Looking for a well-researched, non-quack book about the American Government's response to UFO's from the 1940s onward. [more inside]
posted on Jul 17, 2008 - 8 answers

A (US) government agency wants to create a database of data that is voluntarily submitted by members of the public. The database has fields of data that get populated, some with personal data. The data records are made freely available to the public either through a regular periodic data dump, or through FOI requests, although personal data is blanked out (some fields in their entirety, some fields partially) To what extent can said agency decide it also wants "non-FOI fields" added to the database. What is allowed to be exempted from FOI requests other than personal data?
posted on Jul 15, 2008 - 8 answers

Does the city you live in have a great website? What (specifically) makes it great? [more inside]
posted on Jul 11, 2008 - 18 answers

Are records kept by government about the architectural blue prints of every building built? [more inside]
posted on Jun 27, 2008 - 7 answers

I am part time and make 100, or so dollars a week.often less what i want to know is can i recieve any goverment assistance i can barely afford insurance. I am trying to find a better job but it isnt going very fast i live in lancaster pa
posted on Jun 17, 2008 - 8 answers

Applying for a government job (what to reveal in the application and more) [more inside]
posted on Jun 2, 2008 - 4 answers

I'm trying to lead a crusade for government to publish it's statistics and data in a way that is mashable. Is it possible to define a standard digital format that could apply to a diverse array of data sets? [more inside]
posted on May 29, 2008 - 12 answers

What US governmental RFP sites are worth the time/money - or do you know of any free ones that are not impossible to search? [more inside]
posted on May 26, 2008 - 2 answers

Very old parking tickets/fines and US immigration... do I have to pay up when I come home? [more inside]
posted on May 14, 2008 - 9 answers

I need to better understand the proposed tax systems. Mainly the fair tax or sales tax versus an income tax. I am writing a paper for school on the viewpoints of TTARA (The Texas Taxpayers and Research Ass.) and CTJ (citizens for tax justice) but cannot gain a clear idea of what each side is proposing. Obviously the republicans want the fair tax, and since TTARA is business minded, I assume they too seek the fair tax, or at least support it. But what is the Dem idea of fair taxation? Do they want an income tax? What is all this talk on CTJ about income tax cuts? I don’t have the patience to sift through all the material so I'm hoping someone can give me a basic idea of the differing positions on the matter. Mainly answer the question of who wants what and why, and who benefits most from each plan.... Also what about the working poor, do they benefit most from an income tax? Etc. Etc.
posted on May 4, 2008 - 17 answers

Economics Filter: Monetary Policy and the Fed, when do we raise and lower rates and why? [more inside]
posted on Apr 22, 2008 - 8 answers

How many of the 10 Planks of the Communist Manifesto have been adopted into modern society? [more inside]
posted on Apr 1, 2008 - 9 answers

So I've been converted from civil service in the U.S. (WG/GS etc.) to NSPS and need help writing Supervisory/Managerial Performance Objectives. This is a shot in the dark as the system is relatively new. Specifically, does anyone have examples other than the ones posted on the "official" websites? I actually love to write, but this is pretty formulated and it would be very helpful to see what others have done with it. [more inside]
posted on Apr 1, 2008 - 2 answers

Where can I find information about the legality of using public government data on my website? [more inside]
posted on Mar 28, 2008 - 8 answers

Can anyone tell me the percentage of children of illegal immigrants who attend college? Specifically in Texas. We are arguing the HB 104 (in state tuition bill) in my government class and I need to know how many children of illegal immigrants who were not born in the US actually attend institutions of higher education....
posted on Mar 22, 2008 - 12 answers

Does the 'use tax' charged by states for purchases made outside their borders violate the commerce clause? [more inside]
posted on Mar 12, 2008 - 3 answers

Are unions still relevant? [more inside]
posted on Mar 12, 2008 - 28 answers

What do governments do with seized contraband that cannot legally be bought or sold, cannot be set free, but ought not be simply destroyed? I'm thinking elephant tusks and rain forest hard woods, that sort of thing.
posted on Mar 10, 2008 - 9 answers

Looking for tips on dealing with the defense department acquisitions system. Basically, I am preparing taxes for a new LLC that expects to land some government contracts, and they are asking me about how best to deal with DFARS. None of my accounting connections knows anything about this. Should I just refer them to a D.C. based CPA who has experience, or is it not a big deal?
posted on Mar 9, 2008 - 2 answers

How should government change the way it provides services in response to the technological revolution happening around us? [more inside]
posted on Mar 7, 2008 - 15 answers

Can you think of any examples of "jawboning" from history? [more inside]
posted on Mar 6, 2008 - 4 answers

How do you verify a state seller's permit/resale certificate and/or tax ID for US businesses? [more inside]
posted on Jan 25, 2008 - 1 answers

I am considering going back to grad school. All I know is that when I get out I want to put myself in the position where I can do the most good for protecting the environment. What specific job should I shoot for (Government, Non profit, other?) and what degree do I need (MPA, MPP, JD other)? [more inside]
posted on Jan 19, 2008 - 21 answers

I'm trying to renew my passport, which expired about six years ago and is now lost, but the government doesn't seem to believe this situation is possible. Is this process the same as replacing/renewing a still-valid lost passport? [more inside]
posted on Jan 19, 2008 - 16 answers

Is there a quote by a Founding Father about how the First Amendment really protects religion from the government, not the other way around? I know about Jefferson's letter to the Danbury Baptists ... but I have this feeling that there's another famous quote. Maybe it's by a more modern judicial person rather than a Founding Father? [more inside]
posted on Jan 18, 2008 - 3 answers

I just received an anti-Huckabee push poll. Who was it from? [more inside]
posted on Jan 17, 2008 - 11 answers

How easy is it to get residential street parking permits in Toronto? What are the chances of being put on a waiting list? [more inside]
posted on Dec 9, 2007 - 7 answers

What kinds of high-technology things exist now but will only come to light 50 or 100 years from now? Speculative, but asking for concrete answers. [more inside]
posted on Nov 30, 2007 - 41 answers

Give me examples of government services in the USA that have been privatized, and tell me if the service improved or got worse.
posted on Nov 25, 2007 - 23 answers

Has any democracy, in a free, fair and open election, ever chosen a racial minority as a head of state or head of government? [more inside]
posted on Nov 20, 2007 - 34 answers

What's it like working for NASA these days? What will it be like in 5-10 years? [more inside]
posted on Nov 9, 2007 - 21 answers

My friend works as a federal contractor, and he is a permanent resident / legal alien / green card holder. The thing is, it seems more and more federal contracts are requiring US Citizenship, which I can understand for the FBI and NSA and stuff... How does the government decide that US Citizenship is required for a contract. Is there a book of regulations they follow that I can see? [more inside]
posted on Nov 8, 2007 - 0 answers

Besides the obvious collateral benefits to producers and consumers of news, what is the logic of using the time and resources of government officials during an emergency to calculate and report the death/injury toll of a natural or man-made disaster? Does this task aid rescue or recovery efforts in any way?
posted on Oct 19, 2007 - 11 answers

What can you tell me about the Monterey Institute of International Studies? [more inside]
posted on Oct 3, 2007 - 4 answers

The Government Accountability Agency (GAO). Good guys or bureaucrats? [more inside]
posted on Sep 23, 2007 - 10 answers

Trying to figure out if there is an "ism" or "acy" word for a governmental system of ruler worship (i.e. like the ancient Egyptian systems which considered their rulers Gods). Any specific terms for this?
posted on Aug 29, 2007 - 15 answers

Are U.S. Government publications copyrighted or in the Public Domain? More specifically, are Federal Reserve publications copyrighted or in the Public Domain? I'd like to be able to monkey with these comics, but am wary of violating copyright. (I've sent e-mail to the Federal Reserve asking this same question, but am skeptical that I'll receive a timely response.)
posted on Aug 23, 2007 - 28 answers

Is it ever OK to change peoples posts on a web forum? Say theoretically a government department ran a consultation via web forum, with invited, non anonymous participants, and wasn't happy with what some of their own staff said. Would it be ok for them to order the staff to edit the posts? Are there any useful examples of the consequences?
posted on Aug 7, 2007 - 10 answers

Any Mefites know of headhunting/recruiting firms in the Chicago area that specialize in government relations/public affairs? [more inside]
posted on Jul 30, 2007 - 1 answers

What's a good definitive source of quotations on the net? I've been trying to track down the source of a quote, but get differing answers. [more inside]
posted on Jul 25, 2007 - 15 answers

Why is the presidential administration working so persistently to bequeath extra powers to their likely Democrat successors? [more inside]
posted on Jul 5, 2007 - 31 answers

Is the IRS going to penalise me for filing late from a foreign country? [more inside]
posted on Jun 18, 2007 - 11 answers

I visited a public middle school, and it was filled with roaches, is there anything positive I could do for those kids? [more inside]
posted on Jun 12, 2007 - 14 answers

Julie Amero. Are there ANY concrete actions a non-expert stranger could take to decrease the chance she'll do jail time? [more inside]
posted on Jun 1, 2007 - 13 answers

How does one unregister to vote? [more inside]
posted on May 29, 2007 - 20 answers

I once read a claim that the Chinese government had funded "research" whose aim was to prove that Han Chinese are a different species to other humans. It was a physical book, not online. What might it have been? And incidentally, is the claim true?
posted on May 18, 2007 - 14 answers

I currently work for the government and recently applied for another job in a different location (still with the government). The new job description sounds like it was written for me. I am currently doing the exact same job and more at the same pay grade. I am extremely well qualified and went to one of the best schools in the country for this field. The problem is – I didn’t even get past the first hurdle to be considered for an interview. [more inside]
posted on May 17, 2007 - 12 answers

This travel advisory from the State Department website, dated 1998, states that the use of GPS units is highly regulated in Russia and that it is risky to bring one unless it is fully documented. Now, GPS units are a lot more common today than they were in 1998. Do I really have to worry about this? I am planning a multi-country trip and I could mail myself the GPS ahead of time to my post-Russia destination if I had to. I am an amateur photographer and I use the unit to tag the location of photos I have taken.
posted on May 11, 2007 - 9 answers

A few years ago I saw on TV that the General Services Administration and congress sell off their furniture and other stuff at low prices at a store of some kind in Virginia or Maryland? Is this for real? Where does a person find the store, is it online, and can I go there with a truck? My google-fu fails me.
posted on Apr 12, 2007 - 7 answers

The US government does not consider IRA money or 401K money (or stock market investment of any kind) to count as "savings" when they calculate US savings rates. Thus our perennially lousy savings rates vs. other countries. Or so I read. If true, what is our government's reasoning? [more inside]
posted on Apr 10, 2007 - 24 answers