Even the worst episode was great laugh riot. These were much funnier than any sit-com in the last 10 years. Ok, 20 years.
Allan Sherman? That’s a trip down memory lane.
Swami,
Did you ever read his great book, “The Rape of the Ape?” It was a hysterical look at the sexual mores of America. At least it was when I read it in my teens! I bought a copy at an antique book store 5 years ago and haven’t read it since. I’m afraid it won’t be as funny as I remember if. Hunter S. Thompson stands up to time. I’m not sure Sherman does. But, when there a bad storm this winter, I’ll reread it. I’m sure a lot of it still stands up. I mean, the right still has the same sexual hang-ups it did back in the ’60’s and ’70’s. And, now you can add the “GAY” cherry to the top of their sundae.
gulag..No, I never read his book.. I only remember him by the camp Granada song. That, I think is close to 50 years ago.
Was that movie filmed at Camp Granada? No wonder he wanted to come home so badly.
“Ironically now the fish are biting.” Ha!
Damn your two minutes of superiority, Swami!!
Off-topic (although I’m not really sure what the topic is): This is a really interesting article about education:
I would like to see more intelligent discussion on this topic. I went to public schools in the 50s and 60s; and, I received a really good education. I get really dismayed when I hear about the efforts to get rid of our public education system. I do believe that is the one thing the founding fathers believed was the way to achieve the democracy and the great country they hoped they were creating. I know public ed is abysmal these days; but, it didn’t used to be and doesn’t need to be. We need to work to get the public education system back to where it was in the early 1900’s. I remember about 15 years ago in the early days of the internet, there was a school test from the early 1900s circulating. Every one I knew who took it, found it very, very difficult; and, most failed it miserably. I think I got about just a bit over 50 percent correct. The best way for the rightwingers get control of this country is to keep as many people as possible as stupid as possible. The other important point of this article is about the cruelty that exists and is allowed in our country and major organizations these days. That, too, is important. However, I believe cruelty can be overcome with intelligent people; and, this country needs to start producing more really smart people again. It isn’t these days–so sad to say.
WARNING!! FULL CODGER MODE!!
I haven’t read the article yet, but i have fond memories of the public school system even as it existed in rural new Jersey, where I went to elementary school. It wasn’t a rich community, so there were no lavish investments.
I had a sixth grade teacher who was the “superman” type. He made us work and challenged us. In Sixth grade he had us:
Learn the major artists, for a test he had us identify works we had not prevously seen and identify them by artist and period.
The same for major composers.
Identify all the countries on the map.
The basics of meteorology. We took turns making weather predictions weekly.
Learn to identify a large goup of rocks and minerals using geological field methods.
Learn to identify fossils by geological period and have a fairly good general idea of evolution. (This would get him fired today.)
He taught us about scientific method.
He also improved the sports curriculum with soccer,wrestling, football, track and field. including cross country running. He coached us in all these, where before we just played without understanding.
I may not have made any huge mark in the world, but so much of the enjoyment of life and the arts, I owe to this one dedicated teacher.
I suppose inadvertently, he increased the chances of me becoming a DFH, but I am not sorry. A working class kid really could go to college back then. USF was $190 per quarter. (I still lost 40 pounds my first year for the lack of a food budget.) More important than that, the society seemed to value education and to have a respect for knowledge. That has been cast aside. The chance for a working class kid to make it into the middle class is roughly 1 in 10, back then it was 1 jn 4 (according to “The Economist”). It is a whole lot easier and more respectable to be a well off thug than a struggling brainiac. As educational opportunities decrease, the class structure sets in stone. American has become very comfortable with its class structure.
It’s odd to think of it really, but I had the distinct feeling that learning was patriotic, that it contributed to the nation. My contribution might be working class, but we were all putting our shoulders to the wheel.
The downside is that occasionally, I drone on about it as older men do, extolling the virtues of the world of my long term memory or bristling at what has taken their place. But, I do find it ironic that our current society seems so consumed with information, but not with ideas or analysis. The best we have in popular culture, is the appearance of analysis dispensed by think tankers and talking heads.
Well, I’m late to feed the animals again.
goatherd… Enjoyable comment. Your last paragraph brings to my mind the character Inspector Luger from the TV show Barney Miller. ” It’s not like the old days, Barn”. I’m also conscience of not coming off as that type of character although it is difficult because the world has changed significantly in the last 40 years.
Bonnie.. I remember that test you mentioned, I believe it was an 8th grade final exam from Kansas in 1898. I tried to do the examination and I couldn’t even understand what they were talking about. I got a few right but for the most part it was just over my head.
I enjoyed your link, and I think overall it was an indictment of the conservative mind. There are no shades of gray or deviations toward thinking in the rigid conservative mind. Most of it is probably born of frustration from having to reason in a dynamic world, it’s so much easier to establish a fixed answer to cover all rather than deal with the complexities of individuality that should be required. I think of Bush with his chest thumping pride in having foisted the No child left behind legislation on the American public. There are valid points in argument for that kind of legislation, but overall it’s a losing proposition when you try to reduce the human mind or it’s ability to learn to a formula. My thought is to trust the teachers to cultivate the minds of children.
What the world needs now… is more Torgo.
As a former band geek, my favorite was always “Mr. B Natural”.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6076941100462957931
Even the worst episode was great laugh riot. These were much funnier than any sit-com in the last 10 years. Ok, 20 years.
Allan Sherman? That’s a trip down memory lane.
Swami,
Did you ever read his great book, “The Rape of the Ape?” It was a hysterical look at the sexual mores of America. At least it was when I read it in my teens! I bought a copy at an antique book store 5 years ago and haven’t read it since. I’m afraid it won’t be as funny as I remember if. Hunter S. Thompson stands up to time. I’m not sure Sherman does. But, when there a bad storm this winter, I’ll reread it. I’m sure a lot of it still stands up. I mean, the right still has the same sexual hang-ups it did back in the ’60’s and ’70’s. And, now you can add the “GAY” cherry to the top of their sundae.
gulag..No, I never read his book.. I only remember him by the camp Granada song. That, I think is close to 50 years ago.
Was that movie filmed at Camp Granada? No wonder he wanted to come home so badly.
“Ironically now the fish are biting.” Ha!
Damn your two minutes of superiority, Swami!!
Off-topic (although I’m not really sure what the topic is): This is a really interesting article about education:
http://www.truth-out.org/when-generosity-hurts-bill-gates-public-school-teachers-and-politics-humiliation63868?print
I would like to see more intelligent discussion on this topic. I went to public schools in the 50s and 60s; and, I received a really good education. I get really dismayed when I hear about the efforts to get rid of our public education system. I do believe that is the one thing the founding fathers believed was the way to achieve the democracy and the great country they hoped they were creating. I know public ed is abysmal these days; but, it didn’t used to be and doesn’t need to be. We need to work to get the public education system back to where it was in the early 1900’s. I remember about 15 years ago in the early days of the internet, there was a school test from the early 1900s circulating. Every one I knew who took it, found it very, very difficult; and, most failed it miserably. I think I got about just a bit over 50 percent correct. The best way for the rightwingers get control of this country is to keep as many people as possible as stupid as possible. The other important point of this article is about the cruelty that exists and is allowed in our country and major organizations these days. That, too, is important. However, I believe cruelty can be overcome with intelligent people; and, this country needs to start producing more really smart people again. It isn’t these days–so sad to say.
WARNING!! FULL CODGER MODE!!
I haven’t read the article yet, but i have fond memories of the public school system even as it existed in rural new Jersey, where I went to elementary school. It wasn’t a rich community, so there were no lavish investments.
I had a sixth grade teacher who was the “superman” type. He made us work and challenged us. In Sixth grade he had us:
Learn the major artists, for a test he had us identify works we had not prevously seen and identify them by artist and period.
The same for major composers.
Identify all the countries on the map.
The basics of meteorology. We took turns making weather predictions weekly.
Learn to identify a large goup of rocks and minerals using geological field methods.
Learn to identify fossils by geological period and have a fairly good general idea of evolution. (This would get him fired today.)
He taught us about scientific method.
He also improved the sports curriculum with soccer,wrestling, football, track and field. including cross country running. He coached us in all these, where before we just played without understanding.
I may not have made any huge mark in the world, but so much of the enjoyment of life and the arts, I owe to this one dedicated teacher.
I suppose inadvertently, he increased the chances of me becoming a DFH, but I am not sorry. A working class kid really could go to college back then. USF was $190 per quarter. (I still lost 40 pounds my first year for the lack of a food budget.) More important than that, the society seemed to value education and to have a respect for knowledge. That has been cast aside. The chance for a working class kid to make it into the middle class is roughly 1 in 10, back then it was 1 jn 4 (according to “The Economist”). It is a whole lot easier and more respectable to be a well off thug than a struggling brainiac. As educational opportunities decrease, the class structure sets in stone. American has become very comfortable with its class structure.
It’s odd to think of it really, but I had the distinct feeling that learning was patriotic, that it contributed to the nation. My contribution might be working class, but we were all putting our shoulders to the wheel.
The downside is that occasionally, I drone on about it as older men do, extolling the virtues of the world of my long term memory or bristling at what has taken their place. But, I do find it ironic that our current society seems so consumed with information, but not with ideas or analysis. The best we have in popular culture, is the appearance of analysis dispensed by think tankers and talking heads.
Well, I’m late to feed the animals again.
goatherd… Enjoyable comment. Your last paragraph brings to my mind the character Inspector Luger from the TV show Barney Miller. ” It’s not like the old days, Barn”. I’m also conscience of not coming off as that type of character although it is difficult because the world has changed significantly in the last 40 years.
Bonnie.. I remember that test you mentioned, I believe it was an 8th grade final exam from Kansas in 1898. I tried to do the examination and I couldn’t even understand what they were talking about. I got a few right but for the most part it was just over my head.
I enjoyed your link, and I think overall it was an indictment of the conservative mind. There are no shades of gray or deviations toward thinking in the rigid conservative mind. Most of it is probably born of frustration from having to reason in a dynamic world, it’s so much easier to establish a fixed answer to cover all rather than deal with the complexities of individuality that should be required. I think of Bush with his chest thumping pride in having foisted the No child left behind legislation on the American public. There are valid points in argument for that kind of legislation, but overall it’s a losing proposition when you try to reduce the human mind or it’s ability to learn to a formula. My thought is to trust the teachers to cultivate the minds of children.
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