Good points.

Not sure how McCain will answer the questions.

Still, I know McCain’s policy on comprehensive skilled and unskilled immigration. No idea what Obama is, excepting for saying pleasing things to both sides without actually doing anything.

More on Obama’s backwards view of immigration. Note the ‘bundle of work’ fallacy — I bolded it for your convenience. The following paragraph from the page you listed is vague and tortured — like most of what Obama puts out — but appears to be suggesting that we can/should reduce the number of H1Bs we let into the country:

While highly skilled immigrants have contributed in beneficial ways to our domestic technology industry, there are plenty of Americans who could be filling those positions given the proper training. Barack Obama is committed to investing in communities and people who have not had an opportunity to work and participate in the Internet economy as anything other than consumers. Most H-1B new arrivals, for example, have earned a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent abroad (42.5%). They are not all PhDs. We can and should produce more Americans with bachelor’s degrees that lead to jobs in technology

I don’t know what your point is re: 19th century. Are you suggesting that China and India colonizing new lands with their immigrants? I doubt it. More likely, you are bringing up an unrelated issue (SWF) in an attempt to change the subject from Obama’s bad record on immigration.

fl,

While I think we disagree on civil liberties when it comes to education anyway, I’ve previously considered McCain and Obama to be equally bad when it comes to science.

I am rethinking this, as I did not think that STEM labor was part of that debate. If it is, Obama’s definitely the worse candidate.

[1] http://www.tdaxp.com/archive/2008/04/06/why-i-support-john-mccain.html

Less controversial, Obama proposes the USG have a CTO and redefine & expand broadband access as well as doubling USG investment in basic scientific and technology research. He also wants patent reform, an issue I heard about often when living in the Seattle/Redmond/Everett area in 2006-2007.

http://www.barackobama.com/issues/technology/

To refute some of your post’s criticism here, @ that same link is his campaign’s position on H1-B visa reform and setting a pathway to a road to citizenship for these visa holders.

That’s the same comprehensive immigration reform John McCain once supported and offered as a bill but now tells conservative audiences he is against.

Your overall point about his 19th century view of a Great Powers conference misses the bigger picture, that through SWF’s and their own infrastructure & education programs, the rising nations in Asia and elsewhere have a government-centric view of R&D in the energy, computer and education sectors. Having a summit or three or creating an intra-national entity or contact group or whatever may be part of the solution rather than the problem.

I’d hope and think that a President McCain will pursue most of the same policies, albeit with a greater nod to the market in most areas.