What's so bad about Common Core?

I actually took the time to download it and read a while ago.  It's not great.  It's written by Ed majors, using Ed major jargon, which makes it vague and hard to read.  Since it was too big to read altogether, I concentrated on the high school mathematics section.  It wasn't bad.  It wasn't as good as the high school math I had many years ago, but it wasn't all bad.  For instance, Common Core called for plane geometry up to the proving of some lesser theorem.  When I took plane geometry, we proved the Pythagoras theorem, which is harder, and basic. 
   Actually, as far as educating children goes, we would do better by simply requiring all high school students take chemistry, physics, and biology, as well as algebra, plane geometry, and trigonometry. 
   Anyhow, I am not going to take Common Core as a serious political issue.  It's a wedge issue, all emotion, no real substance.

Cannon Mt Ski weather

It snowed all day Tuesday, and we have 9 inches of fresh powder this morning.  No wind, so the snow is still on the trails rather than in the woods.  It's cold, 8 F, and overcast.  I'm all plowed out which means I93 and Cannon are ready to go.  Skiing ought to superb. 

Cannon Mountain Ski Weather

After a steady all day yesterday hype on TV, the snow did start to fall up here just about 7 AM this morning.  No snow fell overnight.  It's cold, 10 F. Little to no wind.  Nice dry powder snow is falling, but isn't accumulating much.  Hasn't built up an inch yet.  It is nice fine flakes which promises to keep on falling for a while. 

Watch Greece and the Euro

Anti austerity party Syrisa won the Greek election yesterday.  Greece has been running on bailouts from the EU, mostly Germany, and those bailouts required Greece to shape up it's financial scene.  Syrisa campaigned and won on a platform of dumping the shape up moves.  If they do that, the EU is likely to stop the bailout.  In that case, nobody else, not every brain dead sucker banks, will lend to Greece.  Which means the Greeks will be unable to keep paying on their massive debts, and will be unable to meet payroll at home.  This ought to insure a lively time in the old town tonight, or tomorrow night as well.  The Greeks may decide to drop out of the Euro, and print enough Drachmas to meet expenses.  They may not, because every Greek holding euro's will take a very close haircut if that happens.
  For extra fun, watch the EU get all twisted out of shape.  They shouldn't, Greece is petty cash compared to the EU GNP, but listening to Europeans talk, you would think that Grexit is the end of the euro itself. 

Computer running Slow?

Mine perked right up after I uninstalled (zapped) the Avast free anti virus.  I'm still running XP, and after blowing away Avast, it now runs faster than Win 8 on a much newer computer. 

Full Court Press

The White House Chief of Staff, Denis McDonough did all the Sunday pundits yesterday.  I saw him on Meet the Press, and on Face the Nation.  Instant replay showed him on Fox as well.  He didn't say anything that stuck in my mind, but sending him out to all the talk shows is usually a sign the White House has some message they want to spread.  Kinda like that State Dept lady who appeared on all the talk shows after Benghasi, pushing the line that all the fuss was caused by an obscure Internet video.  I missed what ever it was McDonough was pushing.

Verses from the Koran

There ought to be some that forbid murder, like the Charlie Hebdo massacre.  Only, I don't know the verses.  I haven't read the Koran.  I'm not planning to, either. 
  But there oughta be some Muslim scholars who do know the verses. (if they exist, if they don't, that tells you something).  Those scholars ought to be quoting the relevant verses, verses that might make us non-believers consider Islam to actually be a "religion of peace".  I am aware that Islam lacks an ecclesiastic structure like Catholicism.  But still, there ought to be some imams of decent standing whose words would carry weight.