Sunday, February 22, 2009

What's So Great about Democracy

Though America currently encounters a dismal economic state, no social unrest has occurred. This is not the case in other major countries. There are constant complaints about the partisanship in Washington, but politicians arguing relentlessly beat protests in the street.

Ian Bremmer's "J Curve" aptly pairs openness of a government with the country's stability. His book focuses more on a country's process along the curve, but I will use his idea to explain the present situations in nations with regards to the financial crisis.

Bremmer believes that the more transparent a government is, the more stability the country has. The only exception, which he notes, occurs in authoritarian governments. They fall on the left end of the curve where there is a jutting up. This symbolizes their little openness, but their apparent stability, though it is significantly less than, say, a democracy, which rests on the upper right side of the curve. Bremmer’s model provides a nice foundation for explaining current events.

I hate the partisanship a two-party system engenders. Compared to a one-party system though, I choose it quicker than choosing broccoli over salmonella-flavored peanut butter crackers. We simply overreact to the inefficiency and bad publicity created by congressional bickering. Globally, our system proves how stable our country really is.

Both our politicians and fellow citizens worry about the rising unemployment rate. Their angst mostly derives from a humanitarian and economic standpoint. China and Russia, both closed governments, see unemployment as a catalyst for social conflict. Last week, the Kremlin replaced four governors in potential unruly areas. An aide of President Medvedev even twisted the social contract theory to explain how Russia needed to react. “The social contract consisted of limiting civil rights in exchange for economic well-being. At the current moment, economic well-being is shrinking. Correspondingly, civil rights should expand.” China may have to move in a similar direction. A recent New York Times article pointed to the Internet crackdown as a potential starting point.

The economic downturn has also prolonged incidents that may have been quickly forgotten in better financial times. Skepticism over the tainted milk crisis and the collapse of Chinese schools during an earthquake last year still linger. Russia faces the backlash from the killings of two human rights advocates, a lawyer and a journalist. The acquittal of the alleged journalist murderers will prolong the affair even more.

We in America take our political stability for granted. In response to the financial state, we simply elected the opposing party into office, and the ousted leader even helped the incoming one. Political divisiveness exists in our country’s history even before we rebelled against England. Sensational media coverage may affect views of its importance, but compared to other countries, we are weathering this storm quite nicely.

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Iran into Bolivia

Unlike Loverboy who was “loving every minute of it” when he was shot into space, the United States and other nations fear Iran’s ability to launch anything into orbit, which they did in the form of a satellite earlier this week. Iran may not have won the space race, finishing 9th, but they did display their rising technology. This could potentially combine President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s fiery rhetoric with a means.

Sputnik sparked America’s full involvement in the space race. The latest satellite should push a different type of race which we cannot win with the help of Hollywood. Oil revenues help Iran fund projects such as a missile system amongst other nefarious items. Clearly any simple-minded person can see the situation at hand and at least know possible solutions. Our Congress consistently fails to achieve this required status. To prove their stupidity, the Senate approved a tax credit for Americans buying new cars. Citizens can now receive a rebate after buying cars they do not want or cannot afford from companies funded by the government to produce those very vehicles. This is why the show “Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?” should be a requirement for potential congressional members.

How about tax credits for investing in actual green technology and not the research and development that the car companies should have being doing all along? Green companies currently face downsizing due to oil and coal lobbyists in Washington D.C. taking subsidies over the ones who could actually help America wean off funding towards the Middle East and prevent that satellite from becoming an intercontinental missile.

President Obama, if you want to have high approval in the long term, you will need to make potential career-ending decisions. Talking to Iran will not produce anything. Hitting their budget absolutely will. Gasoline prices are too volatile to sustain green investment and there is no market for renewable energy sources at the moment. Unlike Congress, you have a capable energy adviser, Stephen Chu, and a brain, allegedly. Play it smart, not politically.

A recent New York Times article outlined Bolivia’s supply of lithium, a valuable resource for improved batteries for hybrid cars and other electronics. The government stands reluctant on allowing other countries to harvest the mineral and does not have the resources to effectively do it on its own. I see this changing in upcoming years. If lithium is a major game-changer in the green industry, countries will be vying to buddy up with Bolivia. To prospective friends, President Morales likes sunset strolls on beaches and like Julia Roberts in “Runaway Bride”, eggs Benedict.

America will not take this approach if we gain interest in the lithium. We will be chilling in Chile then it will unfold. Bolivia’s government will become insufficient and we will help them fix it up. Problem solved. I joke now, but give it time. The growing importance of Bolivia will signify the standing of the movement towards better energy usage.

Going green is more dire than Chris Paul’s injury to the New Orleans Hornets. If politicians do what sounds good to their constituency over what is smart, then America will blow a 20-point lead in 12 minutes and fall in the standings. As Kermit the Frog once said, “It’s not easy being green”; however, I think it will be worth it.

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Green Bama

Both the university and college students look to save money. How could we possibly achieve both and push the University of Alabama into the future?

Without our parents nagging us, we dorm dwellers have no major reason to turn off the lights or keep the air conditioner at a cost-efficient temperature. As of now a contest promoted by a student and endorsed by the university is taking place in which the dorm that reduces the most energy wins a gaming console. I like the effort and especially the posting of energy consumption of each residence hall, but it probably won’t enact enough effort.

I have an alternate plan. Instead of competing against other dorms for a shared $300 reward, residence halls would fight to beat their own energy consumption from the previous semester. Then university would then reward each student with a rebate based on the energy savings. I wouldn’t be the one to decide the real numbers, but the rebate could go towards living expenses of the next semester, tuition fees, or something to that extent. Hopefully, the savings would total enough to spread them to each student, creating the self-interest to take part.

This is not just an environmental movement anymore. This is a green, as in financial, movement. I am not asking for solar panels on top of university buildings or wind turbines on the quad. I just would like to save money on my living expenses. If it happens to help both the environment and the energy future of the university, so be it.