The Battle of Gettysburg: A Timeline

Do take a look at this neat timeline and map by Smithsonian magazine.  This year was the 150th anniversary of this pivotal battle of the Civil War.

Hello Kitty Monstrosity of the Day: 5-Year-Old Girl Criminal

I yield to nobody in my hatred of the mouthless cartoon cat, but this news item is insane.  The monstrosity this time isn't a Hello Kitty-themed object but the behavior of "adults" who should know better.  Headline: "Pennsylvania kindergartener uses Hello Kitty bubble-gun at school, suspended for 'terrorist threat.'"  

A threat? It's a pink plastic toy that makes soap bubbles, for goodness sake!  The little girl's parents are considering a lawsuit.

Nerd News: No Edu-Crat Left Behind

*Sigh.*

Two years after Pittsburgh Public Schools received $40 million from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to increase teachers' effectiveness, the district has spent or allocated nearly a third of it on consultants and contractors, mainly from outside the state. 

Administrators told board members that they need consultants to perform specialized work outside the expertise of district personnel. 

"We're on track right now to be able to provide teachers and support teachers in improving their practice, in a way that hasn't been done before," said Sam Franklin, executive director of the district's Office of Teacher Effectiveness, whose $110,000 annual salary [my emphasis -- MM] is paid with Gates money.

Nerd News: Abuse Scandal at Penn State

Alleged crime and cover-up.  More sordid details here.

Awesomeness: Philly's Mayor Nutter Speaks

Alessandra told me about the recent "flash mob" youth violence in Philadelphia and the response of the mayor.  His recent speech on the subject is awesome.  Do read the whole thing here as Mayor Michael Nutter delivers some home truths.  We need more of this.  It's time and past time for Philly to be a City of Brotherly Tough Love.

A Tale of Two Shale States

Read this.  Also this.

Pregnant Commuter 1, Mugger 0

And in Philadelphia, City of Brotherly Love. You go, girl. By the time the cops arrived on the scene, the perp was lying in the street and screaming in pain.  Heh. Note to perps everywhere: Don't pick on girls who know kick-boxing.

Cultural Commentary: Football and the "Wussification of America"

Ed Rendell is dishing out the awesomeness again.  Take a look at this video clip as a follow-up to my previous post on the peppery governor of Pennsylvania.  (By the way, check out his seat at the game.)

What would Vince Lombardi have said?

Quote of the Day: On Postponing NFL Games in Philadelphia

Ed Rendell, governor of Pennsylvania, is not happy at all:

"It goes against everything that football is all about," Rendell said Monday on radio station 97.5 The Fanatic in Philadelphia.

Rendell was rankled by the league's decision to move the Philadelphia Eagles' home game against the Minnesota Vikings from Sunday night to Tuesday evening.

The NFL cited the winter storm that wound up slamming most of the East Coast as the reason for the change, but elected to postpone the game before any snow had even accumulated. About a foot of snow fell on Philadelphia, though less than 5 inches was on the ground before the scheduled kickoff at 8:20 p.m. EST Sunday night.

Rendell viewed the NFL's decision as a referendum on the toughness, or lack thereof, of the United States.

"My biggest beef is that this is part of what's happened in this country," Rendell said. "I think we've become wussies."

"We've become a nation of wusses. The Chinese are kicking our butt in everything," Rendell added. "If this was in China do you think the Chinese would have called off the game? People would have been marching down to the stadium, they would have walked and they would have been doing calculus on the way down."

Nice rant, sir.  Doing calculus on the way down!

Friday Fun Video: Philly Flash Mob Sings "Hallelujah Chorus"

Outstanding!  Just as much fun is the title of the video: "Random Act of Culture."  Who couldn't use a bit more lovely music in a day?  Besides, Handel is far too good to be heard only at Christmas.  Video via Assistant Village Idiot.

Forever and ever.

It Begins: 14 States File Suit Against ObamaCare

"an unprecedented encroachment on the sovereignty of the states" (quoted verbatim from the legal complaint)

It's gone from speculation to fact as the attorneys general of Florida, South Carolina, Nebraska, Texas, Michigan, Utah, Pennsylvania, Alabama, South Dakota, Louisiana, Idaho, Washington, Colorado, and Virginia sue. (To be nitpicky, though, I could point out that technically Pennsylvania and Virginia are "commonwealths.")

Those of you gentle readers who are legal eagles might like a look at the complaint (in PDF).

Here are a few more thoughts about the individual mandate and judicial review at Volokh, a law professor blog.

A thought: the fact that more than 30 states are asserting their opposition to ObamaCare is something worth remembering.

(I feel that I should create a tag named "states' rights" or something like that, but that term kind of sounds too Civil War-ish to a history nerd like me. Can you think of a better tag?)

The Hessians' Christmas Surprise: Washington Crosses the Delaware in 1776

It was a gutsy move and a major event that is re-enacted every Christmas. Hey, the fight for freedom never takes a holiday!