Episode 121
Notes
[Cue Episode Synth Voice]
[Cue extra lead-in Wizard of OZ
brain]
[Cue Intro]
Banter: Hello daddy-castaways, welcome to the
hangover, week-after new-year daddycast!
I really need to think of a good name to call regular listeners to this
program. Daddy castaways sounds kinda
like the Gilligan’s
I took my
son to Burger King yesterday. If you
have small kids, you’ve probably noticed that their appetites are not steady,
and certainly DO NOT peak around breakfast, lunch, or dinner. They get hungry one day, then they may not
eat for 2 or 3 days…just depends. Our
pediatrician told us and I quote, “Its not the parents responsibility to get
their kids to eat. They will eat when
they’re ready”. Well, my wife and I can
tell, just by how Evan eats his breakfast, whether today will be an ‘eat day’
or a ‘no eat day’. When it’s a no-eat
day, he’ll turn his nose up at his favorite foods. But when its an eat-day, watch out for your
livestock! He’ll eat everything we put
in front of him, and ask for more.
Anyway, We
had already eaten dinner, I was running errands and my son tagged along for the
ride. Evan was still hungry, and chewing
on his hands in the car – a sure sign of an ‘eat-day’, so I stopped at Burger
King and got him a snack. I kept the box
– they’re called ‘Chicken Fries’ – they’re like long chicken nuggets that have
been cooked a little longer, that’s all.
The food at Burger King does not appeal to me, but my son loves it. What intrigued me was the marketing and
packaging. I kept the box the Chicken
Fries came in, just so I could read this sales blurb on the back to you, {read
box} Who thinks up this stuff? I already
bought it…why not tell me what’s in it instead of how or who to eat it with.
We got a
new Toontest this week, a new geeky baby wipes use – which I came up with out
of desperation, as usual, and lots o’ news – although it was a quiet week for
the kind of news we feature on the podcast.
Everybody is focused on COMDEX, and the MacWorld Expo next week, so all
the journalists who normally cover the ‘baby beat’ are all geeking out in
Google
announced they’re gonna sell videos now.
Just what we need – a search engine selling out-of-date content for 99
cents. Or a buck 99, or whatever. Bill Gates is getting into the music business
with ‘Urge’. Kinda late there Bill. eBay wants to be your telephone company. All these companies are racing to make the
jump out of your PC and into your house.
I said it before – “Television puts people in your living room that you
wouldn’t invite into your home”.
[Cue News_Theme]
Headlines:
FDA studies ADD, Schools tell parents to ‘pay up to log on’, Parents worry
again about saving for College, Think
your SUV is safer?, Court throws out vouchers.
Stay Tuned…
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[Cue News_Bulletin]
[Cue Synth News Intro]
News:
FDA to Examine New Ways to Study ADD
Drugs
Reports of
sudden deaths, strokes, heart attacks and hypertension in both children and
adults taking drugs to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder are
spurring new government study into the medications' safety. Sales of drugs to
treat ADHD have increased sharply in recent years, with use growing at a faster
rate among adults than children, according to a recent study by Medco Health
Solutions, a prescription benefit manager. Spending on ADHD drugs soared from
$759 million in 2000 to $3.1 billion in 2004, according to IMS Health, a
pharmaceutical information and consulting firm.
The Food
and Drug Administration said it had received reports of what it called 'serious
adverse events' _ including deaths _ in association with the therapeutic use of
the drugs. No additional details on those events were immediately available.
The FDA's
Canadian counterpart, Health
The panel
eventually concluded there was inadequate evidence of increased harm from
Adderall XR compared with other available therapies _ a conclusion the FDA also
reached based on data on hand.
Now the
'It almost
sounds like cox-2 inhibitor redux,' said committee chairman Dr. Peter Gross,
referring to cox-2 painkillers like Vioxx and Bextra pulled from the market
because of evidence they can raise the risk of a heart attack or stroke.
The
committee is to meet Feb. 9 and 10 in
'The issue
of drug treatment of attention deficit disorder in children has been a
controversial one without this issue of cardiovascular risk too. It adds
another concern to what will certainly be an interesting conversation,' said
Arthur Levin, the FDA committee's consumer representative.
A posting
to the FDA Web site did not identify any of the drugs by name. However, the
most commonly used ADHD drugs include Adderall XR, made by Shire
Pharmaceuticals, and Ritalin, made by Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. Various
other companies make generic versions of Ritalin as well.
The
committee's Feb. 10 meeting will include updates on FDA actions on cox-2 drugs
as well as a recently begun patient, doctor and pharmacist registry program for
the anti-acne drug Accutane and its generic competitors.
Hmm…A study
to study a study…Boy, this is scary. BUT
- If there is a risk to sudden death from taking these drugs, you gotta be
asking yourself is it worth the risk. My
mom WAS taking vioxx for arthritis, and she very unhappy about that drug being
pulled. She had none of the side-effects
and had been taking the drug for some time.
But hey – this is why DOCTORS need to be actively involved, and not just
tossing prescriptions at us. So if your
kids are on Ritalin, you may want to ask your kid’s doctor about the risks…and
if he doesn’t know – you may want to find another doctor.
Schools ask parents to pay up before
kids log on
By William
M. Welch,
The public
school system in this quiet city 27 miles southeast of
An
increasing number of school systems are using computers in the core curriculum
of early grades. Don Knezek, CEO of the International Society for Technology in
Education, a non-profit group in
But asking
parents to pay for it isn't.
"I can
see where that issue raises concerns," he says. "I'm not aware of
anyone else who has tried that."
The
Some
parents worry that whatever its educational benefits, the program has created
an expensive burden for struggling families and has forged new divisions in the
public schools.
Sutherland,
who kept her 11-year-old daughter out of the program, is concerned that it
creates "a horrible form of financial segregation."
"It's
mind-boggling that they would even suggest such a thing," Sutherland says.
Some
parents say the financial expectations and price tag violate
"The
Dingess
moved three of her four children to another school within the district to avoid
the big computer bill and what she says was the embarrassment her children
faced from being unable to pay. Her fourth child, an eighth-grader, remained in
the program for a final year.
McCune, who
created the program, acknowledges that his school system is trying something
controversial, but he says lower-income families can get help paying for the
computers. "In all four schools, nobody has been denied access because of
a lack of ability to pay."
There are
other concerns. Some parents say transferring to another school is not fair.
Others object to requests for tax returns and financial records to obtain aid.
"We don't think you have the right to ask for that information,"
Dingess says. "You're not the IRS. You're a public school."
Schools
have come a long way in embracing technology in the past decade. More than 99%
of public schools had Internet access by 2002, according to federal statistics.
It is commonplace for even elementary classrooms to have one or more computers.
Students
seem to like the brave new world, though what they're learning may not be so
educational. In
"It
was fun to have around and to use for my own purposes," says Riley Hall,
13, who was in the program last year but transferred to another school for
eighth grade. "But it didn't make school any better or more challenging.
... A lot of it at school was to show off what you know about computers."
- $1500
macs? – set-up a lab – charge lab fees if you have to – 1st graders
with laptops? – yeah that’s smart!
Parents Worry Most About College
Savings
By EILEEN
ALT POWELL
AP Business
Writer
All those
reports about the rising cost of a college education appear to be having an
impact on the savings patterns of American families.
A survey
finds that parents with children under age 18 are more concerned about saving
for their children's educations than they are about saving for retirement.
The study
was commissioned by The Vanguard Group mutual fund company, which is based in
The survey
found that 37 percent of the more than 1,100 parents who were interviewed said
saving for college was of primary concern, compared with 34 percent who said
retirement was their top financial concern. The rest said that saving for a
house, car or other major purchase was most important.
Interestingly,
more families with children under age 12 were saving for college _ 64 percent _
compared with families with children aged 12 to 17, where the rate was 59
percent, the study found. And 30 percent of families with younger children said
that grandparents and other relatives were helping them to save, compared with
25 percent of families with older children.
John
Heywood, a principal of Vanguard's education markets group, said he suspected
parents were motivated by surging college costs.
'I believe
people are recognizing the increasing costs of college and starting to save
earlier,' Heywood said.
The cost of
sending children to college has been rising fast in recent years. According to
the latest survey from the College Board, a nonprofit association based in
Washington, D.C., tuition and fees at four-year private institutions rose
nearly 6 percent to $21,235 for the 2005-2006 academic year from $20,045 in
2004-2005, while costs at four-year public institutions went up more than 7
percent to $5,491 from $5,126.
Most
financial advisers urge families to save first for their own retirement and then
put money aside for their kids' education, arguing that families can borrow to
fund college but not retirement. But Heywood said this conflicts with parents'
aspirations for their children.
'People
hear that and they say, 'Too bad about retirement savings; my kids are going to
college.''
He added
that for young families, 'retirement is farther off than the kids going to
college, so there's less urgency.'
The
families who have started saving for their children's college educations have
set aside about $4,700 per child so far, the study found.
It said
that about four out of 10 families were familiar with the Section 529 college
savings plans, which are tax-favored programs set up by states to help families
save for college. Savings in 529 plans grow tax-deferred, and withdrawals are
tax-free when used for education.
…the sooner
you start, the better…and the less burden there is on the family. Kid still in diapers? Go start a college fund. We did, my dad has one st-up. By the time my son is old enough, there’ll be
college money waiting, probably enough to even pay living expenses. Gotta love compound interest.
Here on the
daddycast, I’ve been throwing little segments in when I talk with my friend
Matthew Brown. He lives and breathes
investing – runs in his blood. His
father was an investment broker – and I gather a bit of a workaholic from what
Matthew has said. Anyway, we have mutual
funds that we move money into and out of.
We have a 401(k) plan at work that allows us to move money between funds
without paying fees. So Matthew watches
the market and we move money into funds when the market is going up, and out of
funds and into a money market account (basically a cash account) when the
market falls. It’s the old ‘buy low,
sell high’ trick. With Matthew’s help,
my 401(k) plan has doubled in 2 years.
He’s good – really good. And we
get together and talk about this stuff often.
So when we do, I’ll bring it to ya to help you save for your kids
college education. We’re not
professional investors, OK? We just talk
about the market over a beer. So think
of it like we’re talking to YOU over a beer about stocks – not giving
professional advice. ‘Nuff said?
Study Shows Children No Safer in SUVs
By JAN
DENNIS
Associated
Press Writer
Children are
no safer riding in sport utility vehicles than in passenger cars, largely
because the doubled risk of rollovers in SUVs cancels out the safety advantages
of their greater size and weight, according to a study.
Researchers
said the findings dispel the bigger-equals-safer myth that has helped fuel the
growing popularity of SUVs among families. SUV registrations climbed 250
percent in the
'We're not
saying they're worse or that they're terrible vehicles. We're challenging the
conventional wisdom that everyone assumed they were better,' said Dr. Dennis
Durbin, a pediatric emergency physician who took part in the study, published
Tuesday in the journal Pediatrics.
Eron
Shosteck, a spokesman for the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, said he had
not seen the study but cited government research released last summer that
found SUVs have become less top-heavy since 2000 and made dramatic improvements
in rollover resistance.
'SUVs have
an exceptional safety record and are safer than or as safe as cars in the vast
majority of crashes,' Shosteck said.
The study,
which Durbin called the first on SUVs and child safety, was sponsored by
Partners for Child Passenger Safety, a research project of Children's
The
researchers looked at accidents involving nearly 4,000 children under age 16
between 2000 and 2003, and found child injury rates of about 1.7 percent in
both cars and SUVs. The study examined only 1998 or newer cars and SUVs with
second-generation air bags.
On average,
the SUVs weighed 1,300 pounds more than the cars studied. The study found that
the extra weight of SUVs enhanced safety, reducing the risk of injury by more than
a third.
But that
was offset by findings that SUVs were more than twice as likely as cars to roll
over in crashes.
Children in
rollovers were three times more likely to be seriously injured than those in
non-rollover accidents, according to the study.
The
findings surprised researchers, who assumed heavier SUVs were safer than cars
when they launched the study a year ago, Durbin said.
SUV safety
will probably improve because of legislation approved by Congress this year
that requires the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration to
develop standards for automakers to address SUV rollovers, he said.
'To the
extent that SUV makers can solve the rollover problem, we may see them becoming
the safe haven for children that they have the potential to be,' Durbin said.
Automakers
already have made strides through engineering and new technology such as
electronic stability control, Shosteck said.
NHTSA
spokesman Rae Tyson agreed but said he hopes the study will encourage families
to check safety ratings closely before buying.
'I think
there is a segment of the buying public that may be buying them with the false
impression that they are buying the safest vehicle they can for their
families,' Tyson said.
…If you can
buy a Hummer, buy one. Buy a used
Sherman TANK if you can make it street-legal.
Your family is THE MOST IMPORTANT CARGO YOU HAVE. Studies or no studies. I have been in three collisions with my son
in the car. 2 of those were in an
SUV. Both times the OTHER CAR was
totaled and had to be towed away. (It was also the other guy’s fault in both of
them). And, in both cases, my son WAS
NOT HURT…NOT ONE BIT. I own an SUV and a
big ol’ made-in-the-USA pickup truck, which took out a deer – y’know, Bambi –
on the freeway. I talked about it before
on the show. I forget which episode…one
of the early ones. Point is, no compact
cars for me – not anymore…I’m a DAD NOW…
Voucher
schools are not subject to the same regulations that apply to public schools.
The Florida
Supreme Court knocked the wind out of Gov. Jeb Bush's education revamp
Thursday, ruling that the private-school voucher program violates the state
Constitution's promise of a "uniform system of free public schools."
Watched
nationwide, the 5-2 decision topples Opportunity Scholarships, the only
statewide voucher program in the country. It also raises doubts about two
related voucher programs.
The ruling
shatters the biggest stick Bush wielded to boost performance - the ability to
use tax dollars to leave a failing public school for a private one.
Vouchers
are "one of the most important reasons why we have seen rising student
achievement," Bush said at a news conference in
This year,
only about 700 of
Though the
numbers are small, the policy implications have always been huge.
Supporters,
including a long line of conservative think tanks and interest groups, say
vouchers have motivated struggling public schools to perform better through
competition. A couple of recent academic studies, including one by researchers
at Harvard University, back up that claim.
But
opponents, led by the state's teachers union, say vouchers drain money from
public schools - an argument echoed by the Supreme Court majority as well as
Democratic candidates for governor. They also say vouchers unfairly malign
public schools and violate constitutional restrictions separating church and
state.
Thursday's
ruling is "a victory for public schools in
Filed one
day after Bush signed the program into law in 1999, Bush vs. Holmes has been
colored ever since by religious and racial overtones. The vast majority of
students using Opportunity Scholarships are black or Hispanic, and polls show
strong support in minority communities for voucher programs. At the same time,
the case has raised thorny questions regarding the constitutionality of sending
public money to religious schools, which make up the majority of those
accepting vouchers.
For some
families, though, vouchers were not policy but personal. Andy Cameron, 55, of
"It
gave us a choice, which we didn't have before," Cameron said. "The
schools that Ramon was in, before, were in pretty rough condition. The kids
didn't even have access to books to take home."
Cameron
said he is a Democrat, and disagrees with Bush on some of his policies.
"But on the voucher program, I backed him 100 percent," he said.
Lower
courts had ruled against the program on religious grounds, but the Supreme
Court steered wide of that argument. Instead, a majority found that vouchers
violate a state constitutional provision that voters enacted in 1998, for a
"uniform, efficient, safe, secure and high quality system of free public
schools."
The
justices turned the accountability argument upside down, noting voucher schools
are not subject to the same rigorous state regulations that apply to public
schools. That, they wrote, violates the constitutional mandate for a
"uniform" public school system.
"We
recognize that the proponents of vouchers have a strongly held view that
students should have choices. Our decision does not deny parents recourse to
either public or private school alternatives to a failing school," said
the 35-page ruling, authored by Chief Justice Barbara Pariente. "Only when
the private school option depends upon public funding is choice limited."
The two
dissenting justices, Kenneth Bell and Raoul Cantero, are Bush appointees. In a
dissent
Legal
scholars said there are no grounds for Bush to appeal successfully to the U.S.
Supreme Court. There are no federal issues involved.
But Bush
did not rule out an appeal and vowed to pursue every strategy to keep vouchers
alive, including raising money from private sources.
The court
decision is "so, so bad," said Barbara Cruz, whose 18-year-old
daughter uses a voucher to attend La Progresiva Presbyterian School in
But Cruz
echoed the concerns of other voucher parents, who said their children made
better grades and focused more after getting away from public schools they
considered overcrowded and unsafe.
"She
made the biggest turnaround," Cruz said.
Republican
lawmakers are already discussing ways to reconstruct the voucher program and
are expected to seek remedies during the legislative session that starts March
7.
"Solutions
are imminent," said state Rep. Dennis Baxley, R-Ocala, who chairs the
House Education Council.
One
possibility: Modeling Opportunity Scholarships after a related program, in
which businesses get tax credit for donating their state corporate taxes to
scholarship funding organizations for vouchers. That program was not directly
affected by Thursday's ruling.
Another
possibility: a constitutional amendment.
"I
don't think any option should be taken off the table," Bush said.
Democrats
welcomed the court decision - and a renewed legislative debate.
"The
Florida Constitution requires that you take care of your public school system
before you start frolicking in private school systems, and clearly, we are not
taking care of our public schools adequately," said Rep. Dan Gelber,
Both
Republican candidates for governor, Chief Financial Officer Tom Gallagher and
Attorney General Charlie Crist, criticized the ruling, while both Democratic
candidates - U.S. Rep. Jim Davis of
…Well, the
lines are pretty clearly drawn in
Considering
that only 700 students used the scholarships out of 2.7 million students, I
fail to see the Democrat’s point on this one.
I agree that the public school system is, for the most part,
broken. But in
When I was
single, I used to grumble at the high property taxes I was paying, 80% of which
went to the public schools. That was
about 2,000 a year. Now its closer to
3,000 and I’m figuring that the public school is a BARGAIN! My son has ggod teachers, but of course the
only way I’d know that is because I checked all this out MYSELF.
I’m very
lucky. Where we live, we have a very
good, and very small, public school district.
The district isn’t big enough to be a political stepping stone for some
politician on a mission.
…And that
wipes out the news…
[Cue drop ELEMENT_2]
Here’s an
Ode to a household Appliance – Jonathon Coulton
[Cue Song 1 “Jonathon Coulton –
“Shop Vac”]
I think
that is my new Anthem for Suburbia…Jonathon Coulton and ‘Shop Vac’. C’mon guys…you really identify with this
song, don’t ya? And I thought I was
cynical…
[Cue Mailtime]
Comments,
questions, please send ‘em – I read ‘em all – to submit at 101 uses for baby
wipes dot com. Or use Skype – the ID is
USESFORWIPES. I had a guy connect to my
Skype today and ask to be on my contacts list.
He’s from
From John In
Just
listened to the last daddycast and heard your info about getting exercise in
the winter months. Must be easier for you, being in CA, but up here in
Oh, what is
geocaching? You use a GPS and some clues left by others to find a cache of stuff.
Usually it's cheapie chotchkies or little toys that people leave behind, but
sometimes there are some very fun things.
Aside from the GPS unit, it's as cheap as hiking and there are thousands
upon thousands of caches around the world. geocaching.org will show you all
about it.
…Sounds
like fun, John. Well, out here in the
part of
From Frank Wit – of the Frank Wit
podcast:
Thanks so
much for playing my sister Jennifer's song "Delivery"... she has
three kids herself and would very much appreciate your podcast... if she was
computer literate, which shes not ;) I always let her know when new casts play
her songs though. Thanks again! I myself have an explicit (adult only)
podcast... it's so much fun isn't it. Take care!
…Well,
explicit? OK, yeah, he uses a fair
amount of profanity…still…its entertaining.
If you like sitting around watching your friends get drunk and get
silly, you’ll really like the Frank Wit podcast. Apparently, lots of folk do like it – hey I
thought it was pretty funny. He’s in the Podcast Alley top 10 right now – must
be doing something right.
That
reminds me – if you like the show – or even if you don’t like the show and are
just sensitive to the power of suggestion, PLEASE vote for my show! I know its an ego thing – so would I be doing
this if I didn’t have one? Mine hasn’t
been fed in awhile – he’s very malnourished.
[Cue Wipes Use #37 Intro]
Baby Wipes
Use: Central Processor Processor
You have no
doubt heard my trusty laptop in the background during my daddycasts. You can hear the whine of its turbo-jet
cooling system, screaming in the night as I talk into this way-to-sensitive
microphone that picks up a housefly farting in the kitchen trashcan.
Well, I for
one got sick of it. And in a weak
delusional moment, thinking of myself as handy around the house, I decided to
quietize my noisy friend here and find out what was causing the noise that has
begun plaguing my audio perfection.
Laptop
repair is much too much like watch repair.
And I loathe watch repair. Too
many watches have died at my hands because I don’t have the eyesight, the
patience or the tools for the job. But
COMPUTER REPAIR is something I know a bit about. So I set out to work, as usual, without a
manual, attempting to dissect my silicon podcast partner to find the source of
the screaming. And the vision thing is
still an issue.
Got the
panel off where the fans are, and found, to my amazement, a wad of fuzz stuck
inside this fan-air-guide-thingy that was rubbing on the inside of the cooling
duct and making that horrendous noise I had grown so sick of hearing. Now the quiz: How do I get this apart to get
the fuzz out? Oh, look, the screws are
numbered…1…2…3…4…5…6. OK, I get
that. I undid all 6 screws and lifted
the fans off the bottom of the laptop.
But the CPU chip was stuck to the fans!
It pulled right out of its socket, bending pins along the way. But hey – I got that fuzzball out!
Now I was
close to panic. This was one expensive
piece of silicon here. It was loose, so
I pulled it off the fans, and it was covered in grey heatsink compound –
consistency of real sticky peanut butter – and I was getting it
everywhere. The chip was now stuck to my
finger! This stuff was like glue –
smelled like housefly farts – and I was now so freaked out that I was concerned
that I would break the CPU chip and there’d be no show! Oh the horror!
Baby Wipes
to the rescue! They managed to un-stick
the crud from me, the fans, they even did a nice job cleaning the dust off the
bottom of my laptop. I had to go to the
computer store and pay $13 for a tiny syringe of ‘silver-7’ – the stuff that
bonds the processor chip to the fans – and now my baby runs so nice and quiet. Hah – baby – I called the laptop baby – baby
wipes – baby – get it…
[Cue Drop_1]
We all make
these about this time of year. I resolve
not to fix my laptop myself anymore!
[Cue Song #2 Chris Ayer – “New Years
Resolution”]
Ready for
the ToonTest?
[Cue
ToonTest 27+28]
Answers: #3
– Hercules, #2 – Legend of Tarzan, #1 – Teacher’s Pet.
[Cue Alan Jay - Time]
That’s
it…we’re all wiped out. Thanks everybody
for listening and subscribing and participating in the discussion.
PLEASE send
your comments, suggestions, topics you’d like discussed on the program. The cool thing about podcasts is it IS a
two-way street. Yeah its my show, and
Evan’s show, but its your show too.
Don’t be shy – e-mail me. I won’t
bite.
I’d like to
thank my hero, Jonathon Coulton, Chris Ayer, and Beatrice Ericcson, This is hers, its called ‘Reach Out’. Podsafe – on the podsafe music network. Until the next daddycast…See YA!
[Cue Song #3 Beatrice Ericcson –
Reach Out]
[Cue Alan Jay – Groovy Baby]