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The obstacles in front of some children are staggering. Kudos to all those pilot programs in early childhood education that seem to offer a ray of hope with their promising cost-benefit ratios.
So, why shouldn't the U.S. government now immediately start funding such programs, given that they have such a solid track record of improvement? Well, if readers have any mistrust of government programs in general, the answer is: wait a second. Let's think before we do that.
• As for those cost-benefit numbers cited in the article, with some as high as 16-to-1—who did the calculation? Was it the people who initiated the ideas and the programs who were evaluating their own success? That would be like a drug company paying doctors to "find out" whether their drug worked or not. No one should be surprised when the answer is "why yes, it does!" How trustworthy are the cost-benefit numbers?
• Speaking of drugs, it's quite common for small-scale studies to show that a new drug works. But when large-scale studies are undertaken, problems can turn up. With early childhood education programs, a pilot program is likely to be staffed by energetic, intelligent, and enthusiastic people, who work extraordinarily hard because they're invested in the program's success. What happens if such a program is scaled up and becomes another routine, bureaucratic endeavor staffed by job-secure civil servants who are rewarded mostly for seniority? Will pilot program's the cost-benefit ratios still hold true?
• Any such programs [in the United States] ought to be conducted by the States—or even better, by local governments—not by the federal government. That will allow competition among a variety of programs and hence a better opportunity to understand what is it about this or that early childhood program that works or doesn't work. If the federal government mandates such programs, the uniform monopoly thus created will foreclose any chance we have of that understanding.
• The best approach would be for continuing experimentation, even within a given State. That can happen if States that haven't already enter this arena will set up an early-childhood voucher system rather than government-run pre-schools. Let early childhood programs be privately offered and highly competitive, and have the government subsidize the parents. If it's not too late, then for heaven's sake, let's not duplicate for really little children the problems of public elementary and high schooling in poor areas we already have today.
• Government programs, even at the state level, are hard to terminate once they get underway and acquire a constituency (which is often the civil servants who run the program). Knowing, as legislators surely must know, that once begun, any program will likely become immortal no matter what its results, early childhood legislation should be conditioned on three requirements.
First, the legislation should provide objectively measurable goals to be reached over an established and reasonably short time frame—goals that can be measured by anybody at the proper time, not just by the program participants or the legislature itself.
Second, the legislature should contract now with an independent, outside consulting group to perform those measurements for it at the proper time.
And finally, legislators should assume that the program will fail to meet its goals and hence should build into the legislation an automatic, but humanely paced, sunset provision that will wind the program down gradually without requiring any legislative involvement. If the consultants' report should prove favorable at evaluation time, the legislature can affirmatively act to extend the program. Otherwise, it should be allowed to phase out.
Great article for anyone with a child, particularly ANYONE considering moving to provide better opportunities for their children. Once again The Economist uses my hometown of Bethesda, Maryland as the example of a model society, this time for parenting skills and the affect they have fostering intelligent, well-focused kids.
I grew up in an economically distressed suburb of Pittsburgh, whose culture was very much like the disadvantaged town profiled in the article. The low prioritization of education achievement describes the Pittsburgh of my youth with scary precision … the 'badge of honor' in my high school was doing well in sports and getting trouble while scraping by academically.
Living in Bethesda, it's easy to forget how ill-informed people are about the importance education: not just acquiring diplomas but mastering the ability to think critically. The article left me unsettled, concerned that there's more problems to American society than will be solved in my lifetime. I fear the all-too-pervasive culture of indifference to critical thinking and education will render many Americans unfit for a future that is probably less than a generation away.
I have the solution. We allow only the top 5% of males to impregnate a female, the rest of us are handed a vasectomy at age ten, works for me.
"In a study in 1995, Betty Hart and Todd Risley of the University of Kansas found that children in professional families heard on average 2,100 words an hour. Working-class kids heard 1,200; those whose families lived on welfare heard only 600. By the age of three, a doctor's or lawyer's child has probably heard 30m more words than a poor child has." This part of the article could largely benefit from adding the perspective of 1971 Bernstein´s theory called Restricted and Elaborated Code. It is not only the number of words spoken but the different ways that language is used by different social classes, different means of communication. The one called Elaborated code is far more likely to be used by middle class and is also the code of our education system.
one pedantic comment - if we take the number of words an hour (top 2100) and allow that the upper quartile of the distribution could be ~5,000 words an hour (>1.5/second, every second, every hour, every day) then the maximum number you could hear in three years is 365 (days/year)x 16 (maximum hours/day)x 5,000 = 29 million. given that children talk themselves, they play alone some of the time and babies sleep up to 20 hours a day, then the 30 million number begins to look like an urban legend to me, repeated several time in The Economist without looking hard at it?
Choose your parents wisely indeed, because the apple doesn't usually fall far from the tree.
The two most important choices you can make in life are where you are born and who your parents are. Choose wisely...
What a huge article about something which is so low in importance compared to other events happening around the globe.
Educated and well adjusted kids. children are the future of US innovation and leadership. Your inability to grasp that concept might say something about your upbringing? I won't judge, though.
America's population is becoming more and more bi-modal (with 80% in the lower mode). What America needs is a solid healthy (but not necessarily super-wealthy) "Mittelstand" (middle class) which can create jobs and opportunities for the majority of Americans. Otherwise, the American Dream will become just a pipe dream for most Americans.
The really alarming part is that "the elites" increasingly means state employees, bureaucrats and diplomats, rather than wealth creators, who are despised by the post-liberal culture of those very public sector types.
At best, a few are allowed to exist in Silicon Valley, provided they express the right (I.E. left) political leanings, but the proper entrepreneur and the proper businessman are a critically endangered species.
"It doesn't help that they are much more likely to be raising their children alone, like Melissa. Only 9% of American women with college degrees who gave birth in the past year are unmarried; for those who failed to finish high school the figure is 61%. Two parents have more time between them than one."
It's simple - those who take responsibility for their lives succeed and those who don't, won't. Why many single moms have numerous babies from different, absconding fathers is a not a mystery. they have more libido than brains!
I strongly disagree with this comment. Poor or poorly educated people are not automatically dumber or less moral because of it.
"Less educated people have more children out of wedlock." This is a statistical correlation. It only becomes a causation with a good explanation.
My best guess would be that poverty and weak families mean that when people grow up their they are more likely to drop out of school and have kids early. The correlation is explained by a third factor.
I am actually amazed how societies with low income and wealth inequalities that had strong egalitarian ideals abandoned them so quickly. I am thinking of most western democracies after WW2, were the thinking mostly seems to have been that we are all so equally well of because we are all so well obviously equal.
Now that the general economic trend has swung back to inequality we are back to explaining how the poor are responsible themselves. I am resting this case on two facts. On the one hand inequality shrunk post war in all western democracies and has increased now for some time in all of them again. The same movement in all these quite different countries suggests to me a broader trend. On the other hand if it was a single or few cases we are looking at, I would expect an explanation rooted in their individual behavior. What you personally do is the best explanation for what will happen to you personally after all, but aggregated over whole sections of society I think we need to look at structural hurdles. I don´t think people born today are dumber or less moral than 40 years ago.
To take a contemporary example from the field of education, it is worth considering the failures of so many of the nation's urban schools. Those failures can, in part, be explained by the fact that, in general, school procedures are set at the state, rather than the local, level. The rules governing discipline and curricular content are therefore the same for children from the poorest, often black and Hispanic, neighborhoods in the inner cities as they are for those from the wealthiest suburban communities. This is bound to create disastrous consequences for the urban schools, given the differences in ability and perhaps in temperament between the two populations. The consequence is that poor black and Hispanic children are required to study things they often find unfathomable, and must attempt to do in disorderly and dangerous environments. It is hardly surprising that the dropout rates in urban schools are alarmingly high. Christopher Swanson analyzed the graduation rates of the schools in the 50 largest U. S. cities and found an overall average graduation rate of only 52%. In the worst case, Detroit, only 25% graduate. In 10 of the worst performing cities, including New York, Los Angeles, Dallas and Atlanta, fewer than 46% graduate.
This is a direct result of 4 decades of education policies set by the liberal left.
This article, as most others on the broad topic of eventual social outcomes for children and the relation thereof with socio-economic circumstances, asks the wrong questions. For instance:
"The Perry pre-schoolers were far more likely than the control group to graduate from high school on time (77% to 60%). And by the age of 40, they were more likely to earn $20,000 a year or more (60% to 40%) and less likely to have been arrested five times or more (36% to 55%)."
What we really should be asking ourselves is the following: Among those children in the control group, what distinguishes the 60% who finished high school on time from the 40% that didn't, or the 45% who have been arrested fewer than five times from the rest. (I must admit that counting only five or more arrests by age forty is setting the bar rather low.)
To put it another, admittedly simplified, way: How does the kid with deadbeat parents who ends up going to Harvard differ from his four siblings who ended up unemployed (I should say unemployable) or in jail?
Why are there poor, struggling parents who nevertheless pay attention to their children's development and education?
One point of all this is that poverty is not the root cause of the manifest social ills that are often attributed to it. Rather, it is, in most cases, just another symptom of a deeper ailment. (I am not claiming that being poor does not make your life any harder; it certainly does.)
Once these issues are better understood, one could start thinking about what government could do to improve matters.
I understand the attraction of the scientific approach: figure out how things work, so you can do them better. But until that level of knowledge is available, there is a lot to be said for the engineering approach: find something that works, even if you have no clue why it works, and do that.
That kind of basic pragmatic approach can work wonders. After all, Roman engineers built structures which have lasted for centuries, in spite of knowing little of the science behind the mechanics of materials. There really is no excuse for refusing to use that approach, just because you don't yet understand the science behind what you are doing.
While the engineering approach has its charms- providing solutions to current problems, it also has some drawbacks. Most importantly, it leads to inelegant solutions (big, expensive hammers whacking away at tiny nails).
Certainly some measures that have proven effective can be pursued in the short term, but the fundamental causes of the problems should be determined, both for the sake of efficient use of state resources, and for the sake of the children involved, and society at large. However, it does not seem to me that there is much interest in pursuing this, admittedly daunting, question. Perhaps people on both sides of the political spectrum are afraid of the answer.
The engineers I know would never come up with something as inefficient as a big expensive hammer for a tiny nail. People who do things like that aren't engineers. (Politicians, maybe, but not engineers.) Some engineering solutions aren't elegant. But inefficient solutions aren't solutions as far as an engineer is concerned.
Note that I'm not opposing research to find out what the root causes are, and how they can best be addressed. Just saying that, until that data is in and analyzed, there's no good reason not to do the things that have already been demonstrated to work and with a good cost/benefit ratio.
I'm not well studied in the area, but I'm pretty sure there are plenty of people who are actively conducting research in this field. In the mean time, it seems a shame to forgo the 4:1 payback while waiting for the plan that yields a higher return.
An excellent article, and one of the summary points to focus resources on pre-school education is right on. Yet Bill de Blasio, Mayor of New York City, who is trying to do exactly this, is getting grief for the costs involved. Contrast this with France where nearly all 3 through 5 year olds attend l'ecole maternelle, and have been doing so for the last half century. A bit of evidence in support of my hypothesis that when it comes to advancing a civilisation, the French often have their priorities straight.
Didn't almost 10,000 French elderly die in a heat wave a few years ago because they were not properly taken care of by their families?
Numerous studies have shown that the effect of early childhood education peters out by 3rd grade. The Swedes start free pre-school by age 1, yet in the most recent PISA test in 2012, they placed far behind the US in all subject areas:
In Reading Proficiency, Sweden 483, USA 498, France 505
In Math proficiency, Sweden 478, USA 481, France 495
In Science, Sweden 485, USA 497, France 499
As you can see USA and France are very close while Sweden falls far behind, just goes to show how little pre-school matters.
Meanwhile, none of the countries in the top 10 have mandatory pre-school.
Social science is pseudo science, biology is real science. All the "studies" that purport to show the advantages of early childhood education are all based on pseudo science(children's socio-economic background), without taking into account real science(aptitude). But as always, repeat a lie enough times and it turns into fact. Even the Economist is now stating it like its a fact. The result is NYC will waste billions of taxpayer funds in offering free mandatory pre-school, with little to no real result to show for years down the road.
The best proof that all this early childhood pseudo science is complete hogwash is Finland, a constant top 10 nation in the PISA test but where compulsory schooling does not even begin until age 7!!
Thanks for providing statistics to back up what seems common sense. When I was growing up in the 1960s, admittedly on a poor, rural Ohio farm, preschool was unheard of, as was parents reading to their children. My parents also did not help us with our homework, or check our grades daily. What they did do, was look at our report cards. If grades were bad, there would have been consequences. Our one incentive - of all six kids, whoever got the highest GPA was given $5. Only two of the six of us got a college education, but coming from parents - my mother had a high school diploma, my father never graduated - that didn't seem too bad. We all graduated high school.
If pre-school is the solution today, how did society ever manage without it before?
What liberals never suggest is something that seemed to work for millenia - the benefits of church on socializing children. A pre-school teacher (yes, sent my children there) once told me that the main benefit of preschool was to socialize kids - teach them to stand in line and generally get along with others. For kids who had to do that in church since birth, pre-school does not seem necessary.
The biggest cause of child poverty is illegitimacy. Until we have the courage to address peoples' reckless breeding choices, we will continue to have the costly social problems such as those described in the article.
The biggest cause of single-parent families is poverty.
Then the rate of single parent families would have skyrocketed during the Great Depression to astronomical levels. It didn't.
Or perhaps, overall, the cause of both is the combination of the War on Drugs and our overall insane sentencing laws. Hard to have a two parent family when one of the parents is locked up.
What do you have in mind?
No, kjanet, the biggest cause of poverty is single-parent families.
There is simply no way being poor can cause you to not be able to maintain a relationship. If anything, the economic incentive is to combine two weak incomes into a tolerable household sum total.
Cart before horse, but astoundingly obvious, and I am surprised somebody can even type that out without their logic circuits sounding the incongruency alarm.
Subsidize that which you want more of, tax that which you want less of. We need to stop encouraging people, via tax subsidies, to have children they can't afford.
Subsidize that which you want more of, tax that which you want less of. We need to stop encouraging people, via tax subsidies, to have children they can't afford.
What Melissa needed is someone to tell her to stop sleeping with men who have no prospects, no commitment or both. Now, it's too late.
The Economist should know one more thing. Your comments on genes are indicative of poor academic performers. It has been shown that poor academic performers often believe that intelligence is fixed and not malleable; whereas, high academic performers understand that practice and effort really do matter.
Having grown up in the rural North, I can tell you that there is often a hostility to education and people with "book smarts". They use words like "common sense". These are the people who are hostile to change and believe what they believe because it is tradition.
The case of Nobel Prize geneticist, James Watson, arguably the preeminent living scientist, is particularly troubling. In a long interview published in the London Sunday Times, Watson commented on Western policies with respect to Africa that "are based on the fact that their intelligence is the same as ours—whereas all the testing says not really." Further, "there is no firm reason to anticipate that the intellectual capacities of people geographically separated in their evolution should prove to have evolved identically. Our wanting to preserve equal powers of reason as some universal human heritage of humanity will not be enough to make it so." For these perfectly defensible statements (they are supported by overwhelming scientific evidence) he was widely vilified and relieved of his duties at the research laboratory that was largely his own creation.
This narrow-minded denigrating of differing scientific views has become so widespread that otherwise thoughtful scholars find themselves taking positions that are close to absurd. A case in point is Jared Diamond, who in his widely acclaimed book, Guns, Germs and Steel, argues that all societal differences can be explained in terms of resources and geography, are, in others words environmentally determined. While this is hardly a novel view, Diamond introduces material that is certainly valuable to the argument. In an earlier time such a scholar would have welcomed thoughtful challenges as an opportunity to clarify and strengthen his argument. In fact, there is a large body of scholarly work by accomplished scientists which challenges Diamond's position and suggests that, while environmental factors are important, so, too, are genetic factors. For instance, the relationship between IQ and wealth is well established for intrasocietal differences, and a strong case has been made that IQ has an important impact on income differences between societies.
Diamond does not discuss this literature or attempt to refute it. The word "intelligence" does not even appear in the index of his book, and he cites none of the prominent scientists who have argued that genes may play a prominent role in human social organization. In fact, he makes the rather preposterous claim, contradicted by overwhelming scientific evidence that "'Stone Age' peoples are on average probably more intelligent, not less intelligent, than industrialized peoples." He gives as evidence the most cursory anecdotal stories based on his personal encounters with individuals. Those who disagree are labeled loathsome and racist. In other words, anyone who questions Diamond's politically correct view is simply dismissed ad hominem.
Hernstein and Murray (The Bell Curve) were crucified for the same reason. They merely pointed out the established differences between tested IQ for different racial groups. They did not discuss the reasons for these differences (nature or nurture), but merely stated it as scientific fact.
Unfortunately, the rest of their analysis (based on white Americans only) were largely ignored. It now seems that the class based society in which class is determined by intellectual ability which they predicted is becoming a reality.
Much of the well-established work dealing with ethnicity and genetics horrified the people who had bought into the concept nation notion of multiculturism and diversity. Byron Roth has pointed out that, "Without dramatic changes in patterns of immigration, considerable economic and social disparities among groups are likely to persist and to grow more apparent as immigration swells the ranks of those less academically talented. A related question is what these figures mean for democratic governance. Can democracy thrive when only a small percentage of the population has the capacity and skills associated with middle-class employment? Are the autocratic societies of North Africa the natural byproduct of societies where an insufficient fraction of the population has the intellectual wherewithal to deal with political and economic complexity?
If people from North Africa and Southwest Asia replace European people, will European civilization, including its democracy and wealth, be replaced by some new civilization with very different dynamics and values? Will America be the same if it becomes a confederation of different ethnic groups with different values and aptitudes? Given current immigration policies these are the most important questions the Western world must attempt to assess. Such a demographic realignment would be epochal in nature and would have ramifications in every corner of the globe. When coupled with the rise of China and India as world superpowers, it heralds a new chapter in world history that will shape the destiny of mankind for centuries to come. Thoughtful people would not hesitate to consider what these epochal changes portend for their progeny. Neither would they hesitate to openly consider the full consequences of the current immigration policies which, if left on their present course, will prove to be irreversible and quite possibly tragic."
"It has been shown that poor academic performers often believe that intelligence is fixed and not malleable; whereas, high academic performers understand that practice and effort really do matter. "
Recent advances in genetics and psychology now indicates that there are strong genetic factors that affects an individual's ability to focus or concentrate, and keep that concentration going.
In short, an individual's ability to make efforts could itself be predetermined by genetics...
This really is an excellent article.
Kudos to the writer.
Presumably their parents read a lot to them!
"His", followed in reluctant choice by "His or Her", is preferable to "their" as singular. Otherwise, ditto.
His or Her is so silly. Why can't people be adults and accept convention without finding a new way to be oppressed.
you're absolutely right with this answer
Gresham's Law is not only alive [in Linguistics], but thriving.
Two worlds
The report reminds me of teaching children in China, which is proof that human beings dream the same dream wherever they settle down on the planet.
One thing is obvious that the number of students from the impoverished families going to prestigious university like Tsinghua and Beijing University (equivalent to Harvard and MIT In the States) is on the decrease on yearly basis while more and more children from the rich families are sent to abroad by their parents. When children from the remote areas are struggling for 'free lunch' provided by local government, their peers in cities are seen to gobble down western styled fast food and that is deemed to be the way to follow fashion. Children who are left behind by migrant workers to the care of their grandparents in village are free from homework, any kind of them whereas their city counterparts are busying themselves with a variety of extra classes under their 'helicopter parents'.
I have been watching the progress in education reform worldwide, and I have reason to believe that the period during which the highest credit is given to degree holders is tottering, because it is no longer tenable in the light of modern conception that the best mind is cultivated through practice.
Excellent points by Ms. Kimberly Howard.
"...less likely to have been arrested five times or more (36% to 55%)"
Some interesting statistics from the "great" state of Michigan. Does this mean every pupil of this preschool was arrested at least once? I know my conclusion is wrong, but I just wanted to take a dig at the author for less then stellar writing; when citing those statistics.
It would be nice if you used the full title of Charles Murray's book: "Coming Apart: The State of White America".
The answer to the famous question posed by Rodney King, "Why can't we all just get along?" is quite simply that we are not programmed to get along, but rather to view people different from ourselves with varying degrees of suspicion and hostility. Harvard political scientist Robert Putnam found, to his dismay, that multicultural communities in America are rife with distrust. Speaking to a reporter for the Financial Times he said his research indicated that, "the effect of diversity is worse than had been imagined." This is the case even after adjusting for the factors of class, income, and urban versus rural residence. Putnam found that "the more people of different races living in the same community, the greater the loss of trust." He reports that the greater ethnic diversity in society the less trust people had in each other, even people of their own race. "In more diverse setting, Americans distrust not merely people who do not look like them, but even people who do." In addition, "inhabitants of diverse communities tend to withdraw from collective life, to distrust their neighbors, regardless of the color of their skin, to withdraw even from close friends, to expect the worst from their community and its leaders, to volunteer less, give less to charity and work on community projects less often, to register to vote less." He adds that "in colloquial language, people living in ethnically diverse settings appear to 'hunker down'—that is, to pull in like a turtle."
"The father of her first three children died. The father of her baby is not around."
Having more children while you're already on welfare, and further burdening taxpayers, is immoral. All women on welfare should be required to use automatic, reversible contraceptives, like IUDs or shoulder implants. Those with objections can look to their church or other private sources of charity instead. As soon as scientists invent an automatic, reversible contraceptive for men, all men on welfare should face the same requirement.
"She cannot stop him from heading straight out across the creek to play."
She's not really parenting, then.
Dictating morality to others is immoral. If being a burden to taxpayers is justification for treating them worse than the Chinese treat their own people, every Republican who voted for George Bush should be in debtors prison until they pay back the $6,000,000,000,000 they used to turn Iraq into a safe haven for terrorists. You are undoubtedly the burden on taxpayers that you despise.
Dictating morality to others is not immoral if the immorality of others leads to a squandering of finite government financial resources and higher taxes on more responsible, productive citizens. If the government mandates states pursue certain programs and engage in certain activities to receive funding, then taxpayers should be able to expect similar behaviors of those that consume generous resources on behalf of the government.
And I fail to see how mandating that those who are on welfare use contraception is somehow "treating people worse than the Chinese treat their own people." Also, the Bush bashing is a ridiculous parallel since voters for that administration did not engage in a direct action to sign off on the war. They may have supported the man that waged it, but they did not cast a vote exclusively for war. Your emphasis on moral relativism does not have any place in an organized, civil society the needs order and stability in order to survive.
The problem with moral grandstanding is that the grandstander is the benefactor of this self applied balm.
It is morally and intelectually lazy to think plopping a bunch of rules on paper will save you money. If the bulk of the population continues to face sinking prosperity, the economy will continue to hollow out.
Wake up and smell the coffee. This country is now amidst others that compete mightily. It is either team or sink.
Being on public assistance also gives you a moral obligation to try and minimize the assistance needed.
If you can't support yourself, then no you shoudn't be having kids.
Same goes for healthcare. If someone else is paying for your healthcare, then you'd better skip that Big Mac, and get a salad.
"All women on welfare should be required to use automatic, reversible contraceptives, like IUDs or shoulder implants."
Further proof that the Right is against government intrusion, except when applied to other people.
"Also, the Bush bashing is a ridiculous parallel since voters for that administration did not engage in a direct action to sign off on the war."
If those who voted Bush in power aren't responsible for the results of that action, then what are they responsible for?
It doesn't need to be mandated. Offer financial incentives for women to get the IUD.
If you can't turn a country into a democracy, you shouldn't spend $6,000,000,000,000 turning it into a safe haven for terrorists. If you can't make money without defrauding people, you shouldn't run a bank. You are nothing but a bully picking on the poor because they are poor. The poor waste a lot less of your tax dollars than the military does but I don't see you criticizing the American murder machine.
The biggest consumers of the American budget are entitlement programs, not the military.
"Dictating morality to others is immoral."
Dictating morality is probably the first fundamental of any polity.
This that's your whole problem, you think asking people to act responsibly while they are on the government dole is picking on them.
"All women on welfare should be required to use automatic, reversible contraceptives, like IUDs or shoulder implants."
This is intriguing, but most likely unconstitutional. According to your argument, any form of childbearing should be prevented when it burdens the taxpayer in the form of increased entitlement spending. This would throw those on unemployment compensation and veteran's benefits into the mix, if not others. I'm sure you don't intend to include these people. Sterilization in your case would therefore be underinclusive and fail "strict scrutiny," making it unconstitutional. Being "temporary" is no saving grace, as many would remain on the entitlement program through their childbearing years. Although perhaps emotionally satisfying, your argument lacks rigor in its present form.
"She's not really parenting, then."
That's an obvious premise of the article. The idea is that effective investment in certain programs will continue to make parents stronger and improve society, as the mere shaming of these parents has failed to produce meaningful results so far.
"As soon as scientists invent an automatic, reversible contraceptive for men, all men on welfare should face the same requirement."
I know a great many men who would embrace this breakthrough in sexual freedom without any coercion based on welfare status required. Anything to end the tyranny of the latex condom!
Financial incentives are offered - the welfare payments. If someone doesn't want the deal, they can decline the welfare and seek private assistance.
Don't agree the proposal is unconstitutional. Second, wasn't advocating sterilization, but reversible, automatic contraceptives.
"That's an obvious premise of the article."
Fair point, but I'm skeptical that the type of proposed programs will reliably turn someone with such a fundamentally flawed attitude toward parenting into a meaningfully more responsible parent.
How about free vasectomies? If worried that it cannot be reversed if desired in the future, store some sperm for future use?
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UPDATE: Police locate missing elderly man in Liberty Township
LIBERTY TOWNSHIP -- A 78-year-old missing Liberty Township man was found early Monday in the woods near his farm, officials said earlier today.
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subset: commoncrawl


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Which of the Lychee cultivars would you recommend to be productive while keeping on a more compact, smaller scale tree ? Just how compact could you keep it and still be productive ? Harry ?
Emperor does seem to be one of the easier lychees to keep control of. I have also had serious dwarfing with Bosworth3 (Kwai Mai Pink). I'm not sure if that is a function of the tree itself or just the luck and culture that I have had with the trees (I have three of them) in my yard. They are not so easy to find though. Sweetheart also seems to be fairly controllable....but if you have been following my commentary on Sweetheart, you'll know that for me, it has disappointed on the production front.
I got an excellent crop of sweetheart, many were golf ball size and sweet. i had to water the tree everyday because of our drought
lychees like to be pruned back so I wouldnt worry about the vigor of the tree, annual pruning can keep it any size you like.
Harry has trees he planted that were labeled Sweetheart, but the fruit are definitely Hak Ip and differ from mine
I have posted this before, but I'll reiterate here for those may not have seen the other posts. I have purchased Sweetheart trees from Pine Island on three separate occasions. The first two plantings died. The third planting has finally successfully made it into decent sized, should be bearing, trees. They have both bloomed in previous years, but sporadically. The trees have totally different growth habit. The first one has a bushy habit and it bloomed profusely this year. It looked like this in February of this year:
The second has a lanky long limbed habit which resembles Hak Ip. It looked like this in February:
Based on my observations, I think I have a Sweetheart and a Hak Ip. However, my current opinion of Sweetheart (at least growing at my house on mucky soil) is that it blooms beautifully, sets many, many small fruits and then loses them. That was my experience this year. Now, it was an unprecedented dry period during the blooming and fruit setting this year. I do not ordinarily water my established lychee trees and I have never, ever seen any signs of drought stree on any of my trees. As Sweetheart is a relatively new planting, it is possible that the roots did not exten far enough down to hit the water table and thus dropped its fruit to save itself from the drought stress. I will be monitoring this much more closely next year to see if this is the issue. Clearly, based on the fruit appearance on those fruits that did hold (but were generally smallish and not fully developed) and the growth habit of the tree.....at least one of my trees is not Hak Ip for sure. I am left to conclude that PIN would not have sold me two incorrectly labelled trees. So, I am concuding that this poor producing tree is Sweeheart until proven otherwise.
Bryan- Love your fruiting sweetheart lychee!!! It look so beautiful with the fruits on. I wish my tree will product at least one fruit next year.
bsbullie- I think you should pick the best variety and not care too much of the size since you can always prune the tree smaller. I've tasted the sweetheart and many other lychees but the sweetheart is the best for it's taste and large size fruits. But it seems like not many of use can get the tree to hold it's fruits...I could be wrong because Bryan's sweetheart fruited nicely.


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Current Exhibitions
Explore a variety of exhibitions featuring works of art from the Walters' permanent collection and from museums throughout the world.
Rinehart's Studio: Rough Stone to Living Marble
Sunday, March 29, 2015–Sunday, August 30, 2015
This spring, the Walters story continues with an exhibition exploring the workshop of 19th-century sculptor William Henry Rinehart.
From Pen to Press: Experimentation and Innovation in the Age of Print
Saturday, November 22, 2014–Sunday, April 12, 2015
This exhibition explores that moment of tension, beginning with the publication of Gutenberg's Bible in 1455, when printing was a new, experimental medium. The result was a fascinating interplay of formats that led to hybrid works, failed experiments, and entirely new forms of books. This story is especially pertinent now, as we are experiencing our own technological revolution, moving from printed book to digital publishing.
From Rye to Raphael: The Walters Story
Sunday, October 26, 2014–Sunday, April 17, 2016
From Rye to Raphael: The Walters Story brings together for the first time an extraordinary group of art and artifacts to illustrate the intriguing stories behind the magnificent gift to the City from the Walters family.


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ND delegation calls for VA secretary's resignation
FARGO — Members of the North Dakota and Minnesota congressional delegations are among those calling for the embattled Veterans Affairs secretary to resign.
Sens. Al Franken, D-Minn., Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and John Hoeven, R-N.D., all have called upon Eric Shinseki to resign in the aftermath of a critical report involving systemic problems and long waits for many veterans.
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Regardless of how great you are at building great business relationships, nearly every designer finds themselves (eventually) at odds with at least one client. You know what I'm talking about. The client is pretty picky, always asking for revisions or never seems to have a project that not "a rush." The deadline is always "ASAP" and they're always trying to get a better deal, work the discount, or get you to throw in some extra work for no extra pay.
How to fix a broken client relationship
in Client Advice
7 Ways I turn my unused designs into passive income
in business tips
If you are like most freelancers, client work makes up the bulk of your income. For me (and I suspect the same is true for most other designers) the creative process involves a lot of experimenting. Sometimes this means that in the process of finding the one design that works perfectly for a project you go through several other ideas that are still good but are not the best fit. This can result in a lot of good design work
How one design agency tripled their business by giving away free web sites
in Client Advice
Last January, our website development team was struggling for a way to break out of our old market and into a new, more profitable niche. How we did it could work for your business too. Let me explain: Whether your development team is a one-man band or a full orchestra, your goal is probably to grow. Growing leads to more connections, more resources, and most importantly more profit; but when you've hit a dead-end with marketing, where do you go?
3 Chances to win 500 business cards + Stoked launches in just 3 weeks
in business tips
In just 3 short weeks, we're launching Stoked, a brand-new community for designers who are serious about fueling their business. (Learn more about Stoked here.) And to celebrate, we're giving something away every week leading up to launch day! Last Monday, we offered a chance to win one free year of membership in Stoked. And today, you've got a chance to get your hands on 1 of 3 sets of 500 business cards from PrintKEG. I really love PrintKEG's mission.
What designers with endless clients and referrals do but you don't (yet)
in business tips, Client Advice
Here at GDB we talk a lot about how to convince your design clients to hire you again (and again and again and again). We've talked about upselling your next design project and when the right time is to ask for referrals. But what if you didn't have to do any convincing? What if your clients called you "their favorite call of the week?" You might say you've died and gone to freelancer heaven. All right here on Earth. And guess
Announcing Stoked: throw fuel on your design business + win a free 1-year subscription
in business tips
Today, I'm over-the-top excited to announce one of the biggest developments at Design Blender in a long time! We're announcing the release of Stoked our upcoming design community built to help you throw fuel on your design business. You may remember me talking about GDBPro last year. This post will cover why GDBPro has now become Stoked PLUS how you can win one free year of access to all the content Stoked has to offer. Keep reading for your chance to win! What Stoked is (what it
Confession: I'm a web designer. I outsourced my HTML. Here's what I learned.
in business tips
I've been designing web sites for almost a decade. I love web design. I stay up late designing web sites. I thrive on learning cool new techniques and get a rush every time I update a page's source code and click refresh. Every…single…time. It's an addiction. (Maybe you're addicted too?) So, strictly from a passion perspective, I would never outsource the coding of a web site. Plus, I've written about outsourcing design services here at the blog before. Frankly, there were a lot of people
Why you don't need a revolutionary idea to start a business
in business tips
Are you sitting around waiting for the next big idea to pop in your head before you start your business? Maybe you sit on the couch on Friday Nights watching Shark Tank on television and thinking to yourself: "Gee, if I only had an idea that was as amazing as that one…then I could start the business of my dreams." The truth of the matter is, you don't need a completely revolutionary idea in order to start a business. • • •


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Ukraine on the Brink
in Politics
Darrell Castle talks about the conflict in Ukraine including the dangerous escalation between nuclear armed powers.
Ceasefire in Ukraine
in Politics
Darrell Castle talks about the agreement reached between Russia, Germany, France and Ukraine for a ceasefire and pullback from fighting.
in Politics
Program Summary 30 Jan. 2015
Hear today from Maria Gilardin's outstanding autonomous TUC Radio on "How the West Caused the Crisis in Ukraine" a two-part 30 min. each series of programs just released from her extensive archives. Brian Lawless RFK's anti-austerity news analyst will be discussing the recent developments across the EU.
The TUC radio segment(s) summarized: In January 2015 Evanston Neighbors for Peace organized an event with two eminent speakers, John Mearsheimer, Professor at the University of Chicago and Rick Rozoff the foremost investigator of NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Prof. Mearsheimer spoke about the origins of the crisis and how to avert the ever heightening risk of war between the United States and Russia. ... John Mearsheimer is Professor of Political Science and the co-director of the Program on International Security Policy at the University of Chicago. Rick Rozoff spoke on January 10, 2015, along with Professor John Mearsheimer from the University of Chicago, at a meeting of the Evanston Neighbors for Peace in Chicago. It is widely acknowledged that the expansion eastward of NATO - the North Atlantic Treaty Organization - is a major provocation of Russia and a huge and under-reported factor in the origins and the conduct of the war in Ukraine. Few investigative journalists follow the day to day politics of NATO - that are directed largely by the US - as closely as Rick Rozoff. He is the manager of the organization Stop NATO International and has been an active opponent of war, militarism and intervention for over 40 years. He writes on the threat of international militarization, especially on the globalization of NATO. Rozoff blogs at https://rickrozoff.wordpress.com/
Referendums In Ukraine
in Politics
Prospective 2016 presidential candidate, Darrell Castle, discusses the Ukraine Referendums in today's edition of THE CASTLE REPORT...
Beyond the Veil - Ukraine and the Middle East Part 1
This week on Beyond the Veil we will begin discussing revelations that we have been discovering in regards to the situations in Ukraine and the Middle East. The more we dig, the more questions we have. This is Part One of what will surely be a series as our investigations continue. All in all, there is a wide variety of different types of information to present and consider, and we will get into area's that you have not heard about on your Evening News.
Join us at 7pm Central Time as we start descending into what is truly turning out to be a rabbit hole of information.
psychic predictions - War Russia/Ukraine and Turmoil in the World
in Spirituality
I see that war is imminent and I will discuss it in more detail in this show
There will be more turmoil in the world and it's happening now. Russia has missiles pointed at the Ukraine and there will be no peace talks.
Finian Cunningham on Ukraine
in Politics
Finian Cunningham, a noted journalist for Stategic Resourses and who has covered news for Press TV and other outlets, gives his take on the events in Ukraine that seem to be changing daily. He is currently in the UK and will be returning to East Africa.
NATO Summit: ISIS & Ukraine
in Radio
President Obama is at the NATO Summit in Wales. NATO is discussing a plan to deal with ISIS and Russia's involvement with Ukraine.
Another U.S. reporter was beheaded by ISIS and Vice-President Joe Biden speaks out about it.
Music by freeroyaltymusic.com
Ukraine, ISIS - Illuminati Exposed Radio
in Politics
09/08/2014 Live Braodcast 4pm PST/7pm EST - Call-ins encouraged. (917) 889-7855 (US & Canada) Outside calling area use Skype. Join hosts Matthew and Kimberly for a discussion about current events taking place in Ukraine. Also on today's agenda is a discussion about ISIS. Phone lines opening at start of show.
Obama to decide 'soon' on sending weapons to Ukraine (Second Coming Watch #589)
in News
1. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Thursday that President Barack Obama will decide soon whether to provide Kiev with lethal weapons to fight separatists in east Ukraine but added that Washington prefers a diplomatic solution.
2. A United Nations watchdog says that ISIS militants are selling abducted Iraqi children at markets as sex slaves, and killing other youth, including by crucifixion or burying them alive.
3. The brutal killing of a Jordanian pilot captured by the Islamic State has sent shock waves through the Arab world and galvanized support for a forceful response to the militants.
4. Russia's Foreign Ministry spokesman said that Moscow would see any decision by the United States to give Ukraine lethal weapons as a threat to Russia's security.
5. Hundreds of Christian protesters clashed with police in Delhi as they pressed demands for government protection amid concern about rising intolerance after a series of attacks on churches.
You can read these stories in more detail and get more prophecy-related news at SecondComingHerald.com.
The prophetic passage of Scripture we are looking at today is Leviticus 23:37 which reads: "These are the feasts of the Lord, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord, a burnt offering, and a meat offering, a sacrifice, and drink offerings, every thing upon his day."
Our second coming quote for today is from Frederic Godet. He said, "The Lord's Supper is a link between the Lord's First Coming and His Second Coming."
The Ukraine...What's to do?
Lets talk about the Ukraine... and Putin. Whiel were are at it lets talk about Obama as well.
Revolution In Ukraine – Part I
in Politics
Darrell Castle talks about the revolution in Ukraine from a geopolitical standpoint.
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Kokomo has 36 schools. Some of the best schools in Kokomo are Northwestern Middle School with a GreatSchools rating of 8/10 and a parent rating of 3/5 stars, and Redeemer Lutheran School with a GreatSchools rating of 7/10 and a parent rating of 5/5 stars. The average GreatSchools rating for Kokomo public schools is 4/10, with an average student/teacher ratio of 13:1.
School data provided by National Center for Education Statistics, Maponics, and GreatSchools. Intended for reference only. GreatSchools Ratings compare a schools test performance to statewide results. To verify enrollment eligibility, contact the school or district directly.
Property is in very high demand and likely to sell quickly, even if it is overpriced or not in the best condition. Sellers receive multiple offers and the price is usually bid up above the seller's initial asking price.
Rent prices are relatively stable, and availability is good. If your yearly income is around $45,000, you can afford to rent in this market. Rent prices have increased by 30% over the past 3 months. This is same as the county average of $830 and 48% lower than the state average of $1,229.
Trend data coming soon.
|For Sale: 515
|New: 66
|Recently Sold: 18
|Reduced: 165
|Average Home Price
|Average Sold Price
|Property Records: 25,797
|Foreclosed: N/A
The average home price in Kokomo is $100,526, which is 39.5% higher than the average sold price in Kokomo ($72,048) . The average home price per square foot in Kokomo is $57 and about 0% of all homes in Kokomo sold in the last 6 months. For Kokomo home values, real estate prices, and city market trends, research the 25,797 property records or search our 18 recently sold or 515 homes for sale listings. The listings and properties in Kokomo are only a part of the 2,059,887 properties and 40,599 homes for sale in Indiana. Because of this, the average home price and average home value of Kokomo also influence the average home price $134,400 and average sale price $123,338 of Indiana. Listing counts, Kokomo home prices and home values in Kokomo are sourced daily from listing and property data on realtor.com®, which is the most up-to-date and accurate aggregation of real estate listings in the industry and includes approximately 800 regional MLSs and is the official website of the National Association of Realtors®.
|Median Age
|Median Household Income


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Slashdot videos: Now with more Slashdot!
We've improved Slashdot's video section; now you can view our video interviews, product close-ups and site visits with all the usual Slashdot options to comment, share, etc. No more walled garden! It's a work in progress -- we hope you'll check it out (Learn more about the recent updates).
Comment: Censorhip anyone? (Score 2) 233
Comment: This is a great idea (Score 1) 214
Comment: Re:Wow (Score 1) 228
Comment: Re:Not impressed, idiotic example given (Score 1) 126
Ok, let me get this straight. Rather than going to stupidteeshirtidea.com and looking around, you download Layar, then you download the stupidteeshirtidea app listed in Layar, then you walk around until you find the stupidteeshirtidea virtual store and click it to get redirected to stupidteeshirtidea.com.
Hahahaha perfectly worded!


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Only through March 31: Purchase any new rolling camera bag from Think Tank Photo, mail in the rebate form downloadable from their website, and get a 15" laptop case for free. And, in addition to receiving the free laptop, when you check out of the shopping cart you will be asked what other Think Tank item you would like to receive for free with your order.
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I Snapped a few pics of our garden this evening. I love summer! We have some cantaloupe, watermelon, cucumbers (still need to erect the trellis), acorn and butternut squash, zucchini, eggplant, tomatoes (Gonna be canning my bum off this year), artichokes, corn, pole beans and pumpkins. Tried bush beans but they did not like life and most of them bit the dust. I planted the corn, pole beans and pumpkins together. The beans are now starting to climb up the corn. Yay!
The garden (soil) was not ready or planting this year really (to busy planting fruit trees :P ) but I thought "What's the worst that could happen...If they all die I will have some OM for the soil right" SO far so good everything seems to be happy their bed. I have an endless supply of horse manure around me just have not got my compost shelters built yet again to busy with my fruit trees :).
We have been mostly eating peaches. My veges just aren't ready yet. Did pick a couple zucchini the other day. Tried our first Cotton Candy Aprium tonight. Fruit was good (on the side that was ripe). The one Donut Peach is ready to be picked. That is Tim's favorite. It makes wonderful jam.Eva's pride is still holding some fruit. The birds have gotten a few of them but I can share a few. What has everybody been eating in their garden's?
What wonderfully large yard you have! I've been thinking about turning my backyard into a fruit and veggie garden. Especially since I get so upset when I go to the store for produce and find most things coming from out of the country. So, I come home empty handed.
I did quite well with growing spinach, parley and three different kinds of kale for my salads! Tomatoes aren't ready, but I did get three that were ripe, and a few string beans. Had lots of navel and Valencia oranges, avocados and white grapefruit.
Recently, the squirrels have been super busy destroying some of my fruit trees. My persimmons were about grape size, and now the small tree has been stripped. The Valencia oranges are being dropped when they are still green, and just yesterday I went out and found about 30 Anna apples on the ground! They are also eating the new leaf growth from my apricot tree. To think that years ago, I thought squirrels were cute!
Denninmi- Yep first year garden for me on this scale. Lived in the concrete city before and did a lot of container gardening. All of my trees are 1 to 2 years old. Been planting like crazy since we moved in 2 years ago. I am looking forward to the many gardening years I have ahead of me. I have been bitten by the gardening bug. Absolutely love it. LOL on that mulch, I keep eyeing it and telling myself that I am insane!
Eloise- You should totally transform it into a garden but be wary ...it will be all you think about every day! FOREVER :)
Those dang squirrels, I would be so upset. I had soooo many gophers when we first moved in. I was like "Ahh how cute" boy was I wrong those little suckers are mean and destructive. Lost a couple trees before I figured that out though :(.
I have the same issue in my garden, Eloise. The only control method that works for me is poison bait stations. They do have non-secondary kill bait that won't kill a snake or bird of prey (or dog) if the catch and eat a poisoned squirrel or rat (I have roof rats and ground squirrels in huge numbers here), BUT that bait has no antidote. So, you must make sure your dog doesn't get into the bait. That is the only thing that keeps the ground squirrel & rat populations down enough so I get some fruit. We have a barn owl house up and so do two of my neighbors. We have significant number of predators - gopher snakes, king snakes, rattlers, hawks, kites, owls, weasels and coyotes, and I still can't keep the rodent population under control without poison bait. Sad, but I didn't spend thousands of dollars on my fruit trees to feed a bunch of rodents. I'd rather have too much fruit and have the option to donate it to our soup kitchens that feed rats and squirrels.
Patty S.
PuggyLover, I too get the gophers and they have destroyed a banana tree, rose bushes and other plants. Recently, I had planted some chili plants in the ground and next day one of the plants totally disappeared underground! The only thing left was the tag. I hadn't trapped gophers in a while, but decided right then and there to make time to start again. Since, I've trapped three.
Patti, wish I could get rid of the squirrels, but not sure if it's legal here. Guess I don't have to show and tell :-)
Yesterday, put up a cd (only had one) and aluminum strips on my trees to see if that would deter the squirrels. They haven't found the fig tree yet, but know they will. I might try spraying the fruit with a chili spray and see if that helps. I so enjoy the fruits of my labor, but unfortunately, so do these 'rats'!


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Everett riverfront developer seeks to build fewer homes
Polygon Northwest of Bellevue plans to update Everett's planning commission next week. A workshop is scheduled at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 17. Any changes would have to clear a formal planning commission hearing process, expected early next year, before reaching the City Council for a vote.
Polygon managers last week gave an overview of their ideas to city council members, some of whom reacted with skepticism.
"There's a level of trust that has to happen here as well, that you trust us that we're going to build something that will be successful, offer a diverse product range," Polygon's Nick Abdelnour told council on Wednesday. "What was done on paper originally, we don't even know that was going to work."
The Riverfront project encompasses more than 100 acres of buildable land. There are three areas: the former Eclipse Mill on the north end, the former city landfill, where the infamous tire fire broke out in 1984, in the center, and the former Simpson Paper Co. mill to the south.
Polygon's current proposal only seeks changes on the Simpson site. They're looking to build 233 homes there now, about a third of the 650 maximum the city would have allowed.
The proposed changes don't involve the number of homes, since city imposed no minimum. Rather, Polygon's amendments involve lot widths, parking configurations and breaking up a central park green into several smaller parks targeting different age groups.
Polygon is not asking for zoning changes on the Eclipse parcel. The city had designated that area for up to 350 homes. Polygon is looking to build 175 townhomes there.
The former landfill is zoned for a mix of retail space plus up to 400 units of multi-family housing. Polygon last week indicated it was speaking to potential commercial tenants, but was unable to say much more because of non- disclosure agreements.
"We're not asking for a commercial variance or change today," Abdelnour said. "That will be a year or two down the road."
Councilwoman Brenda Stonecipher, who has been the most critical of Polygon's plans, registered her doubts Wednesday.
"The biggest concern I have is your statement that you're not coming to us for any changes on the commercial site -- yet -- which implies to me that that will come in the future and I would reiterate my concern that we're taking this in a piecemeal fashion," she said.
Stonecipher would like to hold off on approval until the city sees what changes in tax revenue would result because of the changes Polygon is seeking.
The cost of prepping the Riverfront for redevelopment -- a decades-long process -- could reach $80 million in city, state and federal dollars by the time it's all over. That includes environmental cleanup that would have taken place regardless of redevelopment plans, as well as development-specific items such as roads and walking trails.
The city invested years of planning before the initial sale to OliverMcMillan. The goal was to maximize sales and property taxes.
Success hinged on commercial development at the reclaimed landfill.
When Polygon stepped in to buy the property from San Diego developer OliverMcMillan this summer, it breathed new life into a project that appeared stillborn. The sale price was a little over $18 million. That's roughly $10 million more than what OliverMcMillan paid Everett for the property back in 2008, though OliverMcMillan said it lost money on the deal.
The arrangement held the developer to strict construction deadlines and those obligations transferred to the new owner. That included a June 2017 deadline to build out a 400,000-square-foot shopping area on the former city dump.
Dave Koenig, Everett's planning and community development manager, said the two developers have switched priorities from the commercial to the residential aspect of the property.
"OliverMcMillan's focus was the retail, commercial area. The residential area, they had always expected that somebody else would do those," Koenig said. "When the property sold, they (Polygon) had different ideas about what the market is for the housing."
Polygon last week outlined different classes of homes it hopes to build at the property.
Townhomes would cost an estimated $225,000 to $300,000. Some single-family homes would run from $325,000 to $400,000. Larger single-family homes would run from $425,000 to more than $500,000.
If the regulatory approval goes through, Abdelnour said Polygon still hopes to break ground on the Simpson site this spring.
Noah Haglund: 425-339-3465, nhaglund@heraldnet; com.
Meeting Dec. 17
The next Everett Planning Commission meeting features a workshop on proposed changes to Polygon Northwest's development of the Riverfront property. It's scheduled for Dec.17 at 6:30 p.m. in the Wall Street Building's 8th floor hearing room, 2930 Wetmore Ave., Everett.
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This just in via USA Today: Seth Grahame-Smith, the brains behind Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, is writing what is sure to become a classic: Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. The parody will hit stores on March 2. (For those who believe Honest Abe deserves more respect, the recently-published Lincoln, Life-Size might be more your speed.)
P&P and Zombies has sold over half a million copies, but will this wacky trend of historical figures/classic novels-meets-the-undead stand the test of time?
Tell us what other concepts you'd like to see in the comments. I vote for Romeo & Juliet & Mummies and Shakespeare and Skeletons.
Big news for Suzanne Collins fans: Last night it was announced that the third book in The Hunger Games trilogy will be published on August 24, 2010. In a press release, Ellie Berger, President of the Scholastic Trade Publishing division, commented that over 1.5 million copies of the first two books are in print in North America. No word yet on a title or plot details for book #3.
BookPage reviewer Deborah Hopkinson loved book one, The Hunger Games. She wrote: "Young adults will be riveted by Collins' novel. (It kept this reviewer up until two a.m.) The Hunger Games combines elements of an intense survival adventure with a story of friendship and love. But the book is more than a page-turner with a strong, appealing heroine. The Hunger Games is a powerful and often disturbing story that is sure to spark intense discussion not just about Katniss Everdeen's world—but about our own."
Read about the author's decision to write a trilogy; The Hunger Games movie adaptation; and more in this interview with Suzanne Collins.
Are you looking forward to the new book? Do you have any suggestions for the title?
We've already blogged quite a bit about Colum McCann and Let the Great World Spin, but I couldn't resist another mention after hearing some good news: On Dec. 4, Random House will release the paperback version of the book, which will have a first printing of 100,000 copies. The National Book Award-winning novel was originally slated to come out in paperback in the spring.
In a press release, Jane von Mehren, Publisher of Trade Paperbacks for the Random House Publishing Group, said: "Let the Great World Spin is one of the year's great word of mouth novels. We are moving fast because this is Colum McCann's moment."
If you're still on the fence on this one, Robert Weibezahl's rave review in BookPage's Well Read column should convince you to read this book.
On the flip side, the paperback release of Kathryn Stockett's The Help has been pushed from February to June, since the hardcover is selling so well.
Will you be buying Let the Great World Spin in hardcover or in paperback?
On Friday, we heard that Stephen King's Under the Dome had been optioned by DreamWorks TV as an "event series." I think the new novel is extremely well-suited to a miniseries format and can't wait to see how it turns out (if you haven't seen my review of Under the Dome, it's here).
Of course, this news can only mean one thing—coming up with casting ideas! I could see Elizabeth Mitchell of "Lost" doing a good job as Julia. She's about the right age and could play the role of a relentless reporter without batting an eye.
Actor Cillian Murphy has a talent for being creepy without becoming a caricature (Red Eye, anyone?), so he'd be a great Junior. But at 33, is he too old for the role?
As for Big Jim and Barbie—I'm stumped! And what about the endearing Joe McClatchy and his teen cohorts? Other Under the Dome readers, share your ideas in the comments.
Twlight author Stephenie Meyer appeared on Oprah last Friday, and she answered a question backstage that may leave some fans disappointed. An Oprah Winfrey Show staffer asked if she'd be writing a fifth Twlight book (Oprah didn't have time to ask the question on air), and Meyer answered:
I am a little burned out on vampires right now. . . I think I need a little break. I might go spend some time with my aliens. I might do something completely different. I've got to cleanse the palate. I may come back to it. I did envision it as a longer series. But I wrapped Breaking Dawn in a way that I felt satisfied with, so if that moment didn't come, I'd be okay.
Will any readers be lining up to see New Moon on Friday? Do you hope that Meyer will change her mind about revisiting Bella and Edward?
Lucky New Yorkers -- Mayor Bloomberg has named next week as National Book Awards Week. Festivities will kick off with a 5 Under 35 celebration on Monday and continue through the 60th National Book Awards on Wednesday. About a month ago I blogged about the National Book Foundation's 5 under 35 selection (Ceridwen Dovey, C.E. Morgan, Lydia Peelle, Karen Russell and Josh Weil made the cut), and Trisha blogged about the National Book Award finalists here.
Amazon named Colum McCann's Let the World Spin the best book of 2009—it's also a finalist for the Fiction award. I'm dying to read the book, which Well Read columnist Robert Weibezahl called
an enveloping new novel. . . [McCann] lends a forgiving tenderness that invigorates the timeless notion that we are not really all the different under the skin, each of us longing for love, for beauty, for those connections that will quell our loneliness.
The National Book Foundation will also announce the winner of the "Best of the National Book Award Fiction" category – ever. (We blogged about that award, too.) My vote's for Faulkner.
Everyone from GalleyCat to Publisher's Weekly to the Huffington Post has been blogging about the big news from Daniel Handler (a.k.a. Lemony Snicket). Yesterday afternoon, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers announced that Handler has signed a new five-book deal. The Series of Unfortunate Events was previously published with HarperCollins, and Handler moved publishers because his editor, Susan Rich, got a new job at Little, Brown. The last Series of Unfortunate Events book – The End – came out on Friday, October 13, 2006 (it was also the 13th book).
The five-book deal includes four new Lemony Snicket-authored books (the first book is due out in 2012), and a separate YA novel—written by Handler, not Snicket—due out in 2011.
I loved the Series of Unfortunate Events, and I'm curious about what Handler has in store for the new four-part series. Will he continue writing about the Baudelaire orphans, or dream up some new characters to curse? I am really excited about the non-Snicket YA book. Handler's written a lot of interesting stuff in his career – from a book of short narratives about love (Adverbs) to an essay for the New York Times Magazine about giving away money . . . not to mention his stint as an accordion player for The Magnetic Fields, one of my favorite bands – and it will be interesting to see what he comes up with for this project. No word yet on plot details, but we'll keep you posted.
Any Snicket fans out there looking forward to the new series?
New Yorker writer Elizabeth Kolbert has written a book based on a series of New Yorker articles—and last week, Holt won the rights to publish The Sixth Extinction in a big auction (source).
Most scientists agree that there have been five mass extinctions in Earth's history. Kolbert, a respected environmental journalist, believes we're on the verge of number six, the first since the dinosaurs were wiped out more than 50 million years ago. What does this mean for the planet? We'll find out when The Sixth Extinction appears sometime next year.
From our archives: a review of the audio version of Kolbert's previous book, Field Notes from a Catastrophe.
Our November print edition featured a roundup of Hollywood biographies, from American Rebel: The Life of Clint Eastwood to How to Be a Movie Star: Elizabeth Taylor in Hollywood.
The books we covered were mostly in the "classic" Hollywood camp (Doris Day, Grace Kelly), but you're in luck if you'd rather read about contemporary movie stars. December 1, Transit Publishing (the force that brought us Unmasked: The Final Years of Michael Jackson) will release Brangelina: Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie by celebrity journalist Ian Halperin (also the author of Unmasked). The small Montreal-based publishing house is hoping for a hit—Brangelina will have a 100,000 copy first printing.
According to Transit, the book will include "exclusive revelations and personal anecdotes." Get ready for "shocking new information about superstar Jolie" and "startling discoveries about [her] past."
Also look out for Kiefer Sutherland: Living Dangerously in January 2010 and Little Girl Lost: Money, Fame and Britney Spears in April, both from Transit.
Do you like to read biographies of celebrities? Are there any superstars out there who still need a tell-all. . . or has it all been done?
Whether or not it's warranted, news about mainstream publishing tends to trend toward the bleak. So it's always encouraging to hear about a company who is generating excitement about reading in a new way. Madras Press, a Massachusetts-based nonprofit publisher, is one of those companies. Their goal: to publish individually bound short stories/novellas and distribute the proceeds to charitable organizations chosen by the authors.
The press is inspired by other publishing experiments, like "Concord Free Press, One Story, the old Penguin 60s series, the Penguin Great Ideas series," explains founding editor (and author) Sumanth Prabhaker. But Madras decided to focus on publishing works that were "too long for magazines, too short for trade publishers."
"It struck me as kind of funny that so many writers immediately limit themselves with a certain page restriction when they set out to write a story, especially when print technology and the major distribution systems are perfectly capable of handling stories of basically any length," Prabhaker tells us. "There's really no reason for it, and yet, as I complained to more and more of my friends, it seemed like there were a lot of people in a similar position—stuck with good stories that nobody was interested in. . . . Often it's not even a matter of page count; it's just that the impact of certain stories can be lessened by the presence of other writing on either end, in a literary journal or magazine or collection."
Of course, authors are often pleased to have the opportunity to have a work that would not otherwise be published see the light of day, and sold to benefit their charity of choice. "We're very flexible about this, so our inaugural titles are helping to support a wide variety of places: health and human services, environmental protection, community organizations, a non-profit education institution, etc.," says Prabhaker.
Each book costs just $6. "Our books are tiny, and tiny things tend to cost less in our marketplace than regular-size things," says Prabhaker, adding that volunteer labor, free content from the writers and lack of national distribution all allow them to keep their prices lower. The books are for sale on the Madras Press website and in select independent bookstores only.
The first four titles will ship December 1. Here's a list of titles, authors and charities:
The Third Elevator by Aimee Bender, to benefit InsideOUT Writers (CA)
Bobcat by Rebecca Lee, to benefit Riverkeeper (NY)
Sweet Tomb by Trinie Dalton, to benefit the Theodore Payne Foundation (CA)
A Mere Pittance by Sumanth Prabhaker, to benefit Helping Hands (MA)
Madras hopes to publish another set in 2010, and eventually producing a set of four books every six months.
Would you buy a $6 short story?


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