I don't normally like complaining about work on Knight Chills, but since I do like writing about real life horror, I decided this rant is somewhat appropriate.
While I admire my peers working in the states and abroad for being able to do wonders with their students, I must admit, I'm miffed at our Department of Education here in Puerto Rico. For starters, they don't allocate enough money in the budget for classroom resources. Instead, the powers that be have been giving expensive contracts to their political buddies. The fact that those contracts tendered this year have proven a waste of time and money, yet it hasn't stopped them from continuing this unsavory practice, proves that the DE, like the rest of the government run organizations is completely dysfunctional.
Another thing that irks me is the fact that teacher pensions are unstable. There may not be a pension by the time I retire. Also, our DE wants us to use differentiated strategies, which are much needed everywhere, except, I and many of my colleagues don't have the resources, not to mention we are at least twenty to thirty thousand dollars a year underpaid.
Of course, I understand that some of you are probably wondering why I don't pack it up and leave this island. Well, my family is here. Plus, I'd like to be part of the education revolution that must occur if Puerto Rico is going to compete worldwide. For that to happen, teachers like me should have the basics, like internet in the classroom, computers or laptops that work all year round, and a diverse amount of resources so that our students can finally enter into the world the U.S. students have known for the last twenty-five years. Yes, many of our schools lack the proper foundation for success and for what I have seen, politicians are throwing all the burden on us teachers. Surely it takes a community to educate our children, so why should things be so dysfunctional in Puerto Rico?
As proof of a dysfunctional society, I only have to direct you to the news sources. Gun violence brought on by drug turf wars are far too common in this island. Poverty is rampant. Unemployment hit new highs, and government corruption is stuck in a never-ending loop with no end in sight.
President Obama, I implore that you send an independent investigator to the Puerto Rico's Department of Education. You promised a change we could count on, yet the changes I have seen on this island, regarding education, have us headed back to cave man days. It's time to get your hands dirty, Mr. President, and stop ignoring us second-class citizens. That's right, upon moving to Puerto Rico, I lost the right to vote for President. Clearly, the political system here and in the U.S. has severe cracks that must be patched up before more people migrate to other countries.
Perhaps, migration has been the plan all along. God knows many of our citizens have abandoned this sinking ship. How long before Americans decide enough is enough? How long before the people of Puerto Rico decide that a violent coup is needed here? Help us, Mr. President, before it's too late.
© Copyright Nomar Knight 2015. All rights reserved.
A Nomar Knight Presentation.
Paul Snider is the man responsible for killing his actress and Playboy model wife, Dorothy Stratten, before turning the gun on himself. The high-profile murder-suicide was a complete shock to Hollywood. The young Stratten had just been named Playboy’s Miss August 1979 and 1980 Playmate of the Year and landed a spot in Bob Fosse’s film Star 80. This increased level of fame caused her husband-manager, Paul Snider, to become increasingly jealous and bitter. On Aug. 14, 1980, Snider brutally shot and killed 20-year-old Stratten in their Los Angeles apartment and then committed suicide.
Amy Fisher, also known as the "Long Island Lolita," was the infamous teenager responsible for nearly killing her then-boyfriend Joey Buttafuoco’s wife, Mary Jo, in 1992. Fisher was 16 years old when she began a relationship with the New York auto body shop owner and it didn’t take long before she wanted to get his wife out of the picture. On the afternoon of the shooting, Fisher had an accomplice drive her to the Buttafuoco’s home so that she could kill Mary Jo. When his wife answered the door, Amy lied and told her that Joey was having an affair with her younger sister. Mary Jo turned away in disbelief and Fisher shot her in the head and fled the scene. Mary Jo miraculously lived through the shooting, but suffered partial paralysis on one side of her face and a loss of hearing in one ear. Fisher was eventually arrested and sentenced to seven years in prison for attempted murder, and Joey served six months for statutory rape.
Paul and Tom Ferguson were the murderous brothers responsible for killing the famous silent movie star, Ramon Novarro, in 1968. On the night of his murder, Novarro invited the Ferguson brothers over to his house in hopes of having sex with one of the two men. The Fergusons believed that the actor had a large sum of money hidden inside the house, and planned to find it. After the rendezvous between Paul and Ramon was over, the brothers demanded that he give them the money. When Novarro said he didn’t have any money on him, Paul brutally beat him and left him to die. Police were able to trace a call that Tom made on the house phone to his girlfriend in Chicago on the day of the murder. She ratted them out and the brothers were arrested and sentenced to life in prison, but were paroled within seven years of the trial.
OJ Simpson is one of the most notorious criminals in Hollywood. Although he was famously acquitted in the high-profile murder of his wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, in 1995, the former professional football player and actor did get arrested and imprisoned for another set of crimes. In 2007, Simpson was arrested after he and a group of armed men robbed a room in a Las Vegas hotel-casino and stole sports memorabilia from a dealer. Simpson was convicted on 12 charges, including armed robbery, conspiracy to commit a crime, assault, and kidnapping and was sentenced to a maximum of 33 years in prison with a possibility of parole in nine years.
The tragic murder of 21-year-old My Sister Sam star Rebecca Schaeffer became one of the biggest crime stories in Hollywood history. Robert Bardo, 19, was the crazed fan who took the actress’ life. Bardo was obsessed with Schaeffer and began writing her love letters to get her attention. She wrote him back and the two corresponded through mail for months. On July 18, 1989, Bardo went to Schaeffer’s home after tracking it down from an Arizona detective agency and shot her in the chest and fled the scene. Bardo was ratted out by a family member who informed police that he told her he was going to visit the actress that day. He was arrested and charged with first-degree murder and is serving a life sentence.
