JJ Husker

Look, nobody is saying any of these racist words or actions are okay. I feel confident saying we all find them appalling. And yes, the election of DJT will embolden some people to do these things. There are people who voted for Trump for the wrong reasons, just like there are people who voted for Hillary or Obama for the wrong reasons. Those people may feel their repugnant hatred has now been validated. But there are also people who voted for these people for the right reasons. Lets try to avoid labelling those people as racist enablers or approvers. I think it does somewhat of a disservice to the cause to now link every anecdotal story of repulsive racist behavior to DJT. These asshats have always been among us and they have always engaged in this behavior. There may be some racists whom this electon now spurs to more overt actions. Let's all shout them down, just as we should no matter who is/was President, no matter when or where it occurs. But please don't mistake the acknowledgement that these things have and will always happen as some sort of approval or ignoring of these actions. I think we as a society can keep a lid on it as long as we don't go overboard with linking every racist action to the result of DJT being elected.

These are pretty good. My favorite; so you two buddies now?

There's this place called the woodshed where that type of thing is encouraged...just sayin.

Back to the 100 day plan. The repeal and replace Obamacare act better have a whole bunch more to it than the brief description provided by the OP. If anybody thinks those few things even begin to put a dent in the healthcare woes in this country..... Sorry, the ability to purchase across state lines will do virtually nothing to reign in escalating premium and care costs, nevermind that it will likely be completely useless. What good is a plan from 3 states away that does not include my providers in their network. It's basically stupidity exposed. Donald- the problem with healthcare is rapidly increasing costs. Period. Solve that before exploring any the avenue.

Sorry about the length. I could go on for hours about schools and students and parents. We have been blessed with some excellent teachers and great schools. Notably, our school district is (or was recently) considered one of the lowest performing in the state. They were even put on some kind of probation and had to show X amount of improvement or funding would've been cut. There is absolutely nothing wrong with our schools or teachers. However, there is plenty wrong with a large percentage of the students and parents in our district. This is why I know that money does not solve school and education issues. I've seen ungodly amounts of money shifted towards getting the low performers up to standards with little positive result.

Zoogs- I agree with positive affirmation. You never want to shut down an avenue that a child may later excel at. But schools today take it to the point that kids don't learn how to deal with losing or not being the best at everything. It's not really that fine of a line to encourage and affirm while at the same time teaching them how to deal with defeat and learning that some things are not worthy of being recognized as excellence. It seems currently society and our schools in particular do not have the balance right.

The basic problem with either model is, you can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink. Meaning; there are still and always will be students who are not going to perform well. Typically due to the lack of engagement to the education process by their parents. Anybody can look at some statistics and tell you which school is better than another. But that still does little good for the latch key parenting family that does not help their student or treat education as a priority. The worst parent could still send their kiddo to the best school and the result would still be a failing student. I've been involved in the public school system for 18 continuous years and I've seen a lot. I've seen numerous poor kids way outperform their circumstance and I've seen numerous rich kids underperform. What it comes down to in almost all cases is their parent's commitment to the process. Sure it's tougher for the disadvantaged family because they may be working shift work to make ends meet so they aren't around to make sure little Johnny does his homework. Or they may be poor or lazy or have drug problems and treat the schools as a sort of daycare that takes the responsibility off their hands for most of the day or in some cases virtually forever. The amount of kids that show up for school unprepared to learn is appalling. No breakfast, improper clothing, lack of sleep...I could go on and on. The best school in the world is not going to put a dent in many of these types of situations. But a good school and good teachers will also get through to many of these kids who have been dealt a bad situation. Too many people blame the schools, and I'm sure that is warranted in some situations. But my experience shows me that, by and large, the kid's home situation is the toughest egg to crack. I do think vouchers would help eliminate the situations where the school is not doing their job. And that just leaves the bad parent homes that no amount of tax money is going to overcome anyway. Not too continue my rant too much further but, I also believe this is why schools need to focus more on trades and vocations and concentrate on preparing some of these kids, who are never going further anyway, for going directly into the workforce and providing for themselves for the rest of their lives. I believe there is too much focus on trying to get all kids college bound when it is clear many are never going to succeed on that path. Schools waste a ton of money trying to get the lowest performers up to some certain level and they tend to ignore the top performers who really have a chance at making an impact in this world. This seems to be the educational philosophy in this country. Luckily we have opted into a public high school that I feel does a very good job of maintain a challenging environment for high performers and also tries to do the best they can for low performers. My daughter is taking numerous AP classes and will soon be taking some college classes while still in high school. Yet there are gang bangers and other various problems failing the simplest remedial classes in the same school.

LOL. Have you met parents? They're stupid and self-centered and wholly lacking in objectivity about their children. There's a reason today's kids get ribbons for finishing last - it's their parents. Knapp, this is partially true. Some parents are stupid and lacking objectivity. However, it has not been my experience that parents were the driving force behind ribbons down to last place. I and many parents used to make fun of the 12th place ribbons the Schools would hand out on field day. It is a valuable lesson learned, and the sooner the better, that some level of subpar performance is not worthy of being acknowledged as exemplary. 12th place in the three legged race? Really? I'm not sure where or how some of the insanity began but it is out of control. Part of the problem with society is we are raising a generation (maybe more than one) that thinks anything and everything they do is special. It's not. It stands to reason that some of these kids are having problems in the real world where real performance is the standard. I don't think many of these kids are learning that it might take real effort or skill or ability to make it in the world. As much disdain as I have for many parents, I think this has become more of a systemic problem than one directly attributable strictly to parents.

Zoogs- This is my understanding if how vouchers work. Taxing entities; Federal, state and local still collect funds (taxes) for educational purposes. Schools typically get reimbursed so much per student based on the specific enrollment numbers in the school/district. For explanation sake, let's say it is $7,000 per student per school year. What vouchers do is put the decision which school gets that $7,000 in the hands of the parents. Whichever school they send their child to, that school gets the money. The theory is it makes the schools more accountable and responsible for providing a good education. Bad schools would lose funding because parents will flock to the better schools. Initially, yes I think it would harm some underperforming schools in poorer areas but eventually competition and the desire to expand income should give rise to better schools everywhere. That per pupil money is just as good in a poor area as it is in a rich area. I actually think it could help improve school options in disadvantaged areas. It helps do away with the current model which in too many cases results in poring more and more funds into unaccountable hands.

Agree, those people will always exist. The best we can hope for is to keep lessening their numbers and keep making progress so they do not feel emboldened to crawl out of their holes to spew their hatred.

Zoogs- Comments like those just turn my stomach. WTH is wrong with some people? I don't even know where you begin to set somebody like that straight. I guess we just have to wait for their ilk to die off. I've told this story on HB before but years ago when I was at UNL, a group of us drove down to the Nebraska- Auburn football game (when we had the triplets and Bo Jackson played for Auburn). We spent the first night at our fraternity chapter house at Mississippi State. Sure I'd heard the bad words etc. before but it is really an eye opener when you're sitting on a porch having a beer and a couple black guys come walking down the street, minding their own business, and out of the blue one of the guys from their frat yells out "where ya goin' boy" with a level of disdain and hatred I had never seen before. I felt terrible for those two guys who just put their heads down and picked up the pace. I was just dumbfounded. It would never occur to me to do that based on somebody's skin color. I wish I could say I did something to help make it right but I was in such disbelief I just did nothing. Yeah, that was Mississippi in the early 80's but it was an eye opener for a kid from Columbus Nebraska. Anyway, yes, there are racist POS's still stealing our air, even today.

Thank you Moiraine. That information and data would indicate that what has increased is our exposure and awareness rather than a real increase in racial problems. That actually makes me feel better knowing that society really is improving for minorites. That jives a lot better with my personal experiences than the news we have been flooded with for the past couple of years.

It would also seem that some millenials apparently think Bush was a bad father & husband, that he wasn't relatable, that he didn't have any integrity, and that he didn't know how to disagree respectably. Shows ya how much good a decent kind of conscious memory is worth.

Are the problems really less frequent and less severe than ever before? I understand that the internet and social media sometimes (read-usually) blows things out of proportion but I'm pretty sure that only 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 years ago that the internet and social media existed and that we also would have otherwise heard about police shootings, people shooting police, etc. Not being snarky (for the first time today), would really like to see some hard data that proves racial tension is objectively less now than ever before. I'm really not seeing that.

How are race relations worse today than they were 8 years ago? I said "seem" to be much more strained. They may not be actually worse but more what LOMS is saying below. I don't think there is any questioning that it is much more at the forefront and therefore seems to be worse. However, if anyone thinks they are better, I would sure entertain the explanation. If they are demonstrably worse, what role, specifically, has Barack Obama played in that? He was/is the President. No specific role in it other than it did not improve under his watch as hoped and the standard for most of these things has little to do with what the President actually does and is usually only related to when he held office. I would also add that just by being the first black President, it caused some backlash reaction with actual racists in this country. Not his fault but just a consequence of his being black. If they are demonstrably worse, what role, specifically, have White racists played in that? A huge role as that is fairly self explanatory. I would add that black racists also contributed as do all racists. If they are demonstrably worse, what role, specifically, Conservative America played in that? * Not sure any of it can be contributed to "conservative America" just like it can't be contributed to "liberal or progressive America" so, none. If they are demonstrably worse, how, specifically, will Barack Obama leaving office help that? It won't. If they are demonstrably worse, how, specifically, will Donald Trump taking office help that? It won't. * Note that I specifically split Conservative America and White racists apart. They are not one and the same. Thank you. I would agree that much of it is due to the light in the dark corners. And some of it is due to people seeing things in those poorly illuminated shadows that don't really exist. When it comes to these police shooting issues, I have seen just about as many false claims of racism as I have legitimate claims. But, I will acknowledge that if we get rid of the real cases, the false claims should dwindle exponentially.

I agree and will even admit that I was on the wrong side of that issue for about the first 4 of those 8 years. That is some of what is giving me hope that maybe, just maybe, DJT will not turn out to be near as bad as many are now claiming. It's not that he hasn't earned the poor treatment but rather that Obama received much the same treatment from the other side and did not turn out to be near as bad as many were claiming he would.

Fair enough, I will no longer be advocating that people calm down. And I agree, he needs to know that those things are not acceptable to what is hopefully the majority of the people in this country.

I'd pay close attention to the riders attached to these and other bills before giving a candidate that ran on a xenophobic platform and hired a White Supremacist a snarky free pass. I'm not and won't give him a free pass. But, I will wait to begin the crucifying until there is something real, actually in the works. I hope you guys are not misunderstanding my position on the race/sexism/whatever issues and how they apply to DJT. Yes, he has said and done many horrible things and apparently has the backing of some very deplorable groups and people. I in no way approve of those things. But I am going to give him the opportunity to proceed on issues that need fixed in this country. Obama did not really get that luxury from the Republican controlled congress and it has hurt this country for the last 8 years. I fully understand not wanting to give him the benefit of the doubt. He hasn't earned it. And I understand the revenge motivation of not giving him anymore than his predecessor received. Trust me, I get it. But, I am sick and f'n tired of Washington getting nothing accomplished and simply pointing the finger at the other side, playing the people against each other so the "swamp" people can remain in control and keep f#cking us over. Not that it matters much what I do personally here on good ole HB but I have decided that getting some stuff fixed in this country is much more important so I am going to refrain from the histrionics until I feel it is actually time for them. He does not have my unfettered support or backing and, just to be clear, I DID NOT VOTE FOR HIM. I voted for write in candidate "You've got to be f#cking kidding me". Honestly and seriously, that is what was on my ballot because out of 22 or so options, there was no one, and I mean no one, worthy of a vote for President of the United States. Also worth mentioning, the electoral votes in the state I reside in went to Hillary. I understand that many of you will continue to want to paint me as some sort of Trump enabler. If that is what you are want to do, there is not much I can do about it. It's ok, I'm a big boy and can handle it.

But let's just be calm and see how it goes, right? Nah, you go ahead and do whatever you're going to do now. I'm done trying to calm anybody down. But personally, I'm going to wait to lose my sh#t for when some actual racist legislation begins or executive order actually occurs. What if there is never any change in legislation but hate crimes increase 200, 300, 400%? Do you mean an escalaton in race related problems like we have seen these last few years while Obama was in the White House? That type of increase, with generally worse race relations in the country? Sure, I guess you can blame one man, DJT, for that if you wish. JJH - Just so we are clear... You are stating that the erosion of white male privilege; the war against institutional & systemic discrimination in police, government service, healthcare, and financial sectors; a minuscule improvement in fair pay for women & minorities; and a focus on Ability/Capability/Achievement rather than on Race/Color/Creed/Religion/Gender/Sexual Orientation/other arbitrary classification are, in fact, a worsening of race relations in this country? Or, are you stating the improvement minorities expected 8 years ago have not been fully realized in this country and we still have a long way to go before women and non-white male heterosexuals have the same rights and privileges in their daily lives as white male heterosexuals? Sincerely ~72% of US population Well, I guess, thank you for telling me what I must've really meant by simply commenting that race relations now, before DJT came on the scene, seem to be much more strained than they were 4 or 8 years ago. PS: Note to other posters- please refrain from reading things that are not actually included in a person's post. Thanks much in advance.

Well that's just crazy! We the people cannot stand for such hogwash; the government getting more efficient and helping the middle class, trying to grow the economy and create jobs....the sheer madness, when will it all end? Serious question- where are all the racist provisions in these bills? I've got me lighter fluid and pitchfork ready, just need to know when to bust them out.

But let's just be calm and see how it goes, right? Nah, you go ahead and do whatever you're going to do now. I'm done trying to calm anybody down. But personally, I'm going to wait to lose my sh#t for when some actual racist legislation begins or executive order actually occurs. What if there is never any change in legislation but hate crimes increase 200, 300, 400%? Do you mean an escalaton in race related problems like we have seen these last few years while Obama was in the White House? That type of increase, with generally worse race relations in the country? Sure, I guess you can blame one man, DJT, for that if you wish.

But let's just be calm and see how it goes, right? Nah, you go ahead and do whatever you're going to do now. I'm done trying to calm anybody down. But personally, I'm going to wait to lose my sh#t for when some actual racist legislation begins or executive order actually occurs.

Would people say the same things about Black 41 Flash Reverse, fumblerooski, etc., or are those different somehow? Yes, actually those are completely different. Plays like those are used infrequently with the hopes of tricking the other team and catching them unprepared. The opponent hasn't seen us do them multiple times per game and can't prepare for them. I would not be opposed to this PAT formation if we did it only occasionally. Then we might actually catch somebody not ready for it and force a timeout or actually be successful with a 2 point conversion.

I guess I'm just old fashioned. Prepare your own team, control the line of scrimmage, act like you belong and have done it before and just line up and kick the extra point. There's a reason the trickeration aspect was utilized, once, against Fresno St and nobody else. Sorry, I just think it makes our whole program look gimmicky. That isn't the level I would like to see us competing at and we sure shouldnt need it against the only teams it would ever work on.