Politics

Differing Presidential Releases George W. Bushs speech after the capture of Saddam: The success of yesterday's mission is a tribute to our men and women now serving in Iraq. The operation was based on the superb work of intelligence analysts who found the dictator's footprints in a vast country. The operation was carried out with skill and precision by a brave fighting force. Our servicemen and women and our coalition allies have faced many dangers in the hunt for members of the fallen regime, and in their effort to bring hope and freedom to the Iraqi people. Their work continues, and so do the risks. Today, on behalf of the nation, I thank the members of our Arm…

hey guys I recall reading somewhere that it was Saudi men who were responsible for the september 11 attacks on US soil...yet immediately after the US attacked Iraq as "payback"? My question is, despte Saudi Arabia and the US being great allies, if the US were to wage war against Saudi Arabia for harbouring terrorists would they be able to do this without angering and involving the global Muslim population worldwide? Wouldn't future wars be impossible in Saudi Arabia as there are some senstive holy sites of worship there to Muslims? I have heard also that in the US religion/politics are tightly intertwined things? Could it be that USA is in fact at war with Islam? …

With respect to most of the common violations of social mores, society responds in part by seeking explanations of those violations in the possible illegitimacy of the social structures which first create the tensions generating these violations. Thus when poor, inner city children vandalize public property, people are inclined to say that this is just a symptom of the bad effects of social injustice on these children, and the proper response of society to this petty criminality is for social programs to be instituted to relieve poverty among inner-city children. The children may also be blamed, but still there is also a search for exculpatory causes for their misbehavi…

Can anyone recommend a good book that details the founding of Israel and covers all of the major events that have happened since then that have formed the Israel/Palestine conflict? I'd love to learn more details of things like the country's founding, the borders and how/why they've changed over the century, the arguments on both sides for and against a Jewish state, etc. Thanks!

There soo much debate now in the science community and myths that are not proven true or false. Many scientist say stress can cause gray hair or thin,bold hair Many scientist say smoking pot can lead to lung cancer or kill brain cells and lead to short term memory proccessing problem. Many scientist say brain cells ,heart cells and the spine do not devide or grow and injury is for life. Many scientist say too much cell phone can lead to cancer. Many scientist say stress or anger can cause ulcers and hernia. Many scientist say kidney stones is caused by stress,anger or junk food. Mnay scientist say this is true and many say this is a myth. …

Maybe this should be in speculations. The premise is that if a tax were levied requiring people to pay for CO2 emissions, would the proceeds from the tax end up paying for more CO2 emitting industries, etc. causing a viscous cycle that would lead to hyperinflation? Presumably, if the economy would shift to CO2-free activities, there would be no taxation/fines and no fiscal stimulus caused by redistribution of CO2 tax proceeds. But I would guess that industries would just "pay to pollute" and would receive those payments back in increased revenues from people who wanted the products that they generate with that energy. Is this overly cynical?

If drag from air-resistance and other friction were not an issue, high speed would not require great power. Presumably trains are relatively energy-efficient because of their low rolling resistance, long length, and lack of starting and stopping. But for driving, more power is required for acceleration, more rolling friction for stopping and maneuvering, and high speeds make wind resistance the biggest power-drain. Low speed limits (55) were once imposed on highway traffic but this was extremely unpopular. Could the problem be that as long as cars are designed for quick acceleration to higher speeds, there will be little progress in energy-conservation. If, however, …

This doesn't just apply to Americans, people!. They "all" come and go like leaves in the snow of a winters blustery storm. Blown from the trees by a terrible breeze, mans unyeilding thirst for power? Try to have good memories of this Memorial Day. The link below may spread some conscience.

Now that it's come out that Pawlenty pardoned a child molester so he could open a day care center in his home (and the child molester has since re-offended and been arrested), do you think his chances for the Republican POTUS ticket have changed?

Reducing unemployment through job-creation or work-sharing seems to be an important social goal. This reflects a work ethic that the economy supports everyone therefore everyone should support the economy. However, with mass production and other modern industrial efficiencies, trying to incorporate everyone into economically productive endeavors may be less effective than just keeping them out of the way. The problem, however, is that 1) people want to feel important and productive and 2) people who work generally don't like the idea of supporting people who aren't working. The solution that has been pursued in "the post-industrial age" has been to expand service sect…

A global culture seems to have evolved in which the primary response to economic recession is to protect national citizens by restricting migration allowances if necessary. Presumably this has a traditionalizing and territorializing effect by reinforcing the culture that regions are primarily closed populations with common cultural traditions, etc. (national culturalism). The question is what implications this culture has for science. Internet allows unrestricted point-to-point communications globally, so people can still communicate and collaborate in that way despite regional separation, but do you think it is generally detrimental for science to face a global cultur…

There are currently several leadership discourses that prompt questioning of the ability for official leaders to control their ranks. One is the revocation of "don't ask don't tell" allowing open homosexuality in the military. While Obama seems to be fully in favor of allowing open homosexuality, his "decree" hasn't resulted in immediate deference to his authority. People are resisting. It is interesting to consider military resistance in other contexts as well. For example, we may ask if Gaddafi actually could convince his military to stop fighting the rebels. It has been assumed that he has the power to surrender and abdicate, but why do people assume that the mil…

Global warming seems to have failed to galvanize much cultural change as far as reducing energy-consumption goes. Yes, there have been some flashy high-profile projects designed to reduce carbon footprinting. However, radical cultural changes that would drastically improve conservation have continued to be treated as too painful to rush into. Hitting the snooze button just one more time seems to be more appealing. So if the prospect of global warming wasn't enough to motivate change, the question becomes how active people are willing to get to fight the prospect of indoor warming? Are they willing to build more power plants, increase fossil-fuel production, and nucle…

Battle Wise, Heart Driven and weary, brave young men of every nationality and country have fought many wars of what they thought to be liberation and deliverance from abstract tyranny. Were they wrong in their beliefs? As a VFW member, I have met many of those who served in WWII and have discussed with 'some'; their exploits in battle. (mine were mostly confined to Rathskellers, 53/55). These guys just wanted to remember drinking a warm glass of wine in Bordeaux, or discoverig a Wiener Scnitzel in Mannheim, with a cool stein. Some from the Pacific Ops. were a little less open with their thoughts. But most just wanted to forget the hurt, and remember the good stuff. The …

Republicans claim that progressive cuts in spending will result in more jobs and a better economy. What kinds of jobs could be expected to emerge from tax-cuts, though? Is it that businesses and prosperous individuals are going to hire more people to do more things? What kind of things would you expect people to do with additional income if they had less taxes to pay? Also, is there a way for already successful businesses and workers to take on new work and money without having to hire others? As such, is it maybe possible that the gap between employed and unemployed income and spending could actually grow due to tax and spending cuts?

Not looking for any reply unless you feel it necessary. Just listen and give the words some thought. Supplant USA with your own countrys name, image, zip code; and "Listen again".

I am hoping this thread stays close to the thread about oil, because oil has taken the place of gold in world economic systems, and now the power is shifting from the US, the first world supplier of oil, to the mid east. In general we have not been working with a good understanding of the relationship between oil and the economy. We might know the world has traded oil in dollars, but this didn't mean anything to us. Because oil was traded in dollars, all the countries wanted dollars, and this gave the dollar a high value. Mexico is not the only country that enjoyed US dollars, but as far as I know, it is the first one to shed the dollar. If other countries follo…

For how many years has politics been approaching the issue of economic recession, rising fuel prices, etc. in terms of how to raise GDP, create jobs, bring down the price of gas, etc.? But assume for a moment that GDP growth won't increase, that more jobs won't be created, and the price of gas/fuel will keep increasing. If that is the case, what kinds of things would make people happier without costing more money? Are there changes that government and/or private individuals and organizations could make to improve quality of life without running into the brick-wall of the discourse on recession and how to fix it?

This is a game where we try to predict conspiracy theories. Since Osama Bin Laden just died, let's start there. I'll go first. He's actually still alive because: Obama would never allow the assassination of a fellow Muslim. No long form death certificate was shown. Bush couldn't do it, so there's no way Obama could. Obama took too long to do it. They dumped the body too quickly. Obama/Biden sounds too much like Osama Bin Laden. Sarah Palin and/or Michelle Bachmann and/or Donald Trump and/or Glenn Beck told me so.

Is it true that high population density creates poverty? If so, is this true and are there exceptions to this rule? What's the logic behind it (if it is true)?

So, how about we pass a single payer minimum coverage health insurance bill that satisfies all the requirements of the healthcare reform? That way we can have the awesome plan that would have legitimately been able to be called "Obamacare" without repealing the healthcare reform.

Why does the price of oil differ between different countries? What is it that determines the price of oil? Is it more than supply and demand? Is there more to it that that? Who has power over the price of oil?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Osama_bin_Laden Evidently bin Laden was killed by US special forces in Pakistan and his body was dumped in the sea. I don't know. Sounds fishy to me.

Since the political campaign to stop public funding for abortion is strengthening, I wonder if private initiatives will emerge to allow people to insure themselves against unwanted pregnancy. If such abortion-insurance would emerge, how would you expect it to be funded and regulated? E.g. do you think that anyone who wanted to could sign up for unlimited abortions for a fixed fee or would it be like auto insurance where your premiums increase due to accidents and tickets? Also, would you expect men to contribute to such insurance, for example, and if so what would their incentive be? Would women restrict themselves to have sex with men whose abortion-insurance payment…

In another thread, the relative merit for funding different kinds of scientific research was being discussed as if funding is little more than a system for validating some research and de-validating others. In the current economic situation in which unprecedented budget-cutting is going on, one may wonder what the overall economic purpose(s) are of funding science and other human activities that aren't directly resultant in the production of basic necessities. That is to say, if recession were to continue indefinitely, funding for ALL non-essential activities would be continually reduced. Presumably, within the logic of capitalism's invisible hand, such reductions have…