shadesofgray's blog

By now I'm sure many of you have heard the definitive proof that hollywood has at long last run out of ideas...Rocky Balboa. Coming out December 22nd, the 60 year old Stallone ambles his way back into the ring to teach those young whippersnappers a thing or two about boxin'. Frankly, i would think Stallone would be embarassed to make this movie, but then again, i would have thought he would have been emberassed to make Over the Top, which was, well, over the top.  Read More »

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2006-10-30-abstinence-message_x....

    Growing up in the liberal San Francisco Bay Area ( or as it's known in other parts of the nation 'Baghdad by the Bay') I was lucky enough to receive a sex education class that taught us that while abstinence is the best method to prevent pregnancy and venereal infections, there were plenty of other methods available to us. Or at least that's I gathered when i wasn't snickering over the word 'penis'.

    From what i've read, in more conservative parts of the country, especially in Republican strongholds, federal sex education programs are all abstinence, all the time. Conservatives basically imply that if you have sex as a teen, you will spend eternity in hell, your wee wee will fall off, and all sorts of other maladies will afflict you. Mind you, i'm not advocating teen sex, but let's face reality--there's hormones run amuck, we all know that teens will do it, the best thing to do with the federal funds earmarked for sex education is to inform teens that while abstinence is probably the best way to go, there are contraceptives available.  Read More »

 Anyone currently following the extremely close race between incumbent Republican George "Macaca" Allen and Democratic challenger James Webb, former secretary of the navy( and evidently, a novelist as well) for the Virginia Senate seat will have by now noticed the gratitious amount of mudslinging in the campaign--there's enough sleaze around the campaigns to fill a trashy novel.*  Read More »

Remember in the halycon days of 2004, when various B list celebrities, "muscians" and rich socialities participated in that inane vote or die campaign? Pollsters and pundits had harped about the responsibility of that monolithic "youth vote" to get out there and elect this country's next generation of leader. Michael Moore took time out of grooming (or not grooming) his everyman persona to hand out ramen noodles and clean underwear to college students. And what happened? Where was the great, vibrant mass of Americans,the last, best hope for democracy?  Read More »

    According to a new LA Times article, Bush's "No Child Left Behind" program is not quite as altruistic as it seems. Aside from relying far too much on standardized tests (which proves little, other than students have been taught how to take a test) and not even receiving adequate funding, its now come to light that a corporation owned both by Neil"I'm not Jeb" Bush, and the elder Bushes has been profiting from the federal act. Apparently Neil's company, Ignite!Learning, is marketing "portable learning centers" (probably a euphemism for a clipboard and a pencil) to school districts, who can use federal funds provided for under the "No Child Left Behind " act to purchase them.

    Why am I not surprised? Perhaps its simply a coincidence; Neil Bush vehmently denies any allegations of political favors, and says his system has demonstrated success in improving the test scores of economically disadvantaged kids--even though there is no reading instruction, and no math program until next year.  Read More »

    While I'm not entirely surprised at the latest example of political fear-mongering on the part of Republicans--replete with images of Bin Laden and strategically highlighted quotes--I am surprised at just how closely the TV spot echoes perhaps the most famous campaign ad of all time.  Read More »