tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post4055699890961644042..comments2023-10-08T05:00:23.559-04:00Comments on Clarissa's Blog: Wider Ramifications of the Assault on Tenure: A Post by an Anonymous Guest BloggerClarissahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11027134365260069910noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-814514379847961682010-10-07T19:26:52.836-04:002010-10-07T19:26:52.836-04:00PT. I’m glad that you find the math scene in Mexic...PT. I’m glad that you find the math scene in Mexico so vibrant. Wish that the rest of Mexico was as positive. The situation in Mexico has reached the point where even the wealthy cannot hide from the social disintegration. I would like to share with you an email that I received this summer from an upper class friend who lives in the Miguel Hidalgo, D.F., an exclusive enclave of wealthy Mexicans.<br />HI VICTOR,<br /> <br />AS I SEE YOU HAVE HAD A BUSY LIFE, HOW WAS THE GREEK FESTIVAL, DID YOU EAT A LOT???? <br /> <br />IN A WAY I ENVY YOU BECAUSE THE LIFE YOU HAVE IS PEACEFUL, NAIVE, AND LOVELY. THE LIFE I HAVE IN THIS BIG CITY IS BEAUTIFUL, BUT WITH BIG CONTRATS.<br /> <br />I DO NOT KNOW IF I TOLD YOU THAT A BUILDING FOR CONDOMIUMS OF 9 FLOORS HAVE ALMOST BEEN CONSTRUCTED, BESIDE MINE, WELL LAST THURSDAY I WAS WITH VICTORIA AND MY MAID AT 9 PM, SUDDENLY SOMEONE WAS KNOCKING REALLY HARD AT MY WINDOW OF MY BATHROOM, THE BRICKLAYER OF THE CONSTRUCTION WAS ASKING FOR HELP. HIS COMPANIONS WERE ASSAULTED AND BEING HURT BY THIEVES, WHO WERE TRYING TO STOLE ALL THE MATERIAL, INCLUDING THE MACHINES OF THE ELEVATORS, SO I CALLED THE POLICE AND THE STREET WAS CLOSED . TWO OF MY NEIGHBORS CAME TO MY APARTMENT AND WERE REALLY FRIGHTENED, BECAUSE WE DID NOT KNOW IF THE THIEVES HAD JUMPED TO OUR BUILDING. TWO OF THE 8 THIEVES RAN AWAY. I WAS REALLY SCARED BECAUSE THEY WERE CARRYING GUNS. WELL WE HAD A HAPPY ENDING AND TWO OF THE MEN WERE SENT TO THE HOSPITAL. THIS IS VERY COMMON IN MEXICO. WE ARE LIVING A BIG INSECURITY BECAUSE OF THE FIGHT AGAINST THE NARCOTRAFFIC AND UNEMPLOYMENT . THE NEXT DAY THE ARCHITECT OF THE BUILDING CAME TO SAY THANK YOU.<br /> <br />WE THE CITIZENS ARE VERY ANGRY AGAINST THE GOVERNMENT, BECAUSE THEY DO NOT DO ANYTHING, ROBBERY, ASSAULTS AND KIDNAPPING IS EVERY DAY. I JUST RECEIVED AN EMAIL FROM MANY FRIENDS WHO ARE TELLING US TO BOYCOTT THE BICENTENARIO PARTIES. WHEN WE GO OUT, WE HAVE TO PUT THE BAG IN THE BACK OF THE CAR AND BY NIGHT SOMETIMES WE ASK FOR A RADIO TAXI, SO WHEN WE GO OUT TO HAVE DINER OR WHATEVER WE HAVE TO BE CAREFUL. THERE ARE LOTS OF BEAUTIFUL PLEACES TO GO IN THIS CITY . ANY WAY DO NOT THINK WE STAY AT HOME ALL TIME, WE GO PARTY, AND IF YOU COME ON NOVEMBER YOU WILL ENJOY IT.<br /> <br />ALL MY REGARDS,<br /> <br />MARÍA GABRIELACanukistaninoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-27088325436723227012010-10-07T12:17:45.885-04:002010-10-07T12:17:45.885-04:00I cannot speak for all of Mexico, but in mathemati...I cannot speak for all of Mexico, but in mathematics, there is a big buildup of activity and research. I have been invited to talk at research conferences in Mexico more times than in all other countries combined in the last 15 years. People, both faculty and students, are really excited about discovering new things.Pagan Topologisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01611788563582362688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-12436487599730300912010-10-06T20:54:04.752-04:002010-10-06T20:54:04.752-04:00Another implication of "being like Mexico&quo...Another implication of "being like Mexico" is that technical innovation will decrease, due to the decrease in the size of the middle-class talent pool interested in STEM (science, technology, engineering, maths) subjects.<br /><br />I am dismayed to encounter poor technical writing skills in the existing STEM and medical students. Disciplined application of logical thinking and clear writing can help the writer identify unexamined assumptions, gaps in the hypotheses or experimental design, and even more importantly, place the project goal in a wider context. Is it really worthwhile to follow this avenue of research? It is a very useful exercise to have both an expert in your general field and an expert in a related field to read biomedical research grant proposal drafts. The fellow molecular biologist focuses on minute detail, the physiologist focuses on the "big picture" of a molecular biology grant proposal.<br /><br />One can learn critical thinking, logic, and effective writing skills while studying any subject, as long as the faculty demand such effort.<br /><br />As for the political health of this country, I blame television and religion. Americans have learned to be passive consumers of television and have let their B.S. detectors atrophy. Religion has become "dumbed down", as demonstrated by the recent Pew poll showing that atheists and Jews score more highly than Christians on a test heavily weighted toward elementary Christian Bible facts. The public face of Christianity, as presented by bishops, preachers, and political operatives, seems to consist mainly of "Ours is better than theirs", unseemly obsession with sexual activity to the exclusion of the rest of life, scapegoating gays and Muslims, and "if you believe, it will come true" (so-called "prosperity gospel"). There are strong elements of narcissicm and psychological self-help platitudes in the conservative evangelical emphasis on individual salvation to the exclusion of "good works". <br /><br />For more on the "Prosperity Gospel" preachers, read Sara Posner, God's Profits.NancyPnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-43796685544977837242010-10-06T11:44:20.634-04:002010-10-06T11:44:20.634-04:00Of course, Richard, you can pass it to the blog yo...Of course, Richard, you can pass it to the blog you mention. Also, feel free to leave a link to this blog here. I'm sure my readers will be interested in visiting it.Clarissahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11027134365260069910noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-51097413532045800412010-10-06T11:04:58.539-04:002010-10-06T11:04:58.539-04:00These comments are absolutely brilliant and the cl...These comments are absolutely brilliant and the claim that the U.S. is transformation into a nation state analogous to Mexico is right on. The Democratic and Republican Parties are really a single party (duopoly) quite similar to the PRI. It is clear that an oligarchy, based on corporate and financial position, not land holdings (the original Mexican oligarchy), increasingly is running the government. As the owner of this blog, do you think it would be ok for me to pass this comment on to an associate who also runs a blog (the Public Intelligence Blog) ?Richardnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-35935528511506108492010-10-06T00:56:31.311-04:002010-10-06T00:56:31.311-04:00I don't know where Anonymous is from but I agr...I don't know where Anonymous is from but I agree completely on Stockwell Day. What a buffoon!Clarissahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11027134365260069910noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3164556861454970487.post-75911182018552843332010-10-06T00:38:54.543-04:002010-10-06T00:38:54.543-04:00A fellow Canadian, eh? ))))
When Stockwell Day wa...A fellow Canadian, eh? ))))<br /><br />When Stockwell Day was running his campaign, he had them play the song "It's no ordinary day" whenever he entered a room. That told me all I needed to know about him.Johttp://www.facebook.comnoreply@blogger.com