| Latest Commentary: | Volume IV, Number 138 |
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Congress Tax Cut Bills Move Ahead
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The fiscal irresponsibility of the American government persists; this is what happens when lawyers are the legislators and not economists. As they try to rush through work that should have been completed some time ago in advance of the Thanksgiving holiday and recess, members of the House and the Senate have slashed taxes again. This will mean a poorer and weaker American two generations from now, when the current Congress is safely six feet under.
US to Cut and Run in Afghanistan -- Apparently, staying the course is not an option for the Bush administration when it comes to America’s military commitment to the government and people of Afghanistan. The Pentagon has announced that 4,000 US troops are leaving Afghanistan in the spring. That will bring the total down to 16,000, and Washington plans on further withdrawals later in the year. NATO, and especially British, troops are being demanded to take over some of the duties left undone. For example, the Taliban is still around, Usama bin Laden is still hiding in the region, and the drug lords of Afghanistan now provide 80% of the world’s heroin. It looks like “cut and run” is the Bush administration’s unnamed policy for Afghanistan. China May Fail to Honor Copper Market Losses -- If one relies solely on the American business media, one is almost assured ignorance of a major rogue trader scandal involving the Chinese government, the London Metal Exchange and the rising price of copper. The Chinese government is facing nine-digit losses, and they’ve gone so far as to deny the existence of Liu Qibing, the trader who bet wrong. The truly paranoid might presume the American press is ignoring the story while Mr. Bush visits the alleged Communists in Beijing. More likely, this is a case of ignoring a story because no Americans are involved – yet. Negroponte’s $100 Laptop for Developing Countries Unveiled -- MIT’s Nicholas Negroponte showed off his $100 laptop at the World Summit on the Information Society earlier this week. It’s bright lime. It has a hand-crank to charge its own battery. While there are the usual complaints that a major step forward hasn’t solved every imaginable problem, this device just might change the lives of millions. © Copyright 2005 by The Kensington Review, J. Myhre, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Fedora Linux. |
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