Owatonna, MN Correspondent– Aside from Joan of Arc, Xena the Warrior Princess, and a handful of comic book and movie heroine warriors, females fighting on the front lines in a war was never considered until the rise of the modern feminist movement started in the 1970s. Women have gradually earned the right to join the military and expand their roles, but the debate about whether to allow them on the front lines hasn’t been resolved. Continue reading
Government
Broken parties in Washington?
From our Gastonia, NC Correspondent
And now, only a month or so behind schedule, the Republican health care plan is ready to come to a vote … or is it? With more than a dozen recalcitrant Republicans refusing to join the rank and file to move the GOP plan forward, President Donald Trump is facing a huge challenge early in his reign. Continue reading
Many people oppose torture and they are upset that America might be reinstituting the practice as it was previously banned by the Obama administration. Should torture be put to use again by intelligence agencies?
Sheffield, Jamaica Correspondent-We all want to prevent mass destruction, terrorism, nuclear attacks, and whatever America fears. Preventing the aforementioned means having Intelligence at the right time. But how is this ‘Intelligence’ gathered? I’d say in more ways than one. Of late, America seemingly might be reincorporating or reinstituting the practice of torture. Continue reading
Would Eliminating Taxes be Disastrous for Society?
Prescott Valley, AZ Correspondent-Eliminating taxes will likely not happen as there will be tax shifts to make up for any termination of state or federal income taxes. If taxes are done away with, there will always be replacements through other sources of revenue.
If alternative sources were to be eliminated, there likely would be negative consequences but with many states currently proposing tax shifts, there will be replacements offered that will, in the long run, compare to the cost of taxes. People will challenge the productivity of the alternatives, but if they know that the tax replacement will help the infrastructures of their states, the alternative to state income taxes might be an easier pill to swallow. With state and federal entities needing monies to support the state and federal decline in infrastructure, any impending doom will be absorbed by individual taxpayers who share most of the burdens anyway. Continue reading
Donald Trumps First month as President
From our Gastonia, NC Correspondent
We’re not even a month into the Trump administration, and already the fur is flying. The hinted-at ties to Russia that didn’t quite gain traction in the press or the public consciousness before the election are becoming more and more troublesome, and the orange-haired one simply can’t wean himself from his Twitter habit, providing endless fodder for late-night pundits and Sunday morning commentators. If you solely look at Twitter, we appear to have left our country in the hands of a thin-skinned adolescent who’s obsessed with how unfairly he’s being treated. Continue reading
The Federal Reserve finally ended their zero-interest-rate stance after about seven years. Will rising interest rates cause a recession in the next year or two?
Owatonna, MN Correspondent– The U.S. economy has been chugging along at a slow-to-moderate pace since the current recovery began back in 2009 after the Great Recession ended. Part of the reason for that steady growth and lack of volatility in the stock market must be chalked up to historically low interest rates. Rising interest rates may precipitate a recession, but that’s not a certainty. Continue reading
Does Jared Kushner’s appointment by President Trump present a conflict of interest?
Gastonia, NC Correspondent-Back in the ‘70s, my father took a job as the assistant superintendent of education for the state of Louisiana. Shortly after he was hired, his boss went to prison for various corruption schemes. That man’s successor was an absolute study in Louisiana politics at its finest. Within seven months of his having taking office, every single one of his immediate family members, along with a goodly number of cousins, aunts and uncles, had been given jobs with the state. Continue reading
Is the “Not My President” movement a reflection of apathy of many voters towards the election process? Has the “Not My President” rhetoric gotten out of hand?
Owatonna, MN Correspondent-In one way, the “Not My President” movement does reflect apathetic voters, particularly Democrats, because the feeling came through during the campaign that two things were happening. First, many voters presumed that Hillary Clinton would win because she had the better resume than Donald Trump and that she should win so we can get this darned “First Woman President” nonsense over and done with. As if her winning the election was a foregone conclusion. Continue reading
Symposium 2016: There have been a number of former military generals appointed to top cabinet and related positions within the upcoming Trump administration. Is there a conflict with civilian government versus military control in these appointments?
Prescott Valley, AZ Correspondent- In a Trump led administration there would not be a conflict with civilian government versus military control in these appointments as the Constitution does not prohibit the president from appointing military officers to any executive branch position, and Congress does not have a role in determining the nominees.
Symposium 2016: Former Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman cautions that the Democratic Party needs to find a leader who will keep it from being completely overtaken by the far left wing of the party. Should tried and true Democrats prevent this kind of takeover, or should they simply let the party further deteriorate into something far more left wing?
Owatonna, MN Correspondent- As we’ve seen with the Republican party in recent years, change in party philosophy begins more at the grassroots level than with party leadership. The core Republican is now much more conservative than he or she was a few decades ago. And we shouldn’t forget that back in the first half of the 20th Century, Republicans were the more dovish of the two major parties, reluctant to go to war during both World Wars. Continue reading
Thinking Outside The Boxe 