Tax Havens: Myths vs. Facts
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Inkwell
Food for Thought
Inkwell reader Joe passes along this ode to the price mechanism.
Summer Tourists Not the Most Offensive People in the Capitol
The Capitol Visitors Center opened in Washington this week to the relief of at least one Senator. The fact that the Center was delayed 3 years and $550 million over budget is no matter to Senator Harry Reid. The bloated $621 million price tag is a small price to pay so the sweaty masses (ie. summer tourists, who, by the way, also pay his salary) do not offend his delicate olfactory sense. Check out his unbelievably offensive comments here.
Reid further puts his foot in it when he says, "We have many bathrooms here, as you can see. Souvenirs are available." Oh, lovely Senator Reid! Are there also shower facilities so your constituents may bathe before daring to step foot into your office?
New at IWF
Check out the latest IWF campus fact sheet on ethanol here.
Protect Freedom of Speech; Reject the "Fairness" Doctrine
IWF's Michelle Bernard explains.
For Our Friends in Arizona
There will be a rally for school choice on Tuesday December 9th at 9:30 a.m. on the steps of the AZ Supreme Court. More details here.
Is it Snowing in Poznan?
Click here to read a funny article from Politico last week which highlights "The Gore Effect." Apparently, Mother Nature has a sense of humor because often when there is a major event to draw attention to global warming, it is ironically met with unseasonable or record snowfall. The UN Climate Change Summit in Poznan, Poland runs through December 12th, so it is not too late for a blizzard!
More From the UN Climate Change Summit
From the AP:
A goal of the Poznan talks is to produce a "shared vision" on 2050 targets on greenhouse gas emissions, to guide negotiations leading to the critical Copenhagen conference next December.But Alden Meyer of the Union of Concerned Scientists said he doesn't believe a shared vision will emerge in Poznan because the Bush administration "refuses to put any target on the table for 2020."
Meyer said wealthy industrial countries need to slash emissions, transfer green technology to developing countries and provide funding to help them adapt now to the climate changes already under way, such as rising sea levels and harsher weather patterns.
"That's the shared vision," Meyer said. "The reason we can't get it is because the Bush administration has refused to put on the table any meaningful target and any meaningful financial package from the U.S."
Most striking from these statements is Meyer's assertion that the United States should transfer wealth to developing countries to help them "adapt to the climate changes already under way." It is my sincere hope that the United States continues to resist this and other proposed measures from the Summit. There are so many reasons why this type of policy is outrageous, but I will just state the most obvious. The United States is one of the most generous nations in terms of various forms of foreign aid, from combating AIDS to assisting countries dealing with a natural disaster, and we should hardly be expected to pour additional funds into countries who are merely dealing with the reality of their geographic location.
Driving Courage in Baghdad
Here is a Washington Post article about Iraqi women reclaiming their freedoms - including the freedom to drive.
The black-masked militias have vanished from most Baghdad streets, and the car bombings are down to one or two a day. So one recent afternoon, Hadeel Ahmed, a ponytailed college student in jeans, did something few Iraqi women have dared in recent years.
She drove a car.
"It bothers me to have to depend on my brother or father to take me everywhere," the 25-year-old student declared, after finishing a class at al-Riyadh Driving School. "I want to be independent."
Free Market and Morality
Lately my metro reading has been a fabulous booklet put out by the John Templeton Foundation in which they ask a group of leading economic thinkers to answer the question: "Does the free market corrode moral character?" I'm happy to report that the booklet is also available online for your enjoyment and I'm even happier to report that the online version also boasts a series of interviews with booklet contributors. Here's one of my favorites from George Mason University professor Tyler Cowen:
You can find more commentary and videos at this website.
Duke Lacrosse Update
Duke wants an insurance company to pay it's legal fees associated with the lacrosse case. John Miller has the scoop over at Phi Beta Cons.
UN Climate Talks to Have Massive Carbon Footprint
How is this for unintended consequences? The UN is holding a meeting in Poland to discuss lowering greenhouse gas emissions worldwide, where as many as ten thousand people are expected to attend. Participants travel and energy to power the meeting space will cause an estimated 13,000 tons of carbon to be emitted. Click here for the story.
Honor Killings in Iraq
The Huffington Post has covered yet another story about the rise of honor killings in Iraq.
It Never Stops
More Title IX shenanigans at the high school level.
Rhee-form
Think D.C. schools don't need massive reform? Think again:
Washington is the lowest-performing school district in the nation. Only 12% of D.C. eighth graders are proficient readers, 8% in math. A mere 60% of high schoolers finish in four years with a diploma. The problem can't be money; Washington's per-pupil spending is the third-highest in the nation, at $13,000 a head.
In part, the problem is unqualified teachers with lifetime job security. Contracts provide ways to fire incompetents, but unions make the process burdensome. In New York City, it costs an average of $250,000 to fire a teacher; the city last year dismissed 10 out of 55,000. New Jersey fired precisely 47 (of 100,000) in the 10 years ending in 2005.
The beauty of Ms. Rhee's tenure reform is that it would use financial incentives to help the best teachers. Unions love to say they are underpaid professionals. Ms. Rhee agrees. Under her reform, teachers willing to be judged on their worth could earn up to $130,000 a year. Her price: Disburse money as is in the real world -- on merit.
More here.
The New Political Economy
Charles Kruathammer has a typically brilliant piece today, which highlights how government intervention is changing our "free market" (at least sort of ) economy into one that is controlled largely by politics. The whole article is a must read, but the section on the ramification of Washington dictating decision making in Detroiit was particularly well done:
Even more egregious will be the directives to a nationalized Detroit. Sen. Charles Schumer, the noted automotive engineer, declared "unacceptable" last week "a business model based on gas." Instead, "We need a business model based on cars of the future, and we already know what that future is: the plug-in hybrid electric car."The Chevy Volt, for example? It has huge remaining technological hurdles, gets 40 miles on a charge and will sell for about $40,000, necessitating a $7,500 outright government subsidy. Who but the rich and politically correct will choose that over a $12,000 gas-powered Hyundai? The new Detroit churning out Schumer-mobiles will make the steel mills of the Soviet Union look the model of efficiency.
Thanksgiving Blasts
IWF strongly condemns the terrorist attacks against India's financial capital in Mumbai and outside of the U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan. These senseless attempts to create havoc in a prosperous nation like India and a nation long trying to root out terrorism like Afghanistan have been committed by the enemies of both nations and the West.
These inhumane attacks will only further unite India and Afghanistan and the international community to combat terrorism worldwide.
Vatican Goes Solar
Click here to read about the Vatican's efforts to move towards solar energy reliance. I think it is most notable that after a close to $2 million investment and anticipated future investment, they can only hope to supply 20% of their power by 2020 through renewable sources. For solar energy to really become a viable alternative, it has to become more efficient.
TX Governor Says Federal Greenhouse Gas Caps Will Devastate TX Economy... and Every Other State in the Union
Gov. Rick Perry said in a news conference Tuesday, the EPA proposed caps on greenhouse gas emissions are a threat that would "run this nation's strongest economy right off the tracks and into the ditch." Unfortunately, Governor Perry is probably right, but the proposed regulations will not only grind the Texas economy to a halt, but every other state's economy too. Click here to read the full article.
Title IX Hits High Schools
Our friends over at Saving Sports point to some disturbing news on the Title IX front.
Spitting Game: The College Hook Up Culture
I recently had the chance to watch a new documentary about the hookup culture by Denice Ann Evans called Spitting Game: The College Hook Up Culture. For starters, it's nice to see a filmmaker examine this topic. There have been a string of great books on the topic in recent years, but not much in the way of other media. Like most of the recent books on the hookup culture, the film is mostly comprised of interviews with college students and recent alumni. One particular quote from a female student caught my attention, as it gets to the heart of just how prevalent the hookup culture can be on campus and the peer pressure that can go along with that:
"There's peer pressure to hook up. If some of your girlfriends are going out and they're hooking up with other people, they don't want to feel like the slut or the whore. They want you to do it too so not only can you be empathetic...you're on the same level. You have the same things to talk about."
In an interesting twist, the film also features interviews with parents of college students. The differences between the parents answers and the student answers is probably the most eye-catching aspect of the film -- they are clearly not on the same page in terms of the realities of campus life.
State of Michigan Economy, a Model for the Country?
It certainly shouldn't be considering the rising unemployment rates and mass layoffs, however, President-elect Obama seems to think it should. Click here to read about the similarities between Michigan Governor Granholm's plans for her state and President-elect Obama's plans for the nation. Apparently, the remedy for our ailing economy is all about the creation of "green" jobs! Really? Tell that to NBC...
Promising New Leadership at the EU
Click here to read about Vaclav Klaus, current president of the Czech Republic, who is about to assume the rotating presidency of the European Union. Dismissed by opponents as being a bit of a bully, his ideology might be just what Europe needs to solve some of their financial woes.
Deadline Approaching!
Don't forget that the deadline for the IWF college essay contest is approaching. Essays must be postmarked by December 1st.
Contest details are available here.