Race and the 2008 Election Results

[malasadas.livejournal.com]

When Barack Obama won the Presidency in 2008, he did so with almost 53% of the popular vote and 365 electoral votes including several states that had not trended for a Democratic Party candidate in many election cycles. Many people, myself included, saw the result as a refreshing nail in the coffin of the so-called Bradley Effect, where by an African American candidate for office will poll stronger than his final vote tally. In President Obama's case, the final vote tally appeared to closely reflect the polling leading into election day. From my perspective, that was a true positive outcome, and the final popular vote tally was the result of our highly partisan electorate.

( But new research suggest racial animosity cost President Obama many more votes than previously suggested. )

Privatizing warfare

[luvdovz.livejournal.com]

Maybe this will be relevant in a way to the monthly topic, the future development of the world. Because war and the military is an essential part of society, and there've been some well noticeable trends there in the recent years. First of all, here's a curious review of some of the largest private armies that now exist in the world:

A Look At The Largest Private Armies In The World

Mercenaries, or "private contractors" as is the new PC term now, have been part of warfare through all stages of human history. In fact I'd say citizen-army is a relatively recent development in comparison. Well, there are many ethical and purely strategic issues involved in privatizing warfare. From the question to whom do they owe their allegiance, since they're being paid for by private companies; to the question how effective they can be in a tough military situation. I'm no expert, but still, here are some scattered musings.

( I'm sure there must be a question somewhere in here )