If you drink Diet Coke and eat mentos at the same time, nothing will happen). The next time you decide to inconvenience yourself, pay for something, complete a chore, or avoid something, give yourself at least two seconds to consider whether it’s actually practical, or perhaps it could be a wives’ tale.

You'll Never See It

We have all heard someone tell us that if just believe we can do something, we can do it. This is absolutely true. People only perceive what their minds expect. The mind will not register something that contradicts the norm. This was the phenomenon that occurred when the Spaniards made first contact w/ the natives in America and the natives were unable to see the Spanish ships. This was because they had no frame of reference to allow their minds to register and recognize the presence of the huge ships. This system for frame of reference develops during childhood and the mind typically becomes fully 'hardwired' by age 23.
So just think; If we change the way we think now we will enable ourselves to accomplish so much more. If the mind can shut out images of entire ships simply because it does not think it is actually there, imagine the talents your mind inhibits you from utilizing simply because you tell yourself you can't do it!
Don't believe this is possible? This video will prove it. You will not see it until you are told it is there. Otherwise your brain will fail to recognize its presence.

See more funny videos and TBT Videos at Today's Big Thing.

If Things Could be Redone

I recently thought about Nicola Tesla. Many think Thomas Edison was the master of electricity but that is not the truth at all. Nicola Tesla had developed a far superior form of electricity, AC, to Edison’s DC current. Aside from his invention of the radio communication and whatnot, one of the most amazing things Tesla created was a wireless power plant. Tesla discovered that the Earth itself, through terrestrial stationary waves, could be used as a conductor of electricity under certain frequencies. He constructed a plant in Colorado Springs. When the Colorado Springs Tesla Coil magnifying transmitter was energized, it created sparks 30 feet long and could be seen 10 miles away. Tesla had a field of 200 lamps, simply planted in the ground, which was powered from 25 miles away.

Financially supported by J. Pierpont Morgan, Tesla built the Wardenclyffe laboratory and its famous transmitting tower in Shoreham, Long Island. It was 187 feet high, capped by a 68-foot copper dome which housed the magnifying transmitter. It was planned to be the first broadcasting system, sending out signals and electricity in unlimited amounts to any part of the globe. His discovery of terrestrial stationary waves could be used to power ocean liners, destroy warships, run industry and transportation and send communications instantaneously all over the globe.

But it was too efficient. Eventually his main investor pulled out and I believe this quote couldn’t explain Tesla’s fate any better, “If anyone can draw on the power, where do we put the meter?” Edison seized the opportunity and launched a vicious smear campaign against Tesla. Without funding and under attack from Edison, Tesla was forced to withdraw his amazing discovery from society, and Edison and his wires took over to this day.

I couldn’t help but think how radically different our life would be had Tesla succeeded. We would be living a life free of wires! Imagine, no batteries, no telephone polls, no need for a (satellite) cell phone even, because it would all come from the ground! And yet, all because of the above events, such a thing seems preposterous. Now we are stuck with what we have and it would be almost impossible to change it. This is because technology evolves. Very few things are a true innovation. Almost everything we have today is based on the technology before it. Whatever method the first of a technology is implemented, that will affect all the subsequent technologies after it.

So I though about all the things that would be different if they were invented on a different concept. Like;

What if the engine wasn’t engine wasn’t based on combustion?

What if computers weren’t based on 1s and 0s?

Or transistors?

What if weapons weren’t based on a ballistic object? What if they were based on energy or something?

What if TVs weren’t based on pixels?

What if cameras weren’t based on heliographs?

There’s a ton of other considerations one can ponder. Just take the time to ponder what various things would be like if their original inventions had slightly different concepts. It’s too bad really. Our world would be so much more efficient and different if Tesla’s innovation had been allowed to develop.

And Now to Lift the Curtian on My Next Pet Project

The People Project

Lifting the Curtain

Yeshivabound.com is a new project I created to finance the cost of yeshiva tuition. I had the idea last year when I remembered a new story about a woman who got out of credit card debt through anonymous donations via a website she created. I figured; Why not do the same thing? Thanks to a story Shmais published, we've raised $1,107.28. I've been emailing several other news sources and three are likely to publish the following:

B”H

Four years later…almost one hundred thousand dollars apiece in tuition and expenses for High School. This is the result of a promise they made to themselves at pivotal moments in their young lives. Each young man had achieved the lofty goal of completing yeshiva in spite of having come from backgrounds almost completely devoid of any Judaism whatsoever. Dovid Staples, 17, a geir who declared at his bar mitzvah a little more than a year after becoming Jewish that he was going to Yeshiva, and Adam Finck, who had gone from a skateboarding kid with punk rock hair to shliach to the small community of Brattleboro, Vermont set their sights once again on a new goal; S’micha.

However, before reaching the goal of S’micha they must attend Zal. Both fine young men have been accepted to the esteemed Yeshiva Gedolah in Melbourne, Australia. Getting accepted wasn’t the problem. Both young men had excellent references. The problem, once again is paying the tuition.

The brainstorming began. It was clear they could not finance the cost themselves, but how could they still raise the funds? They needed a way to reach hundreds of people. They needed an easy way for people to contribute even from a distance. They needed something that would be extremely easy for their donors, something they could do right from their own home. Dovid turned to his friend Adam, “You know, this sounds a lot like a website.” Thus the idea for Yeshivabound.com was born.

Dovid Staples appointed himself the architect of Yeshivabound.com. Not that he knew the first thing about web design – he’s the one who owned the computer, so by default the job fell to him. This proved to be a daunting task. Adam’s mother, Charna Gross, however, offered key advice and guidance and Yeshivabound.com finally began to take shape. In June of 2009, it was launched.

On the website visitors can read the short biographies of Dovid and Adam and donate increments of money through a secure Paypal service. One innovative feature are the donate buttons, which are designated according to time-value instead of money value. By dividing the tuition into hours, days, weeks, or even months of learning, visitors get a better feel for what they are paying for. “It’s a much more satisfying way to give,” says Staples. “When someone sponsors, say, an hour (only $4.00) they see exactly how their money is being used. They know that one hour of our learning is thanks to them.”

Perhaps the most convenient feature is the Auto-Mitzva Button. This feature allows visitors to subscribe to monthly $25 donations. “$25 a month is a mere eighty three cents a day; something to think about when you buy your morning coffee,” Staples explains.

Another perk for donors is the ‘Our Donors’ page; a page dedicated to any person who donates, unless they choose to opt out. The Yeshivabound boys explain they want their donors to be just as involved as they are.

The biggest obstacle facing the Yeshivabound boys is promotion of their website. “We obviously don’t have much to spend on marketing. We have a Facebook page and that is the main vehicle for promoting ourselves. We mostly rely on word-of-mouth,” says Staples. Through Facebook they’ve gotten several hits from across the globe, especially in the U.S., the U.K., Israel, and Australia,” but exposure has not yet translated into big dollars. “I can’t figure out how to get people who visit the site to go the next step and press that big “DONATE” button,” grins Staples, “We are just starting to get people to look at the site, but I can’t honestly say it’s raised a significant amount as of yet. I decided to put a Donate One Hour button on the home page and say ‘Since you’re already here, at least donate an hour!’ I think that’s worked at least once. We just need more exposure; after all we are only about three months old, so I am confident things will change. School starts in October so we hope it changes really soon!”

The parents of the yeshivabound boys are immensely proud of their efforts. “It bothers me that I can’t do more to help my son with the tuition. This was an extremely difficult year. I know it will get better soon. I am so inspired that it hasn’t discouraged him. In fact, it’s been like a driving force stirring him to think of other ways to get to Australia.”

The ambitious Yeshivabound boys indicate the website doesn’t stop with them. They hope that one day Yeshivabound.com will be a source of financial help for other up-and-coming bochurim like themselves. “It wouldn’t be in the very near future,” says Staples, “but many charitable organizations started out with just a few people invested in their own cause. If Yeshivabound.com really works for us, we can see it turning into something a lot bigger.” Finck agrees, “I already have a bochur in the lineup when the time comes.” Someone has already asked if they would be willing to sell the nameYeshivabound.com. “That would be cool.” Finck stated. Turning to his yeshivabound friend, Dovid joked, “I suppose we could do that for twenty four thousand dollars. After all, that’s our tuition.”

Second Thoughts & the Funny Thing About Parents

B”H

The subject of parents has gotten me thinking about my own. If you think about it, it, parenting seems a little absurd. I haven’t really thought about all that they give until recently. Until now I’ve been running my eBay gig and with that I can pay for my own clothes when I need them, my own haircuts, my dry cleaning etc. but then I put a huge investment into the Dish Network G3 purple cards, then I had to pay the bill for my AP chemistry class as well as algebra II, and then I realized, until Mexico calls me about the cards, I’m broke! To make matters worse, the feds conducted a sting operation on ViewSat and the card market has gone cold for now. (If you don’t understand what all this means, just understand it means I’m broke.) Now I’m back to relying on my parents to buy me the pants I need since I ripped a couple others. Then I needed a haircut. Then a new textbook. And I started to realize how much my parents invest in me- without any physical return.

I set a goal for myself. I’m going to get smicha. I won’t be a pulpit Rabbi or a shliach, but I will have my smicha because it means something for me. If anything it will cost my family almost $50,000 in tuition for zal. Yet my parents have decided to do everything to allow me to achieve that goal. It won’t bring me any more money. It won’t get me a better job. And it certainly won’t do any of that for my parents either. But it’s my goal.

My family is in a real financial rut and me going to zal certainly does not help that. My mother has been pulling out her hair over it. She went to school for medical billing. She’s scrambling to find a job. They spend as little as possible. And my mother has gotten down to begging for the school in Melbourne to lower their down-payment. And this is all simply because I want to go. If it weren’t for that, things would be much calmer in my home and easier for my mother in particular. Reflecting on this, I can only feel guilty, selfish even. All this stress has been brought down solely because of me. That’s fact.

This guilt got me thinking, do I really need this? Is it worth all the hardship it brings to my parents? My father had to sell his prized 1000cc Honda CVR- he even gave that bike a name- so we would have more money to pay the rent and tuition. My little brother is going to NY next year too, and that will cost money as well. Frankly I believe his yeshiva education takes precedent over mine. As a matter of principle, when I say I have a goal, I do it. But I was starting to thing if such pride was becoming an unnecessary burden on my family. I had to think. At any moment I could decide not to go. But if I did that there would be so many people looking at me in bewilderment because this is what I am supposed to do. I quickly shut out that thought. I will not go to zal simply because that’s what everyone’s supposed to do. I hate that mentality. I’m only going because I want to. But that’s what I want. I began to realize the affect that want was having on those around me.

If I didn’t go to zal, I’d go to university. Sad to say but the fact is a university is far easier to finance than yeshiva, and I would have no problem getting merit based scholarships either. I even approached my mother and asked, hypothetically of course, what her reaction would be if I just decided not to go. She responded that it would be something we all would have to sit down and talk about, and she would have to know what I would be doing instead, but she would support whatever I decided since I was mature enough to make such choices.

I finally told my mother the guilt I was feeling about the seemingly unnecessary burden I was placing on the family. Especially since it was something I didn’t have to do nor would it contribute toward my future career. She simply stopped, looked right at me and said, “Stop. You’re not allowed to think that. You are not allowed to feel guilty about this at all.” I explained that of course I should because this was something that was all about me and what I wanted. “That isn’t true,” she responded, “You going to zal and getting smicha is your goal, and therefore it’s our goal too and it’s something we want to happen. I want you to go to zal and anything else you want to do. Don’t you see what kind of pride it is for us, to go from church going Christians to the proud parents of a Rabbi?”

That was precisely what I needed to hear and it enlightened me to an amazing thing about parents. So much time, effort, and money goes into raising a child. It’s an absurd concept because there is no physical return. You don’t get rich. You don’t get a house. You don’t win a prize. And especially in the case of my parents, in which we’re practically being driven to the poor house in the name of my goals, it seems absurd. But now I see that the nature of a parent, at least with mine, is whatever the hopes and goals of the children are, those are the hopes and goals of the parents. Because the parents see themselves in the success of their children. That brings them more satisfaction than anything. Sort of a funny concept if you think about it, but true. That realization put my thoughts of guilt and selfishness to rest.

Besides, I’m going to buy them a gigantic house when I get older- and replace my father’s Honda CVR.

You Can't Put a Law on Parenting

B”H

I’ve been taking these random polls on Facebook. It’s addictive because I vote, leave a comment, and then get into a long debate with people who don’t agree with me. I must admit though, the real fun comes from squashing the argument of the opposing side.

One such poll was about a proposed law in New Zealand that would outlaw parents from smacking their kids as a disciplinary measure and some talks about implementing the same thing here in the states. The poll was a simple “yes” or “no” as to whether or not this was a good law. I voted NO.

First off it doesn’t matter if it’s good parental practice or not. The fact of the matter is that it is a parental practice. You can’t make a law that will inhibit a parent’s right to raise their kids in a manner that they choose. It’s not the government’s business and it impedes the freedoms of its citizens. Such a law would be tyrannical. I for one, am wary of what should and should not be in the government’s control and unfortunately people take for granted how unnecessarily big it has gotten. If they can tell you how to raise your kids, then what’s next?

The supposed logic behind the proposition is that it will finally penalize abusive parents that beat their children. This is poor justification for a variety of reasons. The first and for-most one being that disciplinary smacking can not be compared to abuse. They are incredibly different. A responsible parent will only use enough force to correct the wrong and never does so out of impulse, anger, and certainly not for pleasure. An abusive parent will. Of course, as I was debating with strangers on Facebook, there were still people that insisted that it was. One lady in particular said, “Well I don’t understand why smacking is on the OK list and not on the abuse list.” “Because it’s not.” I responded. “Why not? You’re bringing physical pain to someone.” I thought for a second and replied, “Then why isn’t a timeout abuse? You’re imprisoning someone.” She told me she had to think on that. Another reason why this is faulty logic for such a law is because there are already officials in place to respond to such cases. Making such a law would result in such an overwhelming amount of reports that the real abusive parents would float under the radar.

Others still supported such a law for reasons that still don’t justify anything. A few people claimed that there were far better ways to raise their kids and that smacking them was not necessary. To these people I pointed out that it was great that they found a good way to raise their kids, but that was their choice. Just because they felt they found a better alternative route does not justify imposing it on other parents as well. There is no one-size-fits-all kind of parenting. There is no ultimate method of raising kids and there never will be. Every parent has their own values and every child responds in different ways. Just because one parent finds a great way to raise their kids in no way implies it will work for their neighbors. Parenting is dynamic. There is only one rule; whatever method of parenting is decided, both parents must remain consistent. But there must still be a choice. A law takes that away and criminalizes many good parents.

Still, even after all that, there were those that held fast to their argument. They claimed that smacking or spanking your kids was abusive because it teaches them violence, it’s a power trip for the parents, it demeans their character, and the list goes on and on. One man, from Denmark I believe, insisted that spanking caused everlasting damage to the child and claimed the only way to handle children was to explain and talk to them and then they would make the right choice. I had to point out that this was a little absurd. A little kid is not going to possess the intellect or maturity to just make the right choices because you made a sound argument. A child will do what he wants and will find his own ways of justifying it, especially when he realizes, as in the case with this fellow, that you’re not really going to do anything about it. And as for ‘everlasting damage,’ this was not true I pointed out. A quick shell shock and the problem is resolved. And you know what? The child doesn’t do it again! That is a lot quicker than trying to logically explain everything your children and then just have them not listen to you anyway. And I also pointed out that it wasn’t like parents smack their children right off the bat either. Most times a verbal warning is enough. I also explained that children are not owed an explanation from their parents. Parents do not need to justify themselves to their children. Later in life the child will mature and understand why their mother or father said ‘no’ in such-and-such a case. And again, once the child learns that ‘no’ means ‘no,’ there is no need to smack or spank because the child will listen to what the parent says- the first time. But the Denmark man would not let up. One woman pointed out how she sees such monstrous kids in the store wailing and screaming because they wanted something and their parents seemingly powerless to stop them. The woman explained that her kids would not do something like that because a quick swat would be coming to shut them up. To the Denmark man commented, “So you’re saying that you have no problem humiliating your kids in public?” The guy set himself up, “Let me ask you Mr. ***,” I responded, “which is better; to be constantly humiliated yourself because you have a misbehaved child or to quickly embarrass your kid once and not have to repeat it again?”

If that wasn’t enough, Mr. Denmark and others insisted that such an upbringing raised violent and bad people. To this I used myself as an example. I was raised with such parenting, and I feel that I am much more responsible, well mannered and mature because of it. My parents are constantly complemented about how polite and respectful their children are with their ‘sirs’ and ‘maams’ and whatnot. I have looked at the other kids my age, and much older, and literally thanked my parents because I’m nothing like them. So don’t tell me what kind of men and women come from such parenting. Alas, in one ear and out the other it was with these people. Finally Denmark man said, “I’ve only smacked my kid twice and it was because I was angry and I was under pressure from other things.” He set himself up again. I pounced, “Ah so there we have it. Smacking and spanking doesn’t work for you. But it works fine for many others.” That’s the whole point, whatever way you find to raise your kids is fine because there is no one way to do it. But raise your own kids.