4/8/2024

JRB,

            Bridges fall. Companies fail. New systems come online. The sun is eclipsed. A winner loses. We grow better & worse every day.

            As Octavia Butler writes: All that you touch, you Change. All that you Change, Changes you. The only lasting truth is Change.

            Our challenge is to accept this fact & keep on, keeping on.

            So today, as you visit Madison, you will notice that the Madison Area Technical College (MATC) looks nothing like it did when I lived there 30 years ago. It is now known simply as Madison College. They still have programs in HVAC, automotives & fire fighting, but they also have “Addiction Studies,” “Marketing – Social Media” & “Technical Studies Journey Worker” (whatever that it.) The MATC website claims they are the cheapest higher ed in the region so students can owe less & take home more! I find myself recommending community college to high school seniors for that very reason.

            So, it’s great that you’re working on the student debt problem, but you better get busy with the FAFSA debacle that is affecting thousands of high school seniors, their families & every employee of every financial aid office in the country. You might also look into the predatory lending practices that have contributed to the escalation of higher ed costs. If you really want to get ambitious, you will advocate financial literacy!!! We need so many changes in this area!

            Speaking of change, Thai PM Srettha Thavisin has noticed some changes in Burma. The South China Morning Post quotes him as saying, “the current regime is starting to lose some strength but even if they are losing, they have the power, they have the weapons. Maybe it’s time to reach out and make a deal.”

Please find out what kind of deal he has in mind. Burma needs Change now!

The junta’s conscription plan is back-firing. Do you think kids have adopted our mantra, WINTA? I know the Haredim kids in Israel prefer prayer to guns.

We need to be peace to get peace.

BYBS,