You can do Anything

What person fits the following statements?
1. taught criminally insane people how to swim
2. refused a phone call with Oprah
3. works in education

Ladies and Gentlemen, this was our last speaker, Dr. Donna Jacobs, the Dean of the College of Education. And might I add that she is also a very sweet lady. She talked to our class about teaching as a profession and the values that go with it.

First, lets talk about values for teachers. Teachers can be awesome. They can also be plain awful. And let's face it- we've all had that one teacher we just couldn't stand. Well, these terrible teachers (alliteration!) are like this because they didn't follow Dr. Jacob's list of values for teachers. Perhaps if they did, they would be much cooler teachers, or not teachers at all. Maybe they'd be working at an asylum for the criminally insane or some other awful job far away from children. So here's the list of values teachers should have:
1. Honesty- Don't be a Pinocchio- it's quite unattractive. Who wants a nose that large? No one.
2. Intelligence- How can you teach if you don't know anything yourself?
3. Good communicating skills- This one is easy peasy. Get ur students learned with proper English and such.
4. Fluent in sarcasm- All of my favorite teachers are Pro's at this value. Muy importante!
5. Committed to the job- Pretty self exploratory, right? Teachers should want to teach. But this is where those terrible teachers fail. They just don't want to teach. This is also a fail for Value #2. If you don't like what you are doing for the rest of your life, you will be unhappy and make everyone around you unhappy. In other words, you'll be a complete fun-sucker of life. So do society a favor and don't choose a profession that you absolutely hate. That's just some common sense, people!
6. Never talk to Oprah- Not sure exactly that this fits as a value, but it is some fun words of wisdom, I thought. If you talk to Oprah, things get blown wayyyy out of proportion and it's just a big, nasty mess. Oprah can't fix your problems- she just publicises them.

Follow the values! If you break one, you pretty much break all of them. To all you future boring and monotone teachers: Stop your plans to torture students and find a job more fitting to your personality, like reading a commercial for Shane's Jewelry. I've taken the liberty of finding the application website for you: http://www.shaneco.com/careers/.

Now that I've weeded out those terrible teachers, let's look at teaching as a profession. This is for all of the awesome teachers of the world: You have a super fantastic job!! In my opinion, teachers are the most influential people in the world. Teachers lead children the way they should go in the world to be a functional member of society, but even more than that teachers are what make the world thrive. What would we do if we had no teachers? Probably be nomadic people who walk around poking animals with sticks and spend our days picking at the grass and wondering what those crazy puffy white things are in the sky... Okay, so maybe don't actually know what the world would be like without teachers, but I know it would be horrible. I wouldn't be typing this blog right now, and I wouldn't be in college, which would be a crying shame. So thank you, teachers, for existing! Other than the sentimental value of teaching, the working hours cannot be beat. Teachers work 180/365 days a year, give or take a week or so depending on breaks and how much extra time a teacher spends to prepare for school. But teachers also get breaks off for every holiday and sick days and personal days every year. And while a lot of people say how teachers are payed practically nothing, the pay is pretty good. Teachers only work for half of a year and an average teacher gets payed around $45K. $45K for half a year of work is decent.

My favorite value of a good teacher is how wonderfully encouraging they are. So here are some encouraging closing remarks: Whether you are planning on being a teacher or not, your career path may take some twists and turns, but the best thing is that you get to choose where you end up. Figure out what you want to do and put your all into it. And never sell yourself short, you can do ANYTHING.

Be a Boss

"Everyone at Harvard is inventing something. Harvard graduates believe that inventing a job is better than finding a job."

-Social Network

Well, apparently, so do UNA Honors Forum students. Our last speaker, Mr. Phillip Marks, talked to our class about making our own jobs, but more specifically on Understanding Government Contracting. He explained that the government spends hundreds of billions of dollars on contracting businesses, and at least 23% of that money spent is reserved for small businesses. The federal government awards a contract every 20 seconds of every business day- it is the world's largest market. Phillip Marks says that there is a lot of opportunity for small businesses with the government.

We go to school to graduate to get our dream job. Then when we graduate, we can't get a job. That's right... the economy is down, so no one is hiring. Bummer. But here's a crazy idea: Go forth with a brilliant idea and make your own company! Be your own boss.

Small businesses are great! And there are some incentives to the founder of the company such as an opportunity for great success and an early retirement and freedom to work when and how you want to. But it is also a huge risk to start your own company. You can't just be an expert on the service or product you want your company to give, but you also need to be able to handle the paperwork and financials of the company.

Mr. Marks made government contracting sound easy. And as an employee currently working on a government contract, it is anything but easy. The government must have at least 23% of contracting done with small businesses, but this past year, only 20% of government contracting was with small businesses. The process of making a contract with the government is rather tedious. First, the small business must be founded 2 years prior to application for a bid. Second, the small business must give 2 examples of every service they are offering in the contract. These examples must answer several questions in detail explaining exactly how the work is done, problems during the job and how they were solved, major milestones reached by the company during the project, and the list goes on. Third, you have to make a separate marketing plan just for the government along with almost a book of information on the founding of your company and other information. Lastly, you have someone walking you through the entire process who may or may not be competent. And P.S., all of this work doesn't gaurantee your company a contract. You very well could be wasting a whole lot of time if the government chooses to use another company for your service. The government does not work hard to work with small businesses; small businesses work hard to work with the government. Making a government contract can be beneficial, but it takes a lot of time and patience to complete. There is work that the government will give you, but nothing that a small business can rely on to stay in the black.

That being said, I do believe that starting your own business or working for a small business is a great opportunity to take! It gives you more freedom than a corporal environment and is an opportunity to grow your own ideas and improve your skills. So if you want to start a small business, be a risk-taker, be driven, don't quit, and most importantly, do something you love. But remember that while the US government is the world's largest market, it's not small businesses' largest market.

Skepticize Statistics

Last week Dr. Santanu Borah, a Professor in the Department of Management and Marketing spoke to our class on Human Values in Globalization and New Global Order. Values are emotional and differ among different people. We have different opinions because of our past experiences or our upbringing. For us to further understand what values were and learn about our personal values, Dr. Borah brought up many popular political topics for us to discuss such as military spending, death penalty, abortion, gay rights, and gun control. Politics are good indicators of a person's values, but they do have a tendency to bring out the beast in some people. Dr. Borah gave us charts and data on a few issues to get us riled up. And before I go any further I would like to express my opinion on data: It lies!! Okay, so not really. It's actually really accurate, especially if it's from Wiki. But if a reader is not careful, they tend to speculate things that are not given on a chart. Many times the connotation a chart can give is different than what the data is actually saying. When given data, especially on political issues, it is important to be skeptical on the source and critical when analyzing the data.

In this post I will be discussing Gun Control: The chart below is the first thing Dr. Borah showed us on this topic.



So what do you think?




<--- OMG!! We're all going to die! Why is the US so corrupt and evil?! AhHHHHHhhhhHhhhhhhHhhhh!!!!!!


<--- How are Canadians on this list?! Perhaps they're not as Pacifist as you thought. :O




Yes. That's what the first look can make you think, perhaps a little less dramatic, but you get my point. But this chart is showing Gun deaths- not total deaths. The US has more Gun Deaths because we can use guns and criminals do not have to get creative with their weapon of choice. US criminals choose to murder quickly and less painfully. So I did a little research to see which countries have the most murders and if it correlates with Gun Control.
This is what I came up with.














The US did not make it on to this chart, but according to GunPolicy.org and their 85 cited sources, the US's total homicides is calculated at about 4.96 homicides/100,000 people. While our gun homicides are high in comparison to other countries, our total homicides are less than at least all of the countries in the above chart. And you don't have to worry about Canada anymore- they're just as Pacifistic(maybe a word?) as ever! Canada is at about 1.81 deaths/100,000 people, which looks like pretty good odds to me.

Now looking at some of the countries with the highest number of homicides and their Gun Control Laws I came across some interesting information.

Most of the countries on the above chart have strict Gun Control Laws. In South Africa, owning a gun is conditional on a competency test and several other, albeit ill defined factors, including background checking of the applicant, inspection of an owner's premises, and licensing of the weapon by the police. Minimum waiting period for a permit frequently exceeds 2 years from date of application. Mexico is also strict with Gun Control. Entering Mexico with a firearm, or even a single round of ammunition, carries a penalty of up to five years in prison, even if the firearm or ammunition is taken into the country unintentionally. And just a fun fact for you: Recent FBI reports indicate that crime rate in the US has gone down for the fourth year in a row while gun ownership has significantly increased.

So here's my opinion on Gun Control:
Those who kill are criminals. Criminals break the law. If there is no gun control, criminals will break the law and kill people. If there is gun control, criminals will break the law and kill people. Guns don't kill people- people kill people. So gun control isn't about guns- it's about control. American people need to keep their rights and not give the government anymore control on their lives. And a political movement based on angering gun owners probably isn't a good idea anyways.

Sometimes your future hits you in the face

Wesley is in high school, and it's Saturday night. Wesley gets out of cross country practice, which is his favorite activity, and heads home. He and his best friend are going to the movies tonight. Usually they have their moms drop them off, but tonight is different. Tonight is the night they've been dreaming of. It's the night every kid dreams of. Tonight is the night when they became older, wiser, cooler kids. Last week, Wesley's friend got his license, and tonight is the night they drive themselves to the movie theater. Tonight is the night they are not riding in the mom mobile.

On the way back home, Wesley is pulled over by a police who is patrolling the area. This doesn't come as a surprise because police are always around here. Wesley gets out of his car and answers some questions. A split second later, Wesley and his friend are hit by a car.

They go to the hospital, and Wesley's friend is okay, but Wesley is told that he might have to get his leg amputated. This comes as a shock to anyone, but to Wesley, a runner, this is traumatic. It's horrifying. Unfathomable. Wesley had 7 surgeries in attempt to heal his leg. And after recovering from his 7th surgery, Wesley was told that he no longer needed an amputation. In fact, he could walk just as well as he did before the accident.

Wesley wanted to somehow repay the doctors who healed his leg. He wanted to be able to share that same joy with someone else. Wesley decided to be a doctor. He would heal others, just as he was healed. Wesley, better known as Dr. Wesley Desselle, spoke to my class a couple days ago. He first worked as a trauma surgeon and then as a community surgeon. Now he owns and manages his own small practition in Florence, AL.

While this accident was a terrifying part of Wesley's life, he took something positive from it. Dr. Desselle used this hard time in his life to find hope. If he never had hope, his leg might have never been healed. He might have never become a doctor, never saved a life, never returned his same joy. Sometimes life hits us with the unexpected. But we can't let it get us down. We can't let it defeat us. We can't let ourselves quit. We should take every experience we are in and find the positive, find hope in it. Every experience in life can be positive. Those that seem negative are just making us turn down a different path. Sometimes our future has to hit us in the face and point us towards the right direction.

We don't know where life will take us. We can't see the big picture. So when you find yourself in a bad situation, look for the positive. It's ahead somewhere. There's always something positive waiting for us past the hard times. Never give up. Be inspired. Rise above the circumstances. Maybe your future is hitting you in the face.

"In Him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of Him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will."
Ephesians 1:11

An Honest Politician.

At our last Honors Forum, Tammy Irons, Alabama State Senator and attorney, spoke to my class. Rather than spending her time giving us her platform and trying to win over our votes, she talked to us about ethics. To some people, this was an interesting topic to choose to speak about. A common idea in America is that that politicians and lawyers are the least ethical of any job.

"I hate politicians. They're a bunch of liars." Ever heard that before? I know I have. In fact, a recent poll states that 78% of United States citizens agree that politicians are dishonest. Why do so many people believe this?

Well, the common idea is that politicians lie about their platform to gain approval so that they can win approval of voters and in turn, win a vote. Here's a flaw in this theory. Politicians run for office to encourage their beliefs. What's the point of running for office when you have to lie or change your beliefs? Maybe for power, but is it really worth it if you're hated by half the country? Not to mention the time and money politicians must spend on campaigning.

Politicians exist to have opinions and convince everyone else that their opinion is the right one to have. Their opinions are on "touchy subjects" like the economy, death penalty, abortion, gay rights, school curriculum, and the list goes on and on. No one likes being told to follow this opinion or that opinion because no one likes to be told that they're wrong. Because of this, we get defensive and begin to dissect everything politicians do.

Politicians are in the public eye. When a politician is in the public eye, it is easy to dissect every little thing that person does, whether it be pertinent to their campaign or not. Not only do we pick at everything politicians do with their campaign, but we also scrutinize their personal lives and judge them on their bad habits.

Don't all of us have bad habits? Aren't we all dishonest at one point or another in our lives? The only difference is that our actions aren't being looked at under a microscope. Maybe there are some dishonest politicians out there, but there are also dishonest bankers, store managers, police, journalists, and even teachers. Politicians are not anymore dishonest than the general public.

The Honorable Tammy Irons spoke about the code of ethics given to her as an attorney and public official. These codes of ethics are in place so that over time, people don't lose sight of their values from the pressures to receive public approval. Maybe we can all learn from this. The public will look at us and judge us. But as long as each of us stays strong in our values, they can't bring us down. Just live by this one rule, and your ethics will be golden:

"If it would embarrass your momma, don't do it."