Episode 50 “When I Grow Up I Wanna Be …”

When you were young, were you ever asked what you wanted to be when you grew up?

I know I was.

And even when I wasn’t asked, I thought about it.

What would I be?

There were so many options.

One of the options I considered was … a research physicist.

Now I know this will come as a surprise to the people who knew me back in my high school days. I have to admit, I did not exactly fit the profile of a future research physicist.

But it wasn’t my fault. I considered this particular option because of my brother.

Yep, my own brother.

You see, my brother was a good math student.

Good isn’t quite the word. He was an excellent math student.

I remember he won an award for being one of the best high school math students in the City of Los Angeles.

I grant you that L.A. was much smaller back then. There were only about two and one-half million people in the city.

He was two years ahead of me in school and I remember if he walked by our kitchen table while I was struggling on my math homework, he would come over and look at the problem and my work (I call it work but most people would call it a hopeless effort). Then he would very clearly explain the problem and how to solve it.

After his explanation, I understood the problem immediately and skated quickly through the rest of the homework assignment.

Thanks to my brother, I was pretty good at math. Not as good as he was, but I got A’s in my math courses.

So, I have to blame my brother on planting this “research physicist” idea in my head.

It was definitely his fault.

I actually thought math was fun!

In fact, I remember how excited I was when I got my first Pickett Slide Rule. The slide rule was the tool for real scientists and wannabe research physicists like me. [NOTE: This was before calculators.] And Pickett was the Cadillac of slide rules.

But then something happened.

That something was … my brother graduated from high school and went off to college.

Now that was serious.

My in-house tutor — the guy who understood math and could explain it so I could understand it — was no longer available.

I quickly found out what that meant.

When I began my Junior Year in high school, I was looking forward to my math class — Algebra 2.

My teacher was Mr. DiRosario. Not only was he the head of the Math Department, but my brother had him for math classes before me. When Mr. DiRosario took roll the first day of class, after he read my name, he asked if I was Bob Morey’s brother.

When I said yes, you should have seen the smile that broke across his face. He was obviously thrilled to have another Morey in his class.

So, things began well.

The start of Algebra 2 is a review of Algebra 1, and I knew Algebra 1, so I did well at the beginning of the course.

The problems started popping up when we moved into the new — some might say “hard” — material. I would work late at night trying to understand the homework. I was seldom successful. I would eventually come to understand the material but it was usually about two weeks after we had been tested on it.

Which means the grades on my assignments and exams were less than stellar.

My grandma would watch me working on my math homework, but she was no help at all when it came to explaining how to solve math problems.

That was bad enough, but the kicker for me was going into the classroom each day.

Daily math routine

I don’t know what your routine was when you took math in high school, but the first thing we did in class was exchange papers and grade the homework. Then Mr. DiRosario would would call several people to come up to the chalkboard and work out the problems that had been missed. Each student at the board would explain how to do the problem correctly.

I remember one day when there was a problem on the homework that everyone in the class missed.

Mr. DiRosario smiled at me and said, “Clint, show them how to do it.”

I went to the chalkboard, wrote the problem out, and stared at it.

I didn’t have the slightest idea how to solve the problem.

It seemed like I stood there forever, and I finally admitted I was clueless.

I can still remember Mr. DiRosario’s words to this day.

He looked bewildered and asked, “Are you sure you’re Bob Morey’s brother?”

That was the end of my plan to become a research physicist.

There is a point to this story

Why am I telling you this story?

It isn’t just to let you know that I was mathematically-challenged.

I’m sharing this because of a news story I read last week.

A college professor was fired from his job because he made the course too hard.

He taught Organic Chemistry at New Your University.

First of all, Organic Chemistry is hard.

At least I think its hard. I never actually took the course in college. I got a C in high school Chemistry and didn’t think Organic Chemistry would be a good option for me in college. But my wife was a Chemistry major and my daughter took the course as part of her program to become an R.N.

And I got the impression from them that I made a wise decision not to take Organic Chemistry.

Back to the story.

At New York University (NYU), a bunch of students got together and signed a petition to have the professor removed from his position — I believe they call that “fired” — because the course was too hard.

Oh, sure, he had a stellar history of teaching and had even authored a textbook on Organic Chemistry.

But if the course was too hard for those students, it was obviously the professor’s fault.

The material was difficult but the course was a requirement for students who wanted to apply to medical school, and it was a large lecture-hall class (which many of the students didn’t attend), and the professor paid to have videos of the key concepts of the course available on line (which many of the students did not watch), and the professor was available for one-on-one work with students who were having difficulties (which many of the students did not utilize).

So, it was obvious … it had to be the professor’s fault.

It couldn’t be the students’ fault because they paid tuition to take the course. They deserved a good grade.

Unfortunately, New York University let the professor go (another euphemism for fired).

It’s sad to see that education has reached that level of expectation among students. They exist so they DESERVE to get good grades.

I really don’t want surgeons operating on me because they paid their tuition at a medical school. I would prefer that they actually knew what they were doing.

And I’m not all that comfortable being a passenger on an airline if the pilot and co-pilot got their license because they paid for a course. I would prefer if they learned how to fly.

Then again …

Maybe I should reconsider my job options. Perhaps I should become a research physicist. I understand the mean average pay for a physicist is $6,790 per month. I could deal with that.

I know some potential employers might bring up the issue of me not having great math skills, but maybe it wasn’t my fault that I got a C in high school Algebra 2.

Maybe it was the teacher’s fault.

Yeah, I like that.

Here are some resources I’ve found interesting recently.

“Photos of Perfectly Formed 14-Week Miscarried Baby Are Saving Lives: ‘He Was Not Medical Waste.’” by Epoch Inspired Staff. We need to remember — or be made aware — of what is actually happening when an abortion happens.

“If You are a Christian Leader, You Should Have a Target on Your Back” by Michael Brown. If you think being a “good” Christian will bring you praise in this society, you might want to rethink what really happens.

“How the Elites Hypnotized America into COVID Compliance” a 35 minute interview with Professor Mattias Desmet about his book, “The Psychology of Totalitarianism.”

“Iran, member of top U.N. women’s rights body, cracks down as women demand rights” by Aaron Kliegman. Consider how valuable the UN is when it appoints Iran to the Women’s Rights group. Do you really want the UN making decisions for your life.

“Glenn Youngkin Defends Parental Rights School Policy: ‘Children Don’t Belong To The State. They Belong To Families’” by John Rigolizzo. I don’t care about your political party. You need to decide if children belong to their parents or the state.

Before I go I’d like to share a blessing with you from the Old Testament.

“May the Lord bless and protect you; may the Lord’s face radiate with joy because of you; may he be gracious to you, show you his favor, and give you his peace.”

Numbers 6:24-26 (The Living Bible)

Until next time … be the reason someone smiles today!

Clint

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