skane
I think you can rule Ann out for the Nobel Peace Prize. On the other hand, I don't think her comments went far enough: Don't stop at Jews and Christians... all members of all religions, plus agnostics and atheists should change affiliations and become more perfect. Flawless logic that clearly would lead to a peaceful world and maybe fewer dropped calls.
Seriously, Coulter should be taken for what she is... a reckless professional provocateur who will say anything so long as we keep paying attention and her greed bucket continues to fill.
I respect Gore for his work on the environment and the issue of global warming, Still, I wonder that the Peace prize goes to a Global Warming personality rather than someone like Betty Williams (ok she already won in 1976, but she's never stopped fighting for peace) or Lewis Randa (Peace Abbey and life long peace activist) whose whole lives and energies have been focused on world peace. Maybe the Nobel guys need another prize category for environmental advocates.
A bbb for the prostitution industry? Now there's a consumer complaint department that might be fun to audit!
The challenge to legalizing prostitution and drugs is similar to that of adopting a simplified tax code. There are constiuencies who are heavily invested in the status quo and don't want to see it change. Probably less so for prostitution then drugs and taxes, though I have nothing to back that up but a swag.
Should we bring back a different kind of draft?
“You got to server somebody” (Dylan)
Maybe giving two years of service to the community is a wacky idea. Maybe left to their own devices the majority of America’s youth will decide to “make a difference” where they live. And instead of “wasting” money on soup kitchens and other humanitarian projects, taxpayers can save it and donate more to local charities. I won’t hold my breath.
All I know as I look around America is there’s a lot of unhappiness in people who should be happy, hopelessness in people who should have hope, more anger and ugliness and less compassion and kindness. We feel more entitled and more aimless as we amass more bounty. It didn’t all start with the end of the draft or the 9/11 attacks - it just seems to have gotten more so since then.
Would two years of humanitarian service in the name of our country solve all our problems? Not a chance. Would it give participants an increased sense of pride, feelings of accomplishment, durable skills, broader experiences and a chance to walk in someone else’s shoes? Could be worth a shot.
I think DHintze10 had a good point about no one wanting a gun pointed at their head to “make them” do a humanitarian service. Make it voluntary, give choices, but like Bob Dylan said, “You got to serve somebody”.
"Female Reproductive Rights" does not equal abortion
Yes, Miriam, a good point indeed. There are many shades of opinion on this and other issues. For example, someone like me can be pro-choice and yet strongly anti-partial birth abortion. Shelby, what about adding a "Partially Agree" choice?
A war that we're really losing
Josh, I think you’re saying drugs should only be legal if a doctor prescribes them and Walgreen's sells them and it’s really just a matter of the FDA approving the illegal ones. Hmmm you’re not just smoking something there.
Legalization would put a lot of bad people out of work. I don’t know what we’d do with the excess “good” people like police, prison guards, social workers and non-violent drug prisoners – maybe they could enlist in the peace corps or become doctors, pharmacists or tax collectors (assuming the new legal drugs will be taxable).
If we did tax them and we used the tax on formerly illegal drugs to fund anti-addiction and recovery programs, that might help those out-of-work drug-war-fighters stay employed. Plus maybe use the billions from the former drug enforcement budget to educate people about addiction.
Still, the lines on a Friday night at the Savon pharmacy in most middle and upper class neighborhoods are already unbelievable – and legalization would surely make them worse!
Should we bring back a different kind of draft?
We used to have a military draft, but the choice was dismal for many: the armed forces or jail. What if we brought the draft back with a third choice: The U.S. Humanitarian Corps?
The business of the U.S. Humanitarian Corps would be to give people (young and old?) the chance to make a difference while building a better world. The officers of this Corps could be chartered with developing well conceived projects that the enlisted men and women could deliver domestically and/or abroad.
Project examples might be soup kitchens, habitat builds, famine fights, utility projects, teaching, you name it.
Participants would most likely struggle, face danger, find adventure, improve skills, develop lasting friendships and increase their empathy, understanding, and tolerance for others.
Funding would come out of the defense budget, as one could argue that these types of projects present at least as good a U.S. defense as bombing the daylights out of a place.
Is this idea worthy of consideration?
Vids of politicians at their most hilarious...
The missing elephant in the room is the child left behind... GWB
Quality of content here is terrible, what gives?
The internet as a whole has great potential for improving our democracy. Political Base gives us a place to engage, exchange, compare, learn, and make the world a better place. And as a few of you have noted above, we have control over the quality of the information. Stellar!
