Re: Topper rant on advertising and budget padding

[Guest guest]

Blithe, were are you? Sounds like you're not in the states?

We get pumped with commercials hourly here, antidepressants, weight loss aids. One of these days I'll let my OCD come through and I'm going to start a chart and mark down each and every commercial I see in one day and see how many are for making the big pharmaceutical companies rich and how many are for all the other companies advertising their wares.

There are many companies that I consider to be flooding the media with their advertising that I actually AVOID for just that reason. I search out the 'little' guy with the product that is just as good, if not BETTER, and give them my business...

I saw a commercial yesterday about how much money goes into the research for a new drug, the one they were highlighting was the one they are hoping to develop for Alzheimer's..... I watch the commercial and consider how much they spent in the production of that commercial, money that could have gone for that research... but instead it's used for self promotion.... and I can't help buy have my warped brain consider that they are justifying the price gouging on everything else they sell by implying that all that 'overcharge' goes to the incredibly expensive research.

Okay, I admit that research is very likely expensive... but I also worked for a state and county funded organization for five years and learned just exactly how each division 'pads' their expenses and worse, at the end of the fiscal year will buy the stupidest things to 'use up' their funds so that they can claim the need for an increase in funding the following year.

I'm just too frugal a person to believe that that is right. You honestly use the monies you have for the intended purpose and if there is some left... credit it toward the following year, maintain the same funding for the following year, if there is again an excess, credit it toward the next year, and then reduce the budget slightly.... ARGGGGhhhhh

One last comment and then I'll shut up. Our schools, in this state, and I'm sure in many others, are cutting teachers due to budget cuts. This is going to make the classroom even more crowded, each child getting less individual attention. I don't understand the logic in the sacrifice of basic education while extra curricular activities continue to be funded. If I am short on money I have to cut extra things so that I can pay the bills and put food on the table and meds in my mouth.

Why is it okay to continue funding 'extras' at the school while the test scores for the basics like reading and math continue to go down?

oh oh... whole new thought just came up... have to stop NOW

Topper ()

On Wed, 11 Aug 2004 04:21:24 -0000 "blithezb00tik" writes:

Interesting. And I get the impression that a lot of Americans are onsome form of anti-depressant these days. Is that the case?Btw, glucophage doesn't generally cause weight gain, quite theopposite. It often helps people lose weight.blithe

[Guest guest]

I'm half American and half Israeli. I grew up in the US, but moved to

Israel at age 18. I'll have been living here for 11 years as of next week.

The way drugs are regulated, manufactured, marketed, etc., and the

effect that drug companies have on research is pretty disturbing. I

think it would be interesting to contrast the differences in drug

research in countries with subsidized healthcare and totally

free-market healthcare. I think that has a lot to do with it.

blithe

[Guest guest]

I'm half American and half Israeli. I grew up in the US, but moved to

Israel at age 18. I'll have been living here for 11 years as of next week.

The way drugs are regulated, manufactured, marketed, etc., and the

effect that drug companies have on research is pretty disturbing. I

think it would be interesting to contrast the differences in drug

research in countries with subsidized healthcare and totally

free-market healthcare. I think that has a lot to do with it.

blithe

[Guest guest]

I had undiagnosed vision problems as a wee one.. and finally got glasses in the third grade... I was a LOUSY reader. I wasn't dumb.. just couldnt' read well... I entered the fourth grade still reading really poorly.. it was that teacher that took the extra time to sit with me.... it was all vision related.. I'd just never learned properly cause of my eyes.... she taught me and I became a book worm reading all the time, even during summer vacations.... and entered the next school year with a 7th grade reading level....

Then came sr. high... I was in a geometry class and was failing. I could grasp the basic concepts... again, it was my eyes... I have one bum eye.... I didn't know this at the time, but the reason that I couldnt' grasp the concept of geometry is that I don't see in 3 dimension... I see in two dimension.. so it just didn't click in my head. I asked my teacher for help, to understand the basics. His only reply to any student that was having difficulty and asked for help was the same "Read the book" Well, excuse me, if I understood what the book said I wouldnt' need to ask you to explain it, would I? My mom came in and we had a meeting with the principal.. I wanted to transfer to a different class, with a real teacher. I was refused. It was considered insulting for a student to transfer out of the class of a tenured teacher.. they couldn't insult him... I was told to take an F for the class and take a study hall instead. Well.. to not have a passing grade in geometry meant that I couldn't go on with the higher math courses and several of the science courses that I wanted so that was not acceptable.

Arrangements were made for me to take an incomplete, do study hall (which I then spent working in the animal room of the science department) and then take Geometry in summer school. Now.. summer school is not the best place to actually learn anything. It's less hours, concentrated and usually with a bunch of students and a teacher that really isnt' all that concerned with learning.. just putting in the time.

Well, I sat down with the new teacher right away and explained what I was having trouble with... he spent time with me to explain the basics of it so the I could 'see' it and understand.. I go perfect scores all summer and even helped other students.... I was not dumb.. but missing a basic concept that I need just a bit of extra attention to grasp.

An over stressed classroom situation means a teacher that can't help the individual student like that... how many other kids, like me, that don't have 'classic' problems but just need a bit of a nudge to grasp a concept won't even have that few moments of help that they need cause extra curricular are more important?

It just infuriates me.

.... calming down now....

I dont' want anyone to lose their job.... but I hate the though of bunches (dozens, hundreds, ??) that aren't able to get good jobs and lead positive productive lives cause they didn't have someone to help them to understand ready or math or other basic concepts that we use everyday.

....sigh....

Topper ()

On Wed, 11 Aug 2004 07:43:49 -0500 Debbie K writes:

Rant on Topper! You are preaching my sermon. It's the same in my state. Don't forget that while school budgets are being cut, it is the students and some times the teachers who suffer. The administration just keeps on sailing.....right to the bank.

Debbie K.

BTW, if you cut the 'extras' you cut somebody's job. They'd rather the children suffer.