Honduran Hero

I've followed the democratic goings-on in Honduras that began last summer with the ouster of President Mel Zelaya by the Honduran military, acting upon a warrant issued by the Honduran Supreme Court. Although the actions at the time appeared to be in accordance with the Honduran Constitution, the Obama Administration decried the "coup" and demanded that Zelaya be restored to the Presidency. Secretary of State Clinton ordered that financial aid to Honduras be frozen and initiated several other punitive measures.

Despite the Obama Administration's aligning U.S. policy with Fidel Castro and Hugo Chavez, the U.S. media and our elected leaders in Washington were largely silent. A notable exception is Senator Jim DeMint (R-South Carolina) who traveled to Honduras and who has consistently spoken out in favor of the Honduran government and their efforts to follow the rule of law. Now, his efforts appear to be winning out, as the Obama administration has modified its' tune and spoken in favor of recognition of the government to be formed after the regularly scheduled elections are held in Honduras on November 29. For his efforts in support of democracy in Honduras, Jim DeMint is a Honduran hero.

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Update: Mary Anastasia O'Grady, writing in the Wall Street Journal, reminds us of the influence of the Catholic Church in Honduras' internal affairs.

Amazing Video

As a teenager, I learned to fly and earned a private pilot's license. I've always admired those who are paid to fly for a living, and when Capt. Chesley B. “Sully” Sullenberger landed his Airbus A320 in the Hudson River after a bird strike caused the plane to lose power in both engines, I tried to imagine how I would have responded to this emergency. I expect every pilot does this. We know how calmly Capt. Sullenberger responded, thereby saving his life as well as the lives of all of the passengers and flight personnel on board. Here is an amazing video recreation of the brief flight of US Airways Flight 1549.

How I spent my Birthday

Here's how I spent part of my birthday...asking the State Board of Education to issue a teacher's license to me.

Happy Birthday........to ME!!

Today is my 61st birthday. Here I am a few months ago at the Fess Parker Winery near Los Olivos, California.

The Kansas Board of Education Gets Schooled

The Kansas Board of Education denied my teacher's license last May. I didn't think they followed the law. Specifically they didn't determine whether I was rehabilitated as the statute requires of them. So, I filed a lawsuit against the State Board and last week, Judge Larry Hendricks ruled in my favor. His Memorandum Decision and Order (link to the Order is here) remands the issue of my teacher's license back to the State Board with directions for them to make findings regarding my rehabilitation.

He points out in his Order that the Chairperson of the State Board, Janet Waugh, voted against me, after stating on the record, "I guess I just have to say one thing that --- my major concern over this is the fact that I'm not saying he's not rehabilitated. You know, there's probably --- I'm confident he probably is."

A second Board member, Kathy Martin stated, "I'd like to tell Mr. Wright that I certainly agree that he has been rehabilitated and that I appreciate all the things that are in his fact---or all the facts that he has given us."

So, the Board, that denied my license on a 4-6 vote will now have a second chance to license me to teach, and a clear majority of the Board have spoken in favor of my rehabilitation.

And, the most remarkable thing about the Judge's Order? He did it on his own initiative, at a preliminary stage of the lawsuit. We had yet to get to the point where the parties were briefing the main issues of the case or even asked him to rule. Schooled.

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Update: 11/3/2009. Here's the Topeka Capital-Journal report of the Court's decision to remand the case back to the State Board of Education.