Loser: Being afraid of a mouse is unacceptable for teachers in Utah classrooms. They need to be able to put one in their hands and put it to work. We refer, of course, to the mouse associated with computers.
Some teachers, unfortunately, have technophobia and the less they have to do with computers and other technological gadgetry the better.Well, learning doesn't cease when one leaves school, particularly if that person is a teacher. So, grab the mouse, take a class or two and climb aboard the information highway. Or as the title of an Eagles' song proclaims, "Get over it."
* Winner: Helping the hungry is always a winner, and food doesn't have to be sent overseas to make a difference. There are plenty of people in Utah who could use a helping hand and a few helping cans. The Utah Food Bank has a goal of 1.5 million pounds for its holiday food drive. Last year the food bank collected 1 million pounds of food during the drive.
The most needed donations are canned fruits and vegetables; canned or powdered milk; canned tomato products; canned meat; canned soup; boxed dinners; cereal; baby food and formula and personal care items such as diapers, feminine hygiene products, toothpaste, toothbrushes and deodorant. Cash contributions are also needed. Individual neighborhoods may wish to conduct a food drive.
The food bank, which can be reached at 978-9565, can provide information on how best to do so.
* Winner: Liberal Rob Reiner and conservative Charlton Heston don't have much in common politically. What they do agree on, however, is the need to protect children from tobacco. They therefore are teaming up to fight the tobacco industry over a ballot initiative in California. If passed the measure would add 50 cents in taxes to the price of a pack of cigarettes (from $2.55 to $3.05), and use the money to finance programs in early childhood development and prenatal care. Some estimate the tobacco industry is going to spend as much as $20 million in lobbying to defeat the measure. Hopefully their efforts will go up in smoke at the voting booths.
* Winner: China opened an international conference on world human rights Tuesday in Beijing. While not focused specifically on China, the two-day symposium at reflected the willingness of China to at least acknowledge and discuss human rights issues.
Predictably there were detractors who said it was a ploy. But more than 80 delegates from 27 countries attended the conference, which marked the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Ploy or not, it's a start.