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61. Too hot to handle: The politics of sex education

Author:
Frederick M. Hess
Publication Date:
03-2015
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
Abstract:
How have views toward sex education changed over time, and how does sex education around the world compare to that in the United States? On Thursday, AEI hosted a conversation with New York University professor Jonathan Zimmerman on his new book, “Too Hot to Handle: A Global History of Sex Education,” which addresses the differences in sex education across countries and throughout history, finding that as countries become more democratic, sex education becomes increasingly contentious. Zimmerman recalled how the United States was originally a pioneer in sex education, which originally tended to emphasize the dangers of sexual activity. In the 1970s and 1980s, members of the international community began to focus on sex education as a way to help liberate individuals from societal norms, leaving them free to make their own choices. He pointed out that the developing world, however, did not embrace this notion of individual autonomy being granted to teenagers, and so those countries' version of sex education came to look quite different. As immigration increased closer to the present day, then, this created strange bedfellows in many Western countries as white conservatives and immigrants joined forces against sex education. Zimmerman closed by describing how schools are necessarily limited in their efficacy on this particular subject, both because it is intensely personal and because the mass media plays such a strong informative role on the topic. Consequently, he suggested that the discussion of sex education likely ought to be expanded into environments outside the school.
Topic:
Education, Environment, and Immigration
Political Geography:
United States

62. Can Brazil overcome economic malaise and scandal?

Publication Date:
04-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
Abstract:
<p>Brazil's economic malaise and corruption scandals present significant challenges to President Dilma Rousseff's ability to govern, just four months into her second four year term. Latin America's largest economy is rediscovering that stimulating growth and creating jobs requires controlling government spending, increasing trade, and attracting investment by adopting a host of free market reforms. The United States and Brazil should jump start efforts to improve their commercial and diplomatic relations to bolster economic development in a region crucial to both countries.</p>

63. An education agenda for the states: Fostering opportunity from pre-K through college

Publication Date:
04-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
Abstract:
<p>In US education, with all its rich human dynamics, what matters is not whether a reform is attempted, but rather how it is executed. The states, given their sufficient control over schools and colleges and their proximity to their communities, are in a far better position than the federal government to effectively execute policies. Although many education reform efforts have fallen flat over the years, there are promising initiatives on the horizon that state leaders would be well-advised to pursue. Governors and legislators are right to look for strategies that can provide the highest-quality education to the largest number of students. In pre-K, state leaders have a rare opportunity to build a system from the ground up; in K-12, they have the chance to remove barriers to give more freedom to teachers and parents; and in higher education, they have the opportunity to look beyond the existing system to create new, more affordable postsecondary options that allow more flexibility for students and innovation for course providers.</p>

64. Strategic perspectives on the bioterrorism threat

Publication Date:
04-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
Abstract:
<p>One of the recommendations of the 9-11 Commission was that Congress focus on the danger of weapons of mass destruction proliferating to terrorist groups. So in 2007 Congress created a Commission to study the danger and report on measures that could be taken to minimize it. I was asked to co-chair the Commission with Senator Bob Graham of Florida. There were a total of nine members on our bi-partisan Commission. Shortly after our Commission was formed, we met with Senator Harry Reid at his request. Senator Reid explained his interest in the subject of our work, and encouraged us to highlight clearly those aspects of the WMD terrorism threat which we believed were the most significant; he urged us in the strongest terms to tell us what we thought Congress most needed to know about the danger. We did so in a Report released at the end of 2008 called "World at Risk."</p>

65. Cyber surveillance regulations: Is the United States asking China to accept a double standard?

Publication Date:
04-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
Abstract:
<p>China's proposed counterterrorism law, which applies to all information technology (IT) companies operating in China, and US "legal-intercept" regulations, which govern all IT companies operating in the United States, are officially acknowledged frameworks to counter terrorist and criminal behavior. Despite the similarities in these regulations, President Obama has criticized China's law. The US must prepare to see practices that it has already adopted become prevalent elsewhere or be ready to modify US surveillance behaviors that US authorities do not want to see spreading around the globe.</p>

66. High costs, uncertain benefits: What do Americans without a college degree think about postsecondary education?

Publication Date:
04-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
Abstract:
<p>Many adults without a college degree aspire to some higher credential, but most overestimate the cost of higher education, which could deter them from furthering their education. Many adults without a degree in our survey were uncertain as to the wage returns to different postsecondary pathways. Those who did offer estimates tend to see the bachelor's degree as the most valuable credential and certificates as the least valuable. Adults without a postsecondary degree do not always see the value in returning to school, and efforts to encourage education and training should clarify the benefits to various postsecondary pathways.</p>

67. The Political Economy of TTIP: The View from the United States

Publication Date:
04-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
Abstract:
<p>In April of 2015, AEIs Claude Barfield authored a preliminary paper entitled The Political Economy OF TTIP: The View from the United States. The paper was presented at UC Berkeleys conference, The Political Economy of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP): Origins, Evolution, and Implications, with the aim of providing a set of hypotheses regarding the immediate US trade agenda. The paper raises more questions than it answers, at a time when it is particularly challenging to render judgment on this agenda./p

68. The Growing Cyberthreat from Iran: The Initial Report of Project Pistachio Harvest

Publication Date:
04-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
Abstract:
<p>Malicious Iranian cyber activity has increased significantly since the beginning of 2014. Data collected by AEI and the Norse Corporation indicate that attacks launched from Iranian Internet protocol (IP) addresses increased 128 percent between January 1, 2014, and mid-March 2015. The number of Norse sensors hit by Iranian IPs rose by 229 percent, while the number of distinct IPs used to execute these attacks rose by 508 percent. Iranian companies are renting and buying IT resources in the West, despite sanctions. Hundreds of thousands of domains registered to Iranian people or companies are hosted by companies in the US, Canada, and Europe as a result of Western failures to enforce IT sanctions and regulations governing technology transfers. Some of these resources are then used to conduct cyberattacks on America and its allies. The Islamic Republic is using networks within Iran to conduct sophisticated cyberattacks. Investigations have uncovered efforts launched by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Sharif University of Technology to infiltrate US systems. The technical nature of the attacks makes it more likely that Iran's cyber capabilities are expanding and could pose a risk to US critical infrastructure.</p>

69. American Enterprise Institute Compilation, Public Opinion on Hillary Clinton, 1992-2015

Publication Date:
04-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
Abstract:
<p>For many years, we have reviewed polls about leading political figures, including Hillary Clinton. For this AEI Public Opinion Study, we have examined almost 5,000 questions asked about her and compiled views on Clinton as a first lady, senator, presidential candidate, and secretary of state. Polling data on Hillary Clinton include several long trends, including ratings of her favorability. The first such questions about her were asked in early 1992, when many people knew little about her. In Gallups trend, her favorable rating hit 51 percent in July 1992 after the Democratic convention. Gallup noted that the campaigns effort to improve her image had paid off. She did not receive a post-election bounce as Bill Clinton did, and Gallup reported that her favorable ratings had dipped slightly. Gallup noted that 26 percent of both men and women said they were worried that she would play too large a role in the administration. Forty percent in a November 1992 poll said she came closer to their own views than previous First Ladies, but 40 percent said she did not. Her marks went down in the 1994 to1996 period, hitting an all-time low of 43 percent in January 1996 (Gallup). During her Senate tenure, her national favorable ratings ranged from a low of 43 percent to a high of 58 percent. Her national favorable ratings when she served as Secretary of State were consistently high, though they have declined slightly since she resigned from office. Without a doubt, questions specific to the issues in the presidential race will emerge in the polling data as the race to 2016 heats up, and Americans views of Hillary Clinton will evolve as the presidential election season progresses. See the latest public opinion data on her in AEIs infographic and Public Opinion Study, Public Opinion on Hillary Clinton, 1992-2015./p

70. AEI Political Report: Are we safer?

Publication Date:
03-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
Abstract:
<p>Do Americans feel less threatened by terrorism now than they did when President Obama took office? The April issue of AEI's Political Report compares public opinion on the George W. Bush and Obama administrations' handling of terrorism, assesses how much terrorism concerns Americans, and assesses Americans' opinions on how the United States should respond to the threat of ISIS. This issue also examines public opinion on taxes, and where slight shifts have begun to emerge in the polls.</p> <p>/p p/p