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I have some of those for other things--I'll try this out when we start back!

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This is cool! How often do you have to use it, and what machine do you have?

Yay! My Brother PTouch PTD210 doesn't leave residue on anything. I buy the generic label tape refills, and that has gone okay so far, too.

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Wow—I have never heard of that kind of notebook! That’s an intriguing concept. I think we could use a couple of extra vacuums. Small vacuums=small children using them somehow. 😂 Maybe a little red Hoover handheld for the stairs. 🤔

What is something you have come across over the years that makes your life easier? Something that, as soon as you discovered it, seemed to take a load off you or otherwise make things work better--big or small. Looking for ways to work smarter not harder! I'll start: Buying and using a label maker. For some reason having that is a difference maker. I even use it to label freezer bags of precooked or chopped stuff (I make several bags at once so I guess typing out the labels is more foolproof and faster.).

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We are using it for Language Arts. I have only actually worked through the level K Primer with my preschooler (which is not really the full fledged program). It didn't look like much when I got it, but as we worked through it I was impressed at just how much was embedded into it. My daughter learned a lot. I liked it enough to give it a try once we decided to homeschool this year. Why we chose it for this year: It's an open and go ELA that covers all the bases, practices phonics, and doesn't seem to take too long each day. Sounds good to me! We have a lot to adjust to and new subjects to pick out, so working all of the ELA topics from one source seems appropriate for where we are at. I like the artwork, my daughter loved working in her primer, and I think overall it will be a happy way to get the kids reading well. There was an embedded reader in the primer which was helpful, and I like that in the big levels they have that, too. -

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Injury related: I injured my hip several years ago and have not been able to get it fixed due to life craziness. Exercise is tough. Has anyone lost weight without relying on exercise?

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Bottom line: The police force attracts and houses a certain type of bad personality that needs to be MANAGED, MONITORED, and DISCIPLINED as needed. It is the system that has the power to do this. If it is not managed, which is clearly a problem in various departments right now, that personality can take over, reaching high up in levels of leadership and attracting others like itself to a particular force because that force allows them to get away with being a bad person. Any effort to manage those bad personalities will a) not impact the good cops negatively--they will naturally want to have those sorts of measures in place and work well within them. b) enhance the work of the good cops by making their desires to serve the community easier to do, and, most importantly, c) make members of the community who are vulnerable to the abuse of police authority safer. Another manifestation of this abuse of police authority is when you hear of a police officer who pulls over single female drivers at night to sexually assault them (I watch a lot of crime shows. This is out there.) They can get protection behind the thin blue line, too. People like that are evil, and we need to use the system to find, remove, and prosecute them. The first step is for people who are not vulnerable and are, therefore, able to ignore what's going on is to actually acknowledge that this dynamic exists and not want it to be a part of our society anymore. Spoiler alert: I personally had to have that epiphany. Now that I have, I DO NOT want this to be part of my society anymore.

The issue here is we are talking about the police as a government agency/institution--this is not really talking about crimes committed out among the community. I will have to agree that my interactions with police as a white person have been typically unpleasant, and the "friendly policeman" meme doesn't really resonate as much. Maybe I'm not a rich or hot enough white person to have it matter (which is a factor). That said, I have never felt like I would be killed or had them harass me in an extended way. Too many black people have shared these experiences and are being shut down. That is why people are upset. That is why there is an issue in the way that the institution handles things. All of these incidents must also be analyzed in terms of what personalities are drawn to become a cop. Here are ones I see: 1) Good people who want to help the community. 2) People for whom being a cop is a family career (ie "My dad was a cop, so I am going to be a cop.) 3) For people who have been at it awhile, those who have seen a lot of heinous crimes and have developed some sort of PTSD/issue that makes them more erratic than they would have wanted to be. These people need to leave the force and get counseling.*** 4) Narcissists who like to have power over other people and, therefore, become a cop so they can do that legally. In my opinion these "bad cops" will not go away. There will ALWAYS be people who like to have power over others in an unhealthy way who are drawn to the police force because that's what they get to have. Who do they choose to be their worst selves to? People that society doesn't listen to and who they can get away with abusing. So big shock--we hear about black people dying because of people like that and no one cares. So they keep doing it. Solution: CHANGE: the way that the department handles those abusive personalities. TRAIN differently--don't let sitting on someone's neck be acceptable. REPRIMAND abusive cops early in their career, maintaining a paper trail of sorts indicating that the person has an issue with responsibly handling their authority. These are three basic but broad systemic changes that could be made to keep those "bad apples"--who will absolutely continue to seek employment with the police force generation after generation--from ruining the police force from within. ***Homicide Hunter Joe Kenda's series finale was a great example of knowing when to quit. He had seen so many bad crimes that he was starting to become angry and disenchanted at the world. One day he blew up in a way that scared him at a pedophile who was actively confessing to being a pedophile. He was no longer able to maintain is professionalism due to what he had seen. That day he applied for retirement and did not return to the force. There is a toll taken on police officers because of what they see. It is probably not something that should be considered a life long career for many people.

This is a good point. I think a lot of times people come away from stuff like this focusing on examining individual cops and saying, “Most of them are great! We just have bad individuals!” But it can be audited to find that individual ~departments~ are worse than others. If some truly are horrid there must be a few departments that have been more successful at dealing with the issue of brutality that can be used as models while actively reforming the bad departments. For anyone who wants to make this about cops/supporting cops/etc.: If someone actually likes and respects cops, they would insist that the departments they work for do not have a toxic, murderous culture. Good cops who “feel bullied or unsafe” actually speaking out because of their corrupt departments do not actually have a good job. They can’t do as much good as they would be able to do in an ethically run department. Support cops by supporting reform.

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Eh...maybe I can hope. I’m just sad as are many people.

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