Just a family anecdote: my middle daughter's husband is from Mexico. When they wanted to apply to a magnet school, my daughter did some research to see if they needed more white or more Latinos, and registered my grandson accordingly. Magnet schools in LA have to be racially balanced. The magnet school he attended had children of every heritage imaginable, and most of them were mixed. I think that's the future of the US. Eventually race will become a non-issue as the majority will be multi-racial.

I agree with Shannon that indoctrinating children is not a good idea. It seems to me that teaching a child to behave decently, treat others with respect, etc. because it's the right thing to do is much healthier than teaching that failure to comply will bring hellfire and damnation. It also leads to blind obedience to a leader who may turn out to be evil, or just self-serving. Children should be encouraged to think for themselves and encouraged to ask questions.

Thank you so much for changing the login. I haven't even bothered to try for a long time, and have felt somewhat unwelcome here.

Make commenting easier. I have quit commenting because it is such a pain.

You can also use the alt + number keys to type characters in other languages, scientific notation, and even hearts and flowers. It doesn't work with every font. ë alt137, é alt 130, ¡ alt 173. Play around with it.

There was a nursery in Manhattan Beach CA that had a dog living on the roof.

Will and WO are correct. I used to teach in South Central Los Angeles and Compton, and believe me, there's nothing more disrespectful than a kid leaning over with his butt toward you and his ass hanging out (even though covered by boxers). It's the big shirts that hang down to the knees that cover all the goodies such as drugs, arms, etc.

It's a civil rights issue--no more second-class citizens, at least in California. Let's hope the voters will be enlightened in November.

Nice to meet you "in person". Your accent is not that thick, and a house is not a home without a kitty on the counter.

My daughter was thrilled to death to be the Wicked Witch of the West in the Wizard of Oz. She felt it was a much meatier part than bland Dorothy. Another year, the youngest was a Munchkin. That's life.

It probably cost ALOT more than fixing them with stone and mortar.

What ever happened to "a well-regulated militia"? The gun lovers seem to forget the well-regulated part, as well as the militia part. Militias would be armed with rifles, not handguns.

It's sad to find so many closed minds on a quality blog. Obama attracted the people with the most education. What does that say? To me, it means he's the thinking person's candidate.

With that much ingenuity, you'd think they could get work. But maybe they enjoy the vagabond life.

I have never understood why people would pay exhorbitant prices to buy really ugly things with someone else's initials. Can anyone explain this to me? Are snobbery and ostentation more important than good taste?