How to Vote in 2016

How to Vote in 2016

I would first fill in these blanks: 

Trump is, said and did                                                                    (to be filled by angry Democrats)  

Clinton is said and did                                                                 (to be filled by angry Republicans), and I would then completely disregard their content.  I wouldn't suggest that the information in the blanks would be mostly erroneous since there's enough wrongdoing in the history of both of our major undeserving candidates.  I do suggest that our minds shrink when we limit ourselves to talking about other people over a mind-expanding conversation about ideas.

From my God-believing perspective, the world, that's to say humanity, exists in a struggle between good and evil, albeit right and wrong.  In political ideology, this struggle morphs into competition among different views of justice: inevitable struggles among classes, rich versus poor, integration versus racism, free competition versus socialism, central planning versus local control, democracy versus authoritarian rule, economic development versus environmentalism, nationalism versus globalism.  Truth, always elusive, usually dwells in the middle of those dichotomies.  Ultimately, the government imposes the final arbitration.  My belief is that in choosing a government, "Democracy," as Churchill has told us, "is the worst form of government, except for all others."  And let me add that I could easily substitute "America" and "other countries" in this analysis.

For those of us who still remember, America has preserved freedom in the world by confronting the rise of totalitarianism everywhere.  It is foolish to think that the work is done or is no longer valuable.  Globalism is not only a noble goal but an environmental imperative for humanity; its time is near, but unfortunately, not yet here.  America is still needed to preserve freedom, advocate for human rights, and expand economic opportunity; it is still an indispensable country in the world.  We should not rush into a blind pursuit of globalism at the expense of American economic strength.  For the sake of the world and for our own, we have to rebuild American strength first. 

Open borders, unrestricted international trade, and the unilateral imposition of costly environmental restrictions on American industry are not helpful.  Wealth accumulation in the hands of government, through tax increases on the productive class, for the purpose of centralized "investment" planning, is never preferable to the creative forces of an aspirational and free society.  On the topic of the "culture wars," I would simply say that history has never rewarded societies based on "relative morality."  What's the bottom line for me?  I'm voting for the Republican Platform this time around. 

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February 10, 2016

There Will Be Change

When I wrote my books entitled "Mirror to a Nation" in 2006 and "Surrender Management: America in Retreat" in 2011, I argued that our nation was surrendering to critical problems without solving them.  From national debt to undocumented immigration, from inferior education to criminal justice injustice, from a weak defense to the abandonment of the space race, from energy dependence to drug abuse, it all seemed that our political leaders were leading us over the cliff.  I wondered for how long would the public wait to say enough.  I'm delighted to see the volatility of the current presidential contest because whoever wins, I believe many things will finally change.

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Registration of Undocumented Immigrants 

It is not possible, politically, socially, economically, or even morally, to attempt a mass deportation of undocumented immigrants in the United States.  The 11-? million immigrants illegally residing in the country are mostly productive, law-abiding people.  Any fair historical analysis would illustrate that the desperately poor people who sneak into our nation across the Mexican border have been lured by and rewarded with relatively dream jobs by American corporations and by the general American public.  We have, as a nation, de-facto invited them to risk their life, walking hundreds of miles through Mexico's countryside on their way to our dreamland.

Yes, we do need to rapidly deport all undocumented immigrants who have violated our criminal laws, and we need to effectively seal our southern border, as well as institute e-verify, end "chain migration," and pursue those who enter with a temporary visa and then stay.  Immigration in American must be a legal process and one that benefits our nation.

The sensible solution for the millions of undocumented people already established here is to provide a period of registration for them to come out of the shadows and identify themselves without fear of deportation.  Those with criminal records, those who refuse to register, and those who enter illegally in the future will then be fair game for deportation.  The ones that do register will no longer be called illegal and will join our society in whatever path to legalization is ultimately devised.  

This crisis has divided our nation for far too long; let's turn our attention to other vigorous arguments in our wonderful democracy.

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From the Politics of Personal Destruction to Reasonable Compromise:

#2 Defense Spending

It is unfortunate that candidates for president concentrate their statements on character attacks of their opponents and polarized and intransigent policy positions.  I believe that candidates themselves would better serve the public by presenting proposals for viable compromises on the issues that have lingered in the limbo of inaction and gridlock.  Surrogates and the media will take care of the personal destruction part.  May I humbly propose here in my blog and probably simply repackage some of the thinking of many others, a series of what I consider reasonable compromises.

Defense spending in our nation is by any standard excessive, and one side wants to make major cuts, while the other side is insisting that we are weakening our military with draconian cuts to its budgets.  I believe both sides are right.  First, we should remember that our nation has been and continues to be the indispensable nation that draws the line, preventing powerful dictatorships like Russia from invading Europe and China from imposing Communism in all of Asia.  In the words of President John F. Kennedy, "Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty."  Today, we have weakened our defenses by the undue shrinkage of our naval fleet and the

inadequate supply of spare parts for our planes, tanks, and other equipment.  Manpower is often also in short supply.  In conclusion, we need to increase spending in these areas.

Nevertheless, while some defense spending increases are warranted, the waste and mismanagement are astronomical, and much of it is caused by Congress.  Costly military bases that the Pentagon would close but that the local district congressmen and state senators prevent.  The purchase of fighter jets and battleground vehicles was not what the military wanted but that congressmen forced them to buy.  The general public would support legislation and even a constitutional amendment preventing Congress from altering the military requests.  The cost of recruitment and retention of soldiers in a professional army is ruinous, and although the American population dreads the idea of a lottery draft, presidential and congressional leadership should step up.  Our commitments to cover the high cost of defending some of our allies, which are wealthy nations invariably failing to pay their promised fair share, should be renegotiated.

I dare guess that we could spend more to bring our military up to par and save money at the same time.

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Forfeiting the Space Race to China

One of the most frightening things about the wrong direction our nation is following is the virtual surrender to the new space race, the one we should be having with China.  The overwhelming lead we had in space technology is rapidly disappearing.  Our failure to consider space exploration as an industrial and military imperative, beyond our commendable scientific inquisitiveness, has made our space program an afterthought in the national political debate.  It last appeared in a presidential debate when Newt Gingrich suggested the creation of an American Moon base during the 2012 campaign.  The idea was instantly ridiculed by the mainstream media.

The first sign of an American decline in space came with its commitment to the International Space Station (ISS) without pursuing any other major American dream project. Our magnificent fleet of space shuttles, which became the primary building tool for the ISS, was allowed to fizzle out with the last flight of the shuttle Atlantis on July 21, 2011. For years thereafter, U.S. astronauts had to hitchhike on Russian Proton and Soyuz rockets.  

Today, NASA sets its aim on Martian voyages and flyby missions to the outer planets. At the same time, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) has an accelerated program of technological development, which already sent men into space with its Shenzhou 5 spaceships.  It now has plans for its own space station and men on the Moon by 2020.  Their leaders openly talk of Earth-Moon industrial development and space-based energy projects, which is obvious considering that the Moon is rich in the mineral Helium 2, essential for fusion energy development. And just to highlight the danger to America, the Chinese have tested satellite-killing missiles that could literally blind our military in a conflict.

We have not gotten here for lack of money, not when we have borrowed and spent 20 trillion dollars in the last two decades.  Someone is asleep at the switch.

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From the Politics of Personal Destruction to Reasonable Compromise:

#1 Undocumented Immigration

--- It is unfortunate that candidates for president concentrate their statements on character attacks of their opponents and polarized and intransigent policy positions.  I believe that candidates themselves would better serve the public by presenting proposals for viable compromises on the issues that have lingered in the limbo of inaction and gridlock.  Surrogates and the media will take care of the personal destruction part.  May I humbly propose here in my blog, and probably simply repackage the thinking of many others, a series of what I consider reasonable compromises.

Undocumented immigration has been a divisive issue for as long as I can remember, and I have been around for a while.  In the 50s and 60s, the exploitation and mistreatment of "braceros," cheap manual laborers imported across the Mexican border by American farmers, became a national scandal.  Cesar Chavez, a Mexican-American labor leader, founded the United Farm Workers Union in 1962.  His struggle gained national attention and the active support of political figures the likes of Robert F. Kennedy.  Over the years, the illegal employment of undocumented aliens by American industry, as well as households, has created a magnet for border crossers in search of a better life.  As the population of illegal immigrants grew, Congress granted a series of seven amnesties as follows:

  

1.         Immigration and Reform Control Act (IRCA), 1986

2.        Section 245(i) Amnesty, 1994

3.        Section 245(i) Extension Amnesty, 1997

4.        Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act (NACARA) Amnesty, 1997

5.        Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act Amnesty (HRIFA), 1998

6.        Late Amnesty, 2000

7.        LIFE Act Amnesty, 2000

1.     

 In total, these amnesties provided legal status to more than six million illegal aliens.  In the past 16 years, the undocumented population has accumulated again, but this time with more than 12 million people.  Calls for amnesty number eight have divided the nation.  Democrats want Hispanic immigrants to come and vote but not to take jobs from their union supporters, while Republicans want them to come and work cheaply but not to increase the democratic voting bloc.  The hypocrisy goes on at the expense of those who are forced to live in the shadows.

Today an argument on the "left" is that the millions of undocumented immigrants already in the U.S.  have contributed to our economy and deserve some form of legalization and not the cruel separation of individuals from their families, ergo amnesty number eight.

An argument on the "right" is that immigrants from countries with similar languages and cultural backgrounds are arriving in indigestible numbers and overwhelming our natural "social assimilation machine." It is further argued that what our country needs is more educated immigrants, who are in short supply for our economy, not more unskilled laborers to compete with the ones we already have.

Without taking sides, let's consider a simple compromise as follows:

1. For the "Right." 

a)      Provide the Immigration Control and Enforcement Agency (ICE) with whatever resources are needed to verifiably secure the Mexican-American border.

b)   Provide ICE with whatever resources are needed to pursue and deport all those who overstay their "visa period."

c)     Create a national electronic verification for employment system and provide ICE with whatever resources are needed to detect and substantially fine employers of undocumented immigrants.

d)      Prioritize future migration to favor those with the skills needed by our economy

2.  For the "Left."

a)      Suspend deportation of undocumented immigrants without a criminal record.

b)      Provide a grace period for undocumented immigrants in the country to register with the government for legal status and provide resources for a community-based registration system.

c) Reform the process that keeps applicants for legal entry waiting for many months and even years so that it can be a quick and efficient experience for future would-be Americans.

The trick to the compromise is that it all needs to be approved and funded simultaneously, without new promises of future compliance.  This compromise is simple and obvious if both sides act in good faith, it leads to gridlock when one side or the other tries to cheat.  The big losers are the undocumented immigrants now in the country and the country itself.

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China, the Impending Threat

There was a time when American corporations were viewed by the public, perhaps with naiveté, as patriotic organizations that would place national interest first.  Not so today in the age of outsourcing manufacturing and the sourcing of undocumented cheap labor.  American and other Western corporations have pursued both in the endless sea of humanity of China, which also offers a future astronomical market.  The West did not recoil from doing business with China after its massacre of pro-democracy demonstrators in Tiananmen Square but rather rewarded its communist government brutality with the greatest transfer of wealth in human history.  America and the rest of the West would be well advised to remember the anti-communist metaphor used by President John F. Kennedy during his inaugural address in 1961; "those who foolishly sought power by riding the back of the tiger ended up inside."

The Soviet Union collapsed during the Cold War because by aiming to be a military power, it became an economic basket case.  China would have suffered the same faith, except that the West transferred the bulk of its manufacturing base there, flooding the communist-controlled nation with cash.  China's central planners have managed to squander a great deal of its reaches, but the Chinese military is expanding to confront us with another and far more dangerous "cold war."  Their military leaders have taken aim at America's underpinning might by developing aircraft carrier-killer missiles and satellite-killer space vehicles.  Their land forces, with vastly superior numbers, are massing on their neighbors' borders, and they are defying international law by claiming ownership of the China Sea and building artificial islands in it.

Allowing China to grow more powerful will not improve matters.  As Frederick Douglass said, "Power concedes nothing without a demand.  It never did, and it never will." Without necessarily starting an all-out trade war, the U.S., in particular, must arrest the transfer of wealth to China by demanding a balanced trade policy and reminding Chinese leaders that becoming an international bully will have consequences.  China must be made to realize that its future development rests on fair international trade and the rule of international law, putting aside for now the conversation on human rights and the dignity of man.

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Requiem for the European Union?

There are real concerns about the stability and cohesiveness of the European Union, which have been brought center stage with the departure of Britain, the so-called "Brexit."  Open borders and open markets under a centralized, socialist model of government have not produced the desired effects.  The South European nations of Greece, Spain, Italy, and Portugal are facing economic ruin, while in the North, France and Germany are struggling with massive Muslim migration.  European nations have also suffered from globalization with the outsourcing of good-paying jobs, although perhaps not as much as the U.S.

The unrestrained migration of Muslims into France, Germany, the Netherlands, and others, with rising resistance to integration and the existence of no-go neighborhoods, is fueling an anti-union movement in Europe, probably more than any other factor.  France is facing social turmoil, and President François Hollande has stated that France is at war — and that it must be fought both inside his country and outside in the Middle East.  Operations are underway in towns and cities across France.  It is a battle on two fronts.  It is no longer unthinkable that France may descend into a form of civil war.

The departure of another nation from the union may trigger an irreversible domino effect and the rapid demise of the Union.  It behooves the remaining members to rapidly amend their charter concerning the re-establishment of national borders, fair international trade practices, and consequences of irrational deficit spending by member nations.  The premise of a European Union is still a worthwhile goal within reasonable limits.    

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Nationalism-vs.-Globalization

---As communications and information began to travel around the world at lightning speed with the birth of The Internet, humans everywhere have gotten to know more about each other.  The feeling of global brotherhood predicated in that reality has been a blessing in which we all rejoice. Humans, nevertheless, are still the architects of world communities and continue to be far from perfect.  Globalism expressed in a rush to create open borders and open markets, regardless of intentions, has produced serious complications for our nation and for others.  Poor people from neighboring nations have flooded our land in unprecedented and indigestible numbers, and well-paying jobs have moved to other nations that have no minimum-wage laws and few regulations.  It has been a noble experiment, and nothing is gained by retro-blaming; rather, forward-looking changes in policies must be adopted.

It would be irrational to suggest that anyone is going to deport the 12+ million undocumented immigrants in our country. Yet, it would be equally foolish to insist on maintaining an open border that inevitably invites millions more to come across.  International trade must not be stifled, provided that nations can agree to respect the need for and bring about a reasonable balance.  There is nothing wrong with sovereignty and a measured degree of nationalism in today's world. 

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The Loss of Trust

Our successful American democratic republic has primarily rested on the trust of the majority of the general public.  That is to say, if the majority of the public disobeyed laws, all enforcement mechanisms would be rendered impotent.  I felt that trust in our government was earned when President Richard M. Nixon was impeached and forced to resign over the Watergate Scandal, proving that we have a nation of laws that apply to all; that was a high point in American history, which the entire world admired.

Unfortunately, today, we have a low point in our history when the Attorney General holds an unethical secret meeting and dismisses it as chit chat, when the FBI Director denies the obvious and demands credence, and when a secretary of state mismanages American secrets and makes jokes about erasing thousands of emails from public records.  It is hard to trust that we still have a nation of laws that apply to all and even harder to trust those who demand that we do.


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June 24, 2016

The Shame of American Criminal Justice: Prison Madness

What do we know about jails and prisons?  We all seem to know, or at least suspect, that incarcerated persons undergo horrible experiences behind bars; they do.  There are close to two and half million people in federal and state prisons and local jails, far more than any other country.  The poor are overrepresented in the inmate population, especially those who are suffering from mental illness and drug addiction.  In many ways, our jails and prisons are warehouses for these populations, while institutions for the mentally ill are in short supply, and addiction treatment centers are poorly funded.  Starting in the 1980s and continuing to the present day, tough drug enforcement laws have flooded our jails and prisons with convicted offenders; the overcrowding has become insufferable.    

Who goes to prison?  Mostly the poor who lack the resources, both for bail and for a proper defense.  Other reasons stem from discriminating legislation, for example, the different treatment of powder cocaine, used by the wealthy, and crack cocaine, the cheaper version used by the poor.  The latter is actively pursued by the police and carries mandatory prison for small amounts (28 grams).  Power cocaine is often not on the police radar, and prison requires a violation involving very large amounts (500 grams).   Some argue that the creation of for-profit administration of prisons is behind the increase in incarcerated persons, and there is probably some degree of corruption in this area as well.

What happens once in prison?  A phrase attributed to inmates suggests that newcomers to the inmate population are either Vikings or victims.  That is to say that if you are not tough and strong, you will be a slave; you will be continuously raped and frequently beaten. If you can fight your way out of slavery, then you must join one of the prison gangs and be always at war.  Since there is only one jail or prison guard per hundreds of inmates, guards are usually on the other side of the bars, and inmates run the prison blocks and yards.  It is believed by many that official corruption is significant and everything is for sale.

What happens to inmates after jail or prison?  Rehab programs are poorly funded and inefficiently run inside, so employment opportunities outside are usually beyond their reach.  The poor transition leads to a much higher recidivism rate than it needs to be.

How can it be made better? It will require more funding for additional security personnel, anti-corruption mechanisms, and rehabilitation efforts, including work-release programs, as well as other diversion programs.  It is not rocket science, but it does not happen when only the poor are imprisoned, and the middle and upper classes have to foot the bill.  Plainly speaking, there is no voting constituency.  Proportional bail and uniform enforcement of drug laws would be an offer the middle and upper American classes can't refuse.


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June 24, 2016

The Shame of American Criminal Justice: Abusive Courts

             On paper, the American Constitution, within its first 10 amendments, known as the "Bill of Rights," guarantees citizens the right to a trial by jury and protection against "cruel and unusual punishment."  Later, in the 14th Amendment, the Constitution provides that citizens cannot be deprived of their life, liberty, or property without "due process of law."  Although not specifically stated, it is also implied in three amendments, the 5th, 6th, and the 14th, that an accused is considered innocent until proven guilty.  These are among the legal protections that provide a foundation for democracies.  While a defendant is awaiting trial, American courts provide for an elaborate system of bail, which allows those individuals to deposit money or property in the court's holding to guarantee against their flight.  The system is great for the middle and upper classes and for the Bail/Bond Commercial Industry; it is different for the poor.

             A judge can deny bail and order pre-trial detention in cases of capital crimes if there is a high risk of flight or if the defendant is considered dangerous to the community.  However, in most cases, a middle-class or upper-class person is able to post bail and remain free until the trial.  For a poor person, bail is set at the same amount depending on the offense, not on the means of the defendant.  Thus, a system of pre-trial detention forces masses of poor people behind bars for many months while they wait for their turn in overloaded court systems.  The tragedy is that "detention centers" are not much different from regular prisons, and detained defendants, innocent and guilty alike, are thrown into the general inmate population.  It is common knowledge that an individual becoming a general population inmate must be a "Viking or a victim;" for the weak, it means a life of rape and enslavement.  It is a clear case of "justice delayed equals justice denied."  I experienced this firsthand during the years that I worked as a teacher and counselor inside the prisons of New York City's Rikers Island.  The bulk of these cases are resolved through a system of "plea bargain," where detained defendants, after months of incarceration, are offered the choice to plead guilty to a lesser charge and be sentenced to "time served," with immediate release.  Otherwise, their inexperience, the Legal Aid Society, a court-appointed attorney, tells them that they can wait more time behind bars to go to trial and then risk a long sentence.  It is an offer few can refuse.

             If this type of "plea bargain" system were to be eliminated, the court system would be overwhelmed; it would collapse.  The possible solutions are additional funding for more courts and personnel, running existing courthouses on a 24/7 schedule, and the introduction of lower-salary magistrates to take lesser offense cases away from high-salary judges.  A simple way to convince the public to accept the higher cost of these reforms would be to restructure the bail system so as to set bail based on means to pay.  Hence, masses of middle and upper-class defendants would experience a stay in detention centers for non-capital crimes.  Of course, while most of us are insulated from a stay in the hell of prison, it is easier to continue to keep the plight of the poor out of sight and out of mind.  Is this the America we want?


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June 24, 2016

The Shame of American Criminal Justice: Abusive Courts

             On paper, the American Constitution, within its first 10 amendments, known as the "Bill of Rights," guarantees citizens the right to a trial by jury and protection against "cruel and unusual punishment."  Later, in the 14th Amendment, the Constitution provides that citizens cannot be deprived of their life, liberty, or property without "due process of law."  Although not specifically stated, it is also implied in three amendments, the 5th, 6th, and the 14th, that an accused is considered innocent until proven guilty.  These are among the legal protections that provide a foundation for democracies.  While a defendant is awaiting trial, American courts provide for an elaborate system of bail, which allows those individuals to deposit money or property in the court's holding to guarantee against their flight.  The system is great for the middle and upper classes and for the Bail/Bond Commercial Industry; it is different for the poor.

             A judge can deny bail and order pre-trial detention in cases of capital crimes if there is a high risk of flight or if the defendant is considered dangerous to the community.  However, in most cases, a middle-class or upper-class person is able to post bail and remain free until the trial.  For a poor person, bail is set at the same amount depending on the offense, not on the means of the defendant.  Thus, a system of pre-trial detention forces masses of poor people behind bars for many months while they wait for their turn in overloaded court systems.  The tragedy is that "detention centers" are not much different from regular prisons, and detained defendants, innocent and guilty alike, are thrown into the general inmate population.  It is common knowledge that an individual becoming a general population inmate must be a "Viking or a victim;" for the weak, it means a life of rape and enslavement.  It is a clear case of "justice delayed equals justice denied."  I experienced this firsthand during the years that I worked as a teacher and counselor inside the prisons of New York City's Rikers Island.  The bulk of these cases are resolved through a system of "plea bargain," where detained defendants, after months of incarceration, are offered the choice to plead guilty to a lesser charge and be sentenced to "time served," with immediate release.  Otherwise, their inexperience, the Legal Aid Society, a court-appointed attorney, tells them that they can wait more time behind bars to go to trial and then risk a long sentence.  It is an offer few can refuse.

             If this type of "plea bargain" system were to be eliminated, the court system would be overwhelmed; it would collapse.  The possible solutions are additional funding for more courts and personnel, running existing courthouses on a 24/7 schedule, and the introduction of lower-salary magistrates to take lesser offense cases away from high-salary judges.  A simple way to convince the public to accept the higher cost of these reforms would be to restructure the bail system so as to set bail based on means to pay.  Hence, masses of middle and upper-class defendants would experience a stay in detention centers for non-capital crimes.  Of course, while most of us are insulated from a stay in the hell of prison, it is easier to continue to keep the plight of the poor out of sight and out of mind.  Is this the America we want?


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The Shame of American Criminal Justice: Police Abandonment

It has been universally recognized that protection from foreign invasion and from criminals at home is the primary function and duty of government and the paramount justification for its existence. In America today, the threat of foreign invasion is unthinkable, but domestic tranquility is far from universally guaranteed. For upper and middle classes, American police protection is superb by any standard, but for the poor, it is not.

Poor neighborhoods have many more criminals living in them, and a frightening percentage of residents there have been through the criminal schools in our prisons, many with advanced degrees, so to speak.  Criminologists have traditionally suggested that flooding those neighborhoods with police presence would only displace crime.  Yet, that is a great idea; when criminals are displaced to wealthy neighborhoods to practice their trade, residents there will pay to flood their neighborhoods with police presence.  The problem is that wealthy citizens do not want to pay for the cost of flooding poor neighborhoods with police presence to control crime while they remain unaffected by it within their comfort and wealth.

The poor neighborhoods in Chicago and many other major cities resemble war zones.  Gangs rule the streets and the schools, and the ubiquitous response from our political leaders is always the same, "there is nothing that can be done” other than to increase the funding of anti-poverty programs.  The Great Society programs begun in the 60's have cost $trillions and it is hard to notice it.  Local political leaders have often used the funding to build their own electoral machines, public-funded, social-service delivery organizations that employ their loyal ground-game workers.  Some even work in partnership with neighborhood drug gangs, as well as with corrupt police gangs.

Can this change?  Anything can be changed with enough political will.  Street gangs have to be confronted as the terrorist organizations that they are with brute force.  Violent neighborhoods need to be flooded with police forces, with as many minority members as possible within them, but sufficient to reestablish order.  Police officers working in anti-drug units should be scrutinized in the same way that we filter agents for the Secret Service, FBI, and CIA; there is a great deal of corruption in these local forces, and drugs are destroying the fabric of society in these forgotten segments of our nation.  The route out of poverty is good education, which, first of all, requires discipline,  accountability, and a safe neighborhood.

Visit my website at www.CarlosArce.net

The Shame of American Criminal Justice: Police Abandonment

It has been universally recognized that protection from foreign invasion and from criminals at home is the primary function and duty of government and the paramount justification for its existence. In America today, the threat of foreign invasion is unthinkable, but domestic tranquility is far from universally guaranteed. For the upper and middle classes, American police protection is superb by any standard, but for the poor, it is not.

Poor neighborhoods have many more criminals living in them, and a frightening percentage of residents there have been through the criminal schools in our prisons, many with advanced degrees, so to speak.  Criminologists have traditionally suggested that flooding those neighborhoods with police presence would only displace crime.  Yet, that is a great idea; when criminals are displaced to wealthy neighborhoods to practice their trade, residents there will pay to flood their neighborhoods with police presence.  The problem is that wealthy citizens do not want to pay for the cost of flooding poor neighborhoods with police presence to control crime while they remain unaffected by it within their comfort and wealth.

The poor neighborhoods in Chicago and many other major cities resemble war zones.  Gangs rule the streets and the schools, and the ubiquitous response from our political leaders is always the same, "there is nothing that can be done” other than to increase the funding of anti-poverty programs.  The Great Society programs begun in the 60's have cost $trillions and it is hard to notice it.  Local political leaders have often used the funding to build their own electoral machines, public-funded, social-service delivery organizations that employ their loyal ground-game workers.  Some even work in partnership with neighborhood drug gangs, as well as with corrupt police gangs.

Can this change?  Anything can be changed with enough political will.  Street gangs have to be confronted as the terrorist organizations that they are with brute force.  Violent neighborhoods need to be flooded with police forces, with as many minority members as possible within them, but sufficient to reestablish order.  Police officers working in anti-drug units should be scrutinized in the same way that we filter agents for the Secret Service, FBI, and CIA; there is a great deal of corruption in these local forces, and drugs are destroying the fabric of society in these forgotten segments of our nation.  The route out of poverty is good education, which, first of all, requires discipline,  accountability, and a safe neighborhood.

Is There a Donald Trump Secret Majority?

One wonders how Trump has won the Republican Party nomination while so few people seem to publicly proclaim to be ready to vote for him.  Has it been an exercise of reactive choice and suspended judgment?  I dare suspect that there is a "secret majority" of voters in the Republican Party and perhaps beyond who desperately hope for radical change in key areas of government policy but are intimidated into silence by a wave of boisterous repulsion by the American mainstream media.  For Mr. Trump's public and secret supporters, his inartful policy statements are a small price to pay in exchange for the anticipated certainty of his promises of draconian transformation of current government rule.  In his crude way, Mr. Trump is rekindling hope for those who yearn for the days of nearly balanced budgets, unperceivable undocumented immigration, trade surpluses, energy sufficiency, near full employment, secured homeland, predictable social mores...  The media is the message, but will its relentless demonization of the self-funded champion of the dream suffice to prevent the covert revolt?

Visit my website at www.CarlosArce.net

May 23, 2016

Transcending Energy Dependence

The debate over the use of fossil fuels and its effects on global warming tends to polarize American political factions, between those who would wage war on coal, oil, and natural gas and those who favor the "all of the above" solution.  Ideally, the goal of a clean energy world will be reached in the future to arrest global warming. It behooves America to be a world leader in this effort; by most accounts, the U.S. is responsible for some 20% of the world's air pollution.  Nevertheless, other growing nations like Brazil, Russia, India, and China (BRIC), together with economic powerhouses like Japan, Germany, and England, far surpass America in the emission of global warming pollution.

Unilateral industrial disarmament is not the prudent course of action for America; instead, a gradual, multi-step energy transition offers the most sense.  The first step should be an aggressive exploit of American huge natural gas reserves, with the initial intent of replacing the use of diesel in all trucks and buses on U.S. roads.  T. Boone Pickens, the Texan oil tycoon, proposed this, along with other measures, over a decade ago, explaining that this move alone could eliminate the import of foreign oil.  American natural gas could also gradually replace the use of coal for electricity generation, while improvements in clean coal and coal gasification technologies could keep many coal miners at work; others will need retraining and reemployment.  An unleashed American energy sector would produce enough natural gas to supply our national needs, as well as to make America the greatest energy exporter in the world.  An abundance of natural gas would lower its price to the point of our competing oil and coal without tinkering with the free market system.  This logical transition from coal and diesel to natural gas would yield enormous benefits in pollution reduction, job creation, and balance of trade improvements.

A second step in the energy transition scheme is the development of concentric nuclear energy generation.  America has fallen behind in the development of this important source of energy since the near meltdown of the Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant in 1979, which was closely followed by the Chornobyl Nuclear Plant disaster of 1986 in the old Soviet Union.  Most recently, the nuclear power issue has been withdrawn from the planning table following the 2015 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in Japan, which was caused by a Tsunami.  The concept of concentric nuclear power development I propose here would involve the construction of many nuclear plants with inter-connected and redundant water pumps, water storage, and electric generation emergency systems.  Thus, any overheating reactor could garner the cooling system resources of relatively nearby, interconnected sister plants.  Projects involving hundreds of square miles in remote locations in the country and the creation of electric transmission networks would bring massive economic development to those regions of the country.  While their remote locations would minimize risk and public opposition.  The issue of nuclear waste will eventually be solved by space ferrying systems to expel this material from Earth.   

The third step in our quest for energy independence would be the concentric development of wind power centers in fertile locations where natural rivers of wind have always existed, like in the central plains and offshore on the northeast coast of our country. Solar power and a myriad of low-tech energy projects would also gush throughout the nation once energy companies are forced to purchase citizens' developed electric power.

One day, not far into the future, electric cars, hydrogen fuel cells... and ultimately fusion power with the use of helium III mined on the moon will create an energy-rich environment for all.  However, today, America need not be energy dependent, nor poor and indebted anymore.



For more information visit my website at www.CarlosArce.net

Keeping the Eye on the Political Ball

More often than not, our average voter concentrates on the charisma or distastefulness of political candidates while losing sight of crucial issues.  In simple terms, our nation displays a polarized view on a number of key issues:  Do we need a balanced budget amendment, or can we continue to increase the national debt?  Do we stop undocumented immigration and then grant amnesty, or grant amnesty and then stop undocumented immigration?  Is the answer to inferior education more money or school choice?  Do we use natural gas to gain energy self-sufficiency and a cleaner environment, or ban fracking?  Do we first demand a level playing field in international trade or continue to sign free-trade agreements?  On and on, to be or not to be, that is the question?  

The Balanced Budget Constitutional Convention

The Balanced Budget Constitutional Convention

The national debt becomes a problem when we borrow to keep up with runaway entitlements, not for economic development or infrastructure projects.  Entitlements, once given by the elected official, can never be taken back without losing their next election; in fact, the opposite is true.  Hence, only a balanced budget amendment can arrest the budget deficit and control the national debt.  There is a hopeful sign on the horizon.  The U.S. Constitution in Article Five allows for the creation of a "constitutional convention," provided that it is requested by the legislatures 2/3 of the states, which today is 34 states.  An exciting initiative has already achieved the request by 29 states, and the remaining five can be obtained in five republic-dominated legislatures.  Congress has no say in this process, and after the amendment is written, it only requires approval by 3/4 of the state legislatures.  Congress would never get this done, but our founding fathers wisely provided for the alternative process in Article Five of the Constitution so that it can be done by "We the People."

I have just completed my seven-book series on the Vietnam War entitled "Landing Zone."  The seventh and last book on the series, "Landing Zone: The End," is now available for digital download on Amazon.com.  You can also now download the entire series in one integrated volume.  For more information, please visit my website at www.CarlosArce.net

The Entitlements Mirage

When the federal government adopted a "unified budget" in 1968, all the surpluses of the Social Security system were used to cover the general budget deficit; that is, the Social Security savings account was stolen. Today, even with the unified budget, the general budget deficit is growing to more than 40% annually, and the total national debt is surpassing $20 trillion.

Politicians will continue to hide the reality that a substantial increase in the retirement age and means testing are soon to be the entitlements' new normal. The best future generations can hope for is a "defined contribution" arrangement that allows seniors to first recover their investment in the system before they are subjected to means testing. The mathematical reality is unavoidable.

I have just published book number six of the seven-book series on the Vietnam War entitled "Landing Zone."  The following are the six books now available in Amazon.com:
1. Landing Zone: The Beginning
2. Landing Zone: The Shock
3. Landing Zone: Survival
4. Landing Zone: Resignation
5. Landing Zone: Analysis
6. Landing Zone: A Different Side of War

The last book in the series, entitled "Landing Zone: The End," is in progress and expected by the summertime.  These and other books can be accessed through my website at www.CarlosArce.net

The Failure of the Chinese Model

The ongoing collapse of the Chinese national economy should not be surprising.  Although their unfounded economic success has become a cause-célèbre among those who cheer any sign of American decline, the secret, hidden in plain sight, is that their model of totalitarian capitalism is an oxymoron.  The time-tested history of centralized economic planning has been disastrous everywhere it has been tried.  Idealized political and economic central planning, coupled with the coerced motivation of the working masses, is not a desirable formula for any society; it will never outcompete the situational ingenuity and self-interest-driven energy of free societies.

Totalitarian political systems, whether coupled with socialist economic systems in the communist model or artificially married to a pseudo-free enterprise economy, are intrinsically evil; they force their citizens to live in Godless societies with repressed personal ambition.  China has played the wolf in sheep's clothing long enough.  Together with Russia, what President Reagan described as the "evil empire" is very much alive.  Not so long ago, China dispatched an army tank to machine gun down a peaceful demonstrator in their capital city of Beijing's central square of Tiananmen.  Today, China has been using the bonanza of its Wal-Mart market to anesthetize its angry masses, as well as to bully its neighbors.  Their society is a simmering volcano because their people, like humans everywhere, yearn to be free.

Their house of cards is coming down, and they will probably latch out to "wag the dog," but it's already clear that the emperor has no clothes. If they expect to have continued access to our bountiful market, it is high time for America to demand from China fair trade practices and an end to their territorial overreach.