The world is on the cusp of the most profound shift in global power and influence in a century. Managing this quiet revolution calls for nothing short of a new international system, with a radical revision of existing institutions and patterns of doing business. It is a time for thinking big.

It’s not possible in a weekly column with limited space to get to all that readers want me to cover. In the interest of remaining current and draining the cranial swamp, here’s a quick hit at some topics that may be dealt with at length in future columns:

The world is on the cusp of the most profound shift in global power and influence in a century. Managing this quiet revolution calls for nothing short of a new international system, with a radical revision of existing institutions and patterns of doing business. It is a time for thinking big.

The economic news, in case you haven’t noticed, keeps getting worse. Bad as it is, however, I don’t expect another Great Depression.

Not so long ago, corporate giants with names like PanAm, ITT and Montgomery Ward roamed the Earth. They faded and were replaced by new companies with names like Microsoft, Southwest Airlines and Target.

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The presidential public financing system, created in 1974 in the wake of the Watergate scandal, has served the country well for most of its existence. The system became outdated and outmoded, however, as Congress failed for more than three decades to modernize it.

Remember when Democrats lamented the growing budget deficit and spoke of the burden our children and grandchildren would face if we didn't put our fiscal house in order?

The most important thing the Democrats and President-elect Obama can do with regard to the economy is bring back a sense of fairness and equity. The fat cats who placed the entire economy at risk with their greed and manic irresponsibility are trying to lay claim to every last dime in the national Treasury.

Suddenly, everything old is New Deal again. Reagan is out; FDR is in. Still, how much guidance does the Roosevelt era really offer for today's world? The answer is, a lot. But Barack Obama should learn from FDR's failures as well as from his achievements: The truth is that the New Deal wasn't as successful in the short run as it was in the long run. And the reason for FDR's limited short-run success, which almost undid his whole program, was the fact that his economic policies were too cautious.

I was driving to New Jersey in June for my brother's high school graduation when I saw, just ahead of me, flashing blue lights — state police searching the trunk of a car and three black guys, who couldn't have been any older than my brother, on the ground in handcuffs. It's the kind of thing we see and read about far too often, as if the goodness and potential of black youths erodes before our eyes.

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I saw a remarkable and uplifting sight on Election Day: Thousands upon thousands of students waited in dauntingly long lines to cast a ballot in Centre County.

After the celebrations of the success of Barack Obama, Joe Biden and the congressional Democrats, it is time to tip the hat to some other people -- with names such as John Hoeven, Jon Huntsman, Jim Douglas and Mitch Daniels. They are Republicans re-elected Tuesday as governors of North Dakota, Utah, Vermont and Indiana.

Maybe I should revise my estimate. Lately, many people have asked me about the fate of the American newspaper in an era when circulation, advertising and staff size are all sharply down. I've told them what editors have told me: The next 18 to 24 months may well see the first major U.S. city without a daily paper.

Every day, sometimes three or five times a day, callers pose these rather basic questions:

The book closed Saturday on our Breakfast Serial, “Janko and the Giant: A Tale of Old Slovakia,” and we know Centre County youngsters read it at home, at libraries and at a swimming pool.

These could be very trying times for former Vice President Al Gore, even as he continues to grab national attention with a new call to achieve freedom from the oil dependence that strangles America’s economy and foreign policy.

When it comes to effective strategies for reducing their home electric bills, most consumers are in the dark — an unwelcome position with rising energy prices.

Being a book lover and a leader in academic press circles, Sandy Thatcher spotted a shortcoming in our Sunday paper and is helping to do something about it.

Let’s be clear.

There is much talk about federal earmarks these days, including coverage in the Centre Daily Times and a constant, negative drumbeat from presidential candidate John McCain.