News for February 4
February 4, 2009 by Barbara
Filed under News and Analysis
The Senate Stimulus Bill | Ezra Klein @The American Prospect
The Senate Finance Committee just released the summary of the Senate stimulus bill. Headlines of obvious interest to this readership: There’s $27 billion for highway investments and $8.4 billion for transit. There’s $23 billion for health IT and comparative effectiveness gets $1.1 billion split between the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, NIH and HHS. That last bit looks like an obvious turf war to me. We really need a single agency coordinating the evidence industry.
Which Governor Races Matter Most? | Politico
The 2010 census will reapportion political power to reflect changes in population among the states. This heightens the importance of the gubernatorial and state legislative elections next year. Whoever is in power to draw new district lines will shape congressional majorities in the next decade. … So which governor races matter most?
Remember Darfur? | Tapped
Right now, Obama’s foreign policy hands are no doubt focused on the complex hand-over of portfolios like Iraq, Iran, Russia, China, etc. and unfortunately Darfur does not come high on that list. Though it is a good sign that supporters of an aggressive Darfur policy like Susan Rice and Samantha Power have found their way to high-level administration positions, the time is fast approaching for clearly articulated policy positions, and someone to take the lead on making clear U.S. intentions in the region and bringing relevant regional and international stakeholders to the table. A failure to take advantage of this rare opportunity to move this conflict toward resolution will be a failure of leadership.
Your Family May Once Have Been a Different Color | NPR
Skin has changed color in human lineages much faster than scientists had previously supposed, even without intermarriage, Jablonski says. Recent developments in comparative genomics allow scientists to sample the DNA in modern humans. By creating genetic “clocks,” scientists can make fairly careful guesses about when particular groups became the color they are today. And with the help of paleontologists and anthropologists, scientists can go further: They can wind the clock back and see what colors these populations were going back tens of thousands of years, says Jablonski.
It’s Not Going to Be OK | Chris Hedges @Truthdig
How will we cope with our decline? Will we cling to the absurd dreams of a superpower and a glorious tomorrow or will we responsibly face our stark new limitations? Will we heed those who are sober and rational, those who speak of a new simplicity and humility, or will we follow the demagogues and charlatans who rise up out of the slime in moments of crisis to offer fantastic visions? Will we radically transform our system to one that protects the ordinary citizen and fosters the common good, that defies the corporate state, or will we employ the brutality and technology of our internal security and surveillance apparatus to crush all dissent? We won’t have to wait long to find out.
Barbara Schwartz is the editorial director at the Xenia Institute. She lives in Oklahoma City, Okla., and currently is pursuing a Master of Divinity degree at Phillips Theological Seminary in Tulsa.
