When do we declare America is finished?

[SouthernDZ]

America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.

Abraham Lincoln



I sleep better knowing that if it all goes to shit, my country (Texas) will most likely survive.

[Guy]

Originally Posted by The Reaper

You are an equal opportunity hater, mi hermano.

TR

And people wonder why, I stay away from liberals, especially the "black" ones!

Originally Posted by Team Sergeant

You sir are two steps away from your own reality show......

(And I'd watch)

LOL! It'll have to be on HBO.

I used to fly illegals home five (5) days a week and was astonished when, I'd see the same guy again.

[doctom54]

Originally Posted by Team Sergeant

Nice half full glass thinking but I don't agree. What we are leaving is a problem the size of Jupiter to our children and it's our fault.

.........

This is the legacy we are leaving to our children and it's not one I'm proud of.......

I am very sad to say I agree completely. I don't feel like I'm leaving my children and grandchildren a better country.

[DIYPatriot]

I'm not sure if this was posted, yet. I'm in the field and was checking updates and saw this come across the wire.

Students at UC Irvine vote to ban Ol Glory.

http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2015/...american-flag/

[mojaveman]

Originally Posted by DIYPatriot

I'm not sure if this was posted, yet. I'm in the field and was checking updates and saw this come across the wire.

Students at UC Irvine vote to ban Ol Glory.

http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2015/...american-flag/

UC Irvine actually sits in one of the most conservative areas of California, but then again, they're only students and it's only a University.

Fu*k them.

[Lionshare]

.

[Team Sergeant]

Originally Posted by DIYPatriot

I'm not sure if this was posted, yet. I'm in the field and was checking updates and saw this come across the wire.

Students at UC Irvine vote to ban Ol Glory.

http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2015/...american-flag/

Sorry Sigaba, what were you saying again?

We lose the schools/universities and we lose the country.

[Oldrotorhead]

Originally Posted by glebo

/\ /\ /\

We had much much more freedom before 9/11, IMO. One of the terrorists goals is to make the target change their way of life, they have succeeded greatly.

Unfortunately, our gov't is giving them an awful lot of help in changing our ways of life...

And before the Dept of education (1978?) The Gun control act of 1968. Before the War on Poverty and the Great Society too.

Somewhere and sometime DC needs to be bitch slapped back in line.

[Richard]

Originally Posted by Team Sergeant

When do we declare America is finished?

I am America and you can declare it 'finished' when I give up - which is NEVER.

Richard

[Sohei]

Originally Posted by Richard

I am America and you can declare it 'finished' when I give up - which is NEVER.

Richard

Hear hear, Sir!

[PSM]

Originally Posted by Richard

I am America and you can declare it 'finished' when I give up - which is NEVER.

Richard

Sorry, my friend, but you seem rather complacent with what's happening in your new "home of record" and the educational system in general. Are you involved in some underground pushback that we are unaware of?

Pat

[x SF med]

Originally Posted by Guy

If you're racist then what am I?

Guy... the whole bunch of us are Rifle Green Racists... that's the issue IMHO, we care for the Constitution (which we also swore/affirmed to protect and defend against all enemies, foreign or domestic), the nation and its ideals.

Roy Benavides was of Mexican descent, but his forebears immigrated legally, not one of us QPs would begrudge calling him a brother. There are many that were born here who are beholden to another nation, language, culture and way of thought... We've all known people of various nationalities who have become citizens and have embraced American Ideals - the "Bounced Czechs", Eastern Europeans, Thai and Vietnamese who have gone so far as to become soldiers.

Sadly, this is no longer the case, instead of taking the oath of citizenship, then the oath of enlistment; they are taking the handouts from the government and sending it to foreign countries... because we are too PC to deport their asses, for fear it will offend somebody. Screw the whole damn bunch of them, produce and contribute or get the hell out, and that goes for the homegrown welfare leeches too. Nobody should get paid for popping out kids and nothing else.

I will desist on my portion of this rant. let me just leave it with: America is being consumed by it's internal and external parasites; they're being bred and raised by the government and the PC crowd ... we have the anti-parasitics, but are afraid to use them, or, if we do use them, it's going to be too little too late.

I guess this is my tacit agreement with TS... wonder how many more watch lists this is going to put me on?

[Richard]

Sorry, my friend, but you seem rather complacent with what's happening in your new "home of record" and the educational system in general. Are you involved in some underground pushback that we are unaware of?

FWIW - I am far less 'complacent' than you must think and am quite involved in local matters out here, especially with the local Grange, the historical societies for Florin and Elk Grove which have deep influence in local and regional government matters, and my local county supervisor for our district, Don Nottoli, a staunch supporter of agriculture and a long-time family friend. I just don't find it of much use anymore to bemoan publicly every item on every politician's agenda anywhere in the world. The area has changed quite a bit during the time I spent away 1970-2012; it is much more urbanized, but it has not changed 'for the worse' and many things about it are much better.

As for education, I sub at two of the local JHS and SHS near me, and just spent 8 days teaching geometry to 8th graders, something we did not undertake until 10th grade in HS when I was going through school. These kids are far more advanced in their learning than I was back in the 'good old days' that so many seem to lament, and they are (for the most part) polite, cooperative learners who work well together and respond energetically to good teaching and fair treatment. Their regular teacher, an ARNG veteran, was out for shoulder surgery but is a well-organized, caring, and competent teacher who seeks to challenge her students daily. I applaud her.

The classes are 90 minutes, and I always broke them into 3 segments with a 5 minute break between segments where they could visit and stretch. When I first took the class, it was your typical adolescent 'test the sub' mentality, especially the 6th period class at the end of the day, but that was gone by day 2 when I sent one student to OCS (out of class suspension) for the day. It was the only time I felt the need to do that. There were a number of students in that class who knew me from before, and I quietly enlisted their help in convincing their peers to not try and disrupt their learning. By day 3, the 'Four Horsemen' (my reference to the 4 students with the greatest tendency to try and disrupt things with minor distractions which can become a 'whack-a-mole' situation in a classroom) would meet me at the door, shake my hand, and give me their word that today would be a good class day. I usually had to remind 1 or 2 of them at some point in the class that they had given me their word, asking if their word meant anything, and if it did, then why weren't they honoring it? They were quick to apologize and get back to work.

The Common Core standards I see being implemented in the district here seem quite sound. The biggest problems I see with them now are the demands to achieve a certain measure of competency at a specified grade level which is not always in tune with a student's level of cognitive development, especially in the lower and median grades. I am not a huge fan of standardized testing as it has come to be practiced in this nation.

Yesterday when I was signing out of the school, I was approached by the principal who thanked me for filling in for the last week and told me that he had been approached by several students and parents about me, and wanted to know if I was looking for full-time employment. I thanked him but told him "No" as it would interfere with my retirement/tax situation.

I had two teachers ask if I was available next week, but I'll be traveling with my wife, driving her over in the East Bay area and up in northern Sonoma County for her work. It helps her so she can focus on business while I drive (about 1.5 to 2 hrs each way), and I'll go visit my aunt and local libraries while she's working. The following week I'll be back for a couple of days teaching Lit at the JHS, discussing Elie Wiesel's "Night" and helping them with their holocaust research papers. It has been a few decades since I have read the book and I am now rereading it by listening to it on CD while I drive about on errands - it reminds me what the motto "De oppresso liber" has always meant to me, personally.

I'm a pebble in the stream and may not be your or other's ideas of "'Murica...hell yeah!," but I feel as if I'm pretty much my idea of "America" - and from what I've seen and experienced, I'm not 'finished' yet.

Richard

[WarriorDiplomat]

I'm not 'finished' yet.

Richard

This is why we can't wave the white flag, we can make a difference. The ideological struggle has been fought since the beginning of societies and forming of governments. The issues we face today did not happen overnight and neither will the solution bear fruit overnight.

[The Reaper]

I believe that we have reached a tipping point and the current situation is unsustainable.

TR