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Obama Says 3% of GDP Should Fund Science Research And Development
tritonman writes "Obama wants to set a goal that the US spend 3% of its GDP on scientific research and development. 'I believe it is not in our character, American character, to follow — but to lead. And it is time for us to lead once again. I am here today to set this goal: we will devote more than 3 percent of our GDP to research and development,' Obama said in a speech at the annual meeting of the National Academy of Sciences."
2.6% The EU's goal is 3%, too.
This post climbed Mt. Washington.
Except...it's not. Just FYI.
If you don't know where you are going, you will wind up somewhere else.
You do realize that a good portion of defense spending is science related right?
Your trying to overly simplify something more complex then your allowing for. Currently, we spend about 26 billion on science and technology specifically but when you take the NASA budget, the Science related defense spending, the educational grants and spending, DOE, NOAA, and several other department spending, that number grows significantly. IF you add private research to the mix, we out spend every other country in the world by at least twice as much on Science R&D with a projected total for 2009 of $383,477,000,000 or about $383.5 billion.
My guess is that the Obama is talking about small increases in federal budget expenditures and increases (most likely through tax manipulation) of private expenditures.
The whole time I was watching Obama's speech talking about getting people to lend money again I kept shouting at the TV that more credit doesn't mean anything without more capital to back it up but that basic idea seems lost in Washington. Bush obviously didn't understand and Obama doesn't seem to either. At least I can agree with what Obama wants to spend money on even though I think the timing is poor because of the bad situation he inherited from Bush.
We are dangerously close to the point that the rest of the world will say enough is enough and stop buying our debt.
[citation needed]
Speaking on the sidelines of an Asian central bankers' meeting in February, Zhou Xiaochuan, governor of China's central bank, asked: "is it time for China to consider using the reserves somewhere else, instead of concentrating too much on the United States?"
China Daily article here.
China worried about safety of U.S. debt. As of January 2009, China is the owner of the largest share of our debt, if Wikipedia is to be believed. I didn't look for articles on other countries; I'm sure you can find some on your own.
Love sees no species.
From the numbers a quick google search brought up the Netherlans has ~60% of employment from small and medium businesses, in the US it's closer to 50% and the definition of SME's is slightly larger in the US with a cap at 500 employees versus 100 in the Netherlands.
There are 4 boxes to use in the defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, ammo. Use in that order. Starting now.
If there was an appropriate return on the investment, the project would be taken up by private industry.
Except they aren't the same kinds of ROI. You're talking profit, GP was talking benefit. As in benefit to society. Things that are of benefit to society are not necessarily profitable to private industry.
The enemies of Democracy are