Obama '08?

snood, I'm talking in terms of general feelings of blacks; I'm sure some blacks might consider their blackness irrelevant, but believe those would be in the small minority.

In other words, I would never say that my Asian ancestry was irrelevant, and I'm not sure I know of any other Asian that would say the same, but there may be some that may feel it is.

My own personal view is that there are circumstances in which it is necessary to use race as a factor among many factors in diversifying a college class," she told the network "And so I've been a supporter of affirmative action that is not quota based and that does not seek to make race the only factor, but that considers race as one of many factors."

"I wish it was possible for everything to be race-neutral in this country, but I'm afraid we're not yet at that point where things are race-neutral," Powell said on CNN's "Late Edition."

"I believe race should be a factor among many other factors in determining the makeup of a student body of a university."

Perhaps I overspoke, snood. I thought I recalled a question being thrown at him about race once. His response was along the lines of "of course", but then moved to more relevant territory quickly instead of dwelling on it. Short, curt answer, now let's talk about a solution... kinda attitude. Does that sound more accurate? "Irrelevant" may have been overstating my point... which was in comparison to the former candidates Jackson or Sharpton who loved to focus on race.

Roxanne, you're reaching badly with your liking Uncle Tom nonsense. You insult both Obama and myself with such ignorance.

Thomas' opinion about having "baggage" from their ancestors might be one answer, but I think it's much more. What that is surely includes their parent's and peer attitudes.

Does Thomas Sowell explain this?

It is this connectedness with the grassroots, and his easy communication with a broad spectrum of constituents that make him such an attractive possibility for many on this thread - including me.

snood wrote:

Setanta wrote:

Upon a time, you were cordial enough.

Snood:As were you - that seems to stop everytime you don't feel sufficiently deferred to.

I'm not taking a side on this one, since you seem to be talking past each other for the most part, anyway. I would encourage you to consider this part though, Setanta.

OCCOM BILL wrote:

snood wrote:

Setanta wrote:

Upon a time, you were cordial enough.

Snood:As were you - that seems to stop everytime you don't feel sufficiently deferred to.

I'm not taking a side on this one, since you seem to be talking past each other for the most part, anyway. I would encourage you to consider this part though, Setanta.

That was pretty snotty of you, O'Bill. Snood has followed me around from thread to thread for months to make sneering, insulting remarks because he is enraged about my comments on christianity. I encourage you to examine you own haste to suggest about me something which applies far more to Snood, who becomes irrationally angry because i don't display a sufficient deference to the sanctity of his religious superstitions. I've sent him a PM so as not to further burden Soz' thread. I suggest you use the same avenue if you've got any more snotty observations to make to me.

Obama and Lugar's bipartisan legislation, the American Fuels Act of 2006 (S. 2446), would take a four-step approach to reducing America's dependence on foreign oil. First, the legislation would spur investment in alternative fuels by increasing the production of cellulosic biomass ethanol (CBE) to 250 million gallons by 2012. It would also create an Alternative Diesel Standard that will require 2 billion gallons of alternatives diesels be mixed into the 40 billion gallon annual national diesel pool by 2015. This proposal is modeled of the Renewable Fuels Standard, which has proved successful in increasing ethanol production and use.

Second, the legislation would help increase consumer demand for alternative fuels by providing a short-term, 35 cents per gallon tax credit for E85 fuel and by providing automakers with a $100 tax credit for every E85-capable Flexible Fuel Vehicle (FFV) produced.

Third, it would require the U.S. government to lead by example and increase access to alternative fuels by requiring the government to allow public access to alternative fueling stations located on federal government property and by requiring that only clean buses be eligible for federal cost sharing. It would also create establish a Department of Defense "fly-off competition" that would encourage private sector companies to compete to find the most energy efficient alternatives fuels for defense purposes.

Finally, the legislation would create a Director of Energy Security to oversee and keep America focused on its goal of energy independence. The Director of Energy Security would serve as the principal advisor to the President, the National Security Council, the National Economic Council and the Homeland Security Council.

From the moment our children step into a classroom, new evidence shows that the single most important factor in determining their achievement today is not the color of their skin or where they come from; it's not who their parents are or how much money they have.

It's who their teacher is. It's the person who will brave some of the most difficult schools, the most challenging children, and accept the most meager compensation simply to give someone else the chance to succeed.

One study shows that two groups of students who started third grade at about the same level of math achievement finished fifth grade at vastly different levels. The group with the effective teacher saw their scores rise by nearly 25%. The group with the ineffective teacher actually saw their scores drop by 25%.

But even though we know how much teaching matters, in too many places we've abandoned our teachers and principals, sending them into some of the most impoverished, underperforming schools with little experience or pay; little preparation or support. After a few years of experience, most will leave to pick wealthier, less challenging schools.

The result is that some of our neediest children end up with less-experienced, poorly-paid teachers who are far more likely to be teaching subjects in which they have no training. Minority students are twice as likely to have these teachers. In Illinois, students in high-poverty schools are more than three times as likely to have them.

If we hope to give our children a chance, it's time we start giving our teachers and our principals a chance. We can't change the whole country overnight. But what we can do is give more school districts the chance to revolutionize the way they approach teaching. By helping spark complete reform across an entire school district, we can learn what actually works for our kids and then replicate those policies throughout the country.

So here's the legislation I'm introducing this week - it's the creation of what I call Innovation Districts. School districts from around the country that want to become seedbeds of reform would apply and we'd select the twenty with the best plans to put effective, supported teachers in all classrooms and increase achievement for all students. We'd offer these districts substantial new resources to do this, but in return, we'd ask them to try systemic new reforms. Above all, we'd require results.

In Innovation Districts, we'd begin by working with these districts to strengthen their teaching, and we'd start with recruitment.

Right now we don't have nearly enough effective teachers and principals in the places we need them most: urban and rural schools, and subject areas like math and science. One of the main reasons for this, cited by most teachers who leave the profession, is that no one gives them the necessary training and preparation.

Around the country, organizations like the Academy for Urban School Leadership right here in Chicago are changing this by recruiting and training new, highly-qualified teachers for some of the hardest-to-teach classrooms in the country. We need to expand this by giving districts help in creating new teacher academies that will partner with organizations like this to recruit effective teachers for low-performing, high-poverty schools. Each teacher would undergo an extensive training program before they begin, including classroom observation and participation.

These teacher academies are also showing us that it's not enough to just put outstanding teachers in the classroom - we have to place outstanding principals in the schools as well. In districts across the country, the role of principal is being transformed from bureaucratic manager to instructional leader who can set high standards and recruit great talent. With 230 New Leaders serving more than 100,000 kids annually, New Leaders for New Schools has been at the cutting edge of this process - a process we need to expand nationally.

After we recruit great teachers, we need to pay them better. Right now, teaching is one of the only professions where no matter how well you perform at your job, you're almost never rewarded for success. But with six-figure salaries luring away some of our most talented college graduates from some of our neediest schools, this needs to change.

That's why teachers in these Innovation Districts who are successful in improving student achievement would receive substantial pay increases, as would those who choose to teach in the most troubled schools and the highest-need subject areas, like math and science. The city of Denver is trying pay increases in partnership with the local union, and when Chattanooga, Tennessee offered similar incentives for teachers who taught in high-need schools, student reading scores went up by over 10%.

Of course, teachers don't just need more pay, they need more support. One thing I kept hearing when I visited Dodge Elementary here in Chicago is how much an encouraging principal or the advice of an experienced teacher can make a difference. That's why teachers would be paired with mentor teachers who've been there before. After a few years of experience, they'd then have the chance to become mentor teachers themselves.