Thursday, February 3rd, 2011
MICHAEL LEWIS, - Vanity Fair
Stephan:
When I flew to Dublin in early November, the Irish government was busy helping the Irish people come to terms with their loss. It had been two years since a handful of Irish politicians and bankers decided to guarantee all the debts of the country’s biggest banks, but the people were only now getting their minds around what that meant for them. The numbers were breathtaking. A single bank, Anglo Irish, which, two years before, the Irish government had claimed was merely suffering from a ‘liquidity problem,
No Comments
Thursday, February 3rd, 2011
DANIELLE CHESLOW, Correspondent - The Christian Science Monitor
Stephan: There is a possible scenario where the right choices are made, and the entire region prospers. Much will depend on what Israel does. But these extraordinary food driven uprisings could result in the Middle East finally coming to an accommodation all can live with. Using the Sinai -- symbolically a desert captured in war by Israel and, then, returned to Egypt -- a solar energy facility could arise providing electric power to the region, as well as the conversion of sea water, to provide the critical freshwater that is going to be needed.
JERUSALEM — Cries for President Hosni Mubarak’s ouster in Egypt are being echoed in Jordan with antigovernment protests and a ‘day of rage’ planned for Syria this Friday. But in the Palestinian territories, it’s the silence that is most notable.
Skip to next paragraph
Part of that quiet is due to a rare common effort from the Palestinian Authority (PA) in the West Bank and Hamas in the Gaza Strip to suppress vocal support for Egyptian protesters. Both sides dispersed solidarity demonstrations that were planned for last Sunday and Monday.
The PA and Hamas both maintain close ties with the Egyptian government. Mr. Mubarak has been a key supporter in Israeli-Palestinian peace talks that have involved the PA. Although Egypt has helped maintain the blockade on the Gaza Strip, Mubarak also turned a blind eye to the brisk tunnel trade under the Gazan-Egyptian border, and has allowed aid into the strip. Further, Mubarak has attempted to mend the rift between the Gaza-based Hamas and Fatah, which rules the West Bank.
‘[The Gazans] don’t want to get into a bad relationship with the Egyptian regime,’ says Sameeh Hammoudeh, a political scientist at Birzeit University. ‘Egypt can really harm them if they close the border, […]
No Comments
Thursday, February 3rd, 2011
Stephan: Approximately 1.7 million people listen to Glenn Beck -- a declining number, true, but still a significant one -- and take what he says seriously. What I infer from this is that it is another manifestation of Willful Ignorance. A large group of Americans have simply decided to commit to a fantasy, rather than deal with the reality. I urge you to click through and actually watch his performance.
It took a few days for right-wing opportunists to figure out exactly how to deal with the popular uprising against Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak, but they’ve caught up. Most of the world has watched the massive, peaceful demonstrations with deep admiration, hopes for a peaceful outcome, and uncertainty about where it will end up, especially with the emergence of violent Mubarak thugs Wednesday. Some Republicans, including John Boehner and even Mitt Romney, have actually managed to praise President Obama’s cautious but increasingly firm statements demanding change. Despite the confusion, some right-wing fear-mongers are galloping to wildly false conclusions that serve them politically.
Naturally, Glenn Beck is the worst. We know he’s losing his audience — his January ratings were his lowest since his show began two years ago — and he may be losing his mind. Monday night Beck outlined his grand vision of three dominant world powers, as a result of the Egyption turmoil. In case you missed it: ‘One, a Muslim caliphate that controls the Mideast and parts of Europe. Two, China, that will control Asia, the southern half of Africa, part of the Middle East, Australia, maybe New Zealand, and God only knows what else. And Russia, which will […]
No Comments
Wednesday, February 2nd, 2011
Stephan: Here are some thoughtful views on the issue of state bankruptcy, in my opinion a dreadful idea. This scheme is being driven by the willfully ignorant far right made up of individuals who seem to have little or no understanding of what the Founders really thought, or how the government is structured, preferring instead the fantasies one hears on Glenn Beck. The real agenda here is a drive to break the government employee unions that have done so well to protect their members. The effects on the bond market if this scheme were to become a reality would be catastrophic, and the Constitutional implications could take a generation to resolve.
Individuals can do it. So can municipalities. But why can’t states file for bankruptcy? Want the answer? Just ask the Founding Fathers.
Kai Ryssdal: The umpteenth winter storm of the season is doing what winter storms do to a large stretch of the country today. It’s going to keep on doing it tomorrow, as well. Another big blizzard and another big cleanup bill for already tight state and city budgets. States and cities that are dealing with huge budget deficits.
There’s an idea floating around out there about one way to help states regain their financial footing: Just let those states declare bankruptcy.
Commentator and business historian John Steele Gordon says history isn’t kind to that kind of declaration.
John Steele Gordon: There is a regular, prescribed way for individuals or corporations to get out from under unsupportable debts and get a fresh start: Bankruptcy. But while the bankruptcy code contains provisions to allow municipalities to file for bankruptcy, there are currently no provisions in law for a state to do so.
The reason lies in our peculiar constitution. In most countries, there is what political scientists call a ‘unitary government,’ which controls all political power. Even in countries with a federal system, political power […]
No Comments
Wednesday, February 2nd, 2011
TODD NEALE, Staff Writer - MedPage Today
Stephan:
Although U.S. adults have done a better job controlling hypertension and LDL cholesterol in recent years, most still are not treated to recommended targets, according to the CDC.
About one-third of U.S. adults had high blood pressure and a similar proportion had elevated LDL cholesterol levels, researchers from the CDC’s Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention reported online in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
And 30% of those with hypertension and 51.9% of those with high LDL cholesterol did not receive any treatment for their conditions, resulting in control rates of less than 50% (46% for high blood pressure and 33.2% for high cholesterol), according to data from the 2005-2008 wave of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).
The CDC researchers identified certain demographic groups that had the lowest rates of control, including those:
* With no health insurance
* With no usual source of medical care
* Who had received care less than twice in the previous year
* Living below the poverty level
* Younger adults
* Mexican-Americans
Although prevalence of hypertension did not change between […]
No Comments
