Thursday, December 14, 2006
More on Malaria
The topic of malaria in Africa is heating up. President Bush & his wife Laura have just pledged funding from the U.S. in order to fight the disease. I have to wonder if it's really going to happen, though, as I just googled "bush malaria pledge" and found a slew of articles on the exact same topic from a year-and-a-half ago. A sampling:
Bush Overstates Africa Aid Increase
Did this aid ever get to Africa? If it did, why didn't it do more good? Hmmm.
Bush Announces Initiatives Targeting Malaria, Education, Women's Rights in Africa
Save the Children Applauds Bush Pledge to Increase Aid for AfricaBush Overstates Africa Aid Increase
Did this aid ever get to Africa? If it did, why didn't it do more good? Hmmm.
Labels: africa, george w. bush, malaria, money, U.S.
Friday, December 01, 2006
Worldwide Corruption Index
I got an email from Gallup that ranks 101 countries on a Worldwide Corruption Index. The lower the number, the less people feel that their country is corrupt. The U.S. falls somewhere in the middle. Finland has the lowest amount of perceived corruption. And which country has the most? Drumroll please . . . . Lithuania.
My funk has lifted from yesterday. After my post, I did my best not to frost the frog, although he did get a little dab of icing. (Why am I picturing the frosting as pink?) The mood passed completely on my drive to work. When the air is particularly dry in Minnesota, all of nature's details come into sharp focus. (Is that because there's less water in the atmosphere?) Often, while I'm driving to work, I'm in my own world and put most of my attention on the road, not on the long distance. Not so this morning. The trees were sprinkled with hoar frost. The river had a coating of ice with a streaky dusting of snow. The sun filtered through the gray clouds, creating an easy glow. The air was cold and snappy. Heaven.
My funk has lifted from yesterday. After my post, I did my best not to frost the frog, although he did get a little dab of icing. (Why am I picturing the frosting as pink?) The mood passed completely on my drive to work. When the air is particularly dry in Minnesota, all of nature's details come into sharp focus. (Is that because there's less water in the atmosphere?) Often, while I'm driving to work, I'm in my own world and put most of my attention on the road, not on the long distance. Not so this morning. The trees were sprinkled with hoar frost. The river had a coating of ice with a streaky dusting of snow. The sun filtered through the gray clouds, creating an easy glow. The air was cold and snappy. Heaven.
Labels: corruption, frost the frog, funk, gallup, minnesota, nature, problem, U.S.
Monday, November 27, 2006
African Microfinancing
Just got this report in from The Gallup Poll concerning microfinancing in Africa. Interesting how Africans see that government regulations make it difficult to start a business. Sounds like the United States to me.
November 28, 2006 Addendum: For those of you new to Filter & Splice, I've posted before on Africa, so this really isn't some extraneous post that has no context. To find previous posts on Africa, click the Africa label at the bottom of this post. :)
November 28, 2006 Addendum: For those of you new to Filter & Splice, I've posted before on Africa, so this really isn't some extraneous post that has no context. To find previous posts on Africa, click the Africa label at the bottom of this post. :)
Labels: africa, business, gallup, U.S.
Thursday, November 16, 2006
FtTP - Canadian Healthcare + U.S. Healthcare
This post, too, is in honor of my brother. During our hour-long phone conversation tonight, we got to talking about healthcare systems. He suggested this Frankensteining the Talent Pool idea: For perfection in healthcare, combine the best of the Canadian & U.S. systems. Use the universal system of Canada so that everyone is guaranteed care, but use the speed of the U.S. system so that people wouldn't have to wait too long for care. I'm sure all it'll take is the wave a magic wand . . . .
Labels: brother, Canada, frankensteining the talent pool, FtTP, healthcare, magic wand, U.S.
