Monthly Archives: February 2012

A Defense of Dilettantes

Posted on February 28, 2012 by hessd

One of the pitfalls of thinking of yourself as “a person who knows things” is that you sometimes don’t have a clear sense of just what it is you know.  I’ve been a teacher for the last fifty years or … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, Words | 4 Comments

Republican Polar Bears

Posted on February 28, 2012 by hessd

One of the most surprising events of recent years is the death by drowning of polar bears.  Polar bears are some of the strongest swimmers in the world of mammals.  Why are they drowning?  Well, it turns out that that … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | Leave a comment

What Will the General Election Be About?

Posted on February 19, 2012 by hessd

New York Times CBS Poll Feb 3—13, 2012  Registered Voters 1064 Registered Republicans 316 Registered Democrats 368 How is President Obama Doing? Pretty well, all things being considered. His numbers are nowhere near where they were when he was elected, … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Beane Soup 2: Peter denies him thrice

Posted on February 11, 2012 by hessd

In this series, I am pulling together little fragments of the movie, Moneyball, to form themes that I noticed and liked.  Or maybe I just invented them.  This one has to do with Peter Brand.  Peter is supposed to be … Continue reading →

Posted in Movies, ways of knowing | Leave a comment

So…Mitt Romney hates the poor?

Posted on February 4, 2012 by hessd

I don’t much like the attention that has been paid recently to Mitt Romney’s comment about the poor.  I don’t much like Mitt either, but this is too much.  It hasn’t been that long since a staffer for an agency … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | Tagged , , | 2 Comments