Monday, June 3, 2019

IF I WERE AN ASSISTANT EDITOR AT 'THE NEW YORK TIMES' DAILY NEWSPAPER, I MIGHT HAVE OFFERED EDITORS AND REPORTERS THE FOLLOWING ADDITIONAL STORY IDEAS:


---Is it true that the homeless persons in India are all permitted to vote in national elections and local elections there? If so, how does this compare with voting-eligibility policies and voter-registration policies for homeless persons by the federal, state, and local governments in the United States of America?

---Which city, county, or state of the United States has the most "liberal" policy toward permitting homeless persons with no currently valid driver's license to vote in elections in that city, county, or U.S. state? Is there any organization in any U.S. city, county, metro area, or state that is currently attempting to "register" homeless persons as voters?

---What percentage of all Asian Indians of today have relatives who reside in Pakistan as citizens of Pakistan? How does that percentage compare with 10 or 20 or 30 years ago, say? How does this inter-relationship between many Asian Indians and many Pakistanis through their shared ancestry and shared family heritage affect peace-making efforts between those two Central Asian nations?

---Of the various Latin American nations, which country claims the greatest popularity for having an accent and style of locution that virtually all other Latin American countries enjoy listening to? I have heard that Colombia and Argentina and Chile are famous for having very pleasant accents. How does this "lovely accent" and style of speaking by the people of Colombia, Argentina, and Chile affect tourism and cultural stature of that entire nation while boosting that nation's sales for educational audiotapes and videotapes?

--Which city or town on Long Island is the most densely populated on a per-square-mile basis? A feature story exploring how that city or town has managed to avoid urban sprawl and achieve a possible "island charm" reputation for stylish compactness might appeal to many of the Times's readers.

---Did the decision by the United States Tennis Association to situate its nationwide headquarters offices at White Plains, New York, alter the nationwide and global reputation of White Plains in any way? White Plains, for many, is a city associated with industrial production facilities. What has been the nature of the relationship between USTA headquarters staff and the White Plains community?
The exact street address of USTA headquarters in White Plains is: 70 West Red Oak Lane. The USTA headquarters' main office phone number: (914) 696-7000.

---Which current building in New York City has been featured or filmed the most frequently in Hollywood movies? Is that building the Empire State Building, Rockefeller Center, or some other building? In which ways has this Hollywoodesque aura for that particular New York City landmark played a role in attracting tourism to that building or financial investment in that building?

---If Joe Biden, a permanent non-drinker, and Donald Trump, reportedly also a permanent non-drinker, are each nominated to represent their respective political parties in the 2020 Presidential election, would this comprise the very first occasion since the Prohibitionist Era in which both candidates for President from the Democratic and Republican political parties, respectively, are each permanent abstainers from consumption of drinking alcohol? In which ways would that implicit agreement between Mr. Biden and Mr. Trump on the issue of drinking alcohol affect the political campaign or expected outcome of the election?


---Are any advisers to Democratic Party Presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke advising him to emulate Joe Biden by leading a permanently drinking-alcohol-free lifestyle? In view of the drunken-driving incident from Mr. O'Rourke's past that has hindered his own campaign for the Presidency, does Mr. O'Rourke himself plan to make a public pledge to "stay away from the bottle" on a permanent and year-round basis?

---During the first two and one-half years of the current term of office of Donald Trump as U.S. President, has he ever at any time cited a current statistic to the American people, or to the news media, about the percentage of all Americans of today who are illicit-drug addicts, or who are addicted to drinking alcohol (alcoholics)? If so, how many times has our Chief of State publicly addressed that nationwide public-policy issue for the U.S. Government? What might account for the apparent neglect of that very important public-policy issue by President Trump?

---During the first two and one-half years of the current term of office of Donald Trump as U.S. President, on how many total occasions has he actually visited an illicit-drug-treatment center in order to praise its success at helping to cure Americans of their drug addiction? Is there any evidence that President Trump has chosen to ignore the potentially vital role of drug-treatment programs in the United States?

---Why has President Trump apparently made no attempt to demand current studies aimed at identifying "common denominators" among the various perpetrators of mass murder in the United States in the most recent 10-year period or five-year period? For instance, has President Trump made any effort to evaluate the percentage of all of the alleged mass-murder perpetrators in the U.S. who allegedly were addicted to one or more illicit drugs, or who allegedly were addicted to consumption of drinking alcohol at the time they committed a mass homicide?

---Does President Trump have "hotline" access both to Russian leader Vladimir Putin and to the leader of mainland China? How often does President Trump avail himself of that "hotline access"? Are there any other nations of the world for which President Trump has immediate "hotline" access to the chief of state of that nation?

---For all that President Trump has publicly praised Russian leader Putin, is there any evidence that commercial trade between the U.S. and Russia during the Trump Presidency has in fact increased---or, instead, has it in fact decreased or remained about the same as it was six months before Mr. Trump's inauguration? What might account for the polarity between the "pro-Russia" stance that Mr. Trump has repeatedly taken, and the "anti-Russia" stance that is reflected in the dearth of actual commercial trade ties between the U.S. and Russia?

---Which nation of the world is the most likely to be portrayed as villainous in fictional television cartoon programming being watched by American children? This question might be pertinent, since many Americans recall having watched "Rocky (sp?) and Bullwinkle" television cartoon show (right show?) that featured a villainous female character with a Russian accent.

---What has been the long-term trend in the percentage of all Americans who either oppose sex-change operations or state that they believe that the number of sex-change operations occurring in this nation is either excessive or very excessive? What are the public-policy implications from that significant share of all Americans who in a law-abiding manner apparently question the need for any and all sex-change operations in this nation?

--Are there any members of the clergy in the United States who worry that President Trump has popularized hedonism and crass materialism in American society of today? News media accounts indicate that when President Trump faces a political crisis, he often retreats to his estate in Florida for a vacation. Many Americans also note that President Trump and his wife, Melania, appear to offer a case study on "how the rich and famous can live a life of considerable luxury and pleasure-seeking fashion-minded adventure."

---Should the Global Warming Effect and accompanying increase in outdoor temperatures and intensity of sunlight, prompt any revision of the rules or playing conditions for professional tennis matches? This type of question is no doubt being asked by many professional tennis players and organizations representing professional tennis players as well as amateur tennis players (the USTA, for instance). For instance, should there be a significant increase in the percentage of all of the professional tennis tournaments that take place indoors? Also, should players be encouraged to wear protective sunglasses or protective goggles when they play tennis outdoors, even if those sunglasses undermine fans' ability to view the entire face of a player competing in a match?

---What is the staff turnover rate or employee attrition rate in the for-profit corporations currently owned by Donald Trump? If the employee turnover rate is higher in Trump's corporation than it is for most comparable for-profit corporations, what might account for that inordinately high rate of staff turnover in Mr. Trump's businesses?

---Who was the most recent previous President of the United States who owned a business or corporation and had either minimal or no prior experience as a government official? Have comparisons been made by historians between any prior U.S. President fitting that description and Donald Trump himself? Or is Mr. Trump seen as the "most unique" U.S. President of all time, a U.S. President truly unlike ANY previous chief of state of this nation in every conceivable way?

--Are there any observers of the Trump Presidency who maintain that Mr. Trump's very emphasis on how "different" he is from any and all previous heads of state of this country has the ironic effect of implicating Mr. Trump himself for being allegedly narcissistic and dishonest? This type of observation might be based on repeated evidence that Mr. Trump has repeatedly failed to acknowledge the role of ANY previous U.S. Presidents in inspiring Mr. Trump in his own political ideology and style of political leadership? Mr. Trump appears to be eternally determined to publicly announce that he does not admire or revere or seek to emulate any previous President, since  that might detract from the self-idolatry that Mr. Trump openly admits to engaging in.

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