ResumeBear's online tools and tracking give job seekers a competitive edge - for FREE

Millions of people who have been downsized, laid off, or just plain fired in this time of economic chaos can use Resume Bear to help them get another job.

Frankly, if you need a job, you need ResumeBear. And even if you don't need it, you probably know someone who does. It could mean the difference between getting an interview and not getting an interview.

No kidding. Here's why.

This is not another collection of tired resume samples, ugly cover letter templates and a few articles slapped together talking about how to get a job interview.

This is cutting edge, jack. There is nothing like it on the market.

Nothing.

The attractive, professional letter and resume templates are designed to bypass spam filters, and enable the recipient to read the resume online in multiple formats (Microsoft Word, PDF, HTML) and then forward it to someone else or download it for printing.

Advanced users can upload a preexisting resume, or create one manually online with custom sections and spacing that gives the user more flexibility in determining the order information is presented. Newbies can use the Easy Resume Creation Wizard, which automatically formats the resume using the information provided by the user.

Your cover letter and resume are guaranteed to be delivered directly to the recipient's inbox and will arrive in the original format created. There is no need to worry about your recipient not being willing to open an attachment. All resumes are hosted on ResumeBear's dedicated servers and viewed through a safe web browser. And ResumeBear is compatible with all the major job boards.

So what is different about that? Plenty. Here is where it gets interesting.

Embedded within every resume and cover letter is tracking information that monitors the progress of your resume from creation to delivery. In REAL TIME!

And ResumeBear offers you the option of receiving notifications by email or text message on your cell phone when your resume is read, opened, printed or forwarded. In REAL TIME!

Do you see how that could revolutionize your job search? Let me give you some examples.

• You send out 50 resumes. You receive notification by text message that all 50 0f them were received and the cover letter opened. But only 5 people click through to actually read your resume. That could mean that your cover letter is poorly written. This invaluable feedback enables you to go back and rewrite your letter before you send out any more resumes. You can extend this capability to create different versions of your letter and resume and see which ones are more successful.
  

• You have applied for a marketing position. You get several text messages that Mr. Jones of ABC company, Mr. Smith of DEF Company, and Mr. White of GHI Company have just read your cover letter. All three click through to your resume. On your ResumeBear back office dashboard, you see that Mr. Smith read your resume for 10 seconds, Mr. Jones read your resume for 30 seconds, and Mr. White for 2 minutes. About five minutes later you get a text message that Mr. White has downloaded and printed your resume. Five more minutes pass after that, and you learn that Mr. White has forwarded your perfectly formatted resume to Ms. Black in the marketing department.

Do you see how that information can help you decide what to do next? It gives you a tremendous advantage over the job seeker who has no way to find out if his resume has been received, never mind gauge the level of interest the recipient has demonstrated by taking certain actions like printing out the resume.

No more wasting time calling Mr. Smith, who glanced at your resume for 10 seconds and hit delete, when you now know that Mr. White is interested enough in what you have to offer his company as an employee that he has not only printed it out, but shared your resume with Ms. Black in marketing.

Once you have identified your most successful version, you can further fine tune your campaign to be more effective. Utilized properly, ResumeBear becomes more powerful and effective with every resume submitted. That will improve the chances of your resume being noticed and help you obtain that critical initial interview.

What does a resume creation and tracking system have to to with working from home?

Well, it used to mean I have to add the disclaimer that I am selling the product. But as of December 20, Resumebear is now available for FREE. There are many more features and resources I could talk about, but in the interest of ending this post some time in this century, I will let you learn about the product yourself by going to www.resumebear.com Please use the code "susan" when you register, so they will know I sent you!

Be sure to go to the Member Benefits presentation and pay special attention to the FAQs. Every question you could possibly have about the product is answered there. If for some reason your question is not in the FAQs, there is a live online help desk.

What are you waiting for? Free resume help is here! And it works.

This post was UPDATED on December 23, 2008.

Homeschooling FAQ: 6 Kinds of Record Keeping

Homeschooling, for those who are asking, is legal. As of now, all fifty states have allowed homeschooling and have provided laws for its implementation. They have different laws though, and some of the states require that you can show some kind of records to show that you’re homeschooling your children.

There are a number of ways you can keep record of your children’s progress and here are some of them.

1. Daily Lesson Plans

Daily lesson plans show what subjects you have taught to your children. They will also show the way your children’s lessons are progressing (from basic to intermediate to advanced).

These lesson plans could be important for school officials to learn what could be lacking from your schooling and in what area they could help you with. Teachers could also help you with lessons that could be a good primer for the next and more advanced level of any subject.

2. Time Spent For Each Subject

Time spent for each subject is an indication of what subjects you have focused on and what subject your children might be having some problem absorbing. Although this is not an accurate basis, this could be used to understand problem areas and reasons why your children are having an easy (or tough) time on their subjects.

Even the states with the most relaxed requirements require 180 days, so it is important to be able to demonstrate that you have done this.

3. Diaries and Journals Updated Regularly

Regular diary and journal entries of your children’s achievements (or failures) are a good way to keep a record of your homeschooling. This can prove helpful in two ways. The first is you can keep track of what areas your children have already studied. This will prove beneficial in monitoring your children’s progress with their lessons.

The second way it can help is that it will help you in knowing where your children are having an easy time and where they need more time and attention. This is important so you could focus on one subject if you think your children need it.

4. Grades

It is simple to create or copy a test or exercise from one of the books your children use. Results from these exams can be compiled and recorded. These, just like any other records, can be proof of your children’s achievements. Grades are more concrete records of your children’s progress and concrete proof if someone wants to look at your children’s records.

Grades also give your children a sense of achievement. This will help in building their characters and giving a boost in their egos. Failures can also help, too. You just have to handle their feelings carefully and make sure that they realize that they can make their failures as stepping stones to success.

5. Portfolios

Portfolios are a collection of your children’s works, from their exercises to their tests and anything that they have done while schooling. For your younger children, these could include the first time they write a letter or the whole alphabet. Included in their portfolio are their mathematical computations and other exams. For your older children, this could include pictures from recent field trips to museums and other historical trips. Other things that could be included are science tests and experiments and, if possible, a picture of your children’s science projects.

6. Standardized Tests

A standardized test is usually proctored by an authorized tester. Many home school groups use Bob Jones University Press to obtain Stanford Achievement Tests, and Bob Jones certifies testers through a training program. An authorized tester could also be a certified teacher. These tests will show what subjects your children are having any problems with. Results from these exams will not really be a gauge of the success of your homeschooling. Children who do not do well in standardized tests are not thrown out of public school, and you will not be forced to stop home schooling if your child does not do well. These tests serve mainly as a diagnostic test for YOU - they will let you know what subjects your children are having some difficulty with, and where there are gaps in their knowledge because you have not covered the subject.

Another reason is to gauge your children’s abilities and knowledge compared with people their age. These will help in knowing whether your children are advanced, late or at just the right level in respect to other children. This could help you in deciding what your next approach to your children’s lessons you will take. The only caveat would be not to become obsessed with comparing your children to the children in public schools for whom these tests were designed. Studies have shown that home schooled children perform at higher levels than public school children on almost every level.

There are umbrella programs and online academies that do a lot of the recordkeeping and storage for you (and some of the teaching as well!) and recordkeeping software that will help take some of that burden off you. Depending on which state you live in, you may be called upon to "prove" that you are homeschooling. Chances are that it will never happen. But if you are, you will be glad you took the time to keep good records of your child's progress so that you can avoid a protracted hassle with your school district officials.

Utterly Off Topic Wednesday: Trick or Treat?

Remembering Columbine

No, this is not going to be a discussion of why homeschooling is an attractive alternative to the risk of school shootings. This isn't even the anniversary of Columbine, which not so incidentally was planned to occur on Hitler's birthday.

Shoot, it isn't even Wednesday, when I give myself permission to write off topic.

But I've been thinking about it all week after last week's discussion in our youth group of knowing God so intimately that you would be willing to die rather than renounce Him.

The first part of the lesson was about Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. There are many stories in the Bible of people choosing to die rather than renounce their faith in God, but this is one of the most famous. It has echoed down to our time through, among other things, Negro Spirituals in the 19th century and Martin Luther King in the 20th.

Maybe you know the story of three young Jewish men thrown into a fiery furnace for refusing to bow down to a gigantic statue of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. (Daniel, Chapter 3)

12 But there are some Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego—who pay no attention to you, O king. They neither serve your gods nor worship the image of gold you have set up."

13 Furious with rage, Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king, 14 and Nebuchadnezzar said to them, "Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? 15 Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?"

16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up."

The girls in our high school freshman group were only maybe 4 years old when Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold opened fire on their teachers and classmates, killing 12 students and a teacher, and wounding 23 others before killing themselves. Though there is now considerable controversy about whether the subjects of the video, Cassie Bernall and Rachel Scott, actually were shot because of their belief in God, it is clear from the testimony of family and friends, and from their own words, that both girls were serious Christians. Cassie's mother wrote a book, called She Said Yes: The Unlikely Martyrdom of Cassie Bernall, a candid chronicle of Cassie's transformation from, according to one reviewer,

"a sulking stranger, fascinated with murder, self-mutilation and witchcraft...destroying herself with hate and despair"

to one who passed a note to a friend on the morning of her death: "Honestly, I want to live completely for God, it's hard and scary but totally worth it."

When we started talking about her, we were going to play the 1999 Michael W. Smith anthem, "This is Your Time", but the laptop where it was stored was in the car. One of the girls offered to pull up a song on YouTube by the group Fly-Leaf (the video at the top of this post) that meant a lot to her about the Columbine event called "Cassie". This photo was taken as they watched the video above on a cell phone - with lyrics - spellbound and contemplating how they might react if faced with a similar choice. After the song was over, we also talked about Rachel Scott.

Though it is now believed that Harris and Klebold were actually targeting jocks, and that the others were just randomly selected, the story of a girl in this day and age loving God enough to die for what she believed in has provided much fodder for sermons, and sober consideration by many teenagers of how important it is to make those life or death decisions in advance.

NOW is the time to decide how important God is to you.

What would YOU do?

What You Need to Know About Affiliate Marketing

Well, you have finally done it.

You have told your boss to take your job and shove it. You have taken the plunge and made the decision to join some affiliate programs.

But what does that mean, exactly?

There are active affiliate programs that encourage you use your sales savvy to actively recruit in other new affiliates, purchase product and sell it retail. Then there are passive affiliate programs, such as the Amazon Associates program, or Commission Junction. Most people simply place banner or text ads promoting products on a website. You can be as active or as passive as you want to be, changing banners, or offering many categories of products and rotating them, but generally you do not have to recruit other affiliates or stock product - it will be drop shipped by the company.

Here is the banner I have in the sidebar of this blog that promotes Amazon Prime, the fabulous "free shipping" program they have for $79 a year. One price gets you free two-day shipping on any item, with no price or "total purchase amount" restrictions.

Only certain products are eligible, and only products that are actually sold by Amazon, as opposed to J&R Music World or one of the other stores that uses Amazon shopping carts, are eligible for this special offer. As someone who spends thousands at Amazon in a year's time, and buys cases of toilet paper, trash bags, and other heavy cartons, as well as other groceries, books, DVDs and small appliances, I can confidently say that Amazon Prime is the deal of the century.

If you follow the link in the sidebar for "Resources for Work-at-Homeschool Families" you will find an Amazon "A-Store". There I am offering a selection of product relating to homeschooling.

These are both examples of passive affiliate marketing.

Affiliate marketing can be very lucrative. It provides people with the opportunity to work for themselves with very little risk. Those that are sales savvy, good at marketing and are not afraid of a little hard work can often do incredibly well with an affiliate marketing program.

Affiliate marketing sounds easy but you do need to exercise some caution. You will want to avoid the affiliate marketing pitfalls that can ruin your business - or worse, have you crawling on your hands and knees back to that boss who now knows how you REALLY feel about him.

People tend to get excited when they start a new venture. Unfortunately, in their excitement to begin, they may fail to read the fine print in their agreement. Whenever you sign up for an affiliate marketing program, you will be expected to sign an agreement. The "terms and conditions" will govern your relationship with the company.

If they want to hide something this is where they will put it. It will either be in the small print, or they will dazzle you with legal language. Either way, you need to read and understand your agreement thoroughly to avoid disappointment and lost earnings.

If you are signing up for a commission based affiliate marketing program then you need to understand how the term revenue is defined. This is one of the biggest pitfalls of the contracts. They may advertise 5-10% - or even 20-30% commissions, but it all depends on how they define revenue.

Most affiliate marketing programs will calculate commission on the gross value of the sale; in other words, the amount of money the company will get at the completion of the sale. Before you get too excited about that, you need to read this part of the agreement very carefully. The amount of the sale almost always excludes credit card or debit card payment surcharges. They also are likely to exclude payment and delivery charges as well as any gift wrapping or other surcharges.

What sounded like a nice commission is soon shrinking before your eyes. Ask these questions specifically before you sign an agreement.

Some affiliate programs are even stricter in their definition of revenue. Your commission may be based on the profit margin of the product sold. For example, if you help sell a book for 20 dollars but the company only makes 10 dollars profit, you’ll receive a percentage of $10, not $20! This can make a substantial difference in your earnings. Again, make sure you understand these things and ask specifically what your commission will be based upon. Read your agreement and look out for odd sounding clauses. These could come back to haunt you later.

Here is a real world example. I participated in a certain travel opportunity several years ago and later discovered that the travel company was ITSELF an affiliate of another travel website! So the great commissions I thought I would receive on travel that people booked on my affiliate site were actually a percentage of the commissions the COMPANY received as an affiliate for the other travel site! I thought I would be getting 14%, for instance, only to discover that it was 14% of the 20% the company was getting.

Something else to be aware of when you work on commission is returns. Many affiliate marketing companies only pay commission out on completed sales and then only if the customer keeps the item. If they return the items your commission could be cancelled. You could also be billed for the outstanding commission if you do not have sufficient commission credit built up. Make sure you understand this before signing on. You cannot expect a company to pay you a commission on an item that is returned, so make sure you understand their return policy. Find out your rights in this situation.

Affiliate marketing can be a great way to earn money. If you have good sales and marketing skills then it can give you the opportunity to put them to good use. You’ll be able to work for yourself and not someone who undervalues and does not appreciate them. But you need to consider affiliate marketing carefully.

Make sure you understand your agreement and exactly what you will be paid for. You don’t want to have to go crawling back to your boss begging for your old job back.

Homeschooling During Financial Crisis - Three Ways it Saves By Greg Millman

In these tough economic times, the focus is on value-for-money. One of the best values in America is homeschooling. Although research shows that homeschooling gives children a better education than public schools, many families think that they can't afford it. They worry about losing the paycheck of the parent who stays home to homeschool the kids. But giving up that paycheck could be a smart money move. Here are three reasons why:

1) The biggest cost in homeschooling is what economists call the opportunity cost of the pay a homeschooling parent could earn in the workforce. Usually, the homeschooling parent is the mother. Economists Anne-Marie C. Fagan and Maria Sophia Aguirre found that after adjusting for costs of child care, taxes, work-related expenses, and other factors, "For the most part, the net income contributed is close to zero with the exception of the highest and lowest income levels." This means that the opportunity cost of staying home with the children, instead of working, is close to zero. Of course, when children are in school, out-of-pocket daycare expenses may be limited to costs for after-care, affecting the calculation.

2) People pay steeply for so-called "free" public schools. In order to have access to good public schools, people in the United States have to live in good public school districts. But the better the school district, the higher the price of homes and the higher the property tax bill. (It would be interesting to find out how many people took out subprime mortgages in order to afford homes in good school districts.) This is a scandal of school financing in the United States. However, homeschoolers don't have to depend on school districts. No matter where they live, they can give their children an excellent education. So homeschoolers can avoid or move out of pricey neighborhoods and save on mortgage and tax bills.

3) What about expenses for books and curriculum? It's possible to put together a homeschool curriculum free, and the website Homeschool4free.com offers hundreds of resources to do so. In fact, most homeschoolers do choose to spend some money on books, curriculum, activities, technology, etc., but the important word is "choose". Homeschoolers get a very good return on their educational investments. Dr. Albert C. Andrade finds that homeschooling delivers "something previously available only to elite and affluent families ... enriching and essentially private, educative experiences for their children."

Surveys of homeschoolers seldom ask whether they are homeschooling for economic reasons, but the rapid growth of homeschooling in America suggests that it's a good economic value. In fact, the real question may be not whether families can afford to homeschool but whether they can afford not to. When it's possible to get a better education than public schools provide, and at a lower cost, why aren't even more people doing it? Clive Belfield, professor in the economics department at Queens College, City University of New York, suggests that people may get a feeling of independence and self-esteem from work, and in some cases "for some families, work relations are better than home relations."

The calculations work differently for single-parent homeschoolers. We'll return to that subject in the future.

What does homeschooling really cost? Take a survey at the website linked below.

Financial journalist Gregory J. Millman has written for Forbes, Barrons, the Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post. His books about global markets and financial trading have been translated into over ten languages. He is co-author of Homeschooling: A Family's Journey. Comment on this article, find sources, and learn more at Homeschoolingafamilysjourney.com.

For free homeschooling information and curricula, go to Homeschool4free.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Greg_Millman

TGIF - The Coming Wealth Transfer

The Coming Wealth Transfer
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman
10-24-2008

But the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous (Prov 13:22).

In the last days there will be a transfer of wealth into the hands of the righteous for the purpose of funding a great harvest of souls and for believers to have greater influence on society in the name of Christ. This will happen in at least four ways.

1. Supernatural Transfer - Like the Israelites leaving Egypt, Christians and non-profit organizations will receive major gifts from individuals or foundations to carryout their Christian mission. In 2004, the Salvation Army received one of the largest gifts ever for Christian ministry via the founder's wife of McDonald's, Joan Kroc, in the amount of 1.5 billion dollars.

2. Power to Make Wealth - God is going to give witty inventions to believers throughout the world that will generate wealth. This has already begun. "But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today" (Deut 8:18).

3. Social Entrepreneurship - Just as Joseph was entrusted with the resources of Egypt to solve a societal problem resulting from a famine in the land, God is going to transfer money to believers who are solving societal problems. Governments will fund private enterprises because government is not been able to do it.

4. Wealthy Individual "Conversions" ? Finally, many non-believers who are wealthy will become Christians in these last days and will begin to use their wealth for Kingdom purposes.

The transfer of wealth is designed to accelerate God's activity on the earth, not to simply make believers wealthy. Pray that God uses your work life call to accelerate His Kingdom on earth. And pray that God raises up good stewards of wealth.

Reprinted by permission from the author. Os Hillman is an international speaker and author of more than 10 books on workplace calling. To learn more, visit http://www.MarketplaceLeaders.org

Streaming Live from Hamilton, Alabama - The Ramp

Live Broadcast by Ustream.TV

Looking for God? This is a good place to find Him. We will be streaming this Friday and Saturday. Saturday services are at 10AM, 2PM and 7PM Central time. Be sure to visit www.theramp.org for additional info about this ministry.

Viewing tip: if the screen freezes, there is a little circular arrow in the lower left corner that you can click to reload the broadcast.

GOOD NEWS In New Jersey for Homeschoolers

One of the benefits of the recent battle in NJ is that I have become familiar with some of the players who have been our co-laborers, working behind the scenes and on the front lines to secure and defend homeschooling freedom in our state.

Carolee Adams of Eagle Forum of New Jersey has been a tireless advocate and consensus builder in our state for homeschool freedom, and one of the things she spearheaded for this most recent fight was a Facebook group called "SAVE HOMESCHOOL FREEDOM IN NEW JERSEY."

Eagle Forum, and the other united members of the New Jersey Home School task force kept us informed of the status of A3123 through this group, and recommended particular UNITED actions.

This unity has paid off, as you will see in this message to our Facebook group today.

Carolee Adams sent a message to the members of SAVE HOME SCHOOL FREEDOM IN NEW JERSEY!

--------------------
(no subject)

Dear Home Educators of New Jersey,

We now have the opportunity to share good news!

A little over three weeks ago, you first read about a new threat to New Jersey homeschooling freedoms in the form of Assembly Bill A3123. A task force consisting of Catholic Homeschoolers of New Jersey (CHNJ), Eagle Forum of New Jersey, Education Network of Christian Homeschoolers of NJ (ENOCH), Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA), New Jersey Homeschool Association (NJHA), and the Unschoolers Network worked to unite all NJ homeschoolers by apprising you of the threat and recommending united and focused actions.

Due to our recent conversations with key legislators in the State of New Jersey, we believe all of our exemplary calls, personal conversations, and meetings with lawmakers regarding principled reasons to oppose A3123 have been respected. For now, and in the foreseeable future, there is little likelihood that A3123, or any amended part of it, will be introduced at a hearing in the Assembly Education Committee. Although the Bill has not been officially withdrawn, that is not unusual in the State of New Jersey. Countless bills die in Committee and are not re-introduced in a new term. And, many legislators will continue to stand with us to protect our freedom to home educate. Importantly, we will, as always, remain vigilant. Thus, no further contact with your legislators about A3123 is advised at this time.

With sincere appreciation, our 40-years of home school success in New Jersey continues unabated because of all of you who continue to home educate with extraordinary love, wisdom, and dedication; who are committed to defend your right to home educate with respect and fortitude; and who quickly unite as one voice for such a noble cause as proven in the last few weeks.

Congratulations! It has always been this parent’s joy and blessing to home educate; an honor to be part of the esteemed home school community; and a privilege to continue to support the freedom to home educate in New Jersey and in the USA with you!

Faithfully,
Carolee Adams, State President
Eagle Forum of New Jersey

Addendum: Representative of many conversations with legislators and their staffs we enjoyed, I share one in particular. A chief of staff happily reported that she went home “chipper” the night before after taking many of your wonderful calls herself. (In fact, while we spoke at 5 pm, the phone was still ringing.) After working in legislative offices for over a decade, she expressed that she had never experienced such a high quality of calls with each of your! Then, she rendered this heartwarming compliment: “Because of the tenor of those calls, now I know why home education is so successful!”

Home educators of New Jersey – you rock!!!

New Jersey - NEW BILL A.375 - CALLS NEEDED NOW

Never a dull moment in the People's Republic of New Jersey.

Our faithful legislators neither slumber nor sleep in their quest to regulate our children's education - what they learn, when they learn it, and for how long they have to learn it.

Now they are revisiting compulsory attendance. A.375 isn't actually a new bill - they have been batting it around all year. It seems like just the other day (actually, it was in May or June) I was on the phone with Joe Malone's office (R-Burlington) about this bill concerning compulsory attendance, stating that older students who would rather be anywhere else only cause disruption and mayhem in a classroom. It can be difficult enough for students learn without some unmotivated 18 year olds (who would probably rather be working or in vo-tech) creating a disturbance.

At the time, they were saying that it wouldn't affect homeschooling. But HSLDA has a different take on it, and is asking for calls right away to stop this latest attempt to encroach upon our parental rights and expand government control over our children.

This bill is sset for hearing in the Assembly Appropriations Committee THIS THURSDAY, OCTOBER 23.

From the HSLDA E-lert Service...

New Jersey: Calls Needed Immediately to Stop Expansion
of Government Control Over Homeschoolers

Dear HSLDA Members and Friends:

Your calls are needed immediately to defend parental freedom against a bill set for hearing in the Assembly Appropriations Committee this Thursday, October 23. A. 375 aims to expand state control over young people by expanding the compulsory school attendance age from 16 to 18.

Parents alone know whether it's best for their 16- and 17-year-olds to
stay in a formal education setting or follow some other path. The
government cannot know the needs of individual students. One size does
not fit all when it comes to school attendance.

And the price of this experiment will include higher taxes for New Jersey residents.

ACTION REQUESTED:

Please contact the members of the Assembly Appropriations Committee
before Thursday and express your opposition to these bills. Your
message can be as simple as:

"Please oppose Assembly Bill 375. This costly bill will force
unwilling, unmotivated older teens to remain in classrooms where they
will cause disruption. Protect the right of parents to
decide what educational or vocational path their 16- and 17-year-olds
should follow."

It is not necessary to identify yourself as a homeschooling family, since this bill undermines the rights of all parents. If your name
begins with A-G, call group 1. If it begins with H-M, call group 2.
If O-S, call group 3. T-Z call group 4. Also, call your own
assemblyman, if he is listed below, regardless of what group he is in.
(Use our Legislative Toolbox if you don't know the name of your
assemblyman: http://www.hslda.org/toolbox ).

Group 1

Nellie Pou, Chair
(973) 247-1555
aswpou@njleg.org

Valerie Huttle, Vice-Chair
(201) 541-1118 (Englewood)
(201) 928-0100 (Teaneck)
aswhuttle@njleg.org

Dawn Marie Addiego
(609) 654-1498
aswaddiego@njleg.org

Group 2

Peter Barnes
(732) 548-1406
asmbarnes@njleg.org

Herb Conaway
(856) 461-3997
asmconaway@njleg.org

Michael Doherty
(908) 835-0552
asmdoherty@njleg.org

Group 3

Louis Greenwald
(856) 435-1247
asmgreenwald@njleg.org

Reed Gusciora
(609) 292-0500
asmcusciora@njleg.org

Richard Merkt
(973) 895-9100
asmmerkt@njleg.org

Group 4

Ruben Ramos
(201) 714-4960
asmramos@njleg.org

Samuel Thompson
(732) 583-5558
asmthompson@njleg.org

John Wisniewski
(732) 316-1885
asmwisniewski@njleg.org


BACKGROUND

> >You may be told this legislation does not affect homeschooling. It does. It would subject homeschool families to two additional years of government mandates with respect to family education.

> >You may be told homeschool students who graduate are exempt. This is not correct. The bill only exempts those who have graduated "from high school." Under New Jersey law, homeschooling is considered an education "elsewhere than at school." Since the bill's graduation
language only clearly exempts those who have graduated from "high
school" , i.e., public and private school students, it is possible--or
even likely--that a judge interpreting the language would decide the
exemption does not apply to those who receive instruction elsewhere
than at school.

> >Expanding the compulsory attendance age would inevitably cause tax increases to pay for more classroom space and teachers to accommodate the additional students compelled to attend public school.

> > Raising the compulsory attendance age will not reduce the dropout
rate. Some of states with the lowest completion rates compel
attendance to age 18.

> > Twenty-eight states only require attendance to age 16. Older children unwilling to learn can cause classroom disruptions and even violence, making learning harder for their classmates who truly want
to learn.

> > Mandating attendance until age 18 would restrict parents' freedom to
decide if their 16 or 17-year-old is ready for college or the work
force. Some 16- or 17-year-olds who are not academically
inclined benefit more from valuable work experience than from being
forced to sit in a classroom.

For more information on compulsory attendance, please see our
memorandum at http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?id=3623 .

Thank you for standing with us for freedom.

Sincerely Yours,

Scott Woodruff
HSLDA Staff Attorney


================================
The HSLDA E-lert Service is a service of:

Home School Legal Defense Association
P.O. Box 3000
Purcellville, Virginia 20134
Phone: (540) 338-5600
Fax: (540) 338-2733
Email: info@hslda.org
Web: http://www.hslda.org

TGIF - A Faithful Woman

A Faithful Woman
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 1 by Os Hillman
Published on Wednesday, October 08 2008

"Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her." Proverbs 31:28

She was the Vice President of Household Affairs for her entire adult life. She had a husband, four daughters, and one son whom she managed. Her calling was not to the workplace; it was to the home. It was a calling that she fulfilled well. She often went beyond her job description to fulfill menial tasks like sewing clothes for her twin girls, playing dolls, and even playing catch with the only boy in the clan.

Things were going along well until midway in life a telephone call came that changed everything. The caller informed her that the love of her life had been killed in an airplane crash. She was in her early 40's, still beautiful, with five kids to raise on her own in spite of the fact that she hadn't worked in the business place for nearly 20 years. The death of her husband removed their steady upper middle-class income, and she was now faced with the greatest test of her life. At her lowest moment, wondering how she was going to make it, she cried out to God. God answered, "Trust Me, Lillian." Those audible words became the strength that she needed to care for her family for the next 40 years. From that moment on, she came to know her Savior personally and shared Him with her family. Her children came to know Him as well. Grandchildren became the recipient of her prayers, and they came to know Him too. She was building an inheritance in Heaven, one prayer at a time, one soul at a time. She never remarried; Christ became her Husband.

Whatever wisdom and encouragement has come to you through these devotionals, it is only as a result of one who answered the call to the greatest and most important workplace there is: the home. You can thank my mom, Lillian Hillman, for whatever grace you have gained from these messages throughout the year, because she remained faithful to the call to invest in those she was called to love and serve. "Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her."

Reprinted by permission from the author. Os Hillman is an international speaker and author of more than 10 books on workplace calling. To learn more, visit http://www.MarketplaceLeaders.org

Utterly Off Topic Wednesday - 8 Amazing Holes

8 Amazing Holes

1. Kimberley Big Hole - South Africa


Apparently the largest ever hand-dug excavation in the world, this 1097 meter deep mine yielded over 3 tons of diamonds before being closed in 1914.

2. Glory Hole - Monticello Dam, California


A glory hole is used when a dam is at full capacity and water needs to be drained from the reservoir. This is the 'Glory Hole' at Monticello dam, and it's the largest in the world of this type of spillway, its size enabling it to consume 14,400 cubic feet of water every second.

3. Bingham Canyon Mine, Utah


This is supposedly the largest man-made excavation on earth. Extraction began in 1863 and still continues today, the pit increasing in size constantly. In its current state the hole is miles deep and 2.5 miles wide.

4. Great Blue Hole , Belize

This incredible geographical phenomenon known as a blue hole is situated 60 miles off the mainland ofBelize There are numerous blue holes around the world, but none as stunning as this one.

5. Mirny Diamond Mine , Serbia


This one is an absolute beast and holds the title of largest open diamond mine in the world. At 525 meters deep, with a top diameter of 1200 meters, there's even a no-fly zone above the hole due t o a few helicopters having been sucked in.

6. Diavik Mine, Canada



The mine is so huge and the area so remote that it has its own airport with a runway large enough to accommodate a Boeing 737. It looks equally cool when the surrounding water is frozen.

7. Sinkhole in Guatemala



These photos are of a sinkhole that occurred early this year in Guatemala . The hole swallowed a dozen homes and killed at least 3 people.

And the most terrifying one of all?

8. The Rat Hole

This is the famous 'Rat Hole' that you have heard about. It is capable of swallowing trillions and trillions of U.S. Dollars... Annually! Never to be heard from again.

The Eye of the Beholder

Good Lord Boyet, my beauty, though but mean,
Needs not the painted flourish of your praise:
Beauty is bought by judgment of the eye,
Not utter'd by base sale of chapmen's tongues.
- Shakespeare, Love's Labours Lost, 1588

Remember that episode of the Twilight Zone?

The Twilight Zone - "Eye Of The Beholder" 1960 @ Yahoo! Video

It was about a woman who wanted plastic surgery to correct her "horrible deformities", but the nature of her problem was so terrible that surgery was not indicated, but rather "experimental" treatments. The woman recounts how one of her first memories is of another little girl screaming at the sight of her. The whole thing is shot in the shadows. You never see any of the doctors or nurses, just hear their patronizing remarks about how pathetic and ugly she is.

At the end of the episode, we discover that beauty is, as the saying goes, in "the eye of the beholder".

So it is with just about everything.

People of good will earnestly disagree about many topics, especially politics and religion. Their position makes sense to them, they believe it to be reasonable, they may even believe they can back it up with facts.

That there are homeschoolers, pro-lifers and Christians who can support Obama for President on any level is incomprehensible to me.

But I don't want to talk politics today.

Just perception.

Politically, some people are "liberals", some are "conservatives". Some are "individualists", and some are "collectivists". Some are "constitutionalists", and some are "revisionists" What do those words even mean? People bandy them about, without realizing that they may mean something different to the people who are listening.

People believe a lot of things about God that I will not recount here. But for the purpose of this discussion, some people believe "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." Others believe in the Big Bang theory.

Some believe that God intervenes in the affairs of men, and more specifically, that He intervened in the history of the United States. Some don't, and more specifically, the curriculum committee at the University of California.

I have written here at length about the lawsuit by Calvary Chapel Christian School against the University of California. In the sidebar, there is a list of prior posts about this topic. Some of them take the position that UC discriminated against the Christian students because they refused to accept certain texts that took the positions listed above. Several of them contain rebuttals by someone associated with the University. Finally, I was persuaded that the University was not mandating a secular education in order for a student to be considered to matriculate at UC.

The other day, I came across this document while looking at my Google Alerts about UC and this lawsuit.

I probably would never have written the original article from the perspective of Christian persecution had I read this first.

The eye of the beholder.

This document served as a reminder to me to be very careful to read all the opposing views and any source documents before taking a position about anything. All the articles I read that were written on this topic were heavily slanted one way or the other.

Which further reminds me in this political season not to believe everything I read or every out-of-context sound bite I hear - on the internet or anywhere else. Paul commended the Bereans for "they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true." (Acts 17:11)

How much more should we seek out the truth, in this "time of universal deceit."

From ENOCH of NJ: Latest Update on NJ A.3123 Homeschool Bill

ENOCH of NJ Legislative Alert!

Date: October 10, 2008

From: Mark August, Legislative Liaison

Re: New Jersey Assembly Bill 3123 (Update #5)

Phase I of our mission to oppose A3123 is complete! Thank you for responding to the charge to call and email the sponsors of A3123 and members of the Assembly Education Committee. There is no doubt that our message has been heard. Here is a report of what has been reported to us at this point:

1. Chairman Joseph Cryan of the Education Committee's office has confirmed that Mr. Cryan is not supportive of the bill. While we still do not know the strength or scope of his opposition, we can confirm that he is NOT planning some fast-tracking of this bill (as some rumors have suggested).
2. Assemblyman Diegnan of the Education Committee has voiced his opposition to the bill.
3. Assemblyman Ramos of the Education Committee has written: "Thank you for your correspondence regarding bill A3123. You make valid points which I will consider as this bill is discussed in the legislature. The decision to home school has become popular. I will bear your sentiments in mind."
4. Assemblyman Rumana's office (of the Education Committee) states he is against these regulations specifically stated in this bill. One of his staffers mentioned that there is already a law regulating home schoolers.

Now is the time to stop the coordinated phone and email campaign. It has accomplished the goals of making our position known, helping the Education Committee and the bill sponsors understand our passion for this issue and our ability to unite in defense of our freedom.

The task force has also received many good reports from the Assembly offices staff members that your calls, while clear and firm, were gracious and winsome. Thank you. Your calls have not alienated any potential friend in Trenton and may actually have opened the door to form some new friendship.

We now know that the Assembly Education Committee hearing, scheduled for October 16th, has been canceled. The next possible hearing date would be November 13. This gives us time for the next phase of action.

The task force met late this afternoon by conference call, and agreed that we can stop making calls at this time. We believe the next step will be for the task force to be joining a few of you in face-to-face meetings with Mr. Cryan and as many of the Education Committee members as possible. We will also be pursuing meetings with the bill's two sponsors.

During this phase, while the task force may not be asking all of you to participate in any particular political action, I am asking you to continue to pray and stay vigilant. The political climate can change quickly, and another call to action could come at any time.

The task force has received copies of emails circulating a call for a Rally in Trenton next week. The task force has not organized such a rally and we do not endorse a rally for the issue of opposing A3123 at this time. If you wish to attend a rally for any other purpose, then we encourage you to do so. However, if the stated purpose of the rally is to oppose A3123, then we ask that you refrain until such time as a statewide effort has been initiated by the task force. We had a great success four years ago with our rally, and much of that success came from our unity across the state.

To conclude: We are not out of the woods yet, as the sponsors have not actually withdrawn the bill. We remain confident however that A3123 will never make it into law. By uniting in the past, we have been able to maintain our status in New Jersey as having one of the best, most homeschool-friendly laws in the nation. It is clear in how quickly we have united this past week that we are on the same road to success this time.

Faithfully and gratefully,

Mark August
ENOCH of NJ

Reporting for the task force opposing A3123:
Kevin Kiernan, Catholic Homeschoolers of New Jersey (CHNJ); Carolee Adams, Eagle Forum of New Jersey; Mark August, Education Network Of Christian Homeschoolers (ENOCH) of New Jersey; Scott Woodruff, Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA); Nan McVicker, New Jersey Homeschool Association (NJHA); Nancy Plent, Unschoolers Network

Many thanks to Carolee Adams of Eagle Forum and the Facebook Group "SAVE HOME SCHOOL FREEDOM IN NEW JERSEY" for leading the charge in keeping us informed. If you are on Facebook, you should consider joining this group to stay abreast of future developments.

TGIF - Be As Little Children

Be as Little Children
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 1 by Os Hillman
Sunday, September 28 2008

"How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!" 1 John 3:1a

"I have an important business meeting in the morning. Would you please set the alarm for 5:30 a.m.?" I said to my wife.

"Oh, that won't be necessary. Just tell the Lord what time you want to wake up. He does it for me all the time," my wife said.

I rolled my eyes in disbelief. "Well, I'd feel more comfortable if we set the alarm."

"Okay, ye of little faith. But just to prove my point I am going to ask the Lord to wake us up just before 5:30."

The next morning I awoke before the alarm went off. I looked at the clock. It read 5:15. I looked at my wife, who had just awakened at the same time with an I-told-you-so smile.

Sometimes we wrongfully view God as someone we go to for only the "big things." The idea of "bothering God" for such a trivial matter seems foolish and presumptuous. However, when you were a child and had to get up in the morning for school, didn't your mom or dad come wake you up? They were your parents, and you could come to them with the most trivial concerns or requests. Why would our heavenly Father be any less approachable? Perhaps our problem is that we simply have not developed a level of intimacy with God so that we feel the freedom to approach Him at these daily, routine levels. We often operate with an unwritten code that says our needs must have a certain degree of importance or crisis before we come to God with them. This is not God's character towards us.

Does the Lord desire this level of intimacy with you and me? The apostle Paul exhorted us to "pray without ceasing" (1 Thess. 5:17 KJV). There is never a caution to pray only about matters of greater importance.

Today, go to God with matters that you might view as trivial and would normally avoid bringing to God. Ask God to increase your level of intimacy with Him. You may even be able to get rid of your alarm clock.

Photo Credit: Jonathan Friberg Reprinted by permission from the photographer. http://fineartinspirationalphotography.blogspot.com/

Reprinted by permission from the author. Os Hillman is an international speaker and author of more than 10 books on workplace calling. To learn more, visit http://www.MarketplaceLeaders.org

Latest Update on NJ A. 3123 Homeschool Bill

Please see previous posts for lists of legislators who still need phone calls! Please do NOT call Assemblyman Deignan. He has publicly stated that he opposes the bill. I want to personally thank everyone who has called or written their Assemblyman, and for those outside NJ who are supporting us.

Latest Update on NJ A. 3123 from the Education Network Of Christian Homeschoolers of NJ (ENOCH).

Thank you! We've gotten many reports of the many phone calls received by our lawmakers today. Our message is definitely being heard!

I have received many emails about some pretty disturbing rumors circulating through email or the loops. One of the most disturbing, said that the Chairman of the Assembly Education committee has decided to "fast track" this bill and would be pushing it through the legislative process as quickly as possible. We have attempted to verify this rumor, and so far we have not been able to get anyone in Assemblyman Joseph Cryan's office to validate this rumor. As far as we can ascertain, this rumor is false. While the task force certainly does not have an inside track to the legislature, we are committed to checking our facts before disseminating any news. Before responding to any alarming news, look for a note or an alert from one of the task force members attesting to its validity.

If you have not made your phone calls today, or you were unable to get through, please continue to try tomorrow.

The list of organizations and representatives on the task force have been listed before but here they are again:

Kevin Kiernan, Catholic Homeschoolers of New Jersey (CHNJ); Carolee Adams, Eagle Forum of New Jersey; Mark August, Education Network Of Christian Homeschooler (ENOCH) of New Jersey; Scott Woodruff, Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA); Nan McVicker, New Jersey Homeschool Association (NJHA); Nancy Plent, Unschoolers Network

As a Christian, I cannot emphasis enough how much effect your prayers are having and will continue to have. Please continue to pray for our lawmakers.

I thank you, as well, that so far, the only reports I am receiving from legislators' offices is that your message is coming across strongly, yet not arrogantly or angrily. Well done.

Proverbs 25:16 "By forbearance a ruler may be persuaded, and a soft tongue breaks the bone." Let us continue to be persuasive and break some bones!

Your fellow servant,

Mark August
ENOCH of NJ

NEW JERSEY - Calls Needed IMMEDIATELY to Block Restrictive Homeschool Bill

==============================
From the HSLDA E-lert Service...
==============================


New Jersey--Calls Needed Immediately
to Block Restrictive Homeschool Bill

Dear HSLDA Members and Friends,

Now is the time to speak with one voice and tell New Jersey lawmakers that the homeschool restriction bill, A. 3123, must be stopped.

This bill would rob you of your freedom, tangle you in red tape, and let bureaucrats force you to stop homeschooling. Bureaucrats could mandate subjects and control course content. The bill demands that you keep mountains of records and interferes with your medical privacy.

New Jersey residents have already paid enough for expensive public school disappointments. A. 3123 will increase taxes yet again for New Jersey families because more bureaucrats will need to be hired and paid to enforce it. Also, millions of dollars in added taxes will be necessary, if even only a small percentage of homeschoolers put their children in public school rather than endure the crushing new weight of paperwork and the threats of school superintendents. And state revenues will be lost if homeschool families avoid living in New Jersey.

ACTION REQUESTED

1. If either bill sponsor, Sheila Oliver (District 34, East Orange, Clifton, Glen Ridge, Montclair, West Patterson) or Harvey Smith (District 31, Bayonne City, Jersey City) is your assembly person, call them and courteously ask them to withdraw this bill. Your message can be as simple as, "Please withdraw A. 3123. We don't need our taxes raised to pay for something as pointless as regulation that helps no one. Studies show that children in states with high homeschool regulation do no better than those in states with low homeschool regulation."

2. Call all the members of the assembly Education Committee (listed
below) and courteously convey your message. It can be as simple as, "Please stop A. 3123, the homeschool restriction bill. I don't want my taxes raised to pay for something as pointless as regulation that helps no one. Studies show that heavier homeschool regulation does not help children. The law already requires that homeschooled children get instruction equivalent to public school instruction. That is enough." Keep calling until you get through.

3. While telephone calls and personal visits have the most impact, e-mails, faxes and letters can also have an effect.

4. Contact other homeschool families and ask them to help.

CONTACT INFORMATION

Sponsors

Sheila Oliver
15-33 Halsted Street
Suite 202
East Orange, NJ 07018
Phone: (973) 395-1166
Fax: (973) 395-1724
aswoliver@njleg.org

L. Harvey Smith
485-7 Martin Luther King Jr. Dr.
Jersey City, NJ 07304-2305
Phone: (201) 536-7851
Fax: (201) 536-7854
asmsmith@njleg.org

Education Committee

Joseph Cryan, Chair
985 Stuyvesant Ave.
Union, NJ 07083
Phone: (908) 624-0880
asmcryan@njleg.org
Fax: (908) 624-0587 (Note: fax machine not working right now)

Joan Voss, Vice-Chair
520 Main Street
Fort Lee, NJ 07024
Phone: (201) 346-6400
Fax: (201) 346-5385 (Note: home line)
aswvoss@njleg.org

Patrick Diegnan
908 Oak Tree Ave.
Unit P
South Plainfield, NJ 07080
Phone: (908) 757-1677
Fax: (908) 757-6841
asmdiegnan@njleg.org

Amy Handlin
890 Main St.
Belford, NJ 07718
Phone: (732) 787-1170
Fax: (732) 787-0356
aswhandlin@njleg.org

Mila Jasey
15 Village Plaza
Suite 1B
South Orange, NJ 07079
Phone: (973) 762-1886
Fax: (973) 762-6118
aswjasey@njleg.org

Joseph Malone
311 Farnsworth Avenue
Bordentown, NJ 08505
Phone: (609) 298-6250
Fax: (609) 298-6359
asmmalone@njleg.org

Paul Moriarty
129 Johnson Road
Suite 1
Turnersville, NJ 08012
Phone: (856) 232-6700
Fax: (856) 401-3076
asmmoriarty@njleg.org

Nellie Pou
100 Hamilton Plaza
Suite 1403-05
Paterson, NJ 07505
Phone: (973) 247-1555
Fax: (973) 247-1550
aswpou@njleg.org

Ruben Ramos
70 Hudson St.
7th Floor
Hoboken, NJ 07030
Phone: (201) 714-4960
Fax: (201) 714-4963
asmramos@njleg.org

Scott Rumana
155 Route 46 West
Suite 108
Wayne, NJ 07470
Phone: (973) 237-1362
Fax: (973) 237-1364
asmrumana@njleg.org

Joseph Vas
276 Hobart St.
Perth Amboy, NJ 08861
Phone: (732) 324-5955
Fax: (732) 324-1879
asmvas@njleg.org

David Wolfe
852 Highway 70
Brick, NJ 08724
Phone: (732) 840-9028
Fax: (732) 840-9757
asmwolfe@njleg.org

BACKGROUND

Here is a summary of what A. 3123 would do:

1. Give the superintendent and school board power to force a family to stop homeschooling if they believe the child is not getting an "appropriate education." This means whatever the superintendent and school board say it means because it is not defined. A bureaucrat would have power make a life or death decision over your homeschool program.

2. Give the Commissioner of Education power to mandate courses and
course content ("objectives"). Families would no longer be free to
decide what to teach.

3. Require parents to list objectives in every mandatory subject. Any family whose list does not satisfy the superintendent will be in trouble.

4. Require parents to send a notarized letter and register every homeschooled child annually.

5. Require parents to prove that the children have received all medical services and immunizations the law requires.

6. Require parents to certify that adults in the home have not committed certain crimes.

7. Require that parents provide 180 days of instruction and turn in these records annually (and also as often as the superintendent requests, if he has "reason to believe" the student is not getting "an appropriate education"):
> list of reading materials
> writing samples
> worksheets
> workbooks
> creative materials
> standardized testing in grades 3, 5 and 8 (with parents being
prohibited from administering the test)
> an annual evaluation by a person other than the parent, after an
interview and review of materials. The evaluator must certify the student is receiving an "appropriate education". The evaluator must be a: (a) licensed psychologist, or (b) certified school psychologist, or (c) New Jersey public or private school teacher, or (d) New Jersey public or private school administrator.

The organizations of the New Jersey homeschool task force are united in opposing this bill: HSLDA, Catholic Homeschoolers of New Jersey (Kevin Kiernan), Eagle Forum of New Jersey (Carolee Adams), Education Network Of Christian Homeschoolers of New Jersey (Mark August), New Jersey Homeschool Association (Nan McVicker), and Unschoolers Network (Nancy Plent).

Thank you for standing with us for freedom.

Sincerely yours,

Scott Woodruff
HSLDA Staff Attorney


=====================================
The HSLDA E-lert Service is a service of:

Home School Legal Defense Association
P.O. Box 3000
Purcellville, Virginia 20134
Phone: (540) 338-5600
Fax: (540) 338-2733
Email: info@hslda.org
Web: http://www.hslda.org

UPDATE Restrictive New Jersey Homeschool Bill

=====================================
From the HSLDA E-lert Service...
=====================================


New Jersey--Prepare To Oppose Restrictive
Homeschool Bill

Dear HSLDA Members and Friends,

On September 22, New Jersey Assemblywoman
Sheila Oliver and Assemblyman Harvey Smith
filed a bill that would cause a catastrophic
destruction of homeschool freedom in New Jersey.

For decades, homeschooling in New Jersey has
thrived, producing astonishingly good results
at no taxpayer expense even while public schools
serve up one expensive disappointment after
another. There is no justification to cripple
the most successful form of education in New
Jersey with increased regulation. Studies show
that children do no better in states with heavy
regulatory burdens.

The organizations of the homeschool task force
are united in opposing this bill, A. 3123, and
are developing a unified response. No benefit,
great or small, can possibly compensate for the
loss of freedom. The task force opposes this bill
in every detail. There is no compromise position.
The bill must be defeated.

ACTION REQUESTED

The time for action will be very soon, but not yet.
Please wait, but be prepared to take action when
HSLDA recommends it. 

BACKGROUND

These organizations form the homeschool task force:
HSLDA, Catholic Homeschoolers of New Jersey (Kevin
Kiernan), Eagle Forum of New Jersey (Carolee Adams),
Education Network Of Christian Homeschoolers of New
Jersey (Mark August), New Jersey Homeschool Association
(Nan McVicker), and Unschoolers Network (Nancy Plent).
These same organizations unified to help stop the
infamous A.B. 4033 in 2004.

A 3123 would do the following:

1. Require an annual notarized letter of intent to
register every homeschooled child.

2. Require parents to list objectives in every
mandatory subject.

3. Require evidence of immunization.

4. Require proof that the children have received
all medical services the law requires.

5. Require a certification that adults in the
home have not committed certain crimes.

6. Require 180 days of instruction.

7. Empower the Commissioner of Education to
decide what subjects are mandatory.

8. Empower the Commissioner of Education to
determine course content "guidelines" starting
in kindergarten.

9. Require that parents keep the following records
and submit them annually to the school district,
and also as often as the superintendent requests,
if he has "reason to believe" the student is not
getting "an appropriate education":

> list of reading materials
> writing samples
> worksheets
> workbooks
> creative materials
> standardized testing in grades 3, 5 and 8
with parents being prohibited from administering
the test)
> an annual evaluation by a person other than
the parent, after an interview and review of
materials. The evaluator must certify the student
is receiving an "appropriate education." The
evaluator must be a: (a) licensed psychologist,
or (b) certified school psychologist, or
c) New Jersey public or private school teacher,
or (d) New Jersey public or private school
administrator.

10. Empower the superintendent to ask the school
board to terminate homeschooling if he believes
the records (above) show the homeschool program
is "unsatisfactory in providing an adequate education."

11. "Adequate education" is not defined, so the
superintendent and school board have wide latitude
to decide what they think it means.

A. 3123 would turn New Jersey into one of the worst
homeschool states in the country. The bill is very
similar to Pennsylvania's homeschool law, which is
generally recognized as the second worst in the nation,
surpassed only by New York's. A. 3123, however,
includes features that make it even worse than
Pennsylvania's. 

Some families have stayed in New Jersey and endured
high tax burdens because the homeschool law is
favorable. If A. 3123 passes, some families will
leave the state, reducing the tax base without any
corresponding savings from reduced state or local
education expense. At the same time, the mountain
of paperwork it will create for superintendents
will raise expenses that will ultimately be footed
by the already put-upon taxpayer.

Sincerely Yours,

Scott A. Woodruff
HSLDA Staff Attorney

"Sarah Palin has an eye-lash problem."

If you are looking for political commentary, forget it. I'm not as brave as Mrs. Fussypants.

I didn't even watch the debate. Why?

I was torn between not wanting to see Sarah maybe embarrass herself and not wanting to be put to sleep by Biden.

Not to mention that there will be plenty of instant replays and YouTube to fill me in.

But I am publishing this article, which is quite a departure for this blog, because I spent three days last weekend learning personally from Joe Schroeder, the man who wrote it, at a marketing conference in Newark, NJ.

It's a sales letter, really. Written by a guy who makes $250,000.

In a month.

I figured I could learn from someone like that. This is, after all, about how to mix home schooling and home business.

In the Drudge Report poll, people are saying Sarah kicked butt.

Here's why.

"Sarah Palin has an eye-lash problem."

===========================================================
As of 2:07 am this morning, people were already bickering back and forth about whether or not Sarah Palin had an eyelash problem.
===========================================================

They were also wasting their minutes asking, "does she Have tattooed lip liner?"

I swear on all that is holy they actually are debating this on blogs from were I live, which is due west 56 miles of NYC to Timbucktoo.

Meanwhile:

And so it goes. Last night, on Oct. 2, 2008, this country got a crash course in likeability.

Some say Joe Biden won.

Others say Palin won by a Wasilla mile.

As a social scientist, I wasn't studying the debate from a political "he said-she said" vote now angle.

Not on a long shot.

All I was doling was trying to doggone DECODE the "it" factor" of Sarah Palin.

And it's about WHY people like her.

Great. Maybe you can't stand her.

Great. Maybe you are a card carrying Obama fan.

Whatever.

There's still major lessons to be learned on how this Hockey nut from Alaska got to be a VP elect for Petes sake.

And studying LIKEABILITY can help you.

Especially, if you yourself are trying to DRAW a crowd and have people vote for you as you daily-cash Flow yourself and campaign for yourself as a living.

I do.

We all do here on the internet.

In Washgington, it's called POLITICS

On the internet, it's called Social Networking

IT's still about LIKABILITY.

Yown own.

Yes, likeability, as in, if you "network" on the internet as I'd bet you dollars to donuts that you do, your own "Q" rating either makes you money or in fact, pushes those pay-pal paydays further and further away from you.

Are you likeable? I mean really likeable?

How is your own "Q" rating?

Q-Rating = Hollywood jargon used to measure people's likeability

Before I show you an oft hidden secret

Remember, I teach the psychology of selling

Remember, if you can draw a crowd and get them to feel you, as say, a Bill Clinton or Dani Johnson can

Likabilitycounts. Especially at Paypal

You all know me. I am a mail-order nut.

I am a salesman in print just as you are.

Now, before I teach you an "X" factor that can soak more whales for you on-line and add more
sales into your bucket of gravy trains, lets review:

As of 3 am this morning, here were the reviews of the Biden and Palin show down

AOLU took a poll and it resolved like this

**Iit could change, this was per 3 am on 10-3-08

LIKABILITY FACTOR

Biden scored 3.39
Palin scored 3.64

Now, on an overall who creamed who analysis

On the MATT GRUDGE site -grudgereport.com

Over-all sweepstakes were

Who won? Well, per the votes at GRUDGE REPORT

Biden 30% = 76,882 votes
Palin 68% = 173,623 votes

2% were undecided

Now, remember those stats.

Also remember that this is NOT a political lesson.

Politics isn't my first user advantage, nor anything I count sheep over. However, when I can watch something as historical as that debate last night and locate the "X" factor

YA-HOO!

Then THIS is something worthy of singing over moons about.

Mail-order, ad copy and sales psychology are my bag.

Yours probably too.

That said, here is some "math" that you won't hear many analysts tinker about or needle each other with.

Here is some "X" factor and hidden magnetism finds.

SARAH PALIN uses, what in direct response is called

** COLLOQUIALISMS*

And that is her SUBLIMINAL magnetism.

(I'll explain)

You're probably a word-smith like me.

Sometime today look up the word (colloquial)

Which means LOCAL language = tribal slang.

If you look at one of my "home run" full page ads

See attached PDF

You will see me use the subliminal effect of coloquilisms

Do you remember PALIN entering the stage and "charging" up to Congressman Biden and asking, "Great to meet you, can I call you Joe?"

BECAUSE that is what's called, "enter closing."

She entered the stage using common everyday "local" language and she said, "Can I call you Joe."

How familiar is that?

I loved it.

It was like, "lets pretend that we already know each other."

How provincial was that?

I loved it.

"Greta to meet you, can I call you Joe!"

Wait though.

Because

Just

An hour later, she flung that back at Biden and said

** After he made some remark she questioned

"Say it ain't so Joe!"

She also used a colloquial when she said, "bet'cha" rather than bet you.

I used a "colloquial" seconds ago when I said

"Creamed" instead of won.

USING localized language, while sparing the King perfect grammar endears you to people.

It DRAWS larger crowds if you use LOCAL verbiage over sanitized.

Consider it as the HIGH ART of social science and the Psychology that exists between the leader and his/her tribe.

It's simply using words as whipped cream (smooth) rather than peanut butter.

How often have I suggested to you crazy cats that the MORE PROFESSIONAL YOU are on-line the less you earn.

Case in point: PALIN breaks the perfect English rule.

Did you remember her saying "heck-uv-a-lot?"

Again, she is pulling more likeability to her

How?

By speaking LOCALLY vs. like someone doing a thesis at Harvard.

Here's another one

Do you remember the hockey-mom say, "Gonna" versus going to?

Study her VIDEO from last night.

Learn something.

Because she markets herself (naturally) as well as any Madonna.

So the game is:

Learn to speak on a LOCAL level.

Throw out perfect English and watch your own "Q" rating and likeability double almost overnight.

Who cares if Mother Palin gaffed when she referred to the U.S. commander in Afghanistan as "Gen. McClellan".

She goofed. Err----His name is Gen. David McKiernan.

Who cares if she flubbed his name!

Because

The POLLS said people LIKED her over Joe Biden.

Who will win the PRESIDENTAL race?

Who knows? Who cares?

This isn't a political overview.

Who is more credible as a VP?

Who cares. This isn't an opt-ed about that.

All I know is this.

IF YOU have a sensory advantage and can gain the empathy of others, you have the upper hand.

And a better arrangement of WORDS gives you that advantage.

All I know is that what separates me and you from income, especially in our line of work, are WORDS and in fact, without properly USAGE of words you can not properly "effect" people.

Therefore and to sum this up

If you believe that people "buy" with more emotions than they do using better facts and figures, which they do

Then this sort of SUBLIMINAL colloquial advantage is a supreme lesson.

My idea of using localized language (colloquialisms) isn't about using OMIGAWD vs. oh my God.

I am not suggesting we say, "oh, he or she dissed me."

I am not suggesting that you pitch a tent in the "hood" and Study the verbal blood-letting of a Fitty cent or P. Diddy.

Hark into me.

Tsk.

Tsk.

Tsk.

Not even close.

However, to localize your language is to endear yourself to your list and to ADD to your own likeability factor.

Here are some that I use

USE and ADD these to your letters

"I'd bet you dollars to donuts"

"No shot in hell"

"Heck-uv-a-lot"

"Call me nutso but"

"Maybe I won't win any popularity votes for this but"

"I won't promise you a gravy train to happy highway but I can, ect,ect"

"The mouse is loose and if I don't get this off my chest I'm gonna bust"

To order my direct response (Volume I) course. "Cash Flow Machine.,"

It's $97 + $20 shipping

$117

Manual and double CD kit

You can pay-pal Susan Critelli here

www.paypal.com

Account: momzilla@netzero.net

See and learn how to use words and SUBLIMNAL marketing Mastery to create bigger lists, have bigger pay-days and learn the Sales psychology that makes the gap wider between the ones getting Paid versus the little guys who never make a penny.

My course, CASH FLOW MACHINE is worth $10,000 to you.

To others, it's EXAMPLES and templates are priceless

Your value is just $117

Feel free to ADD your own LINK to this letter and pass around.

(Psst. here it is www.moreincomeonline.com - it is the base site to this whole blog)

Everyone wants and needs relevant "copy" and articles to add to their BLOGS and social media platforms

Feel free to share-ware this report.

Kindly

Mr. Words-Smith

Joe Schroeder

PS: My late great father, people called him "Jack" (short for John)

Dad used to say and tell me

"Son, people like people who like people."

Once I asked dad, "what in blazes does that mean."

And Pop used to tell me

"People like people who like other people."

As a grown up who uses sales psychology and who earns a living assembling first words, and whose words then assemble people, I learned that to use LANGUAGE that is "localized" endears more people to you.

You become more attractive the more "local" you sound and appear.

** That's also the hidden "X" factor of

David Letterman, Tom Hanks and anyone else who Hypnotizes you with their personality. (Go ask Arnold)

That's the lesson here I hope it was apparent.

www.moreincomeonline.com