If a conservative talk-radio host bandied about such tiresome banalities and mean-spirited "humor," Keillor and his ideological compatriots would savage him.

Why, then, should one let Keillor off the hook for doing the same?

I don't know if Keillor's first composition teacher taught him that "Political polemics are the death of good creative writing," but if the teacher didn't, then he/she should be fired.

Oh, well, that's public schools for you!

:-)

Keillor sends his young daughter to a PRIVATE school, by the way.

Enough said.

I'm sure there is a small portion of the population that has had the good fortune of retiring in their 50s. I am pretty sure this is the exception, not the rule.

I know of no one in their 50s who have retired or have an plans too in the near future. Many who at one time would have been considered comfortably middle-class are in financial trouble. They have been robbed of their pensions, have no health insurance for themselves or families, are helping pay for the needs of their elderly parents and college bound teenagers. Additionally, many are working two jobs to maintain their standard of living, many have taken several pay cuts, been laid-off or are out looking for a job . . . Starting over in their 50s and no one will hire them. This is the ultimate insult.

I'm not sure what is worse-- losing everything in your 50s because of U.S. economic changes and corporate greed sanctioned by our facist government. Or being in your 20s, working hard and "maybe" not reaching the economic goals and achievements you dream of.

There is enough wealth in this country for everyone to have a slice of the pie, education and healthcare. Unfortunately the people who hold almost all the wealth (and power) never seem to have enough of either and rarely any thoughts about how the rest of the worlds struggles.

America does eat its young. But another American demographic is rotting as they stagnant, many losing much and knowing they are too old to start over . . . the middle-aged, former middle class. This country's priorities and leaders are a disgrace.

Please. You tried to pooh pooh the report based on a tale told by your daughter and your stereotype laden description of others personal experiences. I told you to go read the report. That's not bait.

So, you go get the report and then try and limit "acting white" to young teens only (the part about the landline phones was particularly amusing), as if the researchers couldn't simply ask an elderly 19 or 20 year old - Hey, remember those many many many years ago when you were in high school or jr, high? Did you or anyone you know every look down on.....". It would probably be wise of you to keep reading the report.

Also, here's a interesting part of an article from Ronnie Polanecky's Philly Daily News column of 5/18:

"THE ANNUAL blitz of standardized testing in public schools has just ended, and Erin McNamara Horvat already knows one result the scores will reveal:

The achievement of black students will once again lag behind that of white and Asian kids.

Horvat also knows that blame for the gap - overtly in some quarters, and perhaps subconsciously in many more - will fall on an idea that has been floating around for 20 years:

Black students underperform academically because they fear being accused of "acting white."

The idea was once put forward as an actual educational theory, coined by two educational researchers in 1986 and embraced by the public.

Horvat, an associate professor of urban education at Temple, wants to give it a rest.

"Part of its allure is that it has a ring of truth," says Horvat. "Any parent knows that kids want to be like their peers."

So, for some black kids, fear of "acting white" may indeed cause their low grades.

"However, it's also an attractive explanation because it lets us off the hook. We don't have to worry that thousands of kids aren't getting what they need. We can say, 'They're not achieving because they don't try.' "

Horvat hopes a new book she has co-edited will prick our comfort with the theory.

She and Carla O'Connor, an associate professor at University of Michigan, have just published Beyond Acting White: Reframing the Debate on Black Student Achievement, written by researchers whose studies address the limitations of the theory.

The deconstruction, the book shows, is badly needed.

For instance, one author notes, "acting white" can't explain why black female students excel more than black male students do.

Other authors note that low social class and inferior conditions in schools and communities negatively impact the performance of both black and white students.

How does "acting white" account for that?

Other authors studied high-achieving black students and found kids eager to define "acting black" as being smart.

Another researcher found that the low-achieving black students she studied were far more distressed by their poor grades than they were by any fear of being accused of "acting white."

In other words, this narrow educational theory escaped into the public consciousness - and created another dumb stereotype that black students have to live down.

There's more to like about this myth-busting book, which this column can't explore in depth. Suffice to say it's worth a read, even if its prose - frequently interrupted by bracketed academic references - doesn't make for an easy bedtime read."

Ya, do it. In fact all you W Right or Wrong, STOP TAKING ANY the "New Deal"/Great Society programs, like medicare, social security, disability, death benefits---the Great Decider *wants* an "ownership society" to replace them. Are you doing your part to make this happen? So Bush Heads, start supporting the President--get rid of that commie tainted tax-and-spend evil of Medicare, et al.

So, all you fucking Escalade with a W drivers, you steak gorging (dry aged, please) eaters, avoid the ungodly legacy of that secret Jew, FDR, and pay out of your own tax-cut pockets for that prostate removal, your quad by-pass, your wife's overian cancer, not to mention the knee surgery from that bad turn at Telluride, just do the right thing, Republlicans, wash yourselves pure of the Evil of Government, and just spend your own money instead of raiding the evil Treasury. Think what a relief it will be to not participate in a system built by the Spawn of the Devil! Be a personal Jesus, running the government money-changers out of your life! What moral purity, what a shining city on a hill free of ungodly medicare! The mere act of taking the $200,000 big ones for the by-pass out of your "medical savings account" (which by the way, Jesus wants you to have a medical savings account, it's part of His Intelligent Design) will IN ITSEF BROTHER, be an act of salvation.