Things to Know - 7 October (part two)

Arnold Schwarzenegger's "Total Recall" proves he is a moral girlie man (David Horsey / Los Angeles Times)

1.  Call me wishy-washy, undisciplined, or confused...so why am I doing this when I said I would not be doing it?   Reading, for the pure interest in reading, is something that none of will abandon.  So this morning, the Sunday Times magazine has this great, but very long (for this forum), article on Mitt Romney and an observation of this governance in approaching, thinking through, and taking positions (several of course), on some pretty big issues while he was governor of Massachusetts.  It's an interesting read, and not an op-ed.  It is from observers who were in very close proximity to Romney and a presupposition of how he would apply his past governance process if he were to be president.  This article is not something that would be found on the front page of the common news paper, and I pass it on because it is something that is worth knowing:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/07/magazine/mitt-romney.html?nl=todaysheadlines&emc=edit_th_20121007

2.  This is an interactive, engaging, and useful article about the wealth (the amount and source) of those who are in Congress today.  You are able to set the paramaters for the search (by state, by source of income) and click on the corresponding red or blue dot to see the estimated wealth, and where the money comes from.  Bookmark it and you can always use it as a reference when you need to:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/capitol-assets-congresss-wealthiest-mostly-shielded-in-deep-recession/2012/10/06/5a70605c-102f-11e2-acc1-e927767f41cd_story.html?wpisrc=nl_headlines 

3. Former General Electric CEO, and all around Uber-Guru Management Wizard Jack Welch took it upon himself to cast aspersions on the numbers released by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics by proclaiming them to be "cooked up by a bunch of Chicago types".  If you don't know Jack, you might find this op-ed piece entertaining, and a bit informative:

http://www.smirkingchimp.com/print/45901/

4.   Lastly, we have a column on the utter nonsense that the out-of-touch seem to either ignorant of, or just misspeaking to help their false cause.   The United States does NOT have the best care system in the world.   We have some of the best research and products around, but health care system is the policy (private or public) that distributes the implementation and keeps all of its people healthy.  We fail big time, and lag behind even Cuba.  Our stature in education has slipped badly.  Yes we have some excellent schools, but the quality and accessibility has been sliding over the years.   The gap and inequality of wealth has widened.  The rich have gotten richer and the people with less are getting farther behind.  This is a national problem, and needs to be corrected.  The private sector is driven by capitalism and the alleged "free market" is not working for all.  If we get it through our heads that something is wrong, then maybe we can work to make this democracy work for everyone:

http://truth-out.org/opinion/item/11924-the-measure-of-a-nation-challenges-illusions-of-american-superiority

--
Juan

"Camping is nature's way of promoting the motel business." 
       -- Dave Barry

"An ounce of action is worth a ton of theory." 
       -- Friedrich Engels

"The danger is not that a particular class is unfit to govern. Every class is unfit to govern." 
       -- Lord Acton

"My fellow Americans, I am pleased to tell you I just signed legislation which outlaws Russia forever. The bombing begins in five minutes." 
       -- Ronald Reagan