Getting Personal with 42 Billion Dollars (or lack thereof...)

Thought this was really cool. A buddy (thanks Chris) sent me a link to this little calculator published by the Sacramento Bee. It shows the estimated personal impact of the proposed California budget package. (Those are the default values in there on the right - pop in your own to see your personal story).

OK, the results of the calculation are not cool, but the idea of making the impact of obscure legislation available to the general public in real time in an interactive/personal fashion is a great use of the Internet.

Man, I knew we shouldn't have had all thosee kids - ouch!

Ode to Troublemakers

As part of an extended family project, I have been helping my Uncle Bob, a (semi) retired reverend, put his sermons on-line. In honor of Martin Luther King day and the inauguration tomorrow, he wrote and delivered one this weekend entitled "Ode to Troublemakers". Wonderful food for thought - check it out.

If you are like me (or not!), I suspect you will enjoy reading his other pieces as well. He has a delightful, casual, witty style - not your usual intimidating sermons. His messages are very accessible and relevant even to folks like me who are not, err, ummm, shall we say "regular" church goers...

"I Do Not Know" Is a Four Letter Phrase

"Dad, I heard that you can make it rain by shooting stuff in the sky. How does that work?"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud_seeding

"Dad, how fast is a speeding bullet anyway?"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bullet

"Dad, I keep hearing about Darfur, what is going on there?"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darfur_conflict

With the Internet in general and Wikipedia in particular, a parent never has to respond with "I don't know" again. Instead, the response can always be: "Let's go look it up" and a few keystrokes later, everyone is a little wiser. (Always a good idea to Google for some alternate information sources as well and teach the kids about healthy skepticism and due diligence - see snopes.com)

Recently, I noticed the folks at Wikipedia are asking for donations via a prominent banner at the top of their pages. I use the site so regularly and have shared so many great family "teachable moments" there, that I just couldn't resist the request. I gave this morning with the comment:

Wikipedia is a wonderful resource and a symbol of the boundless possibilities offered by the Internet. It has virtually eliminated the phrase "I don't know" from my family's vocabulary.

How about you?

Don't say "I don't know", click below!