Asymmetric

Texas has a history standards controversy because it's one of the only states with enough of a conservative majority to make education administrators take them seriously.

The debate most interesting to me was whether to include Cesar Chavez or Daniel Boone in the curriculum.

The debate isn't whom of the two is more worthy or more important, but what each of them represents and why people would be in favor of one or the other. In this way, the Boone-Chavez battle is a microcosm of what the left and right value most.

Daniel Boone is a man who expanded the United States. It's fair to say that he and men like him made the United States what it is today. Certainly, as large as it is today.

In order to do the above, Boone fought Native Americans. He also held slaves, the custom of the day.

Cesar Chavez came along when the United States was fully-formed and sought to distribute some of the blessings conferred upon modern citizens by the Boones, to other groups.

"American greatness"-types prefer Daniel Boone while "social justice" people are more likely to prefer Chavez: Growth versus redistribution.

Me:

It's important for Americans to know that we could have very well stayed a colony or a small coastal country but for some deciding to risk their lives going west.

Cesar Chavez showed another type of bravery. America's internal conflicts are worthy of study.

In a way, the Chavez' need the Boones. You can't share nothing, not that I wouldn't prefer living next to a Chavez if I were the one being expanded upon.

Another aspect of the debate is against whom the two men fought. Boone struggled for the Unites States against Indians, a separate political if not geographic entity while Chavez struggled against fellow Americans. Are growers that unpopular that poeple who oppose them are American heroes?

With the Zinnification of American history, I'd go for Boone aver Chavez at this point to balance the overwhelming amount of PC stuff in schools.

Daniel Boone - Season One

Daniel Boone - Season Two by John Mack Faragher

Daniel Boone: The Life and Legend of an American Pioneer (An Owl Book) by John Mack Faragher

Cesar Chavez: Autobiography of La Causa by Jacques E. Levy, Barbara Moulton

**update**

People in New Jersey can leave the house now. The culprit has been caught! Is it possible to bring back capital punishment in New Jersey?

(CNN) -- New Jersey authorities are investigating an announcement made over a public address system at a southern New Jersey Wal-Mart telling "all blacks" to leave the store.

Shortly before 5 p.m. Sunday, an unidentified male accessed the public address system at the Turnersville, New Jersey, Wal-Mart Supercenter Store, Gloucester County prosecutors said.

"All blacks need to leave the store," the voice announced.

Store management contacted the Washington Township Police Department, which opened an investigation in conjunction with the county prosecutor's office, Deputy Police Chief John Dalesandro said.

"The incident is being investigated by both law enforcement agencies as a suspected bias intimidation crime," local authorities said.

Wal-Mart corporate spokesman Lorenzo Lopez said the company is "just as appalled by this as anyone."

He emphasized that Wal-Mart, the world's largest public corporation, is working with law enforcement officials in investigating the incident.

"Whoever did this is wrong and acted in an inappropriate manner," Lopez said. "Clearly this is unacceptable."

Let me get this strait: A guy gets on the Walmart PA and says something about blacks and we need an investigation? It goes to show you that people need to stamp out blasphemy, provided it's directed against something they care about.

Here

The irony is not lost on Gilbert Mayor John Lewis.

The town that celebrates Constitution Week with much fanfare is now trying to wade its way out of an embarrassing controversy over First Amendment protection on religious freedom.

The issue began over a notification sent by town staff to a seven-member local group, all members of the Oasis of Truth Church, to stop meeting at home, citing the town's land development code, which states:

"religious-assembly uses are not permitted in single-family residential structures."

The group contacted the Alliance Defense Fund of Scottsdale, a self-described legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations, which subsequently appealed the town's cease-and-desist

Those deferring to the founders' intent on constitutional matters should not support the constitutional challenge to Gilbert's anti residential church law. The constitution just wanted to prevent a state church like the established Anglican church in Britain. States did in fact have religious tests for office and prohibited certain worship. By making this a federal issue, conservatives undercut themselves. Instead, residents of Gilbert should just change the law.

It's important to argue statistics, projections, effects. It's especially important to independents who just want the best deal. If they could get better health care cheaper, the better.

For those committed to the left or right, the health care debate is all about ideology. If you're on the left, government health care is to be accepted de fide. If you're on the right, you see government health care as a stretch of highway on the road to serfdom.

The Road to Serfdom: Text and Documents--The Definitive Edition (The Collected Works of F. A. Hayek) by F. A. Hayek

Sometimes I marvel at how Lost has uncoiled from a Survivor-like adventure drama to a horror movie to an archetypal myth and sometimes I wonder if the writers are just making it up as they go along, complicating things to hide their own lack of cohesion. Did they really intend the smoke monster to turn into Locke? Why introduce the temple at this late date? Indeed, the piling-on of subplot after subplot is both interesting and tiresome.

I don't even know how to end this post. I'm so confused.