Be generous with your public TV channel !

Yesterday I watched on the public TV channel, PBS, an accurate documentary about the producer of a lot of musicals in the US after the World War Two, in theater and a lot were adapted as movies. I'm sure you know The sound of music with the wonderful Julia Andrews (La mélodie du bonheur). His name was Oscar Hammerstein.

Very interesting as I said, Lyrics were always meaning something. But as you are on the public channel, you are not annoyed with ads every ten minuts but with fundraising every twenty minuts... Always the same speach and the same pictures on your screen every 20 minuts : if you enjoyed this program, be generous, make a pledge, call this 800 number, visit our website, be a membership. For $75, you'll receive an original CD, for $125 the CD and the movies and for $225 the biography by his nephew.... Quite borring at the end.

In fact, they need to I assume because they receive not enough by the government.

It's the same with the public radio ; they say thank you quite often to their donators. In Delaware ,StrFancis Hospital is one of them.

A flu shot for everyone !

I'm fed up with this message as I'm entering stores of all sorts : " Ask for a flu shot in our pharmacy".

When I came to the spuermarket this saturday, all the cashiers had the same tee-shirt with this message.

I went to Walgreen to have to have some stuffs for halloween and again posts about flue shots everywhere.  As pharmacies are in all stores, ...When you open your TV, ads about this are every ten minutes.

The flue shot is it useful for everyone? Wasn'it only for elderlies and sick people?

For sure drugs companies are making a lot of money in this period of the year with that.

Unbearable health system

Last sunday, I borrowed from the library Sicko from M. Moore which were released in 2007. 

What I saw was unbelievable and often unbearable. A man who had two of his fingers cut by a saw just had the one which cost $12,000 removed  ; as he didn't have any health insurance, he couldn't afford the other removal at $60,000.

People die in the wealthiest country of the world (America has the highest GDP/hab) because of private profitable health insurance companies. A man had a cancer, doctors found an issue which was denied by his health insurance ; he had to hold on the phone several times to try to convince them, it didn't work. He died in one month. A little girl had a stroke, with calling the 911, the ambulance drove her at a hospital but the insurance told the mother to go in the other town's hospital because they have an agreement with it, the little girl died in the cab...

This hell system began with Nixon and it will never end, it seems, because the lobbying of this big health insurance firms are overwhelmed. If a politician try to change it, ads are all over TV and newspapers about "socialized medicine" and how can politicians have this idea when both parties receive so much fundraising from this companies...

The movie is sometimes weak when it compares this health system to others or when it talks a long time about 9/11 but to anderstand this crazy health nightmare system, it's definitely good. Our health system is definitely better in France but I didn't have any civil servant who came to do my laundry after my birth delivery. You learn also that some Americans do mariages in name only with Canadians to benefit from their health system. Cuba health system is great but never it says it's in a dictature...

How can Americans sustain this crazy system ; they are supposed to be a model of democracy... In this field they have to learn about other countries.

My dream, to have a course with him...

It's Stephen Burt, an english professor at Harvard. He is a poet and he seems so smart, so independent. He is very independent for choosing his clothes also. He discovered the writer Kasishke
, I red a book from her.

On sunday, the big New York Times arrives

It's so nice on sunday to discover all the newspapers in your New York Times, a lot of hours of reading are waiting for you and diverse readings from travel to business to top news but you have also fashion, books...
So great !

From the beginning, America is a country of immigrants. Even now, they are welcoming people from all around the world. For sure, it's not that simple, depending in which decade you arrived and from where. But still, it's their strength.

In our neighboroud, one old man is from East Germany ; he was under the bombs during the second world war in Dresde. I met one woman who kept links with cousins in Alsace, France ; her grandfather escaped this area at the end of the 19th century because of the Germans. Diane is perfoming ballet with a girl from Beijing, China. This week end I'll will have a piq niq with a family from Mexico. 

In the department of economics, all professors are American but some are from Greece, others from Portugal...

Furthermore, immigration stories can be triky and ended sadly. Last night I watched the movie The visitor. It's about a young man who arrived in Michigan from Syria eight years ago with his mother after his father died in jail because he wrotes as  a journalist articles which didn't please the government. They didn't get the green card but managed to stay; He was arrested in the New York's subway, he stayed in a detention center for a while and was deported to Syria at the end. Be an Arabic immigrant after 9/11 isn't that easy.

Private fundraising are increbible even in education

When you live in Kalamazoo district, Michigan and you attend public schools until the end of highschool without droping of, you win a college scholarship. You imagine, college which is normally thousands of dollars for only a year is free.

Is this benefit coming from the state ? No ; this "gift" comes from mistery donors ; wealthy contractors and perhaps retirees among the district. Incredible story no.

You can also at the end of highschool, if you think you are the new Steve Jobs, Bill Gates  or Mark Zukherberg, try to win a Thiel fellowship. Mr Thiel is a billionair, he founds paypal. There is a big selection among the applicants. If you win, you musn't go to college (it's the deal) and you begin to work about your idea ; Thiel gives you a lot of money and  his social network to meet everyone you want from Silicon Valley contractors to scientists.

 So which idea convince you the most to make America the winner of new technologies?

Neighbour's movie night

It's been one week now, the weather is so nice, no more humidity and sunny, it's fresh at night so we were able to close the air conditionning.
We see more often our neighbours also, they walk around. This saturday night we had a movie night in one of our neighbours garden. They had a videprojector and a garden's screen, it was a lot of fun for all of the children. Of course, it was with pop corn and blankets. The movie, Big miracle, was about whales saved in Alaska at the end of the eighties, based on a true story.

Charter schools versus public schools

The first time I went to take a coffee with parents who were involved in the public elementary school, they talked about their deception to not attend the famous charter school of Newark.

In fact, in our neighbourhood, some kids are going to the public schoool and some lucky guys are going to the charter school.

What's the difference between those schools? They have in common to be both public schools. Charters schools were born under Clinton presidency because public schools were "bad" in a lot of states : children didn't learn a lot, teachers were unionized and can't be fired, low achievement results at the end. In peculiar states like Delaware it was obvious. A charter school has autonomy, the principal can hire and fire teachers, parents are involved, they are held accontable for achievments results. Good news in Newark : the charter began with elementary classes, after it opened a middle school and next year it will be also a higschool.

How do you enter this so dreamy school? There is the hic, by a lottery every year, if you are lucky in gambling you can have your chance. When one of your kids is in, all siblings can follow. So some families trie the lotery every year and fail...

But the ordinary public school is great, now this school have to compete to keep students ; it improves its results. It's a race, sometimes tiring.

One professor at the university was very unhappy to not win the lotery for his children, hopefully you have private schools for those who can afford it. Not far from where we live, is the Independant school, more than 13 000 $ a year.

Conventions before the presidential election

Last week the republican's convention took place in Tampa, Florida ; this week it's the turn of the democrat's convention in Charlotte, North Carolina. It's a big event, very spectacular, both are settling in swing states.

Mitt Romney is a multimillionair who owmes an equity fund, Bain Kapital, he is also a mormon. It means that he is very conservative on social issues ; one of the republican explained that if a woman is pregnant after a rape, it's because she was consentant... Clint Eastwood had a show on the Republican convention, he explains why he supports Romney by using his actor's talents.

Yesterday it was the turn of Michelle Obama to talk in front of a bunch of people in Charlotte. She explained what his husband have accomplished yet. The Obama Care plan is one of this big issue ; now a health insurance can no more push you away if you have a disease like cancer or a disabled child who need expensive health exams, it means before it was possible, it is crazy I know...

In both conventions, patriotism matters, the american flag is everywhere. Each speach ends by "God bless you, God bless America".