“I’m not antimilitary. But the evidence is strong that education is often a far better investment than artillery.”
“Latin countries generally do well in happiness surveys. Mexico and Colombia rank higher than the United States in self-reported contentment. Perhaps one reason is a cultural emphasis on family and friends, on social capital over financial capital”
“When I first began writing for The Times, I was naïve about many things. But my biggest misconception was this: I actually believed that influential people could be moved by evidence, that they would change their views if events completely refuted their beliefs.”
“And to be fair, it does happen now and then. I’ve been highly critical of Alan Greenspan over the years (since long before it was fashionable), but give the former Fed chairman credit: he has admitted that he was wrong about the ability of financial markets to police themselves.”
“But he’s a rare case…”
“The battle over health care focuses on access to insurance, or tempests like the one that erupted over new mammogram guidelines.”
“But what about broader public health challenges? What if breast cancer in the United States has less to do with insurance or mammograms and more to do with contaminants in our water or air — or in certain plastic containers in our kitchens? What if the surge in asthma and childhood leukemia reflect, in part, the poisons we impose upon ourselves?”
“Good schools constitute a far more potent weapon against poverty than welfare, food stamps or housing subsidies. Yet, cowed by teachers’ unions, Democrats have too often resisted reform and stood by as generations of disadvantaged children have been cemented into an underclass by third-rate schools.”
“President Obama and his education secretary, Arne Duncan, are trying to change that — and one test for the Democrats will be whether they embrace administration reforms that teachers’ unions are already sniping at.”
“Forty years ago, Richard Nixon declared “all-out war on drugs”, and enlisted the support of global allies. Since then the war on drugs has cost the United States US$1 trillion, drugs are cheaper and more available, the profits for trading them greater than ever and the violence of the entire culture of prohibition escalating. By all of its own criteria, the “war” has failed utterly.”
Wow. Some scary, but hardly surprising statistics in this article. It discusses both the states and Australia.
If you found this article interesting, be sure to also check out Treating, not punishing which talks about Portugal’s experiences decriminalizing drugs.
“After taking a class that covered global warming last year, Jill Saylor decided to save energy by drying her laundry on a clothesline at her mobile home.”
“But … [l]ike the majority of the 60 million people who now live in the country’s roughly 300,000 private communities, Ms. Saylor was forbidden to dry her laundry outside because many people viewed it as an eyesore, not unlike storing junk cars in driveways, and a marker of poverty that lowers property values.”
“In America, with its weak social safety net and limited student aid, students are far more likely than their counterparts in, say, France to hold part-time jobs while still attending classes. Not surprisingly, given the financial pressures, young Americans are also less likely to stay in school and more likely to become full-time workers instead.”
“[T]he total job losses in state and local education over the past five months is 143,000. That may not sound like much, but education is one of those areas that should, and normally does, keep growing even during a recession. Markets may be troubled, but that’s no reason to stop teaching our children. Yet that’s exactly what we’re doing.”
“US President Barack Obama says he’s honoured and humbled to win the Nobel Peace Prize and will accept it as a ‘call to action’ to work with other nations to solve the problems of the 21st Century.”
“Mr Obama told reporters in the White House Rose Garden that he’s not sure he’s done enough to earn the award, or deserves to be in the company of the celebrated other laureates before him.”
Also read Nicholas Kristof’s opinion.
I’ve got a few friends with all kinds of interesting trinkets lying around their home, but nothing quite as interesting as this!
Also by Khalid Mohtaseb. Some incredibly crisp footage with some powerful angles, delicious colours and more Kessler Pocket Dolly pans.
by Khalid Mohtaseb. Wow! Shot with a Canon 5D Mark 2. The slow pans are a result of using the Kessler Pocket Dolly. Powerful stuff.
Check out this site for a heap of free documentaries. If you’ve got even more time to kill this site is loaded full of them too.
Leonard Cohen with his poem A Thousand Kisses Deep. Seriously worth putting up with the annoying crowd for. Incredible.
This is an interesting short clip. The 70/30 oxygen/carbon dioxide mixture sounds fascinating.
I’m loving this site at the moment. These two are my favorites so far. Perfectly reproduced.
I don’t normally like ‘mega mixes’ but this is incredible. The best in hip hop from 1999 to 2009. Well worth a listen.
A friend has put this together for a uni project. It features another friend riding off into the sunset and my LBS (Cheeky Transport) Check it out!
The Tibetan Buddhist Society has finally launched its new site. If you’re interested in Buddhism, drop by one of the weekly classes.
From Keep Moving Sydney: “The Tongue Is Dead is the second mixtape from the Elefant Traks battle boss & its pure fire.” Thanks again FZA!
On the 1st March 2010 Spencer Tunick will be making a series of installations as part of the Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras.