At least one positive thing has already happened today, the Supreme Court has decided that if corporations and unions are able to flood political campaigns with issue and direct advocacy ads they must file reports explaining where the money is coming from. That means that any group that spends ten thousand dollars on an advocacy ad would need to name any contributor that gave more than $1,000. — The current reporting requirements are much less than that for individuals.

This reporting requirement is small solace given that we will now see BILLIONS of dollars flooding into the 2010 election seasons with Internet, television, newspaper and radio ads.We learned today from the Supreme Court that corporations have the same First Amendment rights that as you and I do and that Congress can’t put special restrictions on corporations. The majority said that “when a government seeks to use its full power, including the criminal law, to command where a person may get his or her information…it uses censorship to control thought.”

Read the full article at FOXNews.com

Many of us have been glued to our television sets this week watching the earthquake disaster in Haiti. It is incomprehensible that the kind of devastation and damage could take place so close to the United States where we have so much. We hear from television anchors day in and day out how Haiti is the poorest country in our hemisphere. Some of the news people are saying that the damage would not have been as extensive if the buildings had been engineered and built to be earthquake proof. That may or may not be, as the United Nation’s area was completely devastated. It was not hardened like a U.S. embassy, but it wasn’t a poverty building, either. They lost many people including the secretary-general’s main Haiti envoy.

Having seen the devastation firsthand after Hurricane Katrina, I know that it takes years to rebuild. Right after Hurricane Katrina, the Methodist bishop of Mississippi said it would be 10 days of emergency, 100 days of relief and 1,000 days of recovery. Most of what the bishop said has been true, although it has taken more than 1,000 days of recovery. The Hurricane Katrina disaster happened in our country, with relative wealth compared to Haiti. It is very clear that the emergency phase is going to be more than 10 days. The emergency phase will be more like 100 days. Relief will take many months. Recovery will take many years.

Many of us know how very long it has taken to rebuild one small patch of New York after Sept. 11. We know about the stories of loss and pain that families have had to endure. People in Haiti have to attend to rescuing who they can and, at the same time, deal with loss of friends and family. Having to function at that level, given the amount of loss, is a testament to human strength.

Because of how busy our lives are, we may forget Haiti relatively quickly. Having witnessed on a month-by-month basis recovery of our Gulf Coast, it will need concentrated effort and giving by many of us who have resources and those of us who don’t have many resources at all. What is different about this disaster, because of the poverty, is that every little bit helps.

Getting people food, shelter and clothing is one piece of the current emergency work. Helping people to recover emotionally is something that is not being talked about. Post-Katrina, it has taken years for emotional recovery. The Lutheran Church came to the Gulf Coast the summer after the storm and made a huge difference in children’s lives. They sponsored Camp Noah, which encouraged children to tell their stories to a stuffed animal they had chosen. The process of telling their stories allowed the staff at the camp to be able to find children who needed immediate intervention. Most of the staff were not trained in mental health or caring individuals from the community. It was relatively easy to find children who needed help and intervention to get their lives back on track.

What concerned Americans need to do now, is to raise money and send supplies, clothing and whatever else is needed. What needs to happen in the long run is that Americans, who care about our brothers and sisters in Haiti, come up with creative and long-term solutions. From a Camp Noah type of intervention to helping develop quick housing and perhaps micro-enterprise solutions, we need to develop ideas that can help the Haitian people. We have so many people out of work in this country that perhaps there is a way of taking some of their time and energy and having them spend time in Haiti developing the kinds of solutions that can make a difference.

Almost every faith-based group in this country has a volunteer effort. Unemployed people with skills can offer their help. Families can give up their vacations to help in Haiti, and even little children can have their lemonade stands send a few dollars to our southern neighbors. Americans are compassionate. With our understanding that the Haitian recovery is going to take years of our help and ingenuity, we can show the world how great America really is.

Hardly a week goes by that there isn’t something shocking in the news. This week the startling announcement included the terrible employment figures as well as Harry Reid’s slip of the tongue. Another shocker was the widely reported study released this week on sexual abuse in juvenile facilities. The Justice Department’s statistical bureau issued the report. The findings looked at 26,550 adjudicated youth in confined facilities. Approximately 91 percent of the youth were male, and nine percent were female. It is really alarming that 12 percent of all youths reported sexual abuse while in the facilities.

When you dig deep down into the actual statistics of the 12 percent, some of it is by youth on youth, but the majority is by staff on youths. The big shocker in the statistics is that 95 percent is victimization of male clients by female staff. Of the youth who had been victimized by staff, about 40 percent was by force and 60 percent was without force or threat. However, the phrase “without force or threat” can be somewhat misleading as youth are very dependent on staff in a facility. An older staff member can be very seductive, offer favors, or just be kind to a frightened and emotionally disturbed adolescent. The older staff member can also give the perception that if the victim does not go along with the incident, life can become difficult inside the facility. Therefore, some of the intimidation can be for favors or some can be to just survive without problems.

Six of the facilities looked at by the Justice Department had abuse rates of 30 percent or more. Some of the youths who had experienced sexual assault, either by another youth or by a staff member, had actual physical injuries. One in five youths were injured by their sexual assault. Youth-on-youth sexual assault took its toll on young people who were not heterosexual, and their rates of abuse were much higher, as were youths who had a history of sexual assault. We know from the abuse literature that adults and children who have been sexually assaulted are often targets for increased sexual abuse. This may be that they do not notice cues or that the abuser somehow picks up on their vulnerability.

As a society, we must be concerned about what happens in our juvenile facilities. Without proper treatment and care, we will only be making more hardened children who become hardened adults. The cost to society in terms of crime, mental health needs and destroyed families cannot be calculated. I spent years before I became a journalist working with men and women who had been abused in their youth. In fact, I became a journalist as a result of a book I wrote a book on recovery from child abuse. “The Other Side of The Family, A Book For Recovery from Abuse, Incest and Neglect” was written before much of the research had been done on the effects of sexual abuse on the brain. This current research shows that what is going on in our nations juvenile facilities has long-term effects that not only alters the lives of individuals but also has a monetary cost to our entire society. Society has to come to terms with not only the human side to this, but also the fact that you pay now to try and correct this or society monetarily pays greater costs later.

Professor Martin Teicher, working at the Harvard Medical School and McLean Hospital, has found that abuse of all kinds leads to significant changes in the brain. His research has shown there are areas of the brain that actually become smaller from abuse and can mimic epilepsy. Brain scans have found that there is reduced activity in the part of the brain that deals with attention and emotion. There is also decreased blood flow, which has an effect on emotional stabilization.

In another study, Dr. Vincent Felitti of Kaiser Permanente found that women who had been sexually abused were 27 percent more likely to be abused. What we now know about the long-term effects of abuse cannot be denied. It not only wrecks a child’s life, but also has a dollar cost to all of us.

What can be done? The Justice Department study found that smaller facilities had a lower rate of abuse and facilities where youth were held for shorter periods of time also had less abuse. Youth in private facilities fared better than in state-run institutions.

With the governor of California wanting to take money from prisons and put the money into education, the possibilities of making changes in youth detention programs diminish. That is short-sighted planning. Countries like Norway have a minimum two-year program if someone wants to work as staff in their penal systems. We often have employees who are not educated and live close to the edge themselves in our society in terms of education and employability.

Our youth who have had run-ins with our legal system deserve a chance. They don’t deserve abuse. The Justice Department must take action on its report. We all deserve better. The youth who are incarcerated, and society that must pay for their care in the short term and long haul, can and must do better.

We are beginning the second decade of the millennium. We’ll see congressional elections, the winter Olympics and a few Republican candidates beginning the Iowa and New Hampshire slog toward the nomination for president. Some of the year is highly predictable, while the wild card of the weeks and days will bring entertainment, sadness and joy as we move through the next 365 days. So, without the benefit of a crystal ball or being able to discern the stars, here is what I predict.

1. Health care passes the House and Senate within a week of the State of the Union address. The plan might be to get it done before the State of the Union, but it will be passed within a week in either direction of the congressional speech. The president’s address will be used as the rallying cry.

2. The November midterm elections will have the Democrats losing a maximum of 23 seats in the House, but not more. They will lose three seats in the Senate. This loss will prompt the Republicans to once again see this as a mandate and move to the conservative wing of the party. Unless Newt Gingrich rises to the top as the potential nominee, the party will begin to support right-wing candidates who do nothing except increase President Obama’s chance for re-election.

3. We discover more water on other planets and even see the precursors for life on some of these. The possible discovery of water on the moon and Mars has increased the chances of sustainable life in many far away lands. “That we are not alone” is becoming more and more of a reality. Not exactly the bar scene from “Star Wars,” but on a microbe level we are not the only actors.

4. We impose sanctions on Iran. I do not need to be a soothsayer to predict this, but all indications lead to imposing sanctions. The trouble is that without the help of some of the Arab countries that trade with Iran such as UAE, there is not much help that sanctions could work.

5. After the sanctions are imposed, there will be a significant, internal change in Iran, which will make the Obama idea of possible communication a reality – although the neo-cons will be furious.

6. Consuming less and giving more becomes the consequence of the poor economy. As Americans have less and reassess their values, blatant consumerism will reduce. Charitable giving will increase among middle-class donors.

7. Americans will become more aware of the drug trade from Mexico. It has been something that has been lost in the immigration debate. Mexico as a “failed state” will become more of a headline.

8. Afghanistan will calm down, and it will look like Gen. Stanley McChrystal’s plan is working. The Taliban will be waiting for its moment and will wait us out. We will declare victory and with the exception of few headlines down the line when the Taliban and the warlords take back their territory. By that time America is on to new concerns and does not even register a blip.

9. Meg Whitman wins the race for governor of California. Former Gov. Brown and San Francisco Mayor Newsom don’t make the final cut with the people of California.

10. Prevention in health becomes the buzzword. The insurance lobby, freaking out that it can’t drop subscribers, turns to the only thing it knows works: getting Americans healthier. It works with governors and states to help fund tobacco prevention and healthy diet programs.

11. Unusual state taxes get voted on. California will tax medical marijuana, and other states find ways to tax Internet purchases and develop sin taxes.

So there you have it readers. I invite you to send me yours, and we will look at my track record in a year! Have a wonderful New Year and may God bless you and your family.

This Christmas is filled with songs and hymns about peace on Earth. Regardless of your individual belief system, is it is a time to recognize people you care about, give money to charities that you believe in and help out strangers. That is the spirit of the season. There are, however, people we don’t see and places we do not go where conflict, hunger and suffering are commonplace. We can easily put this pain out of mind as we compartmentalize our lives. It may be the only way to enjoy the holidays with our loved ones.

I was in Southern Sudan less than eight weeks ago and saw the daily pain and suffering of former slaves and people who eat only every other day. It is hard to block people out of your mind when you have interacted with them. Southern Sudan, as I have written before, had a 22-year civil war with Northern Sudan. Southern Sudan is primarily Christian, and Northern Sudan is Arab Muslim. The tragedy is that due to oil reserves and a vote on independence scheduled to take place in 2011, Southern Sudan is again on the brink of war.

Fortunately, there are thoughtful people with real ideas about achieving peace in far-flung places like Southern Sudan. I encountered one of these great thinkers this week. Dr. David Hamburg is the recipient of the presidential Medal of Freedom and the author of “Preventing Genocide: Practical Steps Toward Early Detection and Effective Action.”

Dr. Hamburg has laid out what he calls the “Pillars of Prevention.” He calls for the following:

* Proactive help for troubled countries with early recognition of inter-group tensions. He points out how the potential for mass civil war was avoided in Kenya last year by negotiating early in the process. Hamburg also points out that there are often clear warning signs such as “media excitement” and hate speech on radio, television, pamphlets, etc. “This,” he says, “takes place over years, not days and weeks or even months.” Bad governments always cite sovereignty as an excuse, and that excuse allows governments to get away with violating human rights. It is important intervene as soon as possible and not wait until a government is overwhelmed by civil unrest.

* Fostering indigenous democracy. This means also preparing the people for democracy and not expecting that it will be welcomed with open arms. Hamburg gave Gaza as an example of a place where the population was not ready for democracy and had no idea how to handle it.

* Fostering equitable social and economic development where wealth is not concentrated in the upper 1 percent of the population. Hamburg also underlined the importance of using modern science (new techniques for irrigation, energy development, and clean water) to make development available for all.

* Education for human survival. This means not just math, science and technology but also education for conflict resolution and mutual accommodation. In societies that have seen war, are mainly tribal, and where there are scarce resources basic ways of communication and problem solving must be taught as much as hard academics. We have had more than 200 years of democracy. It is difficult to learn communication skills overnight.

* Having the international community involved in justice to preserve and protect human rights. Without various sanctions and interference by important development and trade partners, there is little incentive for bad governments to protect and abide by basic human rights standards. Having a strong policy by those that have influence with a particular country can bring a human rights violator to justice.

* Training and supporting people around the world in preventive diplomacy. Just like nutrition was not taught in medical schools until recently, preventive diplomacy has not been top of the curricula in schools focusing on training foreign service officers. This is changing, and the change has the potential to make more people capable of working with governments on a local as well as national level. International Centers for the Prevention of Mass Violence and Atrocities have also been established. These need to be supported by not only the United Nations but also by individual democracies as well.

It is great to wish for peace this Christmas in places like Southern Sudan, but we should keep in mind that peace does not come as a result of a wish and a prayer. Peace comes from hard work and effort. Just like in interpersonal and family relationships, peace between countries takes time, vigilance and skill.

I stumbled across a USA Today headline last week that made me pause for a moment: “More U.S. Christians mix in ‘Eastern’ New Age beliefs.” I wondered, was the author, Cathy Lynn Grossman, attempting to insinuate that this is becoming a new phenomenon in the United States?

If so, she would’ve been mistaken, for this has been going on for decades, and was indeed very prevalent in the 19th century.

It was not uncommon at the turn of the last century for people to learn yoga, pay attention to their horoscope, communicate with spirits and go to traditional churches at the same time. Way before there was a telegraph or a telephone, people gathered at their town greens to hear lectures on clairvoyance and hypnosis. One of the most popular books in the late 1800s was a book on comparative religions titled, “Ten Great Religions,” written by Unitarian Minister James Freeman Clark in 1871. A “World Parliament of Religions” took place at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893, and a conference facility called “Green Acre” was set up in Eliot, Maine, to serve as a forum for the comparative study of religions. One of the most popular self-help writers at the time, William Walker Atkinson, used the name of Yogi Ramachackra so he could sell more books!

What is surprising about a survey released this week by the Pew Research Center Forum on Religion and Public Life is how many people not only have these beliefs, but also actually attend church at other religious institutions. According to the survey, 24 percent of people actually attend services at multiple places not associated with their own faith. This number does not include weddings, funerals, etc. This means that a whopping one in four people go to multiple religious institutions. When you consider the fact that 28 percent of people say they seldom or never attend services, it means that half of those that go to some kind of services go to religious services other than their church. A full 39 percent who attend services weekly attend services in other places and denominations.

These numbers amaze the “experts” who think religion is stagnant and unilateral in our country. Twenty-two percent of Christians believe in reincarnation, and nearly half the public says it has had a religious or mystical experience, which the study defines as “a moment of sudden religious insight or awakening.” Almost 30 percent say they have felt in touch with someone who died. Again, this is not surprising given that in the mid-1800s, Spiritualism took the nation by storm. At one point in Boston during the late 1800s, there were more than 200 Spiritualist circles taking place weekly so that people could contact deceased loved ones. Although the Pew survey found that the number of people who have had religious or mystical experiences is higher than surveys taken in 1962, it may be due to the fact that people are more willing to admit those experiences to a stranger than before.

William James detailed these experiences in his turn of the 20th century book, “The Varieties of Religious Experience.” Bill Wilson, founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, read James’ book for confirmation of what he had experienced when he saw the white light in his hospital room after his last drink.

Most people are unaware that American icon Johnny Appleseed was a devoted student of Emmanuel Swedenborg, who not only believed in extrasensory experiences, but wrote a book on heaven and hell, expounding on it being not a place, but a state of mind that continued after death. Swedenborg was read widely in the 1800s, and there is evidence that Abraham Lincoln was familiar with his work.

On the Christian side, there were huge camp meetings – one was reported to have been attended by 50,000 people – where people would go to pray and take part in healings. They were definitely not part of the mainstream churches at the time.

Daniel David Palmer, founder of Chiropractic Medicine, considered himself a magnetic healer, and the founder of osteopathic medicine, Andrew Still, was known to have experimented with Spiritualism.

Mary Baker Eddy, who repudiated it later in life, was also known to have had contact with the Spiritualists.

So what eventually became mainstream was often founded on the edge of religious experience early on.

It is rather eye-opening that this recent study by the Pew Center seems to conclude that this is all “new information.”

In reality, Americans have been sampling other cultural experiences brought here from visitors, slaves and the builders of the early railroads from Asia. Native American culture also contributed to religious experimentation.

Religious melding and blending has been a part of America since its inception. It is as American as apple pie.

Iraq Bombing:
Gibbs said that the administration condemns the violence and that the leaders in Iraq who have moved democracy forward and who have made elections possible are overcoming those who have caused the violence. Gibbs added that the bombers are trying to send a message that most Iraqis won’t hear because they are focused on electing leaders.

Economy/President’s Speech:
Gibbs said that the administration will continue to look at what options there are and will try to help the private sector create more jobs. Gibbs said that the administration will continue to take in ideas. Gibbs said there is no silver bullet, and that 7-8 million jobs have been lost since the start of the recession. Gibbs said the administration wants to target ideas that can move the country positively in the direction of new jobs. He said the recession is “deep in length” and it’s sad to see “how much we’ve fallen.” Gibbs said the possibility that TARP may be $200 billion less, “gives us flexibility.” Gibbs said the administration will try to create twice as many projects, but without twice as much money. “Even shovel ready projects take time to get underway,” he said. If there are things that can be done in terms of using TARP funds to spur small business lending, that is something the administration will look at.

Supreme Court Ruling On Campaign Laws:
Gibbs said this is an important case for the American people and that the administration is concerned about special interests controlling the political process. Gibbs reminded reporters that the President talked about this issue during his campaign. The administration will wait to see if the high court delivers a ruling today.

Oslo:
On whether or not the President will give away his charity money, there is “no clarity yet on the charity,” said Gibbs. The President will also address sending troops into battle as he accepts the Nobel Peace Prize.

Healthcare:
Gibbs was asked about the reimportation of drugs and said the President still supports the reimportation of drugs, but there are safety concerns that still need to be addressed. “Safety is the number one concern,” said Gibbs.

Iran Sanctions:
Asked who will make the decision about Iranian sanctions, Gibbs said the Iranians will, but added, “we’re not at that point.”

Poll Numbers:
Asked about the latest poll numbers, Gibbs dismissed the Gallup numbers at 47%. He called the Gallup daily trend meaningless. Gibbs also said that if he was a patient and Gallup was his doctor, he would get a new doctor.

Once a year, Talkers Magazine and Liz Claiborne, the well-known fashion house, team up to produce a radio row on the issue of domestic violence. This year was the fifth year and, as always, talk-radio hosts from all political stripes participated. Unlike other years, the Tiger Woods scandal was the undercurrent of much of the discussion. Did she or didn’t she? That was the main question that radio audiences were asking. The shocker was that, yes, women can commit domestic violence.

The facts are well known at this point. Somehow there was an argument at the Tiger Woods home in a gated community in Florida. Tiger Woods was outside of his car and looked quite bruised. His car windows had been smashed with a golf club. After this happened he made a few appointments to talk to the police and then failed to keep them. Radio listeners wondered whether Tiger Woods canceled the appointments to protect his wife. Florida is a no-tolerance state, and there most likely would have been a 24-hour cooling off period in jail for the alleged perpetrator of the domestic abuse. In this case, it would have been his wife. Obviously, whatever their fight might have been about, a mistress or an affair, Tiger Woods did not want his wife taken to jail for even 24 hours. So far there have been no arrests and only a statement by Tiger Woods about needing his privacy.

Privacy is another concern. Does Tiger Woods deserve his privacy? The first argument is that this publicity causes pain for his children. That is completely true, and no child wants to go to school having their classmates gossiping about their parents’ dalliances and fights. The other argument is that we are all human and deserve our privacy. It is amazing to me that many of the people taking this point of view are the same folks who had no trouble with Bill and Hillary Clinton’s marital problems making the headlines. Very few people thought of what Chelsea Clinton had to endure at school and with her friends.

Then there are those who believe that when someone such as Tiger Woods makes his living off the public trust (most of his money comes from endorsements) that he needs to behave as role model. That view says that affairs with other women do not sync with being a role model. It is at this point, says that contingency, that privacy is not yours and that the gain you get from being a celebrity wipes out total privacy.

Affairs do not justify domestic violence, and the question remains that if this were not Tiger Woods, would his wife be cited for what happened to him? Most likely, if the facts are what they seem, she would have spent 24 hours somewhere in a Florida jail. It is this part of the drama, not just the affair that has captured the attention of many Americans.

In an interview I did with Attorney General Eric Holder this week, he stated a startling statistic, which is, that one in four children are exposed to some form of family violence in their lifetime. Holder went on to say that this can cause many difficulties including learning problems. He also stated that there are a known half million victims of non-fatal abuse of adults by intimate partners and that 2,000 women and men are killed by intimate partners yearly. Considering the costs to society in law enforcement and children’s overall adjustment, this kind of family violence should be recognized as a public health problem and not just something to deal with after the fact. Programs such as “Start Strong,” which encourage healthy dating and real discussions about teen dating and Liz Claiborne’s ” Love Is Not Abuse” and “Time to Talk Day,” have raised awareness of this huge problem.

It is not going to go away. What happened in the Tiger Woods’ family proves that domestic violence is a problem that invades every income category and that no family is immune from it. Did Tiger Woods act on his sexual urges and not use his head? The answer is clearly yes but it does not give his wife permission to act out her rage with violence. Unbridled rage and anger in a family setting is something many of us have seen up close and personal, and it needs to stop. Only a combination of prevention, education and tough law enforcement with no exceptions for celebrities will make the difference.

- Ellen

I spent this Black Friday at Macy’s. I got up early after a family Thanksgiving and arrived at Macy’s at 5:10 a.m. Unlike previous years, the store was packed from the get-go. Usually the store takes about an hour to fill up, but not this year. Although I partially go for the suit sales, I also go just to talk to people in the many coffee shops they have throughout the giant store. My conclusion this year is that people went for the bargains but they also went for the entertainment and to lift their spirits a bit. The jobs news has not been good, and on Sunday the headline in the New York Times was “Food-stamp use soars across U.S. and stigma fades.”

Many people were so hopeful a year ago when President Obama took office. The news about the economy was front-and-center, and the middle-swing voter was hopeful that this president would have answers. Unfortunately, the problems that are facing our country are bigger than one man, one president. It is going to take massive changes to make a difference and create jobs.

Joseph Stiglitz, who was chief economist at the World Bank and a Nobel Prize winner in economics, said in October that “figures on gross domestic product are ‘very good,’ the numbers would be ‘miserable’ without stimulus measures enacted by the Obama administration.” When we look at if workers can get jobs, if they can work full-time, if businesses are able to sell goods they produce, in those terms, we are nowhere near the end of recession. The U.S. job market is still “in very bad shape.”

You don’t need a Nobel-Prize-winning economist to know that the U.S. job market is in “very bad shape,” and from my conversations at Macy’s on Friday morning you don’t need a lot of economists to find out how to create more jobs. There are many good and solid ideas to move our economy to solid growth. A few of the ideas include:

Tax holidays for job creation. Spencer Ante writing about a study on job creation by Robert Litan suggests that start-ups have created most of the new jobs both recently and in the big recession of 1980-1983. This study was done for the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and Litan’s idea is to give a payroll-tax holiday to new start-up companies. Although he says that large companies create 10 percent of new jobs, most of those jobs are created by these corporations acquiring smaller newer start-ups.

Health care is one-sixth of our economy, but the guilds and professional societies want to protect their turf. It makes perfect sense as the years and years of training it takes to be a physician need to be reimbursed given the amount of loans that most medical students take on. One sure way to make sure there is job creation in a field that is going to experience rapid growth with the passage of any health-care bill is to develop more training slots for physician residencies for American students. We also need to develop more health-care training opportunities. In one year, almost 10 percent of newly licensed registered nurses were from foreign nursing schools with a net job number of 10,000, and that was before health-care reform.

If you expand those numbers to physician assistants, lab technologists, etc., it becomes clear that we must make an investment in educating our own citizens.

Infrastructure jobs: The current stimulus bill was laden with highway jobs and other projects to update our current infrastructure. It needs to be done as we have seen crumbling bridges and schools, but, as I said in a recent column, we need someone to think not just of the repairs needed but to think more broadly about what is going to make this country move again. Two projects that would take broad thinking and broad cooperation are innovative transportation solutions and innovative broadband solutions. Two possible ideas are to find areas that have highway and airport congestion and develop bullet trains in those areas. We do not have one bullet train in the United States. We also do not have a real national grid for broadband. Broadband is piecemeal, and there is rancor between private companies and municipalities that want to increase broadband.

There are many other job-creation opportunities, and we have all heard about green jobs among other ideas. All of these are possible, but the overall question is if the political will exists. That is only a question that your local friendly member of Congress can answer. I suggest you ask them.

When I first read about gross national happiness in one of those unusual/weird news columns, I thought the idea of a country measuring happiness of its citizens was a complete joke. That was then, but a few weeks ago I changed my mind after visiting the landlocked country of Bhutan. It was then that I was introduced to the concept, and I don’t think it is much of a joke anymore.

The fourth king introduced the idea of gross national happiness in 1972. At that time, Bhutan was an absolute monarchy. Later, the king abdicated in favor of his son and voluntarily made his country a constitutional monarchy – no bloodshed, no coups, just a peaceful transition to democracy.

The king was a very forward-looking man, and based on the principle of gross national happiness, true development of human society takes place when material and spiritual advancement complement and reinforce each other. The king believed that every change must be developed and evaluated to ensure that it will lead to happiness, not just development, and that it is important to harmonize economic progress with the spiritual and emotional wellbeing of the people.

Bhutan takes modernization quite seriously and did not legalize television until this new century. However, they are not backward in any way when it comes to very modern hotels, Internet and filmmaking projects for students. They have moved from a closed kingdom to a modern country in very short order by what they call the four pillars of gross national happiness.

In her book, “Facts about Bhutan,” Lily Wangchhuk explains the four pillars. Equitable and sustainable socioeconomic development includes making sure that any development does not ruin the environment and that service delivery such as health and education is also based on equality so that all sections of society get equal delivery. The second pillar is preservation and promotion of culture, which includes strengthening the family and community, tolerance and cooperation, altruism, compassion and dignity, which they believe impact a low crime rate. It also includes the preservation of the culture, which includes centuries-old practices and rituals. The third pillar is conservation of the environment and is based on the Buddhist philosophy that human beings and nature are inseparable from each other. They believe that nature is a partner in existence and might have been one’s parents, friends, etc., in one’s timeless existence. It is one of the top three countries in the world that has more than one-fourth of its land as a protected area. The fourth pillar is good governance which means real involvement on a local level for all levels of government. They have decentralized choices and have created block committees to plan and oversee development. Neither central committees here nor even the national Congress makes all the decisions.

Bhutan could be a case study in any graduate school of government. It doesn’t just talk about gross national happiness, it measures it. Only 3.7 percent of its population reports being unhappy and it measures its happiness with other countries on something that is known as the “Happy Planet Index,” a product of a think-tank created to improve quality of life and to offer innovative solutions to national and international problems. It was created as part of “The Other Economic Summit,” which formed to address issues such as international debt which was not addressed at the G-20 and G-7 summits. According to the ranking of the Happy Planet Index, Bhutan ranks in the top 10 nations worldwide and is the happiest nation in South Asia.

What I noticed when I was in Bhutan is that everyone feels they have a stake in their country and the wellbeing of others and not in the way of big-brother communism. It is genuine, and people believe that they impact the daily lives of others. It is subtle but is reflected in all aspects of citizens’ lives. Imagine if we suddenly made laws in this country that were the results of concern for people’s happiness. Imagine how the “debate” in the Senate would have changed on Saturday night with that perspective.

Bhutan is not a country that is interested in just reaping the happiness for itself; it’s interested in spreading it throughout the globe. This week there is a conference in Brazil, its fifth International Conference on Gross National Happiness with topics such as holistic management of people and the financial crises as well as economic democracy. Bhutan aims to take its concept to the world and will attempt to get other governments to pay attention to what can make citizens happy in the long haul. I just wish that our Congress had spent the weekend at the conference instead of talking at each other in the Senate on health care; it would have been more fruitful.