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| The south of France's Languedoc-Roussillon:Facebook & Travel+Leisure |
The link below presented on my Facebook blog page, see the Facebook logo for blog link, has earned the most 'people reached', whatever that means, by far of any of my Facebook blog posts.
My Facebook blog is used to primarily promote my Blogger blog sites which receive far more pageviews than the newer Facebook blog page, but I am posting some links on the Facebook blog from material I find on the web.
If you are interested in hearing me present very short lectures, I have been producing audio posts almost weekly recently on Satire And Theology. I am pleased to state that my public speaking is much improved from previous attempts, some on this blog, although I fully admit I am not going to be confused with a motivational speaker or radio disc jockey. The audio posts are academic lecture meets satire...
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Cato.Org
Cited
(2015 my add)
'The Cato Institute is a public policy research organization — a think tank – dedicated to the principles of individual liberty, limited government, free markets and peace. Its scholars and analysts conduct independent, nonpartisan research on a wide range of policy issues.'
Cited
(2015 my add)
The index published here presents a broad measure of human freedom, understood as the absence of coercive constraint.
It uses 76 distinct indicators of personal and economic freedom in the following areas:
Rule of Law
Security and Safety
Movement
Religion
Association,
Assembly, and Civil Society
Expression
Relationships
Size of Government
Legal System and Property Rights
Access to Sound Money Freedom to Trade Internationally
Regulation of Credit, Labor, and Business
The Human Freedom Index (HFI) is the most comprehensive freedom index so far created for a globally meaningful set of countries. The HFI covers 152 countries for 2012, the most recent year for which sufficient data is available. The index ranks countries beginning in 2008, the earliest year for which a robust enough index could be produced. This preliminary report will be updated (using data for 2013) and subsequently presented and updated on a yearly basis.
On a scale of 0 to 10, where 10 represents more freedom, the nonweighted average rating for 152 countries in 2012 was 6.96. The level of global freedom stayed about the same compared to 2008, but almost all countries experienced changes in their ratings, with about half of those increasing their ratings and half decreasing.
The top 10 jurisdictions in order were Hong Kong, Switzerland, Finland, Denmark, New Zealand, Canada, Australia, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and Sweden. The United States is ranked in 20th place. Other countries rank as follows: Germany (12), Chile (18), Japan (28), France (33), Singapore (43), South Africa (70), India (75), Brazil (82), Russia (111), China (132), Nigeria (139), Saudi Arabia (141), Venezuela (144), Zimbabwe (149), and Iran (152).
Out of 17 regions, the highest levels of freedom are in Northern Europe, North America (Canada and the United States), and Western Europe. The lowest levels are in the Middle East and North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and South Asia. Women’s freedoms, as measured by five relevant indicators in the index, are most protected in Europe and North America and least protected in South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Middle East and North Africa.'
End Citations
I admit that another organization may use different criteria, numbers and have different rankings, but the United States of America ranked at number twenty, interests me.
One of the things my internship professor told me while at Columbia Bible College was that the United States has a strong mythology. Not to state that Canada does not, and every country has some type of mythology.
Part of what may be considered American mythology is the idea that it is and has always been since its beginnings, the freest nation on earth.
The nation with the most liberty.
I ponder on philosophically if the sheer size and power of the United States government and its military and maintaining intelligence does not at least, perhaps work against the freedoms of its citizens.
A very large government and the largest military in the world can motivate the State through the gathering of intelligence to preserve this power by limiting the freedom and liberty of its citizens.
When this report was mentioned on the CBC program The Exchange with Amanda Lang....paraphrased, the growing power of the United States government that could be used to curtail freedoms was mentioned as a reason for its ranking,
Does the United States of America use more 'coercive constraint' than some other Western countries because of the size of government, military and intelligence services?
RSF
The World press freedom index 2014 from Reporters Without Borders for 2014 has the United States ranked 46th in press freedom whereas Finland is 1st, Canada is 18th and the United Kingdom is 33rd.
Both of sets of statistics and indexes are not entirely objective as there is subjectivity present in criteria chosen and analysis, but I do ponder on why the United States of America is ranked lower than some other less powerful Western nations.
My new 1.50 readers get more compliments than my new 179.oo prism ones.
ReplyDeleteChuck Nevitt , North Carolina State basketball player, explaining to Coach Jim
ReplyDeleteValvano why he appeared nervous at practice:
"My sister's expecting a baby, and I don't know if I'm going to be an uncle or an aunt.
Former Houston Oilers coach Bum Phillips when asked by Bob Costas why he takes his wife on all the road trips, Phillips responded:
ReplyDelete"Because she's too ugly to kiss good-bye."
In the words of NC State great Charles Shackelford:
ReplyDelete"I can go to my left or right, I am amphibious."
Shelby Metcalf, basketball coach at Texas A&M, recounting what he told a player who received four F's and one D:
ReplyDelete"Son, looks to me like you're spending too much time on one subject."
Frank Layden, Utah Jazz president, on a former player:
ReplyDelete"I asked him, 'Son, what is it with you? Is it ignorance or apathy?'
He said, 'Coach, I don't know and I don't care.'"
Lou Duva, veteran boxing trainer, on the Spartan training regimen of heavyweight Andrew Golota:
ReplyDelete"He's a guy who gets up at six o'clock in the morning, regardless of what time it is."
Stu Grimson, Chicago Blackhawks left wing, explaining why he keeps a color photo of himself above his locker:
ReplyDelete"That's so when I forget how to spell my name, I can still find my clothes."
Boxing promoter Dan Duva on Mike Tyson going to prison:
ReplyDelete"Why would anyone expect him to come out smarter? He went to prison for three years, not Princeton ..."
Bill Peterson, a Florida State football coach:
ReplyDelete"You guys line up alphabetically by height..,"
And, "You guys pair up in groups of three, and then line up in a circle."
Senior basketball player at the University of Pittsburgh :
ReplyDelete"I'm going to graduate on time, no matter how long it takes.."
(Now that is beautiful)
Football commentator and former player Joe Theismann:
ReplyDelete"Nobody in football should be called a genius. A genius is a guy like Norman Einstein."
Torrin Polk, University of Houston receiver, on his coach, John Jenkins:
ReplyDelete"He treat us like mens. He let us wear earrings."
And, upon hearing Joe Jacobi of the 'Skin's say:
ReplyDelete"I'd run over my own mother to win the Super Bowl,"
Matt Millen of the Raiders said:
"To win, I'd run over Joe's Mom, too."
New Orleans Saint RB George Rogers when asked about the upcoming season:
ReplyDelete"I want to rush for 1,000 or 1,500 yards, whichever comes first.."
Chicago Cubs outfielder Andre Dawson on being a role model:
ReplyDelete"I wan' all dem kids to do what I do, to look up to me. I wan' all the kids to copulate me."
I'm proud of Canada for being a very free country...interesting article Dr. Murray!
ReplyDelete-Canada Eh!-
Thanks, Big D...
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of investments
ReplyDeleteIf you had purchased $1,000 of shares in Delta Airlines 5 years ago, you would have $49.00 today .
If you had purchased $1,000 of shares in AIG 5 years ago, you would have $33.00 today.
If you had purchased $1,000 of shares in Lehman Brothers 5 years ago, you would have $0.00 today.
But, if you had purchased $1,000 worth of beer one year ago, drank all the beer, then turned in the aluminum cans for the recycling refund, you would have received $214.00.
Based on the above, the best current investment plan is to drink heavily and recycle. It is called the 401-Keg.
And as a bonus...
A recent study found that the average American walks about 900 miles a year. Another study found that on average Americans drink 22 gallons of alcohol a year. That means that the average American gets about 41 miles to the gallon!
Makes you damned proud to be an American!
I was discussing dating Asians with a colleague @ work...
ReplyDeleteI am not opposed. He seemed mixed.
One states they are not attracted to Asians.
Therefore, it is reasonable, not to consider Asians romantically.
One states they are more attracted to Europeans than Asians.
Therefore it is reasonable, not to consider Asians romantically.
However, it is also true...
One has a secret attraction to Asians.
One lurks and/or stalks Asians online.
One knows Asians demonstrate positive romantic qualities.
Therefore it is very questionable, to not consider Asians romantically.
This would be the case even if it was God's perfect will for the person to eventually be romantically linked with a European because the actions of the person demonstrate a lack of willingness, based on the person's own desires and nature, to consider Asians romantically.
This is likely God's permissible will taking place in the life of the person, not God's perfect will, due to human disobedience.
For a finite, sinful person considering all options within desire and nature is essential for learning God's perfect will.
The same reasoning can be applied to other like situations.