The kids now are heavy users of the Internet. Internet when it comes to using a computer is very smart. . It is. Parents and teachers, because you should know the dangers that can lead to misuse of the red-line predators, and for this reason. ,. , Cyber bullying, working with more criminals, especially - students learn how to avoid problems if you know you / Please consult with their child.
Keeping Your Children Safe from Pedophiles: Online and Off
When we hear a news piece about a young person fallen prey to an internet pedophile, most of us as parents have one two reactions: we either panic and get overprotective of our kids or we think ‘Not my child. He or she knows better.’ The truth is, however, that any child online is vulnerable to predators, unless they are supervised 100% of the time and unless extremely stringent safety controls are in place.
How to block access to adult sites
As good parents, we certainly do not want our children to access adult sites. But sometimes we are confused how to block adult sites are so inaccessible to our children.
Keeping Kids Safe on MySpace
There are a lot of teens who are using MySpace. Individuals over the age of 14 are eligible to use MySpace so as a result there are many teenagers who are members of the online MySpace community. These young members may appreciate the opportunity to express their creativity, express their feelings, meet new friends or stay in touch with their old friends but they should also be aware that there is the potential for danger on any Internet community. Making kids aware of this is helpful but there is also a certain degree of parental involvement which is necessary to keep kids safe when they are online.
Dangerouz pornography to child
From a spanish-language portal: Danger to child pornography
Portal reported that the rate of children addicted to pornography caused by very high inernet. With more than 130 million Internet users in the world with no boundaries and can be accessed anywhere and anytime. Causes of pornography is very difficult to prevent.
Many of the associations that use the webcam to take pictures or videos via chat which is then propagated to all the member associations.
Which can be inferred from the report portal are:
1. Internet has a negative impact for the child if there is no assistance from parents.
2. Internet dangers can be prevented by providing a useful lesson.
Let us reduce the negative impact of the internet for our children.
Portal reported that the rate of children addicted to pornography caused by very high inernet. With more than 130 million Internet users in the world with no boundaries and can be accessed anywhere and anytime. Causes of pornography is very difficult to prevent.
Many of the associations that use the webcam to take pictures or videos via chat which is then propagated to all the member associations.
Which can be inferred from the report portal are:
1. Internet has a negative impact for the child if there is no assistance from parents.
2. Internet dangers can be prevented by providing a useful lesson.
Let us reduce the negative impact of the internet for our children.
Why internet dangerous for children ?
Internet very dangerous for childrens. Because, they cant different what think useful for them or dangerous.
Internet containing everything, science, health, bet site, casino, guns, etc.
So,if we want our children safe when using internet. We must know what their access in internet.
Internet containing everything, science, health, bet site, casino, guns, etc.
So,if we want our children safe when using internet. We must know what their access in internet.
Thought for the day
I've been taking care of small children for over three decades, and have been a father to four children over the past 19 years. Today, BooBoo taught me something new:
When a small child Spiderman climbs up the back of your easy chair, does a leg-over maneuver that places him in your lap, grabs your ears, and head butts you hard enough that you see stars, that is a sign he wants you put the laptop down and pay attention to him.
The Weekend So Far
Sorry for the lack of postings. Real life is intruding into all of my hobbies. Here's how it's been going:
New Nutrition Propaganda Graphic
The government has relieved us of the drudgery of deciphering the food pyramid. Almost two decades of having to actually read and understand the ratios of fats, grains, meats, and sweets are over. Let the parade begin!
Their new reminder on how they think we should eat is called MyPlate:
Here at DaddyBear Laboratories, we've come up with our own graphic to show the ratios of the principle ingredients in a good, healthy diet that will not only keep your body strong, but will make you happier:
As you can see, not only are the basic needs of fruits, vegetables, grains, and protein taken care of, but all of the things that make plain old nutrition into a meal have been included. Please feel free to post this in your kitchen, school cafeteria, and anywhere else good people go to enjoy food and life.
Their new reminder on how they think we should eat is called MyPlate:
Here at DaddyBear Laboratories, we've come up with our own graphic to show the ratios of the principle ingredients in a good, healthy diet that will not only keep your body strong, but will make you happier:
News Roundup
From the Inspector Clouseau Department - Police say that a woman whose body was found stuffed into the box spring of a bed in a Salt Lake City hotel may have died under suspicious circumstances. Are we actually paying for this hard charging bit of detective work?
From the Meet the New Boss Department - The executive officer of the aircraft carrier Eisenhower has been relieved of his position and re-assigned pending an investigation. This is the third executive officer the Eisenhower has lost in the last year. What is going on in the U.S. Navy? It seems we can't go a month without a captain or his exec being canned.
From the Kobayashi Maru Department - A standardized math test in Great Britain included a problem that cannot be solved. Maybe they were using this as a crowd-sourced try to see if it was truly unsolvable. A million British teenagers banging away at a million math tests for two hours might just get us closer to an answer than we have ever been.
From the Nice Marmot Department - The Cincinnati Children's Hospital has announced that they will no longer be using live ferrets to practice intubating premature infants. Instead they will be using a plastic model. My guess is that the courses on reattaching fingers and treatment of injuries to the hands from weasels can't be far behind.
And finally:
From the Mother of the Year Department - A woman has been arrested in Louisiana after she was found passed out in the ladies room of a gas station with drug paraphernalia. The kicker is that she left her 20 month old son in the car with the body of another woman. I'm not going to comment on this one. For once, I'm speechless.
From the Meet the New Boss Department - The executive officer of the aircraft carrier Eisenhower has been relieved of his position and re-assigned pending an investigation. This is the third executive officer the Eisenhower has lost in the last year. What is going on in the U.S. Navy? It seems we can't go a month without a captain or his exec being canned.
From the Kobayashi Maru Department - A standardized math test in Great Britain included a problem that cannot be solved. Maybe they were using this as a crowd-sourced try to see if it was truly unsolvable. A million British teenagers banging away at a million math tests for two hours might just get us closer to an answer than we have ever been.
From the Nice Marmot Department - The Cincinnati Children's Hospital has announced that they will no longer be using live ferrets to practice intubating premature infants. Instead they will be using a plastic model. My guess is that the courses on reattaching fingers and treatment of injuries to the hands from weasels can't be far behind.
And finally:
From the Mother of the Year Department - A woman has been arrested in Louisiana after she was found passed out in the ladies room of a gas station with drug paraphernalia. The kicker is that she left her 20 month old son in the car with the body of another woman. I'm not going to comment on this one. For once, I'm speechless.
Perpetuating Prohibition
The Obama administration is attacking a report that calls for changes in how the global trade in illicit drugs is handled. Their contention is that following the recommendations of the study, including some legalization of drugs, would make the drug problem in the United States worse.
While I have mixed feelings about drug use (I've never tried them, nor do I want my kids using them, but I don't want the government to tell me or any other adult what they can or can't put in their bodies), I'm willing to admit that our current approach isn't working. Before President Obama and Drug Czar Kerlikowske dismiss suggestions to change our approach, they should answer the following questions:
Since President Nixon declared the War on Drugs in 1971:
I'm not saying that anyone, of any age, should be able to get whatever they want at the local package store, but the current approach is not working. All we have done is make drug use something that is done in the shadows. Even casual users of drugs take their lives in their own hands since they don't know what their intoxicant of choice has been mixed with. The amount of money that narcotics brings to traffickers has given them power to rival a nation state.
Add to that the corrosive effect that drug enforcement has had on the relationship between police and the American population. Were stories of people being shot in their own homes during raids, which even the police admit would not have led to arrests, common prior to 1971? Did police regularly troll the interstate highway system looking for motorists who were carrying too much cash and impounding it?
Our failed policies on drugs need to change. We need to admit that prohibition is not working, and allow adults to legally purchase and use whatever intoxicant they want and let them live with the consequences. The safety of these intoxicants will go up as their production moves from Skeeter's garage to an inspected and regulated factory and their sale moves from a corner in a bad neighborhood to the local pharmacy or liquor store. Our police will be able to concentrate on something other than drugs for the first time in a generation. Once the profits from narcotics trafficking dry up, the drug cartels will also dry up. Money that would have been spent on interdiction, prosecution, and incarceration can be spent on education, prevention, and treatment, or not spent at all.
Yes, there will still be people who ruin their lives and the lives of others with drugs. But the same happens with alcohol, gambling, and other non-wholesome parts of our society. Prohibition of alcohol was an unmitigated failure, and so is prohibition of drugs.
While I have mixed feelings about drug use (I've never tried them, nor do I want my kids using them, but I don't want the government to tell me or any other adult what they can or can't put in their bodies), I'm willing to admit that our current approach isn't working. Before President Obama and Drug Czar Kerlikowske dismiss suggestions to change our approach, they should answer the following questions:
Since President Nixon declared the War on Drugs in 1971:
- Has the number of people in the United States who regularly use illegal drugs gone down, either as a percentage of the U.S. population or in total numbers?
- Have illegal drugs become harder or easier to get in the United States?
- How many American lives have been saved by the current policy of prohibition?
- How many excess deaths have occurred in the United States that can be tied to drugs or drug related crime, controlling for criminals who would have been killed anyway as a consequence of other crimes?
- What else could have been done with the billions of dollars spent on incarceration and interdiction that would have had a positive impact on drug addicts, to include education, prevention, and treatment?
- How many American citizens have been incarcerated as part of drug prohibition who broke no other laws?
- How many countries in Latin America, Africa, and Asia have had what passes for a functioning government destroyed by the corruption of drug money?
- How much time, blood, sweat, and treasure have we spent trying to stop Americans from using drugs, and what value have we gotten for those expenditures?
I'm not saying that anyone, of any age, should be able to get whatever they want at the local package store, but the current approach is not working. All we have done is make drug use something that is done in the shadows. Even casual users of drugs take their lives in their own hands since they don't know what their intoxicant of choice has been mixed with. The amount of money that narcotics brings to traffickers has given them power to rival a nation state.
Add to that the corrosive effect that drug enforcement has had on the relationship between police and the American population. Were stories of people being shot in their own homes during raids, which even the police admit would not have led to arrests, common prior to 1971? Did police regularly troll the interstate highway system looking for motorists who were carrying too much cash and impounding it?
Our failed policies on drugs need to change. We need to admit that prohibition is not working, and allow adults to legally purchase and use whatever intoxicant they want and let them live with the consequences. The safety of these intoxicants will go up as their production moves from Skeeter's garage to an inspected and regulated factory and their sale moves from a corner in a bad neighborhood to the local pharmacy or liquor store. Our police will be able to concentrate on something other than drugs for the first time in a generation. Once the profits from narcotics trafficking dry up, the drug cartels will also dry up. Money that would have been spent on interdiction, prosecution, and incarceration can be spent on education, prevention, and treatment, or not spent at all.
Yes, there will still be people who ruin their lives and the lives of others with drugs. But the same happens with alcohol, gambling, and other non-wholesome parts of our society. Prohibition of alcohol was an unmitigated failure, and so is prohibition of drugs.
Quote of the Day
Technology is wonderful, just so long as we keep the retarded politicians (but I repeat myself) out of our business. Let them shovel shit instead. With some training in shit shoveling, maybe they could be of some small service to humanity. I've done it. It can be quite important at times. -- Lyle at The View From North Central IdahoThis, Ladies and Gentlemen, is wisdom for our age.
Justice, of a sort
The two individuals who snatched an 11 year old girl off the street, raped her, and forced her to live in their back yard for 18 years with the two daughters she conceived by the 'male' individual have been sentenced to long stretches in prison.
Philip Garrido has been sentenced to 431 years to life in prison, and his wife Nancy Garrido has been sentenced to 36 years. I'm hoping she lives a long life and serves out every second of those 36 years. As for him, I hope he sets a Guinness World Record for longevity and suffers every day.
When this story first broke, it really caught my eye. Even more than the fact that a missing child had been found 18 years later, or that California law enforcement personnel had been to the house on multiple occasions without doing anything, it was the location. When we left North Dakota, we eventually settled in Antioch, where the Garrido's would eventually hold Miss Duggard. My step-father had grown up a couple of towns west of there, and he wanted to be close to his family.
All of this happened after I graduated and left for the Army, but my little sisters, one of which has a bit of a resemblance to the victim and was close to her in age, still lived in Antioch for several years. If these sick bastards had decided to go hunting a little closer to home, it could have been my baby sister in that shed.
The thing that really sent chills up my spine is I know the area where the house is. I ran with several guys from that neighborhood, and dated a girl who lived a couple of blocks away. When I read about what happened there, I could easily visualize the very small world that Jaycee Duggard lived in for a very long time.
As a father, this scenario is probably close to my worst nightmare. All dads tell ourselves that we'll die defending our kids if necessary, but what do you do if someone snatches them when they're out of your sight, or when they're too far away for you to help and protect them? How long do you keep hoping that they'll turn up before you hold a funeral mass? And how, once your child is found, do you contain your rage and let the criminal justice system punish them rather than taking matters into your own hands and getting real justice for your child?
I sincerely pray that neither I nor any of you ever have to find out. I also hope that these two live a very, very long time and come to know suffering that in some way compares to what they did to a beautiful little girl who was just trying to get to her school bus.
Philip Garrido has been sentenced to 431 years to life in prison, and his wife Nancy Garrido has been sentenced to 36 years. I'm hoping she lives a long life and serves out every second of those 36 years. As for him, I hope he sets a Guinness World Record for longevity and suffers every day.
When this story first broke, it really caught my eye. Even more than the fact that a missing child had been found 18 years later, or that California law enforcement personnel had been to the house on multiple occasions without doing anything, it was the location. When we left North Dakota, we eventually settled in Antioch, where the Garrido's would eventually hold Miss Duggard. My step-father had grown up a couple of towns west of there, and he wanted to be close to his family.
All of this happened after I graduated and left for the Army, but my little sisters, one of which has a bit of a resemblance to the victim and was close to her in age, still lived in Antioch for several years. If these sick bastards had decided to go hunting a little closer to home, it could have been my baby sister in that shed.
The thing that really sent chills up my spine is I know the area where the house is. I ran with several guys from that neighborhood, and dated a girl who lived a couple of blocks away. When I read about what happened there, I could easily visualize the very small world that Jaycee Duggard lived in for a very long time.
As a father, this scenario is probably close to my worst nightmare. All dads tell ourselves that we'll die defending our kids if necessary, but what do you do if someone snatches them when they're out of your sight, or when they're too far away for you to help and protect them? How long do you keep hoping that they'll turn up before you hold a funeral mass? And how, once your child is found, do you contain your rage and let the criminal justice system punish them rather than taking matters into your own hands and getting real justice for your child?
I sincerely pray that neither I nor any of you ever have to find out. I also hope that these two live a very, very long time and come to know suffering that in some way compares to what they did to a beautiful little girl who was just trying to get to her school bus.
Dumbass of the Day
Today we get a two-fer:
What's the penalty for violating home incarceration by crossing state lines, going to a bar, drinking, and child endangerment?
And here's the punchline:
Although, now that I think about it, other than the whole "left in a car until medium rare" thing, this might be the best thing that could have happened to this kid. At least this way she'll be brought up in a nice safe foster home.
Two Louisville parents are facing charges after police say they found them drinking inside a strip club while their baby was left in the hot car.OK, there's a lot going on there. First, they were at a strip club drinking at 11 PM on a Tuesday night. Next, they took their kid. Then, they left the baby in a car with the windows rolled up when we had record heat. And finally, the male dumbass was supposed to be on house arrest, not in Louisville, or even Kentucky, but across the river in Indiana.
What's the penalty for violating home incarceration by crossing state lines, going to a bar, drinking, and child endangerment?
And here's the punchline:
Officers say on the way to Louisville Metro Corrections, Lee complained that the police car was too hot.
Although, now that I think about it, other than the whole "left in a car until medium rare" thing, this might be the best thing that could have happened to this kid. At least this way she'll be brought up in a nice safe foster home.
Tonight's Forecast
Dark. Continued dark until morning, where we will see patches of light*
The weatherpeople are at it again. They're predicting that this summer the midwest will be cooler and wetter than usual, the Mississippi valley will dry out and warm up, and the American Southwest and Central Rocky Mountain regions will burn to the ground.
I would hate to be a weathercritter in the United States right now. The weather has been bipolar this year. In Louisville we've had a very wet spring, with hot weather thrown in intermittently just to make the humidity noticeable, then it cooled off, and now it's in the 90's. Friday I wore a sweatshirt to go to the range, and yesterday I had to stop and get a cold bottle of Gatorade on the way home to replenish fluids and electrolytes (Hooray for trucks with no air conditioning!).
While relief from the heat over what is normally a hot and muggy ordeal will be nice, cool and wet weather is not good for corn, wheat, and soybeans that are trying to grow in fields that are already waterlogged. As much as I'd like to have another cool summer like we had two years ago, I'd prefer that the crops that have made it into the ground have good conditions to grow in. I'm already preparing to pay $5 for a loaf of bread because of bad monetary policy. Those prices don't need help from a true grain shortage.
*With apologies to George Carlin
The weatherpeople are at it again. They're predicting that this summer the midwest will be cooler and wetter than usual, the Mississippi valley will dry out and warm up, and the American Southwest and Central Rocky Mountain regions will burn to the ground.
I would hate to be a weathercritter in the United States right now. The weather has been bipolar this year. In Louisville we've had a very wet spring, with hot weather thrown in intermittently just to make the humidity noticeable, then it cooled off, and now it's in the 90's. Friday I wore a sweatshirt to go to the range, and yesterday I had to stop and get a cold bottle of Gatorade on the way home to replenish fluids and electrolytes (Hooray for trucks with no air conditioning!).
While relief from the heat over what is normally a hot and muggy ordeal will be nice, cool and wet weather is not good for corn, wheat, and soybeans that are trying to grow in fields that are already waterlogged. As much as I'd like to have another cool summer like we had two years ago, I'd prefer that the crops that have made it into the ground have good conditions to grow in. I'm already preparing to pay $5 for a loaf of bread because of bad monetary policy. Those prices don't need help from a true grain shortage.
*With apologies to George Carlin
Suicide Blonde
The Norwegian government is reporting that for those who show a reaction to cosmetics and other methods of enhancing appearance, the use of hair dye is the number 1 cause of problems:
I know a lot of people, both men and women, who dye their hair. While I just look at my gray hair and take that as a sign that life is about 1/3 over, others look at them as a sign of mortality. I just hope that the rate of people who have these kinds of reactions is low.
Something tells me that a lady with this kind of reaction to their hair dye realizes it's not a good look for them.
People who develop allergies to hair dye often have symptoms such as eczema, redness, blistering, and itching of the scalp, face and throat, the registry says. They also experience severe swelling on the forehead and around the eyes.
I know a lot of people, both men and women, who dye their hair. While I just look at my gray hair and take that as a sign that life is about 1/3 over, others look at them as a sign of mortality. I just hope that the rate of people who have these kinds of reactions is low.
Cat, Free to a Good Home
Must have a large yard, access to gazelles for entertainment and nourishment, and be able to deal with living with the high squeaking call of a cheetah.
Someone in the United Arab Emirates forgot to bring the cat in for the night, and now the authorities are looking for them. Their cheetah was found wandering the streets, apparently with no ID or microchip.
I've never understood the exotic pet thing myself. I grew up with cats, dogs, and the occasional fish. It never occurred to me to have a wolf, leopard, cobra, piranha, or Tazmanian Death Chinchilla that was smuggled across the Pacific in some guys jock strap as a pet. To me, a pet is something that is a distraction from the insanity that life becomes, not something to add to it. Although I have to say, Bluegrass and Timmy come close to causing insanity on a regular basis.
Oh well, I hope that the people who took this beautiful animal out of the wild and used it as an ornament are caught and dealt with, and that the cheetah is either returned to the wild or placed in a good zoo. I'm just glad the cat didn't mistake a small child as the slowest pig he'd ever seen.
Someone in the United Arab Emirates forgot to bring the cat in for the night, and now the authorities are looking for them. Their cheetah was found wandering the streets, apparently with no ID or microchip.
I've never understood the exotic pet thing myself. I grew up with cats, dogs, and the occasional fish. It never occurred to me to have a wolf, leopard, cobra, piranha, or Tazmanian Death Chinchilla that was smuggled across the Pacific in some guys jock strap as a pet. To me, a pet is something that is a distraction from the insanity that life becomes, not something to add to it. Although I have to say, Bluegrass and Timmy come close to causing insanity on a regular basis.
Oh well, I hope that the people who took this beautiful animal out of the wild and used it as an ornament are caught and dealt with, and that the cheetah is either returned to the wild or placed in a good zoo. I'm just glad the cat didn't mistake a small child as the slowest pig he'd ever seen.
Stepping on his Weiner
Congressman David Weiner, Democrat of New Yawk, has had one of the following things happen:
My guess is Mr. Weiner got caught with his hands in the cookie jar, and now he's in extreme damage control. Apparently that includes stonewalling, pointing to earlier incomplete and inaccurate statements from his office, claiming that these allegations are a distraction, and calling a reporter a "jackass".
Now, don't get me wrong. I've called reporters much worse in the past, including Christianne Amanpour, the diva of CNN's "Can't you see that somewhere in the world someone is suffering and why isn't the U.S. military doing something about it?". But when the reporter is trying to definitively find out whether or not a member of Congress sent unrequested lewd pictures to a woman he's not married to, I'd say the jackass has a point.
Congressman Weiner needs to man up, and either admit he poked the pooch or offer up the offending staffer for public shaming. Attacking the press for wanting to know the truth was slimy when Clinton and Nixon did it, and it's still slimy. This time there won't be any blue dress, but I'm guessing there's enough forensic evidence in the logs between wherever the picture was sent and where Twitter accepted it that if someone really wanted to know who, when, and from where this happened, they could. So the Congressman can either let the truth see the light of day, or deal with the consequences when a political opponent or journalist puts all the pieces together.
- He took a picture of his junk and sent it via Twitter to a woman he's not married to.
- One of his staff took a picture of someone's junk and sent it to said woman using the Congressman's Twitter account.
- Someone hacked into the Congressman's Twitter account, and all they did was send a picture of unidentified junk to one woman.
My guess is Mr. Weiner got caught with his hands in the cookie jar, and now he's in extreme damage control. Apparently that includes stonewalling, pointing to earlier incomplete and inaccurate statements from his office, claiming that these allegations are a distraction, and calling a reporter a "jackass".
Now, don't get me wrong. I've called reporters much worse in the past, including Christianne Amanpour, the diva of CNN's "Can't you see that somewhere in the world someone is suffering and why isn't the U.S. military doing something about it?". But when the reporter is trying to definitively find out whether or not a member of Congress sent unrequested lewd pictures to a woman he's not married to, I'd say the jackass has a point.
Congressman Weiner needs to man up, and either admit he poked the pooch or offer up the offending staffer for public shaming. Attacking the press for wanting to know the truth was slimy when Clinton and Nixon did it, and it's still slimy. This time there won't be any blue dress, but I'm guessing there's enough forensic evidence in the logs between wherever the picture was sent and where Twitter accepted it that if someone really wanted to know who, when, and from where this happened, they could. So the Congressman can either let the truth see the light of day, or deal with the consequences when a political opponent or journalist puts all the pieces together.
A good idea
A few weeks ago, I opined that I wanted to know how much of my gasoline purchase was going to the gas station and the petroleum company, and how much was going to Uncle Sugar.
Looks like the state of Tennessee was way ahead of me:
According to the attendant at the gas station, it's a statewide requirement. While I still had to do the math to figure out how much I gave to the state and federal governments while filling up the truck, it's better than anywhere else I've been.
Looks like the state of Tennessee was way ahead of me:
He should have trimmed his mustache
A man in England attempted to sneak out of the courthouse and avoid reporters by dressing in women's clothing before departing. Apparently it didn't work.
My guess is he wore something no woman would be caught dead in. Let's face it, most of us guys have the fashion sense of a mule:
"Let's see, shall I wear the bright red lipstick, blonde wig, striped silk blouse and black pants with patent leather pumps, or go all out and wear the tight sweater and skirt combo with 7" stillettos?"
Now, some guys might be able to pull this off. I've known several men who could change into something a little more feminine and blend in pretty well. I, on the other hand, would only blend in with a reunion of the 1988 East German Women's weightlifting team. It's just so hard to find pretty shoes in size 15 men's and I can't find a dress that isn't a moomoo that doesn't make me look like a hooker.
For those of you who have met me, I apologize for the mental image you just had.
My guess is he wore something no woman would be caught dead in. Let's face it, most of us guys have the fashion sense of a mule:
"Let's see, shall I wear the bright red lipstick, blonde wig, striped silk blouse and black pants with patent leather pumps, or go all out and wear the tight sweater and skirt combo with 7" stillettos?"
Now, some guys might be able to pull this off. I've known several men who could change into something a little more feminine and blend in pretty well. I, on the other hand, would only blend in with a reunion of the 1988 East German Women's weightlifting team. It's just so hard to find pretty shoes in size 15 men's and I can't find a dress that isn't a moomoo that doesn't make me look like a hooker.
For those of you who have met me, I apologize for the mental image you just had.
Goodbye, Good Luck, and Thanks For All The Fish
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has decreed that his government will no longer allow NATO forces to bomb Afghan homes that are being used by Taliban or Al Qaeda insurgents. Everyone wants to eliminate or at least minimize civilian casualties. However, the enemy we fight in Afghanistan mixes with the civilian population specifically because we may pull a punch when there's the chance of harming non-combatants. By putting such places off limits, President Karzai provides the Taliban with a safe haven to retreat to in a fight and lay low while they plan their next operation. Effectively, he's made all of the cities and a large part of the country into no-go zones for NATO troops, since unless they can call down the hammer of the gods, they're unlikely to engage the enemy in any concentration.
Since President Karzai has decided that he's capable of telling us where and how we can fight in defense of his regime, I say we let him stand his own army on the firing line for a change. I mean, it's only been a decade since we started trying to make a cohesive Afghan national army so we could go home. It's not like we didn't create the circumstances that allowed him to become president in the first place, or that we haven't spent billions of dollars and the lives of over 1500 American soldiers to prevent his execution at the hands of his countrymen.
Listen up, sparky: About 15 minutes after the last C-141 takes off out of Bagram, you, your family, and everyone associated with you is going to be put against a wall, beheaded, hung, or set on fire. The only thing that's keeping your heart beating is the fact that Americans are more willing to put steel on target than your own soldiers are. How about instead of kvetching about the methods, no matter how sloppy we use, to try to root out the Taliban, you get off your well dressed backside and get your bloody army into the field and trained to actually do more than march in a straight line on a parade field? Keep dictating to us the methods by which we keep your bloody heart beating, and you just might wake up and find yourself with a country devoid of American guns and soldiers.
Since President Karzai has decided that he's capable of telling us where and how we can fight in defense of his regime, I say we let him stand his own army on the firing line for a change. I mean, it's only been a decade since we started trying to make a cohesive Afghan national army so we could go home. It's not like we didn't create the circumstances that allowed him to become president in the first place, or that we haven't spent billions of dollars and the lives of over 1500 American soldiers to prevent his execution at the hands of his countrymen.
Listen up, sparky: About 15 minutes after the last C-141 takes off out of Bagram, you, your family, and everyone associated with you is going to be put against a wall, beheaded, hung, or set on fire. The only thing that's keeping your heart beating is the fact that Americans are more willing to put steel on target than your own soldiers are. How about instead of kvetching about the methods, no matter how sloppy we use, to try to root out the Taliban, you get off your well dressed backside and get your bloody army into the field and trained to actually do more than march in a straight line on a parade field? Keep dictating to us the methods by which we keep your bloody heart beating, and you just might wake up and find yourself with a country devoid of American guns and soldiers.
Lucky Gunner Blogshoot
Well, the weekend had to eventually end, but the smile is still on my face.
Here are some more pictures:
There were multiple re-enactment groups attending the first day. The half-track and tanks were joined by extremely well restored U.S. and German vehicles such as the jeep and BMW motorcycle you see above. The re-enactors were more than happy to allow us to shoot their guns, even taking the time to explain how the guns worked and demonstrating the best ways to shoot them. My favorite of all of these was of course the M-2 .50 caliber machine gun, but a close second was the Thompson. There's just something about that sub-machine gun that tripped my trigger.
Of course, no shoot would be complete without pictures of what the range looked like with lead flying at it:
Someday my minivan will meet a similar fate. But I'll use more tannerite if I can afford it.
During lunch, the organizers of the event recognized two soldiers who were veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. I'm proud to say that standing ovations for these two brave men came easily. It was fun to sit back and watch these two gentlemen sit down to compare notes with Vietnam veterans. I'm sure a lot of good stories and advice were exchanged.
Next, we see the signs that a good day at the range has occurred. The evidence is the many large piles of brass and the many trash bags full of bullet boxes:
Over the course of Day 1, I tried to shoot as many different guns as I could. I have decided that my "Guns I Will Own" list will now include an MP-5, a G-3, an M1917, an M-2, a Thompson, and a BAR. There were others that I shot and were fun, but these are the guns I want in my safes for 'entertainment purposes'.
The evening of Day 1 was taken up with a dinner with the staff of Lucky Gunner and the other blogger and media attendees. During the dinner, the winners for the 2011 Gunnie awards were announced. Congratulations to everyone on those!
On Day 2, the re-enactors had gone home, so for the most part we shot what we brought. Representatives from Kriss were there to demonstrate their new line of guns, and I must say they are sweet:
I tried all four variants of the Kriss gun: the pistol, the short barreled rifle, the suppressed sub gun, and the non-suppressed sub-gun. It's basically the same action with different options added to it. All of them use Glock .45 magazines, so a user won't have to search for proprietary magazines to keep their gun fed and happy. All of these guns were comfortable to shoot, accurate within the limits of the .45 ACP round, and had amazingly light felt recoil. The Kriss representative who worked with me on the firing line showed me how the bolt pivots downward into the area just forward of the trigger guard, driving a lot of the recoil down instead of back at the shooter. This reduces felt recoil and muzzle climb. I must say I was impressed. When compared against the 9mm MP-5 and .45 Thompson, the recoil on the Kriss was very light. The civilian model has an MSRP of about $2000, which is steep, but do-able. This one goes on the "Guns I Will Own" list.
While shooting on Day 2, I realized that Oleg Volk should be nick-named "The Candyman". He brought out several really nice toys:
I got a chance to shoot his Keltec KSG and the Coonan .357 automatic. The KSG is a neat concept and it carries a metric crap-ton of shells in its two magazine tubes. I've been told that shooters are encouraged to put buck shot on one side and slugs on the other. Using the switch to select which magazine to feed from would allow the user to tailor their ammuntion selection without having to unload their weapon. The overall shortness of the gun made it easy to quickly change targets, and it kicked against my should in about the same way that the Mossberg 500 I brought to the game did.
The Coonan is also going on the list. I put two magazines through it, and I am officially in love with it. My impression of its heft at the NRA convention was correct. It's a solid chunk of steel, but that weight helps a lot in controlling recoil and climb. I was able to make respectable groups with it at between 5 and 7 yards, and I'm sure with practice that would tighten up.
I have to say, even though Day 1 was a complete blast, I enjoyed Day 2 even more. It gave us more time to talk and socialize, and since no-one was waiting for us to shoot, we could take our time and discuss the merits and failings of each of our guns. One thing I noticed on both days was just how happy and friendly everyone was. It's something I've noticed about the gunnies I know. Even the rock stars like Tam, Oleg, and Uncle were more than happy to sit and shoot the bull or share their guns with the rest of us. I was asked to shoot other people's guns and offered my own meager collection up for others to enjoy, and no-one batted an eye. Even when we were discussing politics or gun issues, which tend to get everyone's Irish up, we never stopped being polite and respectful. This reinforces something I already believed: Gunnies are good people.
One thing that allowed us to enjoy ourselves as much as we did was the copious amount of Magtech and Seller & Bellot ammunition that the folks at Lucky Gunner were handing out for our enjoyment. I'm pretty sure the only thing that can make a range trip with a great group of people better is free ammunition. Rounds of just about every caliber were given out with a smile. I can't imagine how many thousands of rounds were fired over the two days, but I'd really like to thank Lucky Gunner, Magtech, and S&B for the ammunition.
It was a great weekend, and I took my time saying goodbye to everyone as I packed up and headed north. Angela and her staff at Lucky Gunner put on a heck of a party, and the people who attended made the weekend enjoyable and interesting. I'm already looking forward to next year!
Here are some more pictures:
There were multiple re-enactment groups attending the first day. The half-track and tanks were joined by extremely well restored U.S. and German vehicles such as the jeep and BMW motorcycle you see above. The re-enactors were more than happy to allow us to shoot their guns, even taking the time to explain how the guns worked and demonstrating the best ways to shoot them. My favorite of all of these was of course the M-2 .50 caliber machine gun, but a close second was the Thompson. There's just something about that sub-machine gun that tripped my trigger.
Of course, no shoot would be complete without pictures of what the range looked like with lead flying at it:
 |
| I love the smell of tannerite in the morning! |
 |
| The only good min-van is a dead mini-van |
During lunch, the organizers of the event recognized two soldiers who were veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. I'm proud to say that standing ovations for these two brave men came easily. It was fun to sit back and watch these two gentlemen sit down to compare notes with Vietnam veterans. I'm sure a lot of good stories and advice were exchanged.
Next, we see the signs that a good day at the range has occurred. The evidence is the many large piles of brass and the many trash bags full of bullet boxes:
Over the course of Day 1, I tried to shoot as many different guns as I could. I have decided that my "Guns I Will Own" list will now include an MP-5, a G-3, an M1917, an M-2, a Thompson, and a BAR. There were others that I shot and were fun, but these are the guns I want in my safes for 'entertainment purposes'.
The evening of Day 1 was taken up with a dinner with the staff of Lucky Gunner and the other blogger and media attendees. During the dinner, the winners for the 2011 Gunnie awards were announced. Congratulations to everyone on those!
On Day 2, the re-enactors had gone home, so for the most part we shot what we brought. Representatives from Kriss were there to demonstrate their new line of guns, and I must say they are sweet:
 |
| Oh my gosh! Someone gave me a suppressed machine gun! |
While shooting on Day 2, I realized that Oleg Volk should be nick-named "The Candyman". He brought out several really nice toys:
 |
| Keltec KSG |
The Coonan is also going on the list. I put two magazines through it, and I am officially in love with it. My impression of its heft at the NRA convention was correct. It's a solid chunk of steel, but that weight helps a lot in controlling recoil and climb. I was able to make respectable groups with it at between 5 and 7 yards, and I'm sure with practice that would tighten up.
I have to say, even though Day 1 was a complete blast, I enjoyed Day 2 even more. It gave us more time to talk and socialize, and since no-one was waiting for us to shoot, we could take our time and discuss the merits and failings of each of our guns. One thing I noticed on both days was just how happy and friendly everyone was. It's something I've noticed about the gunnies I know. Even the rock stars like Tam, Oleg, and Uncle were more than happy to sit and shoot the bull or share their guns with the rest of us. I was asked to shoot other people's guns and offered my own meager collection up for others to enjoy, and no-one batted an eye. Even when we were discussing politics or gun issues, which tend to get everyone's Irish up, we never stopped being polite and respectful. This reinforces something I already believed: Gunnies are good people.
One thing that allowed us to enjoy ourselves as much as we did was the copious amount of Magtech and Seller & Bellot ammunition that the folks at Lucky Gunner were handing out for our enjoyment. I'm pretty sure the only thing that can make a range trip with a great group of people better is free ammunition. Rounds of just about every caliber were given out with a smile. I can't imagine how many thousands of rounds were fired over the two days, but I'd really like to thank Lucky Gunner, Magtech, and S&B for the ammunition.
It was a great weekend, and I took my time saying goodbye to everyone as I packed up and headed north. Angela and her staff at Lucky Gunner put on a heck of a party, and the people who attended made the weekend enjoyable and interesting. I'm already looking forward to next year!
Thoughts for the day
- A mother's gift to her country's cause is a story yet untold
- She had three sons, three only sons, each worth his weight in gold
- She gave them up for the sake of war, while her heart was filled with pain
- As each went away, she was heard to say, he will never return again
- CHORUS
- One lies down near Appomattax, many miles away
- Another sleeps at Chickamauga, and they both wore suits of gray
- 'Mid the strains of "Down to Dixie", the third was laid away
- In a trench at Santiago, the Blue and the Gray
- She's alone tonight, while the stars shine bright, with a heart full of despair
- On the last great day, I can hear her say, my three boys will be there
- Perhaps they'll wait, at the heav'nly gates, on guard beside their guns
- Then the mother true, to the gray and blue, may enter with her sons
- --The Blue and The Gray, by Paul Dresser
- But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate, we can not consecrate, we can not hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. -- Abraham Lincoln, The Gettysburg Address
- In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, flyScarce heard amid the guns below.
- --- In Flander's Fields, by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae
My little range buddy
This is one of the millions of cicadas that have been our companions this weekend. When the shooting stops, it sounds like someone's running a giant weed whacker.
From the No Surprise Here files
A study in the UK confirms what a lot of parents have known for years: Taking your kids to the zoo is more effective at teaching them about the environment and conservation than having them sit in a classroom and learn the same material.
Guys, if you have to have a study to figure this kind of thing out, hang it up. It should surprise no-one that kids respond better to hands-on, entertaining experiences with a dash of education thrown in than they do to textbooks and overhead slides. Anyone who's ever taken a 6 year old to see the gorillas and read the placards about how fragile their natural habitat is and how few of the animals there are in the wild knows how interested the little tykes are about their hairy cousins after that. Heck, our kids could recite obscure facts about the flamingo, the emu, and the polar bear before they could say their ABC's.
Kids learn best through play. That's why I always make it fun when I take Girlie Bear to the range, or work on ABC's and 1 2 3's with Boo by playing with blocks or coloring books. Heck, I even knew this when I taught in the military. I always spent the minimum necessary time going through the dry lecture material so that we could get to simulations where students learned and then applied the knowledge that they had heard in lectures.
Someday I'm going to ditch the day job and just start writing applications for grants so I can study the phenomenon of meat becoming inedible if left out in the sun, or that if left to its own devices, the chlorophyllic organisms in the American lawn will gain in height.
Guys, if you have to have a study to figure this kind of thing out, hang it up. It should surprise no-one that kids respond better to hands-on, entertaining experiences with a dash of education thrown in than they do to textbooks and overhead slides. Anyone who's ever taken a 6 year old to see the gorillas and read the placards about how fragile their natural habitat is and how few of the animals there are in the wild knows how interested the little tykes are about their hairy cousins after that. Heck, our kids could recite obscure facts about the flamingo, the emu, and the polar bear before they could say their ABC's.
Kids learn best through play. That's why I always make it fun when I take Girlie Bear to the range, or work on ABC's and 1 2 3's with Boo by playing with blocks or coloring books. Heck, I even knew this when I taught in the military. I always spent the minimum necessary time going through the dry lecture material so that we could get to simulations where students learned and then applied the knowledge that they had heard in lectures.
Someday I'm going to ditch the day job and just start writing applications for grants so I can study the phenomenon of meat becoming inedible if left out in the sun, or that if left to its own devices, the chlorophyllic organisms in the American lawn will gain in height.
I wonder if that was street value
A company in Los Angeles is reporting that a truckload of crab that was supposed to be delivered to Seattle has disappeared. The paperwork the trucker used to pick up the load was forged, so authorities are working on the assumption that this is the work of organized crime.
The two things that went through my mind while reading this was:
"Hey buddy, wanna buy some of this crab that I got in the live well of my Volare?"
and
I wonder if the trucker will sleep with the shellfishes if he cooperates with the police?
The two things that went through my mind while reading this was:
"Hey buddy, wanna buy some of this crab that I got in the live well of my Volare?"
and
I wonder if the trucker will sleep with the shellfishes if he cooperates with the police?
Someone needs a hug
A man riding on the New York subway stripped down to his briefs and high heels and 'entertained' the crowd by riding one of the poles in the car. While some found it to be entertaining, I'm guessing most thought it was a sign of psychosis.
Warning - I am not responsible for the sanity points you lose if you watch the video embedded in that article.
Now, I'm pretty open minded. Everyone has hobbies or diversions to pass the time. But a guy stripped down to black underwear and a pair of pumps swinging around on a dirty subway car pole is not how I keep my mind busy during a commute. Maybe if this goofball wanted to make the ride a little better for his fellow subway riders, this gentleman could bring along some Lysol and a Swiffer and clean up the accumulated grime and other residues on every surface of the vehicle. Heck for that, he might get the keys to the city.
Warning - I am not responsible for the sanity points you lose if you watch the video embedded in that article.
Now, I'm pretty open minded. Everyone has hobbies or diversions to pass the time. But a guy stripped down to black underwear and a pair of pumps swinging around on a dirty subway car pole is not how I keep my mind busy during a commute. Maybe if this goofball wanted to make the ride a little better for his fellow subway riders, this gentleman could bring along some Lysol and a Swiffer and clean up the accumulated grime and other residues on every surface of the vehicle. Heck for that, he might get the keys to the city.
Memorial
The old woman's eyes were gray blue. I remember this because she looked me in the eye and held my gaze as she lightly shook my hand and thanked me for what I had done for her husband and her family that day. She walked down the line of soldiers and repeated her thanks to each of us.
I was the NCOIC for her husband's funeral detail. I had heard her softly thank the Officer in Charge as she accepted the folded flag from him. She was a lady such as has become rare in our world. She spoke with a soft Southern accent that had none of the twang that is so easy to fall into. From reading her husband's biography, I could see that she had lived just about everywhere the Army can send someone with their family after marrying her husband early in his career. She had followed him through several tours of Europe and myriad domestic bases, both to places that I remember fondly and to places I cringe to think of. She had taken care of her children and their home while he did multiple tours in Vietnam and at least one assignment to Korea. She had obviously done something right with her kids, as two of them wore uniforms to the funeral, and two of the others had "Dr." in front of their names in the obituary. The seats at the packed chapel that weren't filled with soldiers who had known and served with her husband were filled with grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
As she walked back to her sons and daughters to say their final goodbyes to the old soldier, I thought about how much of his life he had given to us. His list of decorations included two medals for valor, each paired with a Purple Heart for wounds. He had served in Vietnam and the first Gulf War, rising from an intelligence analyst with a line battalion S-2 to the command sergeant major of an intelligence battalion before retiring to a position with one of our contracting companies. I met and worked with this man a few times both before and after his retirement, and while he was a gentle man, there was more iron in him than a cursory glance would find. If he knew he was right, and he normally was, he never backed down. In the few times he was wrong, he was quick to apologize and learn from his mistake. Those who worked for him loved and respected him, and I never heard anything but praise for him.
Today, an entire generation of American men and women are on the same path this extraordinary man and his family took. A military life, as a soldier, a spouse, or a child, is more difficult and yet more of an adventure than someone who hasn't gone through it can describe. Many people and families crack under the strain, and some will shatter. What is amazing is how many thrive and succeed. In addition to those like me who did their time and got out, there are also those who walk onto a plane or ship after kissing their loved ones goodbye, but are carried off of another plane or ship with honors. It is for these men and women that we pause today.
We should always remember what these people give up for us, and how their sacrifice makes our lives better.
A good start to the weekend
We're about halfway through the first day of the Lucky Gunner Blogshoot, and I'm having a ball. One of the guys here had a full auto M-16A1, so I gave it a shot out of nostalgia. As I was loading up a couple of magazines, I realized I was sharing a table with Tam and Oleg. Now that's a good way to start the day.
The event is happening a few miles outside of Knoxville, and you couldn't ask for a prettier location or day. Here's a few pictures:
More to come!
The event is happening a few miles outside of Knoxville, and you couldn't ask for a prettier location or day. Here's a few pictures:
Sure, we believe you
Representative Barney Franks, Democrat of the Volksrepublik of Massachusetts, has denied using his position and power to get a job at Fannie Mae for his significant other in the 1990's. All he did was "casually recommend" him for the job. You know, like Don Corleone casually recommended that his godson be put in as the lead in a film.
I can see it now: "Hey, nice mortgage company you've got here. Be a shame if something were to happen to it. Oh and by the way, my boyfriend needs a job. You guys got anything for him?"
I'm sure that everything was on the up and up here. I can't imagine the recommendation of a Congresman to a company he helps to oversee and regulate would have tipped the scales one way or another. I mean, come on. Don't all of us get our jobs because our spouse or significant other put in the good word for us?
Apparently the quasi-governmental company was more than happy to hire the young man, and it's only a coincidence that he left his position with them soon after breaking up with the good Congressman.
Congressman Franks needs to remember that we're not as stupid as he seems to think we are.
I can see it now: "Hey, nice mortgage company you've got here. Be a shame if something were to happen to it. Oh and by the way, my boyfriend needs a job. You guys got anything for him?"
I'm sure that everything was on the up and up here. I can't imagine the recommendation of a Congresman to a company he helps to oversee and regulate would have tipped the scales one way or another. I mean, come on. Don't all of us get our jobs because our spouse or significant other put in the good word for us?
Apparently the quasi-governmental company was more than happy to hire the young man, and it's only a coincidence that he left his position with them soon after breaking up with the good Congressman.
Congressman Franks needs to remember that we're not as stupid as he seems to think we are.
Google maps 5.5 for Android: explore the world in 3D
Google Maps 5.5 for Android has finally been released. It is a cool mobile app which adds up more features to mobile Google maps app that has already been in the market for quite a while now and which has been used by more than 200 million users across platforms and devices worldwide. This new version adds ‘ check in’ and ‘ rate and review’ buttons to place pages .Google Maps 5.5 is completely free and is available in the Android Market.
Some features of Google Maps5.5 for Android
Here are the main features that Google Maps 5.5 for Android offers to its users :- It is completely free
- It is easy and simple to use
- It has an intuitive interface
- Check-in and rating buttons added to Place pages
- You can update your Latitude Location History home/work address
- It lets you check out a transit station in a nearby city,
- It offers Free, voice-guided GPS navigation system
- It helps you find, rate, and get recommendations for places
How can i get started using Google Maps5.5 for Android ?
To learn more about this awesome mobile app , you are invited to watch this short video tutorial
That’s it about Google maps 5.5 for Android: explore the world in 3D .
iTalk Recorder : A Free Audio Recording Mobile App
iTalk Recorder is one of the top downloaded app for Ipad and iPhone . iTalk Recorder allows its users to record audio and save it into their mobile library . I just can’t believe it is free now . As educators , iTalk Recorder can be very helpful when attending lectures or meetings , use it to record whatever going on around you and just the way you want it.
That’s it about iTalk Recorder : A Free Audio Recording Mobile App .
Some features of iTalk Recorder
Here are the main features and services that iTalk Recorder offers to its users :- It is free
- It is dead simple
- It is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 4.0 or later
- It has a great interface
- It uses easy recording features that you can handle instantly
- You can email recordings in iTalk Recorder Lite but emailing is limited to files under 2MB which ius a generous capacity for us in education
- It offers a high-quality handheld recordings
- It allows graphics updated for Retina displa
- It includes auto noise-cancellation (iPhone 4)
- It has easy to use control tabs : just the big red button to start recording, tap again to stop; slide forward and back when playing back your recordings
How can i get started using iTalk Recorder ?
To learn how to start using iTalk Recorder watch this video tutorial :Applications in Education
iTalk Recorder is all pluses for educators . As i said before this is a great tool for professional development , how many times we attend important meetings,lectures, or seminars and we just can not note everything that has been dealt with , now with iTalk Recorder it is completely different .You wont let go of any info no matter how little it is . I strongly advise you to have this free app on your mobile devices .That’s it about iTalk Recorder : A Free Audio Recording Mobile App .
FreezePage: Freeze pages for later use
FreezePage is a great web tool. It is a sort of bookmarking tool that is completely different from all the other bookmarking tools we have seen here so far. FreezePage as its name entails is a service that allows its users to bookmark the page as it is and store it for a later use. When you get back to the stored page you will find the same page you have bookmarked with no updates. Let me explain this more; for example i was on a blog reading an article about a certain web2.0 tool and then suddenly i had a call and i needed to go. If i bookmarked the page with other bookmarking sites i would for sure have it there but when i would refer to it later that day or anytime i would find the page updated and probably new articles there so i would have to start looking for the exact page i was reading this is because these bookmarking tools bookmark the URL and not the page itself, but with Freeze Page you will be able to get back to the exact page or even the exact paragraph you left off. Hummmmmmm isn’t that cool ? for me it is much more than that.
Freeze Page not only freezes the pages for a later use but also generates a url for this very page you want and you can share it with others to see . The page and its content will never change no matter how long you kept it in your store.
That’s it about FreezePage: Freeze pages for later use.
Freeze Page not only freezes the pages for a later use but also generates a url for this very page you want and you can share it with others to see . The page and its content will never change no matter how long you kept it in your store.
Some features of Freeze Page
Here are the main features that FreezePage offers to its users:- It is free
- It is easy to use
- It has an intuitive interface
- It requires a sign up to store your pages
- It allows its users to bookmark pages as they are
- It generates URLs for frozen pages
- It lets users share their frozen pages with others
- It has a bookmarklet to install on your browser
- The frozen page never changes
How can i get started using FreezePage ?
Go to FreezePage main page and- sign up for a free account
- enter the address of the web you are reading or just paste it there
- Press “Freeze Web Page” and wait while we get the Web page from the address you specified
- the frozen page is automatically placed in a personal folder (“My Frozen Pages”)
Applications of FreezePage in education
Educators can benefit a lot from this free service. They can just freeze the pages they find online and generate URLs to share with their students , in this way they can make sure students are keeping up with what they bookmark for them .You can also use it to share URLs of pages of relevant interest with your colleagues and friends.That’s it about FreezePage: Freeze pages for later use.
Human Restore:Free educative documentaries
Human restore is a a great website for educators. It is a repository of free engaging documentaries featuring different categories. This website looks like John Locker: The free documentary website which i have covered in an earlier post. I know we need documentaries to include in our teaching from time to time but the problem is if you set yourself to look for some free ones then you would find yourself navigating the web endlessly and just to find if ever you are lucky , the ones you wanted. To save teachers’ time and help them better benefit from the net i organized a special page where i submit posts and links to the best free teachers resources. Look above and click on teachers resources to have a look at what you might have missed .
Human Restore is free and very simple to use . You do not need to sign up or anything . just head over to Human Restore main page and look at the categories column on the left hand side . Click on any category to bring up its components. Select the ones you want to watch and click on them . Yes it is this easy.
That’s it about Human Restore:Free educative documentaries .
Human Restore is free and very simple to use . You do not need to sign up or anything . just head over to Human Restore main page and look at the categories column on the left hand side . Click on any category to bring up its components. Select the ones you want to watch and click on them . Yes it is this easy.
Applications of Human Restore in education
I strongly invite teachers and educators to have recourse to video resources such as Human Restore. Multimedia elements are very helpful in teaching and learning and students show more interaction and engagement when videos or audio clips are integrated into the classroom teaching.That’s it about Human Restore:Free educative documentaries .
Google Apps for education: the best guide
I think you would know by now that i am one of the bloggers who is fond of Google to the extent that i have Google stickers all around the house even on the fridge door lol. What i love about Google next to its search facilities is the high quality services it offers to educators. ¨probably all of these services are free and very easy to use with simple tutorials to walk you through all the procedure of its application. Believe me , if you ever understand and grasp in what really Google provides for educators , you would be in a better tech position than ever before.
I get emails from people around the world asking me if Google can help in education and each time i get one like this i just get shocked at how ignorant some educators are of the fantastic services offered for free by Google. Being a 21st century educator means automatically that you are integrating technology into your teaching and the first step to guarantee a safe, neat and secure implementation of this technology is to learn about what Google has for education.
If the urge to learn about Google is stirring now inside of you and you feel like you need some tutorials about the different services Google offers for educators then i would save you the trouble of searching for i have done it all on behalf of you and have collected several articles talking just about Google services that you can use in your classroom, just check the tab above named Google/ Research Tools and browse through the posts you are interested in.
Today i am introducing to you another free Google service called The Guide to Going Google. It is a resource from Google to help academic and educational institutions better implement Google apps in their campuses.” This site contains tools and guidelines to use as a starting point to getting your students, faculty, alumni, and community ready and excited about bringing Google Apps for Education to campus.”
The Guide to Going Google is divided into two main parts :
One part is university edition
This part offers “Technical and communication resources and examples to help your college or university go Google”.
Second part named K-12 edition
This part offers all the technical, professional development, and marketing resources for a K12 school or district to go Google.
Google apps for educators is the best way for schools to start integrating technology into their systems and save money they would have spent on software and systems licensing, and IT support.
That’s it about google apps for education: the best guide.
I get emails from people around the world asking me if Google can help in education and each time i get one like this i just get shocked at how ignorant some educators are of the fantastic services offered for free by Google. Being a 21st century educator means automatically that you are integrating technology into your teaching and the first step to guarantee a safe, neat and secure implementation of this technology is to learn about what Google has for education.
If the urge to learn about Google is stirring now inside of you and you feel like you need some tutorials about the different services Google offers for educators then i would save you the trouble of searching for i have done it all on behalf of you and have collected several articles talking just about Google services that you can use in your classroom, just check the tab above named Google/ Research Tools and browse through the posts you are interested in.
Today i am introducing to you another free Google service called The Guide to Going Google. It is a resource from Google to help academic and educational institutions better implement Google apps in their campuses.” This site contains tools and guidelines to use as a starting point to getting your students, faculty, alumni, and community ready and excited about bringing Google Apps for Education to campus.”
The Guide to Going Google is divided into two main parts :
One part is university edition
This part offers “Technical and communication resources and examples to help your college or university go Google”.
Second part named K-12 edition
This part offers all the technical, professional development, and marketing resources for a K12 school or district to go Google.
Google apps for educators is the best way for schools to start integrating technology into their systems and save money they would have spent on software and systems licensing, and IT support.
That’s it about google apps for education: the best guide.
eduplace : free graphic organizers for educators
Eduplace is really a great site . It offers a set of printable graphs and charts to use in the classroom with your students . These graphs are very handy and easy to use , so there is no need to spend time online trying to build charts or classroom assignment grills , you can find all in Eduplace and for free at the tip of a click . It is indeed a wonderful resource for all educators .
Just click on any title and you will have its PDF version at your hand to print
Clock
Cluster/Word Web 1
Cluster/Word Web 2
Cluster/Word Web 3
Describing Wheel
E-Chart
Fact and Opinion
Five W's Chart
Flow Chart
Four-Column Chart
Garden Gate
Goal-Reasons Web
Ice-Cream Cone
Idea Rake
Idea Wheel
Inverted Triangle
ISP Chart
(Information, Sources, Page)
KWL Chart
KWS Chart
Ladder
Observation Chart
Persuasion Map
Planning Chart
Problem-Solution Chart
Sandwich
Sense Chart
Sequence Chart
Spider Map
Step-by-Step Chart
Story Map 1
Story Map 2
Story Map 3
T-Chart
Ticktacktoe
Time Line
Persuasion map
Describing wheel
Problem solution chart
There is nothing better to say in this section then wha tEduplace creators said themselves about how grapgic organizers can be used
Here are what Eduplace offers to the teachers
Just click on any title and you will have its PDF version at your hand to print
(Information, Sources, Page)
Here are some snapshots of some of these graphs :
Persuasion map
Describing wheel
Problem solution chart
Applications of Graphic Eduplace in education
Help your students children classify ideas and communicate more effectively. Use graphic organizers to structure writing projects, to help in problem solving, decision making, studying, planning research and brainstorming.That`s it about Eduplace : Free Graphic Organizers for Educators .
Laterloop: Read your links wherever you are
Laterloop is a great bookmarking service for educators. It is a twin sister of Mento , the other link sharing app i have talked about in Mento:a great way to shyare links with others. Laterloop allows its users to read WebPages later on phone or web. Whether you opt for the web or mobile version you will always be able to read your bookmarks instantly. What is even great about this tool is that it allows you to read your bookmarks offline. You download a ZIP file of your links and read them when you are offline. I am actually using Livebinders ( read: Livebinders the educative tool teachers should not miss to learn about this smart tool)which i love so much but when i tried Laterlopp i think i will add it to my bookmarking tools on my desktop.
That’s it about Laterloop: Read your links wherever you are.
Some features of Laterloop
Here are the main features that Laterloop offers to its users:- It is free
- It is easy to use and safe
- It requires a sign up but you can use your Google account to sign in as well.
- It works both on the web and mobile interfaces
- It supports iPhones, Blackberries, Nokias, and other similar smartphones.
- It has a handy bookmarklet for the famous browsers
- It lets you read your links offline
- You can consult your archive of bookmarked links online
How can i get started using Laterloop ?
To start using this free service you need to- head over to Laterloop main page and sign up for a free account.
- Now you need to install the bookmarklet in your browser
- Whenever you are on a website that you want to read later then just click on ‘Save For Later’ button on your browser
- The link of that page will be automatically saved to your Laterloop account to access whenever you want.
Applications of Laterloop in Education
This is a very good tool for teachers who are very busy and keep on forgetting bookmarked links they scheduled to read. Now whether you are at school with your students or in the airport waiting for your flight , Laterloop will keep you connected to your unfinished work.That’s it about Laterloop: Read your links wherever you are.
Mento: A Great Way to Share Links with Others
Mento is a great website i have stumbled upon recently. Mento allows you to save and share links with your friends and colleagues. I know there are many tools that can do the same but for us in education Mento is just what we need . It is quick , instant , secure and your links are just one click away.
Mento is a button for your browser and a place for saving your shared links. It is great for telling friends or co-workers about a link and in the same time be aware of those who clicked on your link. Poor students , they would no more give excuses such as i didn't get the link for the homework assignment for teachers would know if the links have been clicked on or not.
That’s it about Mento: A Great Way to Share Links with Others.
Mento is a button for your browser and a place for saving your shared links. It is great for telling friends or co-workers about a link and in the same time be aware of those who clicked on your link. Poor students , they would no more give excuses such as i didn't get the link for the homework assignment for teachers would know if the links have been clicked on or not.
Some features of Mento
Here is a list of the main features that Mento provides for its users:- It is easy to use
- It has a friendly interface
- It is secure
- It requires a sign up after which you get an invitation email to start using Mento.
- It allows you to save and share links
- It lets you send links to any email address, Facebook friends and Twitter contacts
- You can use groups and tags for exchanging links with more people
- Mento works best with Firefox and certainly supports Safari and Internet Explorer, too.
- Mento tells you when friends clicked on your links
- Add screenshots to the links you're sharing: select any part of the page and make your links stand out
- You can also share videos and images from YouTube, Flickr and many other site
- It lets you Automatically publish your links to the services you use . It supports: Facebook, Twitter, Delicious, FriendFeed, Tumblr, and Mag.gnolia.
That’s it about Mento: A Great Way to Share Links with Others.
Google Scholar: Get the best academic and scholarly search results
Google Scholar provides “a simple way to broadly search for scholarly literature”. We all use Google in our daily lives and there are billion of queries searched daily in Google. To better use Google and get your search results as accurate as possible , i have devoted a post just to teach you some of the tricks to better search Google which you can read in Google search tips .
To look for researches or academic productions published in scholarly journals then you will need a whole different kind of Google. This is called Google Scholar. It is very easy to use and above all free. Google Scholar allows you search across different disciplines and sources to look for these, books, abstracts, articles, surveys and many more. The results are mainly submitted by academic publishers, professional societies, online repositories, universities and other web sites. Using this free service will make your academic researches much more easier than ever before.
Google Scholar uses a pretty smart algorithm to provide the relevant results for your queries. It ranks articles based on “the full text of each document, where it was published, who it was written by, as well as how often and how recently it has been cited in other scholarly literature “. Don’t worry no spam result , It is Google.
Here is a video tutorial that will introduce you to some tips and tricks about using Google Scholarly.
That’s it about Google Scholar: Get the best academic and scholarly search results.
To look for researches or academic productions published in scholarly journals then you will need a whole different kind of Google. This is called Google Scholar. It is very easy to use and above all free. Google Scholar allows you search across different disciplines and sources to look for these, books, abstracts, articles, surveys and many more. The results are mainly submitted by academic publishers, professional societies, online repositories, universities and other web sites. Using this free service will make your academic researches much more easier than ever before.
Google Scholar uses a pretty smart algorithm to provide the relevant results for your queries. It ranks articles based on “the full text of each document, where it was published, who it was written by, as well as how often and how recently it has been cited in other scholarly literature “. Don’t worry no spam result , It is Google.
Here is a video tutorial that will introduce you to some tips and tricks about using Google Scholarly.
Applications of Google Scholar in education
Educators, teachers and students all need to be using this free service; why not and it is created solely for them. You can refer your students to Google Scholar to browse for articles and scholarly publications they might be needing in their research projects. Teachers can also use it for their own professional development. I personally think that Google Scholar is a must have service for all of us in the field of education.That’s it about Google Scholar: Get the best academic and scholarly search results.
Google Social Search: Socialized Search Results
Google Social Search is a newly released service. It allows googlers to get ideas and recommendations from people they trust and right into their search results. Wow isn’t that great ?Google has made it again and honestly speaking, Google has never stopped from amazing me with the high quality services they keep coming up with especially those ones that are education oriented. I am one of the biggest Google fans and i have devoted a whole section of this blog just to Google services and tutorials , you can have a look at what you might have missed from this Guru in Google Search/ tools page.
Remember that these social search results are only visible to you and only appear when you choose to log in to your Google account.
To learn more how this service works you need to watch this short video tutorial.
That’s it about Google Social Search: Socialized Search Results.
How does Google Social Search works ?
Google Social Search is a great way to get search results containing results from people you are connected to on blogger, flicker, twitter and publicly available site. Social Search can help you find information, pages, and links your friends have created and submitted online. It will also help you find links your contacts have shared on twitter and other sites. Therefore , if someone you are connected to have shared a link ,then you may find that link in your search results with a clear annotation. For instance , if you are looking for information on How to Teach Large Classes and your colleague John shared a link on Teaching large Classes then you will see an annotation and picture from John under the results.Remember that these social search results are only visible to you and only appear when you choose to log in to your Google account.
To learn more how this service works you need to watch this short video tutorial.
Applications of Google Social Search in education
Google Social Search is a great service to be used by teachers and students. Now students can use it to look for search results submitted by their friends or teachers. We all trust people we know much and in this way the info published by the ones we are connected to are likely to benefit us more in our queries .That’s it about Google Social Search: Socialized Search Results.
