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The Funny Thing Is

Bill Bunker — Thu, 8 May 2008 11:50:50 -0400

The funny thing about the present fuel crisis is the following.

Clinton and McCain want to roll back the gas tax which would be about 45 cents on fuel for the three months of the Summer.

Opponents argue that this would save the "average" person about $75.

When fuel was $3.12, no one was complaining or calling it a crisis. Over the last two months, it has climbed in price to $3.55-$3.60, which is by all measures the same amount the roll back of the gas tax would be...45 cents.

Now if you do the math, that means that over two months the gas increase has cost the "average" person $50.

Over 8 weeks that is an increase of $6.25 in their weekly gasoline bill. Heavy commuters aside, it seems to me that is not alot of money. Anyone who is anxious about the increase should be able to find a way to shift the burden and save $6.25 elsewhere.

Long commuters are the ones that would be most affected.

The second half of that story is that some politicians are saying that we would ONLY save $75. That tells me that those same politicians can not care much that we have ONLY spent $50 more over the last two months if we were an "average" person.

Americans feel entitled to certain things and I am not sure why. Fuel and health care are front and center.

Terri is correct that we do not need to drive monster vehicles. The ones that give me the biggest anxiety are the four wheel drive Dodge RAM trucks that many of the contractors and their employees drive 100 miles an hour on the interstate. These guys drive like they are shielded like a tank and as if they are invincible. There sitting on the back is strapped a ladder and nothing else in the truck and most of the time no passengers.

The speed and offensive driving aside, they are flushing fuel down the toilet!

American way of life

Terri Oberg — Wed, 7 May 2008 09:07:09 -0400

....that is essentially what it boils down to. We are a country made up of spoiled children. We have become a nation of people who like the freedom of just hopping in our cars and driving where ever we wish to go, from around the block to the pizza joint to cross country to visit friends or explore some wondrous place.

I am as guilty as the next guy. Until gas prices started sky rocketing, I thought nothing of making more then one trip into Concord in one day (a 15 + mile round trip each time). Trains went the way of the dinosaurs because they weren't as convenient as hopping in the car. There are schedules to keep, one would have to plan their trip to Boston around the train schedule. How much more convenient is it to just come and go when you want and/or need? Who wants to share a ride with strangers when we can go in the solitude and comfort of our own cars? New Hampshire is growing by leaps and bounds from the influx of people wanting to experience that solitude and comfort.

This is the mentality of the country we live in. I mean, seriously, do we really need to drive a vehicle that is nearly the size of a small house? Until I start using a bicycle to get around, walk to the pizza joint to get dinner and sell my S.O.'s big truck and boat I won't be complaining about the rising gas prices.

I remember the gas shortages in the 70's. That's when car companies started producing smaller, "compact" cars. I remember my Dad getting a Vega and calling it "the bug" because it was so much smaller than any other car they'd ever owned. Now it would be considered a mid-size car by today's standards. We are a nation that waits until there is a crisis that effects our way of life before we demand changes be made. This spike in gas prices is no different.

Also, those countries that have been around for so much longer then us, have an infrastructure that won't accomodate our big, gas guzzling vehicles. There is more then one reason they drive minis and find other modes of transport. There are plenty of times I think simpler is better. There are even times I think some of God's other creatures are smater then we are because they aren't raping and mutilating Earth; they just take what they need and leave the rest alone.

Pinkerton's Growth

Daniel Hynds — Sat, 5 Jan 2008 19:45:02 -0500

I live in Derry, graduated from Pinkerton in 1998, and have had at least one family member going to Pinkerton since 1993 (still do). I knew there were some issues with a few trees, but Pinkerton has the money to test the trees to find out what is dead and what can be kept and others that need to come down. Do you think all of them were dead that were cut down? Absolutely not.

There are definitely other ways to cut down on the traffic around the school and help with scheduling. Number 1: block scheduling. Kids could have 3 classes a day, and a lot of schools are going to this. It's been proven to help students in many ways, not to mention the benefits of congestion.

I don't think coaches would pass up the chance to have better players on the team, but they aren't the ones in charge, the Board of Trustees and Mary Anderson are.

Pinkerton is growing, and it has been growing steadily since I was there, and I realize that. But there are many many other ways to explore a better way than putting the Freshman all in one building and taking them out of the Pinkerton experience. Trust me, talk to anyone that has graduated from PA and ask them what they think of the idea. I have yet to meet anyone in favor of it, current students, alumni, and parents of current and future students.

New stuff at Pinkerton Academy

alison couture — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 20:30:40 -0500

I realize your post was a long time ago, however i was just doing research for a paper and found it. I attend Pinkerton, and if you were there last spring, when we had all of that rain, you would realize a reason for cutting down all those trees. An administrators car was totaled by one of those 100 year old pine trees, along with other threats to the students. I also know nothing about these "diverse cultures" that you speak about. It's New Hampshire. And i laughed when reading the comments about being coddled. Pinkerton has grown to over 3500 students this year. THis means that there are 3500 students to schedule. When you become a senior you realize that this causes many problems. Putting the freshman in one building will at least eliminate some of the scheduling difficulties. And students will still have interaction with other students, band and gym and all other non core classes are outside of the this building. And no one has said anything about segregating the sports teams. Do you really think any one coach would pass up the oppotunity to have a better player on his or her team? I think not. If anything Pinkerton is definitely into sports. Though tearing down all those trees was at first astonishing, it does make sense. Pinkerton has grown and there are too many students right now. You should attend an underclassman lunch, then tell us that there is no reason for the Freshman Academy. Yes, there are many opposed to this, but as a student i believe this will help pinkerton overall.

Not this year. I made a stab

Nicole Henninger — Mon, 5 Nov 2007 12:08:40 -0500

Not this year. I made a stab at it last year, but after a week of writing, I just couldn't seem to keep to momentum up. I like writing, but I have other hobbies that I tend to prefer to it, so all in all, I decided that NaNoWriMo isn't really for me... Though it's hard when I load up Google Reader and LiveJournal to find everyone talking about it, I feel like I'm missing out. :D

So much fun!

Justin Drake — Mon, 5 Nov 2007 10:28:43 -0500

Hi Nicole,

I think I tried this last year because of your post about it. NaNoWriMo is an amazing time, even if you don't "win." Last year I wrote about 80 pages in 30 days, which was a big accomplishment for me personally. I wanted to participate this year, but November is shaping up to be a bit too hectic. I'm hoping to still do some writing, though, in the spirit of NaNoWriMo.

Are you going to be writing for this year's event?

~Justin

you are so right...

Terri Oberg — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 13:01:56 -0400

A couple weeks back I wrote about No Child Left Behind. My issue was actually with this coddling thing that schools participate in these days. It is distressing to see that a private school has also succumbed to this way of thinking.

It infuriates me that children are not allowed to experience "failure" in schools anymore. How can they possibly learn to handle frustration, failure and disappointment if they are coddled in every aspect of their schooling? Their school years are supposed to be time that is spent learning the lessons needed in their adult life.

What kind of adults are we raising?