You’re Never Really Anonymous When You’re Online

If you’ve been following the Kurt Greenbaum situation at the Post-Dispatch, then you KNOW that you are seldom anonymous when posting on the Web. Members of the St. Louis Bloggers Guild — an organization to which I belong — has discussed the situation at length via email and now on the Guild site here and here.

For the record, I don’t necessarily think the man in question should have lost his job. But, I don’t know WHY he resigned or lost his job. Maybe there was much MORE to the story. I am uncomfortable that he worked at a school and left such an obnoxious/vulgar comment on a blog from a school computer. I doubt if it was Greenbaum’s fault. Maybe Greenbaum went too far. Maybe he violated the newspaper’s privacy policy. I just don’t know.

I do know that when faced with a situation in which I could have contacted an obnoxious anonymous commentor’s employer, I chose not to do so. I sleep better having made that choice. But there IS a lesson here. You should NOT do something or say something or write something anonymously that you would not do, say, write with your name attached. I might go a step further and say that you shouldn’t do or say or write something that you wouldn’t do or say in front of your Mom or your kids.

What do you think?

Simple Diamond Necklace Makes for a Perfect Gift

I was born in April, so my birthstone is a diamond. I received my first diamond from my parents in the form of a ring given to me at Christmas when I was a teen. My teenage daughter’s birthstone is a diamond, too, and I passed that very ring onto her a few years ago at Christmas.

This year, she’s going to get her first diamond necklace as a gift (Sssh! She never reads this blog, so don’t tell her). It’s a beautiful, elegant yet simple-enough diamond necklace from Kranich Jewelers Everlon Jewelry collection. Specifically, she’ll be receiving the Everlon Diamond Knot necklace in sterling silver.

I love the simplicity of the Everlon Jewelry from Kranich’s Jewelers.  It’s elegant, but isn’t “too much” to wear with jeans and a sweater, which is about as dressed up as my teen ever seems to get. In fact, it’s often as dressed up as I seem to get these days, so I may have to borrow her necklace from time to time. (Hint hint, dear hubby).

Political Correctness Going Mad Yet Again

It seems that political correctness has taken yet another step toward insanity. As reported last week by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, students in the Rockwood School District are being taught an alternative to the calendar designations of B.C. (Before Christ)and A.D. (Anno Domini, Latin for “in the year of the Lord.”)

Dean Mandis, a father of two students in the Rockwood School District (also the school district of my children) addressed the district’s school board last week regarding his concerns that his daaughter was being taught the concepts of B.C.E. (Before the Common Era) and C.E. (Common Era) as alternatives to the dating system that has been in place for HUNDREDS OF CENTURIES!

“Introducing B.C.E./C.E. in conjunction with B.C./A.D. in the classroom is to deny the historical basis of the dating system and ultimately leads to confusion,” Mandis told the board. Mandis said this teacher’s decision was “irresponsible” and possibly “a dangerous and slippery slope.” (quoted from Tim Townsend’s article in the Post and on stltoday.com.)

Apparently, according to a source in the article, the movement to use C.E. and B.C.E. in western academia began in the 1980s. When something similar happened in Kentucky in 2006, Christians fought it and the effort to use the new dating system disappeared. Gotta hand it to you, KY! (that’s for my husband and his relatives.)

Not surprisingly, the same textbook companies that have been re-writing history for the last few decades to make it more politically correct and less offensive are at least partially to blame for this effort. Craig Larson, Rockwood School District superintendent, wrote this explanation on his blog:

“Within the last 10-15 years, CE/BCE has started to appear in student textbooks, usually along with AD/BC and sometimes with just one or the other mentioned. Teachers make sure that students are aware of both designations so they are literate when they encounter either notation.”

I understand the textbook companies desire to sell textbooks. When I was a newspaper reporter, people used to accuse us of writing things “just to sell newspapers.” I’d say, “We need to sell newspapers, folks. This isn’t a not-for-profit operation.” But that didn’t mean we had license to write things that were false. I understand that you can probably sell more textbooks if your books are vanilla enough to not offend ANYONE, that doesn’t make them accurate.

I’ll never forget when my oldest came home from kindergarten telling me that the pilgrims celebrated Thanksgiving to thank the Native Americans (see, I can be PC) for helping them survive in the new country. Seriously? While the pilgrims may very well have owed a debt of gratitude to any Native Americans who helped them learn to live in this untame land, it was NOT the Indians who they were thanking that first Thanksgiving. Still, when I investigated, that was the message of the book my daughter’s teacher was reading to her class. No mention of thanking God on Thanksgiving — just the natives.

As Larson pointed out, Rockwood School District doesn’t write textbooks, and the district has a responsibility to help our students understand dates in any way they may be presented. But I’m with Mandis — it’s a slippery slope. I think the district should reject any textbooks that teach an inaccurate history of Thanksgiving, and then the textbook companies won’t print falsities about that holiday.

Our dating system shouldn’t offend anyone. B.C. doesn’t stand for “Before Christ, the one true God, Son of Man, Risen Savior.” And the newer system of dating doesn’t change anything — the calendar is still measured in terms of the birth of Jesus Christ. So let’s stop erasing God from our history. Larson says the school district doesn’t have a “policy” on dates.

Maybe we should have a policy and that policy should be that we will continue to teach our children the principles upon which this country was founded in regard to everything, including the dating system. If you are a Rockwood parent and you feel strongly about this, a group of parents have started a petition on the topic. You can sign it here.

Taylor Gifts Offers Cool Organization Products

Do you have someone on your gift list this holiday season who loves to stay organized? Or maybe who needs to get organized? If so, you can find dozens of gifts for that individual at taylorgifts.com.

Helpful organization products – such as storage bins, shoe racks, closet organizers and garage and office organizers – can cost a lot money at specialty organization stores and even at discount department stores. Taylor Gifts offers a wide variety of these products at prices most department stores can’t beat. Plus, Taylor Gifts has a host of other gifts, including candles and candle accessories, picture frames and albums, home décor, cookware, home exercise equipment, gag gifts and even holiday decorations.

You can shop by category or price, and you can even request a catalogue if you prefer that option to online shopping.

The next time you’re doing some online shopping, click on over browse the site.

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Need to Rant! And then forgive.

I need to rant. And ranting on Facebook isn’t safe — too many friends of friends of friends, etc.

As a Christian, I’m trying to “love my neighbor” and “love my enemy.” God forgives me and I need to forgive other people, too. But it is SOOOO hard.

So I need to rant. Because some people continue to be complete dolts!

Here’s my rant:

If you are an adult — act like one. If you are an adult, don’t spew your stupid poison AT kids. Don’t spew your stupid poison TO kids in hopes that your stupid poison is passed along by those kids to the kids you don’t like or to the parents you don’t like.  If you are an adult, don’t disguise your stupid poison as a compliment to someone, or respect for someone or concern for someone else. Everyone can see through that.  Don’t say your mean words through kids, or through gossip or constant complaining to others who are, frankly, immensely tired of hearing it or are amused by your immaturity.

If you’re not an adult, then keep acting like the juvenile that you are. You are only hurting yourself. Maybe someday you’ll grow up.

There — I feel better. I can and do forgive.  I can choose not to react to this stupid poison. I can choose not to act like you. I can choose not to talk about you and spew poison about you. I can choose to be NICE to you. And I can choose to let it go.