Snippets

Random stuff on my mind:

• Why is it that the "beacon of democracy," which also happens to be one of the wealthiest and most technologically sophisticated countries in the world, still struggles with basic voter registration issues? This doesn't exactly inspire confidence in our ability to impose spread democracy worldwide.


• My new favorite Palin retort: Just because I can see the moon from my house doesn't make me an astronaut. (I lost the YouTube link to a funny Palin song using this line. (Update: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jltqTRmiVjg. Thanks, Hol!)


• How long does it take for a new, enthusiastic Assistant Professor to lose all faith in her ability to actually teach her students something meaningful? I haven't given up hope yet, but with each round of "research" papers that I grade, my faith is diminishing.


• I should start counting the number of times per week that I have to remind my students that they are adults. Perhaps after several months of data collection I can create a pretty graph to post on my door that would save me the trouble of actually having to say it.


• I cannot bring myself to blog about the economy. It is simply too depressing.