STAN'S BLOGS

[My response to this years news coverage of the G8 Conference] Tony Blair at the 2005 G8 Conference in Gleneagles, Scotland failed to get all the G8 summit countries to commit to boosting foreign aid to an amount equal of 0.7 percent of national income by 2015. The United States did not make any additional pledges. There's no doubt that the United States of America is the largest contributor of Official Development Assistance (ODA) to some of the worlds poorest, underdeveloped countries. But before you start patting yourself on the back for a job well done, consider this: The U.S. giving is currently at .16% of gross national income, the SMALLEST percentage of any G-8 country. The U.S. is "2nd to last" out of 22 countries in giving as a percent of GNI. The U.S. only beats out Italy by .01% of GNI for last place among the 22 countries. Norway (.87%), Luxembourg (.85%), Denmark (.84%), Sweden (.77%) and the Netherlands (.74%) are the TOP 5 contributors as a percentage of GD...

[I want to protect your right to protest&#151I may need it someday] When it comes time for you, or maybe your children's' children, to protest a government that's "gone bad," and they all do eventually, will you have the right! Or will your right be muted by local police and/or national guard, being so powerful by then as to stifle the smallest resistance, snuff out the tiniest candle light of dissent. The U.S. Declaration of Independence states, "...whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness..." I decided to check this "right to protest" out first hand during the WTO's Ministerial Conference on Food and Agriculture in Sacramento, California June 23rd to 25th, 2003*. Delegat...

[My response to street talk that illegal Mexican immigrants are a big drain on our generousity] Mexican immigrant households (legal and illegal) actually make-up a smaller portion of the total welfare hand-outs but have recently been receiving a larger portion of "bad press." Ask the average U.S. citizen what one of the biggest problems being faced today concerning illegal Mexican immigration and you will find "the impact on social welfare programs" near the top of the list, right up there with "terrorist border crossings" and "jobs losses to illegals." Total Number of U.S. households (2004 Census): 111,000,000 U.S. Census Bureau (PDF) : In 2003, the number of households in the United States reached 111 million. Mexican immigrant households (legal and illegal): 5,061,600 Center for Immigration Studies : 15 percent of U.S. native households on a welfare program vs. 25 percent headed by illegal Mexican immigrants. U.S. native households on a welfar...

This CNN headline I found today, House passes embryonic stem cell bill , raises an interesting "hold-on-a-minute!" moment for me. Beyond the arguments regarding "the sanctity of life" and "what we can do for our loved ones afflicted with crippling diseases," we might consider the ramifications of this research, if it is successful and then implemented, in changing the course of the law of natural selection in human development. Consider this: Changing the course of or entirely correcting a hereditary disease, e.g. Alzheimer's or Parkinson, in a given individual would still leave the genetic deposition for transferring that disease intact. Thus, allowing the physical or mental defect to reappear in future generations of the affected family line. Natural selection attempts to weed-out these genetic defects, in order to build a stronger and healthier strain of human, a stronger and healthier society. Messing with Mother Nature is risky business. We have a...

[I did this bit on location as an exercise in the art of news reporting] How do you avoid a riot? Hire "Huey Lewis & The News" as your entertainment headliner! Now, I know that might sound odd, maybe a little funny, but I think that was one of the strategies use in the California State Fair's "Cool It Down" campaign this year. Let me explain... I had been hearing for weeks, over and over again, on local TV and radio about potential for trouble at the California State Fair this year on "the last Saturday." The warning stems from previous year's troubles on those last Saturdays. The Sacramento Bee reported, "Four years ago a near-riot broke out on the last Saturday of the fair. Last year, fights broke out on that last Saturday again. One person was stabbed, cars and homes in the Cal-Expo area were vandalized and police made numerous arrests." The "Cool It Down" campaign was born, albeit in sympathetic desperation. Traditionall...