Eating Our Own Young

a For Crowing Out Loud commentary

I've not taken much time to explain what I do. I am a middle school teacher. Yes, I help mold the young minds of tomorrow's leaders. I teach in a school with an over-representation of poverty, special education students, and discipline issues. No one problem bears the blame for my school's plight. With that said, chief among our issues is poor parenting. Parenting causes me to crow (I guess maybe buzzards squawk; I dunno) so loudly today.

I watch the kids with whom I work struggle daily with growing up. They admire and emulate rappers and sports stars who communicate a self-satisfaction message. Every day, my kids gain friends who assert some influence over them. Many of them deal daily with violent circumstances crouching around the next corner. For those who struggle the greatest, nothing undermines their maturation than their homelife.

People entrusted with children's lives often vacate or abuse their responsibility. More and more, we witness parents who commit sins against their children. Sins like physical and sexual abuse dominate headlines. These crimes make me particularly furious. Also, many parents stand guilty of what we consider lesser offenses like ignoring or passing their children off to someone else. Either way, the next generation already bears the mark of their parents raising.

I do not want to just point an angry talon at others. I want to help. Sometimes I just don't get involved. At other instances, my efforts are shunned by the parents in question. Too, I am cautious to recognize my own need to be a better parent.

I guess the question that keeps "circling in my head" ( punny in a buzzard kind of way) is this: "How can we stand idly by while children are immersed in corruption and ask 'Why are these kids so bad?!'" After these kids fulfill their destiny, we condemn them. Rightly, they are punished, but not all of the guilty suffer. Many of their parents and the surrounding adults suffer no consequences other than bewilderment. Other adults even delight that, " they got what they deserved. Thanks be to God we don't all get what we deserve.

Buzzards begin to circle when something is dead. I am not sure that some humans wait that long.

Buzzards Ending Filibuster

For the past week or so, the buzzards have been circling here. There has been a virtual filibuster perpetuated on us birds. Jobs, family, dial-up internet, Braves baseball, running (ok - jogging), church, eating out, Bama baseball, fantasy baseball, tutoring, teaching, and other blogs have joined forces to prevent much action on this blog. All we're asking is that we get a fair up-or-down comment on our posts, but our writing can't even get to the floor of the blog. I am therefore authoring blogislation to get our words out there in print. The new strategy that I am terming the "BB Option," is to get something out here every day, regardless of its usefulness, accuracy, or length. The more short posts that make it to the blog floor, the better chance we'll have for something to receive a comment. (By the way - Thanks Howdy)

Buzzard to Cardinal

- a For Crowing Out Loud commentary

Buzzard to Cardinal! Wake up Cardinal! You're signal is breaking up - I can barely make out what you are trying to say.

You've just been made, Pope Benedict XVI?! That's what I thought I heard you say. What's confusing me is that in one statement you say you want to do everything you can to do to engender more ecumenical dialogue. You want to communicate more with other world religions and cultures though I am not sure as to what exactly that means. However there are suggestions that you want to work to heal the seperation caused when Martin Luther nailed the 95 Theses to the door (that's just like a Woodpecker). You want to reach out to all the Christians to get them back in one nest. Don't you see, there's a reason that many Protestants Christians are Protestant Christians. Granted some would join your desire to work together with other faiths, but several species of Protestant Christians believe the notion that Jesus is THE WAY, THE TRUTH, and THE LIFE and that NO MAN comes to Father except through Him. Working to improve the ecumenical dialogue would go a long way to separate further the Catholics from many of the Protestants, even though the Catholic church is supposed to the centering pole for all Christian expressions (really now?!).

No worries though - according to Larry O'Connor you aren't expected to be around so long and therefore won't be expected to accomplish anything significant. I think you are off to a good start at not accomplishing anything significant in terms of returning the Catholic church to the faith as it is presented in scripture.

Sorry to have disturbed you, Cardinal.

Defining the Buzzard's Root Blog

After an intensive conclave between the two authors of this blog, we have a new identity - we now know a little bit more about who we are as team bloggers. The title was the first hurdle to cross. After the first several ballots, there was still no title. I finally started thinking about who we are and where we come from and "Buzzard's Root" was born. You can see the explanation of Sylacauga and how it ties in over in the description panel on the right. Another 24 hours of huddling over the blog (really just one phone call later), Buzzard's Root is finally starting to take shape.

The other bird and I will be utilizing the following themed postings in our blog:

For Crowing Out Loud - A series of rants by the familial fouls

A Little Buzzard Told Me - Any scoops we have on anything

Carry-on - no circling buzzards here. We are not going to reveal all the details on this one yet, but it will be innovative.

Vulture of the Month - self-explanatory

Quothe the Buzzard - don't know what it will be yet, but it will probably be some of those profound quotations from us birds.

There will probably be more defining to do as this thing takes shape. We hope you enjoy your reading time here.

Now where's my cuttlefish bone?

I hope we're different

People say my brother, Wayne, and me are different. There are a lot of meanings you can assign to that word "different." According to the Monty Python film Life of Brian, we are all different ("I'm not!" sic). What do our friends, family, and acquaintances mean when they say that?

We differ greatly in appearance. I am a little portly and wide. He does not not remind one of The Wizard of Oz's Scarecrow. He traveled a more logical path to his college degrees than did I. By logical, I mean he has an engineering degree, and I majored in history. He graduated on time or close. I did not. For what it is worth (not the Buffalo Springfield song), our seminal choices led us to profoundly different stations.

We are very much alike though. Our attitudes and beliefs usually "fall in line" together. Wayne and I share many deep characteristics derived from our upbringing. Our wives claim our senses of humor (or lack there of) are congruent. We both believe this computer thingy is here to stay.

I keep racking my brain wondering what I can add to this blog that people are going to want to read. I think I found it. I believe Wayne and I are different. Not just from each other, but I feel the unique Wayne and Chris combination is different from other blogs readers might peruse. Whether the different is a good or bad thing remains to be seen. By reading this blog, I hope people discover our differences and our similarities. I look forward to finding a few more of each myself.