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This should fire you up
September 29, 2006If you are on the fence when it comes to immigration and Hispanics taking jobs away from Americans....this story is for you.
The Dallas ISD has worked out a deal that will allow them to hire 40 teachers from Mexico on three-year work visas.
Why you ask....because there aren't enough bi-lingual teachers.
Or...basically...there aren't enough spanish-speaking teachers to catch up with the growing number of students who don't speak english in the school system.
Sounds strange doesn't it?
DALLAS -- An agreement between the Dallas Independent School District and Mexican education officials will enable Dallas to hire 40 bilingual teachers from Mexico, officials said.The arrangement calls for the teachers to come next year on three-year work visas.
Dallas Superintendent Michael Hinojosa said the deal with Mexico's education secretary will help fill the 160,000-student district's constant need for bilingual teachers.
"It's a small dent, but it is a dent," he said.
Under state law, Spanish-speaking elementary students must be taught by Spanish-speaking teachers. Dallas was 945 classrooms short of meeting that requirement last year. The district says it's close to meeting its goal for this school year of hiring 450 bilingual teachers.
Hinojosa said Dallas is the first school district in Texas to make such an agreement with Mexico, although some states have done so.
"It's very exciting. It'll help us fill the need that we have," he said. "The fact they're qualified and have the credentials really helps us."
More than 60 percent of the district's students are Hispanic and more than 30 percent are learning English.
Depending on how you look at the numbers, it sounds like nearly 50,000 students are learning English in the district. The story isn't exactly clear...it could be as few at 28,000. At any rate, that's a lot of students who don't speak English.
I'm sure the numbers are comparable for our school system.
But the thing that gets me...do we not have American citizens who are spanish speakers that can be in the schools? The state has already allowed a more lax approach to hiring qualified teachers. It just strikes me as odd here.
Now, I have a good friend in Korea right now, doing the same thing over there. She's teaching English to Korean students. I've known teachers to go to Italy, Germany, France and various other countries to teach English.
I guess it's not so strange after all.
Posted by Jason Palmer at 4:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
From the "I can't make this stuff up" file
An 18-year old Dallas man faces cruelty charges after he:
FED KITTENS TO HIS PIT BULL
Yeah...you read that right. This guy was pulling kittens out of a bag, throwing them on the ground to kill them or knock them out...then kicking them to his pit bull who tore them to pieces.
Not in the privacy of his own home mind you....in an apartment complex parking lot.
Here's the story, from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram
By BILL MILLER
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
An 18-year-old Dallas man faces cruelty charges after he was accused of slamming kittens to the ground and kicking them toward a snarling pit bull, which tore them apart.Officers have identified the man and were preparing an arrest warrant, said Senior Cpl. Donna Hernandez, a Dallas police spokeswoman. She declined to release his name.
Police have also identified a 28-year-old woman whom they believe punched a witness to the carnage, Hernandez said.
The incident occurred about 7:20 p.m. Monday at an apartment complex in the 9400 block of Skillman Street in north Dallas, police said.
The witness was a passenger in a car that pulled into the complex. The occupants "observed a large crowd of people gathered at the entrance of the parking lot," according to a report.
They saw the suspect "taking kittens from a blue plastic box and violently throwing them on the ground."
They then saw the man "kicking the kittens towards a brown and white spotted pit bull, who was tearing the kittens apart with its mouth," the report says.
The people in the car yelled at the suspect to stop the maulings.
That's when a woman approached and punched the passenger in the eye, according to the report. She is apparently related to the 18-year-old.
The driver parked and called police. When officers arrived, the suspects and the dog were gone.
"But detectives did some good follow-up and worked with the witnesses and the apartment manager and were able to locate both suspects," Hernandez said. "Now, it's just a matter of us picking them up."
The man faces charges of cruelty to animals, a Class A misdemeanor. The woman is expected to be charged with retaliation, Hernandez said.
Now...when I first heard about his story, I had to laugh a bit. I mean, come on...is anybody souless enough to actually do this?
You hear about people who feed mice to their snakes all the time.
And we all know that dogs love to chase cats.
But seriously? This guy was tossing helpless kittens to his pit bull. He doesn't deserve a misdemeanor...he deserves to be tossed into a tigers cage.
Now, you all know that I don't like pit bulls anyways. And this dog will probably have to be destroyed now that it thinks eating other small animals is okay....
But good lord. This guy must have really hated cats.
Posted by Jason Palmer at 3:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Good Vibe
September 25, 2006I always knew this day was going to happen...ever since about $2 gas.
Because of the amount of payments on my '05 Ford Escape and the amount I was spending each month on gas, I couldn't afford to keep it around anymore. Especially living in a one-bedroom apartment without a roommate.
The fact of the matter is...I don't make enough money. Photojournalism isn't a very high-paying job until you make it at a big paper.
I was going to have to get a small car that gets rediculous good gas milage.
So...last week I finally pulled the trigger and said hello to a used '05 Pontiac Vibe.
I had been doing my homework about these cars and found out a few things that will make my life quite a bit easier for a few years.
1. An average of 30/36 mpg. Wow. Actually...I drove about 320 miles on just over 11 gallons of gas. That's huge compared to what my Ford Escape got.
2. The engine...a 1.8L 4-cyl...is the same Toyota Camry engine that is recognized as one of the best and most efficent ever produced. It'll drive over 200,000 easily as long as I take good care of it. Photographers drive a lot of miles...that's just part of the job. So having a car that will have a long engine life is critical.
3. The cargo area is big enough to haul just about any photo equipment that I need....which is why I wanted a hatchback and had a small SUV before that. Sometimes, when you add the lens cases, laptop bags, tripods and suitcases for an out-of-town trip...a trunk on a small car just can't cut it.
4. The interior space is deceptively large....I'm a big guy and was a little bit worried about fitting in to the car. But that's not a problem at all. It's got a lot more room than it looks like.
All in all, I think I got a really good deal out of the experience. I lowered my monthly payments by $75 and will easily save about the same amount on gas.
Plus....it is still a cool looking vehicle, and that helps keep my pride from being hurt a bit.
Posted by Jason Palmer at 12:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
John Mark Karr....free
September 20, 2006John Mark Karr....the whack-job that said he killed JonBenet Ramsey....has been offered a plea deal that would send him back into the real world (on probation).
Sure, he's pleaing to child pornography charges and will have to register as a sex offender...but he's going to be free. To concoct weird stories and probably committ his sex crimes again.
This just doesn't seem right at all....weird weird weird.
The story is in the rest of the blog.
SANTA ROSA, California (AP) -- One-time JonBenet Ramsey murder suspect John Mark Karr was offered a plea deal Tuesday on child pornography charges that would free him on probation.Assistant District Attorney Joann Risse said prosecutors would waive three of the five child pornography possession charges against him if he pleaded guilty on two remaining charges.
Karr, 41, would get credit for time served and would be placed on probation for three years. He also would be required to register as a sex offender.
Defense lawyer Robert Amparan said that he would discuss the deal with Karr but that he still believes his client is innocent.
Amparan said the public had received a "false picture" of Karr, whom he described as a "Southern gentleman with a sense of humor."
Karr's bail was set at $200,000 after Judge Cerena Wong called him a flight risk. Karr spent several months in the Sonoma County jail in 2001 awaiting trial on the child porn charges and fled after being released.
Amparan would not say whether his client could afford bail but said Karr would remain behind bars for now.
Karr, a schoolteacher, was arrested August 16 after making phone calls and writing e-mails suggesting he killed Ramsey, a 6-year-old beauty queen, in her Boulder, Colorado, home in December 1996. He was returned to the U.S. from Thailand only to have the Ramsey case collapse.
DNA tests failed to connect Karr to the crime, and investigators had no evidence he was in Boulder at the time of the slaying.
Posted by Jason Palmer at 2:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
What the Duck.
September 14, 2006No...nothing dirty.
I just found a hilarious, photographer-based comic strip. .
Best of all...they said they don't mind if people copy, paste, link or whatever. That means I can post them in my blog and make myself laugh.
So......here you go.
Aaron Johnson is credited with creating the photographic ducks. He was in charge of filling some blog space for another blogger, and the result was an instant hit.
His creations have made the rounds on dozens of photography forums...and he's since spawned his own website.
He's got all kinds of duck related stuff on the site. What the Duck backgrounds, WTD banners, WTD stickers and even shirts.
One of my faves is the Duck peeing on the Canon symbol (we're a Nikon equipped newspaper).
Either way..it's a nice distraction from the daily newspaper grind. Not all of his duck-tographers are photojournalists...sometimes he does weddings, portraits, the whole bit.
You'll see them occasionally on here, because I like them.
Posted by Jason Palmer at 1:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Didn't take long to find a better story...
September 13, 2006They say that you should keep your friends close and your enemies closer.
Unless your enemy has a knife and stabs you in the leg.
Now...a little leg stabbing doesn't seem all that bad, unless you're a college punter and your attacker was....that's right.
THE BACKUP PUNTER.
Yeah...you read that right. The University of Northern Colorado punter was attacked and stabbed in the kicking leg by his backup.
This guy really much have wanted to punt. Now...he's been punted from the team and school...and will be facing second-degree assault charges.
What an idiot. I'm guessing he's taken one to many "roughing the kicker" hits to the head.
Is the competition at the college kicking level so great that it warrants potentially career-ending attacks?
Were there other motives that we're not aware of...or was this guy just hell-bent on being the Northern Colorado punter?
GREELEY, Colo. -- The University of Northern Colorado's reserve punter was arrested Tuesday, accused of stabbing his rival in his kicking leg.Mitch Cozad, a sophomore from Wheatland, Wyo., allegedly attacked starting punter Rafael Mendoza in a parking lot in Evans on Monday night, Evans police Lt. Gary Kessler said.
Mendoza, the Bears' first-string punter from Thornton, was treated and released from the North Colorado Medical Center Monday night. Coach Scott Downing said Mendoza will not punt for UNC in Saturday's game at Texas State University.
"I don't know how long he'll be out because I haven't talked to the doctor," Downing said.
Cozad, Mendoza and freshman Zak Bigelow had been in a three-way race for the starting punter's job in preseason training. Mendoza has averaged 37.6 yards per punt on nine punts in the two games so far this season.
Cozad is facing second-degree assault charges and was scheduled to appear in court Wednesday for a bond hearing. He was suspended from the team, evicted from his residence and expelled from school on Tuesday, The Greeley Tribune reported.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Posted by Jason Palmer at 11:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Dirty Old Man
If you haven't guessed by now...one of my fave. blog methods is to find a funny story, or something that makes me laugh on the internet...and show it to you.
So now we have a dirty old man story....
Trust me, you'll laugh.
Okay, this one gives a whole new light to the creepy old man stereotype. This guy, 77, has been looking up girls skirts since he was 65.
Any bets he's been going at it a bit longer than that? At first it was the old mirror routine. That probably worked pretty well, I mean, he's been doing it for at least 13 years.
I'm just not sure how on earth you can be discrete about looking with a camera phone. That doesn't even make any sense. Unless you are dumb enough to literally walk behind the girl and lean over so that your hand is lower than the skirt...but you'd surely get caught then.
I think this guy has just gotten slow in his old age. Finally busted after at least 13 years of checking out the goods.
But...what makes me laugh more than anything is: He was doing this at a Wal-Mart.
Now, I'm sorry, but there are not many places I can think of worse than a Wal-Mart to look for pretty girls in short skirts. It's hard walking around a Wal-Mart sometimes and just find a stranger that you'd share a car ride with.
Anyways...here's your story.
By WILL GREENLEE TCPalm.com Posted September 12 2006, 12:33 PM EDT PORT ST. LUCIE -- A 77-year-old local man who reportedly admitted looking up women's skirts for 13 years, was arrested Monday in connection with an incident last month at a Wal-Mart SuperCenter in St. Lucie West.Harry Tasker, of the 500 block of Southeast Anchor Lane, faces a video voyeurism charge.
Tasker, who declined comment Tuesday, reportedly told investigators that he had been looking up women's skirts without their knowledge for about 13 years. He said he used a mirror from the stores to stare up their skirts.
Police learned of Tasker after a woman found him with a camera cell phone behind her.
"I think it's horrendous," said Connie Sue, 57, one of Tasker's neighbors. "He just kept looking at you every time I walked past."
Posted by Jason Palmer at 11:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Five years ago...
September 11, 2006I have officially stopped watching news coverage of 9/11.
I'm tired of the political spin after five years. So much of it just doesn't seem right to talk about, especially today.
Five years ago....good lord it seems like a lifetime.
Five years ago....I was still living in Fort Worth, going to Tarrant County College trying to put my life back together.
I had gone through a pretty rough stretch and was pretty much absorbed in classes and nothing else.
That morning...I woke up late, as usual. I didn't have classes until 10:30....just the way I liked it. I got in the truck about 10 a.m. and turned it to sports talk radio.
I could tell that something wasn't right....pretty much right from the start. My usually humerous morning show was a much more somber tone.
I wasn't really listening to them, I figured somebody important had died, probably a sports figure of some sort. Things didn't start sinking in until they described watching the first tower collapse right about the same time that I was driving around the parking lot.
I sat in my car for a few minutes, trying to understand what had just happened....then I ran. RAN....into the student center, where the closest television was located. I watched the second tower fall with about 30 other students, all croweded around the T.V.
They kept showing the planes hitting those buildings...over and over. Then the towers turning into dust. Most of the classes were cancelled that day.
Most....not all. My 12 p.m. British Lit. class with Dr. Montoya was still on. We didn't talk much about Shakespeare or Chaucer that day. we talked about freedom and terrorism. We let out of class early, and I drove back to my parents house as fast as I could.
And started watching the news.
That day....five years ago....it wasn't about politics and who could have lobbied for who. It was straight news. Confused and conflicting between CNN, Fox and MSNBC. It seemed that nobody quite had the grasp of what was real and what was false.
That was how it went in my world five years ago.
Since then...I moved to Wichita Falls, graduated from Midwestern State and got a career started. I've personally dealt with the effects of living in a post-9/11 world about 20 times. From airplane security checks, to taking off my shoes to being questioned after photographing buildings at night.
And so the world keeps turning and life keeps happening.
Posted by Jason Palmer at 11:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Red Cross in trouble?
September 8, 2006Now, I'll freely admit, I'm terrified of needles and I am not a regular blood donor.
I don't even like to think about needles.
But I know that you have to answer about 423 questions before you can donate blood through the Red Cross....apparently, that's not good enough for the FDA
Now, a few things stick out in this article to me.
1 - The FDA has already fined the Red Cross a total of $5.7 million dollars.
2 - The Red Cross won't be using any donated money to pay for these fines, or so they say.
This time...the huge fines have to deal with blood recalls between 2003 and 2005. That means that they didn't properly screen people who may have had blood-borne illness that could potentially infect the recipient of the blood.
Now, thus far, that hasn't happened that they know of, but the threat exists and that is a bit scary.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The government said Friday it was fining the American Red Cross $4.2 million for violating blood-safety laws.The violations include failing to ask appropriate questions of potential donors and not following test procedures, said the Food and Drug Administration. The FDA said it had no evidence of serious health consequences resulting from the violations.
The fine was the largest single penalty assessed so far under terms of a 2003 court settlement that allows the large fines when the Red Cross violates FDA rules. Previously, the FDA had fined the Red Cross a total of $5.7 million.
In a statement, the American Red Cross said its senior management "is committed to full compliance with the amended consent decree and all applicable federal regulations." It planned to respond to the FDA within 20 days.
The Red Cross is not aware of any health problems associated with the violations, spokesman Ryland Dodge said. The FDA said the nation's blood supply remains safe.
The Red Cross will not use donated money to pay the fine, but instead will rely on operating funds, including revenue from the sales of blood products, Dodge said.
The Red Cross provides nearly half the nation's blood supply, selling blood products to health facilities.
The fines stem from Red Cross recalls carried out between 2003 and 2005 that could have been prevented, the FDA said.
The 2003 agreement settled charges that the Red Cross had committed "persistent and serious violations" of federal blood safety rules dating back 17 years.
That settlement spelled out changes the Red Cross would have to make to comply with FDA rules, including improved training and record-keeping.
The amended consent decree also gave the FDA the authority to immediately fine the Red Cross for violations.
Posted by Jason Palmer at 4:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Wichita Mountain Adventure
September 7, 2006So, somehow...I had a random day off Wednesday. Something about the Labor Day holiday falling on my normal day off, so I get another day off or something.
I don't pretend to understand how all that works, and even the bossman sounded confused. But hey, he says that I'm off.....and I'm gone.
So my girlfriend Courtney and I decided to go to the Wichita Mountains....actually, I decided to go and take her with me. I wasn't really sure if she'd like it or not.
Come to find out...this native Wichitan hadn't ever BEEN to the Wichita Mountains. She'd never seen them. Also, she'd never been hiking....anywhere.
She asked me before we left if it was okay if she wore blue jeans. Not because she wanted to look cute...she actually didn't know if wearing blue jeans and hiking would work out for her. I laughed and told her that yes...jeans were fine.
Anyways, I debated whether or not to even take my camera with me, I typically don't like to work if I don't have to. But I took it...and I was very glad I did. We had an absolute blast.
Here are some of the photos and the stories to go along with.......enjoy.
So this is Courtney and I on the top of Mount Scott. She complained that her ears were popping the entire way up, and I didn't even notice it. The view was awesome as usual...and the setting sun painted the entire area with a warm yellow to orange color....perfect for taking goofy self portraits.
All day long I had tried to find a perfect buffalo shot. I had in mind to find one with the sun sinking below it, all lit up pretty and silhouetted...but it was not meant to be. This one however was a fine enough substitute with me. The fresh green grass looked so good with the sunlight coming from that angle.
Courtney and I were driving along one of the wooded roads around the park when she just kind of pointed out the window at something. She didn't really say anything at first, but then I saw what she was looking at. A group of deer, two females, two young males and two baby spotted fawns in the trees. She was so excited that even with her bad eyes, she saw them before I did. It's also amazing how well a car works as a wildlife blind. Those deer were really close. A lot closer than if I had been on foot.
This is from the top of Mount Scott looking south east. The sun was sinking fast and only lighting up the tops of the rocks in the foreground. It really has kind of a dreamy look to it.
Walking along one of the trails near Jed Johnson Lake, the sun was filtering through the trees at a really low angle (it was about 6 p.m.). For no real reason, these leaves caught my eye the way they were lit up brightly. Random nature makes for great art sometimes.
This was Courtney's fave. from the whole day. It looks like the Prairie dogs were kissing...tee-hee. Seemed like a perfect fit for taking your girlfriend to the mountains for the first time.
Again...random nature. This dead tree was completely in shadows. Kinda creepy looking, but makes for another great piece of art. This one might actually look better in a black and white print...who knows.
I used to have one of these types of spiders growing in my backyard as a kid. The zigzag web pattern makes for a great photo, especially since the spider is so colorful. The background was lit up almost too brightly, but the sun came through a branch and hit the web just perfect.
The sunset at the top of Mount Scott was breathtaking. The tree standing in the foreground only had foliage on one side...I have no idea why. But it made for a great shot with the orange sunset haze over the valley below.
This was the view from the top of Mount Scott as the sun slipped behind the clouds and below the horizon. I'm a huge sunset fan so of course this was a must-shoot for me. But I did stop long enough to sit by my girlfriend and let her lean her head on my shoulder.
All in all...it was pretty much a perfectly fun day. Man, I need more days off to do stuff like this some more.
Posted by Jason Palmer at 2:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Goodbye Steve Irwin
September 4, 2006I'm sure you've all heard by now that the Croc. Hunter Steve Irwin died today.
This is one of those days that I always knew would happen. Either a deadly snakebite or gator...but I wouldn't have expected it like this.
A stingray...that normally just swims away from danger and rarely uses it’s poisonous barbed tail...isn't the type of animal that would strike a lot of fear.
But, by all accounts...this time Steve Irwin messed up and the stingray struck. A lucky strike...right in the heart. Chances are, Irwin died instantly. Imagine, about a foot-long dagger going straight into your chest. He probably didn't even have time to react to the movement before it hit him.
I always joked about him getting eaten by a shark or gator, but this is truly shocking.
Some of the media outlets are reporting that he was filming for a segment of "Ocean's Deadliest".... but that's not entirely true. He may have been looking for a sea snake for that part of the show.
He was filming a segment for a children's show. Like I said...stingrays are not typically dangerous to humans. This time one was, and it was fatal.
My mom and sister both sent me messages or called me, kind of being funny about the situation, I always made fun of Irwin and imitated his voice. It was a riot. I'll probably still do it too, but not today and not for a while.
I'm actually pretty bummed that somebody like him won't be around anymore. My second fave. Biologist, National Geographic's Dr. Brady Barr is a great television personality, but he's no Croc. Hunter.
Thanks for years of making me laugh and teaching us all about things we are all a bit scared of.
Posted by Jason Palmer at 5:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Way to go Huskies
September 2, 2006We're not supposed to be cheerleaders. We're supposed to be unbiased and un-caring about who wins or loses on Friday nights.
It usually doesn't matter to me even who is playing the game that I'm shooting.
But I sure would have loved to been at Memorial Stadium last night and watched the Hirschi Huskies win their first game in more than two years.
Two long years of frustrations for the fans and parents of the Huskie players....gone. It wasn't even a dramatic win...they pretty much knew after the first quarter.
That's just one reason why I love Friday nights.
Posted by Jason Palmer at 11:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Why I love my boss
September 1, 2006Since it seems that I might have stirred the pot a bit too briskly with my last blog and my open complaining about the number and selection of photos from the hotter-n-hell 100.....I want to take a minute to tell everybody exactly what I think.
I'm not exactly what you would call "level-headed". I get very excited about things...Like a kid with too much Mountain Dew. That's just how I am. I can rub a lot of people the wrong way with that happy-go-lucky attitude.
I can also be exactly the opposite...and show a side of vengance and hatred without any words. A quiet anger. Some days...it swings back and forth by the 1/2 hour.
My boss, Gary Lawson, is exactly the opposite and I think that is a very good thing in the workplace.
Sometimes, I don't like the way he does things...but that's my nature to see it like that. I'm still new in all this world.
He's been doing this a lot longer than I have, and it shows. It shows in the work he produces, and it shows in the plaques he has on his wall for awards he's recieved. He is so much more easy-going about things that sometimes that bugs me....when in fact, I should probably be more like that.
Most of the time, it seems like nothing phases him...he goes through the day, assignment after assignment...and he reaction to them is nearly always the same. I'll look over his shoulder and say something very "Jason-like" (WOW...that's awesome...man that looks cool).
He just shrugs his shoulders and lets those compliments roll right off like it's nothing to him. He takes the bad and the good the exact same way...at least, he does on the outside, which in a professional work enviroment...that's all that matters.
Maybe I'll get like that by the time that I've been working as long as he has. Constantly producing quality work and having to deal with the daily pressures of keeping his photogs. in line and dealing with the rest of the newsroom as well.
If I don't...maybe I won't last as long as he has in this field.
Posted by Jason Palmer at 12:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
