Yosemite Valley wet

Things are a little wetter in Yosemite Valley than when NewMexiKen was there 19 days ago. Roads in the Valley were closed yesterday but reopened today.

The photo is dated May 16; click to enlarge. You should be able to make out a thundering Yosemite Falls in the haze in the distance. Wish I was there this week!

Dissecting the AOL/Discovery Channel list of 100 Greatest Americans

NewMexiKen frees up 57 of the 100 slots.

Considering the first 10

The next 10 (11-20)

Another set of ten (21-30)

Ten more (31-40)

That’s all for now (41-50)

Ten more again (51-60)

Six more bite the dust (61-70)

And, finally, the remaining 30 from the list (71-100)

And, finally, the remaining 30 from the list

71. Maya Angelou — there are far more significant writers
72. Mel Gibson — he was born in the U.S., but he’s a hack, however successful
73. Michael Jackson — there are scores of better entertainers who aren’t freakin’ whackos
74. Michael Jordan — Michael is “THE” American athlete as far as much of the world is concerned; his time on the list may be short, but he’s there for now
75. Michael Moore — absurd
76. Muhammad Ali (Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr.) — another athlete that rose above athletics; as time passes he may seem less important, however, for now he stays
77. Neil Alden Armstrong — not sure Armstrong was “great” but what he did was; NewMexiKen believes Armstrong will be the most famous person from our times in 500 years
78. Nikola Tesla — too many of you are saying “who?” for Tesla to make the list; a great electrical engineer, but true greatness is moving beyond your primary field and achieving fame elsewhere as well [Update: Tesla should be included. See comments.]
79. Oprah Winfrey — Oprah’s influence is unbelievable and mostly positive; I included Carson, she rises to that level
80. Pat Tillman — bless his patriotic heart, but get real
81. Dr. Phil McGraw — LOL
82. Ray Charles — heroin-addict womanizer who helped revolutionize popular music
83. Richard Nixon — let’s not kick Nixon around
84. Robert Kennedy — inspirational leader for a couple months
85. Ronald Reagan — changed American politics
86. Rosa Parks — maybe the toughest one; symbol for so much; in the end, her own actions are too specific, too limited
87. Rudolph W. Giuliani — he rose to the occasion, but what else?
88. Rush Limbaugh — greatness implies not appealing to the lowest common denominator
89. Sam Walton — changed American retailing; JC Penney and Montgomery Ward were probably as influential, but we’re living with Walton today
90. Steve Jobs — maybe Jobs could be included with Wozniak for inventing the PC; but not for running Apple
91. Steven Spielberg — a pretty impressive and varied body of work to date, but …
92. Susan B. Anthony — NewMexiKen rule: you make the currency (or coins) you make the list
93. Theodore Roosevelt — one of the great presidents
94. Thomas Edison — inventor in so many areas and also entrepreneur: General Electric
95. Thomas Jefferson — drafted the Declaration of Independence; that’s enough right there and he was just getting started
96. Tiger Woods — still just an athlete and celebrity
97. Tom Cruise — one of the silliest on the list, though he was good in Collateral
98. Tom Hanks — arguably the best actor on the list; but not the best actor who could be on the list
99. Walt Disney — Mickey, Donald, Goofy — that’s good enough for me
100. Wright Brothers (Orville & Wilbur Wright) — up-up-and-away

We interrupt this blog with some other stuff

Children who are 3 and 4 years old weigh only 35 pounds or so, but when they are kicking, hitting, biting, running around or are in other ways a handful, they are more likely to get expelled from their state-funded preschool program than students in kindergarten through 12th grade.

More than three times as likely.

That’s the finding in the first study of expulsion rates of 3- and 4-year-olds, led by Yale University Child Study Center researcher Walter S. Gilliam.

Gilliam, assistant professor of child psychiatry and psychology, said that decades of research show that early childhood programs can significantly improve the chances of a student’s success in school.

“Unfortunately, there appears to be a back door through which some children — the ones who stand the most to gain from these programs — are sometimes pushed,” he said.

“These children are barely out of diapers. No one wants to think of children this young being kicked out of school.”

Pittsurgh Post-Gazette

Link via The Huffington Post

Six more bite the dust

61. Lance Armstrong — great athlete and his public battle with cancer is significant, but I just don’t think he’s transcended athletics yet, like Ruth or Robinson or Owens
62. Laura Bush — married beneath herself
63. Lucille Ball — I Love Lucy
64. Lyndon B. Johnson — a tough one for NewMexiKen; in the end, fatally flawed; but the “We Shall Overcome” speech (in support of the Civil Rights Act) is a signal moment in American history; he stays
65. Madonna (Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone) — why not Cher? why not Barbra? are they not strong women who managed their own entertainment careers? Is that sufficient? No.
66. Malcolm X (Malcolm Little) — Alex Haley’s Autobiography of Malcolm X tries to convince us Malcolm was changing at the time of his assassination; had he lived he may well have become a more important historical figure
67. Marilyn Monroe — talented, gorgeous, tragic, but not great
68. Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens) — “THE” American writer
69. Martha Stewart — huh? Jon Stewart maybe, Payne Stewart even; not Martha
70. Martin Luther King Jr. — you get a holiday named after you, you make the list; greater for what he represented and how he lead than for who he was, but if you doubt him go read his letter from Birmingham Jail; that alone puts him on the list

Ten more again

51. Jimmy Carter — a successful man in everything except the presidency
52. Jimmy Stewart — not even among the greatest actors
53. John Edwards — is there some other John Edwards? surely this isn’t the one-term senator
54. John Glenn — marine officer, game show contestant, astronaut, Senator, back in space in his seventies
55. John F. Kennedy — lots and lots of points for not ending the world during the Cuban missile crisis but name something else he accomplished
56. John Wayne — actors become the best by pretending to be other people; can an actor be a great American?
57. Johnny Carson (John William Carson) — another tough one (and another I’ve seen in person); does he get credit for keeping the national discourse on a higher plane while he was such an influence?
58. Jonas Edward Salk — NewMexiKen saw enough of polio as a child to know what Salk did
59. Joseph Smith Jr. — Brigham Young surely, but not Smith
60. Katharine Hepburn — fine actress; what else?

Laugh break

“The White House said that the ‘Newsweek’ report had damaged the U.S. image overseas. And believe me, when it comes to damaging the U.S. image overseas the White House knows what it’s talking about.”

Jay Leno

Brown v. Board of Education

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Brown on this date in 1954. A little background from the National Park Service:

This case was initiated by members of the local NAACP chapter in Topeka, Kansas. Thirteen parents volunteered to participate. In the summer of 1950, they took their children to schools in their neighborhoods and attempted to enroll them for the upcoming school year. All were refused admission. The children were forced to attend one of the four schools in the city for African Americans. For most this involved traveling some distance from their homes. These parents filed suit against the Topeka Board of Education on behalf of their twenty children. Oliver Brown, a minister, was the first parent listed in the suit, so the case came to be named after him. Three local lawyers, Charles Bledsoe, Charles Scott and John Scott, were assisted by Robert Carter and Jack Greenberg of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc.

The case was filed in February 1951. The U.S. District Court ruled against the plaintiffs, but placed in the record its acceptance of the psychological evidence that African-American children were adversely affected by segregation. These findings later were quoted by the U.S. Supreme Court in its 1954 opinion.

Here’s the Supreme Court Decision.

A nation of historical dunces

According to the most recent statistics from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in U.S. history, only 17 percent of fourth-graders, 14 percent of eighth-graders, and 11 percent of 12th-graders scored proficient on the assessment; further, more than half of 12th graders did not reach the basic level.

No Child Left Behind — A Desktop Reference — Pg. 26

That’s all for now

41. Harriet Ross Tubman — escaped slave, put her life on the line to help more escape; women’s rights leader
42. Harry Truman — among the top Presidents surely
43. Helen Keller — overcame obstacles most of us can’t even imagine
44. Henry Ford — for the $5 dollar day and the assembly line; pay people enough so they can buy your product
45. Hillary Rodham Clinton — not yet
46. Howard Hughes — too many fatal flaws
47. Hugh Hefner — for publishing photos of nude women; I don’t think so; Hefner is on the list but not Hearst, nor Pulitzer, nor Luce, go figure
48. Jackie Robinson (Jack Roosevelt Robinson) — superb athlete but makes the list for grace under fire
49. Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis — points for style and grace; but nothing more
50. Jesse Owens — rose to the occasion and dispelled the Aryan myth in front of the world

Ten more

31. Elvis Presley — of course; changed popular music
32. Frank Sinatra — NewMexiKen would rather listen to Frank than Elvis, but Frank was not a revolutionary
33. Franklin D. Roosevelt — America’s most conservative president; willing to accept change to preserve the system
34. Frederick Douglass — a great presence when one was most needed
35. George H. W. Bush — if your claim to greatness is being President, you have to be re-elected
36. George W. Bush — name one accomplishment
37. George Lucas — ruined movies forever, but great at it
38. George Patton — eccentric, daring, an ass; my vote is with Omar Bradley
39. George Washington — the indispensable American; second only to Lincoln
40. George Washington Carver — there are sufficient African-American leaders now; Carver can be retired

Another set of ten

21. Charles Lindbergh — heroism isn’t by itself greatness; Nazi sympathizer
22. Christopher Reeve — tragedy isn’t greatness
23. Chuck Yeager — a cool guy; but bottom line just a test pilot
24. Clint Eastwood — Harry Callahan makes the list maybe; Clint I think not
25. Colin Powell — failed to respect his own conscience
26. Condoleezza Rice — 9/11
27. Donald Trump — other moguls have done more with less
28. Dwight D. Eisenhower — won the war; didn’t try to undo the New Deal
29. Eleanor Roosevelt (Anna Eleanor Roosevelt) — first First Lady to lead publicly; important change for women
30. Ellen DeGeneres — not even funny; Fanny Brice gets my vote

The next 10

11. Barbara Bush — when Jeb gets elected president maybe, but until then my vote goes to Abigail Adams
12. Benjamin Franklin — top five; the first American
13. Bill Clinton — was unfairly attacked but provided the ammunition; best president to hang out with, not great
14. Bill Cosby (William Henry Cosby, Jr.) — one of several people on the list NewMexiKen has seen in person, so gets extra credit; integrated television, no small thing
15. Bill Gates — another I’ve seen in person; capitalism is what America is about
16. Billy Graham — anti-Semitic remarks to Nixon
17. Bob Hope; wasn’t funny; Bing Crosby gets my vote
18. Brett Favre; Johnny U maybe, not Brett; only one ring
19. Carl Sagan — role was to popularize science, especially space; look where he’s left us
20. Cesar Chavez — labor and ethnic leader; changed perceptions

Considering the first 10

1. Abraham Lincoln — NewMexiKen’s greatest American
2. Albert Einstein — came to America at age 54; important work done more than 25 years earlier
3. Alexander Graham Bell — Canadian
4. Alexander Hamilton — if you’re on the currency you make the list
5. Amelia Earhart — does a woman get to be great simply for being the first to do what men did?
6. Andrew Carnegie — for philanthropy more than steel
7. Arnold Schwarzenegger — not a good actor, not a good governor
8. Audie Murphy — most highly decorated soldier of World War II (28 medals), all before age 21
9. Babe Ruth — yes, made professional athletics part of popular culture
10. Barack Obama — one speech, one big-time election; we’ll see

We’re not alone

Neil Young, Shania Twain and Mike Myers are among the top 20 greatest Canadians. Alexander Graham Bell is ninth.

More on the 100

Functional Ambivalent on Dr. Phil? No, Really, You’re Kidding. Dr. Phil?