Politics as viewed from here--
I hate to talk about politics. Sometimes, when I'm in a group gathering, I wonder how can I continue to be pleasant to them, when I am so opposed to what they believe. But then, the moment passes and I realize that they are pleasant people, friendly and caring , not monsters.
I am not happy about the funding cuts happening in the senate at the moment. I don't care what people say, NPR/ PBS do a lot of good for our country, especially in rural areas. But to say I want that funding back, that it's a bargain for the price, then I have to say it's more cost effective than spending that money on a war plane, tank, or ammo.
But then, I have to say that I don't want our troops in Iraq, I never did. I thought we didn't have any reason to be there and I still don't. I never understood the reasoning Pres. Bush gave for going there in the first place. "weapons of mass destruction " became "Saddam was a bad man". And my response to that would be, "So?". If we were to attack every country that had a leader who we considered a "Bad" one, we'd have wars breaking out all around the globe. And why is it our place to decide who is Bad? And why there and not North Korea, or Africa?
It's difficult to hear about the war there everyday. To hear of the soldiers who have died, to hear of how the citizens themselves keep sabotaging efforts there. Instead of understanding that electricity benefits them all, someone keeps stealing the wires to sell. It's stuff like that that makes me just say, "why are we there again?" But then, I didn't think we should be there in the first place.
President Bush declared war on a country that had not attacked us. That is a very important and dangerous action that will come back and haunt us for years to come. I'm writing this down here so it's on record so I can come back and say, "see? I told you so".
sadly, that's all I seem to be able to do now. I've written my congressmen several times and either get no response, or a very patronizing note about how " complicated" the middle east is.
No kidding! And I thought my 11 year old could figure it out! (she just doesn't have time since she's been studying so hard for the aptitude tests required by NCLB. )
Speaking of that, I recently heard on NPR (nasty pro-leftist radio) That part of the NCLB allowed the military to not only be able to recruit at our public schools, but to have access to the student records to better contact the students they believe would be good candidacy for the military.
I've been to the NCLB website, but never saw THAT on the site. So, I went back and looked more carefully. I finally foundthis:

These laws are: Section 9528 of the ESEA (20 U.S.C. 7908), as amended by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (P.L. 107-110), the education bill, and 10 U.S.C. 503, as amended by section 544, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2002 (P.L. 107-107), the legislation that provides funding for the Nation's armed forces.

I can tell you that it is not talked about on the website where Parents are told what the act means to them. I can also tell you that this isn't mentioned there either:

If you do not want [School District] to disclose directory information from your child's education records without your prior written consent, you must notify the District in writing by [insert date]. [School District] has designated the following information as directory information: [Note: an LEA may, but does not have to, include all the information listed below.]
-Student's Name-Address-Telephone listing-Electronic Mail address-Photograph-Date and place of birth-Major field of study-Dates of attendance-Grade level
-Participation in officially recognized activities and sports-Weight and height of members of athletic teams-Degrees, honors, and awards received-The most most recent educational agency or institution (not sure what.. Because it just ended there)
It all feels underhanded to me. That's what I dislike about politics the most. It all feels like they make a big deal about some things, then slip in extra stuff that never is discussed and never makes the light of day until it's too late. I hate that the elected officials never seem to respond to my letters or if they do, they treat me like a moron.