Obama did it again!

[BishopMnA 0]

Clearly I am biased against 'those' mathematicians I have never met one of those. My dad was a mechanical engineer and a believer, my brother a pure mathematician and is not. My dad never gave me a 'god' forumula though.

Fair enough, I suppose if your Father had the formula then you would think differently.

You know, regarding your ealier comments about your son...I also just did not get the practicality of math when I was in school. However, when I was in college it all came to 'light' (pun intended) when I took Statistics. For some reason, Stats really brought mathematics alive for me...until then though it was simply a chore... Because of this 'revelation' (again, pun intended <haha> ) I came to the belief that school perhaps moves too slowly at the pre-collegiate level.

In fact, all of school seemed entirely boring to me until we were really given some meat (starting, in my case, at the university level) with the introduction of practical applications via economics classes/stats classes etc. Up until that point, I really had lost interest in education, but I hope that things have improved nowadays...but fear the worst...

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

Clearly I am biased against 'those' mathematicians I have never met one of those. My dad was a mechanical engineer and a believer, my brother a pure mathematician and is not. My dad never gave me a 'god' forumula though.

Whether God exists in your mind depends how you define Him: Your lack of definition does not prevent me from seeiing God in you, and if I bow to that, that is my choice.

But for the elected leader of our nation to make an act of subservience, while greeting a foreign leader, is wrong, and demeans both himself, and the country he represents. Period.

[Donna A 4]

isnt that called good manners in japan? i thought bows were standard greeting there. am i wrong?

[Peikko 1,575]

In all honestly I don't think the joy of learning is well communicated in public schools and I think you are right in some ways, that the traditional methods of teaching deliniate difinitively between disciplines instead of seeking connections not only between them, but also to the 'outside' world as it were. This necessarily means that kids learn in a vacume and only if they find joy in the activity itself (as my sone does with math) do they seem to perform well. Clearly there are some things that are easier to translate into real world use than others but ultimately it's all connected. My son, despite all my efforts, sees school as some form of punishment

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Can't hate something that doesn't exist

God does exist, beloved MC

Prove it!

Only to myself Brother Big Dog...thats my battle/blessing...

After that, I just have to 'walk'...

Exactly.

[Peikko 1,575]

Clearly I am biased against 'those' mathematicians I have never met one of those. My dad was a mechanical engineer and a believer, my brother a pure mathematician and is not. My dad never gave me a 'god' forumula though.

Whether God exists in your mind depends how you define Him: Your lack of definition does not prevent me from seeiing God in you, and if I bow to that, that is my choice.

But for the elected leader of our nation to make an act of subservience, while greeting a foreign leader, is wrong, and demeans both himself, and the country he represents. Period.

It is wrong to you because you lend it an added value that I do not. His bowing or not bowning does not signify anything to me beyond manners. This is 2009, not 1800. A foreign government is not going to see this as an act of weakness or strength, the Japanese are not going to invade America based on whether he does or doesn't bow - neither will any other foreign power. What might produce waves is this attitude that something like this has some relevance beyond what is and isn't the polite thing to do although even then I doubt it would do more than produce a flicker of muted laughter.

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

Clearly I am biased against 'those' mathematicians I have never met one of those. My dad was a mechanical engineer and a believer, my brother a pure mathematician and is not. My dad never gave me a 'god' forumula though.

Fair enough, I suppose if your Father had the formula then you would think differently.

You know, regarding your ealier comments about your son...I also just did not get the practicality of math when I was in school. However, when I was in college it all came to 'light' (pun intended) when I took Statistics. For some reason, Stats really brought mathematics alive for me...until then though it was simply a chore... Because of this 'revelation' (again, pun intended <haha> ) I came to the belief that school perhaps moves too slowly at the pre-collegiate level.

In fact, all of school seemed entirely boring to me until we were really given some meat (starting, in my case, at the university level) with the introduction of practical applications via economics classes/stats classes etc. Up until that point, I really had lost interest in education, but I hope that things have improved nowadays...but fear the worst...

I was a math major, more toward numerical analysis and computer science. My niece is in high school, and she showed me her course work for middle school a couple years back, This "whole math" concept has got to go! Gone is the rigor I was taught, as well as any sense of a foundation for later math studies. For a otherwise bright 13 year old not to know long division, but to be using algebra, is just wrong.

[BishopMnA 0]

Clearly I am biased against 'those' mathematicians I have never met one of those. My dad was a mechanical engineer and a believer, my brother a pure mathematician and is not. My dad never gave me a 'god' forumula though.

Fair enough, I suppose if your Father had the formula then you would think differently.

You know, regarding your ealier comments about your son...I also just did not get the practicality of math when I was in school. However, when I was in college it all came to 'light' (pun intended) when I took Statistics. For some reason, Stats really brought mathematics alive for me...until then though it was simply a chore... Because of this 'revelation' (again, pun intended <haha> ) I came to the belief that school perhaps moves too slowly at the pre-collegiate level.

In fact, all of school seemed entirely boring to me until we were really given some meat (starting, in my case, at the university level) with the introduction of practical applications via economics classes/stats classes etc. Up until that point, I really had lost interest in education, but I hope that things have improved nowadays...but fear the worst...

I was a math major, more toward numerical analysis and computer science. My niece is in high school, and she showed me her course work for middle school a couple years back, This "whole math" concept has got to go! Gone is the rigor I was taught, as well as any sense of a foundation for later math studies. For a otherwise bright 13 year old not to know long division, but to be using algebra, is just wrong.

But BrotherBill...has she mastered <=> yet (this is a worldview mathematical application) I'm telling you...I think that is the pinnacle of mathematical understanding..

But to your point: I would also be surprised that anyone past the age of 10 wouldn't understand long division / etc... Your post made me wonder what my own kids have learned...becaause they seem both to be quite bright (I really don't know where they got it from)...but I'm going to ask them to do a 'non-electronical' long division problem and see how they fare. For me personally, I never had a problem following the 'steps' of mathematics...because I could appreciate that aspect. From a methodical standpoint, mathematics is quite logical. However, I just never could 'grasp' the application (I guess that is how my brain did/did not work) when I was a kid in school.

I think I'd get it now that I'm old(er)

[Susita 175]

I think it's a sign of cultural respect and consideration.

A truly American way of greeting is to shake hands. Foreign leaders that come to our country tend to shake hands with the president and our countries leaders. In Japan, you bow, so what the heck? Bow. What's the big deal?

In my husband's country women kiss everybody on the cheek. So I everybody on the cheek. Cultural respect, get it?

Geez! I mean really, if this is the kind of ####### people have to dig up on the president to make him look bad well then he mustn't be all that bad. It makes these critics look like a bunch of sillies if you ask me.

[BishopMnA 0]

I think it's a sign of cultural respect and consideration.

A truly American way of greeting is to shake hands. Foreign leaders that come to our country tend to shake hands with the president and our countries leaders. In Japan, you bow, so what the heck? Bow. What's the big deal?

In my husband's country women kiss everybody on the cheek. So I everybody on the cheek. Cultural respect, get it?

Geez! I mean really, if this is the kind of ####### people have to dig up on the president to make him look bad well then he mustn't be all that bad. It makes these critics look like a bunch of sillies if you ask me.

In his travels, the Bishop kisses all foreign girls on the cheek as often as possible

Edited November 15, 2009 by MarkNAam

[Niels Bohr 72]

I don't have god in me because I'm myself god. Note: I'm not "God" from American Most Wanted.

[BishopMnA 0]

I don't have god in me because I'm myself god. Note: I'm not "God" from American Most Wanted.

Brother EngineerScientist,

Your logic is flawed. You state you don't have god in you because you yourself are god. How can you be god if god doesn't exist in you? Are you 'hallow'?

Blessings!

[Chica Yeyé 41]

isnt that called good manners in japan? i thought bows were standard greeting there. am i wrong?

No you are not wrong... but it seems people would much rahther have a complete arrogant dipsh12t azzhole as their president

[BishopMnA 0]

isnt that called good manners in japan? i thought bows were standard greeting there. am i wrong?

No you are not wrong... but it seems people would much rahther have a complete arrogant dipsh12t azzhole as their president

Len - I agree with you.

To the detriment of the USA, for decades the USA has been protectionist (sorry - but I lived in Detroit for 10 years) and at time seems unwilling to participate in the global economy, and instead looked for political answers to issues of competition. Its ironic! Competition is the very impetus which America has thrived upon! Our very nature as a Nation positions us for success!

Granted, this is a bow that we are talking about...but if we're going to get all 'out of whack' about it then I think we as Americans should realize that from a purely IT Global-Infrastructure standpoint, our economies are linked - globally, and considering that we should realize that we need to find a way to participate, and win!

I want America to win in the Global Economy, but if we can't even make the simplest of cultural/respectful gestures (bow = handshake) then we will lose. I'm surprised that on a multicultural board such as this that this is even news.

Blessings - Bishop

[Nagishkaw 510]

isnt that called good manners in japan? i thought bows were standard greeting there. am i wrong?

No you are not wrong... but it seems people would much rahther have a complete arrogant dipsh12t azzhole as their president