Historically, at least, the Democrats have held an overwhelming advantage over Republicans on the question of which party would best manage and protect the environment. Thus, in an attempt to “wa
New data from the UN Foundation and Better World Campaign on Americans' foreign policy preferences. HTML coding courtesy of "Maestro" Matt Cordell at UN Dispatch.
It's to nobody's benefit that people are allowed to spend their entire lives without real jobs, and then congratulate themselves for doing it and calling it "service." There is no sacrifice in government. It's a privilege, and anyone who tells you otherwise is lying. But politicians are good at that. So: Let's have term limits. If we can't have term limits, let's remove the perks. Motivate people to serve because it is a responsibility, not a career opportunity. End career politicians now.
I think high school is the place to do this -- introduce the kids to some important, simple but challenging concepts and realities about how our country and how the world works. Give students a realistic view of these things. I think if we did, that could reduce conspiracy-minded thinking. And there is an appalling amount of that out there.
Let's be clear, Blackwater employees are typically ex-Army. Well, we don't trust them on their own in Iraq, but they can be useful. And let's face it, the Blue helmets can't get anything done. So one needs to be toned down, the other needs to be toned up. And if it doesn't work, well, we can stop.
Wind power isn't very effective, even off the coast of Nantucket. That is, unless you put your turbines in the upper atmosphere. Why aren't we flying power-generating kites? Technology, vision, you name it. We need R&D here. On Day One, I want to be flying a kite that will recharge my iPod. Ben Franklin would dig it.
