http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/future/ en-us Sat, 12 Dec 2009 18:36:32 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2406182/posts Recape Predictions for 2009 Business/Economy 1) The last half of 2008 will be declared a recession and it will continue through the first quarter. We will have little growth in the 2nd and 3rd quarter, modest growth in the 4th quarter. >Right 2) The Dow will finish at 11,500 on the last trading day of 2009, which will be Thursday, December 31st. >probably not 3) Dollar at the end of 2009 will equal € 1.32 > No ADD strikes again. I meant to say 1 Euro = $1.32 - No either way 4) Unemployment will peak in early fall. >TBD... Perdogg's Crystal Ball http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2406182/posts#comment Sat, 12 Dec 2009 18:36:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414101/posts CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE ADDER, Iraq, Dec. 23, 2009 – The soldiers of “A” Company, 1st Battalion, 77th Armor Regiment, are leading the way in the “advise and assist” mission of the 1st Armored Division’s 4th Brigade. Army 1st Lt. Dale Cox, right, speaks through an interpreter to a school principal about plans to help his school in Iraq’s Muthanna province. U.S. Army photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The company’s mission is to assist the State Department’s provincial reconstruction team in building a better future for the people of Iraq’s Muthanna province. The soldiers provide military movement teams to... American Forces Press Service http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414101/posts#comment Wed, 23 Dec 2009 23:26:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2405037/posts 12/10/2009 - KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan (AFNS) -- The Zabul Provincial Reconstruction Team is on a nine-month tour assisting the Afghan government in bringing about stability through governance, reconstruction and development. Although the Zabul PRT has been in country for several years has completed approximately 40 projects this year and is scheduled for more than 30 more. In the end, approximately 350,000 Afghans and their future generations will reap the benefits of the Zabul PRT's labor. The Zabul PRT, a diverse organization with joint, interagency and international components, is one of the principle counter-insurgency units in the region part of a... Air Force Link http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2405037/posts#comment Fri, 11 Dec 2009 01:09:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2402441/posts Mainline Protestant churches seem to have weathered the past decade better than many people have assumed, but the future is raising serious challenges to continued stability, said a Christian pollster. George Barna analyzed data for The Barna Group's latest report examining mainline denominations. Weekend attendance at mainline churches has remained relatively stable, ranging from 89 to 100, over the past decade but the report suggests that they may be "on the precipice of a period of decline." Mainline bodies – which the research group identifies as American Baptist Churches in the USA; The Episcopal Church; the Evangelical Lutheran Church in... Christian Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2402441/posts#comment Tue, 8 Dec 2009 00:27:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2402406/posts CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE ADDER, Iraq, Dec. 7, 2009 – Educating children might not be the first thing Americans discuss when the subject of Iraq comes up, but for the soldiers of Task Force Pathfinder here, helping the next generation of Iraqis obtain a basic education is a critical part of their mission. Saleh Mustasher Fahad greets Army 1st. Lt. Dale Cox at the job site for the Al Salman School in Iraq’s Muthanna province, Nov. 1, 2009. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Ronald Leydet  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. For Iraq to be safe and stable when U.S. soldiers... American Forces Press Service http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2402406/posts#comment Mon, 7 Dec 2009 23:21:39 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2397953/posts Yesterday, I posted a video of Peter Schiff lambasting Ben Bernanke for never getting anything right. In and of itself, this is nothing new. What made it fun, however, was the fact that he was part of a panel discussion with St. Louis Fed President James Bullard and Fed Vice Chair Alan Blinder, who both attempted, quite weakly, to defend Bernanke. Today, a new clip from the same roundtable, as Schiff gets technical and dismantles Bullard's weak sauce theory that other countries will for some unknown reason return to the dollar during times of crisis. Schiff also goes on to... Organized Exploitation http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2397953/posts#comment Tue, 1 Dec 2009 22:39:49 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2395922/posts Brig. Gen. Gerald E. Lang (right), the Multi-National Division – South deputy commanding general for support and a Sauk Rapids, Minn., native, shares a laugh with Lt. Col. Clinton Moyer, the chief of Civil Operations with the 36th Sustainment Brigade out of Temple, Texas, and a Clearwater, Kan., native, and Shaykh Uday, during lunch, Nov. 19, at a home in southern Iraq. Photo by Spc. Lisa A. Cope, 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary). COL ADDER — The Multi-National Division – South deputy commanding general for support recently visited local shaykhs near here to discuss how the drawdown of U.S. forces will... Multi-National Force - Iraq http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2395922/posts#comment Sat, 28 Nov 2009 18:23:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2381101/posts A Glimpse into the Future By Norma Zager “Children today are tyrants. They contradict their parent, gobble their food, and tyrannize their teachers” Socrates(470-399 B.C.) Despite the constant egregious flow of rhetoric from our obnoxious politicians, the voice of reason occasionally emerges like a small flower through the weeds in surprising places. Last evening in my university classroom, I was taken by the fresh bloom emerging through the dense grass of our all-too-common uncivil social discourse. Although narcissistic politicians would have us all believe the American people condone their vision for future generations, I was quite hopeful to hear the... "Postcards from Israel - Postcards from America" http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2381101/posts#comment Sat, 7 Nov 2009 22:05:28 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2376143/posts ALBANY, N.Y. – In a Republican Party struggling to find its identity, the surprise withdrawal of the chosen GOP candidate for a New York congressional race amid a rising conservative upstart renews a lingering national debate: Are moderates welcome in today's Grand Old Party? The question became even more relevant Sunday when the ex-candidate, state Assemblywoman Dierdre Scozzafava, threw her support behind the Democrat in the race rather than the Conservative Party candidate favored by fellow Republicans. The GOP leadership insisted on Sunday political TV talk shows the party is strong and inclusive while Democrats described a Republican party out... AP on Yahoo http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2376143/posts#comment Mon, 2 Nov 2009 00:16:15 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2374490/posts Eight billion dollars isn’t enough — not nearly enough. It’s not often you’ll hear this newspaper make a statement like that. Usually we are urging fiscal restraint. But if this country truly wants high-speed rail, we’re going to have to get serious about the effort. Eight billion dollars won’t get us there. That’s the amount of federal stimulus money promised by the Obama administration for high-speed rail. Already the administration has received requests from 24 states for projects amounting to $50 billion in high-speed projects. It also has received $7 billion in requests from states wanting to improve rail travel... Charlottesville Daily Progress http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2374490/posts#comment Fri, 30 Oct 2009 13:26:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2371667/posts The past and future of the Leftby Guy Rundle Monday, 28 September 2009 Years ago, I remember seeing a Hinze cartoon in the study of a friend, a Left Labor activist. It showed an inner city 90s teenager — opshop clothes, funny haircut — with a placard “no third runway” about to go off to a demo. “Coming to the airport protest Dad?” she said to an aging figure hunched over a chunky 90s computer. “No thanks, IÂ’ve got to write another article on the death of the left,” said the harried, bearded figure. It was clear that HinzeÂ’s sympathies were with the kid,... Crikey http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2371667/posts#comment Tue, 27 Oct 2009 04:24:15 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2370069/posts Alex Kurtagic’s dystopian novel, Mister attempts to illustrate the everyday consequences of living in a world in which current social, cultural, political, economic, and demographic trends have been allowed to continue. It treats the result of the liberal utopians’ efforts with sarcasm and derision, but its main target is the so-called “respectable conservative,” that has the right instincts and is fully aware of the destructive forces at work in Western societies, but is too preoccuped with maintaining social status and professional prestige to risk voicing politically incorrect opinions. He silently opts for a reactive strategy of avoidance and adaptation, rather... Amazon book. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2370069/posts#comment Sat, 24 Oct 2009 18:01:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2368309/posts Maglev is environmentally friendly and eliminates the need for fossil fuels in transporting goods.Cal State Long Beach was awarded in September $245,000 by the U.S. Department of Transportation to support the engineering department for research on magnetic levitation technologies. Magnetic levitation, or maglev, is a form of transportation technology that eliminates the need for any type of fossil fuel because it uses electricity and a system of powerful magnets to lift and propel. The CSULB engineering department is working with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories to develop a maglev system to be used for moving goods and other cargo. This system... Daily 49er (Cal State Long Beach) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2368309/posts#comment Thu, 22 Oct 2009 13:14:17 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2368007/posts On his blog recently, Paul Krugman has a post on how we are doing in our effort to increase current GDP. It seems, the target of Keynesians, ever and always, is raising GDP a bit more, in both good times and bad times. In fact, I believe that effort goes a long way toward creating an on-going boom and bust cycle and asset bubbles in the U.S. One problem, not well understood, is that policy has serious implications for the longer run welfare of the U.S. economy. Seeking Alpha http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2368007/posts#comment Thu, 22 Oct 2009 01:10:18 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2361195/posts First there was the bagless vacuum cleaner, then the towel-less hand dryer: Now James Dyson, the British inventor, has developed a bladeless electric fan which goes on sale on Tuesday in the US and Australia. The Dyson Air Multiplier fan – which looks like something straight out of a sci-fi movie – uses advancements in airflow engineering instead of traditional blades to ‘multiply’ air 15 times and push out 119 gallons of smooth and uninterrupted air every second. FT.COM http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2361195/posts#comment Tue, 13 Oct 2009 12:00:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2359118/posts I’ve seen the future, and it’s black and white. It was a sunny Sunday morning in our Lower East Side community playground, animated by a frenetic blur of whooping kids, my own included. Alone on a bench, I’d neglected to bring a book from home and wasn’t in the mood to socialize with the parents nearby. I opted instead to subject the ad-hoc collection of children to an informal Jewish identity census. Before disclosing the outcome of this thoroughly unscientific survey, it’s important to recall that this neighborhood was once the beating heart of Jewish life in America and the... The Forward http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2359118/posts#comment Fri, 9 Oct 2009 22:49:50 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2348105/posts The Irony of Immortality By Norma Zager The recent scene in a West Wing rerun was startling familiar. It dealt with Iran’s pursuit of The Bomb and the United States’ warning to Israel to discontinue settlement activity. It could have been filmed this morning and yet it was ten years old. Is this a tribute to Aaron Sorkin and his fellow writers’ ability to foresee the future? Or is it merely a testament to man’s inability to evolve? Watching the story unfold I was struck by a great irony. Man’s driving force is his desire for immortality. This fuels his... "Postcards from Israel - Postcards from America" http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2348105/posts#comment Fri, 25 Sep 2009 15:13:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2338195/posts The next 100 years George Friedman Published 27 August 2009 Japan and Turkey form an alliance to attack the US. Poland becomes America’s closest ally. Mexico makes a bid for global supremacy, and a third world war takes place in space. Sounds strange? It could all happen. . . In 1492, Columbus sailed west. In 1991, the Soviet Union collapsed. These two events bracketed the European age. Once, Mayans lived unaware that there were Mongols, who were unaware there were Zulus. From the 15th century onwards, European powers collectively overwhelmed the world, creating the first truly global geopolitical system in... New Statesman http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2338195/posts#comment Sat, 12 Sep 2009 20:57:16 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2330821/posts QADISIYAH, Iraq, Sept. 2, 2009 – Children here are getting an opportunity most of their parents never had, as they plan to move into a new school later this year as part of a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers project. Construction on Al Hasan Al Basri school, a project of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Gulf Region Division, began in April 2009 in Qadisiyah province, Iraq. Amenities include 12 classrooms, an administrative area, library, potable water system, communication system with Internet capabilities and fire alarm system. Courtesy photo   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “Most of the people... American Forces Press Service http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2330821/posts#comment Wed, 2 Sep 2009 23:40:07 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2322412/posts I've been spending a lot of time thinking about what is likely to happen in the future. I can't help but think the clues are obvious, and will be glaringly so in hindsight. Does anyone recall Rhett Butler's comments about the fast-approaching Civil War? "I mean...there's not a cannon factory in the whole South....I'm saying very plainly that the Yankees are better equipped than we. They've got factories, shipyards, coal mines... and a fleet to bottle up our habours and starve us to death. All we've got is cotton, and slaves and ...arrogance." So what are we facing? Inflation? Deflation?... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2322412/posts#comment Sun, 23 Aug 2009 03:47:05 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2315940/posts Anyone with an active interest in economics, or with the kind of bank account and job that causes them to read the Wall Street Journal should by now have a very good sense of what is coming down the pipe in the USA. Most of the rest of the world – especially the Chinese – seem to have a very good sense of it. While it is true that the USA is full of ingenious and enterprising people, and so probably won’t go up in a puff of smoke, it may soon be over in its current incarnation. And here’s... The Moderate Voice http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2315940/posts#comment Fri, 14 Aug 2009 14:21:40 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2302086/posts "Just 20 percent of our people are good. 80 percent are bad. You should know that....We're Arabs. But first we are selfish and greedy." -"Sayid" Women look at Iraqi soldiers on a patrol on the outskirts of Basra, 420 km (260 miles) southeast of Baghdad November 23, 2008. REUTERS/Atef Hassan Introduction excerpt from Michael Totten's The Future of Iraq Pt. IV: Getting an accurate reading of Iraqi public opinion is hard. It might be impossible. I've seen Iraqis cheer American soldiers, and I've seen some Iraqis hug American soldiers in Fallujah, Ramadi, and Baghdad. A few weeks ago, though, hundreds... Flopping Aces http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2302086/posts#comment Mon, 27 Jul 2009 17:22:56 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2295013/posts If all past, present, and future leftist, socialistic legislation really can't be either undone or successfully changed to pro-conservative, pro-capitalistic, pro-free market solutions instead by any future non-leftist politicians, then what's the point in even seriously running for any future elections in any political office? "Yea! I'm for conservative this, and for conservative that, but "Cap and Trade", socialized health care, amnesty for illegal immigrants, and any other leftist legislation really can't be stopped, because it's already law and permanently in place forever! But, vote for conservatives, anyways!" That makes sense-not! me http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2295013/posts#comment Fri, 17 Jul 2009 19:42:40 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2293665/posts If all "non-leftist" candidates for political office, in '09 and beyond, really don't have the definitive solutions to actually either "fixing" or actually "getting rid of" Cap and Trade, socialized health care, and everything else that's pro-leftist on all of the issues, then what's the point in even running for any political office? If this country is really screwed for, both, the short-term future and the long-term future, thanks to leftist legislation that's either already intact or will be soon enough, then what's really going on here with those running as the opposition to socialism? me http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2293665/posts#comment Thu, 16 Jul 2009 03:29:34 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2292625/posts LOGAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan, July 14, 2009 – Joint operations have become a key term for U.S. and Afghan forces, particularly for soldiers assigned to the Cherokee Troop, 3rd Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment, here. U.S. soldiers from Cherokee Troop, 3rd Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment, and Afghan National Army soldiers near the end of a two-day patrol into the western Kherwar district of Afghanistan’s Logar province, July 2, 2009. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Jaime' D. DeLeon  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The soldiers patrol local villages nearly every day, typically with Afghan security forces by their side. “Seventy percent of... American Forces Press Service http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2292625/posts#comment Tue, 14 Jul 2009 23:25:38 GMT