Everyone has won and all must have prizes-The education crisis continues

Over at Drudge there was a link to an article entitled, Oberlin students want to abolish midterms and any grades below C.

Moi, I was born too soon. I admit to being four years of goofing off other than in my major subject. The agitation that would have made me do even less work would have seen me play my part. Well no, I would have just enjoyed the fruits of other peoples' labors.

At Oberlin (where else?) the little Social Justice Warriors are so tired from their labors, they want a pass from they are actually there for because it pales in comparison to the mission of not hanging out with white people and other important stuff.

My desire to be at the opening of any keg or some other diversion meant that I was not learning something else. Was that a good idea? From my immediate post college employment prospects, no. Did I miss anything important? I found philosophy classes interesting, but not even to make effort and regret that. My brush with sociology is such that though there were some earnest and honest practioners, it is of little worth to the society and there are many, many snake oil salesmen in that non-discipline.

The truth of the matter is, yeah I could pull it together to get the C average, but the school would have been within reason if they had tossed me out as wasted space.

Now are the Social Justice kids doing something so vital that grades should not be awarded for the successful completion of the course of study. The young lady or young man may be doing important work

If that is so, why go to college at all if it means so little?

There has got to be somewhere else they can be coddled so they can get on with the real work of societal improvement.

Pittsfield-The place to be young, liberal, politically correct and...white.

Boston's WCVB has an evening show called Chronicle.  It is well done and the subjects are wide ranging, but always something to do with New England. Sometimes it's new business or medical advances pioneered regionally.

Often, it is a destination that one from their metro Boston coverage area might want to visit. Last evening, it was Pittsfield.

Pittsfield was a one industry small city in the Massachusetts Berkshires. General Electric dominated the town until they bugged out.  As usual, when the big employer left, hard times ensued.

Chambers of commerce and civic boosters always try different tactics to bring about a hoped for renaissance. Sometimes it works, as when a community college satellite campus can be brought in. No one in Massachusetts ever calls for a state prison as the new job provider, but in a few places there is the call for a casino.

Sometimes it just happens. It helps if there is a surplus of low cost real estate that is not derelict and in a beautiful spot.

And, it happened in Pittsfield.

The co-hosts waxed poetic about all the new shops and eateries that have opened up, and they are all attractive venues. The food prepared at Eat on North looked looked to be a pleasant dining experience.

All the residents and entrepreneurs and artists featured look youngish or at least well preserved and, shall we say it hip. Oh, and shall we say it, white

Should that matter. As a live and let live type, not to me. The folks on the Chronicle episode all appear to be people who could be trustafarians. They may not be, but the meticulous casualness of their bad clothes seems to betray that.

There is one other aspect of all these cool folks, I don't think there was one African-American among them. Usually, that seems to bother people. There was not a peep of protest from anyone on the staff or townspeople.

It would cause an emergency insertion of a pacemaker if Pittsfield were a hotbed Trumpism.

It would be the perfect place for black brunch to show up. Ain't happening in that whitopia.

Prince is gone world goes into mourning-moi, not so much

The period of mourning for David Bowie ends and almost immediately another rocker says au revoir.

What is there to say?  For the voice of humility, not all that much.

Unlike Mr. Bowie (our sparse commentary here) I was much older when our good man came on the scene and cannot even hum a few bars to save my life.

Yet I, along with the rest of the public, am being told I must celebrate his life and regret his passing.

Suffice it to say, from what little I've read, he wasn't a bad guy and his end was unpleasant enough that it is sad even to someone who knows so little of his oeuvre.  If there is another dimension, one hopes he is succored there, preferably without his guitar.

There is one of his songs, sung by the girl group, the Bangles, that I do know of.  Though not a big fan, it was a catchy tune.  When apprised of the provenance, I realized who was dreaming of "kissin' Valentino By a crystal blue Italian stream."