Blog
Who's Got Michelle Rhee's Back?
December 21st, 2009 - 10:25am
Filed under Education
D.C. Chancellor, Michelle Rhee, has proposed changes to the teacher tenure system that would offer higher salaries to teachers willing to link their paychecks to student performance. Those opting to be paid solely on seniority would receive smaller pay increases. Rhee has been in negotiations with the Teachers Union for more than two years. While Arne Duncan Secretary of Education has hinted that he'll look favorably on states that enact such reforms when distributing "Race to the Top" grant, he has refused to interfere with Rhee's negotiations with the unions. In the last couple years D.C.'s fourth-graders have made the largest gains in math among big city school systems, while eighth-graders have increased their math proficiency at a faster rate than all other big cities (U.S. Department of Education). - WSJ
Helping Iranians Stay Free Online
December 21st, 2009 - 10:19am
Filed under International Security
Traditional media in Iran has long been censored the government, leaving nontraditional new-media such as blogs, Facebook and Twitter as the only platform for dissenting opinions. President Ahmadinejad is working to censor all Internet access for the Iranian people, which can be attributed to movements like the one following the controversial presidential election last summer. Haystacknetwork.com is a new program designed to provide unfiltered Internet access to the people of Iran. The site conceals the identity of users, making them undetectable by Iranian authorities and "enabling them to learn, communicate and fight for their rights to personal liberty, freedom of expression and information." - OC Register, Written by GN Member Brian Calle.
An Empire at Risk
December 8th, 2009 - 1:27pm
Filed under Economy
The decline of an empire begins with debt explosion and ends with a reduction of national defense resources (Newsweek)."If the U.S. can't restore the federal budget in 5 to 10 years, a debt crisis may result in a major weakening of American power and a shift in the global economy. "Call it the fatal arithmetic of imperial decline. Without radical fiscal reform, it could apply to America next".
Rep. Jeff Flake Spent A Week On A Deserted Island
November 5th, 2009 - 11:35am
Filed under Miscellaneous
Rep. Jeff Flake, who spoke with Gen Next Members in September, spent a week surviving alone and with minimal supplies on an island in the Pacific Ocean. His reasons for doing it? He said, "As a kid, I used to snicker when I shook an uncallused hand. Now I've got two of my own... But, perhaps the greatest appeal was not knowing what was behind the next wave." Flake, 46, is a fifth term Congressman from Arizona and serves on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on Resources, and the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
Rift Emerges in Fed Over Timing of Rate Rise
October 17th, 2009 - 11:40am
Filed under Economy
With unemployment rates expected at 9.8% in 2010, federal fund rates are expected to stay low for an extended period. Recent debate is centered around strategy, which includes raising rates and putting $2 trillion into programs that will hold up banks and credit markets, and how to execute them (New York Times). Any quick calls will cause friction between the fed and the White House because Obama has said that he doesn't want a quick end to stimulus policies.
Deployments and Diplomacy
October 17th, 2009 - 11:38am
Filed under International Security
More troops is just the start. Henry Kissinger says Obama should be focusing on a diplomatic solution with Afghanistan's influential neighbors (Newsweek). With Pakistan, India, China, Russia, and Iran directly impacted by Al Qaeda, Jihadists and Muslim fundamentalists, negotiations would be in their best interest. The diplomatic effort would also bring to the forefront the importance of a global alliance against terrorism.
Mark Twain
October 17th, 2009 - 11:37am
Filed under Think About It....
"[Education] consists mainly in what we have unlearned." -- Mark Twain
Capitalism: This Time, Moore is Less
October 17th, 2009 - 11:36am
Filed under Miscellaneous
Our very own Brian Calle recently wrote his debut opinion article in the OC Register entitled "Capitalism: This Time, Moore Is Less." According to Calle, "Moore completely misdiagnoses the villain (capitalism/capitalists) and heroine (socialism/government). He mistakes corporate fraud and government corruption - which are statist, not capitalist, tendencies - for capitalism. And he essentially begs for more government intervention as the solution, even though his own examples point to how government enabled every injustice the film describes."
Decline Is A Choice
October 17th, 2009 - 11:34am
Filed under International Security
"The question of whether America is in decline cannot be answered yes or no. Both answers are wrong... nothing is inevitable. Decline is a choice (The Weekly Standard)." To resist decline, we should accept our role as a hegemonic power and decrease dependency on foreign oil by lifting the 30 year nuclear power plant building restriction. Our focus should be on elevating ourselves, not worrying about other countries. Ultimately, we should learn from Demosthenes who said when asked about the decline of Athens, "I will give what I believe is the fairest and truest answer: Don't do what you are doing now."
Reviving America's Schools
October 17th, 2009 - 11:33am
Filed under Education
Almost three-quarters of Americans think that the problems facing education are at least as grave as those facing health care (Economist). Traditionally, the education secretary can do little to push reform. Armed with $10 billion in stimulus, Arne Duncan wants to "fundamentally change the business the department of education is in." Some even call him a "venture philanthropist." His plan includes "Investing in Innovation" a fund that awards grants to school districts and private groups running schools and a "Race to the Top" fund which rewards states who reform in the following areas: support of internationally benchmarked standards and tests; reversing the tendency of states to weaken NCLB standards; streamlining the collection of pupil data to improve teaching; use performance to determine training and, controversially, pay and promotion.
Dollar Loses Reserve Status to Yen and Euro
October 17th, 2009 - 11:32am
Filed under Economy
The Euro and Yen now are favored by central banks as the reserve currency. The U.S. Fed Chief, Bernanke could go down in history as "the man who killed the greenback on the operating table (New York Post)". He's credited with printing trillions of new dollars and bonds to stimulate the economy, but is now facing inflation and recession instead. Economists suggest that Bernanke start raising interest rates and "pull back the flood of currency spewed from U.S. printing press."
Save The Greenback, Mr. President
October 17th, 2009 - 11:31am
Filed under Economy
To stabilize the U.S.'s economy, we should stabilize the dollar, lower tax rates to reduce unemployment, and use the Mundell - Laffer model. The model "exercises monetary restraint to save the dollar-and low marginal tax rates for economic growth incentives that benefit investors, risk takers, small businesses and workers". The treasury should also buy up unwanted dollars in the marketplace and stop printing excess money to cover congress' debt. These solutions have worked for JFK, Clinton, and Reagan in the past. Obama should follow suit (CNBC).
There Is No Such Thing As Too Big In Free Market
October 17th, 2009 - 11:27am
Filed under Economy
"We must not allow giant, state-supported banks to believe that they are indestructible (Telegraph)". The economic repression was not a result of market failure, rather it was because of "excessive concentration, excessive leverage, spurious theories of risk management and moral hazard in the form of implicit state guarantees, combined to create huge ticking time-bombs on both sides of the Atlantic". Government interference has made the issue even worse. The government should instead offer incentives for the banks to shrink and divide by taking its protection out of the equation -- leaving the losses on the backs of the creditors and other stakeholders.