I was reading the news this morning (as I always do) and found that Ms. California made the front page in almost all the media outlets. First of all, I have to give her props. She stood up for what she believed in, knowing how unpopular it was among the target audience, judges and not to mention 48% of Californians. That takes a lot of you-know-what.
It kind of got me thinking about her statement 'I was raised that marriage is between a man and a woman' and I found myself correlating my current cognitive and moral development course with real world situations (whoa! I'm actually learning!). Many psychologists and researchers in the field have suggested that people operate at different stages of moral development. This is not to say our morals are better or worse, they are just more developed. Its complicated and requires much more than a few paragraphs to explain, but basically the beginning stages entail a black and white perspective and then move on to eye for an eye. The consensus is that the higher the level of moral development, the more tolerant one is of others and their choices. It is also characterized by individualization and the intense scrutinization of social norms. In other words, instead of merely accepting "because this is how its always been, this is the way it should always be" one begins to question and make ones own decisions by critical self-investigations.
I guess what I am saying is that Ms. California obviously hasn't reached that level of moral development yet. Others are doing the thinking for her. And her boobs are taking care of eliminating any other thinking she may encounter.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Sunday, April 5, 2009
A Small World
So a while back ago I was subbing at a high school that I sub at quite often and ran into a teacher that I recognized from my own high school. She used to be my art teacher. Now for the background:
It was my sophomore year or maybe my senior year... I can't remember which (I skipped my junior year). My ceramics class was something I dreaded going to every day. Why? Because of a certain guy that would not leave me alone. He was a football player, and a big, muscular one at that. And he had no problem using his strength - even toward a female. For some reason he took a liking to me, and not the good kind of liking. He spent the entire period harassing me. He would block the doorway to the supply room and try to force me to make my way through his blockade, grabbing and groping the whole time. Disgusting. When he ditched class, his friends would try to act cool and do the same thing. However, I had no problem standing up to them, so it didn't get quite as bad with them. Thinking back on it now, I have no idea why I didn't tell someone about the situation.
Actually, I know why I didn't. This same guy would do similar things to the teacher - not so much in a physical way, but he would ask extremely inappropriate questions. Mainly about her sex life and sexual acts. She would roll her eyes and tell him it was inappropriate, but that's about it. I was sure this teacher had to be somewhat aware of this guys actions with other students - me in particular, yet she had never taken any action. So either she was completely oblivious (which I highly doubt), or she looked the other way.
Fast forward a few years. I was working at the Carson Nugget Casino in the personnel department. Basically, I was in charge of taking applications and setting up interviews for those who I thought were a good match. The guy came in and applied. I don't think he even remembered me (granted, I had put on some weight). He was applying for a dishwasher position. I took his application and made sure to leave a sticky note saying 'this guy is bad news. Do not hire. See Laura for details' , just in case one of the other girls in the office were to be deceived by his clean cut, charming appearance and give him a job. I never saw him again after that.
Fast forward another decade or so to February 2009. I'm subbing at the high school (keep in mind, this is 30 miles from where I originally went to high school) and see a teacher come through my room. I immediately recognize her. So I introduce myself, and of course, she doesn't remember me. However, when I mentioned this other guy, she rolls her eyes and says "oh yes, I remember Chad." I'm not sure if it was just me, but I felt a little uneasiness from her after that. As if she was embarrassed.
So today, I check my email and I see that I have been assigned a 3 day sub job. I was caught a little off-guard because normally the teacher will contact me first before just assigning me to the job. I look to see who is requesting me and am a little shocked. Its her. Obviously I will be working for the state and will have to cancel the sub assignment, but there's a little part of me that wonders if she ever put two and two together.
It was my sophomore year or maybe my senior year... I can't remember which (I skipped my junior year). My ceramics class was something I dreaded going to every day. Why? Because of a certain guy that would not leave me alone. He was a football player, and a big, muscular one at that. And he had no problem using his strength - even toward a female. For some reason he took a liking to me, and not the good kind of liking. He spent the entire period harassing me. He would block the doorway to the supply room and try to force me to make my way through his blockade, grabbing and groping the whole time. Disgusting. When he ditched class, his friends would try to act cool and do the same thing. However, I had no problem standing up to them, so it didn't get quite as bad with them. Thinking back on it now, I have no idea why I didn't tell someone about the situation.
Actually, I know why I didn't. This same guy would do similar things to the teacher - not so much in a physical way, but he would ask extremely inappropriate questions. Mainly about her sex life and sexual acts. She would roll her eyes and tell him it was inappropriate, but that's about it. I was sure this teacher had to be somewhat aware of this guys actions with other students - me in particular, yet she had never taken any action. So either she was completely oblivious (which I highly doubt), or she looked the other way.
Fast forward a few years. I was working at the Carson Nugget Casino in the personnel department. Basically, I was in charge of taking applications and setting up interviews for those who I thought were a good match. The guy came in and applied. I don't think he even remembered me (granted, I had put on some weight). He was applying for a dishwasher position. I took his application and made sure to leave a sticky note saying 'this guy is bad news. Do not hire. See Laura for details' , just in case one of the other girls in the office were to be deceived by his clean cut, charming appearance and give him a job. I never saw him again after that.
Fast forward another decade or so to February 2009. I'm subbing at the high school (keep in mind, this is 30 miles from where I originally went to high school) and see a teacher come through my room. I immediately recognize her. So I introduce myself, and of course, she doesn't remember me. However, when I mentioned this other guy, she rolls her eyes and says "oh yes, I remember Chad." I'm not sure if it was just me, but I felt a little uneasiness from her after that. As if she was embarrassed.
So today, I check my email and I see that I have been assigned a 3 day sub job. I was caught a little off-guard because normally the teacher will contact me first before just assigning me to the job. I look to see who is requesting me and am a little shocked. Its her. Obviously I will be working for the state and will have to cancel the sub assignment, but there's a little part of me that wonders if she ever put two and two together.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
The Grass is Greener
At least that what I am hoping for.
Despite these hard economic times, I received two calls for prospective employment. One was for a job at the social security administration for which I had sent my resume to over a year ago. The other was unsolicited from the State of Nevada. At one point, I had applied for a similar position and had taken the test. The department head decided to take the names of applicants directly from the top of that list to see if they were interested.
I have to admit, when they called me for the interview, I wasn't really interested. Its just an entry level admin type job and I didn't want to waste my time on that. But I figured it wouldn't hurt to go to the interview. I'm glad I did because the job seems like a perfect fit. The location is a 2 minute drive from Jakes work and the preschool Lexi would go to is on the same street. And Jake and I can hit the gym across the street at lunch together. Also, the boss seemed super laid back and very nice. They recognized that I was overqualified for the position, but they were ok with that because they want me to work on getting involved with their various boards and eventually move into a higher position. The job doesn't pay a whole lot - especially when you factor in all the daycare costs, but it still pays more than a first year teacher would make.
The other job for the social security administration is still in limbo. The salary is much higher and the federal benefits would be a nice addition to Jakes state benefits. However, it seems much more demanding and intense. I nailed the interviews and the people there all seemed very happy (despite the fast-paced nature of the job). So that and the money make it so if they were to offer me the job soon, I'd definitely consider it.
Its a miracle that the federal government has anyone working for them, because the process is long and time consuming. I applied March of 2008, got called in January 2009 once they received funding, interviewed in February, and finally received the formal request from the regional HR office to complete the application and testing process. I was informed that I passed that section and the next step was to wait until the federal budget was passed. It would be a matter of time before congress allocated money for the social security administration and that those funds would further be passed on to the individual offices. I expect to hear from them at any moment.
Why did I make the decision to go back to work, you ask? Well, I realized that even if I finish my masters within the next year, landing a teaching job is likely to be impossible. At least for the foreseeable future. So why spend all that money when I can just get my foot in the door with the state, making more money than I would teaching and still having the satisfaction of helping others (I'd be working in the elderly disability services department).
I expect to finish my first semester of my masters with a 4.0, so there is always a "Plan B" if for some reason this doesn't pan out.
Despite these hard economic times, I received two calls for prospective employment. One was for a job at the social security administration for which I had sent my resume to over a year ago. The other was unsolicited from the State of Nevada. At one point, I had applied for a similar position and had taken the test. The department head decided to take the names of applicants directly from the top of that list to see if they were interested.
I have to admit, when they called me for the interview, I wasn't really interested. Its just an entry level admin type job and I didn't want to waste my time on that. But I figured it wouldn't hurt to go to the interview. I'm glad I did because the job seems like a perfect fit. The location is a 2 minute drive from Jakes work and the preschool Lexi would go to is on the same street. And Jake and I can hit the gym across the street at lunch together. Also, the boss seemed super laid back and very nice. They recognized that I was overqualified for the position, but they were ok with that because they want me to work on getting involved with their various boards and eventually move into a higher position. The job doesn't pay a whole lot - especially when you factor in all the daycare costs, but it still pays more than a first year teacher would make.
The other job for the social security administration is still in limbo. The salary is much higher and the federal benefits would be a nice addition to Jakes state benefits. However, it seems much more demanding and intense. I nailed the interviews and the people there all seemed very happy (despite the fast-paced nature of the job). So that and the money make it so if they were to offer me the job soon, I'd definitely consider it.
Its a miracle that the federal government has anyone working for them, because the process is long and time consuming. I applied March of 2008, got called in January 2009 once they received funding, interviewed in February, and finally received the formal request from the regional HR office to complete the application and testing process. I was informed that I passed that section and the next step was to wait until the federal budget was passed. It would be a matter of time before congress allocated money for the social security administration and that those funds would further be passed on to the individual offices. I expect to hear from them at any moment.
Why did I make the decision to go back to work, you ask? Well, I realized that even if I finish my masters within the next year, landing a teaching job is likely to be impossible. At least for the foreseeable future. So why spend all that money when I can just get my foot in the door with the state, making more money than I would teaching and still having the satisfaction of helping others (I'd be working in the elderly disability services department).
I expect to finish my first semester of my masters with a 4.0, so there is always a "Plan B" if for some reason this doesn't pan out.
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