Category: Social Issues
The analysis published under this category are as follows.
Thursday, August 02, 2007
A Metallurgist's Insights Into the Minneapolis Bridge Disaster / Politics / Social Issues
By: Joel_S_Hirschhorn
The incredible collapse of the Minneapolis bridge will send a message to the nation that has been repeatedly sent for decades, but that our political system has refused to effectively respond to. America's physical, engineered infrastructure has been in desperate need for massive spending to repair and replace, but the multi-trillion-dollar cost has been rejected by local, state and federal politicians.
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Tuesday, July 31, 2007
The Morality of Economics: The Key Issue of the 21st Century / Economics / Social Issues
By: Richard_C_Cook
Since January 2007, Richard C Cook has published a series of articles on the urgent need for economic and monetary reform.
Some readers have commented on how distant these monetary reform recommendations are from current practice. The reason for this is simply that the recommendations derive from a starting point that is not customary.
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Friday, July 13, 2007
The iMentality and Gadget Induced Coma's / Politics / Social Issues
By: Andy_Sutton
Economics has long been described by renowned Austrian economists as being the study of human action. The basis for this assertion is that human actions are what drive all decisions that relate to economics. Behind human actions are human thoughts. So when we seek to develop a better understanding of economics, then we'd better be in tune with what people are thinking. This is also an excellent explanation for why history tends to repeat itself. Human nature rarely changes or sees major paradigm shifts. In this regard, we do drive our own destiny. It is much better to understand history than ignore it. The former serves as a crystal ball where the latter dooms one to repetition.Read full article... Read full article...
Monday, June 25, 2007
Sheffield Hit by Worst Flood in One Hundred and Fifty Years - A Black Swan Event! / sitenews / Social Issues
By: Nadeem_Walayat
The day for Sheffield, a northern English city started as usual, wet and rainy, yes there have been forecasts for a wet June and possible flooding in Northern England, but Sheffielders felt safe in the knowledge that their hilly city is not prone to flooding.
Not even Sheffielders remember when the last big flood occured. Digging back into history you would have to back nearly 150 years to 1864 when the Dale Dyke Dam burst.
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Sunday, June 17, 2007
Farepak Victim Puts her Trust in Park / ConsumerWatch / Social Issues
By: Submissions
On 15th October 2006, Suzy Hall's world turned upside down.The 36 year-old single mum of two from Edinburgh had just realised that Farepak Hampers, the company she and her four customers had saved almost £1000 with for Christmas 2006, had collapsed.
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Thursday, May 24, 2007
Misery Spread Widely, The Destruction of the Middle Class! / Economics / Social Issues
By: Ty_Andros
Just as vast new middle classes are being born around the globe, some are being buried. They are being buried by the people they elected to steward their economies, these public servants are more interested in their next reelection then coming up with practical solutions that meet today's challenges while preserving the economic futures of their current constituents and future generations.
Today's middle classes in the western world have been taught a belief in two things: that you can have “something for nothing”, and that government can “protect and provide for you”. They now vote regularly for these chimeras/illusions. The growth cycle and bull markets in these ways of thinking are a self fulfilling vicious circle, which will culminate in the middle classes demise. This broad social trend is in the United States and in central Europe , and is as destructive a PRIMARY character flaw as I have ever seen, it is an investment theme for the next ten years or more as it plays out.
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Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Panorama: Wi-Fi – A Warning Signal / Politics / Social Issues
By: BBC
Wi-fi networks in schools can give off three times the height of the signal radiation of phone masts, a BBC Panorama investigation has discovered.
The Chairman of the Health Protection Agency, Sir William Stewart , calls for a review of the health effects of wi-fi in the programme, to be broadcast tonight on BBC One .
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Tuesday, February 27, 2007
US Class War - Slavery through Consumption & Debt to Serve the Elite / Politics / Social Issues
By: Joel_S_Hirschhorn
The motto of the United States of Consumption is “In More We Trust.” The contribution of American culture to humanity is consumption obsession. Our epidemic of obesity, our land gluttonous suburban sprawl, our monster-size environmental footprint, our ravenous automobile addiction, and our heartless greed are symptoms of a deep-seated, sick mental state that keeps the economy humming. And it keeps increasing economic inequality and apartheid. Mass consumption is also a distraction from the self-inflicted defeat facing working- and middle-class Americans in the class war they are losing. Americans are enslaving themselves with their spending and delusional prosperity. The rich and super-rich in their McMansions, luxury cars, yachts, swank spas and private jets surely are laughing at how easy it is to manipulate the 80 percent of the population that keeps enriching them. Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, February 01, 2007
Are we Better Off than Our Parents ? / Politics / Social Issues
By: Clif_Droke
Who had it better: Our parents or us? Much adieu was made recently about the U.S. population crossing the 300 million mark. The latest report from the U.S. Census Bureau sparked a flood of news articles on the population debate and not a few discussions on how our present standard of living has changed over the years.
One well-known publication made this statement in response to the census report: "[T]he typical family is doing a whole lot better than their grandparents were in 1967, the year the population first surpassed 200 million." This statement was made in a Forbes.com article which appeared recently on Internet news wires around the country. The article went on to tout the incredible level of economic prosperity our generation enjoys compared to the generation 40 years prior. It was entitled "The Average American: 1967 and Today" and was written to convince today's younger generation that they've never had it so good and should stop their grumbling and be happy about their economic lot. Problem was, the article was extremely superficial and just barely scratched the surface of all the major economic influences that determine whether our current standard of living is higher than that of our parents' and grandparents' generation. In other words, it was a propaganda piece in the truest sense.
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Saturday, February 18, 2006
Quality of Life Index - Where's the best place in the World to Live ? / Politics / Social Issues
By: CarlosM
And the winner is… France ! The loser? Iraq. No explanation necessary for the latter, but people may be surprised to see France taking top honors in the annual Quality of Life Index this year. it's the first time this country has risen to first place. More than that, though, it's the first time in 21 years that any country other than the United States has come out tops in the Index ! Its all to do with UNESCO and World Heritage Sites. France sees in excess of 70 million overseas visitors each year, making it the world's favorite destination. UK comes a distant 18th ! with even portugal above us ! http://www.il-ireland.com/il/qofl06/index.php Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, January 01, 1970
If Nuclear War Doesn’t Exterminate Us The Ebola Virus Might / Politics / Social Issues
By: Paul_Craig_Roberts
I just heard on National Public Radio two things that have totally destroyed what tiny bit of belief I still had in American leadership. I have concluded that the term “intelligent American” is an oxymoron.
American elites have decided that Americans are not sufficiently threatened by war and economic chaos, so they are bringing the ebola virus to America. National Public Radio reported that two people infected with the ebola virus, which cannot be cured and is usually deadly, are being brought to Emory University Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia.
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Thursday, January 01, 1970
Why We Are So Bad at Solving Problems / Politics / Social Issues
By: Raul_I_Meijer
Before you raise your voice, please allow me to say that I do indeed know this starts to feel like a set of Russian dolls, and this is a re-run of a re-run. It’s just, I didn’t start it. Got a mail yesterday from the people at OpEdNews.com asking if I would allow them to repost something I wrote over a year ago. And since I’m notoriously bad at remembering anything I wrote even just 24 hours ago, when I read what they wanted to republish, it was almost like a whole new world opened up for me. And I kind of liked it.