split mind

 

suggested reading for those curious about joining the military

1. Storm of Steel - a German soldier's harrowing account of the horrors of WW1

2. The Things They Carried - what it was like to be drafted into the Vietnam War

3. About Face - the autobiography of one soldier's long and distinguished career in the Army 

4. To Hell and Back - the eyewitness account of Audie Murphy, America's most decorated hero of WW2

5. The Forever War - a sci-fi parable by a Vietnam combat veteran. 

6. Slaughterhouse Five - a mix of history, comedy, and sci-fi as told by a US POW during WW2

7. Bill the Galactic Hero - a sci-fi satire of the military by a WW2 veteran

8. Once an Eagle - a classic and epic novel by a combat veteran of WW2 

9. Escape from Laos - the true story of one pilot's survival and daring escape from a POW camp

10. The Private History of a Campaign that Failed - Mark Twain's hilarious memoir of his brief time as a soldier in the Civil War. 

meanwhile in Africa

Here's what foreign aid pays for:

I exaggerate somewhat, but the main result of foreign aid is population growth. Perhaps someday Africa will industrialize to a similar level as Europe or North America. I doubt it. In any case, Africa is and will be dependent on food aid and food imports, as well as imports of fuel, fertilizer, and machinery. 

The above screenshot is from the 7:42 mark of this video:

The Collective African Culture Is Broken

Elsewhere

Tanzanian President Magufuli pardons child rapists

The orphanage director I worked with in Tanzania tried unsuccessfully to get permission for a pregnant girl to return to school as she was less than a year from graduating. 

 

suggested video games for homeschoolers and gifted/talented students

All these games are from the mid to late 90s but should be available used (cheap!) or on Steam. There are also similar games currently and from recent years.

Real-time strategy games and city-building games are best because they teach how to manage complex systems. It's like a faster version of chess. Some role-playing games involve creative problem solving.

Fighting and first-person shooter games tend to be popular and fun, but don't teach much. Racing and flying games are good for building hand-eye coordination. I never played sports games much, so I don't know what the pros and cons of those are. 

Older video games like Super Mario or Pac-Man tend to be more about reaction time and winning through trial and error. Other than nostalgia, there's not much point in playing them.

1. Zelda: Ocarina of Time

This one has mild fantasy violence, but otherwise nothing objectionable. Beating this game requires patience and creativity as there are a wide variety of puzzles to solve. 

2. Age of Empires 2

Any game from this series is solid, and it indirectly teaches about history. It combines city-building with strategy.

3. Railroad Tycoon 2

Again, any game from this series is good, and it also teaches about economics and the history of railroads.

4. Tropico 

This is also a series of games. You govern an island nation where you can have free and fair elections or become a dictator through various means. There is little violence but some adult references (cigars, rum, gambling, cabaret). The game teaches history, politics, and economics. I highly recommend it. 

5. StarCraft

This a great one for sci-fi fans. It has stronger violence than Age of Empires and is basically that game in space. Warhammer fans will love this one. 

6. Caesar 3

This is a city building game that teaches a lot about ancient Rome. There's mild violence as you command legions to fight various barbarians. And you must build temples to various pagan gods or face their wrath. 

7. Command and Conquer

This is a series of games starting in 1995. Red Alert 2 is my favorite as it has amusing cut scenes and campy humor. The violence is PG-13. 

8. Oregon Trail

If you let your kid play one video game, let it be this. The 90s version is best. There is mild violence in the hunting minigame and references to death. 

9. Destroy all Humans!

Another sci-fi gem and a great game for misanthropes. The violence is mild and there are some adult references. It has some of the best humor of any video game I've ever played. 

10. Primal Rage

Who doesn't love dinosaurs? Well, this game is basically Mortal Kombat with dinosaurs. Or at least creatures similar to them. There's a lot of blood, but it sure is fun. Maybe save this one as a reward for good behavior. It's what my parents did. 

Video games have a bad reputation, but some of them are educational in addition to being entertaining.

It's better to get your kid hooked on one of the above before they stumble upon a mindless, amoral cesspool like Grand Theft Auto (a fun game, but it does not develop the mind).

I should note that I played all the "bad" video games too and did not grow up to be a career criminal. Video games can desensitize someone to violence, but they do not make people violent. 

Should you go to college? Should you study engineering?

I think it is a bad idea to borrow a lot of money for college, though most who study law or medicine pay back their loans with no problem. 

I was not enthusiastic about college. I went because I got a full scholarship and couldn't think of anything better to do. I don't regret going to college, but it made me realize that I did not want to spend any more time in school, though that ended up happening anyway. 

My scholarship required that I study science, engineering, or technology. I picked chemical engineering because I liked chemistry in high school and the starting salaries were good. At the time, I wasn't sure if I wanted to get a PhD, so I thought engineering was a practical choice that would let me go to work right away if I wanted. As it turned out, after four years of studying engineering, I wanted to do something completely different for a while. So I joined the Peace Corps because I wanted to travel, learn another language, and have an adventure. That was probably the best decision I ever made. 

In order to be a successful engineer, you have to be focused and driven. You have to care a lot about getting the design or process right. If you find the work boring, as I did, engineering will not work out for you as a career. Engineers usually work in teams, so they have to be sociable. If you're an introvert, avoid engineering unless you're really interested in the technology involved. 

If I had to live my life over again knowing everything I know now, my life would be about 90% the same. That's a sign I don't have too many regrets and made mostly the right decisions. 

 

suggested schedule and activities for gifted and talented children

In the US, this refers to children with IQs 130 or higher. They are in the top 2% for intelligence and do best with self-directed learning.

Places to take them: above all, libraries. After that, museums, zoos, aquariums, planetariums, and escape rooms. Regular weekend trips should be enough. If they can volunteer at these places or partner with a mentor there, they should. 

If they're in public school, they should try to skip grades and graduate early. Schools are designed around an IQ range of 85 to 115. 

Set a limit of about an hour of reading per day. One movie per day is acceptable. An hour of TV and video game time per day is reasonable. That covers about four hours. 

Ideally, they should have some project they are working on that takes up most of their time during the day. This can include gardening, painting, drawing, writing, playing music, building models, solving puzzles, science experiments, or playing chess. Fours per day during the week should be enough.

Intellectual children often lack physical fitness. Running, swimming, weightlifting, and martial arts can counteract this. Scouting and 4H are great places for such children to socialize. If nothing else, long walks and bike rides build endurance and resilience. 

It's very easy to get such children to do chores if you pay them. They should start working part-time as soon as they can. 

They should conceal their intelligence, follow their passions, and take the path of least resistance. 

boredom

 

landscape

 

milima haikutani, lakini binadamu, hukutana

 

Alan Escapes The Game Into New Reality | Jumanji (Robin Williams, David Alan Grier)

Mountains don't meet, but people do.

When you speak a foreign language, just use the words you know and pronounce them well, and others will understand. 

THE SKWOIDS (aka Good Business)

be all you can be

 

relax

 

open sesame - iftah yaa simsim

 

faith

 

"Although I don't like Islam or any other religion, I don't think Muslims are bad people." 

c'est la guerre

 

progress

 

intel

 

close enough - تقريبا صحيح

 

I met US soldiers who "spoke" Arabic but didn't know what a mosque is. 

swali

 

"How come we aren't sending volunteers to *your* country?"

blessing and curse

 

research