My meeting ended just before 10, and I headed back to my office. At the same time, the 9 o’clock classes were letting out. The bustling campus is a nice change from the slowness of a college summer. I suddenly realized why this crowdedness was so nice. The crowd consisted mostly of girls — hot girls. “Hot girls” I thought, “at the e-school?” What’s more, most of them were pouring out of the mechanical engineering building. That they were leaving the building in droves is not surprising. That they were in it to begin with is. Surely, somewhere, the universe is out of whack.
And now for the “etc.” I have to send back a defective product today, and I ran out of packing peanuts. Since I needed packing material, and the campus newspaper is free, I picked up a few copies. Of note:
- More students are purchasing Apple computers. I still predict that with the Apple switch to Intel processors, the consumer will start purchasing the computer of their choice then the operating system whether it’s Linux, Windows, or MacOS. For the sake of the Apple business plan, they had better remain focused on selling good products, rather than overpriced average products that look good.
- Washington
WeeklyMonthly (the Cav Daily accidently mislabled the magazine in the headline on their frontpage.)
“To be honest, the fact that a state-funded university would have one of the lowest percentage of students on Pell Grants was offensive to us,” Franklin said. “Schools that we think of as elilte institutions did better on this than U.Va. We think that frankly the school could be serving its citizens better.”
Would you really steer your child away from a school because a left-leaning magazine thinks the number of students with Pell Grants is too low? In summary, these rankings are as important as my college football rankings.
- Lastly, the paper is looking for Viewpoint writers. The application consists of two 700 word columns: one on a university topic, and one non-university topic. Reckoning that I write that much material anyway, I expect to submit an application by the deadline in the middle of September. I doubt I could write anything more ignorant than today’s “An army of none” by Cari Lynn Hennessy.
[F]ew able-bodied young people seem eager to sign away their lives. Unfortunately, the desperation to meet monthly quotas has prompted recruiters to resort to bribes and manipulation of young people who are considered most vulnerable.
Only the Army is missing its total recruitment goals. Recent news has shown they, in fact, are exceeding some goals, such as those regarding re-enlistment. Strike one.
Let’s look at what a “bribe” is:
1. Something, such as money or a favor, offered or given to a person in a position of trust to influence that person’s views or conduct. 2. Something serving to influence or persuade.
A “person in a position of trust” contradicts nicely with “young people” being “manipulated.” so the first definition is right out. Certainly a bribe is meant to “influence or persuade.” So is an “incentive” or a “bonus.” Do you feel “bribed” when you are considering job offers and one of them throws several thousand dollars at you to choose them over other companies? Strike two
But the fact is, recruiters pursue those who have the most to gain from joining the military, i.e. the poor and untrained. That’s exactly what they should do. Should we be sending them out to corporate offices to try to convince 30 year old executives that it makes sense to join the military? Hell no. Consider, also, that some universities specifically prohibit recruiting efforts on campus. Strike three
So yeah, I think I can offer some viewpoints.
