Dropping the RP council

[Romanar]

But his post DOES demonstrate his point about bias.      

And, though not relevant, I also fall short on TVs, cars, and parking spots. 

[Saletsia]

my choice: GC; St. Oz, Bustos

that should do!

[Zimmerwald]

Pragmia, you are an American, taught by American books, living in the capitalist paradise, you probably have 3 or more televisions/computers, two cars, and a house or apartment with two designated parking spots.

I do have three televisions, but only one of them works, the other two antiques from a by gone time. We have one car here. I have one computer which me and my three brothers fight over unless you count my father's laptop, which he's usually using for work.

And God, you make it sound like I'm some brainwashed zombie just because I live in the Great Satan America. And what does being tought like an American mean? You think I'm taught the same way here in suburban Massachusetts that they are in, say, rural Texas or some such?

But this is off topic, even if I did need to vent.

Xy, please don't fall into the trap of thinking all Americans own a lot of commodities.  Because it simply isn't true.  America, like all such countries, has its class divisions, and though your point about education is valid, your point that every American is affluent fails.

(Way to alienate a supporter, G-C )

Also, since we're doing a True Confessions sort of thing here, my two televisions are old and in the process of dying, one of two cars is practically shot, while the newer one replaced a car that spontaneously combusted, and all our parking is used by middle-class/wealthy parents to drop their soccer-playing progeny at the nearby playing field.  Oh, and let's not forget quite a bit of credit card debt, though no mortgage.

[Talmann]

I'm not gonna talk about Xy's comment... mostly because it describes me...

[Xyrael]

lol ok, Middle class America (American values) are described by what I said. True confessions told, my family owns four television sets and three computers plus a laptop and four vehicles. Two of those vehicles are broken down and cannot be sold, so are a financial drain, two televisions do not turn on, three remote controls are broken, two computers are old and the only good computer (mine) has is functioning off an internet that shares broadband with... oh... 200,000 other people. I live in an apartment with a shower that doesn't work, a toilet that won't flush, and a sink that's clogged because my apartment manager is too cheap to fix it. Instead, the other shower, when it decides to work, only spews out lukewarm water at best, and the assholes upstairs have something against me since i beat the ceiling with a broom to make them stop vacuuming at midnight, so they do the dishes while I shower (not joking), and this is a "good life" by my standards after living in a trailer in Texas and in a car in the streets of Santa Monica.

And the education system is true Pragmia, though the opinions reflected by Texan textbooks may not be the same as Massachusetts, you cannot flaunt the "liberal" nature of your state at every chance. The beginning of your text books probably even mentioned we got our democracy from the Greeks, then ironically moves into Rome, which was great because of Greece, without mentioning in the slightest that Caesar was tantamount to Hitler, or that the 13 Iroquois nations in NE America actually invented a democracy which is what American democracy is truly based off of (not Greece). It also likely mentioned the tycoons as great businessmen that did aweful things, then it likely failed to mention the populists in the 1890's, then it most likely quickly skimmed over Teddy Roosevelt's reforms and moved quickly into how America won world war 1, then the glories of the 1920's, the horrors of the depression, but it likely failed to mention how the socialists won 30% of votes in the 1920's presidential elections even though the presidential candidate was running from a jail cell after being charged with treason. It then likely continued into how FDR brilliantly reformed America... and then how America won world war 2 (which is a farce)

all high school and lower classes are required to follow a specified state approved curriculum, which in turn is most likely monitored by the federal gov't, and many text books still show pre-1989 maps. Just because you didn't become brainwashed by the system doesn't mean millions of other Americans didn't In fact, I believe that that's the reason we argue about economics and not politics on this forum, precisely because we never believed what the text books told us.

anyways, that's not the point of this thread, so let's stop this [hijack] (If you reply with a rebuttal to anything i said, don't expect a reply) and let's continue with the real purpose of this thread.

G-C, Bustos, and um... let's mix it up, Talmann (if you think you're up for it, otherwise St Oz)

[Zimmerwald]

A quick note about textbooks before we [/hijack].  Because publishers normally find it a money drain to publish state-specific books, they usually publish a single book that is designed to win adoption in as many states as possible.  Therefore, states like Texas really do control which books get adopted in Massacheusetts (sp?)

In the first place, Texas is a far larger market.  Publishers would rather sell their books in Texas than in less populous and more liberal states.  Second, Texas' textbook adoption board is very...vocal in its demands.  Far more so than in other states.  It is also more influenced by lobby groups than adoption boards in other states, and, since this is Texas we're talking about, these lobby groups tend to be conservative.  Third, Texas has very poor funding for its educational system.  This encourages teachers to rely maily on the textbook for lesson plans, rather than going out and preparing their own.

Which books are adopted in Texas, therefore, are usually which textbooks are marketed to other states, and, since the market is dominated by only a few publishers, these are the ones that must be accepted if schools are to have any texts at all.

Now [/hijack]

[Bustos]

So far (alphabetically):

Bustos
The Empire
Gallipoli-China
Mercantilist States
Myroria
PUR
Saint Oz
Simple
Talmann

Anymore latecomers?

[Simple]

kudos to Bustos for remaining on topic, for this seems like a dilemma that needs fixing right away,
maybe we can hold another discussion about education and backgrounds at a later date?
i do understand the need for these "background checks" though in ascertaining the proper combination of candidates.

...for now i think this area should be reserved for listing possible candidates and solidifying the outlines of what our new mod structure is going to be.

[Khem]

should we start with a voting thread yet?

[Bustos]

Here.

[Eluvatar]

A quick note about textbooks before we [/hijack].  Because publishers normally find it a money drain to publish state-specific books, they usually publish a single book that is designed to win adoption in as many states as possible.  Therefore, states like Texas really do control which books get adopted in Massacheusetts (sp?)

In the first place, Texas is a far larger market.  Publishers would rather sell their books in Texas than in less populous and more liberal states.  Second, Texas' textbook adoption board is very...vocal in its demands.  Far more so than in other states.  It is also more influenced by lobby groups than adoption boards in other states, and, since this is Texas we're talking about, these lobby groups tend to be conservative.  Third, Texas has very poor funding for its educational system.  This encourages teachers to rely maily on the textbook for lesson plans, rather than going out and preparing their own.

Which books are adopted in Texas, therefore, are usually which textbooks are marketed to other states, and, since the market is dominated by only a few publishers, these are the ones that must be accepted if schools are to have any texts at all.

Now [/hijack]

Woah I was reading this thread and I saw this...

That statement has a great point, but it is not fully correct. In Massachusetts, the books chosen are different from the books chosen in Texas, though perhaps they are the same as in some parts of California and New York. And as you noted it is in texas that teachers rely more on textbooks-- here in Massachussetts the Textbook is far from everything.