Some scary censorship by AT&T of Pearl Jam’s Pro-Peace/Anti-Bush statements. What’s next?

DONE!

I graduated this weekend. I’m still waiting for my thesis to come back from being bound otherwise everything else is done and turned in. I’ve also passed my licensing test, so now I can just hang out all summer.

Here’s an interesting story from the Star Tribune about Liberian’s in Minnesota and recent changes in immigration rules or enforcement.

We were just discussing this issue in one of my social work classes. We wondered what are the political reasons behind ending the TPS for Liberians. It just doesn’t make sense as to why now?

If you want to more information or to take some action, here are some links:
Liberian Truth and Reconciliation Commission
Organizations of Liberians in Minnesota
The Bush Chicken–Liberian Community Online
Union of Liberian Organizations in the Americas

Fed up station owner shuts off gas pumps

This story makes me laugh. People are complaining about high gas prices, but apparently don’t understand the basic concept of supply and demand. We need to decrease our overall usage and dependence. Driving an SUV 100 miles a day is not going to help.

Maria McClory, 38, drove 10 miles out of her way to buy a diet soda from Pollack’s station after seeing local television coverage of the protest. 10 miles out of her way just for diet soda. Does that even make sense?

“I just wanted to support them and thank them for making a statement,” said McClory, who drives about 100 miles a day for work in her sport utility vehicle. Duh! What’s the problem here?

Schwartz called that “outrageous” and said even he can’t fill up his SUV at that price.

“If it keeps going like this, my kids will never be able to afford to drive,” said Schwartz, who has an 18-year-old son and 15-year-old daughter.

An article from the Chippewa paper:

A strip club open last week in the town of Thorp, Wisconsin. The residents of Thorp and the surrounding area had no idea. And are they pissed off. Apparently, the club owners used some sneaky tactics to get the strip club in town. These are some of my favorite quotes from the article. I understand the anger and frustration, but these fears are hysterical (pun intended).

“I am scared to death,” Rudnick said. “I have a 17-year-old. What stops him from going to the parking lot and looking at the prostitutes.”

“He already saw a stripper and told his friends she had a nice body. He found that exciting,” she said.

“We have tried to teach good morals all our lives and teach our kids this is something that only happens in big cities. Then this comes in and it’s something that God and preachers all say is not OK,” she said.

Pastor Bruce Kannenberg also spoke up Tuesday.

“I’m concerned about something called morals. The town of Thorp is a quaint little place and I’m concerned about its morals,” he said.

“This is a slippery slope. It will bring other elements into the area like drugs and violence,” she said.
“The strip club will cause friction in marriages and the area will see a steep increase in divorces. There is nothing we can benefit from this,” Nitz said.

Karen Koltis, who operates a mental health clinic in Stanley, says she has already seen effects of the new business.

“It makes my heart bleed knowing the corruption that is occurring and that I might not be able to help,” Koltis said.

She said that on Monday a young couple came to her facility seeking counseling because of the strip club.

“She was crying because her husband might go there,” Koltis said. “They are truly hurting and destroying this community and that is not fair to us God-fearing people.”

Troubles Grow for a University Built on Profits

Here’s an interesting article from the New York Times. It’s about the rise in for-profit private colleges and the problems students are having. This is another subject that I am quite passionate about. As lower-skill jobs are being eliminated and dislocated workers need retraining, we are seeing a rise in these for-profit colleges that cater to adult learners. I think some of the recruiting tactics are borderline predatory because they mislead low-income individuals into believing they will obtain their degree and high paying job. But the problem is that many of these “schools” are accredited to qualify students for financial aid and giving out degrees, but they are not accredited by a professional association. For example, my college is accredited by the U.S. Department of Education and/or some regional variation and the social work program is accredited by the Council on Social Work Education. This means that my degree is social work meets the quality standards set out by the CSWE. It also means that my degree is valid and accepted by employers and other colleges nationwide (and worldwide). Now, let’s take the the University of Phoenix (the subject of the Times article). They are accredited by the U.S. Dept. of Education and/or some regional variation, but not with Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business which is the accrediting agency for business schools. So, when a student leaves U of Phoenix with a bachelor’s degree that person may have a difficult time getting a job in business because their degree is not valid with the AACSB. They may also have difficulty in getting any of those credits transfered to a traditional college. So, then they are left with thousands of dollars in students loans and no high paying job. It’s sad. It’s worse when I know someone is enrolled in such a program and there isn’t anything I can do to help them. It goes back to the old adage that if it’s too good to be true, then it probably is.

For the first time, poverty shifts to the U.S. suburbs.

This is an interesting article in Newsweek. I’ve always had an interest in suburban poverty. I predicted this trend a while ago. As a social worker, it is important to understand some of the differences between suburban poverty and urban poverty. I’m not saying one is better than the other, but families and individuals who are poor among the plenty have some interesting challenges. Poverty has always been an “urban” issue so there are far more social services available to the urban poor. There are food shelves, homeless shelters, soup kitchens, subsidized or low-come housing, and other visibly poor people. In the suburbs, there is usually a food shelf that will serve a large geographic area, but that is usually it. There is no place for the homeless. There are very little subsidized or affordable housing options. Transportation is also an issue. has a notoriously horrible public transportation system. If you don’t have a car in the suburbs you are basically stuck. Most social service agencies offer fuel vouchers for low-income clients, but you have to be able to get to the agency to get the voucher. Plus, you actually need to have a car. It will be interesting to see how the suburbs reacts and changes to accommodate low-income individuals and families.

The article describes some of the reasons for the rise in poverty in the suburbs, mainly citing the loss of manufacturing jobs. This creates another problem when it comes to job availability and training. There are very few low-tech jobs available in general, so people need to get back to school for retraining. However, the changes to the government assistance programs have actually created road blocks in the system. People were once allowed to get government assistance while returning to school to obtain new job skills. Currently, people are allowed to use some of their required “work hours” to obtain a 2 year degree, but at four year degree is no longer an option. As a wise professor once told me, “a college degree is your ticket into middle class,” so as a result of “welfare reform” we have created a policy that keeps people in poverty rather than trying to get them out. So, as a means to make amends Congress passed a minimum wage hike. I have to be a naysayer, but I’m not sure how much it will help. It’s still about $4 an hour short of a reasonable, livable wage. I think we need to start identifying the systemic issues which are keeping many in poverty.

I’m mostly over here now.

December 1st is World AIDS Day

After years of being a somewhat “purple” state, I can say with great confidence that I am proud to live in a Blue state. I’m so happy with the Democrats great win last night. In Minnesota, the Dems took or maintained control of the House, Senate, the Secretary of States Office, Attorney General, and State Auditor. I’m a little sad that Pawlenty remains in office and the Transportation Amendment passed. Overall, I am quite pleased. It was hard to see Patty Wetterling lose to Michelle Bachman. And I was disappointed in Wisconsin and the other states voting to ban gay marriage, but proud of Arizona. Luckily, the abortion law was struck down as too restrictive in South Dakota. Election day is so exciting, but the day after is almost more fun.