Youth Advocacy
Youth Advocacy
Year 3, Week 345 (235 total reports)
11.12.2024-17.12.2024
REVIEW and ANNOUNCEMENTS
Dr. Jerry Goebel, MBA, D.Min.
Keeping your moral compass and becoming a dissident
https://www.communitiesoftrust-jerrygoebel.com/youthadvocacy
Song of the Week
The article below this week, “How To Keep Your Moral Compass,” takes a look at the people called “Dissidents.” The qualities listed there are important to review. Dissidents don’t seek the title, they don’t seek leadership, they just live true to their “moral compass.” Another important aspect of Dissidents is that they often speak through the language of the arts: Music, poetry (spoken word) the physical arts.
Compilation 01: Resistance, Resilience
Top Links of the Week
17.12.2024
How to Keep Your Moral Compass
Dissidents; this article examines them from across the world, pointing out that—with a rise of global authoritarianism—we also need a rise in dissidents. As this article, points out, dissidents don’t necessarily start out looking for the title; they wind up with the title for being themselves. Small acts of dissent tied to uncompromising values are the central key to their lives—even when it costs them external freedom such as being jailed for their actions. Do you have any small acts of dissent that you can commit to or do you know anyone whose values result in them being called a dissident? How can you support them?
16.12.2024
The Commons: Washington’s Nightmare
This article is really a compilation of responses to a previous article written by Tom Nichols about George Washington and how Nichols thinks the General/President/“Man-Who-Could’ve-Been-King” would view Trump and his presidency. Three words sum up Nichols’s thoughts on Washington: “He Went Home.” As Nichols points out in his article, DonOLD is the president that was indeed “Washington’s Nightmare.” It is worth taking time to read these responses and link to the article (which was originally written in November).
15.12.2024
It’s Remarkably Hard to Catch the Master Manipulator
Now that T-Rump is admitting that lowering the price of eggs may be hard; are the people who voted for him acting amazed and revealing themselves as thoroughly gullible (aka “suckers”)? The President-Elect is not just a liar and felon, he is a Master Manipulator. This article does a great job of revealing the personality traits of a Master Manipulator or (as some would confirm) a Machiavellian. Traits of Machiavellianism include a “Dark Triad” of personalities which, in addition to being a Machiavellian, also include psychopathy and narcissism, some believe that cynicism should also be included in these traits. All told, they create a framework for many of the billionaires that are now running the global economy. Some might go as far as to say that a Machiavellian, Dark Triad, personality is a key ingredient to being a billionaire.
14.12.2024
Why Losing Sight Of The ‘Learning Value’ Of Work Has Been A Disaster For Students
This insightful analysis into the inherent problems of the US Education system is spot-on. Similar to allowing Airline CEO’s to evaluate their own safety, the US has allowed Academics to design their own metrics. What metrics should we expect from academics who have excelled in their own world, but that to be outstanding in academics, one must also be an academic. What has been missing from education metrics for decades is real-world work experiences. In many circles, I have heard these things, “poo-pooed” for measuring a students ability to fit into the world of business and global economics/community development. It is past time for “outsiders” to be brought into the metric measuring equation. What makes a graduate a “good citizen?” A “contributing member of a business team?” A “good citizen?” Certainly, not that they can individually stand out on an achievement test like the SAT or even the current ACT (designed largely by Iowa professor of education, Everett Franklin Lindquist, in 1959).
13.12.2024
4 Surprising Benefits of Curiosity
This article examines why we all need to foster curiosity in our lives and make it a fundamental component of those we are helping to mature. Imagine raising a generation that saw curiosity and exploration as a greater strength in their leadership than pat answers and intellectual bravado. Take time to review this short article and ask “How many of these benefits can I use? How about the young people in my life?” The four “surprising” benefits noted in this article are an absolute necessity in raising a generation that will be concerned about and caring towards others.
12.12.2024
The Crisis Neither Party Is Equipped to Handle
Trump’s cabinet pick has already shown that he has a singular objective regarding for US Schools and that is to close the Department of Education (which requires support from congress). Congress will likely not support his goal, even though they obviously have no alternative plan for improving education. The sole aim of the GOP is to use education to fight culture wars. While the country is in deep need of addressing multiple S.T.E.A.M (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Math) issues, the GOP has largely focused on making sure congressional bathrooms are not transgender and yet almost all congresspersons fly to DC in planes that have transgender bathrooms. This article looks at the historic decline of US Education pre and post COVID and attempts in the past to fix a system that remains obstinately broken because lawmakers focus largely on tinkering with test scores while the real issue lies in the terrible underfunding of educators.
11.12.2024
You Did A Good Job Raising Your Kids If They Have These 11 Skills As Adults
This is an excellent article about raising young people to be healthy adults. It is filled with goals to keep in mind as you watch your children grow. My suggestion would be to post these goals on a wall to remind yourself (and either those you with whom you parent or work with) what is important to focus upon while raising young people.
