Fostering progress on a finite planet

Dueling budgets are now out from House Republicans and The White House, and particularly intense fights are already under way over what to slash and what to preserve — whether your interest is enviromental protection and heat assistance for the poor.

As some observers have noted, the programs that are at the heart of America’s long-term insolvency, but sacrosanct, seem to be largely absent on both parties’ cut lists.

The lack of political will for tackling core problems will, as always, put far more pressure than is deserved on relatively small, and often highly effective, programs aimed at fostering global progress

http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/14/fostering-progress-on-a-finite-and-budget-strapped-planet/