by Newt Gingrich
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0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
 Good Ideas, but........, 2008-07-02
I am a long time fan of Speaker Gingrich, and I believe that he is one of the smartest and most innovative thinkers on the political scene. I always love it when he shows up on television to comment on something, and I was anxious to tackle this book.
Unfortunately, I was disappointed. While I tended to agree with most of the ideas offered, I felt that the book was little more than a collection of position statements whose primary supports were the author's beliefs and the fact that x% of Americans polled agreed with the positions offered. I was also disappointed that, after a promising start in which the author criticized the shrill tone of today's highly partisan political climate, a number of the subsequent discussions seemed rather partisan with numerous perjorative references to "the left," the Democrats," "unions" and the like.
While it contains many excellent ideas, "Real Change" would have been far more effective had Speaker Gingrich really delved into the questions at hand, presented some meaningfull point/counterpoint discussion and then backed his positions with well thought out arguments. His final positions would have been the same, but the book would have been more intellectually satisfying and more useful.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
 A Road Map to a Better Future, 2008-06-26
Former Speaker Newt Gingrich has written this timely book calling for real change in American governance. He calls for reforms in education, immigration, entitlements, the judiciary, and many other areas, and is even willing to have the government offer cash prizes to individuals who develop necessary innovations such as hydrogen cars.
Gingrich rightly states that meaningful change to our current bureaucratic government system will never come from the Left, given that it is beholden to the usual liberal interest groups, and that the current Right so lacks a spine that it will not be bold enough to offer real change. The GOP, he says, fell into the trap of holding onto power for power's sake instead of trying hard enough to work for reforms that would replace the bureaucratic model with a more free-market approach. In order to make the necessary reforms that will prevent the slow national decline that will come if we refuse to cut the size of government, it is important to replace the current, stale order of politicians with limited-government conservatives.
However, no one on the presidential ballot in 2008 is likely to offer the reforms that we need to ensure that America remains peaceful and prosperous for decades to come. Hopefully, in 2012 someone will run as a conservative reformer who will adopt a platform defined by ideas similar to the ones in this book.
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
Outstanding !, 2008-06-20
Here is a politician who actually makes sense when he talks. He has the answers.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Real Change, 2008-06-18
Former Speaker Newt Gingrich makes the case for
a proactive public involvement, as well as a
transformational one. Basically, the USA is united
on immigration, taxes, defense and freedom of religion.
Taxes can be simplified in the form of a single page
flat tax along the lines enunciated by Malcolm Forbes.
According to the author, burdensome regulations and taxes
discourage the deployment of new refineries. While new
extraction is needed, progress must be made on migrating
solar energy to households, municipal government buildings
and small businesses of every kind. The Artificial Sun
is a multi-nation fusion project making considerable progress
toward practical implementation. Coal Gasification is another
encouraging area together with wind mill power. Let's not
forget nuclear power or electric cars.
The reconstitution of the middle class will be a more
difficult problem to handle. This task can be
accomplished with increments in small business investment,
a higher collegiate graduation rate, investment in
blue collar infrastructure jobs, tax simplification,
simpler health care delivery protocols, energy
independence, new savings instruments,
simplification of the FDA approval process for new
drugs and streamlining housing codes.
The Speaker faulted the Army Corps of Engineers for Katrina.
In reality, the whole USA coastline should be reviewed
by order of flood exposure to major population areas and
the economic consequences to businesses large and small.
Let's not forget volcanic activity and the possibility of a
tsunami . Disaster recovery and contingency planning for
earthquake activity are continuing priorities.
The book states that the failure of the education system
is the death knell of the old order. In some places,
graduation rates are falling and math/science test scores
are declining. The news is not uniformly bad. Many private
schools , charter schools, targeted inner city schools and
specialized schools perform at consistently high levels.
The ultimate question involves choosing the appropriate
change agent. Is the agent of change bureaucratic or
entrepreneurial in nature ? Clearly, the largest growth
in the economy has been with small business.
The Speaker believes that the Iraq engagement required
an effective counterinsurgency, more law enforcement,
intelligence and troop strength. I would add to this
an elite commando force to penetrate the neighborhoods
on the ground. Knowledge of Arabic is a condition
precedent to success on a personal level. Municipal
accounting systems are needed to restore normalcy to
routine governmental operations in Iraq. Current troop
levels are not sustainable indefinitely. At some point,
there must be an iterative withdrawal of forces so that
Iraqi forces shoulder more of the burden together with
a small United Nations Peacekeeping Force.
Lastly, I believe that our foreign policy must achieve
a political equilibrium; such that, no one foreign
state predominates regionally to the detriment of
global security. We must achieve this goal in the
India, Pakistan, Afghanistan spheres of influence.
Next, political equilibrium must be achieved in
Iraq, Iran, Turkey and the various constituencies
bordering the Straits. An Israeli/Palestinian peace
may be possible with a political equilibrium
amongst Israel, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Jordan and
the various subgroups of every political predisposition.
In the scheme of things, Russia must cooperate in
refusing to make available weaponry of any kind to
disturb the existing political equilibrium between
and amongst the key regional constituencies enunciated
above. The IAEA is an important boundary spanner in
verifying compliance with existing nuclear treaties and
protocols.
The work is an important contribution to the ongoing
discussion aimed at moving the global agenda forward.
The implications for action are multi-disciplinary.
The group formation to accomplish these meritable
goals crosses political party lines and philosophies.
2 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
 Report From Norway: Why They Don't Have an Energy Crisis and We Do , 2008-06-15
My curiosity about this book was piqued when I received a solicitation for it with an essay entitled, "Report From Norway: Why They Don't Have an Energy Crisis and We Do," pertaining of course to offshore oil drilling. I know a great deal about why the Norwegian method works since I work in the oil industry and had the opportunity to live with Norwegians for a couple of months last year and we discussed these things at great length, and so was very surprised that Newt would recommend the Norwegian method.
The Norwegian method works well because Statoil hydro, the biggest offshore hydrocarbon company in the world, is now a public limited company started with government money thanks to socialist investment. It is presently 2/3rds owned by the government and remains under government control and the profits (taxes, dividends, licensing, and sales) go into a savings fund to pay for Norwegian Social Security.
It's hard to imagine all of ExxonMobil's profits going into Social Security! Only last week here in the United States , even a profit windfall tax was shot down by the GOP. I am surprised that Newt recommends this. I didn't think Newt Gingrich supported Social Security.
I'm also surprised that Newt Gingrich supports drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge - that certainly isn't the Norwegian method! Norwegians pride themselves on rational, secular decision making, and drilling in the ANWR is such an obviously, outrageously wasteful proposition that no honest person can claim otherwise without being mentally deficient.
By the most optimistic projections, the first drops of oil from ANWR would begin to flow in ten years, while we can save more oil right now than ANWR will ever produce within two years with the mere stroke of a pen to increase the efficiency of next year's cars by 2 mpg. It's as if you had the choice to pay for a short vacation either by spending your life's savings (all that you've ever saved and all that you will ever save) or by recycling your soda cans for a year or two. End of story.
The Norway model works because they employ the highest environmental policies in the world. Bear in mind that they only have one (arguably two) climactic zone to protect over 1600 miles of coastline, while the United States has a coastline ten times as long with almost every type of environment known. Drilling is never 100% free from environmental risk even with the best workers that the Norwegian method can procure.
Of course they are able to procure those workers because the Norwegian method requires paying their workers so well.
I know what you're thinking: what about taxes? Well, the Norwegian method works with lower taxes and they're progressive which is even better. Norwegian personal (and corporate) tax rates are 28%; in the US it's between 15-39% with an additional 0-12% state income tax. The sales tax (or "value-added" tax) for Norwegians is higher at 25% and therefore the cost of living is higher in Norway, but you can't forget universal health care and universal higher education.
I'm really glad that Newt Gingrich, who led the fight against universal health care in the 1990s, has changed his mind on the issue. I think of it as a moral thing, but even if one thinks of health care only in terms of money, the fact is that universal health care saves money for individuals and for the companies they work for. Every industrialized nation on earth is paying less for better health care and everyone is covered. No spin can change those kind of facts. Game, set and match.
I have insurance through my employer that costs me a bundle, but the Norwegian method of universal health care would save both myself and my company that money, plus I'd never have to worry about getting sick when I switch jobs. And did you know that more than half of the bankruptcies in 2005 were due to medical bills? Norwegians never lose their homes because someone got sick or injured.
Even that's almost nothing compared to how much money the Norwegian method would save hard working middle class Americans on college tuition! If your youngest children will be attending a state college in 18 years, you should be saving about $11,000 a year per child. If your kids are around ten years old, figure on saving about $18,000 a year per child. (And that's assuming a nice 8% rate of return.)
Now the Norwegians do have mandatory conscription but it's only for 6 -12 months of service for fully paid college (and it's been a thousand years since the Vikings invaded anybody!) I don't want to get political, but just last week in the United States a bill that would have provided college tuition after three years of service was voted down by the GOP. I wish more Republicans supported the troops with higher education like the Norwegian method does.
Don't forget how much you'd save with the Norwegian method of retirement pensions. In the Norwegian model, the profits all go into their Social Security trust fund. How much would that save you and your spouse every week? Everybody knows that Social Security privatization is a scam by the fat cats on Wall Street: how many people lost their 401K retirement savings in 2001? The Norwegian method gives senior citizens peace of mind because they never have to worry about retirement.
Newt Gingrich really picked a great country to model a plan on.
Norway is currently the second highest ranked nation in the world for literacy rate, education level and per capita income, with only a 2% unemployment rate and one of the highest hourly wages in the world, and the wage difference between the lowest paid worker and the CEO is among the lowest, making Norwegian society very egalitarian, much like the United States was in the 1950s during the golden age of the middle class. Well, you know the old saying: everyone does better when everyone does better.
The Norwegian model works because they have a strong middle class. The Norwegians learned their lesson after their workers were abused in dangerous working conditions and under exploitive labor relations policies. It's not surprising that New Gingrich continues to support family values, and although I don't agree with his definition of what constitutes "family values" (neither would the Norwegians: for example, same-sex partnerships were recognized in 1993), we certainly have plenty of common ground here. In the 1950s when the middle class was at its strongest, a single hard-working individual could provide for his entire family and afford a house, a car, a family vacation...and with only one parent having to work, the other was able to be with their children all day. After all, how can there be any family values at all if there isn't time to spend together as a family?
By the way, the Norway method works because advertizing directed towards children is tightly regulated. In the United States , Florida legislatures passed a law to protect senior citizens against deceptive advertizing, specifically Ed McMahon. Apparently a 65 year old can drive, vote and own a gun despite being incapable of understanding the word "may" in the sentence, "You may have already won $1,000,000" while at the same time there is no protection for children. How can a child be thought of as a more sophisticated consumer than a 65 year old?
Anyhow, it's refreshing to hear New Gingrich changing his mind and supporting such progressive positions. The Norway method works because of intelligent, progressive values and strong regulation.
I hope Newt Gingrich supports regulation in other areas as well. After all, deregulation hasn't worked at all in the airline industry, the automobile industry, the banking industry, the mortgage industry, the insurance industry, the pharmaceutical industry, the telecommunications industry, the mining industry, the electrical industry, and the military contracting industry to name a few, and the "self-regulation" of Wall Street and of the food supply have been disastrous (why have an EPA, an SEC, a GOA, an FAA or an FDA if they are left too unfunded to be effective?)
P.S. "Report from Norway: Why They Don't Have an Energy Crisis and We Do" is a really bad title. It screams, "Because we have 2% of the world's population but use 25% of the world's oil and even though they have 0.0007% of the world's population and are sitting on 10,000,000,000 proven barrels of oil and 90 years worth of natural gas, they're still investing heavily in wind and solar."
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