Like private donors, government agencies have traditionally dedicated most of their money to brand-name illnesses with large advocacy groups, so part of the role of the rare disease foundations is to pique the interest of elected officials and scientists.
I found that the best antidote to such ignorance wasn't just to say "racism is wrong", but also to drive home the consequences for their own self-interest of electing a neo-fascist representative; few people would want to live in a divided town represented by the BNP, property prices would be depressed as a result, their own prosperity would be hit.
Too many of Texas' disclosure rules "serve the interests of elected officials over the public's right to know," said Craig McDonald, director of Texans for Public Justice, a fiscal watchdog group.
The debate essentially comes down to a single question: Where should the line be drawn between the privacy interests of elected officials and the public's right to know their whereabouts?
The answer, as those familiar with this quirk of D.C. politics know, is that despite the name, the accounts have very little to do with helping constituents and everything to do with advancing the political interests of elected officeholders.
This posed a structural problem, for the interests of elected officials weren't particularly aligned with the public, whereas the union negotiators had a personal stake in whatever compensation package was adopted.
The practice creates conflicts of interest for elected officials and prevents the work of the people from getting done, Lessig says.
The First Amendment, the majority insists, requires us all to rely on the measures employed in the first State, even when they have failed to break the stranglehold of special interests on elected officials.
The costly celebrations, funded by private donors, skirt ethics laws and open conflicts of interest for elected officials, the critics say.
Spreading the money thinly across the country may be in the political interest of many elected officials, but it is not in the best interest of protecting our country.
