Education and Health Issues

Today one of the most critical issues facing both citizens and CEOs alike can be summed up in three words; health care costs.

In 2005, an estimated $1.9 trillion will be spent on health care in the United States, consuming a staggering 15.7% of gross domestic product. With trends showing a population that is growing both older and sicker, that figure is projected to be 17.4% by 2010.

With every syllable the halls of Lake Otis Elementary School seemed to close in around my nine year-old psyche.  “Of all the kids in this school I expected better from you Andrew”, the teacher said sternly. But this wasn’t just any teacher; it was Mr. Caputo, my idol.

His disappointment was justified.

October is domestic violence awareness month in Alaska.

Cynthia Maughs, strangled. Rachel Peace strangled and burned. Mona Edwards, shot. Maela Crabtree, shot. Susan Bailey, beaten to death. And the list goes on and on.

Two weeks ago, meeting with state legislators, Anchorage School Superintendent Carol Comeau outlined the financial challenges she faces in delivering an education that will allow students to compete in the twenty first century.

In the next few months you’ll hear continued debate about the No Child Left Behind Act and the movement of jobs overseas otherwise known as outsourcing. Although these issues will be spoken as two separate challenges facing America, the reality is that one provides the solution for the other.

It’s a growing political discussion in America. It’s an opportunity that might provide cures for millions of Americans suffering from the most crippling diseases and conditions known. It’s embryonic stem cell research.

What are embryonic stem cells? Stem cells are the basis for every organ, tissue and cell in your body. In the first days after fertilization, the dividing egg sets aside cells so small they’d fit on a pinhead. These cells can be programmed to perform many tasks like becoming body tissue, nerves, cardiac tissue and even blood.

The crisis of weapons of mass destruction surprised all Americans when it turned out to be a crisis of bad intelligence. So it begs pause today, as the impending challenge in paying Social Security benefits is labeled an immediate crisis.

In fact, before considering changes to America’s oldest social safety net, we should consider the words of another George. In 1905 philosopher George Santayana wrote, “Those who cannot remember the past are doomed to repeat it”.