In 1982, a student who‘s name I will not include as this incident happened when she was twenty-one years old, she was reprimanded and she experienced the consequences. If the reader wishes to do a search and do more reading on the story from 1982, feel free. Whether she acted knowingly or unknowingly, only she knows, however, she was young and most young people do at least one thing they regret later in life. That’s just how I feel. For your kids, grandkids or any young person, this story is a good lesson ). was a senior at Princeton University was enrolled in an upper level course on the Spanish American Novel and submitted a
term paper discussing the novel by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, One Hundred Yeas of Solitude. The paper was reviewed by her Professor and checking her references and footnotes it was determined that the student had ‘lifted’ large portions of a publication reviewing the famous book. The matter was taken to the administration and it was determined by the President of the University and the board members that Napolitano’s degree would be held for a year and the law school to which she was applying would be notified. She rebutted the charges, pleading her case that in haste to complete the paper she took some liberties but she did site the publication she had read and footnoted her sources. She took the matter to a civil court, lost and took it to a higher court. Her concern that the matter would follow her beyond her tenure at Princeton, which it did, with the story making the New York Times and Time magazine to name just a few of the media outlets that covered the story. So she admitted the mistake but “didn’t feel that the punishment fit the crime.” Princeton wanted to send the message that when a student from their institution signs an honor code agreement, it means something and they need to uphold the integrity of their University and the value of a degree and diploma from the historic and honorable school.
This week, when Claudine Gay resigned as President from Harvard, in part due to the uncovering of plagiarism charges in her academic writings, there was no admission of guilt or remorse. In fact, the University or rather “Harvard Corporation” who stood by Gay until very recently, still has her on their payroll as faculty at a salary of $900,000. Ironically, Princeton, back in 1982 felt that not dealing with plagiarism in a swift and severe manner would harm the University ‘s reputation, where as the Harvard Corporation refused to permanently remove a documented plagiarist faculty member. Question for The Harvard Corporation, “How will plagiarism be handled in the future? Does plagiarism now get a pass since a Ms. Gay is allowed to remain employed? Also, on another note, why is Ms. Gay being rewarded for not being concerned about the safety of ALL STUDENTS safety and security in the wake of the Anti-Semitism issues on several college campuses. Will Harvard, or rather, The Harvard Corporation pick and choose on that topic as well? Why was Ms. Gay not vetted appropriately if she was to hold such an esteemed position and one of the world’s finest institutions? After all, if she was to break the glass ceiling and be an example for little girls and African Americans around the world as a first, why shouldn’t she be held to the same standard as any other candidate? This is insulting to anyone who works/worked hard in academia to achieve the coveted position of a University or College President. That is very sad. There are plenty of people out there in this field who have “busted,” furthering their education, incurring the cost of tuition, spending money on preparation courses for graduate school testing, not to mention the time involved to pursue these dreams. What about the people who were passed over to select Ms. Gay? Much is touted about Ms. Gay being the first African American Female to hold the position of The Harvard Corporation President. Nice, but why do we have to bring attention to her ethnicity and skin color? If she worked her ass off and impressed the hiring committee who should have been looking for the best and brightest to lead their institution, why would these factors matter? Didn’t Martin Luther King preach that all should be equal regardless of their skin color and that merit should be awarded on the content of their character? These question remain to be answered, and time will tell.
Harvard used to be that school. To gain admission to Harvard meant that you were the best of the best, the cream of the crop, off the charts in terms of academics and most likely a National Merit Scholar. Admission or a degree from Harvard was something employers and others took note of, and it was a ticket to the job you wanted, the grad school or professional school you hoped to get in to, you chances were most likely greater to do most ANYTHING with a degree from Harvard.The Harvard of late, and some other institution followed suit, appears to be “checking of boxes,” or satisfying quotas to appear that they give all a fair chance. White Males and Asians would not get the same consideration as other minorities, or so it seemed, an Asian applicant sued the University and won a Supreme Court Case over this issue. No doubt the intent was most likely to give those with less advantages a leg up to ‘level the playing field.’ Ok, but questions remain, “Has this leveling of the field worked?” Are race relations improved? Does lowering the bar for some make for a better student body, more qualified doctors, lawyers, accountants, teachers, engineers? What lowering the bar does do is that it insults those students who work hard and put the effort in. Now that this issue is front and center, will people question people’s ability to achieve? I have some friends who graduated from these institution and had the test scores, the grades, the letters the experiences to get there. Will they now be looked at differently and will others wondered if they had what it takes. THAT’ S NOT FAIR. Those leaders of these institutions and others in high ranking positions who gained their position in a big part because they put that institution on the map by ‘breaking the glass ceiling’ yet are UNQUALIFIED for the job, ruin it for those who do rightfully deserve the job regardless of what box they check. Buckle Up people, it’s just January 5 and this is one of many attention getting headlines that will not go away and may just be the tip of the iceberg on this topic.
Jeffrey Epstein. What a mysterious man. When you read his bio, you wonder how he got to where he was. What was it that he had that attracted the rich and powerful to become part of his circle? I head radio talk show host and conservative activist, Dan Bongino, explain Epstein’s roll this week in the best of analogies, “Jeffrey Epstein was a ‘bouncer’ to gain admission into the most exclusive of clubs.” He might not have know everyone, but he knew how to get in touch with whom every he needed to. Another example he used was that if you were part of “The Club” and your friend called you to help his son get a job at a prestigious hedge fund, then you would call ‘Jeff,’ Jeff would make the call to who he knew and your friend’s son would have the job. Epstein socialized and entertained the members of The Club and gave them access to the young women his gal pal, Ghislaine Maxwell, who herself was well connected through her father’s international connections, enticed to become part of their criminal ring of evil. Once they had the goods or videos on those who partook in the bad behavior, they were easy to blackmail and blackmail they did. They were able to influence politically, economically, with the threat of exposure to their families and the media. If you are a politician and a vote is ready to be taken on funding for a foreign war and you have been a willing party to a party on Epstein Island and you may have been against the effort and planned to vote “no” but a big lobbyist who has economic interests in that country want a “yes” vote and that person is part of The Club, you may be encouraged/blackmailed to vote “yes” to keep your extracurricular activities hidden from your family and the public. Was he murdered? By whom? Why has it taken so long for the docs to be released? If the information is/was there as to who was involved what has been the obstacle? As Amy Roback on an ABC hot mic, (Dan played the video on his show on January 4, this week, watch it!) told how they (ABC) sat on the story, she did the research on Epstein and the story was pulled and she (Amy) was not given a reason why. Huh?…Buckle Up, more docs are to be released. Maybe nothing will come of it and the story will be swept under the rug, so as not to expose those in power, but with this being an election year, this may just be the beginning of more…
Crime. A judge in Nevada was announcing sentencing in a felony battery case involving thirty-year-old defendant, Debora Redden, in a court room when Redden charged the bench and lept over it, attacking the Honorable Mary Kay Holthus of Clark County District Court. Fortunately, officials were close by to come to the Judge’s assistance. A flag on a pole was overturned and hit the Judge and she fell to the floor behind the bench. When lawlessness is allowed, the bad guys will well take advantage of law enforcement. It is frequently seen on social media that criminals rob convenience stores and attack innocent citizens walking on sidewalks. A young man was knifed to death on a sidewalk in Brooklyn, NY last year when walking with his girlfriend home from the wedding of a friend. When criminals are arrested and let go, they are free to commit more crimes while awaiting their court date. Back in the seventies in New York City, crime was at a high. The city was a mess. The new Mayor at the time enlisted police officers to arrest the smallest of offenses to let the criminals and citizens know that crime would not be tolerated. It worked. The late seventies and eighties were a time of cracking down on crime and by the late eighties, early nineties, the city got safer, tourism was up and the citizens of New York felt safe in their own city. There’s a saying in parenting, “What ever the traffic will allow,” meaning that if you allow kids to get by with stuff, they will mow you down. Same with criminals. The criminals become more and more emboldened. Combine that with prosecutors who go after citizens trying to protect themselves while they (the prosecutors) go after the law abiding citizens just trying to protect themselves and their property and you have a recipe for disaster and lawlessness. It makes one wonder if this is a plan for citizens to become afraid to protect themselves and be submissive. Who knows. Again, time will tell. Buckle Up…
The border. Not just the southern border of the United States is being invaded, but illegals are coming across the northern border as well. We ARE under attack. Back during the previous administration, opposing congressional members were concerned about the conditions the children were being held in and made quite a bit of noise about this concern. No one likes to see children mistreated or harmed. NO ONE. The flow of immigrants across the border was under control at the time and changes were made to accommodate the children safety and humanly. When the new administration took control the flood gates opened wide. When they voiced their concern about the minors initially their points of contention could have been sincere and legitimate, however, where was their concern when the
millions started streaming in? Where was the concern for the children being trafficked, the children dying on the journey and the American children and adults being killed by the drugs being brought in through that porous border. Where was the concern for the cartels enslaving those coming across? Where was the concern for our own citizens who need assistance from our government, from the elderly, to veterans being removed from housing to accommodate the immigrants needing lodging with no skills just looking for food, shelter and services? Where is the concern from these legislatures for their own constituents who’s children are being crowded out of their own schools because of the flow of immigrants to sanctuary cities? And, what is the purpose of allowing this vast flow of people from all around the world into our country many unvetted? We all are for legal and lawful immigration we all come from immigrants in one way or another, it’s part of the make-up of the United States, however, this is out of control. Is someone hoping for these people to become eligible to vote or at least be part of a census for more representation of their party in Congress? At one time, some would have called this far fetched and maybe even a conspiracy theory. Now, who knows? Time will tell, buckle up…
A former President and current the leading Presidential candidate fighting legal battles aimed to take him off the ballot by unelected official, and in Maine someone tries to make such a decision for the citizens of her state when she herself is not even a lawyer. No President should be subject to this and the citizens of this country should be allowed to vote for a candidate that a majority of the country want on the ballot. All Americans should be angry about information being suppressed by the press to tip the scales to a particular candidate, again, who ever it is. When the government steps in to suppress the information it is wrong. If a political party feels that their candidate is the best qualified then they should allow that candidate to run on their merits and accomplishments against the most qualified and popular based on the primary voting. Let the best person win, let the American people choose who should govern them and let the side that doesn’t win let them govern. Over the last few years, it hasn’t gone that way. Whether they are sore losers or sore because they lost the power and now they govern the swamp and they don’t want to loose the power, remains to be discovered. There are good and bad on both sides of the aisle. A politician is only as good as the promises they keep and what they can deliver for the American people.
Yep, buckle-up. American is in for a wild ride this year. Events in the course of this year could change the course of history not only for our country but for citizens around the world. What will citizens tolerate? Who will they choose to lead them and what kind of secrets will be uncovered. With a corrupt and bought media, for the most part citizens are left to fend for themself in their quest for news that is accurate. One good thing about the internet and the age of information is that there are many more sources of accurate information. Seek them out and educate yourself as to what is going on and do your homework to prepare for the upcoming election. As they say, “Elections do have consequences.”
Say your prayers, our country and the world could use every bit of help they can get. In the end is really is a battle of good and evil. If the last few years haven’t taught us that you must have been living under a rock. This country was built by good hard working people. The founders of this country were hard working men who wanted more than corruption from their government/monarchy. What they went through for this country wasn’t easy, nothing worth achieving ever is, but they did it. American isn’t perfect, it has it’s flaws here and there, but we acknowledge our problems a face them head on. I am not giving up and you shouldn’t either. It didn’t get to this point over night and it’s not going to be fixed over night, just like the problems of the Harvard Corporation will not be fixed over night by the firing of Claudine Gay. It takes a changing of the guard and an examination of what direction we want this country to go in…Buckle Up…We have a lot of work to do to make this country have more Great Days 🇺🇸
