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It doesn't take a Nobel prize-winning economist to understand that if the economy is a) not responding the Federal Reserve's interest rate hike; b) reducing real wages for 90 percent of the nation's workers; c) encouraging the wealthy to opt-out of public services such as education, health-care, drinking water, and police; and d) creating the security threats of today (oil-related terrorism) and tomorrow (conflict with China)...that that economy is broken. Irreparably.

But what we hear from economists on both sides of the aisle is the same old mix of policies that focus on trade and interest rates. The problem is China's bottomless labor supply. Or the problem is Greenspan's housing bubble. Sometimes the problem is that Europe and Asia are not buying enough American goods. Or that Americans are buying too many foreign goods.

Wrong, wrong, wrong. The problem is much deeper. The problem is based on the simple fact that the American economic formula of cheap gas, suburban sprawl, subsidized resources, and employer-provided healthcare is no longer viable. I'll be writing more about this over the next few months but right now, I wanted to provide the context in which James Galbraith's quick summary of a progressive economic engine makes enormous sense.

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In helping the Campaign for America's Future organize a "Bloggers Boulevard" at its Take Back America conference last week, I discovered first-hand how hard it is to find female bloggers who write about progressive politics. And harder to find those who have the luxury of time and resources to attend a 3-day conference. I know fans of the blogosphere have discussed to death the lack of women bloggers. But here are some lessons learned.

Dig Deep. My daily media diet contains only a small serving of bloggers. And with all the media sources competing for my attention, laziness is definitely a factor in who I read. I read a couple of the big guys and known experts (think Juan Cole) and follow their links. But when you look past

http://elayneriggs.blogspot.com/2005/06/to-hear-me-roar-please-remove-fingers.html 

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A few weeks ago, I wrote that for the Downing Street Memo to have any effect, members of Congress would have to get behind an investigation into the document. Now, it seems, the game is on.

"But for those aligning with the Conyers camp, it will not be easy to raise awareness in the mainstream media, even with CNN's belated recognition. We learned from the 2004 election cycle that the mainstream media will not pursue controversial investigations without political backstopping."

I'm pleased to report that early congressional support has made a difference.  Rep. John Conyers gathered 88 signatures on a letter to the White House demanding that the president explain the memo. That letter was rebuffed by the White House but it was enough to get CNN and the LATimes on the case. A few days later, the Washington Post filed its own story.

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If you've got five mintues a day, you've got time to change the country. That's the thought behind the Democracy Cell Project, a non-profit organization that aims to use the Internet to organize people in their communities—to build cells—to effect change. The idea is to "grow" democracy. I think it's a pretty apt metaphor. The website is a great resource for local organizers, with online forums, links to find cells in almost any area of the country and a daily, 5-minute action. There's also a blog  that today has highlights and  photos from the Take Back America conference.

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Blogging from the Take Back America conference,  Oliver Wilis laments the lack of attention here  to foreign policy and terrorism. Says Willis: "The left has this notion that if we simply shift the discussion to be about economic issues - social security, minimum wage, pensions - that we can neutralize the issue of security, terrorism and war. No way."

In the era of 9/11 and Iraq, America is going to vote for the movement that they perceive as the movement that will protect them and kill the bad guys. Right now, even though their record is abysmal, terror has increased, and Iraq is a mess, the right has a firm lock on the perception of their side as the party of security.

Until we start talking not only about Homeland Security and the inadequacies of veterans pay and military armor, but the idea that America has to intelligently go around the world and kill the people who want to hurt us, we won't do any better than 48% - probably evem worse.

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As I type talk-radio host Victoria Jones interviews Howard Dean about the filibuster. Susie Madrak of Suburban Guerilla tells me that upstairs Arianna Huffington is delighting the crowd with her criticism of Hillary Clinton's squishiness on Iraq. The crowd here has swelled to nearly 2,000 people. Check out the highlights of the conference so far, including "podcasts" with selected fascinating people, here.

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So consider this scenario: Your country is at war. It's been at war for a few years, and it could be at war for a few more. The Reserves and National Guard have already been called up. Part-timers used to training one weekend a month are being shipped overseas for 14-month tours of duty. But there still aren't enough soldiers. What do you do? Well, if you're a recruiter for the U.S. Army, you make a video game.

A video game? Yep. That's the newest recruiting tool the Army is rolling out in hopes of persuading a new wave of young people—reared on PlayStation and Xbox—to be all that they can be. The online, multi-player game targets boys 14 and older and, among other things, lets players "fire realistic Army weapons, such as automatic rifles and grenade launchers." Like that, kids? Sign here for the real thing...in Baghdad!

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And here we all thought it would take an act of God. Turns out ExxonMobil quietly released a report that accepted industry estimates that global oil production is going to peak...in five years. Meanwhile, across the pond, a group of 12 major British corporations have jointly requested that the British government put in place legislation that will reduce U.K. carbon emissions by 60 percent—and end the uncertainty over emissions policy.

What does this mean? In the ExxonMobil case, it means the "drill our way to energy security" camp is left without is largest corporate patron. Indeed, ExxonMobil is now talking about efficiency as a national priority. This will help the ANWR folks as well as throw the Energy Bill for quite a loop.

The British initiative speaks more to economic competitiveness. Of course, the European Union has already committed itself to Kyoto treaty and to its own community-wide reduction targets, and Brussels itself is coming out strong for emissions reductions at the same time. Will America miss out on this major industrial evolution because Washington is too tied to big oil and gas?

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In America, holidays like Memorial Day and Veteran's Day are too often viewed as simply a free day to sleep late and catch up on the yardwork. But in times of war, like now, the sacrifices American soldiers have made and are still making come into focus—especially when so many have died needlessly, sent abroad to fight for a lie. If you, like me, are one of those lucky enough not to have a close friend or family member in Iraq, it's even more important to take a minute today and consciously think about  the 1,656 American soldiers who have died—and the 180 dead from coalition countries. CNN has compiled a database —searchable by name and date of death—with photos and details about our casualties of war.

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Too few observers of the Social Security debate understand that the Democratic position is a strategic decision. Stonewalling the president's privatization plan is a choice—not a sign that the Dems lack ideas for addressing the Social Security shortfall. With all the talk of compromise in Capitol Hill this week, nerves were strained over the possibility that Dems high on compromise would seek one on Social Security. On Wednesday, Robert Rubin came to the rescue, reminding Democrats: "Putting out a Democrat plan on Social Security would be a horrible mistake because right now it’s the president’s principles against our principles. "

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