Articles written by Bryan Jennings - Page 4

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About me - Bryan Jennings

I'm a 20 year old college junior from Connecticut, studying political science and have been writing for a good number of years. I generally write about politics, specifically American politics. I also enjoy writing about energy issues, and countering the

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Religion & Spirituality > Religion & Spirituality (Other) Should one's faith influence a citizen's vote?: 60 of 126
Belief, to paraphrase Sam Harris, is a lever that once pulled influences every thing in your life. Once you believe something, that belief informs you entire perception of reality. Sometimes this isn't such a big deal. Most of things religion teaches a person to believe are in fact quite conducive to good government. If you ... More..
Politics, News & Issues > Energy Issues The pros of biofuels: 2 of 4
Bio-fuels, despite what the State of the Union address or the latest energy bill might claim, are not the solution to our dependence on foreign oil. At best, they are part of a multi-step approach that will, one day far in the future, eliminate the need for the US to import energy, and dramatically reduce our impact on the e... More..
Politics, News & Issues > Government & Policies Should the federal government make transportation infrastructure a funding priority: 2 of 4
As far as funding priorities go, transportation infrastructure, things like bridges, railways, highways, ports and the like, is not nearly as sexy as something like a new type of destroyer, or some boondoggle that promises to create 3000 new jobs to do absolutely nothing. Infrastructure is, however, necessary to a modern cou... More..
Politics, News & Issues > Drug Laws & Prevention Should Sudafed be a controlled drug?: 2 of 4
"The potential for abuse is not an arguement against proper use" goes an old Roman saying, and it is as true today as when it was first uttered in Latin. The push to made Sudafed a controlled substance comes from its potential to be used to make meth-amphetamines by drug dealers and ambitious young chemistry students. While ... More..
Politics, News & Issues > Party Politics & Ideology Should government spending be cut in half?: 1 of 2
A common libertarian talking point is the idea of massively cutting government spending, by as much as 50% in some cases. The only thing worse than someone who pretentiously thinks they know something about government and doesn't is someone who pretentiously thinks they know something about government, don't, and can't wait ... More..
Society & Lifestyle > Society & Lifestyle (Other) Congestion pricing: Is it the solution to our traffic problems?: 1 of 2
While I agree congestion taxes are a way to help the traffic problem, they are not a perfect solution, in addition to a congestion tax, we need to heavily invest in our transportation infrastructure including subsidized public transportation. However, congestion taxes are an important first step. One of the first and most ba... More..
Politics, News & Issues > Food & Agriculture Do agricultural subsidies make us fat?: 1 of 2
The question misses the essential point of agricultural subsidies. Subsidies were not designed, as people might think, as a free handout to farmers in the worst spirit of pork-barrel spending. Subsidies are actually essential to the agricultural market as we understand it today. Consider for a moment the average cost of a ga... More..
Politics, News & Issues > US Elections Archives US elections 2008: A vote for Hillary is a vote for a Republican president: 1 of 2
With Super Tuesday all but decided, and the Democrats no closer to having a decisive victory for one candidate, it is now time to stop and reevaluate the field. Super Tuesday has changed a great deal, though supporters of both candidates will not see it. Because of the outcome of the Republican race, a vote for Hillary as th... More..
Politics, News & Issues > Democratic Leaders Elections 2008: Is misogyny another obstacle for Hillary?: 1 of 2
The Democratic Primary has been rife with negative advertisements, playing to, among other things, race, sexism and fear of terrorism to name but a few base emotions. There can be no question that both candidates are throwing the everything and the kitchen sink at each other in an attempt to get elected. The true question th... More..
Politics, News & Issues > US Immigration What is our obligation toward residents with no civil rights?: 1 of 2
The question itself shows that we're already looking at the question through precisely the wrong lense. The idea that a resident of the United States, legal or illegal is not entitled to any civil rights is one that should be completely foreign to any American concept of justice. It is popular to claim that those who are not... More..