Opinion Source: Delivering summaries of editorial and op-ed pieces from major papers by email.OpinionSource is dedicated to bringing you national and world opinionAfghanistan Doesn't Need a 'Surge'- (Found July 23, 2008 ) Afghanistan needs many things, but two more brigades of US troops are not among them, states Marlowe. Obama, she asserts, can't fix his Iraq mistake by posing tough in Kabul. There is no uniform method to counterinsurgency, and best practices must be applied in a nuanced way. The US must flexibly adapt to conditions in a lawless nation where its response may need to vary from valley to valley. It shouldn't be hard to see that adding men and more...http://www.opinionsource.com/article.jsp?articleidentifier=26950&password=121670334762... A Better Way to Support Home Buyers- (Found July 23, 2008 ) The authors assert that the mortgage financing system requires more than modest reforms and tweaking; it needs to be replaced. They suggest that the government shift priorities and help home buyers, rather than the home financing process, which effectively hides a housing subsidy by outsourcing government policy to a semi-private, for-profit corporation that exposes the taxpayers to $5 trillion in potential liabilities. Whatever it decides, they argue...http://www.opinionsource.com/article.jsp?articleidentifier=26949&password=121670276882... Bush recognizes opportunity- (Found July 23, 2008 ) Steinberg argues that the US policy shift regarding direct negotiations with Iran came about because the US recognized signs of weakness that might be exploited in negotiations. The change was also done with an eye to US domestic policy. If Iran responds positively, the Republicans and the Bush administration will get the credit. If not, it will be easier to justify the military option.http://www.opinionsource.com/article.jsp?articleidentifier=26940&password=121664197942... Tough Climate- (Found July 23, 2008 ) The G8 nations have just pledged to halve their carbon output by 2050. The plan would be a truly staggering task if taken seriously. Last year's much-discussed Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change contended that one percent of global GDP per annum would be required, starting today, to avoid the most devastating climate-change scenarios. Last month, the good Professor Stern upped the ante to 2 percent. China and India continue to scoff at the..http://www.opinionsource.com/article.jsp?articleidentifier=26835&password=121618957260... Scapegoating speculators- (Found July 23, 2008 ) The writer explains futures markets, describing a scenario of futures markets in corn. One of the very valuable functions performed by the speculator is the allocation of resources over time. It make sense to take the future into account when making consumption decision today. Congressional attacks on speculation do not alter the oil market's fundamental demand and supply conditions. The long-term price of oil would be lowered if Congress permitted...http://www.opinionsource.com/article.jsp?articleidentifier=26836&password=121618959032... Bridging the Gap on Climate Change- (Found July 23, 2008 ) Expanding the use of clean technologies is one way to address the common challenge of reducing greenhouse gas emissions while transcending the differences here at home and between developed and developing countries. That is why the authors support a new multilateral initiative to help finance the deployment of commercially available clean technology to the developing world. This Clean Technology Fund, proposed by President Bush last September, is an...http://www.opinionsource.com/article.jsp?articleidentifier=26837&password=121618960495... Obama's Iraq Mission- (Found July 23, 2008 ) To win the US presidency, Barack Obama has only to pull equal with John McCain in public opinion about his competence in national security and foreign policy. Obama does not need to achieve a major coup in his trip to the Middle East and Europe this week; he just needs to seem calm, confident and reasonable. A sign of his elective promise is the fact that the Bush administration and McCain campaign have adjusted their positions on Iraq to align more...http://www.opinionsource.com/article.jsp?articleidentifier=26957&password=121672803778... Timelines in the Sand- (Found July 23, 2008 ) In validation of Barack Obama's foreign policy ideas, President Bush, who has always vehemently resisted any idea of a "timeline" for US troops' presence in Iraq, now accepts the idea of a "time horizon" for withdrawal of troops. Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki apparently agrees with the basics of Obama's 16-month withdrawal plan, which has been ridiculed by Bush and John McCain. Now Republicans seem to be agreeing with Obama's ...http://www.opinionsource.com/article.jsp?articleidentifier=26958&password=121672940251... Why Jesse Jackson Hates Obama- (Found July 23, 2008 ) Despite having criticized Jesse Jackson in the past, Steele admits to having reservedly admired him. Now he contemplates why Jackson would resent, or even despise, the challenge presented to his generation of black leaders by Barack Obama. It boils down to the fact that Obama is a white "race card" providing moral leverage that whites can use against the moral force black leaders have wielded against them for decades. By offering blacks an end.http://www.opinionsource.com/article.jsp?articleidentifier=26947&password=121670140535... American Cancer Care Beats the Rest- (Found July 23, 2008 ) Gratzer writes that a major international study has confirmed this week that US medicine bests the cancer treatment available to people in 30 other countries. He compares anecdotal accounts of health care in other Western nations with the data and concludes you don't want socialized medicine if you're really sick. Yet, he argues, our federal government can take a leadership role in promoting more effective competition to improve the standard of care in..http://www.opinionsource.com/article.jsp?articleidentifier=26948&password=121670214995... |