Steady Descent to Hell

Incidentally, my comments are now back on unmoderated. Should have handled that a while ago, but have been too lazy. I have other changes I need to make to the site, but they may wait until summer. As for school:

It feels that we are on that aforementioned descent lately at my little folksy rural school. Last week brought rumors of a "Bloods-Wannabees" vs. "Crips-Wannabees" fight pending at any time. The only solace is that the kids rumored to be involved have all shown themselves to be wimps in the past (thankfully). My uncharitable side says,"Hey fellas, I'm all for you taking each other out. Just have the decency to have the rumble in one of your own backyards, and not in public where you endanger what passes for our remnants of civilization."

And then this morning I had to write up five students who disrupted class with a screaming fit, all brought on because a boy of Mexican descent wrote "Mexico" on the back of a paper he was grading. The paper belonged to a girl of Honduran descent who gets unreasonably angry whenever others poke fun of her accent or nation of heritage. The next thing you know, the boy's pregnant sister, who happens to be my teacher's aide that period, is yelling in an attempt to defend her brother's honor, and the whole class seems about to blow. How much learning did we get accomplished today, boys and girls?

You know what would really be entertaining? To tell that little story over dinner with Pat Buchanon, Tom Tancredo, and most of my family members. Would be a laugh riot, let me tell you.

The overwhelming majority of teachers I know will teach and love most anyone you put before them in class. But if you took a private opinion poll on immigration matters, no matter their general political leanings, you would find a great majority lining up right of center. To paraphrase Irving Kristol, reality can be a hell of a mugger.