What's New Robert L. Park 1 Nov 2012

WHAT'S NEW   Robert L. Park   Friday, 1 Nov 2012   Washington, DC

1. THE ROMNEY TAPE: AM I TOO OLD TO ENLIST IN THE CLASS WAR?
I don't think anyone has a problem figuring out where I stand on science,=
=20
religion or politics, but a month ago I watched the now notorious "Romney=
=20
tape.=94 Surreptitiously recorded at a $50,000-a-plate fundraiser for Mit=
t=20
Romney, held in the palatial Florida residence of one of his supporters, =
it=20
was deeply disturbing. The Mitt Romney on that tape, openly sharing his=20=

plans for the presidency and his contempt for the ordinary wage earner is=
=20
unknown to the general public.  Why don't we withhold our vote?  Who woul=
d=20
notice?

2. THE REPUBLICAN STRATEGY: EVERYONE AGREES IT WORKS =96 SO FAR.
The GOP problem in 2008 was dire; the administration of George W. Bush ha=
d=20
been a disaster, squandering the record budget surplus, of Bill Clinton.=20=

Republicans could only invoke memories of the mythic era of Ronald Reagan=
.=20
But Ronald Reagan used his personal charm to persuade Democratic leaders =
to=20
work with their Republican colleagues in the interests of the nation.=20=20=

Mitch McConnell and John Boehner, however, are short on personal charm.=20=
=20
Saboteurs by nature, they devised a strategy more suited to their talents=
:=20
a thin Republican majority in the House was enough to block whatever the=20=

President sought to do, as long as Republican ranks are purged of those=20=

with cooperative tendencies.  I already miss Dick Lugar.  One of the fine=
st=20
people to ever serve in the U.S. Senate, Senator Lugar worked tirelessly=20=

for the dismantlement of nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons around=
=20
the world.  Alas, he lost the Republican primary for a seventh term to=20=

Richard Mourdock, state treasurer of Indiana.  A tea-party conservative,=20=

Mourdock said in a televised debate that, "I think even when it begins in=
=20
that horrible situation of rape conception, it is something that God=20
intended to happen." Although Mourdock says he meant that only the=20
pregnancy was God=92s will, not the rape, the remark identified him as pa=
rt=20
of the so-called "Republican War-on-Women," along with Missouri Senate=20=

Republican candidate Todd Akin, who invented the term "legitimate rape."=20=


3.SCIENCE ADVICE: NEAL LANE COMMENTS ON THE KEY TO GROWTH.
The last time the federal budget showed a surplus was in the Clinton=20
administration. The driving force behind the huge surplus was technologic=
al=20
progress resulting from federally funded research. The architect of scien=
ce=20
policy in the Clinton administration was the President's science advisor,=
=20
physics professor Neal Lane of Rice University. A NY Times op-ed by Neal=20=

Lane on October 28 points out that Mr. Romney is planning deep cuts in=20=

investment in science, technology and education.  Mr. Romney seems to hav=
e=20
lost sight of the critical role of research investments, not only in=20
developing new medicines and cleaner energy sources but also in creating=20=

higher-skilled jobs. Neal Lane uses the example of Google, which was=20
started by two graduate students working on a project supported by the=20=

National Science Foundation (which Neil Lane headed). Today Google employ=
s=20
54,000 people.

THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND.
Opinions are the author's and not necessarily shared by the
University of Maryland, but they should be.
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