sensors detect weapons-grade stupidity, captain

[rone]

I can't give you a choice quote from this obstreperous and bizarrely fatuous letter because i can't seem to pick only one.  All i can say is that this teacher makes anti-GNU zealot jmaynard look almost moderate and informed.

Comments

[syringavulgaris.livejournal.com]

Explains a lot about middle school, at least.

[kodi]

It's easy for me - nothing in that letter is more awesome than "[Microsoft] would be more than happy to supply you with copies of an older version of Windows." It's probably not as funny if you've never paid $100 to upgrade from Vista to XP, though.

[solipsistnation.livejournal.com]

As kids these days seem to say:

Wut.

[glaucon.livejournal.com]

I think her original letter was a hoax or a joke.

[wisn.livejournal.com]

I attended a business meeting with some clients and the topic came around to what sort of door prize we should offer at a conference about Windows-based third party software. The sales manager for a company that distributes and supports it eagerly spoke first: "We should give away a ZUNE!"

Everybody, including his team members, looked at him, silently thinking, "You are so fucking out of touch with the world outside your imaginary Redmond." Then one of his underlings suggested an iPod Touch, everybody except the sales manager agreed, and we continued to the next agenda item.

So, no, I don't think it's a joke. There are a lot of people for whom Microsoft is the source of all computing.

Dude... Where IS her Weed Coming From...

[drieuxster.livejournal.com]

Since clearly one must be beyond TOTALLY Baked to go there...

I am sooo not sure what to do with that as even an allegation of a possibility of the potential for the existence of an argument....

[loosestrife.livejournal.com]

OMG, I exposed three years' worth of middle-schoolers to Linux at my previous job. What if anyone finds out?

[wordweaverlynn.livejournal.com]

She not only drank the Kool-Aid, she's pouring it for eveyone around her.

[qwrrty.livejournal.com]

http://www.austin360.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/digitalsavant/entries/2008/12/11/breaking_local.html

I don't feel like we have enough information to draw judgement on this one. I have a lot of respect for public school teachers, who (even in our highly-rated district) work long difficult hours for pretty modest compensation. They're not all winners, but I tend to think that even the less adept teachers are trying hard.

The blog post does make it sound "obstreperous and bizarrely fatuous," like you say. But it also sounds like there was a lot of context left out and it's not quite as cut-and-dried as it sounds like at first. Sparks does not appear to have handled this very well.

[ronebofh.livejournal.com]

I actually didn't focus on what Starks said, because i could tell he was going on and on about it and being a bit of a dick. But i can't imagine what sort of context could make "Karen"'s letter any less crazy.

[qwrrty.livejournal.com]

It is pretty crazy. She seems to have gotten freaked out and not been good at articulating the reasons why. It just sounds like everyone took a big dose of fail on this one and I don't like any of it.

[dr-strych9.livejournal.com]

"I don't feel like we have enough information to draw judgement on this one."

And, whad'dyknow? You're right (http://linuxlock.blogspot.com/2008/12/character-assasinations-aint-us.html).

[ronebofh.livejournal.com]

It's good to see Starks unequivocally "man up", as the kids say.

[dr-strych9.livejournal.com]

Well, he's still not facing the reality that the reason the AISD might be skittery about allowing students to remove Windows from their laptops is that they probably signed a contract with Microsoft (or a subcontractor) that explicitly stipulated that they wouldn't do that and that they'd take affirmative steps to prevent and discourage it.

Yes, claiming that "it's illegal" to remove Windows is not the same as saying "we are contractually obligateed" to keep students from removing Windows, but I'd like to think I, in Stark's place, would have been smart enough to figure this out once it became clear to me that I wasn't dealing with a cartoon villain in Richard Stallman's most feverish dreams.

[rbradakis.livejournal.com]

Yeah, crazed a bit.

I'm with her

[epileptikitty.livejournal.com]

It's like passing out cigarettes on the playground. Stark's an asshole.

Psssst. Hey kid! Look! It's like a real computer from 20 years ago. You can play gnarly games from the early '80s!



p.s. Bsd 2 in '79. Kernel work from '82 to '95. Wrote a TCP/IP. Can type shell scripts in my sleep. I much prefer windows.

[ronebofh.livejournal.com]

If you prefer Windows, it's probably because you haven't had to do any real work on it.