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Tracy Moavero
Cleveland, OH
Recent Activity
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Tracy signed the petition | -
Tracy commented on the article |If you Google "Ms. Randi" you get 25,700 hits. Miss Randi gets 17,600. Mrs. Randi gets 11,400. These titles with Randy get thousands more. So enough with the criticism of naming a girl Randi. My parents named me Tracy, and used the masculine spelling (it's Tracey for women in other English speaking countries), yet no one has trouble with that.
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Tracy commented on the article |
Someone who will surely take note of this story is Ms. Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers.
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Tracy commented on the article |Glad to hear halfway decent position on this issue, but the rest of his work is odious. I worked against his nomination for US ambassador to the UN because his arms control work for the Bush administration seemed to be to subverting international treaties as much as possible, and because I'd seen him testify for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee where he exhibited some of the nastiest, most arrogant attitude toward the UN I've ever seen. He was the embodiment of the Ugly American stereotype at it's worst. I do agree that the Democrats have let us down on this (and other) issues. We gave them a full majority and they threw most of that opportunity away. Those of us who voted, phonebanked, canvassed, gave money and did our part of make that majority possible deserved a lot better.
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Tracy commented on the article |Huh? Why is this so surprising? Being low income is exhausting and distressing, even more so for people caring for children. Dealing with it over a long period could easily leave someone feeling overwhelmed and hopeless, as if nothing could ever get better. (That's one of many beefs I have with people who say they were "poor" as grad students. Real poverty doesn't have a higher purpose or an expiration date.)
I used to volunteer at a homeless shelter, and when staff talked about how little motivation some residents had despite lots of assistance, I wondered how many were depressed.
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Tracy commented on the article |There's always the library, but otherwise there are authors, printers, booksellers and others to get paid for their hard work!
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Tracy commented on the article |The gentleman featured in the video is clean, polite and clearly a fine library patron. He's even quite charming. He is only unusual in the sheer amount of time he spends there. Anyone who, as he says himself, minds his p's and q's should be able to enjoy the library.
Not all homeless are such ideal patrons. In my Washington, DC branch it can be hard to find a seat because people are sleeping. Sometimes people are talking loudly, cursing up a storm, snoring, eating or drinking. Try concentrating under those conditions. Security deals with these people to a degree, but not always, and the librarians are afraid that they'll provoke someone who is mentally ill. Indeed, homeless people who are on the streets (not all homeless are street people) have a high percentage of untreated mental illness and/or addictions, which result in disruptive behaviors as well.
In my neighborhood, plenty of library patrons are working class and/or low-income. Many are immigrants who find books in Spanish or Vietnamese, or who bring their kids for storytime in English. Some are out of work and rely on the computers to fill out job applications. Some are studying for their GED. Our libraries fill a wide range of needs.
No one should be booted out for being homeless, but anyone - with or without a home - who makes it difficult for others to use the library needs to be escorted out.
This isn't about not wanting to "see" the homeless. I have seen them plenty while working with them. It's about preserving our declining library systems for their intended purpose, and finding real solutions to homelessness.
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Tracy commented on the article |"Mister Rogers generation" = anyone who has watched the show, which has has run continuously since 1965. So that's about three generations.(I watched from ~1970-1975.) Not everyone under 50 has been surprised to find DC, a destination city for career-focused superachievers, ultra competitive. That comes from lack of experience and a bit of naivete. DC is a bumpy landing for young adults who think that a little work experience and a degree are all you need to make it here. I came to DC in my mid-30's after having built a career in political/policy around the UN, where the culture is really different.
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Tracy commented on the article |
Yikes! You're conflating a self-esteem message with entitlement! Mister Rogers wanted children to feel good about who they were as individuals, especially the ones who didn't fit in because they were "different" somehow. He was pretty radical in his thinking about race, gender, ability and more, way ahead of his time. Both on and offscreen he worked hard for children's rights and their well-being.
A few Mister Rogers' quotes to consider:
-- "Imagining something may be the first step in making it happen, but it takes real time and real efforts of real people to learn things, make things, turn thoughts into deeds or visions into inventions."
-- "As work grows out of play, an attitude toward work grows with it--an attitude that may persist all through our workaday life. That attitude can have a lot to do with how we accept challenges, how we can cope with failures, and whether we can find the inner fulfillment that makes working, in and of itself, worthwhile."
-- "What makes the difference between wishing and realizing our wishes? Lots of things, of course, but the main one, I think, is whether we link our wishes to our active work. It may take months or years, but it's far more likely to happen when we care so much that's we'll work as hard as we can to make it happen." Even his song "You've Got to Do It" talks about working hard even when you don't want to.
As a non-profit manager I've seen the entitlement you're referring to, particularly with (some!) entry level staff and interns. But don't scapegoat Mister Rogers for that. There's been a cultural shift towards endless praise, even when it's not merited, and not letting kids ever feel bad, bored, disappointed or criticized. Also, many professionals who, like me, grew up blue collar often see the entitlement problem with young adults from the middle class. Where we learned that you take pride in your work, no matter how lowly, middle class kids are encouraged to follow a more fulfilling path. There are ups and downs to each style, but with the blue collars, you're less likely to get whining about the boredom of data entry.
So I'd be thrilled to have a staff all brought up on what Mister Rogers REALLY taught: the courage to be yourself, self-discipline, community service, and loving others. Those are the values behind all social change movements.
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