In his farewell address, President Dwight Eisenhower warned the nation that a military-industrial complex, led by interests within the government, the military and those industries supplying the military, could stray from the original intent of national defense towards private interest. We were invoked to get it right by constantly scrutinizing decisions coming from those defending us, and to do this beyond the fears that may be engendered. This was about scrutiny, not abandonment. Today his words may easily be dittoed for the two biochemical-industrial complexes: food and pharmaceuticals.   more »

In an ideal world, employees should be paid in accordance with both the effort they make and the benefit that they bring to the company. It must be difficult for management to set pay standards for the lower ranks, but for themselves it is impossible: their contribution is unique as is their personal interest in the outcome.   more »

This list of features is an overview of my earlier proposed healthcare plan. It reconciles a federal sense of what is important with an actuarial and medical sense of what is. The details would dynamically emerge from a federal legislature, and actuarial as well as medical wikitables. The tables would be kept apolitical much as is the U.S. Supreme Court; their modification, restricted but not necessarily to one country. For most details regarding implementation, please read that early post, Healthcare: A Nationwide System (www.outonatwig.net).   more »

Long before the founding of Islam the charging of interest on loans had been broadly forbidden. Early encounters with interest bearing loans had often led to impoverishment and in response community by community condemned the instrument. Beginning with England under Henry VIII, many non-Islamic countries began recognizing the value brought to the borrower in a loan’s temporal empowerment.   more »

For every nation that supports its citizens in obtaining health services there are financial limitations that make some care unavailable. Here I propose a system that mediates optimally between our deepest values and the realities of illness and scarcity. It would cut paperwork while spurring and even redirecting medical research.   more »

There is mounting pressure from many elected officials in Massachusetts to allow communities to dig more deeply into a grand old deceit that hints of special relationships with luck.   more »

This was written in response to slot machines at racetracks. See update addressing a proposed casino.   more »

By the nature of its task Social Security will be forever coming up short. The challenge is to avoid confusion as to how our decisions redound to the well being of contributors.   more »