[PEN-L:8888] Call for Volunteers for The Budget Game (Building Net Toys for
THE BUDGET PROJECT: INTERNET TOYS FOR DEMOCRACY Two years ago, the Center for Community Economic Research produced a simple web game, the National Budget Simulation, that let Americans explore some of the complexities of balancing the Federal budget. The result was a smash hit. NBS was used in classrooms throughout the country, and it was cited by The New York Times, Business Week, and C-SPAN. Today, in conjunction with Progressive Communications, we are embarking on a new adventure, and we need your help. Today, we are launching a new initiative: Internet Toys for Democracy (ITD). The goal of ITD is to create a library of reusable Java tools to help educate the public about economic issues. Using these tools, teachers, policy makers, and members of community groups, businesses, unions, and political parties will be able to easily create interactive teaching "toys" without having to know how to program. ITD's first project will be an expanded version of the National Budget Simulation. We would like to rewrite the original game, using Java, so that anyone can create their own budget simulation. Local and state governments will be able to create simulations to help their citizens understand where their tax dollars go, and educators will be able to use it for teaching. It will be designed so that it is simple to use and is a powerful teaching tool. Our goal is to get as much input from teachers, community educators, and others who have on-the-ground experience trying to explain complex economic issues to ordinary people. It will also be built so that people can also add options to suit their needs. In doing so, we hope to build a useful tool and to show that the Internet can live up to its potential as a means for educating the public. The project will be broken into three phases. In Phase I, someone will write a quick-and-dirty general version that people throughout the country can experiment with. We'll set up a mailing list to get feedback on this version, to coordinate its use, and to discuss what features we should include in the next version. In Phase II, someone will rewrite the program so it gradually includes new features. In Phase III, we will discuss which other simple Java applets for teaching economic issues are worth tackling next. We don't have any funding for this project. If it's going to happen, it will take lots of volunteers: PROGRAMMERS: Right away, we need a skilled hacker to whip up a simple, stripped-down version of the Budget Game in Java. For someone who's a whiz at object-oriented programming and Java, this shouldn't take more than a few days tops plus an occasional bug fix, since the program is essentially a very simple spreadsheet. We also need someone for Phase II who's very skilled at object-oriented programming and who knows how to write clean, clear code that will fit JavaBeans and other emerging Java standards. This second project requires a larger commitment of time and may involve more than one person. If you're available for a quick-and-dirty job but not sure about a longer-term commitment, we're happy to take you (we assume that the first version is a prototype that we'll throw away). HOSTS: Although we can keep a copy of the Budget Game on CCER's web site, we'll need more than one site to make this work. We're looking for people who can host mirror copies on their web site. We are also looking for people to help handle some of the administrative tasks, such as keeping up-to-date web pages that list the hosts and lesson plans, perhaps help in handling the volume of email the project generates, and other administrative issues. EDUCATORS: As soon as we have a quick-and-dirty version up and running, we'll need help from classroom teachers and community educators. We'll need people to design lesson plans, write better instructions, and to come up with and kibbitz over a list of new features for the next version. The shape of the next version, Phase II, will largely be determined by educators who have lots of practical experience explaining complex economic issues in simple terms. We will try to steer clear of adding too many bells and whistles and keep our eye on the prize: getting across the lessons we hope to teach (and we assume the Budget Game will be used to teach many different kinds of lessons from a wide range of political perspectives). BUDGET BUILDERS: As soon as a quick-and-dirty version is ready, we'll need several government employees and educators to try building budgets. For the first version, we're looking for people who feel comfortable with computers, since you'll have to enter the budget as a text file (in the second version, you'll enter it via an easy-to-use Java applet). Interested? Send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] In the subject line, put the words BUDGET GAME and the category you want to volunteer (e.g., "BUDGET GAME PROGRAMMER"). You can also subscribe to our moderated mailing list, EDINLIST, where we'll
[PEN-L:8887] Exposure Of Unpopular Character Of Representative Democracy (Canada)
No sooner the results of the referenda in Toronto became known, the Ontario government announced that it would ignore them. Such things have also happened in the past and are, in fact, common occurences. For instance, in like manner, the federal government ignored the No outcome to the referendum on the Charlottetown Accord and declared "business as usual." Show us a political party which does not promise one thing during an election to then turn around and do the opposite once elected? Things have gone so far that a lawsuit on the issue is taking place in B.C. at this very time. The credibility of the federal Liberals over the GST, Aboriginal issues, and their "cuts with a heart" are another case in point. It is an inherent feature of the system of unrepresentative democracy in Canada which is anachronistic and needs to be drastically rehauled. How can the government of Ontario reject the popular will of the people it wants to amalgamate in the form of a megacity? The reason is that the kind of democracy which exists is based on nineteenth century considerations which do not vest sovereignty in the people. The popular will is not the one which makes decisions; it is the "representative" will of the ruling party which is elected on the basis of the first-past-the-post system that has a "mandate" to do whatever it wishes. While ostensibly the electorate "elects" its repesentatives, it loses any say whatsoever no sooner it casts its vote. Its right to govern has no means of expression. Such a system worked when the propertied classes gave each other the opportunity to do whatever they wanted during their "term in office" and a universal franchise had yet to come into being. Then the franchise became universal but the "representative" aspect became a euphemism for depriving the people of their right to participate in governing their society in their own interests. It is still the propertied interests which are represented, not the interests of the people. All governments at this time, from the federal to the provincial, are carrying out an unprecedented anti-social offensive which goes against the popular interests and is in defiance of the popular will. It is urgent that the people step up their struggle against this defiance of the popular will by taking their struggle against the government's dictate to its logical conclusion, which will require the establishment of peoples' councils so that the people can empower themselves. Besides the renewal of the democratic system, the people must also demand a modern constitution which enshrines the right of the people to govern. Shawgi Tell University at Buffalo Graduate School of Education [EMAIL PROTECTED]
[PEN-L:8886] American Axle Workers In U.S. Ratify Contract
Workers at American Axle and Manufacturing Inc. in Detroit ratified a three year contact by 97%, the United Auto Workers (CAW) announced last week. The contract covers some 7,200 workers in five plants in Detroit, Three Rivers, Buffalo and Tonawanda, N.Y. The contract is said to be similar to UAW's national contract with General Motors. The plants were owned by GM until 1994 and the workers have been operating under their old GM contract under new management. The privately-owned American Axle had argued for lower wages to make it more "competititve" with other independent suppliers. Under the old contract wages averaged $22 an hour. The new contract gives the workers an immediate $2,000 bonus and three percent raises in September 1997 and 1998. It also includes a guarantee that the company will maintain at least 95 per cent of its union jobs, "with some major exceptions for an economic downturn and other unforeseen circumstances," a news release says. American Axle makes rear and four-wheel-drive axles, propeller shafts, steering linkages, anti-roll systems, stabilizer bars, differentials and a variety of forged products. The company also has a plant in St. Catharines, Ont., that is not covered under the UAW contract. Shawgi Tell University at Buffalo Graduate School of Education [EMAIL PROTECTED]
[PEN-L:8885] Adresler
Dilek, merhaba again. Ugur ve Bulent'in adreslerini aceleyle unuttum. Ugur Aker'in adresi: 6860 Cheryl Dr. P.O. Box 351 Hiram, OH 44234 Telefon: (330) 569-3494 ev (330) 569-5142 off (330) 569-5130 fax e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] office [EMAIL PROTECTED] ev === Bulent Uyar'in adresi: Dept. of Economics 219 Business Building Univ. of Northern Iowa Cedar Falls, IA 50614 Telefon: (319)234-2559 ev (319)273-6343 office e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sevgiler, Fikret.
[PEN-L:8884] FW: BLS Daily Report
BLS DAILY REPORT, TUESDAY, MARCH 11, 1997 RELEASED TODAY: Revised fourth-quarter seasonally adjusted annual rates of productivity change -- as measured by output per hour of all persons -- and revised annual changes for the full year 1996 were released. In the fourth quarter, productivity rose by 1.2 percent in the business sector and by 1.1 percent in the nonfarm business secto For the year 1996, productivity increases in both sectors were the largest since 1992 One-third of manufacturing executives plan to add to their payrolls in 1997, according to a survey by the National Association of Manufacturers. The NAM survey of 2,000 manufacturing executives finds that 33 percent said they plan to increase full-time permanent jobs in 1997, while 55 percent said they will hold employment levels steady this year. Only 9 percent said they will likely cut jobs. Manufacturing executives complain in the survey that the lack of skilled workers is hindering the growth potential of their companies. Sixty-four percent of surveyed manufacturers say a "significant number" of their entry-level workers do not have the skills needed to increase productivity and growth (Daily Labor Report, page A-6). DUE OUT TOMORROW: Workplace Injuries and Illnesses in 1995
