Re: [CTRL] Great Idea
How is the corporation tied to the VP? His assets are in a blind trust. On Mar 25, 2004, at 8:48 PM, Joshua Tinnin wrote: -Caveat Lector- What if the corporation in question is tied to the vice president,. Published on Monday, March 22, 2004 by CommonDreams.org Company With Ties To VP Cheney's Energy Task Force Faces Criminal Indictment For Gaming California Electricity Market by Jason Leopold Three years ago, while California's energy crisis was spiraling out of control, Vice President Dick Cheney secretly met with half-dozen corporate executives of the country's largest energy companies to hammer out a national energy policy for President George W. Bush. Cheney appeared on a number of news programs in May 2001 to promote his new energy policy, which turned out to be a boon for the energy industries, but abandoned consumers and environmental groups. Naturally, during some of those interviews, Cheney was asked whether a handful of the energy companies that sold electricity in California and stood to benefit financially from the new policy were behaving like a cartel and manipulating prices in the state's deregulated electricity market. No, Cheney said in a May 17, 2001 interview with PBS' Frontline; a day after the final energy policy report was released. The problem you had in California was caused by a combination of things--an unwise regulatory scheme, because they didn't really deregulate. Now they're trapped from unwise regulatory schemes, plus not having addressed the supply side of the issue. They've obviously created major problems for themselves... This is quite true. The California government did a very bad job of deregulating the electricity industry and it came back to bite them. This is one of the many stated reasons Gray Davis was turned out of office. California is not a child who must be bailed out of bad situations everytime they get into a mess. California is a sovereign state which should be able to handle it's own affairs. In this case it didn't and it paid a very high price for doing shoddy work. It is true that FERC has not been much help to California in this crisis. I'm sure that if we dig deep into the pile we will find that Haliburton is behind the mess. Bill H www.ctrl.org DECLARATION DISCLAIMER == CTRL is a discussion informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substancenot soap-boxingplease! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright fraudsis used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. Archives Available at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ A HREF=http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/>ctrl/A> To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
[CTRL] Great Idea
-Caveat Lector- You've read about all theseterrorists --- most of them came here legally, but they hung around onexpired visas, some for as long as 10 - 15 years. Now, compare that toBlockbuster: you are two days late with a video and those people are allover you. Let's put Blockbuster in charge of immigration! www.ctrl.org DECLARATION DISCLAIMER == CTRL is a discussion informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. Archives Available at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ A HREF=""ctrl/A To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
Re: [CTRL] Great Idea
Great idea! The private sector is always superior to a government run agency. Bill H. On Mar 25, 2004, at 4:59 AM, Prudy L wrote: x-tad-bigger Now, compare that to/x-tad-biggerx-tad-bigger /x-tad-biggerx-tad-biggerBlockbuster: you are two days late with a video and those people are all/x-tad-biggerx-tad-bigger /x-tad-biggerx-tad-biggerover you/x-tad-biggerx-tad-bigger./x-tad-bigger
Re: [CTRL] Great Idea
Great idea! The private sector is always superior to a government run agency. Bill H. On Mar 25, 2004, at 4:59 AM, Prudy L wrote: Now, compare that to Blockbuster: you are two days late with a video and those people are all over you. Hmmm... Except when it comes to utilities like water and electricity, right? And health care. And airport security. Oh, and pretty much anyplace else where citizens aren't going to benefit by having those supposedly acting in their best interest instead serving shareholders and fattening the corporation's bottom line. Sheesh. There IS a place for government, y'know. That place is just not in my bedroom, on my television, listening to my telephone calls, etc... --eh
Re: [CTRL] Great Idea
-Caveat Lector- Ask the farmers in southern Oregon about the federal government controlling water. The farmers were almost put out of business by the government refusing to give them water for their crops. The government said it needed the water to save an endangered species of salmon. It turns out that someone had given the salmon in that river a new name and then declared them to be endangered. Thats our tax dollars at work. Electricity. Both the feds and state do a wonderful job or regulating that. Just look at how the California State Government let its citizens get ripped off a couple of years ago. And health care. Just look at how the governments of the UK and Canada have handled that! People from these countries go abroad to receive medical care. If they waited for their names to come up on the lists, there is a good chance they would be dead by then. Doctors in Canada tell their seriously ill patients that if you have the money go to the states and get yourself taken care of. How many sky-jackings did airport security stop before 9-11. None that I know of. How many sky-jackings has airport security stopped since 9-11. None that I know of. A very intelligent woman once said that the business of the government was to protect the borders and deliver the mail. She was correct. We need to get back to a part time government. Bill H On Mar 25, 2004, at 11:04 AM, Eric Hoffsten wrote: Hmmm... Except when it comes to utilities like water and electricity, right? And health care. And airport security. www.ctrl.org DECLARATION DISCLAIMER == CTRL is a discussion informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. Archives Available at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ A HREF=http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ctrl/A To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
Re: [CTRL] Great Idea
-Caveat Lector- Electricity. Both the feds and state do a wonderful job or regulating that. Just look at how the California State Government let its citizens get ripped off a couple of years ago. Wait... So you're saying it's not Enron's fault for being greedy criminals, but the *government's* fault for *letting* them? I think you'd be hard-pressed to find ANY instance of the private sector delivering better electrical service at a better price than ANY municipally-held utility. Across the board. Sorry, but corporate control = crappy service higher prices. It's about money, m'friend, not delivering what's needed. --eh www.ctrl.org DECLARATION DISCLAIMER == CTRL is a discussion informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. Archives Available at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ A HREF=http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ctrl/A To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
Re: [CTRL] Great Idea
-Caveat Lector- On Mar 25, 2004, at 1:53 PM, Eric Hoffsten wrote: -Caveat Lector- I won't say that Enron was greedy, Enron was just flat out criminal. In the Los Angeles area of California the DWP which is municipally- held utility is being investigated for over charging their customers during the California electricity problem. A corporation that provides crappy service usually does not stay in business. The customer may get burned by them once, but they learn and take their business elsewhere. Money in our society is a necessity. It can buy just about everything with the exception of poverty. Bill H Wait... So you're saying it's not Enron's fault for being greedy criminals, but the *government's* fault for *letting* them? I think you'd be hard-pressed to find ANY instance of the private sector delivering better electrical service at a better price than ANY municipally-held utility. Across the board. Sorry, but corporate control = crappy service higher prices. It's about money, m'friend, not delivering what's needed. --eh www.ctrl.org DECLARATION DISCLAIMER == CTRL is a discussion informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. === = Archives Available at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ A HREF=http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ctrl/A === = To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om www.ctrl.org DECLARATION DISCLAIMER == CTRL is a discussion informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. Archives Available at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ A HREF=http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ctrl/A To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
Re: [CTRL] Great Idea
-Caveat Lector- On Thursday, 25 March 2004 4:05 PM -0800, Bill Howard [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: -Caveat Lector- On Mar 25, 2004, at 1:53 PM, Eric Hoffsten wrote: -Caveat Lector- I won't say that Enron was greedy, Enron was just flat out criminal. In the Los Angeles area of California the DWP which is municipally- held utility is being investigated for over charging their customers during the California electricity problem. A corporation that provides crappy service usually does not stay in business. The customer may get burned by them once, but they learn and take their business elsewhere. What if the corporation in question is tied to the vice president, and what if the regulatory agency in the government (FERC) refuses to take action? Yes, Bush said the free market would take care of the problem. It didn't, and it forced PGE into bankruptcy and the state into being a credit risk and insolvency. Now there are indictments (see below). It will be interesting to see if Cheney is called to the stand, but somehow I doubt that will happen. - jt http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0322-11.htm Published on Monday, March 22, 2004 by CommonDreams.org Company With Ties To VP Cheney's Energy Task Force Faces Criminal Indictment For Gaming California Electricity Market by Jason Leopold Three years ago, while California's energy crisis was spiraling out of control, Vice President Dick Cheney secretly met with half-dozen corporate executives of the country's largest energy companies to hammer out a national energy policy for President George W. Bush. Cheney appeared on a number of news programs in May 2001 to promote his new energy policy, which turned out to be a boon for the energy industries, but abandoned consumers and environmental groups. Naturally, during some of those interviews, Cheney was asked whether a handful of the energy companies that sold electricity in California and stood to benefit financially from the new policy were behaving like a cartel and manipulating prices in the state's deregulated electricity market. No, Cheney said in a May 17, 2001 interview with PBS' Frontline; a day after the final energy policy report was released. The problem you had in California was caused by a combination of things--an unwise regulatory scheme, because they didn't really deregulate. Now they're trapped from unwise regulatory schemes, plus not having addressed the supply side of the issue. They've obviously created major problems for themselves... California's electricity crisis wreaked havoc on millions of people in the state between 2000 and 2001, resulted in four days of rolling blackouts and forced the state's largest utility, Pacific Gas Electric, into bankruptcy. California was the first state in the nation to deregulate its power market in an effort to provide consumers with cheaper electricity and the opportunity to choose their own power company. The results have since proved disastrous. The experiment has cost the state more than $30 billion. For three years, California officials pleaded with federal energy regulators, President Bush and Vice President Cheney, to provide the state with some relief from soaring wholesale electricity prices and to investigate many of the energy companies that sold power to California for allegedly manipulating the market. Former Governor Gray Davis met with Bush a couple of weeks before Cheney's Frontline interview and asked for federal assistance, such as price caps, but Bush refused saying the free-market would sort out the mess. But Cheney's denials that his friends in the energy sector weren't to blame for the power crisis are sure to come back and haunt him and could hamper President Bush's reelection campaign. Later this month, the United States Attorney's office in the Northern District of California is expected to issue its first criminal indictment against an energy company for manipulating wholesale energy prices in California that could boost the state's claims that it's owed billions in refunds for overcharges. The company at the center of the probe is Houston-based Reliant Resources, Inc. Reliant said in a news release March 8 that it was notified by the US Attorney's office about the pending indictment, which stems from allegations that the company deliberately shut down its power plants in California for a few days in June 2000, creating an artificial shortage and causing wholesale prices to skyrocket. A spokesman for the US Attorney's office said he could not comment on pending cases, but he confirmed that his office is also seeking criminal indictments against several current and former Reliant employees whom he would not name. A Reliant spokesman said the actions that are the subject of the United States Attorney's investigation were not in violation of laws, tariffs or regulations in effect at the time and intends vigorously to contest any charges. The evidence the US Attorney's office will use against Reliant is a
[CTRL] Interesting idea to take political power away from big money
Title: Interesting idea to take political power away from big money -Caveat Lector- Definitely debatable idea. Fascinating to see if it works. http://www.pbs.org/now/politics/cleanelections.html -- He who joyfully marches to music in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would fully suffice. This disgrace to civilization should be done away with at once. Heroism at command, senseless brutality, deplorable love-of-country stance, how violently I hate all this, how despicable and ignoble war is; I would rather be torn to shreds than be a part of so base an action! It is my conviction that killing under the cloak of war is nothing but an act of murder. -- Albert Einstein A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/"www.ctrl.org/A DECLARATION DISCLAIMER == CTRL is a discussion informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substancenot soap-boxingplease! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright fraudsis used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html"Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]/A http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/"ctrl/A To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
[CTRL] Xmas Idea For Religious Zealots, Fanatics
Order West Nile Virus Online! by Robert Lederman© 2000 [visit http://Baltech.org/lederman/spray/ for the real West Nile Virus story] Below is the website address ( http://www.atcc.org/ ) and two pages from the ATTC (American Type Culture Collection) homepage. The second page of info [it starts about halfway through this email] is for ordering West Nile Virus (WNV). ATTC sold Sadamm Hussein West Nile Virus and 70 other bio-warfare applicable chemicals, bacteria and viruses before the Gulf War started and its director was the former head of Rockefeller University-which may be implicated in the original WNV epidemic in Uganda in 1937 [See Newsday excerpt and Rockefeller University article excerpt below]. Note: I am not suggesting (as a planted CIA disinformation piece in the media last year attempted to do) that Iraq was responsible for the NYC West Nile "epidemic" nor am I suggesting that ATTC or any of its employees were responsible. I am suggesting that WNV could have been accidentally or deliberately released into the NYC environment by any of the individuals, government agencies or bio-medical institutions that have ordered it from ATTC over the past decades. The mechanism could have been as "innocent" as experimental waste materials from a NYC research facility being carelessly disposed of. The ease of ordering this and related materials (you can order just about any toxic virus or bacteria you've ever read about from this website) makes it clear that the CDC's stated theories that WNV came into this country "in a used tire from Asia" or via "a mosquito that might have been inside an airborne Israeli tourist's clothing" or by "mosquitoes carried here in a transatlantic storm" is about as believable as the idea that we've just had an honest election. ANYONE with a couple of hundred bucks can start their own "West Nile Virus epidemic" on their kitchen table. The only screening process is to sign a form accepting responsibility. This site is worth exploring in depth. It has references to mycoplasmas and numerous other dangerous living substances used in biowarfare that can be ordered by anyone with a credit card.
[CTRL] (Fwd) Idea of the Week: Self-Service Job Placement
-Caveat Lector- --- Forwarded Message Follows --- Date sent: Tue, 9 Nov 1999 11:18:10 -0500 Send reply to: LIST RESPECT From: DLC News [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject:Idea of the Week: Self-Service Job Placement To: Multiple recipients of list NEWDEMNEWS [EMAIL PROTECTED] The DLC Update Monday, November 8, 1999 * Discuss the Idea of the Week at the DLC Idea Exchange at http://www.dlc.org/idea/discussion.htm * ***Idea of the Week: Self-Service Job Placement*** You're out of a job, or you want a new job. The usual process is to buy enough newspapers to stock the local recycling center; pursue informal contacts; kill a few trees by mailing out resumes; maybe even consult your local Labor Department office, if only to make sure you can collect unemployment or access other public services. But in Indiana, it all comes together in one place. The state's Department of Workforce Development, led by Commissioner Craig Hartzer, has 31 full-time centers where you can log onto a computer (with help if you need it), list your personal characteristics, needs and skills, and immediately find out (1) which employers in your area might need your services; (2) what public benefits you might qualify for, from unemployment insurance to skills training; and (3) where you can get more help. They call it CS3--the Customer Self-Service System. This is a classic "one-stop job center," a long-time goal of New Democrats, and one that Congress and the Administration have heartily endorsed. But Indiana has taken one-stops to a new level by making its services and information available electronically in a "self-service" environment linked to genuinely fresh job leads, and enabling the citizen to identify his or her needs by skill-set, not by job- title. CS3 recently received an "Innovation in State Government" award from the National Association of Counties. To keep the job leads fresh, Indiana already makes it possible for employers to submit information via its web page. By the end of the year, any citizen will be able to access the whole system--the job-matching service, the information on state services, the capability to file applications for assistance--from any computer with Internet access, for free. That means Hoosiers can, if they wish, log onto a home or work computer and enter into an interactive dialogue with potential employers, state or private job placement service providers, and their state government, about their employment futures. This initiative reflects a whole host of New Democrat policy objectives: empowering citizens with information; using technology to bring public services close to the "customer;" creating public-private partnerships for the public benefit; promoting life-long skills learning; matching skills with opportunities on an ongoing basis; and crafting a seamless "employment system" for everyone, whether they are a former welfare recipient, a displaced worker, or simply someone wanting more opportunity. CS3 is one of Gov. Frank O'Bannon's top priorities, and will well equip Indiana to succeed in implementing the federal Workforce Investment Act, which gives states the power to design not only one-stop employment centers, but a system to empower workers with full array of public and private job services. Any state can do this, and every state should. It extends to all citizens the sort of user-friendly, skills-specific, cutting-edge job matching technology that several private- sector companies already offer to a more limited audience. Anything less is second-class service. ***A Good Day for New Democrats*** Thanks to proximity, the Washington punditry's interpretation of last week's off-year state elections was heavily over- influenced by the hype surrounding the GOP's lavishly financed pickup of three seats and a narrow majority in the Virginia House of Delegates. But looking around the country, Election Day '99 was a good day for New Democrats. New Democrat Martin O'Malley consolidated his upset primary victory by winning 90 percent of the vote to become Baltimore's new mayor. Two New Democrats won mayor's races in cities where Democrats almost never, ever win. In Columbus, Ohio, longtime DLCer Michael Coleman became the first African-American mayor, and the first Democratic mayor in nearly three decades. In Indianapolis, Bart Peterson, a former chief-of-staff to then-Governor Evan Bayh, became the first Democratic mayor in 32 years, after a textbook New Democrat campaign stressing community policing and fiscal discipline. Both won by double-digit margins. One of the more intriguing municipal elections occurred in New York City, where New Democrat Eva Moskowitz, a career educator with a
[CTRL] (Fwd) Idea of the Week: Canning Spam
-Caveat Lector- --- Forwarded Message Follows --- The DLC Update Monday, November 1, 1999 * Discuss the Idea of the Week at the DLC Idea Exchange at http://www.dlc.org/idea/discussion.htm * ***Idea of the Week: Canning "Spam"*** No, we are not talking about the tasty luncheon meat called Spam, but rather the annoying unsolicited commercial e- mail called "spam" that is popping up more and more frequently on millions of home computers. It's time to put it back in the can. Spam needs to be controlled because its proliferation is a major threat to wider use of the Internet. The intrusive nature of unsolicited commercial e-mail feeds recipients' worst fears about electronic threats to their personal privacy and security online. Because "spammers" typically get e-mail addresses by buying them or otherwise leeching them from voluntary online transactions, spam undermines consumer confidence in the medium and inhibits the growth of legitimate e-commerce. And since participants in newsgroups, online forums, and other interactive uses are most vulnerable to becoming targets for spam, it's beginning to have a chilling effect on the Internet as an important civic space. Defenders of spam often suggest it's no different than the unsolicited commercial "junk mail" that clogs the postal system: annoying no doubt, but easy to dispose of and essentially harmless. But spam really is different because recipients and Internet service providers (ISPs) pay the freight in transaction, communications and storage costs. Estimates vary on the total price tag for that cost shifting, but it has been pegged as high as 10 percent of Internet service provider's overhead costs--and that gets passed on in consumers' monthly bills. Without question, spam is getting bigger and badder. America Online, the largest online service provider, estimates that fully one- third of the e-mail messages coming into its networks from the Internet are spam. That's between 10 million and 24 million chunks of spam per day, just on AOL. Spam is a menace to the digital economy. It clearly warrants federal legislation (several states have enacted anti-spam laws, but limits on state jurisdiction over out-of- state spammers make that a clumsy and potentially confusing and burdensome approach). The legislation, however, must be carefully crafted in order to be hard on spam--that is, unsolicited commercial email--ithout interfering in the legitimate practices of businesses using email to build stronger relationships with existing customers. For example, when someone visits a Web site and indicates interest in receiving further information or updates, any email that business then sends to that individual is not spam, because it is not unsolicited. Legislation should also rely heavily on consumer empowerment with information rather than bureaucratic oversight and provide simple remedies for fraud and abuse. Congress can and should set a national standard, but most of the many pending bills tend to over- or under-shoot the mark. In a new Progressive Policy Institute report, How to Can Spam: Legislative Solutions to the Problem of Unsolicited Commercial Email, Randolph Court and Robert Atkinson lay out a reasonable solution: Require all commercial email to include an "opt- out" mechanism allowing recipients to easily remove themselves from senders' email address lists and avoid unwanted future mailings. 1. Require unsolicited commercial email to include standard identifying labels in the subject line (such as "ADV," indicating the message is an advertisement), so recipients can use filtering software to sort it efficiently. 2. Enumerate rights of action for ISPs to sue those who violate their posted policies against unsolicited commercial email (UCE), and rights of action for states to sue on behalf of citizens harmed by UCE. 3. Require commercial email to contain accurate technical information (such as the controlling data that indicates its point of origin and routing information) in the message "header." Concurrently, the Administration should work with other countries and appropriate international bodies to craft consistent standards addressing the problem of spam. The Internet can remain a free and vibrant medium of communications--personal, political, or commercial-- without resembling a Wild West community where the bad guys discourage the good guys from ever coming to town. Canning spam is an important place to start. ***Over the Top Over the WTO*** We've already taken notice of some of the zanier groups planning protests (see "Bad Company in Seattle," in the September 27, 1999, DLC Update) for Seattle during the World Trade Organization's ministerial summit next month. But a review of some of the literature being circulated to advertise
Re: [CTRL] no idea
-Caveat Lector- Condolences Unless family requested immediate cremation, I'd say that this is evidence of cover-up. Who gave them PERMISSION? "Too much damage to repair" sounds like pretty much a crock, also. Before surgery, they're SUPPOSED to have done various tests, and have a pretty good indication of success. Sounds like your friend traded in a few years (or more) of life in favor of trusting the medical industry, while they all made bucks off the insurance... who'll no doubt be paying the doctor who finally killed her... ghouls... A very sorry business Dave Hartley http://www.Asheville-Computer.com http://www.ioa.com/~davehart -Original Message- From: Trudy Paul Schuett [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Thursday, October 14, 1999 3:47 AM To: NCF list Subject: no idea Guess I won't be going to PHX after all...My buddy Doris, who was scheduled for triple bypass and cartoid artery surgery this AM,croaked on the table. The word I'm getting from her neighbor and purveyor of all news from PHX is: 'there was too much damage to repair; she wouldn't have lived more than six months anyway.' Her body was cremated within hours of death; I thought this was odd, but considering the distance from home(150 miles) maybe OK. Our mutual friend Sandy, the cardiac nurse says this is at the very least pretty damn screwy. Doris was fine, if not quite comfortable until her 65th b-day, when she saw an osteopath who sent her on a merry-go-round of tests. She had a hip problem; she coudln't walk well or long. In addition to prescribing arch supports,this guy discovered a blocked cartoid artery, and then it was on to the myriad of other dudes, each with their own speciality who discovered yet another thing wrong. (As a retired federal employee 10yrs ago, she already had good insurance long before Medicare) she had no apparent symptoms of heart dysfunction. The really weird thing is that she started out with no faith in allopathic medicine. She'd become a level 1 Reiki practitioner, and had actually cured some people. She was much better than I am. IMHO She was looking into herbs and other therapies for her own condition, as diagnosed by the MDs. Sandy had urged her to get other opinons when surgery started to be discussed. Doris never did it, for reasons we can't yet determine. The only thing we (Sandy and I) can determine is maybe MDs are such good salesmen you can't tell them no. We'll probably never know. All we know for certain at this moment is that our buddy walked into a doc's office on 8/15, and now she's dead. There's no way of discovering the cause. I started an e-mail to Tangerine on this one--maybe in the morning I'll finish it. T DECLARATION DISCLAIMER == CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substancenot soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
[CTRL] (Fwd) Idea of the Week: Third Way CAFE
-Caveat Lector- --- Forwarded Message Follows --- Date sent: Mon, 4 Oct 1999 10:36:18 -0400 The DLC Update Monday, October 4, 1999 * Discuss the Idea of the Week at the DLC Idea Exchange at http://www.dlc.org/idea/discussion.htm * ***Idea of the Week: Third Way CAFE*** Back during the energy crisis of the 1970s, Congress directed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to tell Detroit and foreign automakers doing business in the United States to make their cars more fuel efficient. The idea was to get gas guzzlers off the road and cut U.S. demand for foreign oil. Neither objective has been met. The EPA developed the standards of 27.5 miles per gallon (mpg) for cars and 20.6 mpg for light trucks. They called them "corporate average fuel economy standards" or CAFE, because the standards were averaged over an automaker's entire fleet. Unfortunately, the CAFE standards are not working as they were intended, in part because of the recent American craze for Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs) and pick-up trucks, both subject to the lower 20.6 mpg standard, and both producing more pollution than regular cars. Another flaw with CAFE is that standards are averaged over too many types and models of cars with very different costs of increasing fuel efficiency. A manufacturer of many big and some small cars could have a hard time achieving the standard, but a maker of only small cars wouldn't have any problem at all, even if the former produced a more fuel efficient small car than the latter. The standard wouldn't necessarily encourage either manufacturer to build a more fuel-efficient small car. There are two simple ways to fix CAFE. The first is to abandon the "A" in CAFE, throwing out fleet averages and setting standards by specific classes of vehicles. But an even more important reform would be to institute tradable "credits" for fuel efficiency, similar to the tradable emissions allowances that helped reduce acid rain. Makers of more fuel efficient vehicles could sell credits to competitors who couldn't make the grade. All manufacturers would have a continuous economic incentive to innovate and improve fuel efficiency. Taking the "A" for average out of CAFE, and instituting tradable fuel efficiency credits, represent a Third Way on CAFE that could help get Congress out of a current gridlock on this subject, as reflected in last week's close Senate vote against lifting a congressional ban on tougher standards. With OPEC back in the price-fixing business for oil and with the roads clogged with SUVs and light trucks, it's time to act, but in a way that gives carmakers credit for their willingness to make a better buggy. ***A Third Way Toward Universal Health Coverage*** Three weeks ago, Vice President Al Gore announced a plan to regain the lost momentum toward universal access to health insurance, based on a dual strategy of rewarding states for implementation of the Child Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and a refundable tax credit to help adults buy health insurance in private markets. This week, Gore's challenger for the Democratic presidential nomination, former Senator Bill Bradley, announced his long-awaited plan for universal health coverage, which actually replaces both Medicaid and CHIP with a system of premium subsidies and tax credits for the purchase of private health insurance by the poor and the uninsured. It's striking that both candidates have embraced the central element of health care reform that the Progressive Policy Institute (PPI) has promoted for years: universal private health insurance bought through purchasing alliances with government subsidizing premiums through the tax system for those in need. Both candidates have also decisively broken with the old liberal alternatives of expanding government-provided or -controlled health coverage, or creating a Canadian-style nationalized insurance system. Gore deserves extra credit for proposing an incremental plan that could actually be adopted in the near future without endangering fiscal discipline. Bradley deserves extra credit for embracing PPI's longstanding proposal to let uninsured individuals buy into the Federal Employee Health Benefit Plan (FEHBP) the best current model for a health system in which insurers compete for business on the basis of both cost and quality--and for his willingness to get rid of the bureaucratic structure of programs like Medicaid and CHIP. Both candidates have essentially adopted a New Democrat approach to universal health coverage. And both offer an implicit challenge to Republican front-runner George W. Bush, who has said nothing on the subject, and whose own state of Texas has been slow to take advantage of existing federal incentives to cover uninsured children. If this is an example of the policy debate that
[CTRL] (Fwd) Idea of the Week: A New Bargain for Public Schools
-Caveat Lector- --- Forwarded Message Follows --- Date sent: Mon, 27 Sep 1999 16:48:52 -0400 Send reply to: LIST RESPECT From: Web Master [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject:Idea of the Week: A New Bargain for Public Schools To: Multiple recipients of list NEWDEMNEWS [EMAIL PROTECTED] The DLC Update Monday, September 27, 1999 * Discuss the Idea of the Week at the DLC Idea Exchange at http://www.dlc.org/idea/discussion.htm * ***Idea of the Week: A New Bargain for Public Schools*** Most federal aid to education has been traditionally based on an old bargain that no longer works: Washington offers money to states and school districts based on need, and then micro-manage how it is used, with little or no attention to what it produces in the way of educational results. While it has done much good to offset the financial inequities inherent in schools due to widely varying local revenue bases, it has also rewarded failure as often as success. That is why the disparities in education levels between poor and middle- or upper-class Americans--that justified federal aid to education to begin with--are getting worse, not better, at precisely the time when education and skills loom larger than ever as a factor determining individual opportunity. This year's reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA)--the primary vehicle for federal aid--offers Congress the chance to reinvent federal education policy for the Information Age. In addition, there is finally a legislative package on the horizon that would accomplish the kind of dramatic shift in strategies the country needs: DLC Chairman Sen. Joe Lieberman's (D- CT) Public Education, Reinvestment, Reinvention, and Reinvigoration Act Lieberman's "Three R's" bill (along with a House counterpart that Rep. Harold Ford (D-TN) intends to offer) is based in large part on the Progressive Policy Institute's report, Toward Performance-Based Federal Education Funding, by Andrew Rotherham, President Clinton's Special Assistant for Education Policy. In some respects, it is a more sweeping variation on the Clinton Administration's proposal to link federal education aid to accountability for educational results. It also draws on bipartisan proposals from the Governors to provide greater flexibility in administering federal education funds by consolidating a variety of programs. More fundamentally, it redefines the federal role in education and offers states and poor school districts a new bargain: strong federal support and broad administrative flexibility in exchange for a commitment to reform, innovation, and the achievement of measurable results in closing the gap between good and bad public schools. Lieberman's "Three R's" plan would: --Reconfigure the Title I compensatory education program for disadvantaged students by increasing the targeting of funds to the poorest schools, requiring steady progress toward the goal of ensuring math and reading proficiency for all children, demanding radical action to improve or close poor-performing schools, and raising overall funding by more than 50 percent. --Consolidate teacher training programs into one grant focused on raising the quality of teaching as well as the quantity of qualified teachers, with strict performance standards. --Streamline bilingual education programs while making it clear the goal of bilingual instruction is to achieve student proficiency in reading, writing, and speaking English. --Strengthen federal efforts to provide parental choice among public schools, including universal--information on school, student and teacher performance, school safety, access to technology, and physical conditions; while encouraging more performance-based "charter" schools. Consolidate all other K-12 programs into a single fund that would encourage innovation and --experimentation on a broad array of educational challenges. --Introduce a regime of accountability throughout all federal education programs that would reward success and punish failure according to simple performance measures. In effect, Lieberman's bill combines the best ideas for improving public school performance from every direction. But it does not endorse the dubious logic of Republican schemes that demand accountability without standards for public schools, and no accountability at all for private schools receiving public funds. If lawmakers in both parties believe half of what they say about the critical importance of improved education in an Information Age global economy, they should get behind Lieberman's bill as an urgent priority. ***Bad Company in Seattle*** The AFL-CIO recently announced it intends to send 15,000 members to Seattle at the end of November to participate
Re: [CTRL] (Fwd) Idea of the Week: The Software Solution For The
-Caveat Lector- These people have no idea what "Fair" taxation is about...they have shown us that already...if they get in they will never stop...they will be the mob on the internet...perhaps the lessening of budgets is good...if every body carried weaponry there would be a LOT less crime, and policing wasn't a thing until after the civil war and the consolidation of power by what was to become the Federal Reserve...if such a huge percentage of the taxation today wasn't wasted in pork we could do with about 25% of what they are taking now and lessen it even further through efficiency in another decade...the controllers understand economic strife as whip though, and utilize it to its fullest through glamour media, copyrighted law, and fearb Alamaine Ratliff wrote: -Caveat Lector- --- Forwarded Message Follows --- The DLC Update Tuesday, September 21, 1999 * In this Update: * Idea of the Week: The "Software Solution" for the Internet Sales Tax * Under the Budgetary Big Top * Gore On Universal Health Care New Democrat Idea Exchange: Discuss the Idea of the Week and see what other New Dems are saying at http://www.dlc.org/idea/discussion.htm . New comments are posted weekly. * ***Idea of the Week: The "Software Solution" For The Internet Sales Tax*** DECLARATION DISCLAIMER == CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substancenot soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
[CTRL] (Fwd) Idea of the Week: The Software Solution For The
-Caveat Lector- --- Forwarded Message Follows --- The DLC Update Tuesday, September 21, 1999 * In this Update: * Idea of the Week: The "Software Solution" for the Internet Sales Tax * Under the Budgetary Big Top * Gore On Universal Health Care New Democrat Idea Exchange: Discuss the Idea of the Week and see what other New Dems are saying at http://www.dlc.org/idea/discussion.htm . New comments are posted weekly. * ***Idea of the Week: The "Software Solution" For The Internet Sales Tax*** The current growth and future explosion of "e-commerce" (electronic sales of goods and services via the Internet) is a critical element in the development of the New Economy. E-commerce gives consumers greater choice and more competitive prices. It will help produce a breakthrough in the number of Americans who find it useful to go online, and have enormous implications for the "digitization" of daily life. But e-commerce is also threatening to reduce state and local tax revenues, creating a dilemma for policymakers. On the one hand, state and local regulation of e-commerce--and even more, regulation of Internet access--could inhibit the development of the digital economy. On the other hand, the migration of sales from face-to-face transactions to remote media-- including not only e-commerce but telephone and mail-order sales--is eroding the revenue base that finances public schools, policing, infrastructure for economic development, and other critical services. Recognizing this problem, Congress last year enacted the Internet Tax Freedom Act, which imposed a moratorium on taxation of e-commerce until 2001, and established a commission to make recommendations on its future development. The commission met this past week in New York and amidst a flurry of activity on both sides agreed to solicit tax proposals from state tax officials and other groups. But the heated deliberations are in danger of degenerating into a dialogue of the deaf between those who fear sales taxes will kill e-commerce, and those who fear e-commerce will kill state and local governments. Fortunately, as Rob Atkinson and Randolph Court explain in the new PPI paper released last week, "Internet Taxation, A Software Solution," (available at http://www.dlcppi.org/texts/tech/internettax.htm) there is a "third way" available: the development and dissemination of computer software that can make fair taxation of the Internet and other remote sales easy and efficient. The software, which should be available for free downloading by retailers, would immediately identify tax rates by the address of the buyer, and would electronically remit sales taxes owed to the proper jurisdiction, at the click of a mouse. If publicly promoted--i.e., by the Federation of Tax Administrators --this software would become available almost instantly. Furthermore, it could be offered to catalog and phone-sale retailers who are also currently outside the normal pattern of sales taxation. This last point reinforces the need for Congressional action to make taxation of all remote sales fair and rational. Under current law, states and localities can tax mail-order or phone sales only if the seller has retail outlets within their jurisdiction, on the theory that the "point of sale" is the seller's location, however remote. "Virtual sales" on the Internet are making this "point of sale" doctrine increasingly archaic, and unfair. It's time to shift to a system where the "point of sale" is the buyer's location, not the seller's, no matter how the sale is conducted, by Internet, phone, mail or in person. The "software solution" makes that shift possible. Some libertarians oppose this approach on grounds that e-commerce creates a tax-free paradise. They are happy, not worried, that a shift toward virtual points-of-sale will make it impossible for states and localities to tax transactions. A recent letter from a group of Congressional Republicans to the commission on e-commerce taxation essentially adopts this posture, on grounds that making it easier to tax electronic sales represents a "tax increase." This argument is disingenuous at best. Maintaining the ability to tax commercial transactions wherever they occur hardly represents a "tax increase." And celebrating the erosion of a major state and local revenue source only makes sense if you are willing to identify alternative sources, or specifically recommend radical spending decreases. Conservative opponents of taxing of remote sales are not willing to do either. Let technology create a level playing field for all sales and make commerce more convenient and efficient for sellers and buyers alike. ***Under the Budgetary Big Top*** Under Republican Congressional stewardship, federal budgeting is beginning to resemble a three-ring circus. * In
Re: [CTRL] The Idea in America
-Caveat Lector- In a message dated 07/17/1999 1:59:29 AM Eastern Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: Vaszonyi's book, 'America's 30 Years War', is intended to warn citizens of this nation about the critical danger he sees to America's continued existence as a free society. "For the past thirty years," writes Vaszonyi, "all aspects of our lives -- and all of our institutions -- have been moving in one direction away from America's founding principles And every time we move away from America's founding principles, we move in the direction of the sole realistic alternative" -- totalitarian socialism, or what Vaszonyi refers to as "The Idea." I hope Mr. Vaszonyi has information in his book about how we can stop it. I think most of us who have any time to think know that America is becoming what amounts to a tightly controlled feudal society, but no matter what we do to get back our freedom, Congress is right there to subvert us. They aren't alone. The States' governing bodies are even more efficient than Congress in these matters. We all know we're sliding into vicious repression. Figure out how to put on the brakes. Prudy DECLARATION DISCLAIMER == CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substancenot soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
Re: [CTRL] The Idea in America
-Caveat Lector- the environmental movement are far more effective [at promoting The Idea] than any political party When you consider the trashing of America by elite industrialists whose "Idea" is to enslave the mass economically your labeling of environmentalism does not washfar more insidious are the machinators of a fiat currency and benefit-based colorable money where PROFIT IS ALL. I certainly don't need any outside influences to show me or coerce me into believing that the elite have defecated where we eatits in my face man...its all around...I think you (The Author) are right on with your allusion to big education though, it is a lesson in ineffectuality, marketing slickness, and programming. A clean Earth is even more profitable than a dirty Earth, but its not as EASY, and above all the ignorant and greedy sluts who have run things to date are lazy and only after the easy meat. The last thing we need, to enforce a clean environment, is more government...we need a mass awakening. As a follower of Non-Semitic Primitive Religious Thought I can honestly say that the greedy and lazy pigs who run us like a slave force now CAN'T SEE THE FOREST FOR THE TREES. Natural Vision By Bill Gallagher 6/27/98 0138LThonotosassaFL33592 The word Canvas is derived from the word cannabis. Please allow me to elucidate: Canvas, noun, F. canevas, LL canabacius, hempen cloth, L cannabis hempa strong cloth made of hemp. Websters 1902. Now think about that for a moment. Canvas. That means rope, bags, sails, paper, shoes, flags, tents; even the very first blue jeans were canvas for crying out loud! I'm sure there were plenty of other things too. I can't even imagine it, because I was not there, and because this material has been Outlawed here in America throughout the whole of my natural born life. The forces behind hemps illegality were Wood-Pulp Paper, and Petroleum Plastics. Big Paper attacked hemp throughout the 1920's and 30's because a decorticator (Fibre Separator) had been developed and patented in 1917 by George W. Schlicten, and by the 20's it was beginning to make wood-pulp paper unprofitable. Petroleum interests colluded with paper interests because people like Henry Ford and Edison and Others were inventing ways to make some very good plastics and even combustible fuels from hemp. So in a hush-hush, rush-rush kind of legislation, on a hot summer night in 1937, hemp was effectively blacklisted and banned, made illegal. There was no public outcry over this because prohibition sentiment ran strong during this time period, especially concerning alcohol, and this sentiment had been given a real shot in the arm from a media financed by Big Paper, and Petroleum interests. A well planned and executed disinformation campaign portrayed the flower of hemp, marijuana, as evil. The Hearst papers were singularly guilty as they yellowed the world with stories of black jazz musicians smoking the evil marijuana, then raping white women. They were expert at fanning the fires of racism, and this is the main reason behind much of the racial strife in this country, to this day. Ill founded notions are the literal foundation of society here, notions based on malicious lies for the profit of a few elite industrial operators. The truth is this: marijuana, the flower of mountain grown hemp, is a natural pharmacological agent, as is aspirin and numerous other curatives, and has been known among doctors and healers throughout the world for its psychoactive and medicinal properties for well over three thousand years. The smearing of the hemp flower ensured Big Papers lock on the profitability of its huge virgin forest holdings in the west, and opened the door for Petroleum Plastics monopolys. Truly the beginning of a New World Order, based not on hard work, enlightment, and innovation, but, rather, on special interest manipulations, subterfuge, and outright lies. Since then we have seen gargantuan chunks of manufacturing become controlled by petroleum plastics, and Moved OUT of America. It has made manufacturing quick and easy and cheap. And shoddy too. The death of Americas awareness concerning the quality and origin of its consumer goods is inexcusable, because it pertains directly to the survival of our freedom. We are less free now than during any other time in our history, and its not getting any better. Our power as a people has been destroyed. By disallowing hemp as a resource we have trashed the environment with petroleum insecticides, shut off all alternatives to cleaner fuels for our motorized society, removed a major pain medication from the sick and injured, thereby actually CREATING pain, and we have all but given away the primest farmland in America. But there is hope, and there are still warriors here, and though the burden is large, three generations worth at least, the quest for liberty and fairness has
[CTRL] The Idea in America
-Caveat Lector- Source: The New American, July 19, 1999, page 17 "The Idea" in America Hungarian expatriate Balint Vaszonyi, a renowned concert pianist and political philosopher, had first-hand experience of life under totalitarian socialism of both the Communist and National Socialist varieties. Much to his dismay, Vaszonyi sees America descending into the same abyss. Vaszonyi's book, 'America's 30 Years War', is intended to warn citizens of this nation about the critical danger he sees to America's continued existence as a free society. "For the past thirty years," writes Vaszonyi, "all aspects of our lives -- and all of our institutions -- have been moving in one direction away from America's founding principles And every time we move away from America's founding principles, we move in the direction of the sole realistic alternative" -- totalitarian socialism, or what Vaszonyi refers to as "The Idea." "The Idea... has gone through countless transformations and as many versions," continues Vaszonyi. "It has been 'Bolshevism' in Russia, 'Fascism' in Italy, 'National Socialism' in Germany, 'Democratic Socialism' in Sweden, and the 'Long March' and 'Cultural Revolution' in China. But as The Idea circled the globe, it kept finding America standing in the way. America, the impenetrable target, was on the other side." However, as the century closes, "The Idea has been successfully installed in America's schools, as well as in most of the information and entertainment media. Academia, Hollywood, the news media, the National Education Association, and the environmental movement are far more effective [at promoting The Idea] than any political party. And, as high school textbooks, college courses, television newscasts, or national newspapers attest, the purpose is the 'transformation' of America" --- William Norman Grigg --- The American people will never knowingly adopt socialism. But, under the name of 'liberalism', they will adopt every fragment of the socialist program, until one day America will be a socialist nation, without knowing how it happened. --- Norman Thomas, U.S. Socialist Presidential candidate Bard Visit me at: The Center for Exposing Corruption in the Federal Government http://www.xld.com/public/center/center.htm Federal Government defined: a benefit/subsidy protection racket! DECLARATION DISCLAIMER == CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substancenot soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
[CTRL] (Fwd) Idea of the Week: T-Visas
-Caveat Lector- --- Forwarded Message Follows --- Date sent: Fri, 19 Nov 1999 15:44:59 -0500 The DLC Update Friday, November 19, 1999 * Discuss the Idea of the Week at the DLC Idea Exchange at http://www.dlc.org/idea/discussion.htm * ***Idea of the Week: T-Visas*** There are currently an estimated 346,000 American job vacancies for computer programmers, systems analysts, and computer scientists or engineers. These core information technology occupations are central to the New Economy, and to the productivity gains and economic growth it is driving. Yet every year many thousands of foreign students earn advanced degrees from U.S. universities in fields related to these occupations and then go home because their student visas run out. Under current law, the only visa you can get for skilled work in the United States is the H-1B visa, available not just to high-tech professionals but to a wide variety of skilled occupations, including pastry chefs, physical therapists, and even fashion models. These visas are capped at levels well below the demand from U.S. employers. Last year, Congress temporarily raised the H-1B cap after urgent requests from technology companies, and also made a small down payment on building up the skills of American citizens by endowing regional skills alliances and other training efforts. Now New Democrat Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) and Sen. Chuck Robb (D-VA) have introduced bills to address the tech-shortage issue more systematically. Lofgren's BRAIN Act (HR 2687), and Robb's HITEC Act (S 1645), would create a "T-Visa"--a new category separate from the models and the pastry chefs, aimed at temporarily recruiting highly paid and skilled tech professionals trained at U.S. universities. Under both bills, T-Visas would be available only to graduates in science and engineering programs filling jobs paying more than $60,000. Most ingeniously, the bills would require that employers hiring T-Visa holders pay a fee of $1,000 per year, with the proceeds used to fund science and technology training efforts for U.S. citizens from kindergarten through high school. Both bills would sunset the T-Visa system in five years, so that Congress could then determine if U.S. citizens are able to fill more of the demand for critical technology skills. Robb's bill limits T-Visas to those holding graduate degrees--where dependence on foreign students is especially high--and would use the "challenge grant" approach of regional training alliances (RSAs) to distribute the fees, with the federal government partnering with industry and educational institutions in training efforts. (For more on RSAs, see the Idea of the Week from February 6, 1998, at http://www.dlcppi.org/fax/1998/980206.htm.) The T-Visa is an excellent plan for "lifting the cap" of immigration restrictions on critical professions, while "filling the gap" of skilled Americans. Lofgren and Robb's bills should be high on Congress' agenda next year. ***Deal of the Decade*** Last week, U.S. trade officials announced the culmination of 13 years of negotiations to open China to U.S. goods, services, and investment. In a deal to secure U.S. support for China's accession to the World Trade Organization, China made a wide variety of concessions on tariffs, non-tariff trade barriers, distribution rights, foreign investment, financial and insurance services, and "transparency" and monitoring of its commercial behavior. The United States made no concessions, other than agreeing to continue on a permanent basis our current policy of offering China Normal Trade Relations. It's good news for the businesses, farmers, and workers who will begin to benefit from new markets almost immediately, and even better news for those interested in bringing this emerging superpower into a rules-based system of trade. That is why we are concerned at signs that a variety of forces on the left and right are indicating they will pressure Congress to kill the deal of the decade by voting down NTR next year. Some opponents think the United States should refuse to do business with China unless it halts its human rights abuses and essentially changes its political system. Others want to isolate China as a potential threat to U.S. security interests in the Pacific. We are especially disappointed that the AFL-CIO issued a strident statement denouncing the deal as an act of submission to China and a betrayal of the Clinton Administration's policy of making workers' rights a subject of discussion in the WTO. It's pretty hard to see how a deal in which the other side makes all the concessions represents submission. It's also hard to identify a better strategy for encouraging civilized behavior by China than to bring it into the circle of civilized nations, where
