One more question, if y'all could indulge me (sorry I'm completely ignorant on this whole thing)- do you think the Tupler thing would work even if I'm...13 years post-partum? :ohmy:

I've been struggling with this for so long, it's not even funny. Great suggestions here and after going through the high school Biology thread above and suggestions for Great Courses Biology, I've finally settled on something that's nearly completely ready for my kids to do without my husband or me doing excessive leg work. And it's free. http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/biology/7-012-introduction-to-biology-fall-2004/

Off of the top of my head, that subject doesn't seem to be enough to write a full paper. My chemist husband will be home soon and I'll fill you in on what he thinks. For our kids, he's assigning them to do a research paper related to the Periodic Table.

Can someone recommend a splinter? There seem to be a lot online and I don't want to cheap out, but I don't want to break the bank if I don't have to. Thanks for all your help, y'alls!

Glad someone else said this so I didn't have to.

I'd like a textbook that might be at or close to college level reading. This is where my kids are for comprehension. I've found SWB too far below their reading level and if I recall, Human Odyssey may be as well. Sorry I didn't clarify this earlier.

There is a difference between the Feds setting a minimum wage and companies choosing to pay their employees a livable wage. If you live in a place where $8 an hour full-time is enough to live on and the employers in the area recognize and support that, no problems. If the Feds set the minimum wage to $10 an hour, then those LCOL employers are going to get hit big time. If I had my druthers, the employers would pay a living wage wherever they are located. Since so often they choose not to, the Feds might come in and force an across the board minimum wage that will harm some employers. Lesser of two evils here.

Does anyone know of one? By inexpensive, I'm thinking less than $30-45 used. I'd like it to be thorough and it can be meaty 300+ pages. Thanks!

I think Wal-Mart will ruin it for everyone. There are probably enough small businesses that will be hurt by a massive increase in the minimum wage. Wal-Mart won't be hurt. But because they don't bother, it's going to play out poorly nationwide, at least IMO. That's one reason I'm picking on them. Oh, and I looked it up. Even for FULL-TIME Wal-Mart employees where I live, they make $0.40 an hour below a livable wage for a single adult. These aren't just your part-timers who are suffering. Add in any kids, and the situation becomes dire.

Friend didn't smoke, didn't have high blood pressure, didn't have history of CVD. It's been a decade or more since I was on the pill, but I remember it wasn't an either or situation. Not recommended for womaen over 35 AND not recommended for woman who smoke/had high blood pressure no matter their age. Seeing how this friend couldn't walk, struggled talking, cognitive function severely impaired in her 40s because her doctor was stupid enough to refill her prescriptions every year, I'm glad dh had a V way back. Even then, I wouldn't be on the pill. Not only for the stroke factor, but I always seemed to have bad Paps when I was on it. I wouldn't want my daughters on the pill after 35 no matter their health and I would recommend the same to anybody. I feel it's too risky.

No, you're right. One year, no period = menopause.

Yeah, they don't read. One of my dh's students was complaining about her grade to another. The good student says to the failing student, "You HAVE to read the book." The failing student replies, "Well, I'm not gonna do that..." Maybe one of the other things is that they kids aren't talked to once they get to school age. How many kids just seem over committed to afterschool activities. How many parents are driving them around in SUVs with screens on the back of the head rests? How many kids have devices in their hands while waiting for sissy's dance class to end instead of talking with their parent or playing with other kids?

The problem is really simple- Wal-Mart and the Walton heirs have enough capital to pay their workers a living wage; they choose not to. American taxpayers foot the bill so that their company will have increased profits and the Walton heirs will become bigger billionaires. I think that's wrong.

GET A NEW GYNO! Seriously! Someone very close to me was on the pill well into her 40s and only got off it because she had a stroke. The fact that your Ob/Gyn was okay with you being on the pill after 35 is appalling and then to also say you're too young to be in perimenopause sounds even worse. The average age for menopause is 51. Normal menopause can occur within a 9 year window on either side of that age, so 42-60. Perimenopause can start as early as 10 years before menopause, so it's still considered normal for a 32 to be in perimenopause. But I'm not a doctor, just a lay expert. In the meantime, exercise will do wonders for your symptoms. I was having the same sort of symptoms as you and they have stopped with both regular exercise and a multivitamin plus extra Vitamin D.

I just want to double check that you are okey-dokey, a-okay with paying taxes (assuming you are paying them and not evading or rollling them all back into your business) to support the Waltons' billions. They choose not to pay the majority of their workers a living wage and thus, those very workers rely on Uncle Sam for assistance. Also, how does this gel with your previous statement of, "Why blame them for the fact that some other people are in low-wage jobs and have gaps in certain benefits/entitlements?" Who are we to blame if Wal-Mart heirs are among the wealthiest in the world, multibillionaires and yet their company chooses not to pay the majority of their workers a livable wage? Should we blame Obama, instead?

Apparently one Wal-Mart heir knew exactly what to do with a stack of 200 $100 bills. "Then, last week, Paige Laurie's freshman roommate at the University of Southern California, Elena Martinez, said in an interview on ABC's "20/20" that Laurie paid her about $20,000 over 3½ years to write papers and complete other assignments for her." http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=1931214

FWIW- Wal-Mart "Christy Walton: $41.3 billion Christy Walton married into the Wal-Mart family fortune. Her husband, John Walton, was one of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton’s four children. John died in a private plane crash in 2005, leaving his stake in the company to his wife, according to CBS Money Watch. She’s not only the wealthiest Walton and the wealthiest woman in the United States, but the wealthiest woman in the world, Forbes reported." "Alice Walton: $38.5 billion Christy Walton’s sister-in-law, Alice Walton, is the second wealthiest woman in the world. However, she seems less interested in the family business and more interested in art. In 2011, she founded the Crystal Bridges Art Museum in Bentonville, Ark., and recently said she plans to purchase a house in New Jersey designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and move it there." I don't think it's wrong to be angry that the Walton heirs are so wealthy and mistreat their employees so egregiously.

My dh teaches problem-solving skills in his classes. He regularly fails half the class. Those that fail are often times unwilling to do anything 1- challenging 2- time-consuming or 3- that requires sit-in-chair study/work. I don't know if it's worse than 20 years ago when we were in college, but since he's been teaching, the students have gotten progressively 1- less prepared 2- lazy 3- whiny 4- unable to think 5- unable to manage their time.

I always think of Wal-Mart workers when these inequality issues come up. They are paid so little they qualify for government assistance. The US pays out billions to Wal-Mart employees as a result. Seems wrong that the Walton heirs are all billionaires, yet they won't pay their employees enough to live off of. Instead, they'll allow the American taxpayers to fill in the gaps, a unique form of corporate welfare.

Would love to hear how the left gets certain segments of the population to vote against their own interests. I'm not being facetious, I just haven't seen that and feel ignorant as to how it's happening.

I don't see any arguments from the right (both those in power and those who vote conservative (at least that I personally know)) that lay the blame for the massive inequality and diminishing middle class on the economic and political policies of the past 4-5 decades. Instead, they argue it's because of entitlements- "some of the entitlements require people to NOT try to better themselves. But this isn't the doing of successful business owners. Why would business owners want to keep paying taxes into a system that discourages the development of a competent work force?" or because of Obama or because of the liberal media. I made the point about the legislation/judge rulings regarding immigration, AP American History, and gay marriage because I see it as a sign of very conservative states breaking away from national laws. Agreed civil war and revolution, in a way, are one in the same. However, I once believed in a revolution in that the 99% would fight to topple the government policies that favor the Kochs and Gates and Adelsons and Waltons and the PACs and what have you. Now, however, I believe conservatives will be fighting against liberals, Wisconsin right wingers and Vermont hippies shooting it out, for instance.

You know, I thought this, too, until very, very recently. Now I think it'll be more of a civil war because of the sort of extremism I see from some of my Facebook friends and the state legislations and ignoring of Obama's executive orders- Alabama's judge refusing to allow gay marriage, Texas refusing to recognize Obama's immigrant order, Oklahoma making laws regarding AP American History. We've seen on this thread what links some will do to deny that wealth and income inequality even exist and the more the Mid-Atlantic, Northeast, and far West move toward progressive action to address this, the more the rest of the country will double down and blame liberalism.

nm

Psst...http://werenotbrokemovie.com/the-film/

Honestly, given my frame an extra 10-15 pounds would cause me problems. Seriously, my bones are that small.