[ale] [OT] Re: [ale] Bangalore Bill

[Joseph A Knapka]

F. Grant Robertson wrote:
> I have zero respect for a Commander in Chief who openly protested the US
> military on foreign soil.

I have a lot of respect for a president who'd advocate such an
unpopular, but just and moral, position. IMO the US has no legitimate
overseas "interests" that justify deploying American military
personnel. Our "interest" in the Mideast is just govspeak for
"oil", and we can do without it, and do our children and their
children an enormous favor to boot by weaning this nation from
its filthy fossil-fuel habit. (I ride my bike a lot.)

If I were running for president, which I'm sure I'll never do,
I'd run on the following platform:

- Get the US independent of foreign oil.
- Maintain the most effective military apparatus on the
planet, but use it solely in a defensive capacity.
- Money saved by withdrawal of foreign military
operations to be used in part to finance worldwide,
ideologically-neutral humanitarian aid operations.
- Remain engaged diplomatically worldwide.
- Subsidize alternative energy research, including
space-based power systems, until it becomes practical for
private concerns to make money that way. As a side effect,
reinvigorate the US space program as a practical solution
to a number of Earthbound problems.
- Legalize all currently illegal drugs, and tax the f*ck
out of the suppliers. Use the money to improve education
nationally.
- Equal education opportunity for *all* based *solely* on
merit. Education through graduate school should be free
for anyone who can climb the learning curve.
- All government IT systems to be run on fully-auditable
systems based on fully open standards. That may mean
proprietary, non-free software in some cases, but it will
never mean closed source.
- If money saved by the previous point permits, establish
permanent colonies on the Moon and Mars :-)

</starry-eyed>

Yeah, laugh all you want...

Cheers,

-- Joe


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