Four Rural Americas -- Place Matters

Leave it to the University of New Hampshire's Carsey Institute to do a new study that helps us understand the challenges of rural America.

The report -- "Place Matters: Challenges and Opportunities in Four Rural Americas" -- identifies four separate and very different places in rural America.

• Amenity-rich areas with seashores, mountains, forests and lakes, enjoyed by vacationers, retirees and 2nd home owners.
• Declining resource-dependent areas -- regions that once prospered because of agriculture or mining, timber or manufacturing, now without enough opportunity to maintain a middle class.
• Chronically poor regions which have lacked investment and lost jobs for decades.
• Transitional, defined as regions that seem to be balancing resource-based decline but still have amenity growth.

Some of our readers may ask why all this matters? Our answer to this very important question is that Carsey's "Place Matters" further proves that rural America isn't all alike, and that policy solutions will need to be flexable as we work to address rural America's unique challenges.

When Congress Works

David Broder's July 31 column for the Washington Post offers info on the new National Housing Trust Fund, which makes a good beginning on creating affordable housing for both cities and rural areas. In "When Congress Works", Broder says,

"For far too long, the federal government has been shirking its responsibility to help the neediest Americans meet their basic housing need. Food stamp allocations have been increased repeatedly to combat hunger, in part because the farm lobby values the additional markets for its products."

Well ... yes. We agree. The farm lobby does appreciate the fact that when people are hungry, they need food ... whether they can afford it or not.

And well ... yes. Finally. The housing lobby, pushed by the home mortgage loan crisis as an extra incentive, finally got the job done, or started. Our congratulations to Chris Dodd, Barney Frank, Jack Reed and Richard Shelby ... and all the other folks who helped too. Read more.

See John McCain's Everyday Shoes -- $520 per pair

Bet you already know that we don't usually advertise for NeimanMarcus on this site? ... But every rule has its exception. In this case -- our exception offers opportunity for you to find (buy?) Ferragano loafers just like John McCain's ... so you too can wear them to the State Fair or perhaps to play golf in. Just click here to see John McCain's Salvatore Ferragamo Pregiato Moccasins for a mere $520 per pair.

Isabel Wilkinson, writing for Huffington Post, has pictures of the shoes in her story. Yet another fun read can be found at CNN's site: "McCain's $520 loafers put 'elitist' shoe on the other foot".

We think "elitist" is exactly the right word. After all, McCain is the guy that thinks Farm Bills are nothing but nonsense -- voting no on every single one since the mid-'80's. That's a lot of NO NO NO's ... NO to conservation, NO to affordable housing in rural communities, NO to school lunch, NO to new water/sewer systems for small towns, NO to fresh fruits and vegetables, NO to organics, NO to food safety and NO to food security.

Al Gore: "Environmentally Responsible is Economically Responsible"

Last week, Al Gore spoke to a turn-away crowd about the U.S. (and the world) energy crisis. So many people wanted to attend that people who RSVP'd first were asked to please let the organizers know if they weren't coming so that people waiting in line could take their place.

Gore, urging a 10-year goal for our nation to make the change from carbon-based fuels to 100 percent of our electricity from clean, renewable sources, said,

"We're borrowing money from China to buy oil from the Persian Gulf to burn it in ways that destroy the planet. Every bit of that has got to change."

What we liked best -- recognizing that making the switch won't be easy, is how thoroughly practical and straightforward, the mainstream media has covered Gore's challenge.

E.J. Dionne covered the story in the Washington Post with this comment, "

"It sounds like a typical, idealistic Al Gore idea. But two things about this proposal merit attention. It points a country that uses too much energy down the right path. And Gore is showing that being environmentally responsible is economically sensible."

Gore and T.Boone Pickens aren't alone in ringing the "EMERGENCY BELL." Many are others are too. Click below for more info.

• Warming is Major Threat to Humans, Says EPA
• Gore Urges Fast Energy Makeover
• Transcript: Gore Delivers Remarks on Energy and the Climate

Nation's Security on the Line: T. Boone Pickens says "Time to Stop Digging"

T. Boone Pickens spoke plainly as he testified to the Homeland Security Panel which Senator Joseph Lieberman chairs and Senator Susan Collins serves as Ranking Member.

Pickens stated:

“We are more fragile today, from a national security standpoint, than we have been since World War II. This danger stems directly from our overwhelming dependence on foreign oil, which has risen from 24 percent in 1970 to 70 percent today. What worries me, and what should worry this committee and the American people, is that much of this dependence is on oil that comes from countries that are not our friends. And in some cases, this dependence on their oil has placed the US in the position of paying for the tools these countries use to embrace, export and manifest their ideology that would like to see us fail as a democracy and as the leader of the free world.

"And further, by spending this $700 billion year importing oil– more than four times the cost of the Iraqi War -- we are strangling our economy and putting ourselves and our nation in greater harm’s way. All without our enemies ever having to raise a hand in anger. This is more than a disturbing trend line. It is a recipe for national disaster. This is a crisis that cannot be left to the next generation to solve and shame on all of us if we don’t grab this bull by the horns and wrestle it to the ground. And we must do it now. I have been traveling all around the country with a simple message – that our country is in a deep hole and it’s time to stop digging. I have a plan where we can do this in a way that actually improves our economy and our way of life, and I have to tell you the response to the plan has been tremendous.”

Click here for Picken's 5 points as reported by Business Wire:

"T. Boone Pickens to Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee: National Security Is Jeopardized by Crippling $700 Billion Dependence on Foreign Oil from Countries We Cannot Trust with our Future."

Click here for more detail on Picken's Plan.