The Curmudgeon Speaks

I had hoped to have a quiet and relaxing Saturday morning, but a CNN news story roused me to action. The segment claimed that North Dakota had been named by the Gallup agency as the countries “happiest” state. If this story had surfaced on the Internet, I would have wondered whether it was an Onion story. I even checked but found nothing. So, it must be true.

OK – it is always important to approach these weird news claims with a critical eye. Perhaps I could use the article in class and discuss how we can be mislead by faulty research methods. I would have expected more from the Gallup organization.

The official Gallup announcement provides some detail. North won based on strength in specific categories. ND ranked first in Work Environment and Physical Health. The top ranked states are located in a cluster in the upper midwest – South Dakota, Nebraska, Montana, Minnesota. Job creation growth was proposed as a major factor in the rankings.

ABC was as confused as I was.

BTW – I will soon be moving and selling my house. I know, I know – leaving the happiest state. There is an opportunity for someone here. Take advantage of my foolishness. Come on – Get Happy.

I turned in my notice today. I informed the local administrators that I will not sign a contract to renew my tenured position at UND. It is a little early, but if I wait until I receive the contract the department will find it difficult to fill the position for another year.

It is interesting how quickly the news gets around. There were book reps in the department today and not one paid me a visit.

Standing by the side of the road,

Hitchhiking,

I began to feel invisible.

(anonymous)

P.S. – Evidently, my daughter was concerned by the tone of this point. She sent me the following:

Maybe you do not read the NY Times, but I am guessing this editorial will catch the attention of many either directly or because the article has been passed on via social media.

I am an academic. The Times editorial is complaining about people like me. Actually, I am probably not a good example as I do blog (since 2002) and make an effort to communicate with practitioners of my discipline (educators interested in having their students use technology). However, I also agree that academics need to do more than try to impress each other or a funding source.

Research is important, but too often it seems to go no where. Academics will suggest that “basic research” is essential. I agree – practical applications build off basic research and when practitioners in R&D do R, they do not invest time and resources in basic science. Still, academics encouraged by evaluation systems that count publications rather than meaningful contributions can become mired in work that allows them to spend most of their time writing up results rather than manipulating real world variables that matter. Survey research obviously annoys me as do simplistic publication counting systems. Such are the foci of second tier institutions and programs.

Just so you not think I am anti research, I am a defender of this university commitment. Some meaningful discoveries do occur. The public likely does not appreciate the professional development and instructional benefits of research. Faculty members should not be educators teaching from books, but practitioners of their discipline. Students are also frequently involved in research activities and such projects encourage a different way of thinking about content.

What would I change? Once tenured, I think faculty members should be able to describe what their work has accomplished. What problems have they solved or at least what progress have they made? Is there a direction in what they are doing? I think some effort at application is important and should be rewarded over continued efforts at what may or may not be trivial. If you take on the challenge of showing your ideas matter, you do not depend on others to discover the significance in what you do.

Writing for the public is a contribution, but again I am not a fan of those who can do nothing else. The individual best in a position to explain is the individual invested in the scholarship. We need individuals who will take responsibility to be scholars and who understand the job is not done until some effort is made to communicate the value of their work to anyone who will listen.

The pseudo anchors at Fox “News” were speaking rapidly and waving their arms again. They are back on the topic of health insurance. I had hoped they would move on to something else, but there are evidently few conservative topics available. Evidently, there was a report that some folks are leaving the job market because they can receive health insurance. Every time they get riled up, I get agitated and have to raise the dose on my medication. The issue is certainly bad for my health.

Perhaps I can help by offering a personal story. I may be one of those persons leaving the job market. Yep, I am part of the problem, but I would like to explain my situation. The words we use to explain events are important. What the news guys (I guess there was one woman) describe as “leaving the job market”, I would describe as retirement. I hope to be able to retire.

I plan to retire if I can get health insurance (so far their description is accurate). Here is the deal. When I leave my job, I must go on the market and find insurance. I do not have one of those cushy jobs that comes with insurance in retirement. My wife has a pre-existing condition. Some years ago she was denied long term care insurance because of her pre-existing condition. I have already had negative experiences with the insurance industry.

So, before I sign the paper that moves me out the door (no turning back), I am going to find an insurance plan. I assume the Affordable Care Act will make this possible for both of us. I want to leave my job to someone else, but I am not foolish. If I have to continue working to maintain coverage for her, I will have to do that.

So, what do you think? Is the Affordable Care Act a detriment to employment? For whom?

Tomorrow is National Curmudgeon Day. I wanted to bring this to your attention in case anyone wanted to wish me well. Actually, thanks to son-in-law Jim for letting me know that tomorrow was my special day.

So, I prepared for tomorrow by visiting EPCOT. This is a great location to prepare for tomorrow. I had fun criticizing the prices and my feet will likely still hurt when I get up to face another day.

We are in the midst of an epic cold snap (according to the weather folks). Those of us living in the upper midwest are experienced in cold and become annoyed when other folks promote their experiences with the cold. Perhaps this is unfair. If you are not prepared and equipped, modest temperatures are cold.

I was supposed to be on my way back to work today. I am not. Minnesota and North Dakota are pretty much shut down and road conditions are dangerous. Sliding of the road would not be a good. Despite national attention, today is not as bad as several days this past week. It was only -24 this morning and we had several days when the thermometer read -27 when I first checked in the morning.

It could be worse, the view out the window is pretty “cool”.

This instructional material has been prepared for those of you who think 40 degrees Fahrenheit is cold.

An ice dam typically forms at the edge of a roof when some of the snow in the roof melts and the water runs beneath the blanket of snow. Snow may melt even on very cold days if a roof has not been well insulated. The water trickles down toward the gutter as it does in warm weather. Often the gutter is filled with snow or blocked in some way creating slush. When the temperature goes back down, the slush freezes forming ice. Ice may also form when water moves past the heated part of a roof onto eaves that extend beyond the heated room below. When more water forms and drains down the slope of the roof it encounters the dam of ice formed previously and puddles up. The dam grows in size and more water collects behind it.

This puddled water can cause serious damage to a roof. It may seep under shingles and when it freezes pop the shingles up. It may find an opening through the shingles and drip into the house. Significant damage can occur if the problem is not addressed. It can be one of those pay me now or pay me later deals.

The photo shows the snow pack on our house. This situation developed from several heavy snows without wind. A warm day or two and the snow hardened up so that it would no longer blow off the building. If you look closely, you should be able to see the ice forming at the edge of the roof.

Sometimes homeowners purchase special aluminum rakes (snow rakes) that allow them to remove the snow along the edge of a roof. This becomes difficult to do when the snow hardens and not possible with a roof like ours which is 2 ½ stories in some sections. Someone has to go up there to get rid of the snow. This is a job for someone who knows what they are doing and who is significantly younger than me. The idea is to get rid of as much snow as possible and salt the ice dams so the ice melts. This is an expensive proposition – it takes some time and is difficult and dangerous work. Home ownership can involve such unexpected costs.

Happy New Year! My son calls this a “first world problem” and I agree.

I must admit I missed this story when it originally broke, but I follow Slate (a site focused on long form posts) and picked up the story just a few days ago.

Evidently, back in September, the Chronicle of Higher Education published a description of a University of Kansas professor being suspended for a tweet that targeted the NRA following a massed shooting. You might wonder how much trouble you can get into given a limit of 140 characters. Evidently, a good deal. The tweet indicated that “blood was on the hands of the NRA” which probably by itself would not be too objectionable, but then went on to say “Next time, let it be YOUR sons and daughters.”

The tweet evidently was noticed and likely frequently retweeted and in reaction the Kansas chancellor, Bernadette Gray-Little, directed KU to place Dr. Guth on leave.

Reading about this action caused me to think back on what I may have said in response to similar events. I did comment on the school shootings, the NRA, and also on the vote of a  newly elected North Dakota senator I had supported financially. My comments were in a longer form and more carefully worded. I believe comments that over the top lose any possible effectiveness the sentiments expressed might have. One can express contempt for a policy – the lack of a defensible need for high capacity ammunition magazines or the lack of a response to the need for background checks that address mental illness – without wishing ill on the children of those holding such flawed beliefs or taking such stands in response to political pressure.

Still, private irrational and indefensible comments are everywhere. College professors are actually probably even less inclined to “lose it” and make inappropriate comments than are politicians or titans of public (stock supported) companies. Such comments, however, are inevitable and now with our willingness to share thoughts online more visible and permanent. There are two issues here – who is allowed to express their displeasure and what should be the consequences for an inappropriate comment. In both cases, I am assuming the situations involve comments made as personal opinions and not as a representative of any organization (such as is the case with this post). Dr. Gust did not promote his comment as the position of the University and could not have done so in 140 characters.

It does make you wonder. Does anyone recognize that I am a college prof. when reading my posts or tweets? Does anyone know which institution employs me? Does anyone believe my comments somehow carry the stamp of approval of my employer? Does anyone believe my personal position on important issues should be silenced because I work for the people of North Dakota?

The President of the University of Kansas did eventually respond to the intertwined issues of responsibility, free speech, and academic freedom. The comment from KU President are difficult to interpret (administrator speak), but I think he says that we support different views and believe in academic freedom. I hope so anyway.

This situation generated so much attention because the initial comments were online and because the actions taken were also evaluated online. I keep hoping that online comments give everyone of us an opportunity to comment and engage. Being civil is certainly to be expected, but we all become frustrated when positions we clearly see to be wrong are somehow protected with flawed logic.

Further analysis can be found at the American Center for Civil Liberty site (read the extended discussion).