Letters to the Editor
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I (heart) science
What I find worrisome is the sense that there are some initiatives in which the federal government can do positive things for the education of the populace that the states, individually, cannot, or will not do. And, that the distortions and perversions that have occurred in education at the federal level are all that anyone can see. Is that our recent history? Sure. Need it remain that way? No. Half of the economic wave we all rode so comfortably into the 21st century was our collective talent in math, science and engineering. The agencies that had spearheaded those efforts so successfully are starving for research dollars. And, internationally, we are beginning to fall behind.
Our engineering and science employers are screaming for employees. We're importing those folks from other countries. Exporting an array of jobs on the one hand, and importing skilled workers on the other. What a deal. I've nothing against home schooling. There is no research to suggest that home schooled kids are at a disadvantage in institutions of higher education. [How many of those home schooled kids pursue degrees in the STEM fields, I don't know. I don't think that data exists.] But the feds have a history and a track record of catapulting the country forward in fields where we built economic strength. Forcing the states to compete with each other to build individual research parks, that are heavily reliant on corporate dollars to survive, does not create an environment in which basic research can thrive.
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Thanks, GG, for exposing me to RP....
I have now become a member of his "fan club" here in Stanislaus County, california. (modesto, ca.) i also have donated to his cause (my first ever donation to a presidential candidate). he is the first candidate to speak to me, and i have listened to a lot of candidates.
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@Chris
You showed a lot of class in recognizing my point and changing your tone. It helps all of us when the discourse is civil. We all need to vent and sometimes our emotions about what the Busheviks and many politicians have done to us causes real anger and more harshness than we intend.
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Bebop
On this Veterans Day (celebrated), if I could, I would hum you a lullaby that would chase away all scary dreams, nightmares of war zones, and unwanted turned inside flash backs... banish them all. Forbidden! Instead, only great big, warm bear hugs to cradle you safely into tomorrow.
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bystander.
Mo a-oh-a-wee-ah!
You take the war away from my memory. thanks.
Whatever I was gonna say, it' best, wiser, a darn-a-tootin, remain, a-hushed.
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musicality
'Course Bop, I should warn you that I can't carry a tune in a bucket on my best day ;-) A cat screeching, yowling, and caterwauling might come closer to Brahms than me! It's the thought that counts, right?
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So why is Kucinich not more popular?
Maybe some of the evident distress around here is that it's Ron Paul who is getting traction, not Kucinich. Why is that? Why don't you guys start pushing Kucinich like Ron Paul supporters are doing?
For whatever reason, Kucinich is going nowhere. I'm actually sorry this is so; I'd rather have a choice between two anti-war candidates, like Kucinich vs Paul in the general election (now that would be a race worth watching, with no retching needed).
Another thread here is that some at least don't think Paul would be a disaster like Bush has been. No need to worry about being tortured for example! And with President Paul being a strict constitutionalist, states could go their own way, with many of them obviously going in a very liberal/left/progressive/whatever direction.
But for others here, that is not good enough, because it implies other states could go in a conservative or libertarian direction. That's just not to be allowed.
The authoritarian urge apparently does not exist only in neocons.
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right. bystander...
And can we say something innocent and silly?
O, can we tuck-each-other into, and enjoy, a warmth embrace?
O, it's a mere innocent thought-?-and only a desire of a old fashion, simple,
O, purity
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Federalism
Federalism, or having government be local has a great allure. It seems to be common sense, that government would work best when it is closest to the governed.
In Mahatma Gandhi's time, India was mostly rural (it is still mostly rural, 70% or so, even after explosive urbanization). Mahatma Gandhi envisioned India as a confederation of half-a-million villages.
Even so, Dalit leader BR Ambedkar wanted a strong central government as a guarantor of the rights of the so-called lower castes (and he achieved that).
This intuition, that the central government is needed to check the states is borne out from American experience. Federalism did not work well in abolishing slavery or in securing voting rights.
The counter argument might be that the results would be more lasting and with no recidivism if the states abolished slavery, instituted equality, etc., at their own pace. But how many people do we sacrifice to a long wait for justice?
Therefore we might say that while federalism is the Constitutional principle as written, the Civil War and other events essentially constitute an unwritten amendment to how Constitutional federalism is to be interpreted.
IMO, the answer to Ron Paul's strict constitutionalism lies in that direction.
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Paul Dirk
It is said that reasonable people can disagree. I believe concentrated power leads to abuse; you believe concentrated power has self-correcting mechanisms. I don't think we have convinced each other, but I appreciate the civil discourse.
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Good analysis of Ron Paul
I'm for Kucinich, but ...
Ron Paul is right on the war and the War on Drugs. He is worng on everything else (like reproductive freedom, the environment, privatizing the sidewalk ...). There is no need to go the David Neiwert rou - and make things up. There is plenty to dislike about Ron Paul as is ...
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Glenn Greenwald's Pathetic Misogyny
I realize that YOU, as a gay man, will never have to worry about not being able to get an abortion, but could you possibly look past your own situation and realize that Ron Paul is a vicious authoritarian who does not believe in the fundamental autonomy of half the population?
You are blowing your credibility for all time with this Ron Paul nonsense, and revealing yourself as having the political sophistication of a high school sophomore.