Hail to the Chief: Little Known Facts on our Nation's Leaders

by Keith Wagner

Every president has something to hide. In honor of Presidents’ Day, here are some intriguing facts.

George Washington was the only president ever to win office with no opponent. He also had only one real tooth, at times wearing dentures of various materials such as human teeth, animal teeth, ivory, or lead. Never wood. Guess his dentist had to draw a line.

Andrew Jackson, from Tennessee, was the only president to have been a prisoner of war, and was wounded in a duel at age 39. Beat a would-be assassin to death in the Capitol Rotunda after the assailant’s gun failed to fire.

Chester Arthur, a man about town, entertained lavishly and enjoyed going to nightclubs. “I may be President of the United States,” he once said, “but my private life is my own damn business.”

Teddy Roosevelt had the teddy bear named after him. He lost his sight in one eye while boxing at the White House.

Ronald Reagan was the first president to be divorced.

Barack Obama’s mother was from Kansas, his father from Kenya. Does not like ice cream because he worked in an ice cream shop as a teenager. Collects Spiderman and Conan the Barbarian comic books.

If you would like to read the rest: then follow this link http://www.littleknownfactsshow.com/presidents.html

Who Was Martin Luther King, Jr.?

By Ajae Tyler

  

In the early ‘60s and even before that, there was no unity among races.  If it was not for Martin Luther King, Jr. we would still be going to different schools based on our skin color.

King was a strong leader, a person who believed in peace and justice to win more freedom for African Americans. We honor his birthday on the third Monday in January.

Dr. King was born on January 15, 1929. Early in his adult life, he became pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, AL. He soon became a member of the NAACP and led the bus boycott that ended segregation in public transportation.

From 1957-1968, he traveled six million miles and spoke over 25,000 times, with one massive protest in Birmingham, AL.

King is most famous for his seventeen-minute “I Have a Dream” speech that he delivered on August 28, 1963 at the Lincoln Memorial. In it he called for “racial equality and an end to discrimination.”

Dr. King died from an assassin’s bullet on April 4, 1968 in Memphis, TN while standing on the balcony of his hotel room.  Even though his life came to an abrupt end, he died fighting for what and who he believed in.

The legacy of Dr. King lives in each of us, and we are responsible to promote, teach and live the American dream he envisioned.

The Annual Emergence of Debbie Downer

By Ellen Woodward

            As the winter months come upon us, people often feel a little more depressed and less carefree and exuberant as they had been in the previous summer and spring months. But why? 

            Scientists don’t have an exact answer to that question.  It is thought to be an involvement of genetics, brain chemicals and ions in the air.  Some studies have shown that people who are suffering from Seasonal Affected Disorder (SAD), or seasonal depression, feel better after significant exposure to sunlight.  This makes sense due to the shorter hours of sunlight in the winter.

            To fight winter depression, try to enjoy the time of day when the sun is out.  Also, think about socializing and exercising as much as possible, and find activities that will get you out of the house and reduce the risk of developing “cabin fever.”

Would You Like a Report Card or a Pink Slip? A Look at Merit Pay

by Tony Otten
With the economy still sore and countries such as China, India and South (but not North!) Korea rocketing ahead of the U.S. in academics, many states are looking for ways to boost test scores and cut costs at the same time. A few, including Florida, are pushing to put a “merit pay” system in place in schools—mostly this means that teachers would be paid according to what grades their students make, and principals would earn money based on their school’s ranking.

The system might sound strange, but because many states are strapped for cash, it could become a reality. In Wisconsin, Ohio and Indiana, legislators are putting forth bills that would take away the rights of teachers’ unions (among others) to make deals for salary, working hours and benefits. This would leave teachers unable to have much say in what they make or how their pay is calculated. Some states, mostly with Tea Party governors, believe merit pay will keep teachers on their toes and force them into making their students successful. But is it fair? That was my survey’s subject.

Instead of interviewing students for this poll, I talked to teachers and school staff—after all, it’s their livelihood at stake. 66% of the teachers said no to merit pay; 33% said yes. However, the ones that answered yes said they would only consider supporting merit pay if the plans were fair and well thought-out, rather than a type of teacher-punishment; no one I spoke to felt very positive about a hard-and-fast system of “If Bobby makes an A, I get $50,000 this year; but if Bobby gets an F, I have to hide my car from the repo man and eat SPAM for six months.”

I can definitely see a teacher’s point of view on this—yes, they want their country to succeed, and yes, they want to prove themselves as hard workers, but no, they don’t want their pay determined by somebody who can’t spell contraception, much less use it.

Governors have no business sinking their teeth into education when most of them were mediocre students themselves—even if they did (like a certain former president) go to Yale. Before they get to decide how much teachers get paid, they should have to be a substitute teacher for one week—oh, and they can’t teach gym class, and they’re not allowed to bring duct tape or a Taser with them into the classroom, even if they beg.

I think even having this argument is ridiculous. If Congress banned earmarks (those trusty blocks of fine print that sent Billions-with-a-B to their pet projects every year), then the U.S. would have so much extra money it could double teachers’ salaries, let them keep their unions, and attract new, high-powered college graduates into education, when they would normally look for jobs with higher pay.

 

But wait! Congress screams. We can’t do that!  How will we pay the psychics we use to predict terrorist attacks? How will we research pond algae in Connecticut cemeteries for $6 million? And for the love of God, how will we survive if we don’t have environmentally-sound spoons in the Capitol Hill cafeteria? To them I say, That’s tough. (These examples are all real, by the way). It comes down to the old maxim—You get what you pay for.

Plus, those spoons melt in the chili, anyway.

Editor’s Note: This article was originally supposed to appear in a March 2011 Tatler, but just didn’t “make it.”