Today, Rep. Alan Grayson (D-FL) introduced bipartisan legislation called the “War Is Making You Poor Act,” which aims to call attention to a) how much money is being spent to fight the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and b) how budget gimmicks are used to pay for them. Grayson’s legislation would slash the $159 billion request for supplemental war funding and use that money to deliver a tax break for all Americans. Grayson demands the Pentagon use its currently existing $549 billion defense budget to fight the wars. Speaking on the House floor today, Grayson underscored that the point of his legislation is to highlight the costs of the wars:
http://www.buzzflash.net/story.php?id=1098067
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Future of the Car: The Electric-Car Cheat Sheet
In the past three years, the thought of companies like Chevrolet and Nissan selling lithium-ion-powered cars has gone from laughable to old news. Late this year, the plug-in Chevy Volt and pure-electric Nissan Leaf arrive. Carmakers from Ford to Toyota will follow in 2011 and 2012 with new electrified models of their own. In the beginning, the electric-car revolution probably won’t seem so revolutionary: a few thousand cars here and there. As long as automakers and battery companies keep pushing technology forward, however—by scaling up production and developing more-powerful ways to store electricity and power a car with it—the future for cars that plug into the wall will continue to brighten. Here’s where this emerging industry stands today.
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Tuesday, May 11, 2010
ParEcon Questions & Answers
If not capitalism, if not socialism, if not anarchism, if not Green economics, if not Solidarity economics, then what?
Our answer is participatory economics or, for short, parecon.
We mean for participatory economics or parecon to transcend capitalism, to implement the best socialist values, to transcend what have been socialist institutions, to achieve anarchist aspirations, to be green, to promote solidarity, and to accomplish production, consumption, and allocation in a truly classless way.
We do not mean participatory economics to be a blueprint. It is not and could not be and should not be a detailed map of a better economy.
We mean for participatory economics to be a description of a new economy's institutions. We mean for participatory economics to be a description of the central features a desirable new economy will need to have to be both viable and worthy.
Read more
Our answer is participatory economics or, for short, parecon.
We mean for participatory economics or parecon to transcend capitalism, to implement the best socialist values, to transcend what have been socialist institutions, to achieve anarchist aspirations, to be green, to promote solidarity, and to accomplish production, consumption, and allocation in a truly classless way.
We do not mean participatory economics to be a blueprint. It is not and could not be and should not be a detailed map of a better economy.
We mean for participatory economics to be a description of a new economy's institutions. We mean for participatory economics to be a description of the central features a desirable new economy will need to have to be both viable and worthy.
Read more
96-0: Fed Audit Passes Senate
Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), the Federal Reserve's most outspoken defender, came out in support of an amendment by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) to force transparency on the Federal Reserve. Gregg's surprising support gives the amendment a major boost.
The Sanders amendment began as a reflection of language passed by the House and cosponsored by Reps. Ron Paul (R-Texas) and Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) that would authorize a broad audit of the Fed. In negotiations with Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) and officials from the Fed, Sanders scaled back his audit and restricted it to a one-time look at lending activity from December 1, 2007 until the present -- information that the Fed has so far fought to keep from disclosing. It goes further in some respects than the Paul-Grayson measure, in that it mandates the disclosure of recipients of Fed largesse. (Background on the compromise here.)
Read more
The Sanders amendment began as a reflection of language passed by the House and cosponsored by Reps. Ron Paul (R-Texas) and Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) that would authorize a broad audit of the Fed. In negotiations with Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) and officials from the Fed, Sanders scaled back his audit and restricted it to a one-time look at lending activity from December 1, 2007 until the present -- information that the Fed has so far fought to keep from disclosing. It goes further in some respects than the Paul-Grayson measure, in that it mandates the disclosure of recipients of Fed largesse. (Background on the compromise here.)
Read more
New Software Can Hire, Evaluate, and Pay Workers, Making Human Bosses Obsolete
Anyone looking for work these days knows how hard it is to get your resume into the hands of a human. Fortunately, perhaps, it may soon be possible to get hired without that step.
Freelancer.com, an Australian jobs site, is using software algorithms that allow computers to automatically recruit, hire and pay workers to do a wide range of tasks, New Scientist reports.
"Software can now simply post a job and hire one, three, or 500 humans; software can now literally assemble an army overnight to solve complex problems," says Matt Barrie, Freelancer.com's CEO, in a press release.
Read more
Freelancer.com, an Australian jobs site, is using software algorithms that allow computers to automatically recruit, hire and pay workers to do a wide range of tasks, New Scientist reports.
"Software can now simply post a job and hire one, three, or 500 humans; software can now literally assemble an army overnight to solve complex problems," says Matt Barrie, Freelancer.com's CEO, in a press release.
Read more
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Graphene is Next
The Substance Found in Pencils will Speed Up our Computers One Thousand Fold
Graphene. If you’ve never heard about it, don’t worry, a lot of people haven’t, because it’s really only been “discovered” relatively recently, and most of the truly interesting news about it has been in the last year. The amazing thing is that we’ve actually been using it for centuries, in the form of the common pencil. Graphene is a form of carbon, much like carbon nanotubes and other fullerenes, with one major difference. While fullerenes are 3D structures of carbon atoms, graphene is a flat sheet. It’s a 2D lattice of carbon with bonds as strong as diamond. It’s this sheetlike nature that makes it so useful in a pencil. As you write, individual planes of graphite are sheared off the end and deposited on the paper. Those individual planes are pure graphene.
Read more
Graphene. If you’ve never heard about it, don’t worry, a lot of people haven’t, because it’s really only been “discovered” relatively recently, and most of the truly interesting news about it has been in the last year. The amazing thing is that we’ve actually been using it for centuries, in the form of the common pencil. Graphene is a form of carbon, much like carbon nanotubes and other fullerenes, with one major difference. While fullerenes are 3D structures of carbon atoms, graphene is a flat sheet. It’s a 2D lattice of carbon with bonds as strong as diamond. It’s this sheetlike nature that makes it so useful in a pencil. As you write, individual planes of graphite are sheared off the end and deposited on the paper. Those individual planes are pure graphene.
Read more
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Obama Seeks To Stabilize A Risky Business
Obama's insistence on addressing derivatives — and the sense shared by lobbyists on all sides of the issue that derivatives will inevitably fall under greater scrutiny of some kind — represents a remarkable turnaround.
A dozen years ago, President Bill Clinton, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan and Congress all opposed government oversight of derivatives. A law enacted in 2000 made it clear that most derivatives could not be regulated. Derivatives serve a legitimate purpose in hedging risks and there was concern at the time that imposing too much regulation would put the U.S. out of line in what is truly a globalized market.
Some of those worries remain valid. Still, the former consensus against regulation has flipped around almost entirely. Derivatives are widely viewed as a key contributor to the near-collapse of the financial markets in 2008. It's clear that any financial overhaul bill that clears Congress this year will impose new restrictions on derivatives trading.
Read more
A dozen years ago, President Bill Clinton, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan and Congress all opposed government oversight of derivatives. A law enacted in 2000 made it clear that most derivatives could not be regulated. Derivatives serve a legitimate purpose in hedging risks and there was concern at the time that imposing too much regulation would put the U.S. out of line in what is truly a globalized market.
Some of those worries remain valid. Still, the former consensus against regulation has flipped around almost entirely. Derivatives are widely viewed as a key contributor to the near-collapse of the financial markets in 2008. It's clear that any financial overhaul bill that clears Congress this year will impose new restrictions on derivatives trading.
Read more
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