obamacto on UserVoice

What are our international aid priorities?

2008-12-21T20:52:39+00:00

Fix the voting machines

2008-12-21T16:32:40+00:00

an anonymous user suggested:
Diebold admits their machines loose votes, Princeton professor shows how easy it is to hack the machines, machines said to be made by companies owned by very GOP-friendly people, votes tabulated on the same machines that host the GOP campaign. Who knows how much of this is true, but we shouldn't even have to wonder. No honest person, Republican or Democrat, should object to this: Every voting machine must have a verifiable paper trail. When the election result in Ukraine was 6 points off of the exit polls, it was regarded as evidence of fraud. Funny, we had just had an election in which the exit polls were off by about that much.

Complete the job on metrication that Ronald Reagan defunded [updated]

2008-12-21T14:33:53+00:00

The government has failed to take the lead on completing the task of moving the country completely to the SI metric system. George H.W. Bush tried to do something about it, but gave the bureaucrats an easy out. Failure to follow the same measurement standards as the rest of the world is costing US industry something like $1 trillion per year.

usma said:

Metrication failed in the 1970s because:
1) Absence of full backing by government and industry leaders
2) No set transition period (i.e., no deadline)
3) Flawed mission. The mission of the U.S. Metric Board was not to make
the Nation metric, but merely to "coordinate the increasing use of the metric system"
4) The U.S. Metric Board contained members who did not even support the mission

No-fault insurance and workers' comp. insurance your doctor

2008-12-21T00:50:51+00:00

LAUREENMERRELL suggested:
I could not use my own doctors whom I treated with for eighter of these insurance coverage. Why becasue they harrassed, insult and challeged medical care needs or should I say don't approve them. As a result from a slip and fall I developed RSD due to lack of early requested treatment. I am suffering everyday now when this could have been prevented in the early stage of offset.

100% disabled veterans and spouse excempt property tax

2008-12-20T16:00:21+00:00

LAUREENMERRELL suggested:
The federal veterans administration has it written that the home must be in the name of the veteran. There are situations in second marriages where the home is in the spouse's name. These veteran's are not getting the property excemption in Florida. And the care-giving wife will not even get the excemption after the husband dies. This needs to be changed . Don't you think this is unfair.

FAIR VETERAN PROPERTY EXCEMPTION FOR FAMILY CAREGIVER.

2008-12-20T15:43:41+00:00

LAUREENMERRELL suggested:
I AM MARRIED TO A 100% DISABLED VETERAN WITH NO LEGS NO FINGERS. i AM HIS LOVING WIDE AND CARE GIVER. BUT THE HOME WE LIVE IN TOGETHER IS NOT GETTING THE PROPERTY TAX EXCEMPTION IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA BECAUSE MY HUSBAND'S NAME IS NOT ON THE TITLE. wHY THE HOME WAS NOT A PRODUCT OF THE MARRIAGE BUT IS THE HOME WE BOTH LIVE IN. THIS IS A SECOND MARRIAGE AND LIKE ALL SECOND MARRIAGES THERE ARE ISSUES WITH CHILDREN AND FAIR WILLS AFTER WE DIE. I FEEL TEXAS, CALIFORNIA ARE GIVING TAX EXCEMPTION TO 100% DISABLED VETS AND THE SPOUSE ....SHOULD BE NATION WIDE. FLORIDA WILL NOT GIVE ME THE DISABLED VET PROPERTY EXCEMPTION UNLESS MY HUSBANDS NAME IS ON THE DEED. NOT EVEN AFTER HE DIES. I FEEL THIS IS DISCRIMINATION BETWEEN RICH 100% DISABLED VETS WHO BOUGHT A HOME AND 100% DISABLED VETS WHO AQUIRED A HOME BY THE WIFE INHERITENCE OR PREVIOUS MARRIAGE.

Japanese Akita pup

2008-12-19T16:19:18+00:00

an anonymous user suggested:
Like in the new movie Hachiko: A Dog's Story with Richard Gere. This is not the American Akita most are familiar with. For 9 years, every day until his death, Hachiko waited at the train station for his master to return who died at work.

Complete the job on metrication that Ronald Reagan defunded [updated]

2008-12-17T22:18:39+00:00

GoMetricToday said:

I remember 5 years ago being told that TV was going digital. But like every other thing the government didn't educate the public and now they are playing catch up. My mother was even caught off guard. In this case the compulsory method is working and the transition to digital will be relatively smooth. Compulsory at this point in the game is the only way to metrication of the US.

Complete the job on metrication that Ronald Reagan defunded [updated]

2008-12-17T22:15:04+00:00

GoMetricToday said:

USMA that just goes to show you what can happen when the public get the proper information and education. I think for the US though, our metrication will have to be compulsory. We tried the voluntary thing for too long and it didn't work, as I am sure you will agree. Like it was mentioned in another blog, the government made it compulsory for TV to changed to digital.

Internet Security

2008-12-17T22:02:17+00:00

jlaprise suggested:
The Interent is an essential part of modern economic and social life. The security of this ubiquitous network has long been neglected by the White House. The CTO must take an aggressive role in developing ways to protect the infrastructure and architecture of the Internet while preserving it as a free and open forum for commerce and communication. This topic is a place to raise ideas for Internet protection.

Complete the job on metrication that Ronald Reagan defunded [updated]

2008-12-17T16:54:41+00:00

usma said:

Actually, Australia's metrication was voluntary, and accomplished by national assent. Most Australians agreed that it needed to be done. The result was the changing of an imperial society to a metric one. I visited Australia last year, and can testify to the totality of the changeover. GMT, you are right to cite that country as a good example. They should be the U.S. ' metrication model.

Eliminate Farm subsidies for all but "family" farms. [updated]

2008-12-16T23:05:40+00:00

The big Corporate farms don't need it and the USA needs to start cutting back on these givaways.

HeckRuler said:

First, I think you're right.
Second, you need to explain why family farms are better or any different at all from corperate farms. How come they don't need it while families do? Someone is always riding the combine. The answer is complicated and too long.
Third, just doleing out money isn't a good thing. Personally, I think paying them to make ethanol is better then paying them not to farm.

Network neutrality ONLY for the network [updated]

2008-12-16T22:39:24+00:00

People are really adamant about network neutrality. Let's not get carried away and drag a whole lot of baggage along with it. Focus on the real issue. Any network infrastructure (any routes over physical medium that traverses public property) should be 100% content neutral. Only charge for bits and bandwidth.

HeckRuler said:

Content neutrality is one part of NN. Being a Common Carrier is another part which has nothing to do with content. Read the wiki page on network neutrality.

But 0% of the internet is "public" like you think. It's all run by someone. Even if it's a public univeristy, you don't have the right to use it. Today, most of it is owned by the major telecom companies: AT&T, Verizon, Comcast, Cox, etc.

Protect privacy online, and across databases [updated]

2008-12-15T14:11:09+00:00

Privacy means the right against unsanctioned invasion of privacy by the government, corporations or individuals, and should be protected with laws. Personal details of any kind, including medical, financial, or political information should be accessed, communicated and traded with utmost discretion to avoid fraud and identity theft, government surveillance, and corporate exploitation. As technology has advanced, the way in which privacy is protected and violated has changed with it. Generally the increased ability to gather and send information has had negative implications for retaining privacy. This is the time to enhance existing privacy protections! See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privacy and read the book Code by Lessig ("individuals should be able to control information about themselves").

hopeyj said:

I second what RbtShelton says above am very heartened by knowing that the incoming administration will do all it can to ensure that entrepreneurs with expertise in health information technology will be able to obtain government funding that will enable them to develop software that will create a climate of trust that will increase enrollment in clinical trials.

Require open access for publicly-funded research [updated]

2008-12-15T13:53:10+00:00

Require open access to the results of non-classified research funded by taxpayers. Extend the exemplary policy now in place at the NIH to all federal agencies.

hopeyj said:

As someone who works in a medical library and sees daily how much it costs taxpayer-funded institutions such as hospitals and universities to obtain articles about the results of studies funded with taxpayer dollars, I am amazed that we even have to fight for the open access policies of the NIH. That data belongs to the taxpayers. Thank you for ensuring that justice and wisdom prevail.

Ensure the Internet is widely accessible & network neutral [updated]

2008-12-15T07:43:09+00:00

The Internet is one of the most valuable technical resources in America. In order to continue the amazing growth and utility of the Internet, the CTO's policies should: Improve accessibility in remote and depressed areas. Maintain a carrier and content neutral network. Foster a competitive and entrepreneurial business environment.

RbtShelton said:

To the list of bullet points, I'd add: "Employ Web 3.0 policy-enabled technologies" since this will make it possible to extend Internet technologies, and the productivity advances these enable, to confidential information (e.g., in health care). For this innovation to occur, an environment of trust must exist and users must be able to control who can and cannot see their personal information.

Require open access for publicly-funded research [updated]

2008-12-15T07:26:33+00:00

Require open access to the results of non-classified research funded by taxpayers. Extend the exemplary policy now in place at the NIH to all federal agencies.

RbtShelton said:

I believe our next major breakthrough in productivity will be powered by extending Internet technologies to confidential information, for example in health care. For this innovation to occur, an environment of trust must exist and therefore personal privacy must be assured. But another part of an environment of trust is that the results of research be open as this will accelerate needed advances.

Protect privacy online, and across databases [updated]

2008-12-15T07:13:34+00:00

RbtShelton said:

I believe our next major breakthrough in productivity will be powered by extending Internet technologies to confidential information. This will have great value in health care and other areas. For this innovation to occur, an environment of trust must exist and personal privacy must be assured. Individuals must be able to control who can and cannot see their information, and for what purpose.