kallend 1,635 #1 June 17, 2008 1st place: Sameer Mishra 2nd place: Sidharth Chand 4th place: Kavya Shivashankar 8th place: Jahnavi Iyer Youngest qualifying contestant for the final: Sriram Hathwar Is there a message here?... The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Butters 0 #2 June 17, 2008 2x txt msging? Too much text messaging? "That looks dangerous." Leopold Stotch Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BikerBabe 0 #3 June 17, 2008 i would say there's a cultural line here...wouldn't you? probably one where one culture (or more than one of course) places a truly high value on education and learning, where another thinks being smart is "elitist". i shall let the viewer decide which is which. on a side note, a story from my college days, when i first got the notion of this anti-intelligence, "everyman" attitude: As a sophomore, we got a new commandant of cadets. My class also had some folks with academic issues, and a lot of people on academic probation. In many many assemblies, commandant's calls, etc. our fearless leader (this is 1-star general in the Air Force, mind you) says this: "I was on academic probation 4/8 semesters! look how far i got, you can too!" Never meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BillyVance 34 #4 June 17, 2008 Just that India natives has a large number of eggheads living in the U.S. looking for a better life than in their overcrowded shitty country. Isn't India the 2nd or 3rd most populous country in the world? They just seem more motivated to do well when they come here. Then again, why do I see a lot of them managing motels and convenience stores? "Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
crwtom 0 #5 June 17, 2008 Quote Then again, why do I see a lot of them managing motels and convenience stores? It's a step up from the "pure" Americans working at McDonalds. A few more occupations by Indian Americans ******************************************************************* Fear causes hesitation, and hesitation will cause your worst fears to come true Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
n23x 0 #6 June 17, 2008 Probably not a lot of them in Alabama, I imagine. Nobody wants to hang out with a hillbilly whose IQ is 100+ points below their own. .jim "Don't touch my fucking Easter eggs, I'll be back monday." ~JTFC Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BillyVance 34 #7 June 17, 2008 Quote Probably not a lot of them in Alabama, I imagine. Nobody wants to hang out with a hillbilly whose IQ is 100+ points below their own. .jim They are everywhere, even in Alabama. I used to work with one of them in an architect firm. My IQ has been measured in the 120-130 range. Oh yeah, I won a spelling bee contest in my english class at a private college prep school when I was in the 8th grade. "Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Butters 0 #8 June 17, 2008 QuoteIs there a message here? Yes, entitlement retards education."That looks dangerous." Leopold Stotch Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pirana 0 #9 June 17, 2008 QuoteQuoteIs there a message here? Yes, entitlement retards education. Humorous, and with a nice little bite of reality. In a similar vein, it occurs to me that the hungriest are willing to work hardest. Pretty typical throughout history that each wave or trend or change in immigration spins off little eddies of superachievement. It would be an error to stereotype any ethnic group by their highest or lowest achievers. Except for the Irish. They really are total lushes and leches." . . . the lust for power can be just as completely satisfied by suggesting people into loving their servitude as by flogging them and kicking them into obedience." -- Aldous Huxley Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Butters 0 #10 June 17, 2008 Quote Except for the Irish. They really are total lushes and leches. I'm Irish and if you don't take back that statement we're going to have to fight ... "That looks dangerous." Leopold Stotch Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BillyVance 34 #11 June 17, 2008 Quote Quote Except for the Irish. They really are total lushes and leches. I'm Irish and if you don't take back that statement we're going to have to fight ... I thought it was "I do not wish to fight you" and then you sucker punch him? "Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Butters 0 #12 June 17, 2008 Quote Quote Quote Except for the Irish. They really are total lushes and leches. I'm Irish and if you don't take back that statement we're going to have to fight ... I thought it was "I do not wish to fight you" and then you sucker punch him? Nope. Not the Irish. Maybe the French but they don't punch, they slap. "That looks dangerous." Leopold Stotch Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AWL71 0 #13 June 17, 2008 Quote 1st place: Sameer Mishra 2nd place: Sidharth Chand 4th place: Kavya Shivashankar 8th place: Jahnavi Iyer Youngest qualifying contestant for the final: Sriram Hathwar Is there a message here? It is a good thing they are good at spelling. If they were not they would have a hard time spelling their names. I work with a lot of Indians in the hospitality industry and they work hard. They also take advantage of all those loans that are available for minority owned businesses, etc.The most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the government and I'm here to help. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pirana 0 #14 June 17, 2008 Quote Quote Except for the Irish. They really are total lushes and leches. I'm Irish and if you don't take back that statement we're going to have to fight ... You're on, but let me fill up first." . . . the lust for power can be just as completely satisfied by suggesting people into loving their servitude as by flogging them and kicking them into obedience." -- Aldous Huxley Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kelpdiver 2 #15 June 17, 2008 Quote Quote Is there a message here? It is a good thing they are good at spelling. If they were not they would have a hard time spelling their names. heh - the perfect response. Myself, I find that level of competitive spelling to be a waste of kids' time. There is a minimal value if they know the definitions, but extremely limited to be able to verbally spell a rarely used word on the first try on a stage. But to win, they have to spend an inordinate amount of time in practice. I'd rather they spent it on math. Or PE. Or a healthy smattering of all of the above in academic decathlon type competition. At the heart, it's rote memorization, and that's a skill that many countries strive to perfect, but it's not nearly as important as thinking skills. In my ideal world, the spelling bee competition would top out at the district level. Unfortunately, this is a case where our competitive society won't let it stop at that. Must have a city/state/national winner. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
martin-o 0 #16 June 17, 2008 Quote My IQ has been measured in the 120-130 range. You mean you have an IQ of 121, but are a little bit embarrassed that it's less than 130. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BillyVance 34 #17 June 17, 2008 Quote Quote My IQ has been measured in the 120-130 range. You mean you have an IQ of 121, but are a little bit embarrassed that it's less than 130. I could care less where exactly it was. I've had at least 5 of those IQ tests from as young as 7 years old to as recently as a couple years ago, and I'm 40. I can't remember the exact scores except to say they were in the 120's range. I scored consistently better than my brother, but he's the bigger achiever in school and business than me. No big surprise there. Back to the thread.... I agree that spelling bees really are a waste of time at the national level. The majority of the words used in those competitions are words that rarely, if ever, get used on a daily basis. Being a winner at that level is good for a scholarship or two though."Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Shotgun 1 #18 June 17, 2008 Quote1st place: Sameer Mishra 2nd place: Sidharth Chand 4th place: Kavya Shivashankar 8th place: Jahnavi Iyer Youngest qualifying contestant for the final: Sriram Hathwar Is there a message here? Not sure... You left out: 3rd place: Tia Thomas 4th place tie: Scott Remer 4th place tie: Rose Sloan There could be a message, but I don't know. I always had straight A's in English, but I never had much interest in spelling bees. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BillyVance 34 #19 June 17, 2008 Quote Quote There could be a message, but I don't know. I always had straight A's in English, but I never had much interest in spelling bees. Doing that well in English in general will get you farther in life than being able to spell a bunch of useless words correctly. Besides, I'd be surprised if the spell-check tools in IE or MS Word would actually have many of those useless words in their dictionaries. "Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Squeak 17 #20 June 18, 2008 Quote Quote Quote There could be a message, but I don't know. I always had straight A's in English, but I never had much interest in spelling bees. Doing that well in English in general will get you farther in life than being able to spell a bunch of useless words correctly. Besides, I'd be surprised if the spell-check tools in IE or MS Word would actually have many of those useless words in their dictionaries. You would be foolish to think that their level of achievement is restricted to just spellingYou are not now, nor will you ever be, good enough to not die in this sport (Sparky) My Life ROCKS! How's yours doing? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BillyVance 34 #21 June 18, 2008 Quote Quote Quote Quote There could be a message, but I don't know. I always had straight A's in English, but I never had much interest in spelling bees. Doing that well in English in general will get you farther in life than being able to spell a bunch of useless words correctly. Besides, I'd be surprised if the spell-check tools in IE or MS Word would actually have many of those useless words in their dictionaries. You would be foolish to think that their level of achievement is restricted to just spelling I'm not saying that's the case. It's good training for your brain to memorize stuff and that'll pay off where it really matters. But maybe a national spelling bee championship is a bit overkill. You know the USA, got to have a national champion in just about everything. And they do it properly in everything, except college football's championship division, formerly known as the BCS. "Mediocre people don't like high achievers, and high achievers don't like mediocre people." - SIX TIME National Champion coach Nick Saban Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
