Your local news

What's happening in your world? Discuss it here.
Forum rules
Play nice. We will be watching

Re: Your local news

Postby NathanLoiselle » Mon Jan 01, 2018 1:14 am

Apparently Niagara Falls might freeze up. That's never happened before in my life time. Yup, frozen up like a rusty brake or an engine that's got no oil.
  • 2

User avatar
NathanLoiselle
TCS Junkie
TCS Junkie
 
Posts: 4484
Joined: Wed Jul 09, 2014 3:49 am
Location: You'll Never Know!
Show rep

Re: Your local news

Postby cmsellers » Sat Feb 03, 2018 6:48 am

Tess shared this with me. According to Match.com, Austinites and especially Austin men are really shitty at dating. Note that the article is misleading. If you check out their source you'll see that only the first graphic is for Austin men, the "top five cities" are for all Match users. The only other city that makes the top five for all three lists of very specific shitty dating behaviors is San Antonio.
  • 2

User avatar
cmsellers
Back-End Admin
Back-End Admin
 
Posts: 9316
Joined: Sun Apr 14, 2013 7:20 pm
Location: Not *that* Bay Area
Show rep
Title: Broken Record Player

Re: Your local news

Postby iMURDAu » Sun Feb 04, 2018 1:13 am

Local police sergeant allegedly steals prescription opioids from paralyzed woman.

That's smart. This lady had 7 pills. He allegedly took 3 of them. He returned after she called to find out the name of the officer that took her pills and gave her replacements that were stronger. So did he get rid of those pills that quick and need to find something similar? Does he have a connection that he was able to acquire different pills from? Is he just stockpiling them because he's an addict? I have many questions!
  • 3

“This is going to become a bad meme,” Todd observed.
User avatar
iMURDAu
TCS Chomper
TCS Chomper
 
Posts: 6752
Joined: Fri Apr 19, 2013 10:08 am
Location: twitch.tv/beakstore
Show rep
Title: King of Fuh

Re: Your local news

Postby Aquila89 » Thu Feb 08, 2018 11:05 pm

Cover of a pro-government tabloid today:

Image

It says: "Why is there an Islamic symbol in the logo of Jobbik? Red crescent!" (Jobbik is a right-wing opposition party that tries to become less right-wing nowadays).

I saw it on the Internet first, and then in the supermarket. Yeah, it's real. Not a joke. Not Photoshop. As someone on the Internet commented: "Even if I was that stupid, it'd bother me that they think I'm that stupid."
  • 6

Last edited by Aquila89 on Sat Oct 13, 2018 3:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being.
--Carl Jung
User avatar
Aquila89
TCS Junkie
TCS Junkie
 
Posts: 3442
Joined: Tue Apr 16, 2013 1:45 pm
Location: Hungary
Show rep

Re: Your local news

Postby cmsellers » Thu Feb 08, 2018 11:14 pm

Now I wonder if I can persuade people that the US Republican Party using the color red means they're communist.
  • 5

User avatar
cmsellers
Back-End Admin
Back-End Admin
 
Posts: 9316
Joined: Sun Apr 14, 2013 7:20 pm
Location: Not *that* Bay Area
Show rep
Title: Broken Record Player

Re: Your local news

Postby Aquila89 » Thu Feb 08, 2018 11:22 pm

Well, Jeff Lord, who recently became infamous as CNN's top Trump apologist wrote an article back 2012 that essentially claimed that since Obama used the campaign slogan "Forward" he must be a Communist and a Nazi because Mao launched the Great Leap Forward and the Hitler's Youth had a marching song titled "Forward, Forward!"

So why the hell not.
  • 5

As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being.
--Carl Jung
User avatar
Aquila89
TCS Junkie
TCS Junkie
 
Posts: 3442
Joined: Tue Apr 16, 2013 1:45 pm
Location: Hungary
Show rep

Re: Your local news

Postby Deathclaw_Puncher » Sun Feb 11, 2018 3:06 am

  • 1

Image
User avatar
Deathclaw_Puncher
Knight Writer
Knight Writer
 
Posts: 12452
Joined: Sun Apr 14, 2013 9:42 pm
Location: Fair Oaks, CA
Show rep
Title: Queen of the Furrets

Re: Your local news

Postby NathanLoiselle » Sun Feb 11, 2018 3:50 am



I was hoping that the test also found the tester to be stupider than everyone else. But alas I don't think it did. Of course the test failed to take certain aspects of life into play that can heavily effect education. Plus his testing pool was far too small.

Insert your own joke about testing pools and size here.
  • 0

User avatar
NathanLoiselle
TCS Junkie
TCS Junkie
 
Posts: 4484
Joined: Wed Jul 09, 2014 3:49 am
Location: You'll Never Know!
Show rep

Re: Your local news

Postby D-LOGAN » Sun Feb 11, 2018 4:05 am


Where does it say in your link the student is into the Kekistan thing? I don't see them mention it once.

Also, from what I've read what the student did was-

The project that started the controversy was titled “Race and IQ.” It raised the hypothesis: “If the average IQs of blacks, Southeast Asians, and Hispanics are lower than the average IQs of non-Hispanic whites and Northeast Asians, then the racial disproportionality in (HISP) is justified.”


My own negative feelings towards racial realism (or any collectivist mindset really) aside, I don't see how that's not a legitimate thing for the kid to do a project about. He was postulating that the apparent lack of black, Latino and Southeast Asians in the school’s HISP program could be down to those races tending to having higher I.Q's than than whites and East Asians. Is he not allowed postulate that?

Is that really off-limits. If the reasoning he's used is faulty, then just point that out. The response to this is far more galling to me than what the kid did-

“We’ve clearly not progressed as much as the students want to think we have,” said one freshman in HISP. “It’s just kind of shocking to think someone could enter into that program knowing that is what we are learning about and being so closed-minded.”

Sacramento Unified school district spokesman Alex Barrios said the district was aware of the controversy and is looking into the matter. He said that while the district understood the project was offensive to some, it may not have violated policy if the question fell within the guidelines of the assignment.

“We are looking into the appropriate response to a situation like this,” said Barrios. “We understand it concerns a lot of people and doesn’t reflect our culture here.”

Barrios couldn’t say whether the science teacher saw the project before it was put on display. He said district officials are looking into the issue to better understand what happened.

Principal Peter Lambert also Thursday sent an email message to parents. “I want to be clear that at McClatchy High School we promote and embrace an inclusive environment and way of thinking which excludes any form of discrimination,” he wrote. “Many of you have asked me what our school is doing in response to this incident. I want you to know we are taking this incident very seriously and we will be reviewing the incident and implementing all measures as appropriate to provide a safe and inclusive environment for all of our students.”


That's fucking Orwellian to me. The kid did a project, in which he postulated a theory. If it's wrong disprove him. The very idea that it was intolerable is beyond the pale to me. If he'd written a project called 'Why Communism Was The Greatest System Ever' or 'Why Cannibalism Shouldn't Be Tabboo', I don't see why those shouldn't be up for debate too.

If his project was 'Why Asians Are Smarter Than Whites' that would have fine to put up for debate as a science project IMO.

If the information he used are wrong, the IQ averages for races and whatnot, show that he's wrong. If they're right but he's drawn the wrong conclusion from the them, show how he's done that too. Or if it's a mix of both, use both.

But to just be "NO! This kind of thinking is off limits. Also ... Kekistan!" Jesus Christ. They've shown no evidence he was trying to bully or insult anyone, just advance a point.

His report concluded that, “the lower average IQs of blacks, Southeast Asians, and nonwhite Hispanics means that they are not as likely as non-Hispanic whites and Northeast Asians to be accepted into a more academically rigorous program such as HISP. Therefore, the racial disproportionality of HISP is justified.”


That theory can't be advanced?

The article claims he has a history of making raicst statements, but given they give no examples, and given the sheer ammount of innocuous things I've seen people put down as racist, I give that no weight until specifically proven otherwise. At best you could give them one of his citations was from a book from 1904 with a racial slur in the title, but that strikes me as over-reaching for this reaction.

To me this is indeed fucked up, but not for the reasons you've given.
  • 2

Not just yet, I'm still tender from before.
User avatar
D-LOGAN
TCS Junkie
TCS Junkie
 
Posts: 3590
Joined: Sun Apr 14, 2013 7:08 pm
Location: Éire
Show rep
Title: ALL PRAISE UNTO MIGHTY KEK!

Re: Your local news

Postby Deathclaw_Puncher » Sun Feb 11, 2018 6:31 am

The Kekistan thing's just hyperbole, I tend to do that.

As for the whole thing of him just being eager to make a statement, how can a racist statement be anything other than ill intent? I mean, isn't it a little bit of an odd point to be invested in if there's no prejudice behind it? I mean, the kid' in high school, you'd think that would be something he could comprehend.
  • 1

Image
User avatar
Deathclaw_Puncher
Knight Writer
Knight Writer
 
Posts: 12452
Joined: Sun Apr 14, 2013 9:42 pm
Location: Fair Oaks, CA
Show rep
Title: Queen of the Furrets

Re: Your local news

Postby D-LOGAN » Sun Feb 11, 2018 12:34 pm

Deathclaw_Puncher wrote:The Kekistan thing's just hyperbole, I tend to do that.

I don't think it was hyperbole. I don't think that's what you were doing at all. I reckon I know what you were doing. Maybe one day I'll take a leaf out of your book, see how that works out.

As for the whole thing of him just being eager to make a statement, how can a racist statement be anything other than ill intent?

How can we have skipped the part where it goes without saying that different races may have different I.Q rates and therefore may explain why there may be not the same ammount of each racial group in this programme? Do all races have exactly the same I.Q? Do we know there's no as many blacks and Latinos in this programme due to racism?

I don't even think I.Q tests even mean much, but that's irrelevant. He presented a project that proposed the idea that the reason there's less blacks and Latinos than whites and Asians in this programme is because they tend to have lower I.Qs than whites and Asians. And linked to sources to back them up. If hegot something wrong, or took a source the wrong way, or was just trying to be mean, then where exactly is that?

If not, I don't see what he did wrong here. Just outside the bounds of certain people's narrow confines of what people are and aren't allowed to think

I mean, isn't it a little bit of an odd point to be invested in if there's no prejudice behind it?

No. That's just religious dogma, where a good member of the flock wouldn't even question anything outside.

That's a scary line of thinking. "Why would you even be thinking about this if you're not an X?"
I mean, the kid' in high school, you'd think that would be something he could comprehend.

That some ideas are off-limits for even being discussed? I don't want to comprehend that myself.
  • 5

Not just yet, I'm still tender from before.
User avatar
D-LOGAN
TCS Junkie
TCS Junkie
 
Posts: 3590
Joined: Sun Apr 14, 2013 7:08 pm
Location: Éire
Show rep
Title: ALL PRAISE UNTO MIGHTY KEK!

Re: Your local news

Postby Fun With Mr. Fudge » Sun Feb 11, 2018 7:46 pm

D-LOGAN wrote:If the reasoning he's used is faulty, then just point that out. The response to this is far more galling to me than what the kid did


I agree with this. Telling someone they're not allowed to think something or shaming them for simply entertaining an objectionable thought is antithetical to the idea of free expression. It's also unscientific. Race plays a factor in health problems like developing Type 2 diabetes (then of course there's the classic example of sickle cell anemia). Asking if it affects intelligence as well makes sense, especially when you consider that he was basing his research question on an empirical observation (stark racial imbalances across classes of differing difficulties). Besides, poking logical and empirical holes in the kid's theory, research, and reasoning to show him why his conclusions are flawed would, in my mind, go a much longer way to helping him as a student and a person.

With that in mind, I would also see no problem with bringing up how racism has played a role in developing past theories of intelligence, just so long as it's brought up to illustrate why the kid's project might be problematic or might upset people. he should also be made to understand this, since many people will be upset with him, rightly or not. Again, that doesn't mean call the kid racist or make him feel bad, but I do think it's important to try to provide at least some social and historical context to help him understand negative reactions.

If he'd written a project called 'Why Communism Was The Greatest System Ever' or 'Why Cannibalism Shouldn't Be Tabboo', I don't see why those shouldn't be up for debate too.


When I was in high school I did try to defend Communism in a paper, not because I believed in it but because I knew it was supposed to be an indefensible position politically. I had a habit of trying to make arguments people said couldn't be made or which I knew would be difficult. Some of attempts proved overall unsuccessful (as with the Communism paper). Other times I surprised a teacher or two and actually made points they found convincing. Were it not for being allowed to make flawed arguments which were then criticized for their weaknesses, I might not have learned to make the more successful ones. In short, an important aspect of learning and growth is being allowed to make mistakes and take chances in a safe intellectual environment.

And heck, even if the kid is racist, he will learn nothing about tolerance if you make him feel like a bad person for thinking differently from the rest of his peers. It's much better to figure out what he thinks, why he thinks it (if possible), and most importantly (to echo Logan once again), show him where and how he's incorrect. That requires more questions than accusations (preferably no accusations without compelling evidence) and more explaining than criticizing.
  • 6

User avatar
Fun With Mr. Fudge
Frequent Poster
Frequent Poster
 
Posts: 166
Joined: Tue May 19, 2015 8:54 pm
Show rep
Title: Jackbooted Hug

Re: Your local news

Postby D-LOGAN » Sun Feb 11, 2018 8:41 pm

Fun With Mr. Fudge wrote:When I was in high school I did try to defend Communism in a paper


AHA! Always knew you were a commie!

*It's the eyebrows. Too far apart. You can always tell*
  • 2

Not just yet, I'm still tender from before.
User avatar
D-LOGAN
TCS Junkie
TCS Junkie
 
Posts: 3590
Joined: Sun Apr 14, 2013 7:08 pm
Location: Éire
Show rep
Title: ALL PRAISE UNTO MIGHTY KEK!

Re: Your local news

Postby Fun With Mr. Fudge » Sun Feb 11, 2018 8:54 pm

D-LOGAN wrote:
Fun With Mr. Fudge wrote:When I was in high school I did try to defend Communism in a paper


AHA! Always knew you were a commie!

*It's the eyebrows. Too far apart. You can always tell*


You got me. But I quickly soured on Communism after contracting hammer-and-sickle cell anemia.
  • 6

User avatar
Fun With Mr. Fudge
Frequent Poster
Frequent Poster
 
Posts: 166
Joined: Tue May 19, 2015 8:54 pm
Show rep
Title: Jackbooted Hug

Re: Your local news

Postby Cobra-D » Sun Feb 11, 2018 10:04 pm

....So am I the only one who thinks the response wasn't all that bad? Dude made a project that some didn't agree with, school said they'll look into it but most likely didn't break any rules, you guys acting like they threw the kid in a gulag.

At any rate the project seemed like something done to be controversial as kids tend to do.
  • 8

The truth is like poetry, everyone fucking hates poetry.
User avatar
Cobra-D
TCS Camper
TCS Camper
 
Posts: 856
Joined: Tue Apr 16, 2013 5:46 pm
Show rep
Title: The Witty Flirt

PreviousNext

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 27 guests

cron