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In addition to proposing four possible solutions to the United States's Social Security problems, this staff report also gives insight into the problems a newly designed system would need to foresee, such as the upcoming demographic shift, the dropping labor force participation rate amongst younger individuals, increased consumption, potentially stagnant economic growth, etc. The proposed solutions are to "1) increase payroll taxes by 6 percentage points, 2) reduce the replacement rates of the benefit formula by one-third, 3) raise the normal retirement age from sixty-six to seventy-three, or 4) means-test the benefits and reduce them one-to-one with income." Means-testing, already used in Medicaid, is the process by which the government assessing the income and assets of individuals and families to see if they could live without the government's help. In this case, only the poorest would receive benefits. The solution was first proposed by Ross Perot; however, it could lead to a social stigma around accepting pension benefits. Furthermore, each solution has its own repercussions and political obstacles. Maybe it is possible to look overseas to find more palatable solutions.

"Well, we live, today, in a country, the United States, that is more politically polarized than it's been in either of our lifetimes, ever. And that just seems to be getting worse by the day." What Hayhoe and others are pointing to is another way of communicating about climate change.

"http://youtu.be/Fj8ZkoL-_wA"  Solazyme--one of the solutions to oil; oil from algae: flexible, scalable, affordable. . . 

As distant and uninformed observers, we might see Syrian disarmament as an obvious and rational solution that prevents war. However, the option is placed on the table seconds before potential U.S. military involvement. In the case of Saddam Hussein, it took military involvement to prove his innocence in respect to chemical weapons. Why are dictators willing to threaten their positions of power when they can simply allow inspectors into the country? There must be some things that we don't understand. Power can often lead to narcissism and over confidence. Such traits could play a role in their unwillingness to cooperate.

The British are in favor of the non-violent solution to the situation in Iraq. They say that they are skeptical of the plan, but that they will take it seriously, and that it must be "'tested out properly' to ensure it [is] not a 'delaying tactic' or a 'ruse'."

Possible non-militant solution to Syria's chemical weapons. Met with skepticism from White House.

I think the divide among Syrian officials and Assad about ceding control of chemical weapons is very interesting. It seems that in addition to gaining Russia's support, Kerry's proposal has also gained the support of many of Syria's top officials including its foreign minister, Wallid al-Moallem. Nevertheless, it appears that Assad is still extremely against giving up Syria's chemical weapons, even if doing so would avert a U.S. strike on Syria.

This article is about John Kerry's diplomatic proposal to Syria to give up its chemical weapons in order to avoid US intervention. Russia, a close ally of Assad's regime, has supported Kerry's proposal and is discouraging Syria from using chemical weapons, if it will deter an American strike on Syria.

This is an important development, especially in the light of Putin's letter. Hopefully all of the countries will cooperate to make this non-violent solution a reality.

A deep "insider's view" into the civil war occurring in Syria. Reveals the brutal crimes against humanity that the Syrian government is inflicting upon its citizens including murder rape, and unprecedented violence.

It is really interesting to read an article from the point of view of a person in Syria. The author is clearly begging for help for Syria. I think the last line is incredibly powerful, where the author says that Syria is part of the world and the world needs to help. Unfortunately for the author, not every other country agrees.

This is an interesting perspective on what is going on in Syria. I found it pretty accurate how the author described western powers as masking their "political inertia with empty rhetoric about a 'political solution'". I had no idea that over 7 million people (1/3 of the Syrian population) were IDPs as a result of this conflict. It's truly a horrible story. It's also interesting how the author describes the western powers' switch from being against the rebels to seeing their actions as justified.

OXFORD, England - There are no easy solutions to Europe's refugee crisis. In a world of fragile states and increasing mobility people will continue to come, irrespective of whether they neatly fit the legal definition of a "refugee."

WASHINGTON -- Pope Francis urged compassion on Thursday for refugees and unauthorized immigrants, speaking to a crowd that included lawmakers who have said the U.S. should keep out Syrians and others who fled their countries, and should deport more of the undocumented immigrants who are already here.

An uncomfortable article about the UN in Congo. It talks about how the UN has spent billions of dollars and more than a decade on trying to keep peace, but they've accomplished very little.

These rapings are atrocious, and I'm surprised that its coverage on the media has been so meagre, considering the long history of the crisis in the Congo. While the U.N. has not been able to improve the Congo significantly, I'm wondering if the problems lie in the desolateness of the area (no lines of communication, etc) or in the management of the U.N. bases there. I believe that the U.N. could be doing more, but I don't think they should be the only solution; the local economy and infrastructure must improve as well so that better communication and control can be established.

What was most shocking to me about this article was the scale on which this is happening in Congo and how open the attackers are about it- raping an 80 year old woman, raping women with UN peacekeepers right up the street. The rapists have absolutely no limits. Scary and very sad. It was equally shocking that the Congo government (police, law enforcement etc) has been unwilling or unable to do anything about this (the article cited them as often "too drunk" to do much about it). It's sad and heart wrenching that the UN has so far been unable to come up with a plan to help these people, and perhaps even more sad that their own government hasn't done anything. It's notable that Congo is being called the "UN's crowning failure" and their greatest failure so far.

Haha just fun to laugh at the Republicans sometimes. I love how people try to deny something that seems so obvious. "Part of the problem here is that Republicans reject the science because they oppose the solutions." This statement says it all, Republicans do not want to deal with (spend money on and get taxed more) fixing the problem because it is not good for their pocketbooks. Sad.

This is an interesting article that goes with "The Story of Our Stuff." Pogue writes about our need to constantly replace our products (he offers some solutions as well). A very cool fact: in Europe, all cell-phone chargers have the same type of power cord. The EU mandated it.

As EU tension around debt problems mounts, many political parties in Germany, including Merkel's advocate amending the Masstricht and Lisbon treaties to give the EU more power to punish those who disobey rules regarding deficit and debt. 

This article makes an interesting connection between the Occupy Wall Street protests and the Arab Spring. The author suggests that the Arab Spring and the people's call for greater equality and freedom in the face of oppression have inspired other countries across the globe. Arab Spring shows the power that the young have in the new digital age, and this lesson has in a large part inspired young adults in other countries to protest against the injustices within their own society. IN the U.S. these protests have taken the form aversion and anger with the inequality that has resulted from our capitalist system

I think it is also interesting to note that both the Arab Spring and the Occupy Wall Street movements can in large part be characterized by large groups of people working towards lofty aspirations, but without tangible plans for moving forward. Arab Spring sought to overthrow the dictatorships, but didn't necessarily have a strategy for the new governments. Similarly, Occupy Wall Street protesters want to overthrow the current system, but don't have a realistic solution for the country's economic policy.

This article attempts to break down the Occupy Wall St. movement. Douglas Rushkoff hits on the important point that the 21st century media is not making it easy for the protestors to share unified thoughts because the media itself is not unified.

The article points out that "Occupy Wall Street is meant more as a way of life through contagion, creates as many questions as it answers, aims to force a reconsideration of the way the nation does business and offers hope to those of us who previously felt alone in our belief that the current economic system is broken." I think that this statement is true in that Occupy Wall Street offers hope to people and an outlet to voice their unhappiness with capitalism; however, I fail to see the solutions put forth by the protests. One of the appeals to the movement is that there is not a clear leader and it was mostly organized on Facebook and Twitter. And although technology started the movement it also may pose as a challenge, because it becomes more complicated for people to understand what "the end goal" is.

In order to remedy Ebola, Nations most affected by the virus, namely Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone, must allow their leaders to calm and heal the general public. If political and social leaders fail to eradicate the disease, the number of people infected will quickly rise from 3000 to 20,000. So far, several countries have mismanaged the outbreak. Governments quarantined rural and urban areas of aforementioned African countries; a slum in Monrovia, the Capitol of Liberia, was one of the blocked off places. Instead of helping the people, as intended, the quarantines trap people. These people feel disregarded and sentenced to death. Fear causes people to run from the spaces and further spread Ebola, defeating the purpose of the quarantine. Even if African governments take necessary steps to prevent the spread of the disease, Western aid is still essential. Western countries should not supply weapons to help contain quarantines, but rather provide medicine and experienced medical personnel. Unfortunately, the pay is not high enough for many medics to risk their lives treating a disease that is the highest risk to doctors and nurses. The solution to Ebola is not an obvious one; the entire process is experimental. However, U.N. experts say a medical center need be established in West Africa where representatives of every African country can convene to discuss the disease.

Very interesting article. It is interesting how psychology must be considered in giving aid to African countries infected with Ebola (for example, the article mentions that soldiers shouldn't brandish their weapons so Ebola patients won't be afraid of the quarantine). The quarantines seem like an extra cause for panic. Imagine a Liberian seeing a quarantine being set up. Do you think they would act calmly and happily admit themselves to the quarantine, or just simply run away and spread the virus further?

Great analysis--see quotes below--but my question is, can the widespread response that is needed actually be pulled together? Especially, can it be pulled together fast? "Most agreed on many basic principles. All, for example, were sure the outbreak could be stopped without experimental drugs or vaccines. None expected it to take less than six months." "Pay is also an issue, experts said. Health workers taking huge risks must be compensated, and so must their families if they die." "Also, this outbreak is like SARS in that doctors and nurses are in the highest risk group. Training must be extra-thorough - especially in taking off protective gear that might be smeared with virus. Nigeria, for example, does not let anyone near victims without three days of training on wearing protective gear, said its health minister, Dr. Onyebuchi Chukwu." "The new W.H.O. road map calls for 12,000 local health workers and 750 expatriates." ""There's no part of this you can't break down and make work," Dr. Aylward said. "But it took us 20 years to build the polio response, and this has to be done in 20 days."

This article not only touches upon the dangerous and negative effects of the Ebola outbreak, but calls into questions an ethical controversy regarding preferential treatment when it comes to medical care. As the need for a cure escalates, the time allotted for the testing and developing of an anti-Ebola drug diminishes. Thus, medicine that has not been thoroughly tested has been distributed to two white Americans infected with the virus. This begs the question: Why these two? Does it have to do with their race or anti-African biases? And once the drug is fully developed, who will receive the treatment first? Who will be prioritized? Additionally, this contentious matter has added to the already distrustful African view of Western pharmaceuticals and relief efforts.

I found it interesting that not only did the article touch on the ethical questions of who to give the first available drugs to, from a standpoint of where it would be most effective rather than just where it would be most convenient. The part of the article where acceptance of the drug came into question was another touchy matter. The attempt to administer the drug as a solution to the Ebola break out is difficult because of the nature of the illness and the apprehension towards Western Medicine. Even though the medicine is available there's no telling if this quick fix will actually contain and solve the crisis just as Arthur Kaplan says at the end of the article.

The article brings to light interesting conflicts between African countries and the western industries of medicine. I feel like it would be effective to offer medical education to the local inhabitants in the infected african countries. That way their knowledge can help them avoid getting the disease. Furthermore, they would have more knowledge to help them decide whether or not they would like to take the drug that is possibly a functioning vaccination, rather than just not giving the sick African patients the option. The complexity of this problem is interesting because it deals with issues of ethics and trust.