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There's a reason or two 165,000 children are home-schooled in California.

The homeschooling movement got blindsided by a ruling from a California appeals court that restricts homeschooling by parents without teaching credentials.k

The ruling was a shock to the movement and leaves an estimated 166,000 children as possible truants and their parents at risk of prosecution.

It also demonstrates the lengths government will go to protect its monopoly on education.

The homeschooling movement was shocked--to put it mildly.

"At first, there was a sense of, 'No way,' " said homeschool parent Loren Mavromati, a resident of Redondo Beach (Los Angeles County) who is active with a homeschool association. "Then there was a little bit of fear. I think it has moved now into indignation."

A dispute between the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services--doesn't that have a nice "I'm from the government and I'm here to help you"ring to it?--and Phillip and Mary Long of Lynwood, who have eight children they have been homeschooling.

Mary Long is their teacher, but holds no teaching credentials.

The parents said they also enrolled their children in Sunland Christian School, a private religious academy in Sylmar (Los Angeles County), which considers the Long children part of its independent study program and visits the home about four times a year.

The Second District Court of Appeal ruled that California law requires parents to send their children to full-time public or private schools or have them taught by credentialed tutors at home.

At least one justice saw nothing wrong with forcing parents to enroll their children in California schools which are a potpourri of multicultural and liberal educational theories in action.

"California courts have held that ... parents do not have a constitutional right to homeschool their children," Justice H. Walter Croskey said in the 3-0 ruling issued on Feb. 28. "Parents have a legal duty to see to their children's schooling under the provisions of these laws."

Parents can be criminally prosecuted for failing to comply, Croskey said.

"A primary purpose of the educational system is to train school children in good citizenship, patriotism and loyalty to the state and the nation as a means of protecting the public welfare," the judge wrote, quoting from a 1961 case on a similar issue.

The fact that parents of almost 166,000 children in California have decided that the state no longer does this seems immaterial to the judge.

Will the California legislature fix this?

Don't hold your breath.

by Mondoreb
hat tip: Powell Gammill, FPhoenix
image: bartcop
Source: Homeschooling Setback sends Shockwaves Through State


DBKP.com - Bigger, Better!.
Death by 1000 Papercuts Front Page.

This ad in the OC Register caught our eye.

"Friends don't let friends plead guilty!"™

Love it.

By LBG
Source - OC Register
DBKP.com - Bigger, Better!.
Death by 1000 Papercuts Front Page

It wasn't the "big one", but every time the dishes shake in California, people in the Golden State are a little uneasy. A 5.6 magnitude quake shook the San Francisco area last night.

Many Californians still have vivid memories of the San Francisco 1989 'World Series Quake' which disrupted life in the Bay area. More on this earth-shaking news fromCNN:

A moderate earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.6 struck Northern California Tuesday night, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The quake's epicenter was about five miles north-northeast of Alum Rock, California, and nine miles northeast of San Jose's City Hall, the USGS said. It hit at 8:04 p.m. (11:04 p.m. ET).

There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties.

Rafael Abreu of the USGS said that a 5.6 quake was considered moderate but could provide "a pretty strong jolt."

Not much was disrupted; the trains suffered only a hiccup.

Bay Area Rapid Transit said trains were stopped for five minutes after the quake, Pacific Gas & Electric Co. reported no power outages, according to affiliate KTVU.

Another quake and life goes on in California. What else should it do?

by Mondoreb
[image:eqseis]



Back to Front Page.

The Global Incident Map over the weekend got faked out by a faux-CNN site. The site, made up to look like CNN, but calling itself "CNN Headlie News" caused the map to label the California fires as a terrorist act. More from GIM:

Previously we linked to a fake 'CNN' article claiming that the Hispanic group MEChA had taken responsibilty for the recent California arsons.

The story was False, and on a website made to look like an official CNN website, complete with a CNN logo and copyright reading "© 2007 Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc.". The web address used the domain cnnheadlienews.com, and does not clearly identify itself as a satire or parody news site.

The story was a fake, I was duped... apparently along with many other websites, forums, and mailing lists - many of whom do not yet appear to be aware the story is false. I apologize to my readers and to anyone negatively impacted by the inclusion of ths article. Personally I hope that CNN and the FBI track down the author of this hoax website and deliver justice.

DBKP's Little Baby Ginn had covered this and linked to several sources. Those link sources have since disappeared, but the original story, below, is still at this site.

ORANGE COUNTY, California (CNN) -- Radical Hispanic separatist organization MEChA ("Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan") is taking responsibility for setting the wildfires in California, confimed Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

California officials received a letter earlier today containing photographs of individuals holding Molotov cocktails, then throwing them into dry brush. The faces of the individuals appeared to have been digitally distorted.

Also included was a rambling manifesto, stating that the reason for the act of arson was that "Aztlán belongs to indigenous people, the Chicanas and Chicanos of Aztlán. We are sovereign and not subject to a foreign culture.

The rest of the story is a pretty much a copy of an original CNN story about the fires. One exception is the fire chief, Kris Conception. The story is the only story on the site that can be accessed. The Sphere-related content is working on the page, including this from Patterico's Pontifications:

If I were a lawyer for CNN, I would send someone a sternly worded letter over this.
I’m all for satire, but there is absolutely nothing there to indicate that it’s satire, other than a single missing letter in the URL.

A later update on PP's site goes on:

UPDATE x3: Commenter Steve points out one line that does identify the piece as potential satire: “No suspects have been identified, though they are probably brown.” That line both provides a potential “satire” defense to the creator, and also clearly labels the phony site as the work of a leftist trying to rope in right-wingers.

UPDATE x4: Also, the registration for the site comes back to a company whose website has four different front pages. One says: “Not one cent to sweatshops,” with a further rant about clothes bearing the Gap label.

That pretty much sews it up. It’s a leftist who perpetrated this particular lie.

It isn't the first time CNN or the BBC's sites have been imitated and used to spoof others. It won't be the last.

One could question the timing of this whole episode, given the seriousness of the story (the California fires) in question. There's a world of difference between a story about current serious events and one detailing the exploits of a lion wiping out 42 midgets, the latter story supposedly by BBC.

by Mondoreb
& Little Baby Ginn



Back to Front Page.

[image:cnn]

by Mondoreb

What's an old guy to do? It's not so funny to waddle out on the stage with a walker and complain about that pain in your shoulder. George Carlin, looking for some attention these days, opens his mouth and out come the purest of "feelings". No thoughts were included.

From Allahpundit, over at Hot Air, complete with dual videos:

No need for grandiose outrage here. He’s been saying stuff like this for decades. In fact it’s a core part of his act, which is why he’s allowed to skate.

Everyone’s a sheep, everyone’s a follower, blindly obeying the great They that keeps us all in line. All except him, of course. And that nutroots imagining of Edward R. Murrow sitting across the desk from him.

Bits Blog addressed a troublesome point:

The only outstanding question about all of this, to my mind, is where are all the people who were complaining so loudly about Glenn Beck, last night?

Then almost like a telemarketer with a mark, Chuckie picked up the scent and answered.

Yes, Mr. Bits, I do think what he said was totally wrong and idiotic as hell. They Deserved it?!?!?! Yikes. I know I’d be quite ticked if someone had said that, if I was involved in it.

So that's George Carlin in a nutshell. He's the same guy he's always been, except trends have passed him by. His shtick stills goes over well in Berkeley and New York City, but elsewhere, he's just some guy in an ever-present sweat suit with a pony-tail

Outrage? For anyone who rolled around 30 years ago in a weed-induced fog of merriment, laughing at Carlin then, it's hard to feel anything but sad.