Finding Financial Success, and Capitalizing On Economic Growth, Through Pro-Growth Work Environments2/16/2018 The economy is either growing or shrinking, doing good or bad. When the economy is doing bad, the political world always talks about fixing it as the business world slashes costs. When the economy is doing good, the political world always talks about accelerating growth while businesses “reinvest” to streamline their operations to make them more “efficient.” There is often a great deal of talk about job creation and tax cuts, but politicians and businessmen rarely act to improve the financial wellbeing of the Middle Class and poor. Despite decent economic growth under the Obama Administration and Trump Administration, coupled with tax breaks that offer few direct benefits to most people, there is no major effort to address the financial needs of the majority.
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Ash Wednesday may be a Christian holiday and the Pope may be a Christian leader, but the Pope is also a world leader whose influence stretches around the globe and whose counsel is revered by other world leaders. It is, therefore, wise to reflect on his words of wisdom during one of the most important occasions on the Christian calender. For Ash Wednesday 2018, Pope Francis asked Christians to “pause,” “see,” and “return.” Pope Francis wants Christians to step away from the chaos of their fast-paced modern lifestyles, reflect on the human costs of everything happening in the world, and forge ahead with compassion. Although the Pope emphasized the need to say no to violence and conflict, his intent was for his message to be broadly applied in all aspects of life.
The internet has been a revolutionary force that has steadily been transforming the societies and economies of the world. The internet has changed how mankind interacts by opening channels for the free flow of information and free communication of people across the globe. Propaganda, misinformation, trolling, and “fake news” scandals, among other issues, have shattered the utopia fantasy of the internet by revealing how a tool for enlightenment can be hijacked to hack public perception, e.g. the Russian US Election Hacking Scandal. Although these issues need addressed, censorship in one form or another has become the answer. Censorship is, however, the goal of those who abuse the internet against free Peoples and societies, so censorship cannot be used to fight this abuse.
Republican Senator Rand Paul and his libertarian-leaning ideology has a tendency of making headlines for his positions on fiscal issues. While he has made plenty of enemies for his stances, he has also earned a lot of respect, especially on the Republican side of the aisle. Quite frankly, Rand Paul, like his father Congressman Ron Paul, would probably be a little know figure, if not for his consistency and unwillingness to compromise on his principles, even if he has been willing to compromise on policy. Although Rand and Ron Paul have both gained notary by running for President, their true political power is rooted in their ability to withstand political pressure and do something few in Washington can do, i.e. be honest and vote in line with their actual principles.
A new law in Poland makes it illegal to accuse Poland as a nation of complacency in the Holocaust. “Whoever claims, publicly and contrary to the facts, that the Polish Nation or the Republic of Poland is responsible or co-responsible for Nazi crimes committed… shall be liable to a fine or imprisonment for up to 3 years." The law also outlaws the use of phrases like "Polish death camps." From the perspective of a US citizen, whose speech is protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution, this law, like most anti-defamation laws, is an affront liberty and democracy. To this writer, who happens to be of German descent, this law, like all efforts to deny history, is outrageous. The holocaust happened. It happened, because a lot people of did a lot of bad things, including many Germans and Poles. History must be embraced for what it is.
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