Category Politics & Policy

Human Bias – Removing It?

Well, well.  As a well-traveled black male, I’ve know the US environment, no the global environment, to have prejudice and bias.  Not life threating hatred, but some.   I believe, all humans utilize biases–The human brain works quite efficiently with biases (a topic worthy of a blog post by itself).

My key learning from the article is that sufficient racial integration has not occurred such that a broad base of Americans, see, Americans with racial differences as one of them.  If the article would have reported on the racial prejudice of Black people, I suspect there would be no progress.  My life experience certainly echoes the percentages quoted in the article.

As I reflect on the article, I remember the discussion Barack Obama made after the wide display of the Rev. Wright sermons.  One telling point he made, “America has not integrated its churches.”  Maybe that is the true evidence of integration, religious worship.  The American society has focused integration efforts on schools, employment, housing and with the Affordable Care Act, health care.  Maybe, just maybe, its time to effectively integrate religious worship.  Now, that is a challenge.

AP poll: Majority harbor prejudice against blacks – Yahoo! News.

The presidency: So, Mitt, what do you really believe?

October 5, 2012

Well, well.  Mitt Romney has confirmed my beliefs.  The NPR article confirms, for me, so much.  Admittedly, I may be using isolated events to confirm preconceived biases.  But, when I connect the dots from the August post I made, below, it’s hard to believe “isolated” is an appropriate adjective.

Romney:  I Was ‘Just Completely Wrong On The 47 Percent’ | NPR

August 26, 2012

Wow, The Economist really laid into Mitt Romney in this article.   I think their tone and questions are legitimate.  However, in my mind, the answer to the title question is obvious:  Mitt believes it would be great to be president.

All other thoughts are simply a means to an ends for Mitt.  What most of us call flip flopping for Mitt appears to be simply how he gets what he wants.  Fame, to be liked, power, and status they have driven this guy for a long time, nothing new now.

Mitt’s pretty obvious, we just don’t want to believe he have the audacity to ask for our vote only promising to make himself better off–but he has.

The presidency: So, Mitt, what do you really believe? | The Economist.

Fiscal Cliff — a poor term for a good event

Many recent press articles have used the term ‘fiscal cliff’ to describe the December 2012 budget events of tax increases and government spending cuts.   Such a description is biased and underlies the author’s inherent priority of economic activity over fiscal health.  Worse in many readers minds, I fear, the act of saving is demonized as the cause of poor economic activity.  Nothing could be further from the truth. Read more

Notre Dame, other groups file new lawsuits against contraception rule

Quite the contentious issue.  And one worthy I think of the discussion.  The key point, well stated I might add by Rev John Jenkins, Notre Dame’s president ,

If one presidential administration can override our religious purpose and use religious organizations to advance policies that undercut our values, then surely another administration will do the same for another very different set of policies, each time invoking some concept of popular will or the public good, with the result these religious organizations become mere tools for the exercise of government power, morally subservient to the state, and not free from its infringements.

But there is one problem I see Read more

Breaking Down Election Demographics

Charlie Cook makes a very good analysis at the American electorate for the upcoming presidential election in 2012.   Not said, but underlying the demographic trends of the nation, the next 20 years or so will underlie a significant shift in priorities and platform for winning Republican candidates.  States rights, fiscal spending, are both candidates, but in the end, I don’t think any of us are sure where the electorate is headed.

White Men are in the bag. White Women, however,…

Republican Nomination – A final thought

I read a recent Reuters article with a tiring level of interest.  I’m past curiosity, and desire a summer break, before the fall election campaign.  The fact that states, at this late date are still discussed in terms of favorable to one candidate or the other, suggest the divisions are not healing.   Read more

Republican Nomination Process – A revisit

Well, the masses just refuse to cooperate with the party elite.  I awoke this morning, to Santorum Sweeps.  In an earlier post, I reflected my thought that Gingrich would eventually win the Republican nomination.  That may or may not happen.  But not sure how anyone can conceive of Romney winning with his rejection rate.  How much more consistent does his upper limit have to be for the pundits to recongnize it?   I don’t know, but it is becoming fun to watch.

Republican Nomination Process – My View

The two party system seems to be at one of its weaker moments.  Both the democratic and republican parties are, in reality, collections of sub-groups.  Democrats contain, environmentalist, union advocates, social engineers, and ardent civil rights protectors.   Republicans, to hear the broad media descriptions, contain fiscally conscience free enterprise advocates, evangelical protestants, and libertarians.   Broken in today’s republican movement, is the inability to hold a debate, recognize and value the input of the subgroups, and then coalesce around shared values, namely a primary process that moves from debates to galvanization—What I see is a lack of shared values. Read more

Negotiating at Impasse—A question of Values

When negotiating many people suggest that the participants start with common objectives.  This advice, assumes of course, negotiating efficiency is valued.  However, the negotiations for the debt ceiling increase remind me that it is common values, not objectives, that create efficiency in negotiations.  The federal government, as has the California state government of the last three years, illustrates this point clearly. Read more

California Redistricting – My Input

Well I’ve submitted my input to the California Redistricting Commission.  I love this process.  Removing conflict of interest is a big improvement, I hope, in the election process.  My input in part is below. Read more

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Ideas to clarify; Decisions to make

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