Independent Rant

WAshington's New Low

2005-03-15T21:06:00.000-05:00

The Senate is poised to elimate the possibility of fillibusters on votes for judicial nominees. As frustrating as it was to have the Reps stonewall Clinton's nominees and I'm sure equally difficult for them to live through the Dems blocking of W's picks, ending fillibusters is not the answer.

Checks and balances are there for good reason and we are better served when each side is prevented from ramming its selections through like greased pigs at the state fair. I, for one, don't want to see a rush to stack the courts each time that the balance of power shifts in Congress. I'd rather see the two sides forced to talk, debate, argue -- in short, deal with each other.

But in Washington today, it is all about winning not governing. I would hope that there would be enough people who value the integrity of the process over expediency. But, apparently the Reps have just about lined up the necessary votes.

Sad.

On another front: three cheers for the jury that convicted Bernie Ebbers. After all of the abuse by rogue CEOs, it is good to see one getting his due.

Weekly Recap

2005-03-11T21:52:00.000-05:00

It was another wild week on the road for me this week -- DC and NY with wall-to-wall meetings. I didn't get much time to blog but there was plenty of time on planes with papers full of swell news:

Congress courageously stepped up to pass a bankruptcy bill that makes it harder to for little guys to clear away debts through bankruptcy but preserves loopholes for the wealthy should they need to do the same. Another bold step for the average working stiff courtesy of their friends in the credit card industry.

Meanwhile, the credit card issuers are getting better and better at handing out credit cards to folks who can just get by, charging them $29 if they make a late payment and then raise their interest rates on all credit vehicles just because they are late on one. It's as stacked as a stacked gets deck.

But at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue our fearless President was saying it's time to drill in ANWR and build more nuclear plants. Nothing like embracing yesterday's technology. Oh, but I forgot, those are the technologies that support yesterday's big corporations that make big contributions. Tomorrow's big energy corporations are more likely to come from China or India because the next generation of energy production has a chance of taking root there where "good enough" is better than nothing for a lot of folks. We need a forward-looking energy policy and we're short-changing our future by expecting the oil boys to deliver it.

At least the Social Security boondoggle seems to be getting bogged down long enough for us to have a real debate about it.

CEO Comp up Again

2005-02-27T13:33:00.000-05:00

Friday's Wall Street Journal reported that average CEO compensation at 100 large U.S. companies was up 46.4% in 2004. It must be nice to be able to vote yourself a raise. I checked my investment portfolio and it certainly wasn't up 46.4% last year. Cost of living? According to the Mercer worldwide survey of cost of living, NY was the roughly the same as the previous year. Why, oh why, do CEOs deserve big raises every year?

As Rakesh Khurana of Harvard Business School has documented, company performance is tied more tightly to general economic conditions and industry trends than the brilliance of an individual CEO. Still, CEO comp continues to skyrocket -- now 160 times the pay of the average worker.

Excessive CEO pay is a disservice to shareholders, employees, and customers. The question is what to do. Writing to the heads of the mutual funds and companies in which you are invested is one step. Also write to your legislators to push for laws that create more transparency and rights for shareholders.

Then, if you are an average Jane or Joe, sit back and wait for your riches to arrive: Salary.com predicts that you can expect a 3.7% rise in 2005. That's way up from the 3.6% average in 2004.

The Real Gap in Social Security

2005-02-24T19:56:00.000-05:00

I'm not the only one who sees the looming battle on Social Security as a potential sink hole for the Republicans. Noam Scheiber has an excellent piece in today's TNR Online. Here's a sample:

"If I were a congressional Republican, the thing I'd worry about most is ... well, the thing I'd worry about most is the unwritten rule requiring me to get a really bad haircut. But the second thing I'd worry about is why my party's leadership keeps lying to me about the politics of Social Security"

And he concludes, "A 2001 study by the National Committee for an Effective Congress found that, of the 88 congressional districts that Republicans won from Democrats between 1994 and 2000, 59 had incomes below the national average. Among the 46 seats that Democrats won from Republicans, 29 had incomes above the national average. If Republicans move ahead with privatization, we're likely to see Democrats win back a big chunk of the voters who abandoned them in the '90s..."

How do you spell "third rail."

11,000 Years Late

2005-02-23T22:04:00.000-05:00

All of you fans of privatization should take a look at the story in yesterday's London Times that reports that trains in the UK have been a collective 11,000 years late since the system was privatized in 1997. That's right -- 11,000 years according to the Strategic Railway Authority. Oh, in case you haven't guessed, profits for the private operators have been up while service levels have gone down.

It is time to acknowledge that private enterprises aren't always paragons of efficiency and public operations are not always wasteful and slow. Without proper incentives and oversight, privatized public services aren't likely to perform better than predecessors. Instead you get a monopoly (or duopoly) with powerful motives to boost profits and little recourse for market forces to drive service improvements. Think of your local cable company.

In this country the Bushies are pushing hard to privatize government services. There are plenty of improvements that can be made in these agencies and programs, but let's make sure we actually make improvements and don't just give private companies a license to enrich themselves.

Bush in Europe; Me Too

2005-02-21T13:43:00.000-05:00

I'm glad that I'm in Europe to help provide a counterweight to Bush and his entourage. I realized that I am outnumbered but I am confident that I can score a point or two. I don't think that I'm alone in hoping that Bush doesn't make a mess of Iran the way that he did with Iraq. It would also be nice if he could acknowledge the massive progress of the Kyoto accord. One can dream, can't one?

Of course the whole thing is mostly a kiss-and-make-up session without a lot of real substance. The EU has designated each of nine countries to speak about a single issue in presentations and the other two have been told to piss off and shut up. It's hilarious to watch the unwieldy EU try to get its ducks in a row.

Bush will meet with Tony Blair tomorrow. I wonder if they'll discuss social security privatization. It was a complete disaster in the UK but I doubt that W wants to hear that.

But what most people will see are a series of silly photo ops. Couldn't we just PhotoShop world leaders together and save ourselves the cost of jet fuel?

Did Anyone Notice?

2005-02-18T05:47:00.000-05:00

When I arrived in Europe the night before last the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol was all the buzz on the telly. The effective date had arrived so there were lengthy discussions about what it all means now (and what it means that U.S. opted out). I'm curious -- what was the play like in the U.S. media? Did anyone notice or care?

On a separate note, I'm sure there is great consternation about Russia's decision to sell nuclear fuel to Iran. Might I suggest that it is in the long-term strategic interests of the U.S. to develop scaleable, cost-effective alternative energy technology that we can export? Providing an "alernative" alternative would be the best way to expose any deception about nuclear programs being for energy production while also helping to clean up the planet. After all, 131 nations did sign the Kyoto Protocol and now have to reduce their toxic output.

The 100-year Culture Wars

2005-02-16T18:15:00.000-05:00

We tend to think of the much ballyhooed culture wars as a fairly recent phenomenon fueled by the resurgence of conservatives over the past dozen or so years. That myopia is the result of overestimating the success of the sexual revolution, the women’s movement, and the gay rights movement. One needn’t look far for a history lesson.

Two current films, Kinsey and Vera Drake, show how repressive societies have been for the past 50 years and how readily the establishment will rush to the ramparts when its values are threatened. Kinsey’s research into sexual behavior brought forth accusations of Communist leanings and other implications of disloyalty to the country. Ignorance, said the powers to be, is far preferable to uncomfortable facts. In Vera Drake, those with money can buy access to safe abortions while the title character winds up in prison for “helping young girls in trouble” for no money at all.

It was all brought home in Nicholas Kristof's column in today’s NYT. The federal government is requiring that sexual “education” programs promote abstinence and not present information on birth control in order to receive funding. This despite findings that show that promoting abstinence along with birth control education results in lower rates of sexual activity, fewer unwanted pregnancies, and few abortions than promoting abstinence alone.

Despite progress in many areas, there are still significant forces who believe the “ostrich” approach is the best way to dissuade teens from giving in to their raging hormones and evidence to the contrary be damned. Unfortunately, those forces control both Congress and the White House. Those who are concerned about teen sexual activity, pregnancy, and abortion should take a moment to consider results over ideological purity.

On a related note, I saw Brian Dennehy in Trumbo, the play about the life of blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, last night. The production gets a B but it is illuminating. Blacklisting those who stonewalled the House UnAmerican Activities Committee started in 1947 and didn’t begin to end until 1960. Some people’s reputations weren’t “rehabilitated” – sounds so Maoist, doesn’t it – until 1970. Making people unemployable because of their political views was a dark stain on our history. Isn’t freedom of expression one of our key rights?

As we look at the people who are calling opponents of the Iraq war and others who disagree with the policies of the current administration unpatriotic we should remember that our government and our citizens are capable of being brutally repressive. The thought police are always among us and ready to rise up when the public mood allows. This, above all, should be resisted. Robust discourse, messy as it may be at times, is an essential component of a healthy democracy.

Tallying the Cost

2005-02-13T17:59:00.000-05:00

Interesting to read yesterday that it looks like the new prescription drug plan is going to be some $200 billion or so over budget. That's $200 billion over the $524 billion that was upped from $400 billion shortly after the bill was passed. The "don't tax but spend" Republicans are once again displaying an alarming loose grasp on fiscal reality.

Let's make one thing clear -- the drug benefit isn't Bush's gift to the elderly or the Republicans beneficience to our seniors. It is the generosity of the American taxpayers to each other. I have nothing against a drug benefit plan. We must get medical costs for all Americans under control. But it must be done in a fiscally responsible way. Make the government negotiate with the drug companies, don't prohibit it. Open competition to allow foreign drug makers to legally (and safely) import their products into the U.S. Both of these things would help drive down costs.

But Bush is instead casting himself as the defender of the benefits to the elderly saying that the law should not be revisited. Horseshit, George. Get your lips off the fat ass of the pharmaceutical industry for a minute and own up to having hoodwinked the Congress when this thing was first passed.

Readers may remember that a senior Medicare analyst was booted for leaking cost estimates that were higher than what the Administration wanted to see. Now we can all see how blatant the deception was. And people wonder why I question Administration claims about Social Security reform.

It is refreshing to see Trent Lott and other Republicans joining Democrats in outrage over the growth of this program before it has even begun. It is time to reopen the Medicare drug benefit to make sure that it delivers a fair benefit to people truly in need at a price that we can afford.

Tomorrow's Valentine's Day. I think I'll send W a big red caluclator SWAK.

Comings and Goings

2005-02-11T13:47:00.000-05:00

Boy, it has been an interesting week. Carly Fiorina will be standing in the unemployment line in Palo Alto next week. Or perhaps her massive severance package ($21.1 million) will keep the wolf from the door. Rumors have been circulating for some time that she was being considered for a job in the Bush administration and now her dance card is free...

Once again I must ask -- if the CEO is being let go (fired, shown the door, booted -- you choose), why are shareholders forced to pay her huge amounts of money? The board that approved the deal should be shown the door at the next shareholders' meeting.

Meanwhile across the pond personality-free Prince Charles is set to web aging consort Camilla Bowles in April. Must get the white-tie to the cleaners. Most Britons want the crown to bypass Charles and go to his son, Prince William, so this may be the closest thing he gets to a coronation. Oh, wait, the people get no voice in the monarchy do they?

Of course the U.S. msm are slobbering all over themselves in anticipation of a royal wedding. Who cares that North Korea has declared itself a nuclear power? There are flower arrangements to be ordered. The 9/11 Commission says that the FAA ignored 52 warnings about Al Queda before the WTC tragedy, but that's old news. What's Camilla going to wear?

But for good news, Howard Dean should become head of the DNC tomorrow. Thank God for small favors. He will get the grassroots energized in time for 2006. Let's go get 'em!

Credit...and a Caution

2005-02-08T08:15:00.000-05:00

You have to give the Bushies credit for taking on farm subsidies in the new budget. This federal program has become the biggest corporate welfare boondoggle of all time and most payments to large corporate farms. It also provides an incentive to overproduce -- thus depressing the market price for the crops -- because it pays for every acre planted.

The effort to curtail the waste will meet stiff resistance from midwestern lawmakers and chances are that no changes will be made. But you have to give them credit for trying.

However, the notion that the budget can be significantly trimmed through cuts in discretionary spending is pure fantasy. Approximately half of the current deficit can be linked to W's tax cuts. They should be repealed at least until the war is paid for and the deficit is back under control. We'll have to wait for a Dem administration to get that to happen.

Why Bush Isn't Worried

2005-02-06T17:01:00.000-05:00

While he's monkeying around with our Social Security payouts the President can count on what the government will be giving him:

The presidential pension is equal to the salary of a cabinet secretary, currently $148,400 a year. Former presidents also receive free mailing privileges for nonpolitical correspondence, free office space, $96,000 a year for office help, and, during the first thirty months after their term of office has ended, up to $150,000 for staff assistance. The pension was created by the Former Presidents Act passed in 1958. It provided a pension to all presidents who left office, unless by impeachment and conviction. As of 1965, former presidents and their spouses also receive lifetime Secret Service protection, as do widows of former presidents until they remarry and their children until they reach the age of sixteen.

SOURCE:
Kane, Joseph Nathan. Facts About the Presidents. New York: The H.W.
Wilson Co., 1993.
Nelson, Michael. Congressional Quarterly's Guide to the Presidency.
Washington, D.C.: Congressional Quarterly Inc., 1996.

Let the Social Security Wars Begin

2005-02-05T10:46:00.000-05:00

I had to wait a couple of days after the State of the Union address before posting as I didn't want to burn the keyboard in rage. It was such a self-satisfied performance. But it may also have been W's high-watermark. His determination to take on Social Security head-on could be his Waterloo.

When W wanted war in Iraq, cost was no object. When he looks at the retirement income of average Americans, he wants to squeeze the nickely until the buffalo screams. The Reps continue to pour billions into a missle defense system that has yet to function properly, but blanch at that thought using that money to help elderly Americans eating tuna fish in stead of cat food. He made sure to mention his support of ethanol so the good folks running major corporate farms would know that their corn subsidies would remain intact. How, dear God, how did we elect these people?

I have written here many times about the idiocy of private retirement accounts as a way to"save" Social Security and the more I hear of W's plan, the smarter I feel. His current "idear" isn't actually a fix for the system but rather a revenue-neutral way to start to move the government out of the guaranteed benefits business -- a long-standing conservative dream.

In a rare moment of intellectual honesty, Bush has admitted that benefit cuts are ahead either through changes to how increases are indexed, an increase in the retirement age, or some other mechanism. The savior? Annuities. That's right. It seems that you would be required to take most or all of your "personal" account and purchase a federally-approved annuity that would provide an income stream for like (and reducing your SS benefit by an equal amount). So we tear down one system and put in place a more complicated one that, at best, achieves the same results as the original one.

On MSNBC, John Rother, director of policy and strategy for AARP, says if personal accounts are approved by Congress they probably would require even more annuitization than described by the White House because Social Security benefits likely would be cut to achieve long-term solvency.

“Almost all the money for most people is going to be required to be annuitized, and it will look a lot more like Social Security,” he said. “If you have to annuitize it anyway, why are you going through the higher expense and higher risk than you would if you just fixed Social Security in a straightforward manner?”

Like I said months ago, it would be hard to think of a less efficient approach to fixing SS than to break it into 200 million individual accounts.

What few mention is that one of the reasons that the SS trust fund gets such low returns is that the money is borrowed by the government each year to fund on-going operations and the gov't borrows money at about 3%. Two questions pop up: why not manage at least a portion of the trust fund like an endowment and invest it outside of government bonds to increase returns? And what will the effects be on the market when the government has to go outside the trust fund to borrow to keep things running?

My fervent hope is that opposition to this plan will grow, unite the generations, and lead to Rep losses in the House and Senate in 2006. That will require intelligent management of the issue by the Dems and that may be beyond their grasp. It will be Howard Dean's first challenge should he rise to head of the DNC next week.

In the meantime, write to your senators and representatives to head this lunacy off at the pass.

Leavin' on a Jet Plane -- Maybe

2005-02-02T19:51:00.000-05:00

The Iraqis have held a successful election (we hope). The Pope is in the hospital. W is about to unravel the retirement hopes of millions of Americans. But wait -- there's really big news: the Delta Shuttle has stopped guaranteeing seats to flyers in the the NY-Boston-Washington triangle.

Once there was a time when you could walk up to the counter and if the plane was full, they'd roll out another one. That, along with free booze, was justification for paying $400+ for a 35- mintue flight. Now that time has passed. If the plane you want is full, you have to wait a full 60 minutes for the next one. Don't they realize how much I bill for an hour of my time?

I've been hostage to the USAir Shuttle for several years now courtesy of a contract with my employer that keeps the cost per flight under $200. US Air ended the seat guarantee a few years ago. I was told by an almost helpful gate agent that the cut back was because of the cost of keeping crews on standby. Whatever the excuse, it certainly makes Amtrak look better for my Boston to New York jaunts (free booze not withstanding). If the reelection wasn't evidence enough, we now know for sure that civilization is crumbling before our eyes.

Unmasking "Jeff Gannon"

2005-01-31T20:55:00.000-05:00

Could there be a chink in the armor of the Bush machine in the person of "Jeff Gannon?" "Gannon" is the pseudonym for a W-lovin' reporter who has a White House press pass and the latest link in the media manipulation madess that has included Armstrong Williams and Michael McManus.

There's a hot pursuit to uncover "Gannon"'s true identity. He's apparently close to Karl Rove. Could he be linked to the revelation Valerie Plame's undercover status? Are we living in a John LeCarre novel?

This is a story with legs. Let's not let it die.

Tick Tock, Tick Tock

2005-01-31T20:17:00.000-05:00

Congratulations to the Iraqis. The elections have apparently held successfully and we now await the counting of the ballots. Then the hard work begins -- holding the country together long enough to write and ratify a constitution that all of the factions can live with.

Meanwhile, back in the U.S. of A the Dems have the timetable drums beating. "Let us know how long and how much" they cry. "No, no, you unpatriotic wastrals" reply the Bushies. "To set a timetable would be to tell the insurgents that the country is theirs on X date."

Well, not so fast.

It is the responsibility of the Congress to oversee the expenditures of the government so Senators Kennedy, Biden, et al are doing exactly what they ought to as good public servants. It is not too much to ask for some idea of the plan and its implications. This is not a global fight-to-the-death like WWII; it is a war of supposed liberation that should have a planned endpoint. Are there 120,000 trained Iraqi security forces, as Condi maintains, or under 10,000, as Joe Biden says. The truth is likely somewhere in between and only a timetable with benchmarks will force all parties to deal honestly with reality.

Any timetable would, of course, come with milestones and the requirements held out by W as necessary for withdrawal -- such as a viable Iraqi defense force, an accepted constitution, etc. But, those milestones should have accompanying expectations for how long massive American forces will be needed. It is one year? Three years? Five?

Very few are asking for a timetable that calls for a withdrawal by the end of the week. Nor is anyone expecting an answer as exact as "Thursday, July 14 at 4:27 p.m."

My guess is that the administration knows that a realistic timetable will not be palatable to the American (or Iraqi) public. Military officials who I've heard say that it will take three-to-five years to get the Iraqi military into shape to stand on its own. It takes about three years to get a new division battle ready in the U.S. or Europe and the old Iraqi army did not have a modern command-and-control structure or an ability to coordinate actions between units (Sadaam liked to keep everyone dependent on him). So they have a steep hill to climb.

To dis any thought of a timetable is, in essence, to say that the Iraqis will be dependent on U.S. might for the foreseeable future. It says you see no hope for the Iraqis to be respsonsible for their own country. To label calls for a timetable unpatriotic is insulting -- both to us and the Iraqis. Let's admit that an endgame requires a plan and the sooner we face up to what it will require, the better.

Political Payola Continues

2005-01-28T20:23:00.000-05:00

Salon.com reports that a third conservative columnist has been caught accepting money for delivering opinion. I guess there is no such thing as a "free" press.

I'm fine if the conservatives want a battle of ideas, but let's have an actual discussion and not mercenary mayhem. "All our Cabinet secretaries must realize that we will not be paying commentators to advance our agenda. Our agenda ought to be able to stand on its own two feet," Bush said at a news conference. Let's hope that the actions that follow reflect these sentiments.

Don't be surprised that I'm not holding my breath.

Culture Wars Busting Out

2005-01-27T19:22:00.000-05:00

The anti-gay forces have their panties in a wad over an upcoming episode of Postcards from Buster that features lesbian parents. PBS, in another cave-in to the ranting right, is not distributing the episode to its 350 or so stations after Education Secretary Margaret Spellings denounced it.

Demonizing gay and lesbian parents is part of the ongoing attempt to turn us into a more homophobic nation ruled by Christian zealots. It is great that Postcards recognizes that healthy, happy families come in many shapes, sizes, and configurations. Loving, caring parents should be celebrated no matter what their sexual orientation. There are too few of them.

Buster joins Spongebob Squarepants and Tinky Winky as a target of conservatives who see a limp-wristed demon behind every gentle children's character. Last time I checked, sponges don't even have genetalia so sex is sort of beside the point; Teletubbies, too, are non-sexual creations. Do they think that Davey was into beastiality because he spent all of his time with Goliath?

Homosexuals aren't trying to convert everyone to their lifestyle (unlike evangelical Christians who are all but on a conversion quota system). Those who have had to struggle as they recognized their own sexuality are more likely to want others to find theirs -- be it straight or gay.

Death Penalty Tango

2005-01-26T20:38:00.000-05:00

A case in Connecticut has the death penalty back in the news. CT may execute its first prisoner in more than 40 years.

I don't believe in the death penalty. It's not that I am soft on crime, but rather that I think that spending a lifetime in prison contemplating what put you there (and getting a nightly visit from a large, mean fellow inmate for a little lovin') is far greater punishment than being put to death. Anyone who thinks that prison is a cakewalk, especially max. security, should volunteer to spend a night on the inside.

Second, life inprisonment without parole is actually cheaper than the prolonged appeal process through which most death row inmates march on their way to the chair. Michael Ross (in CT) was arrested in 1984 and convicted in 1987. If he didn't choose to stop fighting, he could keep this going on for years more. All on our dime.

Third, there is ample recent evidence that too many folks who get put to death were wrongly convicted. You can't undo the death penalty and if we've zapped the wrong guy, it's murder plain-and-simple.

The death penalty is mostly about the blood lust of victims' families and others who feel that smashing people is the best way to set an example. Perhaps those who believe in Heaven and Hell think that the perpertrator will get downstairs faster with lethal injection. Except that a fair number of these prisoners seem to find Jesus behind bars and, in theory, will be heading straight to Glory.

But, if we have to have it, here is my prescription for reform:
- It is only applicable in capital cases where there at least two unrelated eye witnesses and a preponderance of physical evidence (this pretty much eliminates the chance of getting the wrong person and makes it tougher to frame someone);
- You get one appeal to a special review board and it will be held within 90 days of conviction. From there you can try the applicable Supreme Court, but that's it (keeps costs down and punishment swift);
- The jury that convicts you has to come to watch the penalty be carried out. If you can mete out the ultimate verdict, you damn well better be able to see what you've done.

Journalism and Blogging

2005-01-24T10:36:00.000-05:00

Dan Gillmor is leading an interesting debate on blogging and journalism among other topics on his new blog. It's well worth the read.

Atrios is also still hot on the case. The right wing continues on believing their own press releases. It's more than a full-time job debunking their claims. All is not perfect on the left, but the progressive voices seem to include more of the pioneering bloggers who understand the nature of community, establishing on-line norms and rules-of-the-road, and are not looking to create virtual talk radio.

I'm sorry to have missed last week's Blogging, Journalism, and Credibility conference (but David Weinberger has posted

Goodbye, Johnny

2005-01-24T10:01:00.000-05:00

The passing of Johnny Carson is a sad moment. Neither Leno nor Letterman come close to filling Carson's shoes in my opinion. He made us laugh, made us feel more sophisticated, he brought us new talent.

Carson was out of the spotlight for the past several years but his impact continues to be felt through the work of the current late-night hosts as well as Jerry Seinfeld, Ray Romano, and virtually every other stand-up comedian currently working.

Letterman is all about Letterman. Leno just lacks an edge -- he's a corporate guy. Carson, however, had a humility and quiet confidence that made him a bit of an everyman (watch the animal skits). It wasn't all about him -- it was about entertaining the audience. He wasn't afraid to make a fool of himself if it would get a laugh. He consistently pushed the envelope. Best of all, the comedy holds up today.

Carl Reiner suggested that someone run the old Carson shows each night on TV. I second that motion.

We'll miss you, Johnny.

In another sad passing, former Boston Globe political columnist David Nyhan died of a heart attack while shoveling snow this weekend. Nyhan was an intelligent and thoughtful voice whose work appeared in the pages of the Globe for 31 years. More recently he wrote for the Lawrence Eagle-Tribune.

Silent China

2005-01-23T13:16:00.000-05:00

My trip to China was truly fascinating. Unfortunately, between a packed schedule and mediocre internet connection, I didn't get a chance to do much blogging.

The most obvious evidence that China is still China was the death of Zhao Ziyang this past Monday. Zhao was a senior party official for many years and was the one leader who showed public support for the students in Tienamen Square. Shortly thereafter he was toppled and spent the next 15 years under house arrest.

When he died it was a front page story in the Hong Kong papers as well as the International Herald Tribune. On the mainland, however, the state radio and television stations were under orders not to broadcast the news. It merited only a brief mention in The People's Daily buried deep in the paper. Plainclothes police kept mourners from visiting Zhao's house. By the end of the week things had softened a bit and the party had agreed to bury Zhao in the Chinese equivalent of Arlington National Cemetery.

Still it was apparent that political control is still tight in the People's Republic of China. Don't mistake the opening of the economic system for a political awakening. Based on my conversations with ordinary Chinese folks there isn't a huge appetite for more political freedom. They want the freedom to make money and they don't want party spies in every corner, but beyond that they don't care.

Long term the ability to have strong economic growth without Western-style democracy will be the biggest threat to that democracy. China will be the world's largest economy within a few years and they will begin calling more shots that we realize. We are, as the old Chinese curse says, living in interesting times.

Prison Explosion

2005-01-18T22:35:00.000-05:00

As I prepare to re-enter the People's Republic of China it is interesting to note that the prison population in the U.S. exceeds that of the PRC police state by about a half million people (think about the per capita ratio given that China's population is greater than ours by an order of magnitude). This is according to the International Centre for Prison Studies as cited in this week's Newsweek Asian edition. We exceed the prison population of Russia by about 1.2 million people.

The recent U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down federal sentencing guidelines may help alleviate this problem by returning more control of sentencing to judges where it belongs. The growth of our prison population stems largely from elected officials wanting to appear tough on crime by passing legislation that makes good headlines. Little is published, however, about the total cost to taxpayers or the effectiveness of prison sentences vs. other penalties (given how many people wind up in jail, it can't be that much of a deterrent and I'll bet it boosts recidivism).

It is time to look at other penalties (financial, required public service, etc.) that may as or more effective than prison for non-violent and first-time criminals and less expensive for taxpayers.

Caution -- The Moving Sidewalk is Ending

2005-01-14T11:08:00.000-05:00

I'm sitting at O'Hare waiting to board a flight to Hong Kong. I thought I'd share a post from about 18 months ago from my old blog as it is oh-so appropriate.

But before we get there, shame shame on the Dean campaign which has now admitted paying bloggers to shill for them. I'm surprised that DailyKos adn MyDD would put their credibility in play but according to today's WSJ, they apparently did (to the tune of $3,000 a month for four months). Both claim that they clearly disclosed that they were being paid but deny that it was for writing about Dean. The Dean story is a year old, but it comes n the heels of the Armstrong Williams story (see my previousl post) and shows the increasing creep of both perceived and blatant pay-to-report influencing of the media. As readers/listeners/viewers, we cannot stand for this.

Your Tex Dollars at Work

2005-01-12T17:37:00.000-05:00

It has been revealed that the Department of Education paid at least one black commentator to hype the No Child Left Behind Act in his broadcasts. This improper, and likely illegal, intervention in the editorial process is appalling -- as much in that Armstrong Williams accepted the money as that it was offered at all.

That's $240,000 of our money that could have gone to, well I don't know, educating kids or something. But instead it was put to trying to rig the public discourse around the program.

Let's hope indictments follow.