Tikkun (https://www.tikkun.org/author/a_vradenburgg/)
The vast scope of human needs reflects the great challenge of tikkun olam. Simply enacting a law requiring all to pledge "tikkun olam" won't do it. Notwithstanding the generosity of the American people, there is a scarcity of resources to meet all human needs, there are competing needs to be served, and there are few tools available to assess the relative social impact of different philanthropic and civic investments.
Washington is mired in bitter personal partisan battles. The two-party system seems itself to be lurching out of control and unable to respond thoughtfully to the pragmatic, problem-solving center of the political spectrum.
What if, as expected, regenerative science and lifestyle improvements lead to another twenty-plus-year extension of life expectancy in the twenty-first century?
Arriving at your local Walgreens—a DNA kit that will estimate your chances of getting cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer's, and myriad other diseases or conditions. Are you going to buy it? Do you want to know your future?
The Left has been left whimpering that health care reform did not go far enough, that we should adopt "Medicare for All." But the claim that this bill is middle-of-the-road or too pragmatic has not found any significant public sentiment and fails in the face of the financial pressure on government.
Barack Obama—the keynoter at the Democratic Convention—is a new political talent with enormous potential. Speaking with striking eloquence of the "politics of hope," he electrified the Democrats convened in Boston in language appealing to Republicans and non-voters as well.
The United States holds a position of military and political dominance unique in world history. The Roman Empire surrounded the Mediterranean Sea but held no sway in the rest of the world. The British Empire was global in reach, but confronted countervailing powers in Europe and in the continents where it had outposts. Neither constraint applies to the United States at the beginning of the twenty-first century.