I was never a big fan of Jimmy Carter. He seemed to be elected not so much for what he was as for what we wasn't--Gerald Ford. Personally I think he will go down in history as one of the worst presidents unless history forgets about him altogether. My opinion dropped even lower after reading this recent issue of Foreign Policy.

In the last issue there was an article entitled "The Carter Syndrome" by Walter Russell Mead to which President Carter took offense. FP printed the president's rebuttal in this issue. Here are some doosies from that rebuttal.

"There was no pressure on me to launch a peace initiative in the Middle East, but I did so from my first days in office." I think we see today the results of that initiative were minimal.

'We had no hesitation in providing weapons to the Afghan resistance after the Soviet invasion in December 1979, and I made It clear in my speech to Congress a month later that I condemned this action and had informed the Soviets that any further aggression would be construed as a direct threat o our nation's security and I would respond accordingly, not necessarily limiting ourselves to the use of conventional weapons." Would all those who honestly believe we would have "gone nuclear" over Afghanistan in 1979 please stand. Of course, if we had done that then we certainly wouldn't be there now.

"Our policy in Iran was to make it possible for the shah to retain his leadership by urging him to adopt political reforms while preventing fanatical extremists from seizing power, but ultimately that could only be accomplished by the Iranians themselves." He seems to say that he tried, it failed, but it was the Iranian people's fault, not his.

But my all time favorite is his response on the hostages held in Iran. He mentions he "could have ordered massive destruction in Iran with our mighty military power, but this would have resulted in the deaths of thousands of innocent Iranians, and it is certain that our hostages would have been assassinated." The assassinations would have surely happened but recall that he could not even successfully run a rescue operation. His micromanagement of that relatively small operation resulted in utter failure and I think it is remarkable that it did not result in the assassination of the hostages. But that is not all. In discussing the ultimate release of the hostages he says:

"Instead, we persisted with patience, exhausting every possible mediation avenue that might have been helpful. Finally, with the help of the Algerians and others, I negotiated around the clock for the last three days I was in office, while President-elect Ronald Reagan and his advisors chose not to be involved or even informed about progress. The hostages were on a plane and waiting for takeoff several hours before the midday inauguration, and they were finally permitted to depart immediately after I was no longer in office--all of them safe and free."

How he can see this as a success if baffling to me. Does he really think it was his negotiations and not his departure from office that resulted in their release? In my opinion this was a slap in his face by the Iranians essentially telling him that they had no respect for his presidency but they either feared or wanted to have a better relationship with Reagan. If his negotiations truly had anything to do with the release, other than work out logistics, and if the hostages were on the plane several hours before departure, why were they not released until after Carter was out of office?

President Carter concludes by stating that he sees no reason to apologize and I agree. I think he made some bad decisions, I think he was an ineffective president, and there are those who will disagree. I do think he did what he thought was best. My objection is that he is seemingly attempting to rewrite history and make himself appear more effective than he really was. From his rebuttal I get the feeling he wants to take all credit for relations with China, peace in the Middle East, the fall of the Soviet Union, and the release of the hostages from Iran.

2. Just because you were a student doesn't mean your students are in the same situation. True, I drove a 1972 Dodge Duster with an AM radio and an add-on air conditioner that didn't work. The car had over 100,000 miles on it when I got it! It got 9 miles per gallon because, as I found out when I sold it, it had a small leak in the fuel line. Just as well, I didn't have the money to fix it anyway. I was not given an SUV or a new car. The age of 16 meant I got a drivers license. A new car could wait until I got a job and paid for it. I was also moved to school and then saw my parents at Thanksgiving. We talked at most once per week because long distance rates were expensive. My parents never EVER once called a professor or administrator of mine to complain or ask a question--that was my job. So, don't worry, it is not likely we will ever think today's students are in our situations.

4. Don't keep students later than the assigned class time. Good point, we would certainly hate to give more knowledge than was paid for. The excuse of "my next class is too far away" is old, and in many cases not true. Pull up your pants, wear some real shoes, put down the cell phone and you would be amazed at how fast you can really walk to class.

5. If a student shows up late, don't count them absent. They still made the effort to show up. This is one of my favorites. Try that one on your boss when you have an important meeting. How about the next time you are late for a flight you call the airline and tell them about the effort you are making so they should wait for you. The point is, showing up late for a class is rude to the professor and to your classmates. It says to them "hey. Look at me; I'm just too good to be here on time like you are." Sure, there are times you will be late, we all understand that. If you are on time most of the time, most professors will cut you some slack, we do understand that things happen. The problem is that what I see is that it is always the same people who are always late. By the way, effort counting is a myth perpetuated by high school teachers. In the real world no one really cares about your effort, they only care about your results.

9. Be fair in grading. Never use 'fairness' as an excuse to deny information to a student. This is my second favorite. Reading between the lines this is saying, be fair, except in situations where I want something that no other student is asking for so give it to me.

10. Tell student how you would like to be addressed on the first day. How about showing courtesy that should be shown to anyone? Try Dr., Mr., Mrs., Professor. If they want to be called Bubba or Princess, they'll let you know. This is really good practice for the real world. If you think when you go on an interview or meet new clients, that they are going to go to great lengths to tell you what to call them, think again.

24. Effort is important and shouldn't be forgotten in grading. See #5.

27. When grading a paper, explain what the student did right, not just what they did wrong. This one baffles me. I think is more of that high school teacher stuff about making students feel good even if they are failing. What are professors supposed to do? Grade papers and congratulate students for spelling words correctly? This makes no sense. If there are no comments then you did it right, if you don't know why it is right then you need to see the professor and tell him that you just lucked up.

39. Use out-of-class assignments sparingly. I really want to know the major of the student who came up with this one. Newsflash, if you are doing assignments in class, save for the occasional short paper or similar active-learning techniques, you are not in a college class regardless of what you might think. The vast majority of a student's time at college should be spent studying and doing assignments outside of class. Again, college is not high school. If that is problem go see your high school teacher and blame them.

43. If you are not going to use the book you assign, tell your students on the first day. A required book does not mean that the professor will use it in class every day. Some professors actually expect students to read the textbook before coming to class so that lecture material will complement what you read in the book.

44. Don't read handouts and the syllabus word-for-word to students; they're in college and obviously can read. This is actually a good point except, from my position, I deal with a lot of students who DON'T read the syllabus...at all. Then they are surprised when they make a poor grade, miss an assignment, or sleep through a test.

46. Be careful about assigning group papers. They're almost impossible for students to write fairly. I hated group papers as a student too but, once you get in the world of working stiffs most of the "papers" you write will be group papers. You will still not like it but that is what you have to do. Better to learn it in college than after you lose your first job because you cannot function as an effective team member.

So, now that I have been fairly critical of the list of things some students think professors should do, I have to stress that not all students think like those on the newspaper staff. In fact, most of the students I deal with do not think like this. But, now I have a list, a fairly short list, of things students should do to be successful in college.

1. Come to class prepared for class. That means read the material BEFORE class. Digest it, think about it, review it. You will find that lectures then tend to be more reinforcing and your questions are more meaningful.

2. Leave the excuses at home. If you can't come to class try to let the professor know beforehand and if there is a real excuse (illness, death in immediate family, etc.) let them know that too and they will likely be understanding. If you have to miss a class for a university function, let the professor know and offer to make up the work before you miss the class. You will be amazed at the amount of goodwill that earns.

3. If an assignment is due at the beginning of class, have it ready to turn in at the beginning of class. Don't run around trying to find a stapler or root through your book bag for it.

4. Be professional and respectful in class to the professor and your classmates. Speak clearly and like an educated person. Leave the street talk on the street. Do not insult a professor by turning in an unprofessional paper or assignment. And like, whatever, you like, do, like avoid using "like" like as much as you like possibly can...like.

5. Dress for class. I don't where the idea that it was acceptable to attend class wearing pajamas or the most worn out clothes in your closet began, but it really need to stop. And gentlemen, take off your hats inside. I've seen about all the advertising for John Deere and Skoal I care to see.

6. Students, remember your professors were students once too. Those excuses you have for not doing work, for being late to class, for needing to move an exam, are not new. I've heard them all and I tried most of them myself. They will work for you about as well as they worked for me. Don't waste your time. By the way, I know this should be common sense, but missing class or an assignment because you were in court or jail is not an excuse. If you have to go to court for jury duty or are subpoenaed as a witness then let the professor. Being in court as a defendant is not an excuse and does not win points.

Someday I'll have to expand this to a list of 10 but for now, this will do. And again, just to be clear, many of the students I deal with are outstanding, conscientious, well-intentioned, and hard-working. They do not complain or make excuses, they simply do their best. But there are a few, a precious few, who would do well to follow these suggestions.

There is talk of being bowl eligible and that is nice to hear. If it comes to be all the better, but right now it is refreshing to simply hear the talk.

When this officiating crew left the field at the end of the game they were booed by the fans. That is a first for me. We've had bad officials and we have not liked some of the calls, but these guys had so many that they were booed when they left the field. I wish they had on the shows after the game and explain why they made or didn't make certain calls much like the coaches have to. I think at the very least the coaches should be allowed to comment about the impact bad officiating had on the game.