School Wide Assembly Kicks off "Heart of a Champion" Character Education Initiative

Some of my students showing off their "Elevators UP OKC" T-Shirts
Today we had a school wide assembly put on by "Elevators Up OKC," an initiative sponsored by Coca Cola to foster character education through the "Heart of a Champion" program. We had a radio and TV personality named T-Rock MC the proceedings. Also in attendance were OKCPS Superintendent Karl Springer, Lt. Gov. Jari Askins, 5 members of the OKCPS school board, two of the Thunder cheerleaders, and executives with Coca Cola.
Oklahoma City Public School Superintendent Karl Springer and Oklahoma Lt. Gov. Jari Askins attended the event
from l to r, Oklahoma City Public Schools board members Gail Vines, Phil Horning, Lyn Watson, and David Castillo
Students Cheering during the assembly
Our students took it all in quite well and seemed to have a good time.
One of the Thunder cheerleaders giving out free tickets to an OKC Thunder game
I am one of the teachers who is responsible for teaching the "Heart of a Champion" curriculum. Wish me luck. The first character quality I am teaching is going to be "Committment."

The Keating Five Now and Then

John McCain may now try to claim being officially reprimanded for his part in the infamous "Keating Five" was motivated by politics, but he didn't always think this way. Here is what McCain has said in the past about his actions and judgement:

I created the appearance of impropriety so it was my -- I was guilty, and therefore did not represent the people of my state in the manner which they expected of me. [CNN, Larry King, 10/12/02]

The biggest mistake that I made in my life was attending a meeting with four other senators and four regulators because of the appearance of impropriety, and it is something that will always be a mark on my record, and something that people will judge me for the rest of my life. [GOP Presidential Primary Debate, 1/7/00]

Despite my recovery, the Keating Five experience was not one that I have walked away from as easily as I have other bad times. Twelve years after its conclusion, I still wince thinking about it and find that if I do not repress the memory, its recollection still provokes a vague but real feeling that I had lost something very important, something that was sacrificed in the pursuit of gratifying ambitions, my own and others', and that I might never possess again as assuredly as I once had. [McCain, Worth the Fighting For Page 204]

Daily Kos

Virginia GOP Leader Writes Anti-Obama Racist Screed

One test of character involves how one behaves when the going gets tough. By that measure, Bobby May, the McCain campaign chair in Buchanan County, Virginia and correspondence secretary for the Buchanan County Republican Party, has failed his test of character. Virginia may quite possibly gives its 13 Electoral Votes the Democratic nominee for president for the first time since 1964. May reacted to this possibility by publishing the following racist commentary in The Voice, a local newspaper:

"FREEDOM OF RELIGION: Mandatory Black Liberation Theology classes taught in all churches - raise taxes to pay for this mandate. Put Rev. Jeremiah Wright in charge...."

"DRUG CRISIS: Raise taxes to pay for free drugs for Obama’s inner-city political base...."

"2ND AMENDMENT: Under Obama will only apply to gang-bangers, illegal aliens,
Islamo-Fascist terrorists, and Senator Jim Webb’s aide...."

"FOREIGN RELATIONS: Appoint Rev. Al Sharpton as Secretary of State, Jesse Jackson as UN Representative, and let Bill Clinton handle all other "foreign relations" ... As long as Hillary doesn't find out...!"

"THE WHITE HOUSE: Hire rapper Ludacris to “paint it black.” Taxes to be increased to buy enough paint for the job plus spray-paint forgraffiti...."

"THIRD WORLD COUNTRIES: Raise taxes to send $845 billion, most of it to Africa so the Obama family there can skim off enough for them to free their goats and live the American Dream...."

"NATIONAL ANTHEM: Change to the "Black National Anthem" by James Weldon Johnson...."

"US CURRENCY: Update photos to reflect US diversity; include pictures of "great Americans" such as Oprah Winfrey, Ludacris, Sheila Jackson-Lee, Paris Hilton, and
Louisiana Congressman William Jefferson (Obama's new Secretary of the Treasury - 50 Cent refused position after learning that he would lose his crazy check if he accepted the nomination)...."

"US FLAG: Replace 50 stars with a star and crescent logo; red stripes changed to green to represent Obama’s tree-hugging radical environmentalism and his lack of experience. Flag lapel pins, having become a substitute for “real patriotism,” will henceforth be banned...."

There are times when attacking someone else's character, reveals more about your own lack of character. I hope that Sen. McCain and Gov. Palin take a lesson from this. They should at the very least condemn and censure Mr. May for this vile attack.
Source: TPM: Cafe Talk

Is McCain Becoming The Issue In This Race?

Does Obama have the cooler head?
A truism of politics is that when a candidate becomes "the issue" in race, in other words, when a candidate's personality or credibility comes into question, then the race is over, and the candidate has lost.

John McCain is perilously close to becoming a major issue in this campaign due to his recent antics in regards to our country's financial crisis. By his seemingly impetutous decision to suspend his campaign and insert himself into the negotiations between the White House and congressional leaders, he has raised questions regarding his judgment and his temperment. This quote fairly sums up my impression of what McCain has demonstrated about himself:

"It just proves his campaign is governed by tactics and not ideology. In the end, he blinked and Obama did not. The 'steady hand in a storm' argument looks now to more favor Obama, not McCain... My guess is that plasma units are rushing to the McCain campaign as we speak to replace the blood flowing there from the fights among the staff."
-- Former McCain adviser Craig Shirley, quoted by the Huffington Post.

The question the American people need to be asking is, which person has demonstrated a cool head and steady nerves during this crisis? Who would they want to have at the helm of this country during those inevitable times when it seems that all hell has broken loose? Obama is the man for me.

Back to Harry Potter

I am trying to read the "Harry Potter" series before the next movie comes out. I got half way through The Order of the Phoenix and got distracted by something, probably school. There was also the problem that Harry was starting to sound as whiny as some of my students! Of course, that's part of the genius of Rowling's books. Harry is a typical kids growing up with a few things through in that make him less typical (and his problems worse).

I can't understand why some evangelicals have had problems with this book. True, there is no mention of God in Harry's life, but the same can be said for The Lord of the Rings. Harry certainly displays many very good character qualities like courage, perseverance, and resourcefulness. He may not be a model of faith, but he is a model of grace under pressure.