Polar Bears III

Aren't they cute?

Polar Bears in 50 years

Something should be done!

Polar Bears

A story not to sleep (by Sara Freitas)

It was a moonless night. In fact, it was the darkest one I had ever lived. I was in a graveyard, but I didn’t know how I had arrived there. The only thing I knew was I shouldn’t be in that lonely place.

My first thought was I was dreaming and that was only a nightmare. I pinched myself in order to wake me up, but I didn’t. Suddenly, the wind began to blow and a bloody paper fell in my hands. It was a note which said someone was going to kill me.

Although I had never been afraid of ghosts or zombies, I was feeling real fear, so I started to run as fast I could, but then a man appeared next to me. I was sure he was my murderer. His terrible face as a skull was the last thing I saw until everything went dark again…

Steve Job's speech in Stanford (2005)

The Story of Bottled Water

Teachers on strike

Demanding a drawback on the attitude of the government in Castilla-La Mancha, which is reducing the number of teachers in the state schools, a majority of the teachers in the high-schools in this region are on strike. Much has been said about the reasons why we do it: we don't want to work 20 hours a week, we want to be better-paid, when everybody in the country is suffering from the effects of the crisis, we are not responsible and serious... Those who are close to teachers know there is no truth in those words.
Apart from the hours the teachers are present in the schools, most teachers spend many hours in the afternoons preparing the lessons for the next day, correcting exercises, trying to find interesting things that attract the attention of their students (many are on the Internet, and not everybody manages well with it; therefore, they have to learn themselves, to be able to use the new technologies). For many teachers, two more lessons imply more groups; that is, more work at home.
Our salaries have been reduced as well, and of course we are not happy. It is difficult for us, the same as for everybody, to understand that those politicians who get very high salaries (sometimes, they get two or three different salaries) tell us to be happy with the idea that we have to earn less, and at the same time their own salaries keep increasing. We don't like it; nobody can.
And we are responsible and serious: we care about the education system in our country. We work hard every day to do our job the best we can, and nobody has the right to call us lazy and say we don't deserve the same respect as every professional. And we are worried because we see that this system, which has taken so long to create, is being shamelessly destroyed little by little.
I believe in a free state school, in which everybody who has an interest in learning has the right to be included and where you get the attention you need. It has taken so much effort to build our welfare society; we shouldn't allow anybody to take it from us.

The Story of Stuff (part III)

The Story of Stuff (part II)

The Story of Stuff (part I)

The Good Consumer

Semisonic: Closing time

Cortesía de Vicky, que me lo ha descubierto.

Reflexiones sobre la ignorancia

Rompo hoy el espíritu del blog de que todo sea en inglés para elevar mi protesta sobre los acontecimientos que estamos viviendo en el mundo de la educación. Desde una profunda ignorancia de lo que significa ser docente, políticos, aspirantes a políticos que se han quedado en el cargo y han olvidado la esencia de lo que es hacer política, medios de comunicación y particulares se permiten el lujo de denigrar esa labor a la que miles de profesionales en toda España dedican sus conocimientos, tiempo, deseos y aspiraciones. Propagar ideas como que un profesor solo trabaja 18 horas a la semana es una falsedad, una irresponsabilidad y una falta de respeto por un lado hacia las personas que trabajan contribuyendo al futuro del país formando a los futuros profesionales de todas los ámbitos, y por otro lado hacia los ciudadanos en general, manipulando la información que les transmiten y aspirando a controlar sus mentes y sus acciones. Malas noticias: tácticas tan retorcidas suelen volverse en contra de quienes las practican, y siempre quedarán profesionales y personas con espíritu crítico, no necesariamente docentes, que sabrán ver más allá y actuarán en consecuencia. El tiempo pone a cada uno en su lugar, y mientras llega ese momento, continuaremos oponiéndonos a que nos utilicen y perjudiquen a los jóvenes a cuya formación queremos contribuir.

Madness: One step beyond

People got crazy dancing to this song :-).

Madness - One Step Beyond por pias

Declaration of Human Rights

The Price of Silence

A music video that brings together 16 of the worlds top musicians—some of whom have fled oppressive regimes—in a rousing musical plea to guarantee human rights for all.

The track, donated by Aterciopelados and arranged by fusion music guru Andres Levin, combines the voices of Hugh Masekela, Julieta Venegas, Stephen Marley, Angelique Kidjo, Yungchen Lhamo, Aterciopelados, Yerba Buena, Natacha Atlas, Rachid Taha, Kiran Ahluwalia, Chiwoniso and Emmanual Jal with those of U.S. artists Natalie Merchant, and Chali 2Na of Jurassic 5. Introduction by Laurence Fishburne.

This video has been taken from the website Canal de Menores Soldado.

The Love Police

This must be love!!!

Signs

Learning subject pronouns (Spanish-English)

Thriller (just waiting for your version)

You had a bad day (Daniel Powter)

Song for Ireland

2nd lesson Gomaespuminglish