Sunday, August 14, 2011

Daily Kos: Petition on US Department of Education

Daily Kos: Petition on US Department of Education

Petition on US Department of Education

Make your voice heard.

The U.S. Department of Education has wasted billions trying to impose counterfeit reforms on public education. High stakes, useless testing has demoralized teachers, narrowed the curriculum and left parents on the sidelines. Student achievement has not improved. The DOE can help by changing to a research, resource and advisory organization. As stated in the 10th Amendment, we should leave public education as a state responsibility.

So we created a petition to The United States House of Representatives, The United States Senate and President Barack Obama, which says:

"Change the U.S. Department of Education from a dictator of school policy to that of a research, advisory and resource organization."

Will you sign our petition? Click here to add your name

I have been asked to pass this on by its creator, Lynn Stoddard, a retired educator from Utah who is trying to


Poem

A plaintive sound
Is he in pain, or ill?
No, it is a carry call
He come down stairs dragging
His catnip snake and presents it
A gift of love

Sprawled on the sofa
Computer propped up as I read/write
A sudden warmth and fur
Comes across my chest and lies down
Vibrating with pleasure, he settles
And I can no longer see screen or keyboard

By a door, where it opens from the frame
Sitting, head up pointed back at me
Asking silently, eyes hopeful
That I will open it and he can enter

So tiny when we met,
Peeking out of the vet’s pocket
Still thinking he is that small
All 19 pounds of him
Tolerant of the four who have joined
This household since his arrival

Lion-El Tiger on the medical record
Li-Li, Lion, striped cat will come
Food, water, walks outside
On lead, nibbling grass

His body warmth, the other
Cats trust him, and he
Tolerates when they intrude

Teenaged by our measures,
Senior in several dimension
Above all loving

Once not a catnip snake
A mouse, still alive as a present
Plaintive cat cry
Not understanding mouse release outside

“TREAT, TREAT” squeaks my wife
several cats arrive, awaiting their reward
gentle giant defers to them
trusting there will be more

What is love? What is trust?
29 pounds of stripes, whiskers and purrs
and the plaintive carry cry that is his alone