Analysis Topic: Politics & Social Trends
The analysis published under this topic are as follows.
Sunday, December 26, 2010
The Economic Lessons of Bethlehem and Christmas / Politics / Social Issues
By: LewRockwell
At the heart of the Christmas story rests some important lessons concerning free enterprise, government, and the role of wealth in society.
Let's begin with one of the most famous phrases: "There's no room at the inn." This phrase is often invoked as if it were a cruel and heartless dismissal of the tired travelers Joseph and Mary. Many renditions of the story conjure up images of the couple going from inn to inn only to have the owner barking at them to go away and slamming the door.
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Sunday, December 26, 2010
NHS Hospitals Productivity Falls For a Decade by 1.4% Per Year Despite 70% Budget Increase / Politics / NHS
By: Submissions
NAO writes: Hospital productivity has fallen over the last ten years, according to the National Audit Office. Over the period since the ‘NHS Plan’ in 2000 there have been significant increases in hospital funding, to deliver improvements in the patient care, and designed in part to increase productivity. Hospitals have used their increased resources to deliver against national priorities, but they need to provide more leadership, management and clinical engagement to optimise the use of additional resources and deliver value for money.
Friday, December 24, 2010
Economics Is Simple But The Fat Cats Want You to Think It's Complicated So That You Won't Demand Change / Politics / Economic Theory
By: Washingtons_Blog
Economics and finance seem like complicated topics, and so many people "leave it to the experts".
However, these topics are actually simple, and if people hear a clear explanation, they will be able to form an opinion about our current economy and the government's response to economic challenges.
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Friday, December 24, 2010
Global Economic Crisis Triggers Debt Driven Suicides in India / Politics / Global Debt Crisis
By: Global_Research
Kavaljit Singh writes: The recent suicides by over 60 poor borrowers in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh have brought the operations of microfinance institutions (MFIs) under public scrutiny. It is well documented by both print and electronic media that these debt-driven suicides were due to coercive methods of loan recovery used by commercial MFIs. The commercial MFIs operate as profit-making non-banking financial corporations (NBFCs) in India.
Friday, December 24, 2010
Bernanke Is Untouchable, Except by Ron Paul and the Internet / Politics / Central Banks
By: Gary_North
Ben Bernanke has an overwhelming majority on the Federal Reserve System's Open Market Committee (FOMC), which meets every six weeks to set Federal Reserve policy. There is only one dissenter, Thomas Hoenig, who consistently votes against any expansion of the FOMC's asset purchases, meaning any expansion of the FED's balance sheet: the monetary base. The vote is consistently 10 to 1.
Friday, December 24, 2010
UK Worst Cancer Survival Rates Due to NHS GP's Ignoring Symptoms and Delaying Diagnoses / Politics / NHS
By: N_Walayat
An international study of 2.4 million people published in the Lancet has revealed that Britain lags far behind most other western countries in terms of cancer survival rates for Breast, Bowel Ovarian and lung cancers with the blame being firmly placed on delayed / late diagnoses by NHS GP's.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Mistletoe – Proof That Miracles Do Happen in Free Markets / Politics / Social Issues
By: LewRockwell
Mark Roberts writes: Happy holidays, solstice and new year! Today, I witnessed a miracle of free markets in progress. It made me feel great to witness it, and I want to share the account with all who would like to feel great, too.
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Thursday, December 23, 2010
On Obama's Failure To Carry Out His Elected Mandate To Reform / Politics / US Politics
By: Jesse
"First is the danger of futility; the belief there is nothing one man or one woman can do against the enormous array of the world's ills -- against misery, against ignorance, or injustice and violence. Yet many of the world's great movements, of thought and action, have flowed from the work of a single man. A young monk began the Protestant reformation, a young general extended an empire from Macedonia to the borders of the earth, and a young woman reclaimed the territory of France. It was a young Italian explorer who discovered the New /world, and 32 year old Thomas Jefferson who proclaimed that all men are created equal. "Give me a place to stand," said Archimedes, "and I will move the world."Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Britain's Police State, UK Adopts Chinese Model of Policing Protests? / Politics / UK Politics
By: Global_Research
Nathan Allonby writes: CCTV has led to large scale arrests, following the recent student protests in London, over increased tuition fees. A total of over 180 people have been arrested, with the majority identified by CCTV.
The current arrests very much represent a landmark - we are now equipped for the Chinese approach to public order, in almost a complete reversal previous British policing.
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Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Fascism and Economic Collapse, Argentina's Past is America's Future / Politics / US Politics
By: Ron_Holland
There are many ominous parallels between Argentina and the U.S. and the question often asked is can America avoid the economic consequences that Argentina suffered from a fascist government combined with government debt and currency collapse? I believe the answer is likely NO!
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Fatally Flawed End the Fed Campaign Would Allow Congress to Print Money / Politics / US Politics
By: Mike_Shedlock
Representative Dennis Kucinich has introduced a bill to end the Fed. Unfortunately his proposal grants Congress ability to create money at will for virtually any purpose. Kucinich specifically mentions full employment, stabilizing social security, and to "lend new money into circulation as authorized by Congress and to provide means for public investment in capital infrastructure".
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Reaganomics / Politics / US Politics
By: Paul_Craig_Roberts
I admire Robert Reich, because he has a social conscience. However, if I were writing about the current Republican/Obama tax cut, I would not help the Republicans put Ronald Reagan’s name on it. Outside of progressive circles, which reflexively blame Reagan, the 40th president is still popular, because the 1980s were the last of the good times. Who prefers 21st century America to the Reagan 1980s?
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Korea Steps Back From The Brink / Politics / North Korea
By: Mike_Whitney
Realizing that its plan to intimidate North Korea has backfired and brought the peninsula to the brink of war, the Obama administration is now looking for ways to ease tensions. But South Korea's tough-talking President Lee Myung-bak has decided to go ahead with the controversial artillery tests on Yeonpyeong Island and risk a resumption of hostilities. The North has warned that if the drills proceed, they will respond with a "counterattack....that would be deadlier than the strike on Nov. 23."
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Distorting the Tax Policy Debate / Politics / US Politics
By: Dr_Ron_Paul
George Orwell warned us about the use of “meaningless words” in politics, words that are endlessly repeated by sloganeering politicians until they have no meaning at all. Meaningless words certainly were on display during last week’s congressional debate over the latest tax bill.
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Tuesday, December 21, 2010
The Smearing of Ron Paul by Paul Krugman / Politics / US Politics
By: William_Anderson
When the Republicans retook the U.S. House of Representatives last November, it meant that Ron Paul would be in line to chair the subcommittee that oversees the Federal Reserve System. Despite the intense lobbying by Ben Bernanke and others who loathed the prospect of Rep. Paul being able to subpoena them to appear before Congress and then to ask them pointed questions about their secret operations, the Republican leadership still gave Rep. Paul his rightful position.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
US Wealth Distribution, Where Zombies Go to Feast / Politics / US Economy
By: Bill_Bonner
A warning… Bad stuff coming!
We’ve come to the warm latitudes for our Christmas holiday. Your editor didn’t really want to do so. He travels so much for business, he longed to stay home for Christmas. He imagined himself sitting in front of the fire…happily drinking eggnog and eating fruitcake. Or, cutting down trees and mending fences.
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Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Why the United States of America is Broke Due to Out of Control Defense Spending / Politics / Government Spending
By: Mike_Shedlock
Explaining why America is broke is rather simple. All we have to do is look at two separate and distinct problem areas: public unions and defense spending, then generalize the problem. Let's start with a look at defense spending.
Here's an article on Foreign Affairs magazine by William Pfaaf making a solid case How Militarism Endangers America . The article is subscription, but a decent sized synopsis and lead-in follows:
Monday, December 20, 2010
Wall Street Wealth Bailout, The Bernank Who Stole Christmas / Politics / Credit Crisis 2010
By: James_Quinn
Ben Bernanke is a highly educated PhD from Princeton who has never worked a day in the real world since he graduated from college in 1975. His entire life has been spent in the ivory tower of academia surrounded by models and theories that work perfectly in the comfort of his office. After building his reputation as an "expert" on the Great Depression by studying it and reaching the wrong conclusions, he came down from his ivory tower in 2002 to join an organization that has systematically destroyed the value of the US currency, thereby undermining the well being of the once vibrant middle class.Read full article... Read full article...
Monday, December 20, 2010
Wikileaks And The Secrets That Deceive Us / Politics / US Politics
By: Danny_Schechter
In the days of Stalin’s Russia, not only would dissidents “disappear” but also even in the pre-digital era, photographs of officials at May Day reviewing stands would be erased from photographs when their political stars fell. Our own “Kremlinologists” would know who was in, and who was out by comparing last year’s pictures with this years.
Sunday, December 19, 2010
"Shadow Lending" and the Financial Crisis / Politics / Credit Crisis 2010
By: Bob_Chapman
What the tax package proves conclusively is that the President, the House and the Senate have absolutely no intention of getting their fiscal house in order. We will address the lurid details later. There is no change in the policies of borrowing continuously in order to sustain current consumption and to keep the economy from collapsing. As far as we are concerned the hold up in the package was to load it up with pork and stimulus. Some call it bells and whistles – we call it irresponsible. The Fed and all the players are buying time and 70% of the public knows that and they are going along with it. Very few want to face the music.Read full article... Read full article...