ViceZilla’s Views

We live in a crazy, screwed up time. Every day we face a media barrage of reports of murders, rapes, domestic violence, and other inhumanities committed against our Brothers and Sisters. Sadly, these atrocities are committed in our cities, towns, and neighborhoods, and sometimes to people we know and love.

The news surrounds us, it gets into our heads. We discuss the morning news with our co-workers, and it creeps into our lunch meetings with clients or friends. We discuss the evening news with our spouses or neighbors. We can’t seem to get away from it. It’s on our radios, television screens, newspapers and magazines. It affects our lives. It affects our children’s lives as well.

Our children may not understand the politics behind tragic events like 9/11, the Iraq War, or the situation in Darfur. But they know bad things are happening. Children have one roll to play in our society, and that is to be children.

This is why I am deeply disturbed, no scratch that, disgusted at the recent events surrounding a “prank” played on 69 Elementary school children by a group of “teachers”.

Using twisted logic only known to them, they thought it would be a good “educational drill” to warn the school children, who were on an overnight field trip to a state park in Tennessee, that there people in the park shooting guns. The lead teacher also said that he was advised by a Park Ranger to everyone to take cover. Then, if that weren’t bad enough, as the children crying and cowering on the floor, “a teacher wearing a hooded sweatshirt pulled on a locked door, pretending to be a suspicious subject in the area.

I”m sure you all can imagine what was going through the children’s minds by this time. Especially with the events of the Virginia Tech incident still fresh in everybody’s minds.

The school, of course is standing by their belief that it was intended to be a learning experience for the students. And that the prank “involved poor judgment” as well as the media coverage being “sensationalized.”

I have a few questions for the teachers involved in this “prank.”

1. What possible thing could these sixth-grade students have learned from this prank that would be beneficial to them?

2. Did you consider the possible long term negative psychological effects your prank may have on them? Were you prepared to take the responsibility these actions may have on a young 11 or 12 year old mind?

3. Now that your evil deed is done, how does it feel to lose the trust and respect of the same minds that you were entrusted with?

4. What thought process did you go through to go from being an “educator” to a “tormentor”?

5. Now that your actions have made it perfectly clear that none of you are qualified to teach children, what are your career plans now? Or haven’t you thought about that yet?

The Murfreesboro, TN Director of Schools, Marilyn Mathis has suspended lead teacher Quentin Mastin, and assistant principal Don Bartch for unprofessional conduct and neglect of duty due to actions taken with Scales Elementary School students. Even though these people are suspended until the end of the school year, without pay, this isn’t enough. What about the other teachers that were present who didn’t stand up for the children and not allow this act of stupidity to take place? They are every bit as guilty.

For any parent who would like to voice their concern about this incident, I urge you to contact the Tennessee Department of Education at Education.Comments@state.tn.us and let them know the children deserve more retribution from their tormentors than just a suspension.

Tags: But Seriously Though... by vicezilla
No Comments »

After poisoned animal feed product arrived on our pet food shelves from China, we were outraged. But according to Hong Kong residents, they have tolerated substandard and potentially harmful Chinese food products for decades.

From vegetables laced with too many pesticides to meat and fish loaded with controlled drugs and industrial chemicals, foodstuffs from the mainland have often presented risks for consumers in Hong Kong, experts say.

China has strict rules governing food meant for export, but is less particular about produce intended for its domestic market, Fred Li, a legislator who sits on a legislative committee on food safety said.

If the poisoned animal feed exported is any indication of their ’strict rules” for exported food, I can only imagine what kind of non-existent rules are in place for food meant for domestic consumption is!

Source

Tags: The China Effect by vicezilla
No Comments »

Well, it’s nice to see that hypocrisy is alive and well in the White House.

The United States warned on Thursday that “the whole world is watching” to see that embattled World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz is treated fairly as critics press him to quit over a pay-and-promotion dispute.

To me this is like the kettle calling the pot black! No, seriously.

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, is warning the European members of the World Bank, that the world is watching their actions! Who in the hell does the Bush administration think they are to warn that the “world is watching” them?

If anything, the Bush Administration should look in a mirror, and recount their track record. Who has the world watched more, the goings on of the World Bank Scandal, or the bumblings of the Bush Administration’s handling of it’s own affairs?

People in glass White Houses shouldn’t throw stones!

Source

Tags: Bush Administration by vicezilla
No Comments »

The International Whaling Commission banned commercial whaling in 1986. However commercial whaling still continues to this day under the guise of “scientific research.”
Its estimated that in the 20th century alone, two million whales have been killed.

This week the IWC meets in Alaska with pro-whaling nations, led by Japan who is determined to overturn the ban on commercial whaling.

Last year, Japanese whalers killed 853 Minke Whales, and 10 Fin Whales. This year they want to hunt Humpback Whales. All of this killing was of course for “scientific research.” What do the Japanese whalers do with the “scientific” specimens they kill? Well, they sell the meat of course to “fund the cost of the scientific expeditions.”

The whole world knows “scientific whaling” is a sham, a loophole in the Commission”s convention. So now all of a sudden, Japan is claiming that whale meat is a national delicacy. Hmmmm, sounds like a China/Shark Fin Soup delicacy thing happening.

The fight to protect the whales has become a political battle. The pro-whaling nations would need a 75% vote to overturn the ban. Japan has been working overtime to “buy” votes from countries to guarantee enough votes to overturn the ban. They’ve offered millions of dollars in fisheries grants to countries in Central and South America in exchange for their votes. Mongolia, for example, has suddenly proven to be a keen supporter of whaling, although it does not have a coastline!

Japan obviously does not have any problems stooping to such low levels in order to get it’s way. The oceans’ inhabitants are in serious trouble as long as Countries like Japan and China, just to name a few, continue to exploit them for “National Delicacy” reasons!

Source

Tags: Whaling by vicezilla
No Comments »

Sure, why not? As long as Bush “still supports the attorney general fully and wholly,” he will keep his job.

Even though the Justice Department is in shambles over the dismissals, and the role Mr. Gonzales played in them, he continues to operate as if nothing has changed. On Tuesday he was in Detroit for a civil rights speech!

If anything, we should all be used to the pompous, arrogance of these people that Bush has surrounded himself with. It all trickles down from the top, doesn’t it?

Story Here

Tags: Bush Administration by vicezilla
No Comments »