November Soundings

"The science that all pupils study from the age of fourteen is to focus more on 'lifestyles,' general knowledge, and opinion and less on chemistry, biology and physics, says the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority. . . Instead of learning science, pupils will 'learn about the way science and scientists work within society.'

"They will 'develop their ability to relate their understanding of science to their own and others' decisions about lifestyles,' the QCA said.

"They will be taught to consider how and why decisions about science and technology are made, including those that raise ethical issues, and about the 'social, economic and environmental effects of such decisions.'

"They will learn to 'question scientific information or ideas' and be taught that 'uncertainties in scientific knowledge and ideas change over time,' and 'there are some questions that science cannot answer, and some that science cannot address.'

"Science content of the curriculum will be kept 'lite.'

"Under 'energy and electricity,' pupils will be taught that 'energy transfers can be measured and their efficiency calculated, which is important in considering the economic costs and environmental effects of energy use.'

"Ken Boston, the QCA chief executive, said: 'It is essential that the curriculum keeps pace with the changing world.'" John Clare, education editor, The Daily Telegraph, November 17, 2004.

"A . . . compilation of annual regulatory costs by economists Thomas Hopkins and Mark Crain finds regulatory costs hit an estimated $869 billion in 2002, an amount equivalent to 40 percent of all FY 2003 outlays.

"Regulatory costs are more than twice the $375 billion budget deficit; more than the entire Canadian gross domestic product; and equivalent to 7.9 percent of U.S. gross domestic product, estimated at $10,980 billion for 2003.

"Federal regulatory costs of $869 billion, combined with on-budget outlays of $2,158 billion, bring the federal government's share of the economy to some 27 percent.

Regulatory costs also exceed all corporate pretax profits, which were $665 billion in 2002. Regulatory costs are greater than the estimated 2003 individual income tax outlays of $849 billion, and far greater than the year's corporate income taxes of $143 billion.

"On the basis of estimates from the Weidenbaum Center at Washington University in St. Louis and Mercatus Center at George Mason University in Arlington, Virginia, federal agencies spent $30.8 billion merely to administer and police the regulatory state in 2003, 12.8 percent more than in the previous year. Including the $869 billion in off-budget costs, that brings the total regulatory burden to $899.8 billion." Clyde Wayne Crews Jr., "Federal Regulations Back to Near-Record Levels," Environment News, August 1, 2004.

"The following facts from the 2000 U.S. Census reveal that Mexican immigrants do not move into mainstream American society as rapidly as do other immigrants:

o Eighty percent of non-Mexican immigrants are fluent in English. Among Mexicans, the number is 49 percent.

o Non-Mexican (working) immigrants have an average wage income of $21,000 a year. Mexican immigrants have an average wage income of $12,000 a year.

o The typical non-Mexican immigrant has a high school diploma. The typical Mexican immigrant has less than an eighth-grade education.

o Compared to other Hispanics, only 49 percent of Mexican immigrants are fluent in English, compared with 62 percent of non-Mexican Hispanics.

o Mexican average incomes are about 75 percent that of other Hispanic immigrants, and Mexican immigrants have about two and a half fewer years of schooling.

"Two other facts are worth noting: First, Mexican immigrants live in communities where 15 percent of the residents were also born in Mexico. Non-Mexican immigrants live in communities where fewer than 3 percent of the residents are from their native land. Second, Mexican immigrants account for a much higher proportion of the immigrant population than does any other group -- 29 percent in the 2000 Census.

"The last two points are key. Individuals become assimilated when their incentives to do so are great. An immigrant from Mexico who moves to East Los Angeles can survive knowing only Spanish and interacting primarily with people from her or his own community. A Bulgarian immigrant to Billings, Mont., must learn English quickly or return to Bulgaria." Edward P. Lazear of the Hoover Institution, "The Road from Mexico," by of the Hoover Institution. Fort Worth Star-Telegram, November 10, 2004.

Can it be that the environmentalist movement is fading. According to a Gallup poll, in 1990 73 percent of those questioned said "Yes" when asked, "Do you consider yourself to be an environmentalist or not?" In 2000, the figure dropped to 47 percent.