Jeffrey H. Anderson is a former professor of American government and political philosophy at the U.S. Air Force Academy and the director of the Benjamin Rush Society.

In his State of the Union address tonight, President Obama will reportedly issue a call for "responsible" efforts to reduce deficits (while simultaneously calling for new federal spending). In light of the President’s expected rhetorical nod to fiscal responsibility, it’s worth keeping in mind his record on deficits to date. When President Obama took office two years ago, the national debt stood at $10.626 trillion. It now stands at $14.071 trillion — a staggering increase of $3.445 trillion in just 735 days (about $5 billion a day).

To put that into perspective, when President George W. Bush took office, our national debt was $5.768 trillion. By the time Bush left office, it had nearly doubled, to $10.626 trillion. So Bush’s record on deficit spending was not good at all: During his presidency, the national debt rose by an average of $607 billion a year. How does that compare to Obama? During Obama’s presidency to date, the national debt has risen by an average of $1.723 trillion a year — or by a jaw-dropping $1.116 trillion more, per year, than it rose even under Bush.

In fairness, however, Obama can’t rightly be held accountable for the 2009 budget, which he didn’t sign (although he did sign a $410 billion pork-laden omnibus spending bill for that year, which is nevertheless tallied in Bush’s column). Rather, Obama’s record to date should really be based on actual and projected spending in fiscal years 2010 and 2011 (plus the $265 billion portion of the economic "stimulus" package, which he initiated and signed, that was spent in 2009 (Table S-10), while Bush’s should be based on 2002-09 (with the exception of that same $265 billion, which was in no way part of the 2009 budgetary process).

by Steve Hamm, Every year IBM predicts the future of technology via the IBM 5 in 5 initiative–our forecast of five innovations that will help transform aspects of modern life, making the planet smarter, within the next five years. We assess not just the availability of a new technology but also the likelihood of its  large-scale adoption.

This year’s predictions:

·    People power will come to life 
·    You will never need a password again
·    Mind reading is no longer science fiction
·    The digital divide will cease to exist
·    Junk mail will become priority mail

Click here to vote on the coolest prediction.

Making this kind of prediction is difficult. (In fact, to me, sadly, the one about eliminating the digital divide seems impossible.) So, every year, IBM researchers stick out their necks. Which is risky. “A lot of people wait for things to happen. It’s rare than an organization says: this is a big change, and it’s coming,” says IBM Fellow Bernard Meyerson.

Forecasting Innovation
Technology moves so fast it can be difficult to separate science fiction from fact, much less discern which game-changing breakthroughs are over the horizon. As the IT industry’s leading innovator, IBM has the track record and pedigree to credibly predict the emerging innovations that could change how people work, live and play. This week, IBM revealed the next 5 in 5 — an annual forecast of future technology trends — which The New York Times, Washington Post and other global news outlets quickly endorsed as a collection of important ideas worth watching.

IBM’s Viewpoint:
Here’s a summary of IBM’s 5 in 5 predictions to help you add to the conversation.

— People power will come to life: Advances in renewable energy technology will allow individuals and scientists to collect energy from many common things that move, and use it to help power our homes, workplaces and cities. http://ibm.co/uusi0t

— You will not need a password: Each person’s unique biometric data such as facial definitions, retinal scans and voice files will be combined through software to build a DNA-unique online password. http://ibm.co/vElhJs

— Mind reading is no longer science fiction: Scientists are researching how to link your brain to your devices, such as a computer or a smartphone, so you just need to think about calling someone and it will happen. http://ibm.co/vieXaD

— The digital divide will cease to exist: The gap between information haves and have-nots will narrow considerably due to advances in mobile technology that enable access to essential information and deliver better services such as mobile commerce and remote healthcare. http://ibm.co/v90z8K

— Junk mail will become priority mail: Unsolicited advertisements may soon feel so personalized and relevant that spam will seem dead and gone. Computers will make sense of data and look up new information for individuals without even being asked. http://ibm.co/vArghS
 

By Michael Terheyden

In a shocking turn of events on November 11, 2011, Catholic Social Services of Southern Illinois announced that it intends to split from the Belleville diocese and offer adoptions and foster-care services to homosexuals and unmarried heterosexual couples in direct opposition to Church teaching.

NOXVILLE, TN (Catholic Online) – In a previous article titled "Catholic Charities Forced to Shut Down Services around the Country," I informed readers about the state of Illinois using the homosexual agenda to attack Catholic Charities. Now, one of the worst developments that could happen has happened: Catholic Social Services of Southern Illinois has succumbed to the pressure of the secular state and its homosexual agenda and intends to split from the Diocese of Belleville.

It began with the implementation of the "Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Unions Act," which went into effect this past summer in Illinois. This law allows homosexuals and unmarried heterosexual couples to adopt children and become foster parents under the guise of tolerance. However, the law has absolutely nothing to do with tolerance or religious freedom. We know this because the state could easily allow secular and religious adoption and foster-care programs to coexist, but it does not want to. Instead, the state is forcing all adoption agencies operating in Illinois to place children into these promiscuous relationships or shut down. 

Consequently, Catholic Charities from three Illinois dioceses–Springfield, Joliet and Peoria–filed a lawsuit against the state. Catholic Social Services of Southern Illinois in the Belleville diocese later joined the suit. However, state officials found a way to thwart the lawsuit by cancelling Catholic Charities’ 40-year contract to provide services in Illinois, thus rendering the suit moot. This forced Bishops in three of the Illinois dioceses to drop their lawsuit against the state and shut down their adoption and foster-care programs. 

The Catholic Church supports adult stem cell research and opposes embryonic stem cell research. Human embryonic stem cell research is always deadly. A human embryo is not distinct in kind from a human being, but a human being at an early stage of development. "Extracting" their stem cells is a form of embryonic execution. Efforts to promote the tired old "Catholic Church is against science" argument is perpetuated by those who do not like the Catholic Church’s uncompromising defense of the dignity of all human life, at every age and stage.

VATICAN CITY (Catholic Online) – Last week the Pontifical Council for Culture – in collaboration with NeoStem, Inc. and its educational foundation – cosponsored an important conference entitled "Adult Stem Cells: Science and the Future of Man and Culture." The Pontifical Council is involved in a 5-year, $1 million partnership with NeoStem, Inc. to promote research involving adult stem cells and their potential use in medical treatments.
 

Adult Stem Cell research is fully supported by the Catholic Church. Vatican Information Services reported last June that " international biopharmaceutical company NeoStem Inc. and the Pontifical Council for Culture have announced a joint initiative between their charitable organizations to expand research and raise awareness of adult stem cell therapies.

"NeoStem’s Stem for Life Foundation, formed to create awareness about the promise of adult stem cells to treat disease, and the pontifical council’s STOQ Foundation (Science Theology and the Ontological Quest), will work to advance research on adult stem cells, to explore their clinical applicability in the field of regenerative medicine, and the cultural relevance of such research especially with its impact on theological and ethical issues".

The Pontifical Council for Culture through its charitable foundation STOQ International made an economic commitment of one million dollars to this collaboration with NeoStem, an international biopharmaceutical company with operations in the US and China.

Warren Buffett, who said he was unable to predict the prospects for Apple Inc. and Facebook Inc., is betting more than $10 billion that International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) is a different kind of technology firm.

Buffett previously focused the stock portfolio at his Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK/A) on consumer brands like Coca-Cola Inc. and financial firms like Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC), saying he was able to understand their business plans. The strategy meant he missed the rally in technology companies like Research In Motion Ltd. (RIMM) and Nokia Oyj (NOK1V) and then their subsequent slumps.

Buffett invested $10.5 billion to $10.7 billion in IBM, betting on the company’s ability to maintain its market dominance in computer services and expand outside the U.S. Armonk, New York-based IBM gained 19 percent in the first nine months of the year as global stock markets plunged.

“Yes, they’re a tech company, but they will not have the wild swings that we’ve seen throughout history, like a RIM or a Nokia where they catapult up but then the technology shifts against them and they plummet,” said Louis Miscioscia, a Collins Stewart LLC analyst in Boston with a “buy” rating on the stock.

Before making the investment, Berkshire surveyed its own information-technology departments to see how they worked with suppliers and found many tended to stick with IBM, Buffett said today on CNBC.

“I probably read the annual report of IBM every year for 50 years,” he said. “I don’t think that there’s any company that I can think of, big company, that’s done a better job of laying out where they’re going to go and then having gone there.”

John Opel didn’t want to run a hardware store after college and the great irony (pun intended) is that he ended up running IBM, the largest data processing hardware company in the world at the peak of its mainframe and midrange prowess.

Opel, who was 86, died on November 3. He was IBM’s fifth CEO and without a doubt one of its better ones. Ginni Rometty, who will be IBM’s ninth CEO when she takes over on January 1, has several sets of big shoes to fill. (Well, the assumption is that Lou Gerstner’s were not that big physically, but virtually they were pretty big.) And as current and soon-to-be-retiring IBM CEO Sam Palmisano said, he believes Rometty is ready for the job and can do it, and there seems to be little doubt on anyone’s mind, after a few weeks, that she can.

Open grew up in Jefferson City, Missouri, where his father ran a hardware store. He got a BA in English at Westminster College in that state, fought in the Pacific Theater during World War II, and finished up his MBA at the University of Chicago in 1949. He had one job offer editing economic textbooks–the UoC is a hotbed for economics today, and was starting its rise back then–and for all we know, Opel might have gone on to be an economist had he taken that job. The other offer he had was from his dad, running the hardware biz.

The shift of the US defense Policy.   The Obama administration decided to bring home all troops from Iraq  and soon Afghanistan which are very "unpopular" wars and tapped their best leaders that has been leading these fights  to continue the new kind of fight, intelligence fight,: special mission fights, and Drone attacks to eliminate […]

WorldNetdaily

By Keith A. Fournier, Catholic Online

Newt Gingrich’s poll numbers are beginning to climb. His performance in the Presidential debates demonstrates that he is competent, consistent, calm and convincing.  He is clearly Pro-Life, defends the primacy of marriage and the family and society founded upon it and is a passionate defender of authentic freedom. He shows calm in the chaotic displays called debates and stands out. In an age filled with crisis, such calm and competence are refreshing.

By Carol Hymowitz

(Updates with Rometty’s background from fifth paragraph.)

Oct. 25 (Bloomberg) — International Business Machines Corp. said Virginia “Ginni” Rometty will succeed Sam Palmisano as chief executive officer, becoming the first female CEO in the company’s 100-year history.

Rometty, IBM’s head of sales and marketing, will take the president and CEO posts effective Jan. 1, the Armonk, New York- based company said in a statement today. Palmisano, who’s been CEO since 2002, will remain chairman.

Rometty, 54, takes the reins after IBM celebrated its centennial and as steady profit growth pushed the shares this year to the highest level since the company went public in 1915. Her experience in sales, services and acquisitions fits with the strategic direction set by Palmisano, who said last year the company will add $20 billion to revenue between 2010 and 2015 by expanding in markets such as cloud computing and analytics.

“She is more than a superb operational executive,” Palmisano said in the statement. “With every leadership role, she has strengthened our ability to integrate IBM’s capabilities for our clients.”

The 30-year IBM veteran caught Palmisano’s attention in 2002 when she helped integrate the $3.9 billion acquisition of PwC Consulting, IBM’s largest deal ever at the time.

Rometty, then a general manager of the consulting unit, is credited with helping to retain PwC’s principal consultants, who didn’t always mesh with IBM’s cost-cutting culture. When Palmisano wanted to cut travel budgets, making consultants stay at Holiday Inns, she helped them fight — and win, said Ric Andersen, a former PwC consultant who joined IBM with the acquisition.

Sales Promotion

Palmisano promoted her to senior vice president of the group in 2005, and she boosted profit at the unit 42 percent in her first two years on the job. During her three decades at IBM, she became known as a polished executive who can close a sale, expanding relationships with companies from State Farm Insurance Co. to Prudential Financial Inc.

“She’s an engaging woman — great with customers,” said Fred Amoroso, who was her boss in the financial-services consulting division during the 1990s. “Customers just love Ginni.”

Amid the recession, Palmisano put her in charge of running the company’s almost $100 billion in sales. Last year, she added marketing and strategy to her responsibilities.