Education About Education

“Fight Against Stupidity And Bureaucracy”

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education

Today a little education about education.

First I’ll crunch some numbers, as I like to do.

4,726 = the number of colleges and universities United States.

$589 billion =  the amount spent by students annually.

Of that figure,

$393 billion = tuition fees, and

$196 billion = expenses like travel and housing.

538% = the percentage increase of the cost of a college education over the past three decades.

4.5 = the number times more expensive it is to go to college today than it was back in 1985, even allowing for inflation.

So is the cost worth it?

Does the education system make sense?

The vast majority of Americans never even consider these important questions. They are fixated on their kids going to college – end of debate.

Whether they have the ability or not, or whether it is the right career path for them or not, if the parents can afford it and/or the kids can get a student loan (which they usually can) then they go to college.

But there is a heavy cost to pay, as we have just seen above. By the time they graduate 70% of students are lumbered with a loan balance averaging $28,400. Nationwide in the US, student loan debt now sits at a staggering $1.2 trillion, which is nearly 50% higher than all the outstanding auto-loan debt, and almost double credit card debt.

student loan debt

While it is true that college graduates have more opportunities to earn more than those without a degree, the number of those good paying jobs is limited. Most college graduates have to settle for a lot less that they were planning for when they started that expensive college education.

What is often forgotten is that there are many other opportunities out there in the workplace for someone who spends their time and money learning a trade or a skill. A friend of mine who is a plumber earns many times more than many of his contemporaries with college degrees and office jobs.

In fact, since more and more young Americans are turning their noses up at manual type jobs and opting for expensive colleges, there will soon be a shortage of essential trades such as plumbers, electricians and so forth, making those jobs even more lucrative than they are now.

Food for thought for the future perhaps.

FoodForThought

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Happy Thanksgiving 2014.

“Fight Against Stupidity And Bureaucracy”

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Today is the fourth Thursday of November and also the last Thursday in November so whether you think Lincoln was right or Roosevelt was right, it still Thanksgiving Day in the USA.

To everyone who participates, enjoy the family holiday, eat too much and drink too much.

Last year I did what turned out to be a very popular post called “I Had To Post A Few Turkey Puns Today, Of Course They Are Fowl” ( Click here if you would like to read it.) And this year I’ve done it again.

So here are some more really bad jokes.

Enjoy or endure.

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rofl

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Thanksgiving,

the time of year when turkeys

fatten Americans up for Christmas!

funny-happy-thanksgiving-turkey-poster

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Why didn’t the Pilgrim want to make the stuffing?

Because it’s such a crummy job!

turkey-thanksgiving-jokes

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What happened when the turkey got into a fight?

He got the stuffing knocked out of him.

funny-turkey

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What kind of music did the Pilgrims like?

Plymouth Rock, of course!

Plymouth Rock

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What would you get if you crossed

a turkey with a baked fruit dessert?

A peach gobbler!

funny turkey photo

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What’s the best dance to do on Thanksgiving?

The turkey trot

turkey trot

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What does a Turkey drink wine in?

In a gobble-let

Turkey drink wine

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What did baby corn say to mama corn?

Where’s popcorn?

turkey eating popcorn cartoon

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Why did the turkey sit on the tomahawk?

To try to hatchet!

tomahawk

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Teacher: “What did the Indians bring

to the first Thanksgiving?”

Student: “Baseballs.”

Teacher: “Baseballs?”

Student: “Yeah,

they were Cleveland Indians!”

Logo_Cleveland Indians

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Who is the turkey’s favorite movie star?

Gregory Peck.

thanksgiving_bush

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If you divide the circumference

of a pumpkin by its diameter

Do you end up with

Pumpkin pi?

pumpkin pie pi

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Can a turkey jump higher than

the Empire State Building?

Yes of course it can

– a building can’t jump at all.

unfriends-me-on-facebook

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Why did the pilgrim’s pants keep falling down?

Because his buckle was on his hat!

pilgrim

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And finally,

instead of talking turkey,

let’s hear someone sing turkey instead.

Take it away Dickie Stickhead

(Phew, you have to be careful how you say that name!)

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Another Monday Quiz – Try It If You Dare!

“Fight Against Stupidity And Bureaucracy”

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What better way to start of the week than with a quiz?

Okay, okay, so there are better ways, but this is the way we’re doing it here.

I think some of the questions are pretty tough this week, but if you are up for a challenge please have a go at them.

As always the answers are waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay down below, but NO cheating!

Enjoy.

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Quiz 9

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Q  1:  From what animal do we get Catgut?

Q  2:  What country has more lakes that the rest of the world combined?

Q  3:  What is the collective noun for a group of Unicorns, should such a thing exist?

Q  4:  How many of each ‘clean’ animal did God tell Noah to take into the Ark?

Q  5:  How many people signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4th?

Q  6:  What is the name that means “Craft of the Wise Ones”?

Q  7:  What is printed on the tablet being held by the Statue of Liberty?

Q  8:  The largest Groundhog Day celebration is held in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, made famous by the film of that name starring Bill Murray and Andie McDowell. But what date is Groundhog Day?

Q  9:  By what name is the Tooth Fairy known in Mexico?

Q 10:  What former U.S. president worked as a lifeguard in his youth at a beach near Dixon, Illinois and saved over 77 lives?

Q 11:  What was the only commercial aircraft that able to break the sound barrier?

Q 12:  They were originally called Baby Gays. What do we know them better as?

Q 13:  What were the first words that Thomas A. Edison spoke into the phonograph? (Now you know this, even you think you don’t)

Q 14:  What disease killed over 20 million people worldwide in 1918?

Q 15:  Used in US English to describe a student in the second year of study at high school or university, what does the word “sophomore” literally mean?

Q 16:  The British call them a fruit machine, but what are they known as elsewhere?

Q 17:  What US State is known as “Land of Enchantment”?

Q 18:  The Tibetans call it Chomolungma. What do we know it better as?

Q 19:  The vast majority of people, male and female, have a Glabella, but what is it?

Q 20:  The largest library in the world is located in Washington D.C. What is its name?

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ANSWERS

Q  1:  From what animal do we get Catgut?

A  1:  Catgut comes from sheep not cats.

Q  2:  What country has more lakes that the rest of the world combined?

A  2:  Canada has more lakes that the rest of the world combined.

Q  3:  What is the collective noun for a group of Unicorns, should such a thing exist?

A  3:  A group of Unicorns is called a blessing.

Q  4:  How many of each ‘clean’ animal did God tell Noah to take into the Ark?

A  4:  According to Genesis 7:2, God told Noah to take 14 of each kind of ‘clean’ animal in to the ark.

Q  5:  How many people signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4th?

A  5:  Only two people signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4th, John Hancock and Charles Thomson. Most of the rest signed on August 2, but the last signature wasn’t added until 5 years later.

Q  6:  What is the name that means “Craft of the Wise Ones”?

A  6:  Witchcraft

Q  7:  What is printed on the tablet being held by the Statue of Liberty?

A  7:  July IV, MDCCLXXVI

Q  8:  The largest Groundhog Day celebration is held in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, made famous by the film of that name starring Bill Murray and Andie McDowell. But what date is Groundhog Day?

A  8:  Groundhog Day is on February 2nd

Q  9:  By what name is the Tooth Fairy known in Mexico?

A  9:  In Mexico the Tooth Fairy is known as the Tooth Mouse, which takes the tooth and leaves treasures in its place

Q 10:  What former U.S. president worked as a lifeguard in his youth at a beach near Dixon, Illinois and saved over 77 lives?

A 10:  Ronald Reagan

Q 11:  What was the only commercial aircraft that able to break the sound barrier?

A 11:  The Anglo-French manufactured “Concorde”.

Q 12:  They were originally called Baby Gays. What do we know them better as?

A 12:  Q-Tip Cotton Swabs

Q 13:  What were the first words that Thomas A. Edison spoke into the phonograph? (Now you know this, even if you think you don’t)

A 13:  The first words that Thomas A. Edison spoke into the phonograph were, “Mary had a little lamb.”

Q 14:  What disease killed over 20 million people worldwide in 1918?

A 14:  The flu pandemic of 1918 killed over 20 million people

Q 15:  Used in US English to describe a student in the second year of study at high school or university, what does the word “sophomore” literally mean?

A 15:  “wise moron.”

Q 16:  The British call them a fruit machine, but what are they known as elsewhere?

A 16:  A slot machine.

Q 17:  What US State is known as “Land of Enchantment”?

A 17:  New Mexico is known as the “Land of Enchantment”

Q 18:  The Tibetans call it Chomolungma. What do we know it better as?

A 18:  Mount Everest

Q 19:  The vast majority of people, male and female, have a Glabella, but what is it?

A 19:  The space between your eyebrows is called the Glabella

Q 20:  The largest library in the world is located in Washington D.C. What is its name?

A 20:  The Library of Congress

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What An Eventful Week… Okay, Maybe Not. But Never Mind, Here’s Another Anagram Sunday!

“Fight Against Stupidity And Bureaucracy”

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What an eventful week… well that’s what I had planned to say if Romney had won the election. As it turns out, he didn’t, Obama’s back in and things are much the same as they were.

Oh, except for one minor detail, Obama won’t ever have to fight another Presidential election so he can get on with whatever he wants to do and not be too bothered who it upsets. So cut costs at the bottom and increase taxes at the top and squeeeeeeeeezzzzzzzzzzzzzzeeeeeeeeeeee!

Meantime here are some more of those word puzzles called anagrams.

Enjoy.  

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‘Many a true word is spoken in jest’

Men joke, and so win trusty praise

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‘meal for one’

for me alone

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‘my ideal time’ 

immediately

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‘New York Times’

monkeys write

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‘Patrick Stewart’

a crap trek twist

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‘Punishment’

nine thumps

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‘Rome was not built in a day’

any labour I do wants time

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‘school student’

tends to slouch

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‘shower time’

where moist

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‘Statue of Liberty’

built to stay free

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‘television ads’

enslave idiots

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‘The centenarians’

I can hear ten “tens”

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‘The ears’

hear set

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‘The end of the World is nigh!’

Frightened? Down this hole!

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‘Thomas Jefferson’

O, short name’s Jeff

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‘timetable’

bet I’m late

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And finally a contribution from Adam T.

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‘Barack Hussein Obama’

a man broke his abacus

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‘Willard Mitt Romney’

Wait! Drill it on my term.

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