The GOVERNMENT is the PROBLEM!

Today in Politics and Economics of Developing Countries, class discussed faults of statism and problems arising from corruption. The professor had the class read a PJ O'Rourke article, "How To Make Nothing From Everything", about Tanzania.

O'Rourke lays a good deal of the fault of Tanzanian inability to develop on the government. I kindly would like to disagree. Why? How can blame be levied upon something that doesn't physically exist.

What?

That's right. Government isn't a physical entity, but rather is a concept. Confused yet? Yes? Good.

People create government, good people govern well, bad people govern badly. It's pretty simple, I'd think. But government itself isn't inherently corrupt. The concept of government is just an idea that been presented for millenia about how humankind can regulate itself. Laws are not a branch of government. Laws are of human creation. Good people create good laws. Bad people create crap laws.

It's up to the people who are governed (in a democracy or anything similar to that concept) to maintain a check upon the people who lord over them. Rise up and slay the dragon of a dictatorship, if you must.

To be successful, I believe that people need to have qualified people to provide a rule of law, not people who are driven by power and greed. This is particularly true in an effective democracy. The playing field should be level from the gate.

But if people consistently choose others who are incompetent... does that mean that people are inherently unable to choose what is best for them?

Mmm... I smell an essay.

-rl

Strickland and Fisher

A little over a week ago Democratic gubernatorial candidate Ted Strickland announced that former Attorney General and 1998 Democratic gubernatorial candidate Lee Fisher would be seeking the position of Lieutenant Governor as his running mate.

Ulysses, Peter, and I attended the announcement at the ward office of Cleveland City Councilman Matt Zone. It was an exciting announcement and solidified my once weak support of Congressman Strickland. After having heard Lee Fisher speak at Oberlin College, I became a fan of the former AG. His vigor and refreshing honesty gave me hope.

On Friday, January 27th, Ted Strickland proved why I should support his candidacy all the way to November... (not that I would vote for a Republican, anyway.) Maybe more importantly, he gave me reason to support him through the primary season.

The Senate race is a whole different matter.

Kinda.

I'm still a little wary of making a choice, but I intend to support Sherrod Brown. I want to. I mean it. I've liked him since I learned who he was and the like. Hell, I own The Myths of Free Trade... (but I haven't yet gotten to reading it.)

I'm thinking about running for Democratic Central Committeeperson for Berea... I haven't been able to get in touch with the current one, so I'm going to assume he either a) doesn't exist or b) is dead.

That's all... I'll get you more from the campaign trail if I make it.

-rl

RENT

Went to see Rent last night in the SAC.

It was good. I enjoyed the entire carpe diem theme of the movie. And no, Virginia, I haven't seen the show.

That said, the movie raises the issue of AIDS, an issue that has seemingly fallen by the wayside since the mid 1990s. This is the US's and the world's problem. AIDS is the cause of one of the greatest humanitarian disasters (if not the greatest) the world has seen - with the focus of that disaster in sub-Saharan Africa.

The profit mongering of bigpharma is posing a grand problem to combatting AIDS: companies fighting the creation of less-expensive generic drugs to help alleviate the symptoms of HIV and AIDS.

So remember, in the eyes of bigpharma: $$$ > a sick you.

Une autre six semaines d'hiver?

Punxatawny Phil (he doesn't like being called Phillip) saw his shadow yesterday...... six more weeks of a winter that has yet to arrive. Prognosticators are calling for a significant winter storm for this weekend. My prognostication: rain. And lots of it. Hell, we were throwing around a frisbee yesterday... in a steady rain... at 44F(6C)...

Cluck Cluck

Ran across a chicken the other day,
        Not a chicken, per se,
    Poultry, we'll call it
Yellow.

Ran across a frog two days before,
        It was a frog, for sure,
    Evolved from the tadpole
Brown. Yellow.

Ran across a human three days prior,
        For the people, to conspire,
    Advancement by blood?
Red. Brown. Yellow.

I swam across the ocean
In the truest hope of finding
Answers to the problems
But to discover more

Chickens in the ocean.
Frogs in the farms.
We annoint ourselves with a power,
    From God

Hmm.

Maybe I was once a babboon.
Or a chimpanzee.
On this do you agree?
Will it matter if we ever do?